A fair day for a Faire Day (Twilight/Rarity)

[Rarity]

Rarity looked at herself in the mirror, taken aback by what she saw. Not only was the fabric absolutely lovely, but she couldn't recognize herself! Was there an enchantment on this, or were they just that good? She didn't know. However, she had to get going to catch the train to Hollow Shades. She hadn't been there yet, but heard it was a gorgeous sight to behold. As she made it onto the train, she noted one thing. The car that she was assigned to was dark. Shades pulled and lights dimmed to prevent the two from divining the otherwise identity. She heard something about a battle of wits was going to be their first challenge on the way there. That was fine with her, she had some smarts to go with her looks. As long as she wasn't paired with a Bookworm, she could at least hold her own. She pondered for a moment, in the empty car, and started speaking. She made sure to get her voice to sound different to add to the illusion, in case her Suitor was somepony she knew.

[Deleted]

Twilight Sparkle was nervous. She was going to have to be in disguise and engage another pony in a battle of wits. She knew she was intelligent and observant, but was she clever enough for it? What if her opponent gave out a false clue, a red herring to throw her off and she only realized it all too late? She had worked hard thinking up her disguise, and perhaps it would be unexpected enough to throw off her date.

From the other side of the train car there came a mare. She was dressed in a red long coat that was a bit broad in the shoulders and cinched around her waist. She wore thin black shoes to cover up her hoofprints, and a black turtleneck. A wide-brimmed red hat and a voluminous mane combined with the popped collar of the coat did quite a bit to hide her features. Her eyes seemed to be cast in shadow, but at the distance of the train car, and the dim lighting, it was impossible to tell if she was wearing some sort of domino mask, or using make-up to obscure her identity... or perhaps something else.

[Rarity]

Rarity shifted slightly as she heard the light hoofsteps. She lowered her head slightly so the wide brim hat she wore did even better to hide her face. The brown trench coat she wore kept her coat color hidden, and some pins and clips held her mane and horn under the hat entirely. She gave a very small bow to the approaching pony before she cleared her throat. "I would presume you are to be my date?" Rarity had successfully hidden her normal accent, and her voice seemed much lower. She congratulated herself internally before she got back to her serious face. "I believe a challenge is to be held to test our wits against one another. I propose 20 questions. We will ask each other questions back and forth to try to identify the other? And the answers should be truthful. Lying would ruin the fun." She suggested, awaiting her mystery dates response.

[Deleted]

Twilight looked at her partner in this blind date, and noticed some similarities in their manner of dress. They had a similar idea on how to dress. That was very revealing! If they had a similar sense here, maybe she could find more insight into this pony.

"You've got that right." she said as she leaned against the side of a bench seat casually. "I will agree to you game detective, but I have a rule of my own to add. You cannot guess a name. No 'Are you so-and-so?' You must declare who the other pony is, and if you're wrong, you lose."

[Rarity]

Rarity pondered on the errata Twilight had added. She pondered for a few moments. "I agree to that term, now, I believe I shall start in the interest of keeping things rolling." Rarity said, clearing her throat and thinking for a few moments. She shifted slightly as she felt the train start moving away from the Ponyville station. And that gave Rarity the perfect question to start this off. She made a show of pulling out a small notebook and pencil, holding it with a hoof, and looking toward her shrouded date. "Are you from Ponyville? You did board the train there, after all." She asked, getting into a position to be ready to write.

[Deleted]

So her date came equipped, impressive! One hard part of playing a game like this was possibly forgetting something that was already asked. It would be difficult to distract her now. A strategy was in Twilight's head. You could learn a lot by asking questions, but also seeing what sort of questions someone asks. "Yes, I'm from Ponyville. I didn't have to do any extra traveling to get to the train station. What about you, are you native to Ponyville, or did a smart cookie like yourself move to Ponyville?"

Inwardly Twilight gave herself a pat on the back. Not everypony in Ponyville had been born and raised there, but maybe with how she phrased things it would throw the other pony off. Twilight was indeed smart, so if she asked a question that may imply she thinks her date may be her, perhaps her date wouldn't think it was her. The perfect plan!

