Chapter 1: Little Town Canterlot

“Patch.” A young pony sighed, turning his head to the pony in question. The pony named Patch turned his head to face the pony that was eerily similar to him.

“Yeah, Mono?” He questioned, giving him a look of wonder. Mono looked at Patch for only a moment before he opened his mouth to speak again, but the ring of the bell from the front door opening cut him off.

“Customer.” He said with a smile, standing, and walking out the door with Patch following him. It was uncommon for one of the two brothers doing something that the other had not. Whether it was as simple as greeting a customer to their shared fashion shop or walk from one side of Equestria to another, it didn’t matter. They were closer than anypony in all of Equestria.

“Good afternoon.” Mono cooed as soon as he opened the door.

“You must be the Style brothers.” The young mare responded. Patch and Mono stood proud, standing next to each other.

“That would be us.” The brother with gray hair and eyes said. “I’m Mono, and this is my twin brother Patch.” He introduced, turning to his brother who had red hair and eyes. The style of the manes and tails were identical, the only difference were the shades of color. Their cutie marks were also very similar, both containing the two colors from their manes in their marks.

“I heard that you make cheap dresses.” She inquired. Patch gave a swift nod.

“You’ve heard right then, we can make dresses on a tight budget.” Patch explained, quickly lifting the log book in his magic. He set it on the counter and flipped it open to the most recent page.

“Good.” She said softly. “In that case, I would like to get a simple party dress.” She said, letting her stance lower.

“Wonderful, please take a look at our example dresses and we can go from there.” Mono said, motioning to the display case of dresses. The mare turned to the dresses and inspected the design. Patch watched her longingly, a sigh escaping his lips.

“We’ll get the big hit eventually.” Mono whispered, knowing exactly what was on his mind. Patch gave a half-hearted shrug before turning back to his brother. “I’ll finish this one, go do the fun stuff.” Mono smiled, nudging his brother to head into the backroom once again to work on the suit they had been previously working on.

It wasn’t long before Mono joined his brother in the back, his face scrunched in annoyance. “Not go well?” Patch asked Mono. Mono groaned loudly.

“She left after I explained to her that modifications to the dress would be more.” Mono said, sitting down roughly in his chair, leaning back in a lazy position.

“Listen, we’ve turned a profit for this month, we can afford an idiot or two.” Patch assured his brother. “We may even have enough bits to splurge.” Patch said, a smile creeping on his face.

“How about we splurge by closing shop?” Mono suggested, pushing himself back out of his seat.

"Splendid idea, my brother!" Patch called out, placing the materials back into their proper place. Mono quickly walked into the other room, making sure the lights were out and the sign was turned to close before locking the doors. Mono returned to his brother and reclaimed his seat.

"How about that café down the street?" Patch offered. Mono smiled.

"You've read my mind." Mono replied, once again pushing himself up from his seat.

The next morning, Patch, and Mono swiftly prepared the shop for its opening. The brothers made sure that it was clean as can be before allowing the Canterlot public to find their way in.

"Patch." Mono cooed.

"What is it?" Patch responded, keeping his eyes at the mannequin where a suit was being held.

"Do you see that mare outside?" Mono said, prompting Patch turned his head quickly. "Not so fast, slow, like you aren't looking for her." Mono instructed. Patch quickly adjusted his movement to make it look more like a gaze outside.

"What about her?" Patch questioned.

"She doesn't look like a normal pony." Mono inquired.

"Come on, it's nothing. Stop being so superstitious." Patch groaned, looking back to the suit. "She's not the one." Patch said more melancholy. He couldn't stop his mind from drifting to the dark and rainy day where his and Mono's lives were changed for the worse forever.

"What if she is?" Mono said more aggressively.

"Just ignore her, Mono." Patch sighed, lifting a bow tie from the shelves as placing it on the neck of the mannequin. Mono gave an unknowing glare at the mare. When the mare glanced over at Mono, he finally walked next to Patch.

"I don't like this." Mono said. His horn lit up and the shades fell down over the window adjacent to him.

"You don't have to." Patch reminded him, as he placed the bow tie back in it's place. "Why don't you work on the orders in back today?" Patch offered. Mono sighed, leaving his brother's side to head into the back room, where he could stew in his thoughts. Patch lifted the shades from the window as soon as the door clicked shut. Patch breathed a sigh of annoyance at his brother. He was used to his antics, but it didn't stop him from being annoyed by them.

The bell over the door chimed proudly, prompting Patch to turn his head and greet the pony, but halted in his tracks when he saw a familiar pegasus fold her wings and wiggle out of the Canterlot weather pony vest.

