“Hey…. hm… Rarity? Do I really have to put these on?” Twilight asks embarrassed while looking at some two-piece swimsuits in a cardboard box.
“Oh! No darling!” Rarity responds with a few chuckles “Those are for some clients from out of town. I finished these a few days ago but delivery isn’t until the end of November. I don’t know why someone would want swimsuits at the end of the year, but business is business”
While Rarity was ranting about some aspects of business, Austin walked around the large Boutique. He tried to take in everything at once, the clothes, the colors, the smells. It smelled like a comfortable cafe.
“Wow,” Austin thought while looking at how everything was well organized “I didn't know designs like these could even exist”
“You're really gonna make it far in the world of fashion,” he said, still perplexed by the amazing designs.
“Oh, thank you, dear. I have to do school work and then actual work to maintain myself. No money means no school… or food… or hot water, and I might have to start avoiding Taxes, BUT THANKFULLY I found a way to do both at the same time!”
“Well, I’m glad it's working out for you”
A small moment of silence took place as Rarity got everything set up.
“Hey, by the way, I wanted to ask what our parts will be in this” Austin said while she moved things from left to right.
“Well, I figured you haven't done this kind of thing before, so I took the freedom to simplify the job into 3 simple steps. First I hand you some clothes, then you put them on and at the end, I take a few pictures behind a green screen so that later on I can edit them. Then we do that again and again until we finish for the day” She said before finishing to set up the photoshoot equipment ''Are you ready to start?”
Austin and Twilight nodded before Rarity moved towards a huge pile of clothes. She seemed to be planning which clothes would go after which.
“Alright, first we'll start with winter clothes, then we will go with party wear, and we will end with swimsuits” she finished with a little bit of red on her cheeks before she started coughing “Okay! Let's begin shall we?”
Austin took notice of this and immediately knew what she was thinking.
“This is what Jake gets for having a supermodel body I guess…” he thought while walking towards the changing room “I don’t think I have it in me to do that”
A few minutes pass as they got dressed. While Austin was changing, he noticed something in his pant’s pocket. It seemed to be a square-like device. As he took it out of his pocket, he realized it was his cellphone, well, Jake’s cellphone.
“Completely forgot about you,” he said while pressing the circle button at the bottom of the device.
He tried to turn it on but it didn't work, as if it didn't have any battery.
“Well lucky me…”
After putting the phone down and changing his clothes, he looked at the mirror in the changing room.
“Well, if Jake was egocentric, I would completely understand why he would love himself,” he thought while doing little poses “I still can't get over how I’m in a different body”
He stops posing and looks at his own face for a few seconds.
“Is it wrong that I’m in his body? Is it wrong that I’m making decisions that affect him?...”
Austin looks at his right hand for a second.
“Is it wrong that I’m enjoying this?” he asked himself out loud.
Suddenly Rarity’s voice scared him from behind the door.
“No dear, you could say it's kind of normal for models to enjoy their job! But I’m glad you're liking this! Maybe I can hire you to be my store’s model later on!” she says while walking around on the other side of the wooden door.
By instinct, Austin ran towards the door and pushed against it. He peeped from the top of the door to see if she was close. If anyone found out he was not the actual Jake, who knows what they would do. As his head reached the top, he saw that Rarity was busy, but most of all she seemed worried. After collecting his things, he opened the door and walked out.
“Wow! You look wonderful!” Rarity said while also carrying a couple of sketch notes from one side of the room to the other “I’ll be right back”
He watched as she went up some stairs and disappeared. While waiting, he walked closer to a mirror to see how he looked again. Suddenly his right hand starts to move on its own. It started to shake, first slowly, then faster and faster. Austin took notice of this and immediately got weirded out.
“What the hell?” he thought while trying to stop his arm from moving “I’m not doing this!”
