Chapter Six
Chapter Six
Many words rushed through Rarity’s mind; all of them crass. She despised the sun for bathing her in a most sweltering heat. She abhorred the wind for incessantly blowing her mane against her face—the strands like little whips—and she detested how repugnant she smelled after what felt like eternity without being washed. She loathed the walk—how the landscape seemed to have it in for her and how each step seemed to only push her farther away. But above all else, the thing that made her sick to her stomach—the one thing she wished she could just reach out and strangle—was herself.
She was a lady; a lady never gawks at her friends. Yet that was what she kept doing—whether she willed herself to or not—and she hated it.
They had been walking for at least half the day, maybe more. As the sun slowly rose to its apex, they walked. When it reached its highest point, they were still walking. And as it began to curve and descend, they trudged on.
Neither had spoken much, and when they had it had been for simple questions:
“Do you need to stop?”
“Can we rest here?”
“You alright?”
“Do you happen to have an extra apple with you?”
It was as though they were two robots—walking forward endlessly; never doing much of anything else. Rarity had taken time to observe certain aspects of her surroundings: the color of the flora, the shapes of the petals blowing in the wind, and the way the birds glided against the beautiful backdrop of a clear sky. She brainstormed combinations—would bird shapes look better in sequins or lace? On occasions, she’d blink to find herself staring at Rainbow; she’d blink again and be staring at the ground or a distant mountaintop. She would follow this up by muttering insults at herself. Luckily, Rainbow Dash never turned in time to see Rarity’s reddening face—Celestia knows she’d embarrassed herself enough already.
Rainbow, meanwhile, seemed to be lost in heavy thought. She would look at the sky on occasions, just like Rarity would, but her eyes would be unfocused and her brow furrowed more than Rarity had thought possible. Rainbow would occasionally glance back at Rarity, though their eyes would only meet for a single, confusing second before Dash’s gaze darted away. It was clear that something was troubling her, and Rarity was quite sure what it was—or rather, who.
Rarity understood where Dash was coming from; she would have been just as uneasy in the same position, if not more so. She wondered if Rainbow had noticed her... observing earlier. Rainbow had been looking at her when she’d snapped out of her reverie, so Rainbow knew that Rarity had been...
No, Rarity, that is in the past. Let’s just let it go already. So long as you don’t bring it up, it never happened, right?
Yes, she just had to forget about the whole situation; all she had to do was just keep walking and think only of home—warm bed, fabric from floor to wall, and a little sister most likely stuck in the adorable “apologetic” phase. Any step now, her hoof would fall upon a familiar dirt road, and everything would be back to normal. She giggled at the thought of dust being a welcome relief; it wasn’t the first change, and it probably wouldn’t be the last, but she hoped that it would be the only big one. How she wished that were the case.
She gave Rainbow the briefest of glances before turning her attention back to her surroundings. This lasted all of five seconds—it didn’t take long for grass to become the drabbest of things. With a shrug, she moved her attention to the rhythm of her hooves on the ground—perfect three-fourth time, just like a waltz. This too was ruined by the arrhythmic clops of another pony, running around her steps and ruining her cadence. Against her wishes and better judgement, her mind drifted down back towards the pegasus trotting in front of her.
Denying it would only add salt to the wound: she had a crush on Rainbow Dash. The thought sent a chill running up her spine and a bead of sweat trickling down her brow; what made it worse was the fact that, in spite of how much it bothered her, it really didn’t surprise her—especially after the last two days. Rainbow had always been sweet underneath the layers of bravado and brashness, and Rarity had to admit that she was beautiful—that mane and body were every fashion designer’s dream. She caught her gaze moving back to Rainbow, eyeing how she swayed, the way her muscles rippled with each step, every curve and...
You are acting like a child over a popstar! She fervently shook her head. Obsessing over her body instead of her charmingly impetuous and cocky personality... Drat... With another shake of her head, she wiped the thought from her mind. What was going on with Rainbow should be the least of her problems; yet she couldn’t keep it away.
The sky was starting to turn the faintest shade of red; dusk was approaching like a wolf.
“Um, Rainbow Dash?” Rarity asked.
“Yeah?”
“I thought you said that we were two days from Ponyville.”
“Yeah, and?”
“Well, it’s almost been two days and I have yet to see even a hint of the Everfree or Ghastly Gorge—let alone Ponyville.”
“Look,” Rainbow said, slamming a hoof against the ground. Before Rarity realized that Rainbow had stopped, she was already turned around, her face inches aways from Rarity's. “I was guessing, okay. I’ve never had to walk this.”