"Morning Gale." Patch said, a smile creeping on his face.

"Where's Mono?" Gale questioned, looking around and throwing her vest to the side. Patch used his magic to catch it and neatly fold it before he placed it on the counter.

"It's his day to work on orders." Patch explained, turning away from the mannequin and walking to his friend. "How long do you have today?"

"A couple of minutes, and you?" Gale responded, stretching out her wings and forelegs.

"All the time in the world." Patch responded, a little chuckle escaping from his lips.

"Good, I need you to do something." Gale suggested. Patch sighed and loosened his stance.

"What is it?" He groaned.

"Don't look to gloom about it!" Gale playfully scolded. "I need you to fix that vest before I need to get back." Gale said, motioning to her vest that sat on the counter. Sighing, Patch lifted the vest once again in his magic and opened it up, inspecting it until he found the hole in question. He levitated a needle and thread over and quickly began sewing the hole back up.

"The weather team needs new vests." Patch pointed out. Gale shrugged.

"No pony in Canterlot is willing to make all the needed vests." She pointed out. Patch cleared his throat, bringing attention to him. "I'll try." Gale promised. Patch smiled, content with himself. Finally, when the hole was completely fixed, he tied of the end of the thread and placed the needle and spool back on the shelf. He then levitated the vest over to Gale and allowed her to snatch it from his magic.

"Thanks Patch, I need to get going now, I'll see you around." Gale said, quickly it tying the best back on and turning on her back legs to rush outside. Not long after, another young mare trotted in. Her bouncy blonde mane was stained with colors on the end, as well as her tail. Her four hooves and muzzle were also stained with color. Her normal fur color was a pastel purple. And she had striking pastel blue eyes. She was a small pony, especially for an earth pony. Her stunning colors mesmerized Patch.

"Good morning, miss, my name is Patch Style, can I help you with anything?" He asked, a smile planted firmly on his face and his stance straight.

"Actually, yes." She said. She had a soft and gentle voice, even a little higher pitched. She reached into her bag that hung off her shoulder with her mouth and pulled out a bolt of light blue fabric that matched her eyes. "Can you make an apron with this fabric?" She asked after she had set it on the ground in front of her.

"That will be no trouble. If you don't mind, could you come over here with me and I'll fit you?" Patch asked, lifting the bolt of fabric in his magic and turning to the opposite corner of the shop where he had mirrors set up as well and a raised platform. The mare nodded and walked over to the corner, setting her bag down against one of the chairs. Patch immediately took her measurements and wrote them down.

"This is wonderful fabric." Patch complimented, further inspecting the fabric.

"Thank you, I dyed the color myself." She explained, taking a seat in one of the chairs.

"I've never seen anypony like you around, are you new?" Patch questioned. The mare nodded.

"I come from Marewaukee." She said. Patch nodded as he levitated a mannequin over to him and began working on making the apron.

"What do you do?" Patch asked.

"I dye fabrics, my name is Dyed Daily, by the way." She explained, giving Patch a quick smile. Patch continued to make the apron as quickly as he could. It was quiet in the shop as Patch worked diligently on getting the fabric just right. It only took him an hour before the apron was completed. He took it off the mannequin and folded it neatly, setting it on the counter by the log book. Dyed Daily followed Patch over to the counter and pulled out a bag of bits.

"How much is it?" Dyed Daily asked. Patch quickly wrote a few things down.

"15 bits." Patch said. Dyed Daily looked at Patch in surprise.

"No, it must be more than that." Dyed Daily said, trying to figure out how the price was so low.

"Five bits for materials and ten for labor." He explained. "I used your own material, so I only had to charge for thread and needles. For labor, it's ten bits an hour unless ordered ahead of time, so 15 bits." Patch further explained. Dyed Daily pulled out her bit bag and carefully pulled out the fifteen bits and set the on the counter. She took the apron and put it in her bag.

"I'll see you around." She said before leaving. Patch watched as she walked away.

"Patch!" Mono called from the back. Patch quickly turned and entered the back room, where Mono waited for him.

"What?" He asked as he entered the room.

"The order is finished." Mono said, carefully wrapping the suits into plastic wraps and hanging them on a rack. Patch looked at them.

"Awesome." He sighed, walking over to help Mono place the last of the dresses on the rack.

"I'll deliver." Mono offered. Patch shrugged as he returned to the front to organize what remained after Dyed Daily had left. Mono pushed the rack of dresses out the back door, using his magic to keep it stabilized. He began walking the streets of the poor part of Canterlot. He knew all the shortcuts, having practically lived in them with Patch since their parents had died.

