Tragic Magic

by Twinkletail

Chapter 5

It had been hours since Rarity had gotten home from talking to Twilight, and she still had not chosen an ensemble for tonight's occasion. Such a thing was not entirely uncommon for the fashion-minded unicorn. In fact, if questioned about it, Twilight would likely say, in the most complimentary way possible, that the amount of time that Rarity was taking now was nothing compared to one of her typical preparation rituals. Every article of clothing that fell under consideration had to pass a strict examination, taking current trends, compatibility with other articles, and even mood and time into account. This was normal, but in Rarity's mind, tonight's event required extra-special care. She was positive that Trixie would be going all-out to make sure she looked smashing. The prize for tonight was the heart of the fair Twilight Sparkle, and while Rarity trusted that she had victory secured, this did not mean that Trixie would not fight tooth and claw to claim what she wrongfully believed to be rightfully hers. Surely she was spending this time primping and preening as well. Rarity could envision her in front of Twilight's bathroom mirror, tending to that ratty monstrosity she called a mane. She thought about Trixie applying gaudy amounts of makeup to her despicable face as she applied excessive amounts to her own. Trixie doing so was gaudy, but for Rarity, it was befitting of the radiant beauty that she exuded.

Trixie was likely coming into this looking for a battle, the white unicorn thought as she carefully curled her eyelashes. She certainly seemed the type to gallop brashly into a situation like this, horn blazing. For this reason, Rarity knew that she had to handle the situation with a level of dignity and grace that hid her contempt for the blue one. She knew her Sparkle Kitten well enough to know that she would be unhappy with whichever of them threw the first strike towards the other, whether it be verbal, magical, or even physical. Rarity had more grace than that. She vowed to herself that she would not allow herself to fall for any of Trixie's attempts to get her goat. She would be a shining portrait of patience, maturity, and eloquence, a stark contrast to the slovenly demeanor of her rival.

The fashionista stared at herself in the mirror. Her long, arduous preparation ritual was finally complete, and her appearance showed every bit of the effort put into putting it together. Rarity would be graceful and keep from initiating any conflict, but that did not mean that she would sit back and do nothing to deter her braggadocios foe's behavior. Her mane was perfectly styled, her dress sleek and form-fitting, her eye shadow stunning, her lips pouty and kissable. She would not have to worry about Twilight's attention being taken by Trixie, because Twilight would never want to take her eyes away from her marefriend. She topped this off with a quick spritz of her Kitten's favorite perfume of hers; just enough to tickle Twilight's senses, but not enough to overpower. Such a thing would come off as a clear sign of desperation, a tactic more befitting of Trixie. She could only imagine how much perfume Trixie was drenching herself in, as part of her futile attempts to woo Twilight back. Pathetic.

A quick glance at the time shook Rarity from her reverie over her appearance. If she did not leave at this very moment, she would be late, and if there was one thing that Twilight disliked more than anything else, it was tardiness. Well, tardiness and disorganization. Two things. Regardless, it was imperative that she leave right then, and leave she did. She was fortunate in that the club was only a short trot away from the Boutique; if it was any further away, she never would have had a chance of making it on time. The club was a fairly new addition to the town, having been opened by the strange business pairing of Vinyl Scratch and Berry Punch. The efforts of the two had created a wonderful social gathering place, showcasing the best new music they could find and serving delicious beverages, both alcoholic and non. It was a favorite date location for Rarity and Twilight when they didn't particularly need private time with only each other. She grinned as she neared the club, seeing Twilight approach at the same time. Her timing was indeed impeccable. Trixie was curiously absent, but this did not bother Rarity too much. She watched Twilight's eyes sparkle as she approached, and knew that the attention paid to her appearance was not for naught. Twilight had also dolled herself up for their evening out, but while she admired the loveliness that Twilight radiated, she was a bit better at keeping her calm than Twilight, who was staring at her with admiration in her eyes.

"Good evening, Kitten," Rarity cooed as she slinked up to her, giving her a warm greeting nuzzle. She pulled back to gaze deep into her violet eyes, and chuckled lightly when Twilight's response got caught in her throat. She stood close to Twilight, allowing her to get a nice whiff of the perfume, listening to Twilight's contented sigh as she took it in.