“No need to get in my face, Rainbow.” Rarity lifted a hoof and pushed against Rainbow’s chest. Rainbow didn’t move. Rarity gave a wry smile and said, “Honestly, I questioned your math from the start. I mean, two hours turning into two days...” She let out a chortle. “Let me guess: you’ve never actually timed how long it takes you to get here, am I right?”
Rainbow muttered something under her breath and kicked at the dirt.
“I thought so.” Rarity sighed. “Do you even know where we are?”
“Of course I do!” Rainbow turned around and stormed off with a huff.
Rarity rolled her eyes. “Rainbow, calm down, I didn’t mean anything by it.” Dash simply snorted and kept walking. Rarity sighed and, with a flash of her horn, grasped her tail in a magical aura. For a few seconds, Rainbow tried to walk against the spell, but it was to no avail. She then attempted to fling herself forward, but that failed as well. Finally, she surrendered and stood stock-still, a glower etched across her face.
“Are you done yet?” Rarity asked, walking up behind Rainbow until she was looking her in the eyes. She couldn’t help but giggle at the look on Dash’s face. She was trying so hard to be intimidating; it was adorable.
Rainbow grunted and glared at the ground, but eventually managed to nod.
“Good,” Rarity responded, turning to look where they had been walking. She squinted; she swore she could see the tops of distant trees, but that could have just been an illusion. Still, it was enough to rekindle the fading hope in her chest. She looked at Rainbow, giving her a small smile. “Should I lead the way, or are you going to refrain from such dramatics?”
“Whatever...” Rainbow muttered.
“Fine, have an attitude,” Rarity tried to say sternly, but she couldn’t fight the smile tugging at her lips. Rainbow had a way of being nothing short of cute when she was angry. She paused, a brief wave of hot anger washing over her body, but she let it pass. Why bother fighting the fact that she had a crush on Rainbow? A crush was simply that: a crush. She’d had them on ponies many times in her past, and she knew that, eventually, this crush—like the others—would fade. Sure, it would make interacting with Rainbow Dash awkward, but interacting with Rainbow Dash had always been awkward. She smiled again and nudged Rainbow’s side. “Come on! Get up!” Rarity didn’t even fight the laughter when she noticed the look of utter shock on Dash’s face.
“What’s so funny?” Rainbow asked, voice cracking.
“Nothing, darling,” Rarity said, wiping her eyes with a foreleg. “Let’s—heehee—let’s just go. It’ll be dark soon, and I’d prefer to not sleep in the middle of a plain.” With that, Rarity turned and began to walk, a stunned Rainbow stumbling along in her wake.
The walk didn’t last long. Rarity might have gotten hold of the reins, but that didn’t mean that she had gained magical powers of endurance. She was sweating profusely and panting hard, as if she had just finished a marathon through the mountains, no more than half an hour into their march; it was then that they came across the pond.
Normally, Rarity would have, at the very most, strolled over to the shore, dipped a hoof in, and then, maybe, taken a small dip. However, Rarity felt like she was being cooked alive. Without a word of warning, she ran to the pond and dove in. She kept her eyes closed and tried her best to ignore how dirty the water most likely was. It was cool, and that was enough.
She broke the surface and took a deep breath. Wiping her mane out of her eyes, she was greeted by a spellbinding sight. The stars were out and she could see the moon peeking out from behind the distant mountains. She even thought that she could see planets—what did planets look like anyway? Twilight had tried explaining it to her once, maybe twice before, but she’d had no interest in it. Sure, the cosmos were pretty, but Twilight made them sound so technical and dull. If memory served Rarity correctly, she had spent that lecture brainstorming a hat for her spring ensemble. Now, however, they were breathtaking, and she leaned back in the water and began to float. And she would have stayed that way forever if it hadn’t been for a grating voice ripping her from her reverie.
“The hay are you doing?!” Rainbow Dash stood on the bank, head cocked to the side.
Rarity sheepishly grinned before replying, “Come on in, Rainbow! This water does wonders in this heat.”
“Uh-huh...” Rainbow said, dipping a hoof in the water. Slowly, she moved forwards until all her hooves were submerged. She stopped, staring at the water, her face contorting in thought. Then, she looked up, directly at Rarity, and shot her a downright impish smile before jumping forward and swimming out towards her.