It came to the point of him actually using his left arm to stop it from. He didn’t know what happened. It was completely out of his actual control as if another person was occupying his body. Austin stayed there silent for a couple of minutes, trying to see if it would move again. He didn't notice Twilight was calling to him until she touched his shoulder.
“Hey, are you okay Austin?” she asked.
“Oh! I- I didn't notice you finished changing”
He turned around only to be met with a beautiful girl in a ski outfit. She moved around, trying to get more comfortable. Wearing clothes was still something new to her and using an outfit this hot in October wasn't the best option.
“That looks great on you,” Austin said with a thumbs up.
“Thanks! But… don’t you think it’s kind of hot here?” she asks while trying to get some fresh air inside her winter coat.
“Well, if we rate Rarity’s clothes by the functionality they would get a 100” Austin commented while also moving around and looking at his yellow ski jacket “But it’s hard to imagine Rarity doing these designs. They are so… different than what I remember”
Suddenly Rarity stumbles down the stairs with a huge device that seemed to be a camera. It was really big, almost as big as a movie recording camera for Imax.
“LET’S BEGIN… The shoot” She said with a wide smile.
She moves the two of them towards the green background and asks them to pose multiple times. She was taking pictures left and right as if there was no tomorrow.
“Ok! Now only Austin with a sitting pose! PERFECT! Now a pose with you looking up at the sky! As if you saw an alien or something! PERFECT!!”
She was going faster and faster up until she requested one last pose.
“Now, Twilight, grab him by the shoulders and get close to each other!”
They slowed down at that last request. Twilight grabbed Austin by the shoulders and slowly got close to him. It was really noticeable she was uncomfortable, so he started to think of something to change the mood.
“A little conversation doesn't hurt,” he thought while also getting into position “Maybe I can start telling her… about everything…”
He looked at his right hand for a second. It was a really weird feeling, losing control of his body. He looked back at Twilight, who was noticeably trying to avoid eye contact.
“So, Twilight” he started to say “Do you have any plans for tomorrow night?”
She looked at him with curiosity, but then remembered her little secret. Her gaze moved from Austin towards Spike, who was sitting while eating some snacks. He looked at her with his mouth full and nodded.
“Well… I kind of have to go before midnight” she said, a little nervous “Bad things will happen if I don’t”
She was still not revealing her secret. It was another difference from the original timeline. Austin knew what she was feeling tho, so to him, it wasn't a problem.
“I understand, sometimes your parents want you back before it gets too late” he responds with a supportive tone.
“Y-yeah… Hey… I wanted to ask you something…”
“Yeah?”
“Well... what if I told you I was from a different dimension?”
Austin looked at her for a second before giving an answer. He never expected her to be so… forward.
“I would say it’s not as uncommon as you think it is”
She looked at him with confusion.
“In other words, I would believe you. Even if it goes against what the world views as normal, I’m open to anything. Even if it's something I need faith in. That’s what friends do, right? They trust each other.”
Twilight’s eyes widened. His response shocked her. Who wouldn’t be shocked? If you told people you were from a different dimension, they would most likely call you crazy, but not him.
“Well… I… I’m from a different-” she was starting to say before Rarity interrupted them.
“That was perfect! We finished with the first patch of clothes in less than an hour. Now we only have 16 left” she said while walking to get the next patch of clothes.
“SIXTEEN?” Twilight and Austin exclaimed at the same time.
They quickly moved through the clothes, trying to finish all sixteen patches before it got dark. First was the October patch with Halloween costumes, then the December patch with snow gear, then the January pack, and so on. It went pretty smoothly up until the “Event” Patch. This one was filled with multiple suits with ties, dresses, and Tuxedos.
“Wow…” Twilight expressed while looking at Austin trying out a blue Tux.
“I know right? He looks wonderful” Rarity whispered behind her ear “He really does have potential to be an actual famous model”
Twilight couldn’t stop looking at him. For a few minutes, Austin didn’t notice until he thought it was too silent. He turned around only to be met with two cat-like faces staring at him.
