A rare glimpse. {Rarity/Fluttershy}

[Rarity]

Rarity had spent another late night at the Boutique finishing up a few designs. Her eyes grew heavy and her magic flickered, but she had to finish this dress. The deadline was quickly approaching. Once the last stitch was in place, the needle fell against Raritys desk, and she dragged herself toward the door. About halfway through the showroom, she realized she wouldn’t make it home with this much fatigue, so she returned to the back of the boutique and laid on a small chair, falling asleep almost immediately. The next morning, unbeknownst to her, a small white unicorn was attempting to wake her for something or another. School, perhaps? The unicorn grew more and more worried for her big sisters well being and loaded her into a small red wagon, pulling the unicorn toward the train station, and ultimately to Canterlot. Soon thereafter, Rarity was seen to a bed, and was taken care of by staff of the castle, this ‘plague’ having effected several other ponies as well as her. Inside the unicorns mind, things were much more grim... The sun sets on Equestria, leaving long shadows from the mountains and buildings alike. Something seems off this night, however. The air is thick with tension, and everyone is on edge. Someone, or something, is looming over the town. And the Moon, normally bright and gleaming, seems to be absent. No light is coming from the empty sky, leaving the town lit only by lanterns. Small shadow creatures chase down a pony in an alleyway, tackling the poor stallion and pulling him into the ground, seemingly into nothingness. Some shadow creatures jump at lanterns, putting out the lights at the cost of their own existence, leaving large areas of Ponyville an inky black abyss. Where Town hall once stood, a large Obsidian spire, with Purple filigree working its way up the walls. Above the carved doorway of the structure, A familiar looking gem sits. A gem that normally adorns the flank of the Fashionista of Ponyville, Rarity. ”You have brought four of them to me, and each has denied my generosity. Am I being unfair?” A voice echoes through the streets. ”No, My queen. You are the epitome of generosity, as always. They just wish the power for themselves! Would you like us to find the fifth?” An almost snively voice responds. ”Oh, my dear Fluttershy. If anyone is fit to join me, it is her. Yes, find her. Bring her to me.” The voice replied, followed by the pop of a unicorn teleporting. ”You heard the Queen! Nightmare Rarity wants Fluttershy. Move out, find her!” The order went out, followed by the scrabbling of footsteps, spreading out in all directions to find the Pegasus.

[Deleted]

Fluttershy did not lot leave the safety of Ponyville for much. She hated being away from her critter friends were too long, as if any sickness they suffer from would ultimately be her fault. She was the one they trusted to take care of them. They couldn't take a break from getting sick or hurt, so it didn't really matter whether or no she scheduled these outings in advance. In this instance, there was no way she could have seen this coming.

It seemed that essentially half of her closest friends and a bunch of other ponies had all taken to some strange sleeping enchantment. Since Twilight had been one of these ponies, it was very clear that Canterlot was where they had needed to go to help them. This wasn't a matter of going with her friends to watch over them. Her friends were already compromised. She had to be there to help them through it, whatever way she could.

Even with that in mind, actually going into another pony's dreams felt wrong. Dreams were a sanctuary. She had seen Rarity's unwaking body and had not known what she might find there. There could be any number of answers that Rarity would never want anyone to know, not even her. But if that's what it took... Well hopefully Rarity would forgive her. This had to be done and Fluttershy couldn't duck out and leave it to someone else. All the someone elses were busy tending to all of the other ponies.

She found herself in a place that looked like the Equestria she knew. Well, it was dark, so it looked a lot like darkness with a bunch of scary looking shapes covered in shadows. Was she really sure she was the right mare for this? For Rarity... she would have to be...

”Oh Rarity,” she called out, her voice as gentle as always, ”Are you out there? Maybe just around the corner so we can both just um... walk right out of here and back to another nice trip to the spa?”

She moved slowly, unsure of whether or not she was going in the right direction. If her memory served, this was the way into Ponyville, but things were not exactly the same. But ahead was the only source of light and that was as good a beacon as any.

[Rarity]

The skittering stopped as Fluttershy spoke. Waiting until her voice was finished, and her hoofsteps started. Then the scrabbling seemed to shift direction, moving directly toward the Pegasus. The lights around Fluttershy suddenly went out, and something landed on her back. Then another something. Then something wrapped around her hooves, pulling her into the ground, leaving the streets of Ponyvill quiet. "Your highness! We've found the Pretty Pretty Pegasus! What would you like us to d-" The voice was cut off by the shadow being being tossed back by Raritys magic. "Fluttershy, my dear. I hope my friends did not hurt you... They can be a little brash, but they do serve well..." Fluttershy would find herself in a dark room with a single torch lit at one end. Between her and the light stood a tall, dark purple pony. A billowing Purple and White mane bounced lightly as the pony moved toward Fluttershy, pausing just a few steps away. "I have granted the others an opportunity to join me in my rule, but they have all denied my generosity." She started, pausing and looking toward four, eerily familiar statues lining the walls of the room. She smiled at the Pegasus sweetly, moving toward the statue of Rainbow Dash, who looked like she was ready to tackle someone. "I couldn't stand to be away from them for too long, So I kept them around... If you wish to join me... I will, of course, need to put you through some trials here in my spire. What do you say, Fluttershy? Can we rule this world together?" She asked, the diamond shaped pupils of her eyes focusing on Fluttershy, seeming to bore directly into the pegasus' very soul.

