You Had To Figure This Wasn't Going To Go Well
I found a site for the mill.
We still have to wait for some things to arrive. Construction materials is most of that, and the road is a little too new to expect them in a hurry. In theory, the distance would make Canterlot into a day trot, but the pathway is still opening up. There haven't been enough ponies to blaze the full trail, and all the monsters know is that we're passing by regularly and they can take advantage of that. I had to pay for hauling and protective spells. Extra ponies to provide more security. It cost more than I was hoping to pay, and that's why I know we can make money here.
A new settled zone doesn't open up every day. Sometimes there's decades between them. That makes this into an opportunity.
I wrote to her, when I saw the bill, as a reminder of why I'd wanted to come: if ponies are being forced to pay that much to bring refined materials into this new settlement -- then how are they going to react when they see a local sawmill going up? We may spend moons trying to figure out just how to apportion out whatever we can make, because we won't be able to make enough to meet the initial demand.
Maybe that'll be what convinces her that I didn't make a mistake.
Our own costs are a limiting factor there. I can only pay for so much in the way of materials, and I need to leave something for a construction crew. They won't be cheap either, and that's all going to limit the initial size of the mill. I left some places in the blueprints where we could take down parts of an outer wall and expand later: it should be easier to clear some of the surrounding trees by then.
For now, it'll just fill a natural hollow in the wild zone -- because just about everything is still wild zone -- next to one of the larger rivers. The ground is pretty level to start with. That'll make it easier to get the base laid down, and the testing I did on the soil showed it would be easy to dig out a basement.
It's been weird, trotting around the area, even with ponies keeping lookout. I've never spent this much time in the wild. But we're here now, and when there's enough of us... that's when it won't be wild any more.
A new settlement. The first in decades. It's an opportunity: it can't be anything else. It was worth leaving home for, to be a part of this.
We're not the first ones here, of course. There's an orchard starting up: from what everypony says, that family was the very first one in. A few other farms have been put together, and there's a general store which can barely keep up with the tide: they seem to be having some trouble getting their own goods down the new road. The owner's a decent stallion, though. A lot of ponies in that situation would price gouge until the cows came in, not that this place is anywhere near being ready to host tenants yet. This one's making a profit, but I can tell it's margin over cost. His costs are just going to stay high for a while. Of course, if he raised them too much, then Canterlot's right over there. But that's the road again, and all the risks.
I think that's the strangest part. Canterlot.
Most settled zones aren't this close together. And when I was scouting out potential sites for the mill, it was just the wild zone. (Somepony said it's called the Everfree. I've been meaning to find out why. Who ever heard of a wild zone which had its own name?) It's trees without direction and wind without schedule. Monsters who don't care what we do as long as they can swoop in and eat us while we're doing it. I've been able to keep most of the shaking inside until I get back to the farmhouse and my rented barn bunk space. It's hard, being in the wild like this, and I don't know how ponies do it every day.
But it's not as hard as it could be.
I found this one place. Clear enough for trees, but the land was on a slant and it was too far from water to do any good. Didn't work for the mill. But it was a clear day, and when I looked, I could make out the castle. Pretty much nothing of the capital, but the towers were visible. I can see Canterlot from that patch of land. When there's been more cleared, maybe ponies will be able to see it from nearly any place in our new settled zone.
But right now, it's easiest to see it from right there.
I think that's where I'm going to put our house.
We can stand on our porch and see the palace. The first new settled zone in more than a generation, and that means there's monsters out there. The earth ponies are still working on getting the Effect down, and I mostly see pegasi during deliveries: this is wild weather. A real unicorn population is going to take a while. It might even be just us for a year or two. It means there's risks, and that we all have to be careful. Ponies can die when new settled zones are opened. But the earth ponies brought it this far, and now it's time for the next phase.
I look at the palace, and I know the Princess is watching over us. She'll watch over my wife once she gets here and when we start our family, the Princess will smile down on our kids.
Canterlot's right there.
I think we're going to be okay.
Fleur trotted out of the rented house shortly after Sun had been raised, took a breath as she looked up and down the street and in doing so, caused a pair of accidents.
The neighbors were, to some degree, still getting used to her presence: a pony like Fleur didn't move into the area every day, moon, year, or however long it had been since Joyous had entered Ponyville. (She had to find out where Joyous lived.) But sufficient exposure made it possible for some to regard her presence on a background level: yes, the local view had been improved to a level never seen before -- at least in this neighborhood -- but as they had only so much interaction with her, especially with her having to go to the cottage all the time, her post-party status seemed to be set at 'scenery'. And it was certainly possible to become used to the presence of beauty, even when said presence was fairly intermittent at best.
However, on this morning, Fleur had spent some extra time on her mane and tail before utilizing a fairly wide spread of cosmetics. (She hadn't bothered with perfume, as she'd already been using the Foal Soap long enough to make the attempt pointless.) There was a very reluctant stop to be made on that morning, and if she had to be there, then showing up the occupant was a requirement.