[Rarity]

Rarity thought for a few moments about her next question, as the question was asked to her. "I was born and raised in Ponyville." She said with a little nod. It was a fact that only a few ponies knew (Mostly the ones that had been in Ponyville as long as she had) Most would assume she was from somewhere like Canterlot due to the way she carried herself. She wrote something down in her little pad of paper, tapping the pencil against her chin lightly. She had forgot she didn't limit it to Yes or No questions. "How about yourself~? Where were you originally from?" She asked, knowing she'd be putting herself a question behind, or perhaps several questions ahead. If this pony had moved to Ponyville from outside, it could narrow down the field quite a bit.

[Deleted]

Success! This mare was a ponyville native! That didn't narrow the search down too much, but it was a start. She let out a contemplative hum as gears began working in her head. Already the next question was being worked on. That thought process was halted when Rarity asked a question of her own. As Pinkie Pie would say, that question was a doozy.

"Well..." she started, trying to think of a way to be vague without being unfair. "I'm originally from Canterlot." That must have narrowed down her rival's suspect pool quite a bit. Twilight needed a question that would narrow things down... "Are you an Earth Pony?"

[Rarity]

Rarity thought for a few moments. Originally from Canterlot, now in Ponyville. That narrowed the pool quite a bit. She knew Photo Finish was hanging out around Ponyville for the time being, something about clearing her mind... She knew only a hoofful of other ponies that moved from Canterlot, and pondered questions to think out the herd... She shook her head gently. "Nope, not an earth pony~" she said happily. Her opponent still seemed to have no idea. That was good, that put Rarity in a good position. Finally, Rarity's hoof hit the table as a realization came to her. The best way to narrow it down for a confirmation of who this was. A Smirk played across her lips under the scarf that hid it. "Tell me, friend~" she started, grabbing a glass of water and taking a sip to build dramatic tension. "What is your profession~?"

[Deleted]

Twilight narrowed her eyes at the other pony, taking in all she could. Was she trying to play similar mind games with her mannerisms? She assumed not, at least for now. Born and raised in Ponyville, and not an Earth pony. That narrowed down the list quite a bit. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash had moved from Cloudsdale to Ponyville. She could scratch them off of the list, along with AJ and Pinkie. A few Pegasi had moved from Cloudsdale, but overall Unicorns were in the minority. Well, technically speaking Dragon was the biggest minority, but she highly doubted she was speaking with Spike right now. If she had, he'd have known it was her all along.

Then, of course, there'd be a scolding for somehow getting onto a date instead of a fund day to play with one of the other kids. She wouldn't have put it past him to want to try though in hopes of getting Rarity.

The next question hit Twilight like a cart loaded with hardcover books. It was big enough that she ended up taking a step back, mind racing with a response. Was this the end game? If she told the truth, there would be only one answer to come across, and her opponent in this battle of wits would win on her next turn. All Twilight would be able to do is make a wild accusation in hope that she might get lucky. She had to build a profile, but she also had to answer.

What was her profession?

Profession
noun
1. a paid occupation, especially one that involves prolonged training and a formal qualification.
2. the act of professing; avowal; a declaration, whether true or false

Twilight's eyes widened and her confidence was clawing itself back to her. There was a loophole! Okay, there were a few of them. Technically she was a professional student. Her funds came from Canterlot, her family, her savings, and Celestia. Any money the library made she had put directly into making the library better, she never saw a bit of it. On top of that she had never been trained to be a librarian. Then there was the second definition of the word.

"I profess that you are a very intelligent mare, and that this game is just about over." She said with perhaps a little pride. "Let me recap on a few things. You were born, and raised, in Ponyville, but you are not an earth pony. This narrows things down quite a bit given the population density of Ponyville. You certainly caught me off guard with your question, but I'm afraid it was a bit more telling that you realize. How many native non-earth ponies in Ponyville would say profession, and not job? That was rhetorical, by the way and not the question for my turn. Your scarf hides your muzzle, but in your excitement you forgot to hide the lilt in your voice."

Twilight slowly approached the other pony as she spoke as if each point or thought drew her closer and closer to the answer. She slipped into the seat across from Rarity and took in her attire up close. "You didn't buy your costume, it was tailor made. It goes too well together to be something thrown together from a closet, and sewn together too well to be an amateur." Her smoky gaze looked up and locked with the other mare's eyes. "I think we both know who each other are. Lets call this a draw and both reveal ourselves at the same time, shall we?"

Twilight really hoped this would work.

