Epilogue
Three months later
There are many who deny the power of love.
But Rarity and Applejack could no longer be counted among them.
It was different. That was, of course, an understatement, but it was the only way it could really be described. Different. Not better, not more, not brighter or louder or more important.
Only different.
A few things had changed measurably.
One of the more obvious things was Rarity's residence. As far as Applejack could tell, the happenings in the Boutique had ended, but crossing the threshold still made Rarity's knees knock. And so, quite unceremoniously, Rarity moved into the farmhouse on Sweet Apple Acres.
Over the course of a few days, Applejack hauled Rarity's studio across town to the farm. One sewing machine, ponnequin, chest of drawers, or bolt of fabric at a time. Going into the Boutique still gave her a little shiver, but she had long since covered all of the mirrors, and found the task easy to bear with a little bit of whistling and a lot of sunshine.
Rarity would have helped, but another one of her changes left her a little out of sorts: no magic.
And not just under her own power-- Applejack had gone out of her way to fetch a potion from Zecora that would make magic impossible. Just a daily thing, like a vitamin. Rarity took it in her tea.
And so, on this morning, like so many others, Applejack fixed Rarity a cup of tea.
It was quiet work. Only that hitching whistle of the kettle on the stovetop, then the sputtering sound as she poured it carefully into a china teacup. The gentle clinking of the spoon against its surface. The smell of cherries and rose petals rising about her head in a cloud of steam as she stirred. Applejack wasn't quite sure if that was the smell of the potion, or just something special Zecora added to it for Rarity's sake, but the smell was now almost permanently intertwined with the sight of the rising sun.
Applejack considered making herself a cup, as well, but she never finished it. She didn't really like drinking tea, anyway. It had only ever been for Rarity. A little thing they did together.
The thought made her smile to herself, and she decided to join Rarity in a cup after all.
Before Applejack could finish preparing the tea, she heard the familiar creak of her bedroom door swinging open. Long and low and forlorn. Like a howling wolf.
Applejack cast a glance over her shoulder in time to glimpse Rarity padding softly into the kitchen.
"You're up early," Applejack commented.
Rarity sighed. "I'm not sure what came over me. Practically rose with the sun."
"Let's not rewrite history, sugar cube," Applejack said snidely. "I rose with the sun. You were still snoozin' like a cat on the sill when I got outta bed."
"To-may-to, to-mah-to, darling," Rarity muttered, lowering herself into the wooden chair she'd taken a shine to.
Applejack smirked at her.
Rarity smiled back.
Her smile had been getting better lately. Perhaps it was a silly thing to track, but it was filling up her eyes more and more. It was impossible not to notice something like that, Applejack thought.
She returned to her work, flipped teabags into the sink and stirring in milk and sugar. Applejack took hers black, but Rarity liked a little pizzazz. That was to be expected, of course. Anypony who knew Rarity well could have predicted it.
Anypony who knew her well.
Thoughts like that still gave Applejack a bit of a twinge. Nothing serious, just a little twist in her chest. A reminder of what she should have known, and yet didn't.
Applejack turned and delivered the teacups to the kitchen table. Rarity smiled gratefully up at Applejack as she did, and accepted the cup graciously. Like it was a true gift, and not a simple little breakfast.
"Thank you," she murmured, wrapping her hooves around the mug.
Applejack nodded. "Somethin' on your mind?"
Rarity looked down into her tea. That, in and of itself, was enough of an answer for Applejack, but she waited patiently for Rarity to think it through.
"I was thinking," Rarity said. "Perhaps it's rather silly to make such a big deal of it, but… I'd like to do my own mane today."
Applejack tried to keep her reaction reined in. "Okay. Meanin'..."
"Meaning I'd like to use a mirror," she said. "Not my magic, of course. I'm not quite ready for that yet."
Rarity was braver than most ponies gave her credit for. And that wasn't just a matter of facing monsters-- it was a stoicism that often went unnoticed. Rarity sure knew when to kick up a fuss, but she also knew when to stay quiet. When to bear things silently.
The look she gave Applejack was just that: a look of silent bravery.
"I-if," Rarity stuttered, "that is, if you'll sit with me. I'd rather not do it alone."
Applejack set her jaw. She said nothing for another long moment, just watching as Rarity turned her own words over and over in her mind.
"I know it's silly," Rarity said, looking down. "I just--"
"That ain't why I'm quiet, sugar cube," Applejack said. "I just wanna know if this is the right thing. You only just got into a good sleeping schedule, stopped havin' nightmares… and I'd hate to see you--"
"I can't avoid it forever." Rarity squeezed her eyes shut, holding back the years which so obviously brimmed there. "I need this to be the right thing, Applejack. I need to move on."
Stoic.
Firm.
Rarity.
