//------------------------------// // Episode 3-3 // Story: Domain of Friendship // by Cold Bolt //------------------------------// Rarity’s ears perked up as they detected the familiar jingle of her door bell. “Hello, and welcome - oh my goodness!” She had hardly gotten halfway through her greeting when a frantic-looking Waterwing skidded to a stop in front of her, signing as rapidly as Rarity had ever seen. Rarity winced. “Waterwing, sweetheart, please slow down a little! Whatever is the matter?” Waterwing took a deep breath before continuing. Rarity mulled over this information for a moment. “Well, I don’t see why not! But who is this ‘moon pony’ of yours, exactly?” Another jingle rang out, and two more ponies entered. “Ah, Twilight! Lovely to see you, dear.” Rarity gave her friend a chipper smile, which she then turned to the pony who had entered with her. “And to you as well, miss - ?!” Her greeting cut off instantly as she recognized the tall, dark alicorn, instead shifting rapidly into an alarmed screech. “NIGHTMARE MOON?!” Without missing a beat, Rarity took off for a corner of the room, from which she began dragging a small but ornate couch. Upon reaching her point of origin, she promptly raised a hoof to her forehead, gave a soft “ohhh~”, and collapsed upon it. Luna drew a slow breath and used it to sigh noisily. “Er… Just a moment, please, Princess…” Twilight grinned apologetically and rushed over to her prone friend. “Rarity, stop that! We defeated Nightmare Moon, remember? That’s Princess Luna!” “…Oh. Yes, well.” Now wearing her own nervous grin, Rarity cleared her throat and hastily shoved the couch aside. “So from what I’ve gathered, Princess Luna is here for a leisurely visit, but the townsfolk are too fearful and intimidated to abide, so you need help showing her a nice time in their stead. Have I got that right?” Waterwing wiped away a bead of nervous sweat and nodded. “Well, you’ve come to the right place!” Theatrics now replaced with her usual confidence, Rarity trotted a ways back into the shop and gestured at a large round platform flanked by several mirrors. “Princess, welcome to Carousel Boutique! If you would please step up here, we can get started right away.” Luna took an apprehensive step forward. “Get started on… what, exactly?” Beaming, Rarity leaned forward as she replied. “Why, finding you the perfect dress, of course!” “The… perfect dress?” Luna’s ears perked up as she echoed the phrase. Despite this, she spent a moment in hesitation, glancing about the boutique. “Rarity is Ponyville’s premier tailor and fashion designer,” Twilight explained. “We thought maybe a chance to wear something a little different might be just what you need. Right, Waterwing?” Waterwing grinned as she mimicked Rarity’s gesturing. Slowly, Luna stepped up onto the platform. Without missing a beat, Rarity dashed toward a nearby clothing rack and magically plucked several dresses hanging from it, returning quickly to the platform and holding them up before the Princess to get a general idea of how they might look on her. The first was predominantly green and blue, with a flowery trim. “Hmm… no no no, that won’t do at all,” Rarity quickly decided as she tossed it aside. The second was an eye-catching orange with yellow highlights that made it look almost like a flickering flame in the light. “Oh heavens, it clashes terribly with your mane…” A thought struck Waterwing, and she began perusing the dress rack herself for a moment before carefully pulling an item that caught her eye. It was an enormous lacy thing, complete with a hood and a giant bow on the front to tie the whole ensemble together, looking almost like it had been fashioned out of a preposterously large doily. With an impish grin, she fluttered her way over to the princess and held it up for royal appraisal. “Euh…” Luna recoiled from the dress as though she were being offered spoiled food. It was all Rarity could do not to burst out laughing, muffling her muzzle with a foreleg as she snatched the dress from her friend’s hooves and flung it out of sight. In mock indignation, Waterwing stuck her tongue out at Rarity, but this soon gave way to a fit of silent giggles. “Very well then. If none of these will do, I shall simply have to start from scratch!” In an instant, Rarity had summoned her sketchpad and begun furiously scribbling upon it. “Let’s see… we’ll start with a midnight blue to match your mane… something translucent should be good, so it still shows off your cutie mark… oh, brilliant! I can use white sapphires for that…” All eyes in the room were locked onto her as she paced back and forth, muttering incomplete thoughts to herself as she sketched. Finally, after a minute or so, she trotted up to Luna and presented her concept. “There you are, then. This ought to turn those fearful screams into gasps of awe!” If Luna was interpreting the sketch correctly, it seemed as though Rarity’s intention was to distill the evening sky itself into the form of a light, flowy dress, complete with gemstones that glittered like twinkling stars. The princess herself nearly gasped as she imagined it - a crowd of ponies all gathered around her, unable to take their eyes off her figure in her gorgeous new dress. Some would praise her gentle beauty, others would be inspired to thank her for her hard work looking after them all at night… and the rest would simply gaze upon her and smile, offering her the adoration she’d been searching for all those years ago… “…” Luna shook her head vigorously to dispel the fantasy brewing within, clearing her throat loudly before speaking. “This design is… adequate. I will be sure to send proper compensation from the royal treasury.” Rarity giggled. “Oh don’t be silly, Princess! The honor of seeing you wear one of my creations is all the payment I need.” “I… see.” Though she still had yet to offer anything resembling a smile, Luna’s expression seemed to brighten at Rarity’s response. “In that case, if I may… when might it be ready?” Rarity rubbed her chin with a forehoof. “Well, I used up the last of my colorless gems on an order I finished yesterday, so I’ll have to go hunting for more over the weekend… If I move my other projects around, I could have it done sometime early next week!” Luna’s ears folded back as her gaze fell to the floor. “Oh…” Rarity bit her lip. “I’m very sorry if I got your hopes up, Princess, but I’m afraid even I couldn’t finish a dress like this in an evening, even if I did have all the materials on hoof.” She smiled meekly. “Your eagerness is very flattering though! I’ll have it delivered to the castle straight away as soon as it’s done.” “…Thank you.” Not sure what else to say, Luna simply glanced about the room for a moment, seemingly restless. “Er, where might I…?” “Down the hall there, first door,” Rarity explained. Luna nodded as she retreated into the back of the boutique, prompting Rarity to wave Twilight and Waterwing over. “Has she been like this the whole time?” “It started when our reservation for dinner cancelled on us.” Twilight rubbed her chin in thought. “If I had to guess, there must be more to what’s bothering her than just what ponies think of her, but I can’t quite put my hoof on what it might be.” Waterwing glanced between the two unicorns before her, looking crestfallen. Twilight gently brushed Waterwing’s mane with her hoof. “It’s alright. It was a good idea, really! We just have to try again, that’s all.” Rarity suddenly perked up. “Oh, I have a marvelous idea! She might be a bit bothered by our unannounced arrival, but if anypony can reduce the tension of this visit a little, it’s her.” Waterwing’s tail flicked back and forth as she tilted her head. Rarity opened her mouth to respond, but was preempted by the distant sound of a door opening. “I’ll explain on the way. Look alive!” Luna returned to find the three of them waiting patiently for her. Rarity smiled. “Are you ready for the next item on this evening’s itinerary, princess?” Luna blinked. “As much as I could expect to be, I suppose.” “Very well then!” With a nod and a flourish from Rarity, the four of them made for the front door of the boutique.