Fleur wasn't at her peak: she saved that for truly special occasions. But she'd deliberately elevated herself, and so two mid-shift commuters turned towards the sound of the house's door opening, then promptly commuted into each other.
Perfect.
She didn't bother to glance at them as she stepped into the street: all eight legs could be untangled with no supervision from her. Instead, she simply began to trot, giving off the appearance of being in no particular hurry. She'd agreed to meet Fluttershy at the building itself, but the appointed time wouldn't arrive for a while yet. And while Fleur hated the idea of wasting time, a more gradual approach wouldn't do that. There was no current way of knowing what the -- shop's... owner -- truly knew about her, and so she wanted a few extra minutes to plan some potential responses in advance.
"...hi." The filly's shy voice (a fairly melodic one: Fleur had noticed that) came from well behind her, far enough back that Fleur had just been starting to pick up her presence on that unique sense -- and then hearing had taken over. "Um... good morning?"
Fleur glanced back towards Sweetie, and needed a moment to find her in the stallion's shadow.
Large for a stallion. (Not as large as Snowflake, but she didn't know of a stallion who matched him.) Unusually muscular. He moved in a way which spoke of old injuries, ones where the body had healed and the mind still directed it to move carefully just in case. She'd already heard some of the neighbors speaking about Sweetie's father: a former professional athlete, and now a coach: something which meant he didn't get to spend a lot of time at home. None of those conversations had mentioned the absolute hideousness of the hat.
"Morning," the stallion placidly said, and calm eyes went over her, something which was much more evaluation than appreciation. His daughter had spoken to a pony, one he knew of -- but this was their first meeting, and so he was trying to figure her out.
She returned the favor. It didn't take long to solve his puzzle, and she was rather pleased to find nothing unpleasant within. His tastes were actually fairly standard, and fully satisfied. (There was a minor underlying level of frustration regarding how often those desires actually got to be fully satisfied, but he was monogamous and on the road a lot.) It was, in many ways, a comfort.
"Good morning," she smiled, turning around to face them. "We haven't met --"
"-- right," he broke in. "We haven't." Still looking her over, and it was so easy to see that the scrutiny came from protection. "So it's good to get it out of the way. Fleur, right?" She nodded. "Missed the party. Had a road game."
"My dad," Sweetie shyly tried, "works for --"
"I've heard," Fleur helped her. Still smiling. "So you're just swinging through on your way to the next match."
He nodded. "Sweetie said you helped her out one time."
The smile was beginning to feel somewhat fixed. If she gave him any details...
Well, she really hadn't done much. She'd told the trio to leave, and she'd been prepared to lie on their behalf: something which had never happened. Oh, and the encounter had provided his daughter with some fresh hues upon her developing puzzle, because there had been kindness in a moment of high emotion and sometimes that was all it took. But he didn't know about that, she was hardly going to tell him and besides, Fleur would never --
"Appreciate it," the stallion steadily said, with the words both soft and powerful. "I don't get to look out for her as much as I'd like. So it's good to know somepony did."
She could only read the sexual aspects of a sentient being: it meant she couldn't entirely figure anypony out through their puzzle alone. But she could see the tension moving along his rib cage. The way his left forehoof was slightly rotating, grinding against the cobblestones.
He was considerably older than she would have expected Sweetie's father to be: her guess was that the filly had been born rather late in the marriage. He had, from everything she'd heard, had an unusually long career for a hoofball player, and had likely ached his way through all of it. The hideous hat created the question of a horn (because any such barrier had to be removed before casting): the neighbors had answered it. A unicorn, one where she had no idea what he was capable of magically -- but the physical power was still there.
His puzzle was just about an everyday one, and told her there was nothing to worry about there. His body language said something else.
'Help my daughter and I'll thank you.
Hurt her and I'll end you.'
She knew he had nothing to worry about. And because he was a good stallion, he worried anyway.
"It's all right," she smiled. "It was just something --" okay, maybe not something anypony would have done "-- I could do. Where are you two headed?"
Sweetie winced. "My teacher..." she half-whispered, and stopped as the skin below white fur blazed with red-hot embarrassment.
"Cheerilee wants to see a parent," the stallion filled in. "One of us. And since I'm around, it's me."
Sweetie shrank slightly, withdrew from herself, and Fleur noted that doing so had her moving towards her father.
Good.
"I won't keep you," she told them. She had ways to stall, but she also had an appointment she didn't particularly want to keep and knew that in both cases, delaying would ultimately make it all the worse. "But if you want to talk with me, you know where I live." He nodded. "Good luck, Sweetie."
She blushed a little more. "...thank you..."
Fleur nodded, began to turn --
"And where are you off to?" the stallion politely inquired. "In case we're trotting the same way for a while."
She was already facing away from them, and so felt free to indulge in the wince.
"I have to see a --" severe editing occurred "-- mare. About a dress."
"Oh," the stallion considered. "Well, have a good time with that."