“Hm…. what’s up?” he asked nervously.
“Aw, nothing sweety, I just happen to remember you said you didn't have a suit earlier today, so I was debating whether to let you use this one for tomorrow night or not”
Twilight suddenly remembered her mission. Hearing about tomorrow’s event made her snap out of her trance and realize how dire the situation is.
“I need to tell him… but…” she thinks while still looking at him “What if…”
Austin walks slowly towards Rarity.
“Wait… are you being serious right now?” he asks while forming a smile.
“Why, of course! It’s like, free publicity! And well, we’re friend’s too”
Twilight looks at the two of them and thinks.
“They are my friends… they’ll listen to me, right? They’ll believe me?”
She then focuses on Austin.
“Austin said he would trust me… but what if it still scares him? What if they leave me on my own?” she thinks.
Before finishing her thought, Rarity walks in front of them to make an announcement.
“Alright! We managed to do every patch of clothes except the Summer vacation one, but that one can wait for next year” she says with pride “We did some really good work today and I know you are both tired, so let's call it a day for now”
Austin and Twilight both exhale deeply as they take a seat on some leather chairs.
“Thank god,” Austin thought.
“Tho, I will be calling you for that Summer swimsuit photoshoot, later on, Austin” Rarity said with a wink.
After a few minutes of setting stuff down, they all headed towards the second floor of the boutique. It wasn't that different from the bottom floor, everything was well organized and clean, from the white roof to the purple floor.
“This is your room for tonight, Twilight” Rarity says while showing her a medium-sized room with a bed and a couple of texture sheets on some shelves “Sorry for it being a little bit messy, darling. I had a lot on my plate this week”
“No problem. I’m just thankful you offered to help me-... I mean, to help us” Twilight responded while walking inside.
“We’ll leave you to change into your pajamas, they’re on the front of the bed” Rarity said while taking Austin to another room.
They walked a few steps deeper into the hallway and she opened another door.
“And this is for you” she finished.
Austin entered and saw that it was practically the same room as Twilight's. The colors were a little bit less saturated, but that didn't seem to bother him.
“Thanks,” Austin said while taking a seat on the small bed.
“No problem, I’m just sorry that I don’t have pajamas for men right now”
Austin looked at her with a face of panic.
“Does she really wanna see this body that much?” he thought.
“Don’t worry Darling, these doors have locks. No one will… take a peek” she finished while walking out the door.
After she closed the door behind her, Austin looked at the mirror beside the bed.
“Well… she’s dangerous,” he thought while walking around the room.
An hour went by quickly as both Twilight and Austin got ready to sleep. It was around 9 pm and Austin was about to change clothes. He managed to find a large shirt he could sleep with but still needed to take the Tux off.
Twilight was ready to sleep. She had her pajamas on and was about to get comfortable in the bed before Spike interrupted her. He was sitting in a small prototype of a doggy house on the right side of the bed.
“Weren't you gonna tell him?” he asked.
“I mean… I was… but…”
Spike saw her insecure face and understood what was happening immediately.
“Twilight, do you really think they won't believe you?”
“No, I mean, YES, I mean… I don’t know Spike…” she responded, still confused about what she should do, “That crown is really important, and in the wrong hands it can be a lethal weapon… but… what if they decide to not help me because I’m different from them? What if they get scared by the complexity of the situation?”
“Twilight, that’s not gonna happen. They’ve helped you out up until now, what makes you think they’ll stop after learning the truth?” he asked while trying to comfort her.
“Well, it’s not every day someone tells you that you come from a dimension in which people are ponies and where magic exists”
“I do see the point, but I’m sure that if you tell him, NO, if you tell all of them, they won't stop supporting you. They followed you because you were a great friend to them… and even if they know you are a pony… that’s not going anywhere” he tells Twilight with a smile.
She stays silent for a few moments. It made her calmer knowing that Spike was there for her, but doubt was still in her eyes.
