The First Night

by ThisPonyIsNamedSinewave

Because You're Beautiful

"TAKE MY LOVE!"

Rainbow Dash winced as the large Spartan woman ground her spunky ninja girl into the wall. "TAKE ALL OF IT!"

With the announcer's "KO," Applejack had won another match between the two. The other four arrived shortly after Fluttershy had kissed me and escaped to the bathroom, and almost immediately Applejack and Rainbow Dash were on the PS5, playing their new fighting game. Rarity, Sunset, and I managed to get a few (very low-quality) rounds in with Pinkie substituting the game's live commentary with her own, but it was primarily matches between the two rivals-turned-lovers. Rainbow groaned, shooting daggers at Applejack as she said "I promise, your ass is grass when Wind Walker comes out." Applejack chuckled.

"Sure it is, sugar," she replied, kissing Rainbow on the cheek, bringing a blush out of the star athlete. As the two began another round, Rainbow swapping to a Trottingham-accented secret agent the announcer called "Killer Bee," I decided to get up from the couch and grab some snacks. Standing by the table was Sunset Shimmer, who had barely talked to me ever since arriving, wearing a small bag that had been on her person ever since she arrived. It clashed a little with her outfit, one made up of her traditional leather jacket, a triangle-patterned orange shirt, and purple jeans, but I was sure she had a good reason to be constantly adorned with it. She gave me a small smile as I approached.

"Hey, Twilight," she greeted. I gave Sunset a close-range wave as a gummy snake was caught in my jaw. I quickly noticed that Sunset was drinking something, and the hands holding her cup were incredibly shaky. I raised my eyebrow at her as I swallowed.

"You alright, Sunset?" I asked. Almost immediately, Sunset launched into an over-exaggerated series of arm waves and head tilts.

"What? Me? Psssh. I'm fine! Absolutely fine." I wasn't sure if her performance was more or less convincing than Fluttershy's from earlier, but it certainly wasn't fooling me.

"Clearly," I commented dryly before my unamused look turned into one of concern. "Seriously, Sunset, what's up?" Sunset sighed.

"Just... I wrote to Princess Twilight this morning and it's been hours and she still hasn't gotten back to me. It's really important..." She patted her bag, which I could see clearly now was magic-leather-book-sized. "It's why I brought the book to the party."

"Ah, I see," I nodded, slightly solemnly. While I understood the necessity of it, my super-secret and not-at-all-obvious crush on Sunset made sure that a twinge of jealousy spiked every time she mentioned the Princess. This never happened elsewhere, whether it was Sunset making lewd comments whenever she forced me to watch a pirated STARDOM pay-per-view or her eyes lingering a little too long on Fluer de Lis' backside, I never felt jealousy over other girls. It was just with the Princess. If I had to hazard a guess as to why, I would say it was because I thought she was simply a better me. Because, well, she was. In the brief time I had gotten to meet her after the Friendship Games, she had held herself well, spoke without stuttering or pausing for long stretches, and had even managed to not completely freeze up when hugging the other girls goodbye.

Also, she was hot. Like really hot. I hadn't asked her about it, given that I barely knew her, but I assumed she was biologically female which gave her a very distinct advantage over me. The Princess was... frustrating.

"Twilight?" Sunset's concerned voice grabbed my attention, with me realizing that I had spaced out again.

"Sorry, just... thinking."

"About Princess Twilight?" I nodded, and Sunset sighed. "Guess we both have her on our mind then," Sunset said as she took a sip of her drink. I nodded and shuffled away from the conversation, taking my place back on the couch, seeing that Applejack's win-streak counter had increased by three in the time I had left.

It was then that Fluttershy returned from her half-an-hour-long bathroom break. Almost immediately, Rarity took her into the kitchen and began talking to her, me being unable to hear their conversation due to the game. I was able to notice, however, both of them occasionally side-eyeing me. Soon after, both of them returned to the living room, with Fluttershy sitting in one of the chairs Pinkie had brought over from the dining table and Rarity, confusingly, kneeling in front of me on the couch. Then, for the second time that day, my chin was forcibly grabbed and my face was being examined. Rarity frowned. "Oh, this won't do at all." Rarity turned to Pinkie. "Do you mind if I use your bathroom?"

"Go ahead! Just don't do anything I wouldn't do," Pinkie replied with a wink. I blushed, and Rarity chuckled before turning back to me.

"Come with me, darling," she said as she grabbed my hand and pulled me off the couch. I barely managed to get any words out, only hearing snickering from both Applejack and Rainbow Dash as Rarity pulled me up the stairs. The last thing I saw before entering the bathroom was a nervous smile and a half-hearted shrug from Sunset. Rarity placed me in front of the mirror, giving me a good second to analyze my inherent flaws, before turning me away from it. As Rarity put down her handbag on the countertop and began taking what I assumed were cosmetic tools out of it, I was able to appreciate her dress better. It wasn't complex, a simple two-toned lavender-and-blue dress over a dark indigo long-sleeve top, but it was still stunning as Rarity always was.

Rarity glossed over her tools. "Yes, this should be enough," she said. I had no idea how Rarity was able to fit so much into one bag. Pinkie called it 'hammerspace,' which I assumed was some lingering effect of Equestrian magic.

"What... is happening?" I asked, concerned for my immediate future. Rarity turned to me with a smile.