Applejack nodded. "I understand."
Rarity perked up. "So you will, then?" she asked. "Sit with me?"
"Of course I will," Applejack said, as nonchalant as she could manage. "I've been through all this with you, and you think I'm about to draw the line at watchin' you comb your mane? You must be outta your mind."
"This isn't just about me," Rarity murmured. "I know you have some… I know you might have reasons to avoid mirrors, as well."
Her guilt was implicit.
And Applejack did have a bit of trepidation. Memories of blue reflections staring back, of mirrors cracking under her skull, of angry accusations hissed at her from behind the glass.
But she'd be damned if she let that stop Rarity.
"I never said I didn't," Applejack said simply. "But you're right. We can't avoid it forever."
Rarity smiled. This one was not as good as her others, for it didn't quite reach her eyes, but Applejack figured that was only fair.
"Finish up your tea, and we'll do your mane in the bedroom," Applejack said.
"Mhm."
The pair sipped slowly at their teacups, wanting simultaneously to get this over with as quickly as possible and hopefully delay it as long as they could. An impossible balance to maintain, of course. They finished their tea in just a few minutes, and quietly placed their teacups in the sink.
The pair hovered there a moment. Perhaps rethinking their plan, perhaps waiting for somepony to make the first move towards the bedroom. Either way, they were stuck in place until a feeling struck the both of them--a true bolt from the blue--and they turned to meander slowly down the hall together.
The vanity opposite Applejack's bed had been covered with a sheet for three long months. At first, Applejack had doubted she would miss it, but the lack of a proper reflection did begin to wear on her.
It wasn't something she could easily put into words. It was a curiosity she didn't know how to manage.
She knew she likely looked quite the same as she had before. But there was a nagging feeling that, when all of her insides had changed, her outsides had, as well.
"You ready?" Applejack asked.
Rarity closed her eyes. "I believe so."
"You sure?"
Rarity hesitated. "Yes."
"Positive?"
"Applejack!" Rarity whined.
"Alright, alright…"
And, just like that, it was no big deal. Something wonderful, even. Something to celebrate, and to laugh about.
Applejack reached up and tugged the sheet off the mirror. The motion gave rise to a not insignificant amount of dust, but the pair almost didn't seem to notice.
They were taking in the image which sat before them.
The same.
But different.
Two ponies who thought themselves unworthy of company for one reason or another. Who thought their lives were ending even as others' seemed to be just starting. Who had seen the power of magic and love and the absence of it.
Applejack and Rarity sat very close to one another.
That was new.
But they looked quite the same as they always had. As old as they had been the last they looked. Perhaps a little tired. A little wiser. A little hardened. Whatever it is that happens to you when you see the things that they had seen.
They were both in vibrant color. None of the blue creeping over them. None of the ice sealing them in.
Rarity blinked.
She looked into her own eyes for the first time in a long time, and perhaps saw somepony different there. Somepony different than she had expected.
And maybe that was a good thing.
Applejack looked over herself, wondering if the things she noticed now were changes or things which had been there all along. She had such a sea of freckles. She knew she'd had freckles, but goodness. They were wonderful. Like stars. And her chest, so wide and soft and welcoming. The perfect place to land for a bear hug that would squeeze away all the pain.
And her eyes.
She had old eyes now.
That was probably new.
But she rather liked it.
Rarity drew in a small breath.
"You alright?" Applejack asked softly, prying her eyes away from her reflection to look down at Rarity.
Rarity, too, looked away from the mares in the mirror and up at her friend. "Yes. I think I am," she said breathlessly. "I didn't think I would be."
"I know," Applejack cooed. "I'm proud of you."
Rarity blushed. "Nothing to be proud of."
"Not true," Applejack said, shaking her head. "This is everything worth bein' proud of."
Rarity looked back in the mirror.
She smiled.
And she looked at her smile.
And she smiled more.
"You know," Rarity said softly. "I suppose I should have brought this up earlier, but… aren't you curious?"
Applejack furrowed her brows. "About what?"
"About why it was, um… you," Rarity murmured.
Applejack was somewhat taken aback. "Uh. I thought it was just 'cause… I dunno," she stuttered. "Proximity?"
Rarity still looked into the mirror, but her eyes slid up to meet Applejack's reflection. Still smiling. Weaker than it had been before, but stronger in spite of everything.
"Um." Applejack felt her face flushing, and averted her eyes. "Are you sayin' it's… 'cause of somethin' else?"
Rarity sighed. "All I know is that all of this was borne out of some… some emotional knot that I'm still trying to untangle," she said, quite matter-of-fact. "And I know you're tied up in it all. And I thought you'd like to truly acknowledge that. Head-on. Honestly."
Applejack looked back to her friend. "Th-thank you."