She heard him smile, and it made her trot that much faster.
Some of her final approach time was used in thinking up new names for the shop. There were several which seemed suitable, and if a pony could just get through the initial wave of protests conducted by self-appointed moral guardians who never seemed to have any true morals of their own, there was definitely a place in Canterlot for the That Bitch Boutique.
Not that the owner could make it in Canterlot.
Fleur couldn't even take full credit for that. That -- 'Rarity,' she had to use the name for a while, if mostly externally -- had been in Ponyville before Fleur had ever said a single carefully-constructed thing. So while she might possess some talent for design, it was obviously a second-rate one: somepony of true skill would have been spotted at the annual fashion Talent Search and been hired years ago. To be in Ponyville from the start indicated a 'talent' -- the quotes were internally justified -- incapable of competing with the best. A discount dress shop out in the boondocks, where those with very little taste and even less in the way of bits went to get a break on the price point, unaware that the true cost would soon be coming out of their reputations. And that was the sort of thing Fluttershy wanted to wear on her first date.
To a minor degree, it didn't strictly matter. Caramel didn't strike Fleur as the sort of stallion who paid too much attention to dresses: he was rather more concerned with what lay beneath them. But for the next date, she was going to get Fluttershy into Canterlot, take her to a real designer. Somepony of skill, reputation, and -- just as important -- a pony who would invoice the palace for Yes, They're Actually Charging By The Thread. Fleur was going to get her a real dress, send Celestia a real bill, and after the next date was over...
...I'll have to be careful about that. I'll have the original receipt, but returning something that's been worn is chancy. Do it enough times and it'll kick my reputation. Besides, just because I know how to get through the night with a dress and leave it looking like it was never touched doesn't mean Fluttershy can do it, and that isn't an easy thing to teach. We don't move the same way.
She rather naturally thought about how Fluttershy moved, then managed to get the memory of the peacock imitation out of it.
Or she could return it.
Now there was a picture: a pony who could barely muster the courage to speak with those around her, reluctantly slinking into the highest-end of Canterlot's stores to request a full refund. Fleur had to play out the scene several times before her charge's responses even became audible.
Actually, that might be good training for her. It's just a variant on the base lesson...
The shop was starting to loom large in her sight. A little too large: the place seemed to be far too oversized for a dress shop, and that was after she factored out all of the external signs which indicated the upper level was being used as an apartment.
There was a cat in one of the upper windows. They each regarded the other until both decided they'd won. And Fleur waited.
I went after a Bearer.
I didn't know I was going after one. (It felt oddly discourteous for the matter to have never been brought up.) But it's possible that this can be fixed. If she never managed to backtrack anything, then there might not be any problems at all.
However, the only way to find out was to go inside, and she wasn't going in without Fluttershy. The 'designer' was likely waiting for Fleur's charge before opening the door in any case, and should there be any -- incidents -- then Fluttershy's presence could help to moderate them.
So Fleur waited, and after a few minutes, about as close to on-time as the cottage would allow -- she'd already learned to make a rather rare allowance there -- Fluttershy came trotting up the road.
Trotting again. She knew Fluttershy could fly: she'd seen it happen. But she was starting to wonder if there was something wrong with those slightly oversized wings, because the pegasus was never in the air for long. If not for certain considerations, it would have felt as if Fleur --
"...good morning," the pegasus softly said. (She looked a little more confident than usual, was moving more easily. Of course she was. She was heading into a safe place. A shop owned by a friend.) "...were you waiting for me?" Fleur nodded. "...you could have just knocked..."
"I thought we should go in together. I want to see what you pick out before I start making any suggestions." Which was the truth. "And your friend might have some ideas for you." Likely also the truth, and possibly something Fleur would wind up moving to stop. "Besides, she doesn't --" quickly sorted out her words "-- know me all that well, and --" a quick nod towards the business hours which had been posted near the door "-- the place isn't officially open yet. She might not have unlocked everything for a pony she didn't really know."
Her charge nodded. "...I understand." She trotted forward a little more, still doing so less timidly than Fleur was accustomed to, and the escort stepped aside to let Fluttershy knock.
It was an interesting sort of knock. There wasn't a lot of visible force behind it, and yet it produced enough sound to do the job. Fleur suspected special construction in the wood.
She counted off forty heartbeats, stopped when she heard the first clicking of locks. It took another twelve to create the first assault of completely-false accent.
"Darling! And right on time! Well, as much on time as your own will allow, I know, but please do not concern yourself with the delay: we are starting early in any case, and it allowed me to complete a sketch. A date, Fluttershy --" fake eyelashes fluttered "-- your very first date, and..."
The word flow faltered, briefly evaporated.
"...it is with... well, we will be talking about that soon enough. And possibly for a rather long time. But should you still be going ahead with it --"
Perfect. She got in the way with Fancypants, she's doing the same thing here, I should have just stomped until the vibrations shook Fluttershy onto the train...