[Deleted]

Reality changed in an instant, she had tried to recoil when the lights went out, tried to scream as her hooves were grabbed. But it was all too quick. Her body didn't even have time to panic. And before she knew it, she was in some dreary, dark room with only one source of light, the scream that never was still caught in her throat. It could have been the soul-supressing fear talking, but it felt like all the torch was doing was add shadows to the room.

On the bright side, she didn't have to look much further for Rarity. On the medium side, she still wasn't sure if this was a nightmare or a peaceful dream, though she had a good guess. On the not-so-bright side, she was pretty sure one of her best friends was dreaming of being a despotic ruler who had turned all of their other friends into statues. ”N-no, I'm not hurt...”

The pressure of the moment was intense. Obviously the scene before her was wrong, something she could not tolerate if it were real, but it was not real. Unfortunately, the fear she felt looking into those other-worldly diamond pupils was. ”U-um what kind of trials would those be?”

It seemed rash to start objecting and causing some type of fight. Maybe she could finish the trials and then she'd have an easier time convincing Rarity this was all a dream? It was certainly a better alternative to being stuck as a statue inside of Rarity's mind until somepony realized that she had failed.

[Rarity]

Rarity smiled. She was happy the Pegasus wasn't hurt. Her only remaining, nonstatued friend. She moved forward and gently nudged Fluttershy forward, toward the light and the door at the other end of the room. She opened the door with her magic and led the Pegasus into a larger room. The room was circular, and made of stone. Two doors sat on either side of the room, each with an unlit brazier over them. Two ornate stairways carved into the stone curled upward to a walkway, two more doors sitting on either end of the second floor. At the very top of the stairway stood a low, stone table with what looks like four diamond shapes carved into it, and a dome over the center. "While I can't give away what you'll find in here, these trials will test your loyalty to me. Four simple tasks, I'm sure you'll do fine. You are THE Element of Kindness after all." Nightmarity smiled at Fluttershy, leaving her in the almost dark room, and four doors. Which way would Fluttershy go first?

[Deleted]

Magazines had always been telling her that dreams were our most secret desires or fears, but Fluttershy had a hard time believing that all of this was really what Rarity wanted. She was so well loved and respected in Ponyville, why would she most deeply want to be a ruler with shadow minions? But it couldn't be a nightmare. It made even less sense to live in fear of becoming a ruler with shadow minions. Fluttershy had to believe this was either an effect of the magic or it was like that time she dreamed of a giant bowl of blackberry cobbler. An appealing thought, but not the biggest wish by any stretch of the imagination.

She didn't resist Rarity's prodding toward the next room, but her hesitance forced her to be shuffled sternly. As well as she could see, this room looked rather lovely, which was fitting for Rarity's mind. Even Rarity's nightmares were likely to be more elegant than most ponies' dreams. But wait, was she implying she was leaving Fluttershy here- Yup, she was alone. It was odd to miss a nightmared version of her friend, but being alone was unsettling.

”Um alright... heeere goes,” she mumbled without actually moving, ”I-I mean now...” She said, still not finding that her hooves left the ground. She sealed her eyes shut and fluttered forward, going toward the lower door on the right, her eyes opening just in time to stop her from bopping her head. She slowly reached out and opened the door, making her way inside.

[Rarity]

As Fluttershy entered the door, the room seemed to explode in a brilliant light, changing from the rough stonework to that of the inside of Carousel Boutique. However, the normally bright and cheery shop was dour. The colorful dresses had been put away, and the storefront remained empty, save for a picture of Sweetie Belle, with two candles lit in front of it. Some flowers and cards were set carefully around the room, each with an apologetic note. A quiet sobbing could be heard in the next room, as a fashionista wept for her little Sister.

[Deleted]

Fluttershy closed her eyes at the harsh light, only hesitantly opening them a few moments later. When she did, she was greeted with a very familiar location, much more so than where she had been. While that was somewhat comforting, it was also a reminder of how quickly things could change. Surprises could literally be anywhere, even places she had already looked.

She slowly made her way over to the display, quickly gathering that it was not celebratory in nature. The notes made this even more clear. Real or not, Fluttershy found tears forming in her eyes. Just the thought of anything happening to Sweetie Belle... At a faster pace, she walked into the next room. ”R-rarity? Are you in here?” She called out as she got closer to the source of the crying.

But was the crying pony the same pony that had set her on these tasks? Oh, she could hardly think while Sweetie Belle's dream-fate occupied her mind...