[Rarity]

Rarity smiled and set her notepad and pencil down. She tapped a hoof on the floor of the car gently as the fiendish rogue across from her spoke. There was only one pony in existence that she knew of that could answer the question like that. One pony that had an encyclopedic knowledge of word definitions... One pony she'd have to ask if 'Dictionary-esque' is a better word to describe the amount of words she knew. That pony must have been Bulk Biceps Twilight Sparkle, the extraordinarily smart unicorn, and one of her best friends. "I tell you what, Twilight~ I will give you a chance. If you can guess who I am, I'll strip my disguise right here. If not, I'll keep dropping subtle hints throughout the night, until you can guess~" The mare proposed. "I believe that's a Generous enough offer, don't you?" A Smirk played on her face as the subtlest of subtle hints was dropped. "We'll say that the game is over on the Ferris Wheel. When we're stuck at the top, looking at the night sky." She said, sitting forward once again, her voice a bit lower. "One of the dreams I've had involved a kiss at the top of a Ferris Wheel, when one pony, or both, were in the dark about who the other are. So romantic and mysterious~" She said, barely able to keep from swooning at the thought. "If we find the night has gone in our favor~"

[Deleted]

Stars and stones, she had overplayed her hoof. The other pony had figured it out. Not only that, the other pony had been Rarity. Her suspicions were correct, but it was a too little too late. A purple glow surrounded the hat and coat she wore, pulling it off of herself and revealing the Unicorn beneath. With the clothes so went the mild enchantments that obscured her appearance. "You win Rarity. You figured it out first."

"I'm sorry, but it looks like you'll have to wait for another time to live out your fantasy. We both know who the other is now." On top of that, this was supposed to be a friendly date. Twilight didn't think something so romantic would happen at the end of the night. This was her first date though, did dates end like that? Of her friends, Rarity would be the authority on the subject as she was the most read.

[Rarity]

Rarity smiled, looking up from under her hat before pulling it off and shaking out her mane. The mane, which had been tucked into the hat, fell out and bobbed as the curls returned to their natural spot. "That was quite something, Dahling~ You had me going for a moment, asking questions as if you expected me to be you." Rarity said witha little bit of a laugh. Rarity wouldn't admit it out loud, but she knew Twilight would recognize the scene of the mysterious kiss fantasy of Rarity's. It was a key point on one of the novels Twilight had ordered for her. She figured Twilight had read it out of curiosity herself. "Though, I do wish it lasted a little longer. The rest of the train ride is sure to be a slow one. We haven't even reached a treeline yet." Rarity mentioned. If she remembered correctly, Hollow Shades was in the forest, right? "Tell me, dahling, How much do you know of Bat Pony Culture?" Rarity asked, curious about what they were getting into. She remembered the itinerary mentioning that they'd be playing some Games, and dining on food that was customary to Bat Ponies... Hopefully their tastes weren't much different than other ponies!

[Deleted]

"I thought it would throw you off, but the questions you asked were too telling. I will agree, it did go by pretty fast." Twilight said with with a little scrunch of her face. Thankfully she didn't have time to dwell on it for long. She smirked and raised an eyebrow at Rarity for asking if she knew about Bat Ponies. As if she hadn't done thorough research. Ha!

Twilight's horn lit up with magic as she pulled out a stack of index cards from one of her coat pockets. "I needed to get Princess Luna's assistance with my research, but Bat Ponies are quite fascinating. Their culture is so different from ours, and even then can be different from their own. Each colony is unique in their own ways. Ooooh its going to be so exciting being able to take part in some of their celebrations. We just have to be wary of the food."

[Rarity]

Rarity listened to Twilight talk. She had asked if Twilight had a knowledge of some sort. Of course Twilight did. Her idea of fun was to crack open an encyclopedia! Rarity covered her tiny laugh at the thought, and then nodded to Twilight. "I'm sure there's a lot to learn about them still. It should be a riviting experience." Rarity said, standing and letting her legs stretch a little. She took her coat and hat, and carefully placed them into her luggage as she thought about what Twilight had said. "I would assume that they're similar to Bats in some way, especially if you speak of Colonies..." She started, trying to think how to word the next line. She sat back down with a look of deep thought. "I know Sweetie did a presentation for Cheerilee about Bats, and the one thing that stood out was the diet. You're warning me to be wary of their food... So am I to assume that the foods they create are fruit or bug based?" Rarity asked, her blue eyes almost twinkling in the dim lighting of the cab as they fluttered. Twilight wasn't the only one that knew things! "Believe it or not..." She looked around, as if to see if anyone else were listening. "If we're to take part in their culture and learn, I believe trying their cuisine is only fair." She said with a small smile.