Won't You Have Some Tea With Me?
It was supposed to be a nice Tea Time between friends. Nothing weird about it. Nobody would bat an eyelash if the Rainbow Dash decided to spend an afternoon with Fluttershy. They'd been best friends since they were practically in diapers. Rainbow could make a sacrifice or two for Shy. Even if those sacrifices weren't always as much of a sacrifice as she painted them to be.
But now, in this sudden moment of awareness, things had changed. Now, a closet door was ajar, just waiting for someone to shove it open and see everything.
Now, there was Rarity.
The fashion-conscious young lady – for there could be no calling Rarity a mere 'girl' – was in Fluttershy's house. She'd let herself in. She was calling for Fluttershy herself, who was sitting across from Rainbow. She would be here, in the Sun Room.
There was no need to look down. Rainbow knew exactly what would be witnessed by that most gossipy of friends. A quaint tea set. Rainbow's own cup near empty, the pitcher in her hands to pour some more. The pink shirt she was wearing – pink, and not even the cool kind of pink! The tan skirt that fanned out a little, with a hint of lace along the bottom and the hearts on the pockets. Her normally wild hair done up in a bun. Expertly so, thanks to Fluttershy's experience. She even wore some simple dress shoes.
Rainbow's eyes darted to her host, praying that she would be just as surprised by this turn of events. Instead, she looked on in horror as Fluttershy's eyes lit up with eagerness. There was no surprise in them, no alarm at having this private moment interrupted. The normally jumpy girl didn't so much as squeak. That's how Rainbow knew, with hideous certainty, that this was an entirely expected turn of events. Rarity had been invited.
Anger threatened to wash over Rainbow at this abject betrayal. Of all people, Fluttershy alone knew. Nobody else in the world would be allowed to see Rainbow in this state of... of girly. Rainbow Dash wasn't girly. She was an athlete, a tomboy. She was an awesome, hard-hitting, roughhousing young woman, and that was just the way she liked it! Nobody needed to know that sometimes, when she got tired, when she wanted a change of pace, when she felt like not being 'Rainbow Dash' for a measly hour or two, she would have Tea Time with her best friend.
Tea Time had become something special between them. A chance to get together and stop putting on airs. Rainbow could be the flowery, gentle creature nobody associated with her, and Fluttershy could voice her undaunted, firm opinions without fear of being judged. She even dressed for the occasion. With her blue sweater and black pencil skirt, with her hair done up all nice – something Rainbow helped with a lot more than one would think – and with her butterfly earrings, she looked like she was ready to attend a board meeting rather than have some tea with a friend.
This was their moment. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. Them. Only them! What kind of gall did she have, to just invite someone else out of the blue without asking her first? And Rarity, of all people! If she found out about Rainbow's inner girl, her reputation would be ruined! Did Fluttershy not understand that? Did she not realize the disaster those clicking heels prophesied?
Then came the change. Fluttershy had already called out to Rarity, but now she became aware of Rainbow's gaze and her eyes lost their luster. Worry seeped into her expression, a subtle awareness that maybe, just maybe, she had made a mistake. But it was too late to take it back. Those heel clicks were getting closer. And now came the moment of consequence: what would Rainbow do?
She could deny. It would be easy enough to act bored and frustrated and, if she really wanted to be theatrical, spit the tea out. Even if she liked it. Then she could tell Rarity she had lost a bet, or maybe that she was doing it as a favor to Shy. She could swear never to do it again. It wouldn't be honest, but Fluttershy...
Fluttershy would hesitate. She'd feel guilty and apologize. She'd offer Rainbow the chance to go away, to get out with her reputation intact. The invitations would stop coming after that. At that moment, something would crack between them. Neither would feel safe having Tea Time anymore. There would always be that suspicion, that lingering awareness. Would this be the moment when another betrayal was incoming? Would Rainbow have some sort of payback at the ready? This simple mistake, so obvious in hindsight, could be the wedge that tore the two of them apart forever.
But whose mistake would it be?
Fluttershy was not foolish. That Rarity got invited to be here, now, when this Tea Time had been planned for a few days, wasn't a mistake. It was Fluttershy telling Rainbow "I have another friend whom I trust enough to be part of this." Rainbow had to decide if she trusted Fluttershy enough to let it happen.
The door was opening. Rainbow's time was up. She held Fluttershy's stare, seeing the alarm, the fear of a friendship forever tarnished. A great friendship. The best friendship. One that, if ruined now, would mean an end to Tea Time as they knew it. No more opportunities for Rainbow to just be a girl, to release the pressures of having to be the best. Poor Shy might never trust anyone to be her confidant again. They would both be forever shut off, unable to vent those important emotions and needs that lingered under the surface of one's cool facade and the other's ceaseless anxiety.
The future unraveled before Rainbow Dash, and she made her decision.
"Hey, Rarity. Care to join us?"
Fluttershy smiled. In light of that, was it really much of a sacrifice?