[Rarity]

As the yellow Pegasus makes it to the back, the crying is, indeed, coming from Rarity. Not the tall, dark Rarity that had spoken to her earlier, this was the purple maned, white coated unicorn. She was curled up on her couch, sobbing. Next to her sat another picture of Sweetie Belle, the ink on it stained and the picture distorted from small wet spots. Rarity slowly rolled, looking toward Fluttershy, quickly trying to wipe the tears from her eyes. "I'm S-sorry, darling..." She said, slowly sitting up and adjusting her mane so it was at least halfway presentable. She sniffled a bit and looked at the Pegasus with a sorrowful expression. "I t-thought the last of the crowd had c-come and gone..." She said, looking at the picture that had fallen to the floor as she sat up. A fresh wave of sobbing coming from the Unicorn. "I j-just... I can't imagine..." She trailed off, looking at a dress on a Ponnequin in the same room. The dress seemed torn and cut in several places, and several pairs of fabric shears stuck out of various spots of the Ponnequin. "I w-was so stupid..."

[Deleted]

Once again, Fluttershy didn't quite feel as relieved as she would have liked at seeing her friend. This time, her form was the familiar one. She looked, sounded and acted like her Rarity. But with the picture and all that she had just seen... There was no feeling relief or joy within that.

This task that she had been set upon was not one of chivalry or bravery. Those would have been hard enough, she knew how to run away from danger. What she saw here... Her heart didn't know what to do with it at all.

”Sorry for interrupting, I just got here, actually,” she explained, though she wasn't sure how much this Rarity knew of the circumstances. Was she supposed to ask what she was supposed to do?

”What um... What happened?” It wasn't a task directed question at all. For all of the fantasy that this was, it felt like she should already know. Instead, she just had a grim guess, one so dark that she couldn't accept it until she was sure. It was the type of words one would never want to here.

[Rarity]

Rarity shifted on her sofa and slowly stood up. She looked at Fluttershy and wiped some tears from her cheek, smearing the dark purple eyeliner as she did. However, this time, the fashionista didn't seem to care.

She moved over, past Fluttershy to the main room of the Boutique, looking at the display picture of Sweetie Belle. "I was... a fool. I was busy with that dress... that horrible, vile dress..." Her voice held a venom as she glared past Fluttershy at the torn up dress.

"I told her it was alright to go play with Scootaloo and Applebloom... I didn't hear her say she was going to Ghastly Gorge..." She started, hanging her head. Her heavy sobbing returned as she collapsed in front of the picture. "A l-landslide... They... Couldn't catch her... Sweetie fell..." Raritys voice went soft as she said the last line, inaudible to the Pegasus.

[Deleted]

It was inconceivable. Her friend having to go through something like this... Fluttershy tried to hang on to the nature of this world. This was a dark dream, a corruption of the proper order. Sweetie Belle was fine outside of all of this.

But still the shy pegasus shed tears for her. The situation may have not been real, but the pain the illusion produced felt real.

Did this fear live inside Rarity? Was this the product of the epidemic alone, or was this what big sisters had in the back of their minds naturally? And...

What could she do for Rarity? What was she supposed to do to get this to fade away?

”Rarity... I..” She tried to embrace her friend, ”I can't imagine how this feels for you,” because whatever piece of Rarity this was, it clearly felt this tragedy as a reality, ”But I'm here for you, as long as you need me to be.”

[Rarity]

Rarity felt the warm embrace of her shy pegasus friend. The Unicorn buried her face into Fluttershys neck and sobbed some more. Sweetie Belle was gone, and it was all her fault. After a few long moments, she broke away from the Pegasus and looked toward the Dress once again, gleaming red gems along the collar seemed to shimmer unnaturally in the light. "T-this was my fault, Fluttershy... Had I... Had I been paying attention, my little sister..." Her voice caught as she stood up, moving toward the dress, here eyes fixed on the red gems. "It... should have been me... not her...

[Deleted]

That line was the last of this that Fluttershy could handle. She knew this wasn't real, but she also knew she was supposed to be completing challenges. But the pain was too much, it was too much to just keep going without trying the truth. ”Rarity, this isn't real, you're trapped in a dream!” She blurted out.

The pace of her words sped up significantly as her pitch raised, ”And I really just need you to come with me and then me, you and Sweetie Belle can all hang out and never think about this again,” she said. She took deep breaths, hoping that this would change the game and even more, hoping that it would end it.

[Rarity]

Rarity froze, looking toward the floor for a moment, before slowly turning to look at the Pegasus. A Dream? Sweetie Belle was alright? Fluttershy was acting strange... different than usual... But that news. Sweetie was alright? Raritys eyes widened as her breathing sped up. She wasn't sure what she was feeling, but she slumped into a seated position. "Sweetie is alright? I... I've not lost her?" Rarity asked, looking toward Fluttershy with pleading eyes. Slowly, a popping noise sounded behind Rarity. The red gems that had adorned the collar of the dress seemed to burst, The world fell away behind Rarity, an inky blackness surrounding Fluttershy. After a short while, the blackness faded, Flutterhsy now stood in the room with four doors. The Braziers on the lower right door now glowing with a purple flame. The same purple as Raritys Mane. "Three more, Darling. You're doing great." A Voice echoed in the room. The voice sounded like the Nightmare version of Rarity that Fluttershy had talked to earlier, if a little bit softer.