"Did our third for the evening not show up tonight?" the white unicorn asked her love. She hated to break the moment by bringing up the one who was intruding on their time together, but she felt the need to do so anyway. To bring up her absence might spotlight it and show Twilight that she was not worth her time,

"Oh, she's already inside," Twilight responded, eliciting a slight frown from Rarity. "The three of us are going to spend some time together, but then I'm going to go to the bathroom to give you two a bit of time to talk things over, alright?" In truth, Rarity was not alright with this. Spending time with that harlot was only just bearable due to Twilight being around; time alone with her would be very difficult. She could not say no to her Kitten, though. She had to handle this maturely, and so she forced a smile to grace her countenance and allowed her head to nod in defiance of her true feelings. Twilight thanked her with a gentle kiss, then led her inside. Rarity's eyes darted to their usual table, and there was the blue one, sitting in her usual chair. She scoffed silently to herself; Trixie had made no effort to primp herself for the evening. She should have expected this, she thought. Surely Trixie did not have enough class or style to compete with Rarity's beauty. She must have conceded in advance to save herself the trouble. Her confidence boosted even further, Rarity strode to the table, giving her rival another forced smile.

"Good evening, Trixie," Rarity said through closed teeth.

"Rarity," Trixie said in response, striking back with an equal dose of confidence. Upon closer inspection, Trixie had put a bit of effort into her appearance. Little wisps of eye shadow danced off the corners of her eyes, and Rarity was forced to admit that had she not met her under such inauspicious circumstances and held such a negative opinion of her, she might have found her attractive.

"Who wants drinks?" Twilight asked cheerfully as the two sat down.

"Trixie shall get them!" Trixie responded. She gave a smile to Rarity. "Trixie wishes to bury the hatchet between us, Rarity. She hopes you will allow her to purchase your first drink." Rarity tilted her head, unsure of this arrangement, but to turn the offer down would likely look bad to Twilight, and this was not an option.

"Very well, Trixie," she replied. The showmare smiled and glided to the bar, putting in a drink order. Rarity watched her carefully, until her gaze was pulled back to Twilight, who was giving her the sweetest smile. She found herself caught off-guard and melting into Twilight's eyes, unable to concentrate on anything else until Trixie returned with their drinks.

"Your favorite drink, Rarity," Trixie said with what Rarity interpreted as a very fake smile. "Just as Twilight told me." The white unicorn looked her drink over. Indeed, it was a Cosmarepolitan, her typical drink of choice. She gave a delicate nod to the blue one as she took her drink, forcing yet another smile before she took a sip. At least she was trying, she supposed. Although it was likely some manner of deception.

"Dulcet Tone!" Trixie suddenly exclaimed, pointing to the DJ booth. "She sings this song! Did you know that the Great and Powerful Trixie once performed with her?" Rarity rolled her eyes as the braggart went into a drawn-out story, dropping names like apples from one of Applejack's trees. She was doing her best to feign interest, but in truth, she had no desire to hear about who Trixie had hobnobbed with. She finished her drink, acknowledging to herself that this was going to be a long night.

"Have you finished your beverage, Rarity?" Trixie asked, taking a break from her story.

"Oh, yes," Rarity said. "It was marvelous, thank you." She caught a big smile from Twilight out of the corner of her eye. Perhaps the knowledge that seeing her ex and her current love getting along made Twilight happy was enough to get Rarity through the night. Before she knew it, another Cosmarepolitan drifted in front of her, the remains of Trixie's magical aura fading from it.

"Trixie is treating tonight," the showmare said. "As a sign of new friendship." Rarity smiled a little more earnestly.

"Thank you, Trixie," she made herself say, taking a sip. She still did not trust Trixie, but at least she was making the evening bearable by providing her with drinks. She was even behaving herself physically. A hoof would occasionally glance over Twilight's shoulder, but it was likely just a friendly action and nothing more, as she would do the same to Rarity here and there. Perhaps she was not entirely reprehensible.

"This reminds Trixie of the time that she shared a drink with Equestrian dance legend Sandy Soles!" Trixie said, raising her glass. Rarity rolled her eyes and ordered another Cosmarepolitan, even though she was yet to finish her second. She knew she would need it.

The night went on in that fashion for about an hour and a half. Twilight and Rarity would occasionally interject with stories of their own, but Twilight was not one for bragging, so her stories were few and far between. Rarity was normally more open to talking about herself, but the combination of her disdain for Trixie and the drinks she was throwing back to help deal with said disdain left her mostly silent. By the time Twilight excused herself to the mares' room as planned, Rarity was mostly just stewing, mentally grumbling about exactly what Trixie could do with the ritual staff that she had allegedly been granted by an ancient shaman. It was not until she noticed the sudden halt in conversation that she realized she'd been left alone with the blue one. She turned her head haphazardly, trying to focus her eyes on the self-absorbed unicorn in front of her. She hated her voice. She hated her mane. She hated her annoying face, her dumb purple eyes that wished they were as deep and gorgeous as Twilight's, her despicable lips that had touched Twilight's so long ago and would never do so again.