The pond wasn’t deep or big, but it was still a decent enough place to swim or simply relax. Rarity back stroked over to a bank, and rested against it, letting the water soak into her coat and wash away all that barbaric grime. She dipped her head back underwater and pulled it back out once more. Her mane fell into her face; she took a deep breath and cried out. It was actually clean again. Maybe not as much as she would’ve liked it, but beggars can’t be choosers in the middle of nowhere. She smiled and leaned back again, bathing in the moment. If she thought hard about it—and used enough imagination—it was almost like a spa. The wind had picked up just enough that a light breeze was blowing through her mane, and the crickets were beginning to chirp out their calming songs. She felt as though she could fall asleep right then and there; she would have if it hadn’t been for a sudden splash of water drenching her face.
“Rainbow Dash, what was that for?” she seethed. All Rainbow did was chuckle as she swam up beside her, leaning against the bank herself.
“Nothing. Just swimming. Just like you were.”
“Yes, but must you be so... splashy while doing so?”
“No,” Rainbow said, kicking one of her hind legs, splashing the water once more, “but it’s a lot less boring this way.”
“What you call ‘boring,’ I call ‘peaceful,’” Rarity said, tapping the grass with her hoof. In a way, it was just like the hot tub at the sauna, only dirtier, colder, and occupied by a pegasus that couldn’t stay still for more than a second. She shook her head and continued, “Honestly, Rainbow Dash, do you ever stop?”
“Stop?” Rainbow smirked. “What’cha mean ‘stop?’”
Rarity sighed. “Forget it. It’s of no importance.”
“Sure...” There was a flash of something in Rainbow’s eyes. Rarity tilted her head. Now, what on earth was that look for?
Rainbow began to kick at the water again, slower this time. “So, how’re ya doing, Rares?” she asked. “You seemed a bit freaked out last night.”
“I told you this morning,” Rarity said, flinching as another splash of water hit her face. “I was just... worried.”
“Heh, I remember this morning. Heh, I remember it real well, actually. You didn’t say a single word about all that, though you were acting a bit strange.” Rainbow leaned back, the water coming up to her chin as she wrapped her forelegs behind her head to form a makeshift pillow. “What was up with all that?”
Rarity swallowed and chuckled. “I... have no idea what you’re speaking of, Rainbow.”
“I think you do.” Rainbow kicked at the water once more; this time she held her leg out above the water.
“No, Rainbow, I don’t.”
“Yeah, you do.” Then, like some kind of temptress, Rainbow began to rotate her hoof, the well-toned muscles in her leg flexing in a most enticing way.
Rarity looked away. She could feel her face heating up—how she hoped Rainbow didn’t notice that she was blushing. “Stop that,” she said.
Rainbow gave a grin that Rarity could only call ‘sinister,’ and kicked at the air. “Stop what?”
“Stop! Please!” The heat was coursing through Rarity’s body now; her skull felt like it was about to burst.
“What?” Rainbow moved her forelegs from behind her head. “We’ve been walking all day, Rares; I’m sore.” Her small, devilish smile said otherwise. She reached out and began to massage her leg.
Rarity swore she felt her head cracking like an egg. “Stop!” she yelled, slamming her forelegs into the water, showering Dash in a wave of water. Rainbow gasped for air and parted her now-matted mane from her eyes, which were now set on Rarity, a mischievous glint in them.
“I knew it,” she whispered, chuckling to herself as she propped one foreleg onto the bank. “I thought I saw you checkin’ me out this morning, but... now this just confirms it.” Rainbow guffawed. “You totally have the hots for me.”
“I...” Rarity let the words drift off. There was no use use denying it; she knew and Rainbow knew. To even fight it would be a waste of time and effort. She looked up and saw Dash staring at her, smirking and eyes half-lidded. She sighed and decided that now was as good a time as ever to deal the final blow.
“Yes,” she said with as much grace as she could muster. “Yes, Rainbow Dash that is true. I have indeed grown infatuated with you.”
Rainbow cocked her head and frowned. “Infatua—what, now?” She didn’t get an answer; Rarity was already out of the water and trudging towards a nearby boulder.
Well, you’ve done it, Rarity. You’ve put a stake right through your heart. Congratulations. Her eyes burned and she sniffled, but kept her chin held high; sobbing wouldn’t drown out what had already come and her tears weren’t going to wash away the truth. No, a lady was always dignified, even when admitting she was little more than a heathen.
She lay down next to the boulder and curled into a ball. The wind was picking up and the air had grown frigid. For a moment, she longed for a wing to keep her warm, but that was not what she needed right now. What she needed was escape, and the only way to go was within. Against her wishes, the tears came; she let them flow. As she began to drift off, she heard the sound of hooves approaching her. She cracked her eyes open and saw a familiar shade of cyan inches from her. She opened her eyes a bit more and tilted her head up. Rainbow stared at her, all mischief gone from her eyes. Now she only looked like she wanted to apologize.