"-- you will, of course, need a dress. One which I understand is being -- paid for? By --"
Which was when the blue eyes sent their gaze beyond Fluttershy's obscuring manefall, and the unicorns looked at each other for the second time in their lives.
Fleur could only read the sexual aspects of a being, and had no need to do so here: she already knew what that puzzle looked like. But she'd also learned a little about body language, and it told her something about how much the so-called designer might have discovered about the source of certain tales.
"-- you," the mare finished. "Oh, yes. You."
The overdone tail lashed again. Several muscles stiffened or rather, stiffened more.
"How very interesting to see you. In Ponyville of all places. Well, I'm certain that something very important has brought you here. Is keeping you here. And of course I wish you success in your endeavors, especially since you must be missing your home and the sooner you succeed, the sooner you can leave."
Strictly speaking, Rarity might not have learned much. But there was anger, and that meant she suspected.
"Do come inside," the somehow-Bearer said through half-clenched teeth. "We have so much to catch up on, you and I..."
Fluttershy, a mare whom Fleur suspected didn't always have a lot of natural skill when it came to reading the room, was steadily shifting her head. Training that single visible eye on one unicorn, then the other.
"...you two -- know each other?"
Never be afraid to make an enemy you already had...
Of course, this enemy was a Bearer. Just as (currently) bad, one of Fluttershy's friends. A pony Fluttershy would trust.
I have to be very careful. And we have to make this quick. I need to stay around constantly, not give Fluttershy time alone with her in the shop.
Which wouldn't prevent a friend from dropping by the cottage.
Fleur took a breath. Smiled.
"We met once," she told her charge. "Briefly. I'm surprised Rarity even remembers."
"You make something of an impression," the Bearer declared. "To begin with, there is your appearance. And then there is your memorable concept of the ideal casual Canterlot wardrobe. It's rather uncommon to see somepony using an adult stallion as an accessory." The smile went wide, with lips pulled thin enough to crack. "Do come inside, both of you. For purposes of choosing colors, the light is somewhat better within, and I would much rather have you where I can see you..."
When it came to acting, Fleur believed herself to have some skill: after all, even with the most credulous clients, one simply couldn't gasp a few times and call it an orgasm. She'd needed to take on a number of roles during her life, and the one she was currently playing was complete innocent. Polite, exceptionally well-mannered, and allowing Rarity to do the majority of the work in burying herself.
The shop... well, if she had to admit it, she'd seen worse. The Boutique was an improvement over a number of better-known (or in this case, known at all) Canterlot establishments. The styles weren't all that bad, the color selection frequently worked, the gems weren't so much signature aspect as complete and utter overkill... on the whole, it was better than Barneigh's. Of course, Fleur could say the same thing about recovering a manure sack from the trash and when it came to some of the dyes used at Barneigh's, there was a chance for the manure sack to possess the more subtle scent.
It created a mystery. Rarity was -- 'competent': that was as far as Fleur was willing to go. But it was a competence which should have drawn notice, and the trade magazines scattered around the waiting area told Fleur that the designer kept a close eye on the industry. This wasn't somepony too naive to have even heard of the Search. She had to have been there at least once, and if her work had been anywhere near this level at the time...
Somepony would have hired her. Fleur could admit that, because taste was a variable and so some ponies had less of it. So what is she doing in Ponyville?
It was, as questions went, purely intellectual. Fleur didn't strictly care what had happened to the mare. But it was possible that Rarity had some previous experience in being the victim of rumor.
And she probably deserved it that time, too.
"I understand you're a Bearer," Fleur pleasantly said from her bench in the waiting area, watching a lightly-spiking soft blue field as it placed fabric samples and color swaths near Fluttershy's fur, pulled them away again.
"Do you?" the mare responded. "I rather appreciate that you understand something. Perhaps we can hope to treat that level of comprehension as some degree of foundation for future events."
"Which one?" It was more direct than she usually wanted to be, but she seemed to have very little to lose. "If you don't mind my asking, of course. Because you're both the first and last one I've seen -- not that I knew that at the time -- and since I don't know the Elements for the entire group, I'm afraid I can't even begin to guess at yours." She decided the script called for a merry little shrug. "We just didn't have enough time together..."
Several field-coated sewing needles began to tap themselves against a table.
"Well, you are being rather more direct than I might have expected," Rarity stated.
"Curiosity," Fleur excused herself. "It's natural. I'm sure you get it all the time, from those who recognize your role. Whatever that might happen to be." And watched the mare's jaw clench.
(Fluttershy's gaze was volleying between them, shifting back and forth like a hoofball caught in a scrum.)
"Very well," Rarity ultimately pretended to decide. "In the name of satisfying your curiosity. Now of course, you will be familiar with the six major pony virtues --"
It was a fairly natural assumption, and it was partially wrong. Fleur had come to that information later than might have been expected for most, and hadn't really considered it worth fully memorizing. She had a vague idea for a few of them, and had confirmed a small number through learning about those Bearers, but to just rattle them off --
"-- if only as distant rumor," the mare continued. "Each Element reflects one of those virtues, and chooses a pony who will do so as well. In my case, I do my best to represent, and thus bear, the virtue of Generosity."