Before anything else could happen a knock is heard on the door. It was Rarity. She was still wearing her work clothes, but she did change her shirt before heading up towards Twilight’s room.
“Yes?” Twilight asked as Spike went back towards the doggy house “How can I help you Rarity?”
Rarity opened the door slowly and peeked in.
“Twilight! Follow me for a few minutes” she whispered.
It was clear she didn't want Austin to hear her. Twilight followed her without knowing her intentions, but then they stopped in front of Austin’s door.
“What are we doing?” Twilight asked, a little confused.
“Darling, you don't have to hide it from me. I see that spark in your eyes every time you see him. You really care about him, right?”
Twilight stayed silent for a few seconds, her face starting to become a little red.
“I just recently met him and he’s… he’s just been too good to me… too good for everyone,” Twilight says before taking a deep breath “He made himself a special place in my heart”
Rarity smiled after hearing her say that.
“Well, tonight I will bring you a one-time opportunity to see him… shirtless” she whispers, a little bit too excited.
“Shirtless?” Twilight asks “What is that?”
Rarity looks at her with a serious face for a few seconds, while Twilight immediately makes a nervous smile.
“OH! You mean… without a shirt?” she finished asking.
“Oh darling, when you’re as popular as me you gotta choose your boy’s right. They have to be smart! They have to be Kind! But most importantly…”
Twilight stared at her with anticipation.
“... They have to be handsome!” she finished.
Twilight immediately stepped back for a second.
“I… I don’t know Rarity, I normally see what is inside the person instead of how they look” she commented.
“Oh, of course, darling! But I, as a fashion designer, always take a look at their appearance. It normally speaks volumes of a person” Rarity said.
They hear movement from the other side of the door and immediately Rarity looks through the keyhole.
“Rarity! That's a breach of privacy!” Twilight whispered while trying to get her attention.
“Oh, Twilight! He’s doing it!” she whispered back.
“Wha-?” Twilight was about to ask before being pushed towards the door and into the keyhole.
“HEY!” she was saying before taking a look through the hole.
What she saw captivated her. It was Austin, he was taking off his white button shirt. Button by button, slowly but surely. He revealed his upper body as Twilight’s eyes widened.
“Oh my Celestia...” she said, still looking through.
Suddenly Austin stops and looks towards the door. He heard that.
“Hey!” he exclaimed before ducking behind the bed “What are you guys doing!?”
Rarity giggled and grabbed Twilight by the arm.
“It’s time to run,” she said, still giggling.
Before Austin could open the door, the girls left running. Twilight entered her room and closed the door, while Rarity went back downstairs. Austin steps out of his room with his tuxedo pants and a large shirt.
He looked from left to right but found no one. Before looking around, his right hand started to shake again.
“Oh, not again!” he thought while walking back into the room and closing that door.
He walked towards the bed while trying to control himself, but before he could get there his left leg started to shake. Without his control, he slipped and fell on the floor.
“OW!” he exclaimed.
It took all his strength, but he managed to get on top of the bed and sit upright. It took a few minutes, but his body was going back to normal.
“What is happening to me?” he thought while looking at his right hand “It’s as if this body is rejecting me…”
He then realized what that meant.
“OH CRAP!” he said “What if… this body is having a secondary reaction to me using it? What if it’s rejecting me?”
He stayed there… frozen in time as if nothing was moving. He couldn’t hear anything but his heart beating faster and faster by the second.
“What if I start losing control of all my muscles? What if I start losing control over my own organs? That means I have a huge risk of suffocation… But why now? Why didn’t this happen earlier?”
He looked at himself in the mirror again.
“Is this Jake? Is he doing this? It’s his body after all… What if… what if I go to sleep and I suffocate in my sleep?”
As thoughts kept racing in his mind, the room began to fade into black as his thoughts of worry were overpowering him. It kept up like this for a few seconds until, unexpectedly, a digital alarm clock started to make noise. Austin immediately looked at it. It showed the time was 12 am.