Rarity didn’t want to hear her voice right now—didn’t even want to remember that existed. With a grunt, she turned her head away and fell into an uneasy sleep.
Special Thanks to: Cynewulf
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Yay! Not a bad chapter, and glad to see it out at last.
Poor Rarity... she's so confused and sads. ;_;
*Sees Third Time's a Charm update*
*Dances*
*Sees still marked Incomplete*
*Dances some more!*
Yay! Been looking forward to this story updating.
I would read this... but I need something to do during my spare tomorrow... BUT I WANT IT NOW!!!!!!!!!!!
The amount of conflicting desires is too damn high!
Squees... and then that ending.
Hmm... something tells me Rarity might just be jumping to conclusions...
Poor Rarity... pretty nice chapter, by the way.
Yay! Update!
...
*INHALE*
YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES!
I love this story it's so cute! Awesome chapter can't wait for more.
Yay! An update! Huzzah!
A bit shorter than I had hoped for but the quality seems as high as ever. Good to see that their trip has been extended a bit. Kind of a jerk move of Dashie there towards the end, although I don't think she meant anything bad by it. I hope she can make it up to Rarity soon. The ship seems to be sailing less smoothly than before but it is still going strong. Hm, I bet this doesn't really live up to Rarity's dreams of how her confession would go over. Personally my headcanon of Rainbow is that she hasn't had any real experience with romance at all, so this could just be a symptom of her not having any idea what to do about someone with a crush on her. Of course your headcanon could be entirely different.
Thanks again Razed, I always look forward to reading this fic. Out of curiosity, about how many more chapters are you planning for?
Amazing chapter! All the feels in the last few paragraphs
I demand a next chapter!
Now you are just teasing us with updates.
Fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff CLIFHANGERS.
Good chapter!
But dat Cliffhanger!
1748963 ah but that is writing.
The name of the game is torture by tantalizing. You have to keep going and going until you reach the end, and then finally you get to have your grapes or cheese or whatever. :3
Horse bird and marshmallow pony feels chap, engage! I liked it.
Your handle on Rarity was fantastic in this chapter. The inadequacy and self-hatred that she gets from falling for a friend was well-handled and insightful, as usual. And the last sentence gave me chills, man. great chapter.
First time I see somepony confess in this manner, second time I see somepony confess in a similar manner.
Next chapter can only come too slowly
Hm. What will happen next? Awaiting the next chapter.
1748980 Wine and cheese; you mean.
You start with milk and grapes not sour,
With these you set out with neither spice nor flower.
You bottle the grapes and curdle the milk,
And soon you'll have food for all your ilk.
Rarity curled up into a little ball? Would she roll away?
I don't know why, but at the end of the chapter, I thought of the Magic Duel episode, specifically where Spike is turned into a ball.
I can't help but think of a purple-molded marshmallow ball with a horn sticking out of it to stab anyone unfortunate enough to mistime their contact.
1749516
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1749820
1749516 the mane 6 are all mares but you expect all fics to have absolutely no same sex couples? I sincerely hope you are joking.
At least she's not completely oblivious!
The last thing this story needed was another sexually ambiguous Rainbow Dash that can't tell from a friendly stare to being eyeballed for her sex appeal. It wouldn't get anywhere, and in the end it'll just culminate in another impulsive kissing scene to finalize Rarity's feelings for Rainbow Dash and make things even more awkward than they already were. On another note, there is nothing more shameful than getting caught peeping at the object of your desire after you've sworn to the river Styx that you were never going to let them in on your dirty little secret. Hiding in the closet.
Great story, mate. I just caught up to this one and thought I'd give it a shot. Usually I'm for FlutterDash, but it's nice to read another shipping fic starring everyone's favorite rainbow pony. I swear she was made specifically for this type of fandom.
Also, because your writing style's that good. 
1749516
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Really now, your favorites seem to call you a damn liar. Why would you bother to troll? Not a fan of Raridash?.
Ohhh Rarity finally spoke out her feelings, I really want to know what happens no-
~end of chapter~
FFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU
I demand moar
This was damn fine
. Fuck, now I have to waste time.
Hmm... I must admit, I'm not the biggest RariDash fan in the world (ok, more like I've never even thought that the pairing existed) but this sounds pretty good...
Will read later.
~Have a savvy day!