Fleur blinked.
"Generosity." The worst part was that it hadn't been an attempt at mockery.
"I believe I just said that."
"You --" it took an effort to keep her voice steady "-- give things away." And that entitled a pony to take up an Element?
"In several manners of speaking," Rarity said, with that spiking field sorting a number of spools along the way. "It is not simply charitable donations, nor is it accommodating those unfortunates who conclude that to not grant them everything I possess would result in my being deposed. There are several means by which the virtue might manifest itself. To begin with --" and the blue eyes focused on Fleur "-- I am rather skilled at giving ponies a piece of my mind."
Apparently being careful wasn't doing any good.
So dominate.
"You have to be careful with that," Fleur observed.
"Do I?"
"Well, if you give out too many pieces, then what's left for you?"
The needles were tapping faster now.
"There's a test we could do," Fleur smiled, letting the open humor be her lie. "Tap your head against something solid. We'll see how hollow it sounds. Then we'll know just how much you have left to give."
The thinnest one snapped. Fluttershy reared up a little at the sound, and it took some time to get her fur settled back into the grain again.
"I understand you're an escort?" Rarity eventually said. "How very uncommon -- at least locally. Ponyville was actually without a single escort to its name for quite some time, forcing ponies to take the day trip -- or much more often, night -- to Canterlot and seek help from whatever might have drifted into the profession. But I'm pleased to say that for this settled zone, the occupation is once again occupied. We simply don't have that many, especially when you consider our population. And an apprentice should not be counted among their number yet."
Fleur was willing to nod on that one. There were rules which had to be followed when going for an escort's license, and one of those said that an apprentice technically wasn't. You could follow an active escort around as they went about their duties, talk to them about the profession, ask for advice and listen carefully to any answers they had to give -- but you couldn't do anything beyond talking. Any degree of actual training required signing up for classes, and some areas required a mentor. (Ideally, this would be the pony you'd been consulting.) But when it came to escorting, 'apprentice' usually just meant somepony who wasn't ready to commit yet. With a few of the problem cases, it translated directly to 'voyeur.'
"But you have not announced your presence," Rarity went on. "And I also understand that such is expected, especially when it concerns those who share your profession. To consult. Ask about those who have been known to cause problems. And of course, when it comes to competition, let them know that there is somepony about who is both quite willing and skilled in screwing ponies over."
There was an "...eep!" Both unicorns put it aside for later.
And now on top of everything else, I have to worry about what that bitch might have said to Fluttershy before today. "It's considered common courtesy to drop by," Fleur agreed. "Any client who's been enough trouble to put themselves on the master blacklist without also putting themselves in prison -- well, it gets updated frequently, but it doesn't go out every day, and ponies need to know who's on it." Although in this case, 'blacklist' was a little too formal. Some fetishes and kinks would be rejected by ninety-nine percent of all potential escorts -- but that left one pony in a hundred who was willing to take on the job. A local blacklist was frequently just warnings about what some ponies wanted to do, and the warnings themselves explained why nopony had been willing to do it.
The true list was composed of those whom no escort should ever see, and there weren't that many living names on it. Every escort knew those names. Most of them were accompanied by pictures, the rest had sketches, and all came with instructions on how to detect fur dye.
"Which would lead one to assume that you are either displaying a stunning lack of what would otherwise be, as you say, common courtesy," the designer decided, "or you are not escorting at the moment. Should I presume the second?"
"I'm here for Fluttershy," Fleur said. "That's all."
"So any screwing you might do...?"
"Would be purely recreational." The smile was beginning to feel natural. "Or if I'm lucky, it might even be the perfectly natural outgrowth of a relationship. Who knows? I might even have the fortune to run into a pony I'd considered screwing before, and could now screw just for the fun of it..."
The second needle snapped.
"Rhynorn's Flu?" Fleur innocently inquired. "If you're sick enough to lose control of your field, then you should close the shop. We still have time to get into Canterlot --"
"-- there is one thing I am sick of," the mare hissed. "A moment of your time, Fleur?"
Which meant she'd just been asked for something Rarity normally wouldn't have been worth, but in this case...
She got up, followed Rarity into what turned out to be one of the larger dressing rooms, as a virtually-spellshocked Fluttershy lightly swayed in place on the selling floor.
The curtain snapped shut behind them. Two of the rings broke.
"You --" Rarity shot at her.
"-- have been treated like refuse from the moment you saw me," Fleur intercepted. "I'm used to that. There's always ponies who think that escorts are something they can look down on, kick at without consequence. It doesn't mean I like it. So the nastier you are to me, that's as nasty as I'm going to be with you."