"Why, we're re-doing your makeup, of course!" I cringed, which Rarity noticed. "Not to say that you didn't do a good job, darling, it's just that it simply doesn't do you justice!" Rarity explained. I tilted my head at her, confused.

"Justice?" I asked.

"Well, a girl as ravishing as you deserve 'the works,' after all." Once again, a strong blush stopped me from properly responding. Rarity equipped her glasses and clapped her hands together. "Right, let's get started!"

After Rarity removed my pre-existing light makeup with a wet wipe, the worst kind of wipe, she began by applying some moisturizer before spreading a small amount of strange gel I had never used before over my face. Rarity saw my confusion, explaining it was something called 'primer.' After a moment, she lifted my chin up slightly. "Have you gotten laser treatment, Twilight?" Rarity inquired. I shook my head.

"Never had the money for it," I replied. Rarity let out a small 'hm.'

"Interesting. Your chin is remarkably hair-free, then."

"Yeah. Thankfully, facial hair isn't something that runs in the family," I said, chuckling as I remembered a particular incident of Shining crying into our dad's arms when he found out he would never be able to grow a mustache. As Rarity applied liquid foundation (something I recognized) to my face, rubbing her fingers into my skin, she chuckled.

"Enjoying ourselves, are we?" she asked with a smirk, forcing me to realize that my lips had grown a pleasant smile.

"I, uh..." I tried to push words out of my mouth to no avail.

"Try not to worry about it, darling. I want you to enjoy this." Her voice got lower with the last sentence, sounding almost... sensual.

I shivered, the thought of an experience with Rarity similar to the ones I had with Pinkie and Fluttershy made me both nervous and excited. Nervouscited.

Rarity grabbed another bottle off the countertop and closely examined my face, bringing a small blush out of me. "Thankfully," she began, "you don't have anything I would need concealer for." Rarity then noticed something, looking directly at my eyes. Because, of course, I had eye bags.

Rarity sighed. "You needn't be so hard on yourself, darling, everyone around our age has eye bags," she said, trying to comfort me as she applied the concealer to the area under my eyes. "I do wish you wouldn't be so hard on yourself, it's awfully frustrating to know someone as beautiful as you think so lowly of themself."

As Rarity began applying blush, I had forgone blushing myself in favor of a sigh. "I'm not..." I began to rebut. "I'm not beautiful, Rarity. I wish I was, but I'm not, and I'm okay with that." Rarity remained silent as she finished with the blush and began highlighting parts of my face. "I know what I look like. I know what I am. I know I have a stiff jaw and low cheekbones and bad skin, and-"

"Stop." Rarity halted my speech of self-depreciation right in its' tracks before grabbing what I understood was eyeshadow. "Close your eyes," she requested, and I complied. "Now, I'm a little busy at the moment, but I will have words for you when we are done."

The final steps of eyeliner, mascara, and lip gloss went by without any talking from either of us. Rarity forcefully spun me around to look at myself in the mirror, and...

I almost cried. I actually looked like a woman. Rarity smiled.

"Do you know why I love doing other people's makeup, darling?" she asked me. I shook my head. "It's for reactions like these. The realization on their face when they come to know that yes, they are in fact beautiful." I stifled back tears. I didn't want to ruin Rarity's hard work.

"But that's because-"

"Contrary to what some more boorish people may say, makeup isn't a disguise or a lie. It only brings out and radiates what's already there, and you, my dear Twilight, are radiant."

And then Rarity kissed me.

You may be wondering how she kissed me, considering she was behind me. Well, she didn't want to ruin her hard work, so she instead targeted my collarbone, eliciting a very inappropriate moan from me.

"Gorgeous."

She kissed me again.

"Stunning."

She kissed me again.

"Divine."

With every touch of her lips to my collarbone, another compliment came. Burgeoning tears were long gone, replaced by a feeling of desire. My hands tightened up involuntarily, prompting Rarity to grasp one, intertwining her fingers with mine. Light kisses became stronger, and I suspected that Rarity was making something else she would need to cover up with makeup. Finally, much to my chagrin, Rarity stopped, looking directly into my eyes through the mirror. "I never want to hear another bad word about yourself out of you again. Do you understand?" I nodded silently, breathing heavily. She smiled at me. "Good." Rarity then inspected the light hickey she had made, reaching for her tools before stopping and smirking. "On second thought..."

Rarity left me standing there silently as she packed up. After she was done, she turned my head to face her, planting one last chaste kiss on my lips before leaving. "Take all the time you need, darling," she said as she closed the bathroom door behind her.

I stood there silently for minutes on end, processing what just happened, and how it related to the two previous incidents. Eventually, my brain was able to send the right signals to my mouth to form words. Said words came out as a cry for help, a plea to the universe, a direct request of knowledge to the Goddess Athena herself.

"What the fuck is going on!?"

Author's Note:

With Final Fantasy XVI beaten, I can get back to this! Also, apologies if I got anything wrong with Rarity's work, I don't know what makeup is.

Comments

[TheGJ90]

Of course, Rarity would talk of beauty in a healthy fashion.

[TCC56]

Applejack? Playing Marisa? Yeah, that scans.

[Moproblems Moharmoney]

Aha, I was right!

Love me some trans sci-twi, really adds to the isolation she was feeling in the friendship games.

[zachary12]

nice

[FanOfMostEverything]

Lovely stuff thus far. Looking forward to further planks of this polyship, and how long it takes for Twilight's brain to melt out her ears in response.