~
1749516
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'the color of the fauna'
I'm not sure, but I think you might mean flora
1752436
Ew, 9gag.
She was a lady; a lady never gawks at her friends.
Gawks
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Yes ! She said it !
I can't wait for the next chapters
Rainbow was teasing Rarity pretty hard there. Well now that she knows things can be done. Oh so many things.
Till next time!
I was toying with checking out this story for some time now. Today, I decided to have a look.
I just finished marathoning the whole thing. Nice work! F-ing cliffhangers.
MOAR. NOW.
Wonderful chapter, Such constant and delicious tension
The frequent gawking was totally hot, especially knowing that Rainbow was aware of it for a good while. But now the tension is over. Rainbow's teasing was quite enjoyable. But poor Rarity, all curled up in a little ball crying 
She must feel so exposed. I want to be Rainbow right now so I can hug her and lay a wing over her and tell her it's all okay, even if she does sleep through all of it.
I hope the next chapter starts with her waking up under a wing
I hope the next chapter is soon
nice chapter it's good to have an update
Rainbow Dash, the most unintentionally cute of the mane 6.
It's so true!
dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/emoticons/sillyfilly_Rarity.png Stop it you temptress!
dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/Rainbow_Dash_lolface.png Nope, you want me!
Welp, I've got feels now. Dammit
In The Next Chapter..
"Pssst.. Rarity? You awake? Sorry, I'm so hot! Maybe we could.. you know.. since we're both wet... "
"..I promise I won't be 'splashy'!"
Okay. This isn't how I expected Dash to respond; she's been a lot more gentle and... nicer to Rarity up until now, but I guess Wet-Mane Rarity drives ponies to do terrible things. Anyway, I like it. Dash always seems to wind up as the one being teased in these stories, so seeing her go on offense is a good change o' pace. Poor Rarity, though...
1758534bbsimg.ngfiles.com/1/24281000/ngbbs507f51e8d325b.jpg
1749516 Stop same sex shipping? sure... why don't you draft up the designs for about... oh, idk, 20-30 good stallions, gotta do all the character development too, give them cutie marks, personalities and quirks, make them love able, and then submit them to hasbro... If they get in the show, then the same sex shipping will maybe stop... as long as the gender ratio is off this badly, though, same sex shipping is inevitable. Also.... I don't know what nic means, but the only thing I can think of when I see that, is network interface card. Are you trying to connect more computers to the good ol' world wide web? then what the buck does nic mean?
1753140 gawks? I see what you did there? I have the feel that I missed a joke... the significance escapes me...
anyways..... yea, I think this is a good chapter too. twidash is my favorite shipping (i think), but i've really been loving this one too. hell, i guess if it involves dash, then it gunna be good. I still d'aw at the whole "she kept me warm by extending a wing" scene in the previous chapter. Its what I thought about when I watched today's episode when dash 'took scootaloo under her wing'. maybe I'm wierd for this, but I got the biggest smile in real life when I saw that part, I was like "YES, BUCKING YES! Ponies using their wings in an affectionate manner is now cannon!"
1766314 It looks like "gak"
you probably didn't get it because it doesn't sound like "gak" (in the first place, I thought it sounded the same because I'm french and not used to speak english but rather to read and write it 
) oh I typed the word "it" 5 times ! Now 6 because I just typed it again ahahah isn't it too much or should I ch- #typicalpinkie
1768741 oh i see. I asked because it wouldn't surprise me if a joke went over my head, it happens all the time. Also, the "it" count in your statement really wasn't noticeable. "it" is one of those words that you can use quite often without it sounding bad.
and yes, I believe in, and love the pinkie moments... everyone has to have one now and then
1769063 Indeed !
th07.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/i/2012/191/7/d/pinkie_pie___wooh__by_quanno3-d56ojwk.png
Cute
your doing great this is getting better and better.
Excellent. Eager to see the next chapter. So far I think you're doing a fabulous job!
Please keep writing, I'll keep reading!
I like the scene where Rainbow was confirming Rarity's crush, it just really seemed to work with Raonbow Dash's persenality, much better than most stories that I've read where Dash finds out her friend has a crush on her.
At first i was likei514.photobucket.com/albums/t342/damiano014/th_Ohforgotthisonetoo_78c4ef287b3c86c21ae0e847d220aebf_zps7673fd45.gif
But then i was like i514.photobucket.com/albums/t342/damiano014/th_vylxB_zps921e8996.gif
I'd love to see where the story will go from here, because rainbow knows, and they're both gonna be alone for who knows how long.
Can't wait!