Those blue eyes stared at her. A sharper, darker blue than Fluttershy's, which were more of a blue-green. They would have been among the mare's best features if she could have been presumed to have any.
"I know what you did."
"Then tell me."
A long silence, too long for Fleur's taste: it was wasting time. And when it broke, she wished it had been longer still.
"I remain," Rarity stated, "in contact with Fancypants."
Somehow, she kept her knees straight, her spine properly curved. All of the reaction was locked inside, and she distantly wondered how long she could keep it there. "You're lucky. There aren't a lot of mares who get to say that --"
"-- and so I know that he thought well of you," Rarity cut her off. "Until he did not. And if there is a reason for him to turn away from you, Fleur, then why should I, as a mare who believes herself to be his friend, not do the same?"
...she doesn't know.
She doesn't have the specifics, and she didn't trace the rumors. All she knows is that he doesn't want to be near me, and thinking she's his friend, she has to reject me in order to defend him. And he would never tell her what happened. It sounded like he barely told Celestia.
I may have just won.
And her head dipped. Purple eyes briefly, artfully closed.
"...what happened with Fancypants," she softly, sadly said, "has to stay between the two of us. There's a lot of things you learn when you become an escort, Rarity -- and when it's related to the job, one of the biggest is confidentiality. I won't talk about it. I can't. You may be his friend, but I'm --" added extra regret "-- I was -- his escort. And that..."
She found herself in the rare position of being able to add some truth, and almost cherished it.
"...is one of the biggest regrets of my life. That it's was. That 'was' won't ever change. If you feel like you have to hurt me to defend him, Rarity, I understand that. I know what that's like, more than you might want to imagine." And brought her head up, made eye contact. "But I'm still going to defend myself. And right now, all we're doing is upsetting Fluttershy, when we both know she's going to have a hard enough time getting through today to begin with. So -- knowing I can't talk about it --" and now hoping that Fancypants wouldn't either, not with this one "-- can we at least have a truce? One which lasts long enough for you to see her off and wish her luck? Because I think she really needs her friends to wish her well right now. To believe in her. And all you're doing is fighting."
The mare's hind legs did not go out from under her. Buttocks failed to hit the floor, and the overdone tail didn't splay.
"We have begun to realize," Rarity said (and Fleur instantly wondered about the nature of that 'we') "that your tutelage, such as it is, likely concerns social situations. Would it be safe to say that 'dating' is included in that?"
She shifted to a previous defense. "If Fluttershy hasn't told you --"
"-- we try to meet once a week at the spa," Rarity stated. "Regardless of what may be happening in both our lives, we try. It could be argued that there are few traits which we truly share, but for what we do have in common... stress would be rather high on the list. So we talk. But not about you, what your duties are. She still refuses, with all of us. And I will use your own silence as a canvas upon which to paint my guess. This is about dating. Because now one of us is dating, and she has somehow decided that she must do the same. In many ways, I am proud of her for that. But I do not know if I trust you to bring her through this. And when the process begins with Caramel --"
"It had to be Caramel." Another truth, and she kept her tones neutral.
A simple, surprisingly strong "Why?"
"You know about him, Rarity. And if you know about him, and what's already happened between them -- then you know why."
Another silence, enough for both to hear the unsteady breathing of the shop's only customer.
Starkly, "That's how you're approaching this."
"For her first, yes. Unless everything is perfect. And I don't think it can be."
"That..." A deep breath. "...is a harsh lesson. And when it comes to the student --"
"-- she's strong enough."
Instantly, "I know she is. Her strength does not concern me. The nature of the lesson does."
More softly, "She has to learn it. And the sooner, the better. You know that's true."
"And you are only thinking about her." There was more than a little sarcasm in that.
Fleur nodded.
Another long silence, and it wasn't long enough for Fleur to think of what she could say next.
"I don't like you," Rarity finally said. "I rather doubt that I ever will. But... as you said, this day is about Fluttershy. So I accept your truce. We will make a show of true politeness. We will tell her that differences have been settled, without saying what they were. We shall mutually calm her. And then I will send Fluttershy on her way, in the perfect dress for a first date, while wishing her well."
There were many things which could have been said about the dress part, and Fleur contented herself with having thought of all of them. "Thank you."
"But I wonder," Rarity quietly finished, "when you'll think of the other aspect. Or if you already have, and simply do not care..."
Soft blue pulled the curtain aside and Generosity, having just freely given out a piece of her mind, went back to the sales floor.
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Two masters of the art, verbaly sparing. And not enough of it going over Fluttershy’s head. Marvelous.
Hell yes, finally the two meet! Been dying to see how you had them interact. That introduction sounds like the letters between ponies building the mill in the past. The scene after with Sweetie and her dad made me feel relieved for Sweetie and bad for Fleur at the same time. That's going to get really dark, isn't it.
WHAT THE FU—
What did I miss and when did I miss it?
So, correct if I'm wrong here, but Fleur only hates Rarity because she stole the spotlight back when during 'Sweet and Elite', yeah?