"Are you enjoying yourself, Rarity?" the beast asked, her breath smelling of fresh peppermint. Rarity had never hated peppermint until now. She hoped that her mind would not form a lasting correlation between the two, or she would have to stop frequenting Twist's house for fresh supplies of candy canes. She was positive that the friendliness Trixie was showing was all a sham, though she idly wondered why she was keeping it up while Twilight was away. She did not answer the question. She was too busy hating Trixie's sweet little faked smile.

"You look splendid tonight, Rarity," Trixie said. Now she was trying to butter her up with compliments. She did not need compliments from that harlot, especially when they were things she already knew. She hated her fake behavior, the way she daintily crossed her hooves on the table in front of her, the way the curl in the front of her mane bounced as she tossed it out of her face.

"Your marefriend looks lovely as well," Trixie said with a smirk. Rarity's drunken glare hardened, staring down the blue mare who was now tossing her mane proudly. How dare she speak that way about Twilight? She stared daggers at the contemptible braggart, whose only response was to flutter her long eyelashes at her. She hated her.

"H-How dare you!" Rarity slurred, pointing a hoof at Trixie in a very un-ladylike manner. "You...boastful little..." Trixie put a hoof to her own chest, shocked.

"Boastful?" the blue unicorn asked, looking hurt. "The Great and Powerful Trixie does not know what you mean." Rarity got up from her seat at this, nearly stumbling. She hated the way Trixie's purple eyes stared deep into her own. She hated the faint whiff of vanilla from either her perfume or her shampoo. She hated the way her full little lips curled into a slight, bemused grin. She hated how soft those lips felt when pressed against her own. She hated the way her minty breath invaded her mouth.

Rarity pulled back as quickly as she could, a baffled look on her face. Trixie's face reflected this, but her shock was nothing compared to the shock on Rarity's, and neither of theirs could hold a candle to the distress on the face of the returning Twilight. Rarity stared at her marefriend, eyes wide and confused. She touched a hoof to her lips, disconnecting the tiny strand of saliva that until that moment had still been connecting her to the perplexed blue unicorn. Rarity tried to speak, but nothing would come out. Her brain would not provide her mouth with words, for it was unable to come up with any to explain what had just happened. She watched the purple unicorn's ears droop, her beautiful violet eyes welling up with tears. Before Rarity's alcohol-inhibited body could make a move, she was gone, the club door slamming in her wake. Rarity looked to Trixie, who stared at her as if she was the most despicable being in existence before running after Twilight.

Perhaps she was, she thought as the eyes of the club's remaining patrons fell upon her. Perhaps she was.

Comments

[Clouded Mind]

Bwuh?

[Triforce of the Gods]

Goddammit Rarity

[Sunset_Shimmer83]

Did Rarity just kiss Trixie.................

[Aurora Dimmet]

This was Trixie's plan. To talk up friendship in front of Twilight, knowing Twilight's too forward and frankly simple in these matters to understand, and would take Trixie's words at face value.

Then to get Rarity drunk, using her favorite drink which she wouldn't say no to. And I'll bet she even figured that her extra display of those traits she knows gets under Rarity's skin would drive her further into drinking. She set Rarity up to break Twilight's heart, so Trixie could claim innocence and 'be there' for Twilight after exposing her 'cheating' marefriend.

... I'm not sure if this is rape or what since it didn't get past a kiss, but alcohol was planned and used for this specific outcome on the part of Trixie. Twixie might normally be my OTP, but I'm hoping Rarity enlists some help to remove Trixie for good. Twilight's being a fucking dunce. She is -with- Rarity, so giving Trixie chances to get between them makes NO sense. Your partner is supposed to be the one who is most important to you. If Rarity is uncomfortable with Trixie's presence, then it's up to Twilight to remove Trixie from the equation with a sense of finality. It's not Rarity's fault, this is Twilight's for being so stupid about relationships (also, giving Trixie so much free rein is normally a tell that she still has some sort of feelings for her) and Trixie for maliciously trying to take Twilight from Rarity.

This is starting to get personal, if this doesn't have a quick turnaround I'm not sure I can continue without raging every chapter due to my own experiences in Rarity's position.

[psykoticSLY54]

well, that came out of left field

Blegh! Cliff hangers

I'm very interested as to where this is going, So you win this round, TwinkleTail. Take a mustache, you've earned it

[metroid_freak]

Um...what?

[deathbot4]

Wat