“Holy crap!” he exclaimed “How did time just go by so quickly? I… I better at least try to get some sleep…”
He got under the bedsheets and closed his eyes. One minute passed… then another, then 3, then 30, then an hour….
“AHHHH!” he whispered in desperation.
He stood up in bed and looked around for a second.
“If Jake really is trying to regain control of his body… does that mean I’m the main reason he can't use it?”
He looked at the floor. There was a piece of fabric covering another one underneath as if it wanted to stop it from seeing the light.
“That means… that we could both be in danger… how would two people even control one body?” he asked himself.
Before even more questions could be asked, he hears a crash on the first floor of the boutique. His look stays fixated on the door while he decides if going downstairs was a good option.
“If there's someone downstairs, they might be stealing something… or even worse… they could be targeting someone…”
He then remembered the black figure.
“OH NO,” he thought while immediately getting off the bed and moving towards the door.
He makes his way towards the stairs and slowly makes his way down. Everything was silent as if no one was down there, but then he saw the lights were on.
“What?” he questioned himself before walking down.
To his surprise, it was Rarity. She was picking up a few things from the floor. Apparently, she fell and dropped them by accident.
“Hey, are you okay?” Austin asked while walking towards her to help.
“Oh I’m so sorry Austin, did I wake you up?” she asked while getting up and putting the stuff on a work table.
“Nah, I couldn't fall asleep…” he responded while helping her “But what about you? You have school tomorrow, and it's already 1 am”
“Oh, me? I’m used to working late. I finished an order 30 minutes ago, and now I’m doing some finishing touches on some of tomorrow’s ornaments for the fall formal. Pinkie felt bad about the misunderstanding we had and offered me to finish these”
He looked at her while she kept working hard. It was clear she was physically sweating from all the things she was doing.
“Don’t you think this is a little too much?” he asked.
“Nah, I've gone through worse. You should’ve seen me when I almost went bankrupt. THAT was an actual nightmare”
This comment raised an eyebrow on Austin’s face. Bankrupt?
“What do you mean?”
She looked towards him for a second and then returned to work.
“A few months ago the boutique wasn't in the best of states. I got sick and had a hard time getting things ready for delivery”
“Delivery?”
“Oh, yeah. My shop is a midway transport for multiple shipments of clothes. I'm allied with big companies and they hit me up when they want to move products from one state to another. This place is like a midway point that products go through before they reach a destination”
“Wait, are you telling me you didn't make any of the clothes we tried on?”
“Well, almost everything you tried was made by big corporations like the Brezzy’s shoe company or the Flim Flam Association”
“Wait what?! The Flim Flam Brothers? And I thought Breezy's shoes were supposed to be a secret from the public…” Austin murmured.
“Oh, that's just what Rainbow likes to think. She likes some of the premium shoes they have and only tells her most trusted friends about them” Rarity said before looking at him “Look at you, being her best friend in less than a day”
“Time passes fast, doesn't it? It isn't every day you bring a person you just met to your house and peep on him when he's changing clothes” he said while chuckling.
Rarity’s face turned red just as she tried to avoid eye contact.
“Yeah… sorry about that”
“Let's just, not do that again” he murmured, “But back to the original discussion… Why the pictures tho? If it isn't your clothes, why do it?”
“Well, my job is to see if the product is okay and take evidence photos… I almost got scammed one time…” she said with an annoyed expression.
Something was just not right to Austin. In the movies, she made all of her own designs. Another thing is different from the original timeline.
“But… why? Why don't you make your own designs? What’s stopping you from doing so?” he asked, trying to understand her reasoning “You have the imagination and the skills to do it”
Rarity took a deep breath and stopped working for a second. She looked towards the window of the boutique.
“I just… I just don't have time for that… With school and this job… I make fun sketches between classes, but I don’t have actual time to create one for real”
Austin looked at her for a few moments before realizing something. In his years of being bullied, he memorized the faces people make when they’re trying to hide the truth, and she was definitely hiding something.
