She should have done this years ago, she decided. It was long overdue, but Sweetie’s most recent “visit” had convinced her. The filly was always clingy after she got back from her time with their parents, but this was ridiculous. Nearly every waking moment she was with Rarity, and if she wasn’t, she was probably with John. She hadn’t even slept in her own bed all week.
 
After they had spent their entire lottery winnings, Pearl and Magnum had changed, and not entirely for the better. Magnum was improving some, now that his “booze budget” was gone. He was cranky, irritable, and generally unpleasant, but he could remember the names of his daughters and could fall asleep without a whiskey bottle. Pearl on the other hand was downright nasty. She had had to sell her gaudy jewels, her overpriced silk blouses, her imported perfumes, and even the small art gallery she had been collecting (not that she had any really appreciation for it). About the only thing she had been allowed to keep were the magi-surgical operations she had done on her face. The loss of her hedonistic playground had hit her hard, and she was happy to share the pain. She was like a spoiled child throwing a fit most days, which might have been funny had not an actual child been in her care.
 
Pearl was never violent, thank Faust, but there are more ways to hurt someone than just your fists, and Sweetie was a sensitive filly. She wasn’t sure what had happened that week, and she was certain she didn’t want to know, but after Sweetie had a breakdown after being scolded for “borrowing” the sewing basket, Rarity decided enough was enough.
 
There’s a perk to generosity people don’t talk about, at least not out loud. When you’re of a generous nature, you end up with a lot of strings you can pull, and Rarity had a whole tangle of them. With a lawyer there, a bureaucrat there, a minor officer here, and even a little tug on her string to Celestia herself (saving the world from eternal darkness, chaos, bug monsters, slavery, and being drained of magic will get you on her good side). In a matter of days, she was able to do what took most ponies months. Now she merely had to wait.
 
Early one Saturday morning, the mailmare arrived with her usual tap on the window. She presented Rarity with an official looking envelope, stamped with the golden sun of Canterlot. With a salute, the grey mare took off again, nearly missing Rarity’s birdhouse. Rarity stepped inside and sat on the couch. With trembling fingers she pulled the papers out of it and gazed at them, choking back tears. She had never seen anything more beautiful in her life.
 
“Rarity?” As if on cue, Sweetie stumbled into the room, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “Watcha got there?” She said with a yawn. Rarity patted her lap, inviting the girl to see. Sweetie settled in and took a look at the papers, her eyes widening in realization. She looked back at her sister, tears in her own eyes now. “Is this…?” she could hardly believe it. This had to be a dream, it was too good to be true.
 
“Yes, darling, it is. Welcome home, sweetheart.”