"It's nothing," Rarity replied. "I just know it's been on your mind. It's certainly been on my mind."
"Sure."
"And I just don't want you thinking that I--"
"I love you," Applejack said.
Rarity stopped.
She was frozen for a moment, unsure what to do or how to respond. Just stuck. Her gears caught on some invisible monkey wrench.
"Sorry," Applejack quickly added. "I'm sure there were better ways to handle this. I just like the direct way best, I guess."
Rarity let out one breathy chuckle, though still seemed to be paralyzed for the most part.
"I just love you," Applejack repeated. "I always have. At least a little bit. And I think all this just finally made me realize that love isn't what I always thought it was."
Rarity blinked. "And… what did you think it was?"
Applejack shrugged. "I dunno. Princesses and knights in shining armor. Butterflies in your stomach," she said. "I guess I thought it was somethin' totally different from friendship, but I don't think it is. Not always, anyway. I don't think it's the big, loud thing they all said it was. I think it's just… quiet. And comfortable. And it's not butterflies, it's taking the butterflies away."
Rarity stared up at Applejack in dumbfounded silence.
"If that makes any sense, I guess," Applejack quickly added. "I dunno. You got me ramblin'."
Rarity didn't waste another second.
She dove in towards Applejack, embracing her tightly around her middle. "It makes perfect sense," she whispered into her chest. "And I love you, too."
Applejack hesitated a moment, but quickly wrapped Rarity up in her own forelegs and held her tight.
It felt for a moment that they could not be close enough to one another. That they could never be close enough. That they would have to keep burrowing closer and closer until they were one thing, one perfect thing which was warm and cozy and safe.
But they pulled away.
And the warmth and the safety was still there.
And, as they looked into each other's eyes, they saw that the warmth and the safety always would be there. However far away they were. However thoroughly separated.
There are many who deny the power of love.
But those who are lucky enough to find it, the truest and deepest kind, will never be lonely again.
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Bravo, Mushroom. Honestly, this was a fantastic journey from start to finish. I loved it, simply put.
The way you handled Applejack's views on love and how Rarity handled her own fears and insecurities. The way they both noticed and how it ended.
Loved it, from start to finish, straight into faves.
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Thank you so much, Silver Mint!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it, and I appreciate your comments so so so much. So so much. You're awesome
That was beautifully executed. Well done.
You said I would like the ending. You were wrong.
I loved it. The horror was genuinely gripping, Rarity pushing everyone else away due to her fears of abandonment felt real, and the romance was very well executed. I also give you this: the idea of magically creating a companion only for it to all go wrong makes perfect sense yet I don't think I've seen it before.
Anyways, well done. You get a follow.
Thank you, so very much for sharing this with us all.
Welp, that brought me to tears. Beautifully written, thank you.
My Little review & Feedback I did your review.
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Ah, I'm sorry that didn't work for you! Those sections are an intentional stylistic choice—not a typo—mimicking poetic meter and form. I knew it was a gamble when I did it, but I've seen it used to great success in works like House of Leaves, so I went for it. Sometimes that's what writing is all about: taking chances!
One of the biggest pieces of advice any author can give is: read. Read and learn from other works as much as you can, because it can help form a mental blueprint for forming your own style. And by the dark gods have I learned a lot from this story!
You have done magnificent work here, from all the little details about body language and physical appearance, particularly when something isn't quite right. I love the irony of Rarity's own loneliness spiralling out into a toxic form of self-love, pushing everyone away, and how the magic system reacts to the wielder's emotions.
The prose can be a little disjointed at times, though you are clearly going for a poetic feel, and much of the time, it works to great effect. The short, snappy sentences up the feeling of horror, and it makes the dialogue feel natural. SUPER natural, if you will :P.
It's a crime this story doesn't have more views. This is a story deserving of a full cast audio drama, and easily one of my favourite MLP horror stories of all time. This story is going straight onto both my favourites and recommended reads hall of fame bookshelves. It's that good. Well done!
Hello, a review to your story has been posted. I hope you find it helpful.
Pretty unsettling story! Featured it on episode 315 of my podcast, Pony 411.
What a beautiful story! Written horror is hard to get right and you did an amazing job. But not only that - you weaved an emotional journey into it as well. One of my new favorite stories on here!
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Wow!! Thank so much to the both of you! I will definitely be tuning into your podcast more often - you both have great energy and are very well-spoken. I'm sure it was a tough task to sell this fic without dropping major spoilers, but you did an amazing job! Thanks again
So this is the second story of yours I’ve read. Amusing to start with your first story Threshold and now come to one of your latest. (Poor Rarity can’t seem to catch a break!)
That said, I really enjoyed this one! Threshold had some good description, though an unconventional narrative which might cover it up some. Here where it’s more straightforward your prose really shines. Not to say unconventional narratives are bad or for you to stop them, just noticing your skill!