“I still don’t get it. If you quit this job you are gonna have more than enough time to do something you enjoy and-” he tried to say before being stopped by Rarity.
“Look, Austin… sometimes people have a responsibility so big that it overcomes their desire to get a job they like. Sometimes people can’t get what they want… because… they just can’t”
He still didn't understand. She couldn’t be happy because she has a responsibility? What was this responsibility?
He continued to look at her before turning around and walking towards the stairs.
“I know you don't want to tell me. It must be something personal and I completely understand if you don't want to talk about it” Austin said while reaching the stairs.
"I have some secrets of my own," he thought while looking at his right hand.
He remembers how he wants to tell Twilight about his situation but in doing so he might change the timeline to the point of no return. To the point of not being able to fix things. To the point when somebody might actually get hurt.
Rarity looked at him with sadness. And before he continued to walk, she stopped him.
“Wait Austin… you seem like a good guy, so I need you to do me a favor and not tell anyone what I’m about to say”
She looked at him with serious eyes.
“If I lose this job and do my own designs… there’s a chance that my work won’t sell and that the boutique will fail”
He turned towards her and saw that it was taking all her strength to say what she wanted to say.
“If I don’t get any income… then I'll be forced to sell this place… and…”
She stopped for a second before continuing.
“This is all Sweetie Belle and I have”
Austin stood there, perplexed.
“What about your parents?” he asked “I’m sure they would be willing to help”
She looked at him with such sadness that even he figured out the answer to that question.
“Our parents… they’re gone…”
After those words left her mouth, the two of them stood silent as the breeze of the big room passed through their hair. Austin never expected this… at all.
“I’m… sorry for your loss,” he said, trying to be supportive “And I’m sorry for asking”
“It’s okay… They went out of town and rented a small van that was supposedly new… it turned out there was a faulty wheel… and they had an accident”
Austin looked at her with sympathetic eyes. He knew how she felt.
"I've been taking care of us by myself for over two years…"
Before she knew it, Austin walked towards her and looked at her with the same saddened eyes.
"My parents… were not always there for me when I needed them. I know it's not the same as your situation, but… I want you to know, that…" he began to say before stopping for a few moments "I want you to know that I'm here for you. Living without support from parents… can change someone… for the better... or for the worst"
He remembered his previous miserable life. How he always waited for his parents to return, but they never opened the door to the house. How he waited and waited for days, weeks, months, only to be received by the same words: "Sorry honey, we have work to do".
Rarity never realized he had gone through something similar. She started to feel even sadder as her will to finish what was left of work left her body.
"Are they okay?" She asked.
Austin looked at her and smiled.
"I truly hope so"
A few awkward seconds passed by before Rarity recomposed herself to continue talking.
“If I don't get enough income, I risk being unable to support myself and Sweetie Belle. That’s why I don’t do it… It’s my responsibility to keep her safe... I promised them I would do ANYTHING to protect her” she finished.
Austin stood still for what seemed like hours before saying something. He was still processing the information.
“Your parents would be proud of what you've accomplished. I’m sure they’re in a better place”
Rarity turned towards the window to see the sky.
“I truly hope so”
No words were exchanged for half a minute before Austin scratched his head and prepared to continue.
“I could help you if you want. The dance is later today so we are pretty limited in time”
She looked at him, her gaze tired of working the whole day.
“I think I’m done for right now. I can finish the rest tomorrow” she said while walking past Austin and towards the stairs “Turn the lights off before heading up please”
He looked at her going up before hitting himself in the face.
“GREAT JOB AUSTIN!” he thought while looking around to see if anything was laying on the ground “Next time let’s just directly ask her how she feels about not having any parents around why don’t ya?”
As he turned off the lights and went up the stairs, something could be seen in the background. It was placed on top of a large ornament meant for the Fall Formal. It seemed to be a small black shard of an emerald.