Damn, I know Fleur is a narcissist, but those are some high levels of vitriol for a pony that never actually did anything wrong to you.
"it was better than Barneigh's, Of course"
"it was better than Barneigh's. Of course"?
edit:
9008010
That was mentioned earlier in the story, as I recall, though I don't think the exact who has been revealed yet.
9008072
Are we completely sure she didn't pick up something about Spike? Given how she seemed to double check instinctively that Sweetie's dad wasn't a molester, if she picked up even a tiny portion of affection for Spike . . .
Never try to bullshit a bullshitter, Fleur. It won't go well.
Always nice to see this update
9008159
Doubtful. Spike was nowhere near Rarity when Fleur and she first met. It's more likely she hates her deeply because Rarity is her shadow counterpart: Beautiful, smart, charming, somewhat fake at times, but generous and giving to her core—Fleur is calculating, cold, and greedy. Rarity is what Fleur might be if she wasn't so selfish.
The journal entry is certainly interesting. A brief glimpse of Ponyville's earliest days, and the difficulties of settling in a world still scarred by chaos and who knows what else.
Theoretically, yes, but I don't know if there's enough of a local Diamond Dog presence to keep it going.
I'm not sure how Fleur thinks the fashion industry works. Either she's laboring under some sizeable misconceptions, or she doesn't understand putting artistic pride before steady employment (or, in some cases, outright theft without even that indentured servitude as compensation.)
Generosity as a virtue will certainly be alien to someone with Fleur's hardscrabble past.
And that confrontation... Well, at least there weren't any physical wounds. Though if Rarity ever does find out Fleur poisoned the well in Canterlot, I can't guarantee that that will remain true. And then there's the matter of who among the Bearers started dating first...
I wonder what'll happen when a pony like Fleur finds out about Fluttershy's... medical state.
You know, it occurs to me that Fleur is quite short sighted for such a socially aware pony. Also a complete narcissist but we knew that already. It was pretty hilarious to see Fleur trying to mentally badmouth Rarities designs while at the same time trying to figure out why she isn't in Canterlot yet.
Also that we JUST got a Rarity story in this continuity about (among other things) how being generous enough to give someone a second chance doesn't mean you you're a moron and don't check.
9008880
What medical state? I'm just getting into this continuity.
9008994
9008880
For the record, this is actually a splinter from the main 'verse: it shares a decent amount of background, but it isn't part of the Continuum itself and so lacks that bit of blurb in the description. However, the events of One-Tenth Bit did take place.
What was described as 'medical status' is part of another story and as details would count for a giant spoiler, I'm going to ask VVF not to discuss it without the appropriate tags.
9009050 Of course. I just thought that my initial comment was vague enough that I didn't need a spoiler tag.
9009060
Which it pretty much was -- but going into details would require the usual blackout. However, for 9008994
sake (because sending someone to read that many words can be cruel), I will say that it doesn't affect Fluttershy's lifespan or ability to have foals.
9008159
" (Solving the puzzle hadn't taken much longer, and provided nothing Fleur was particularly interested in or impressed with -- although she did notice that some of the larger pieces had recently been scrubbed clean.) "
"Fleur could only read the sexual aspects of a being, and had no need to do so here: she already knew what that puzzle looked like."
Apparently Fleur hadn't bothered to use her magic to Rarity again after their first meeting. That may or may not be important.
9008010
I think it was maybe Pinkie Pie, because of the comments about pretty mates when she met Fleur? But I am not sure.
"one of my friends is dating now. Well -- two of them, really. Each other. It's sort of -- tentative? -- I guess that's the word. They're both trying to -- work things out. "
"Fleur could only read the sexual aspects of a being, and had no need to do so here: she already knew what that puzzle looked like."
"Because now one of us is dating, and she has somehow decided that she must do the same."
It seems like one of the other Bearers is dating someone who is not a Bearer but is a friend of Fluttershy.
Spike dating Rarity? Snowflake dating one of the Bearers? Maybe Pinkie because they are both hybrids. It could even be Ratchette dating one of them. Informing her that she is a hybrid might have started a friendship with Fluttershy and made one of the others notice that Ratchette is pretty.
Another possibility: Joyous Release. Celestia may have introduced her to Bearers and things have continued from that.
Oh I love this story. One of my favorites. And I've long awaited Rarity and Fleur meeting with each other. Plus Sweetie Belle, I honestly think Sweetie and Fleur get along very well together.
9009646
So now, of course, we can await Fleur finding out just who Rarity's sister and protective father are. Which will surely go fine, and not convince Fleur even more that the universe hates her. :D
9010953
Nah, Rarity is a big girl and previous stories by the Author show he is willing to let Rarity make her own choices and take the lumps. While Fleur doesn't know that Rarity wont be running to her father. Interestingly I can see Rarity and Fleur becoming friends precisely because Fleur has been and continues to be nice to Sweetie Belle. It's no secret Sweetie Belle is being treated like a persona non grata by the ponys of town with the treatment shown. And Fleur never had anything to gain by being nice even after she learns. I think Rarity is the type to appreciate that.