The mystery was good and I liked the slow build of tension and horror. It made the romance side of the equation all the better!
Seeing how Rarity knitted her golem/spirit was very interesting too. A creature made from her very own loneliness. Something so bittersweet about her needing to be hugged.
I absolutely enjoyed the ending and the emotions there. For all the horror this is a very romantic fic and it plays well to a nice adult view of love. Plus your Applejack is great. I like her a lot and the ending is great in so many ways.
Another excellent story! Horror and romance are a tough mixture to get right, and I did feel they conflicted a bit. Horror requiring a little mystery, which is suddenly negated by the very thorough flashback; and romance requiring lots of development of how they feel for eachother and importantly why, which is tough to fit in when you have to get through so much spooky stuff. But I love your work, keep it up!
Howdy, hi!
Brilliant. Absolutely loved this one (which you knew from my preread anyways but I will still restate). Everything about this story is glorious. The prose is really a standout with the powerful imagery in the fic (the ship analogy near the end was a real standout for me) and the absolutely delightful breaking of traditional writing formatting. It had taken me a moment to get used to it, but the sentence breaking with paragraph lines really emphasized the emotional weight of those scenes and added to the fantastic experience of this story.
As is the norm I find with your work, the emotions in the writing are solid, evoking the minute details of a character's state through the course of the story and selling the feelings of Rarity and Applejack at every point. The twist at the end with well *the thing* is wonderful, and something I had never guessed until the very end. It was such a unique idea and perfectly executed.
Oh, and the themes were spot on. Loneliness, love, old age, and everything in between were put on display and a delight to read into. This is the kind of story I could sit down and really sink into and dissect the themes, really think out the deeper meanings and thoughts behind the actions of the characters. It also opens up a lot of concepts and ideas in the magic space and is just a super great read.
Amazing work, a fantastic read, thank you for this ~!
Between this story and Threshold, you have really got a knack for supernatural mysteries. The whole first half, everything is terrifying because you have no idea what is going on. The second half, everything is terrifying because you now know exactly what is going on.
This has gotta be one of my favorite romance pieces of all time. The emotions, the writing, everything just melded together so well and I love it all. From start to finish, it hooked me onto the storyline, and I am proud to add this into my "Best stories" library. Please keep writing these kinds of stories, they're amazing.
ah, psychiatric medication metaphor?
why does this fic have to end? i could read your RariJack forever
this is just so great, bringing together the themes to a closure
so true!
i don't know what else to say here except that this might be one of the best fics i have ever read. i wish i could force more people to read it somehow. thank you so much for this mush, i really needed it
Fear no man, maybe two women put me on edge, but that love thing terrifies me.
Loved this story.
The ending was one of the best ever - very sweet and inspiring.
Just wanted to say this deserves much more likes and attention than it has. I really like how you wrote Rarity and Applejack’s interactions in this. On top of the excellent dialogue, the narration is just superb; I must admit, I’m jealous of how well you do narration. And it all turned out to have that right balance of suspense and romance which this fic needed. Thanks for doing one of my personal fav ships justice.
Hi! This was reviewed here, thank you for submitting!
You can has review!
Fantastic story. Truly phenomenal. The ups, downs, twists, and turns, all leading towards love triumphing over the worst horrors of all; the ones we make ourselves.
I am envious
Got'damn. I did not expect this when I saw it and started reading it. The atmosphere, the descriptors, the dialogue. I loved it. This is definitely one of those stories that not only leaves me with admiration, but also lights a fire under my ass to work on my own stuff.
This was a satisfying experience.
But those who are lucky enough to find it, the truest and deepest kind, will never be lonely again.Those are some wise words and my aeromantic + asexual ass is jealous since love sounds wonderful to me... when it's love between other people... who are NOT me... I dunno, my opinion of love has been very mismatched.
This was a wonderful fic and I am not able to leave a good review since I'm just, amazed... just have this and pretend I left a super detailed review:
Absolutely wonderfull story and fantastic prose! Can't help but think how funny it is to have a ghost take form of someone you love. like. girl. the ghost is sleeping in your bed and cradling you lovingly and it looks like your best friend. Untangle that
cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/446981734597263360/1218563172068364448/pony_posting_ghost_fucking.png?ex=66081e64&is=65f5a964&hm=ceddbdc51021e50ebfe03e313a15948bc5ebb4a83112766e9950fb5e846cbafa&
fanart i drew because i couldn't stop thinking about how funny this was in the literal sense lmao. Darlings. is it gay when the phantom you created as a manifestation of your dreadfull loneliness takes the form of one of your closest friends.
Incredible fic, the prose was beautiful to read. This has definitely ranked high on my favorite fic board