It was leading to rabbit holes of character arguments that spiraled into hellish domains where finding a feasible 'out' for Sunset grew dire indeed. After several attempts I've decided to just rip out the rootRevising Rariad: Part 13. · 9:46pm Oct 12th, 2020
I never thought I'd do this, but I've made a moderately substantial alteration to a published chapter. In the originally posted version, Rarity indicates that she learned from Nyx how to affect the strands of Beauty, and use it to make Dido release Trixie and the other Benevolencians.
After publishing the chapter I realised it was a bad call to give Rarity the ability to do something like that, especially without showing her learning the skill to do so in the first place. It also has created issues elsewhere, made Rarity too perfect/Mary Sue-adjacent, and so I am pushing the Big Red button and going with the Nuclear Option of revising a published chapter to remove that ability from her.
For those who have read the chapter already, I am including the revised version in this blog.
“And yet she proved herself to be a selfless and generous mare,” Rarity noted, not moving her gaze from her work. “Just as I predicted, darling.”
Continuing to kick her hooves and thrash about, Hera let out a groan. “Cupid’s arrows never fail. She was in love with him! She had to be! Unless Cupid erred, but that has never happened before. Although, there is a first for everything, and even a god can make a mistake from time to time.”
“Her heart just proved to be more beautiful than you give it credit.” Rarity now looked up with a big smile, twisting it like a knife.
Face ashen with horror and fury, Hera bounded to her hooves. “You! How did you do it? How did you affect her heart and overcome Cupid? He is the god who entwines lovers together. You should not be able to out-do him when it comes to matters of the heart, for only his mother, Aphrodite, is his greater.”
Smiling sweetly, Rarity put her embroidery aside. “I did nothing. It was all Trixie who defeated Cupid's arrow. Even the strongest thread can snap if put under the right tension.”
“Trixie shouldn't be allowed out with the mortals,” Hera huffed, hooves crossed now and her face a deep red. "There is something off about that mare. I've never heard of a mortal coming back from the Underworld as anything other than a specter, pale and imitating their former life. It is suspect that she was able to escape the realm of the demons with you."
Rarity suppressed a reflexive shudder, wings tense at her sides, but her needle faltered, and she was certain Hera’s perceptive eye noticed the momentary lapse.
“I trust and believe in Trixie, and she has my blessing.” A poised eyebrow arched upwards as the falsehood slipped from her. She hated this game, but knew it had to be played. If she didn’t Hera would torment Trixie unopposed. “Besides, isn’t it cheating to have Cupid go down to the mortal cities?”
A bold change, but one that makes sense in hindsight. I'm surprised I didn't pick up on the deus ex machina (heh, quite fitting in this context) that it really was. Your change also has the side effect of making Trixie convincing her, and Dido's decision to let them go, have more weight and meaning. So, good on ya. I don't think a lot of writers would have done that.
Given your own explanation this alteration does make sense.