Just as long as Sweetie Belle doesn't decide she wants her mark in being a escort that is.
9011186
"Nah, Rarity is a big girl and previous stories by the Author show he is willing to let Rarity make her own choices and take the lumps."
Oh, sure, I don't think she'll bring him in, and she'll likely even stop him trying to involve himself.
"While Fleur doesn't know that Rarity wont be running to her father."
But that, yes. And even if Rarity doesn't, she could, at any time, if it so suits her.
"Interestingly I can see Rarity and Fleur becoming friends precisely because Fleur has been and continues to be nice to Sweetie Belle. It's no secret Sweetie Belle is being treated like a persona non grata by the ponys of town with the treatment shown. And Fleur never had anything to gain by being nice even after she learns. I think Rarity is the type to appreciate that."
Hm. Yes, yes, good point! An interesting idea, that!
"Just as long as Sweetie Belle doesn't decide she wants her mark in being a escort that is."
Yeah. And of course, there's a good chance she wouldn't be the only one deciding that at the time, either.
9010953
I'm still waiting for a sequel to 'Unstable Sale' but from what that story told the CMC's are on the outside eith each other. Sweetie Belle may currently be friendless or the girls aren't crusading anymore.
9011494
It's not clear just where this story's timeline branched off from the main Continuum, though; that may or may not have happened here.
Man, this is still great. Even if Fleur is in full bitch mode in this chapter. I really want her to be blown away again soon, by something. It is so satisfying when she's knocked off balance.
Also, I'm apparently kinda stupid, because I can't keep up with everything that's happening in Rarity and Fleur's little match of politeness judo. Gotta read it again, but haven't figured out what "the other aspect" is. Maybe I'm just tired, yeah, let's go with that.
Now, as always, I'm looking forward to more. Happy writing.
9008072
I think there’s a little more to it than that. There seems to be something Fleur is terrified of, something that she needs money or power or influence to feel safe from. For whatever reason, she feels that the only way to get that money and influence is with her talents as an escort and blackmailer, and she knows that she only has a very limited shelf life.
So for her, getting and keeping the spotlight is a matter of (probably literally) life and death. When Rarity stole the spotlight from her, even for those few days, it was just as if Rarity had stuck a literal dagger in her.
9008010
It probably grows out of events in Triptych
From clues so far
Not Fluttershy, of course.
From this chapter, not Rarity
taking a wild guess
AJ & either Pinkie or Twilight
So, Fleur is having Fluttershy date Caramel because
9095713
Actually, this chapter confirms it for anyone who's read Triptych and/or A Duet For Earth And Sky. After all, Fluttershy earlier said that two of her friends were dating, and here, Rarity says ''one of us is dating.'' So how many ponies are a friend to Fluttershy, but not the other Bearers? Snowflake is the only one, and AJ asks him out in the last chapter of Triptych, which becomes the main conflict of Duet. And Pinkie, in the second party chapter mentions Trotter's Falls, so we know this is after that story, at least.
And I am one of many who can't wait to see Fleur's reaction when she learns that Sweetie is Rarity's little sister. Though after this...not-exactly-heartfelt talk, and resulting truce, it might make the reveal a smidgen less offensive, but she's still going to feel like the universe just can't stop screwing with her.
9859745
Well, yes, but my comment was written BEFORE Duet For Earth And Sky
& I just forgot that Fluttershy was friends with Snowflake
"That it was," perhaps?
I'm late to this, but oooh, what wicked fun it is.
Bad things happened to this pony and his family, didn't they?
Can't wait to see Fleur's reaction when she realize Rarity and Sweetie are sisters. Would she automatically start making plans of hurting Rarity via that link, or there's something decent left in her so she would not consider it.
10754063
Fleur's fondness for children, and Sweetie in particular, seems to be entirely genuine, and with the implications about her past, I can't imagine her ever using a child to get at a rival. She's in many ways a bad pony, but she's got certain principles.
10578963
No, it's not a typo. There's an emphasis on the word 'was' for a reason. She's saying the regret is that she 'was' rather than 'is' Fancy's escort. But really, the regret is that messing with Fancy in the way that ruined that is what got her in her current situation.
10891325
In the book The Hogfather (Pratchett) it is said of the head of the Assassin's Guild
"Like many people with no morals he did have standards."
...
Now that I think about it, a lot of good stories are actually a whole bunch of stories stacked up in a trenchcoat, because characters have their own stories which have lead them to where they are in that story.
now THAT is a clever play on words!
oh, i remember a scene in a different story: someone from that Search approached Rarity...and tried to get her to sign a contract that said they would own ALL of her designs for TEN OR TWENTY YEARS and she would receive ONLY a LOW salary in return!
11290779
That sounds like Tricks of the Trade Show, another one of Estee's stories.