Though it had been long ago, Mono still remembers the look of terror on their face as the murderous pony took them away from Patch and Mono. The murderer was unaware of the twins presence, and after that day, they took to the streets, living soundly on their own.

Mono walked briskly, trying to get to his destination as soon as he could. Finally, when he found his way to the door, Mono gave a hard knock, waiting for the owner of the house to open the door. After a short exchange, the stallion gave Mono the bits and Mono laid the suits out for him to inspect them. It wasn't long before Mono was on his way back home.

On the way, he stopped in front of an observatory. Mono smiled, knowing the pony inside would be working on whatever crossed his mind at the time. Mono turned his path to the door of the observatory, and gave it a firm knock.

“If you’re trying to sell me something, I’m in the middle of a scientific breakdown.” The stallion inside yelled. Mono looked at the door in confusion.

“I think you have it mixed up, you mean breakthrough?” Mono questioned.

“No, it’s definitely a breakdown.” The stallion replied. Mono sighed and used his magic to open the door, and begin to walk inside, but was stopped when the door refused to open. Mono pushed the door harder, giving up when it refused.

“Midnight, open the door. It’s Mono.” He sighed. Suddenly, he heard things being moved. After a while, the door opened and allowed Mono entered. He saw that the normally partially organized laboratory was disorderly and his scientific instruments were strewn about.

“What’s going on?” Mono questioned. The stallion emerged from under a sheet, his mane just as disorderly as the rest of the room.

“It’s horrible!” He cried out, lifting the sheet off of his body. “I just can’t do it!” Mono sighed in annoyance.

“What is it, Midnight Dust?” Mono asked harshly. Midnight stood and faced his friend.

“My hypothesis was wrong; the spell didn’t work.” He complained. Mono sighed once again.

“Clean yourself up, Midnight. You need a break from this.” Mono suggested, stepping around a box on the floor.

“And do what? I’m a scientist, if I don’t discover something I loose my funding from Canterlot.” Midnight groaned, lifting the sheet back over his head with his magic.

“Sometimes when Patch and I don’t have an idea we walk away from it for a while. I recommend you do the same.” Mono offered. Midnight shrugged. “Clean yourself up and come visit Patch and me at our shop.” Mono instructed. Midnight let out a long, drawn out sigh.

“Fine.” He gave in, letting the sheet fall off of him again. Mono turned again, ready to leave and finally make his way back to his shop where Patch would be worry about him for certain.

"I'm expecting you there in about an hour." Mono scolded as he shut the door behind him. Mono hurried back to the shop so Patch wouldn't worry too much about him. Mono finally re-entered the shop, greeting his brother and informing him of their surprise guest.

Midnight walked into the front door of the shop, a nervous smile planted on his face. Mono noticed his petrified friend immediately, quickly walking to his side.

“Midnight, relax.” He ordered, squelching a laugh to the best of his ability.

“Come on,” Patch cooed, levitating a bottle of wine and three glasses, “It’s not like somepony is killing your family. You’ll figure it out.” Patch assured him, pouring the wine in each of the glasses. Mono and Midnight each took one.

“If I don’t find something soon, I’m going to loose my funding and I will have to live on the-” Midnight started, looking to Patch before finishing. Patch turned his head to look at Mono.

“You’ll be fine.” He said to Midnight, keeping his gaze locked on his brother.

"How about that spell that you've been working on?" Mono asked, quickly changing the subjects the brothers were more comfortable talking about.

"It's still unstable." Midnight explained, he gazed to the floor, both trying to avoid eye contact as well as get lost into his own thoughts. "But maybe..." He trailed off, shifting his gaze to the ceiling.

"Yes?" Mono prompted Midnight to continue.

"Maybe I'm thinking of the spell all wrong. Maybe it doesn't need as much aura." Midnight concluded. He quickly polished off his glass of wine and shoved it over to Patch.

"Thanks Patch, thanks Mono, I think I've got an idea now." Midnight announced gleefully and galloping out if the shop. Patch watched as Midnight away from the shop, gently shaking his head before noticing Mono sinking into his form.

"Don't let it get to you." Patch said, knowing exactly what he was thinking, as he was thinking it too.

"I know, but-" Mono started, but cut himself off. "I just can't." He finished, setting his own wine glass down.

"It made us better ponies, Mono. Bad things can happen to good ponies." Patch said, putting a hoof on his brother's shoulder to try and calm him down. "He didn't mean it." Patch assured Mono. Mono gave a gently nod, trying to rope himself back into reality.

"Let's close the shop for the day." Mono offered. Patch gave a nod of agreement as Mono used his magic to flip the sign to closed. Patch quickly organized the shop often the long day's work and promptly returned to Mono's side.

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