The teapot, bathed in a soft violet aura, carefully poured a meticulously measured amount of hot tea into a prettily patterned cup, then repeated the process with a second cup on the opposite side of the table. Once the tea had been poured, the pot gently set itself down on the tray in the center of the table, then stopped glowing.
"Oh. I'm so sorry. You didn't have to do that. I...should have poured the tea. I mean, you're my guest..."
A unicorn with a light purple coat and a darker violet mane and tail with a thin hot pink streak running the length of each smiled. "Yes, but it's a little easier for me to pour the tea, right?"
Her hostess, a yellow pegasus with a flowing reddish-pink mane and tail, blushed, ducking her head. "Oh. Um. Right."
"Anyway, thanks for having me over for tea," Twilight Sparkle said as her cup levitated toward her lips.
"Of course," Fluttershy replied, ducking her head to lap from her cup self-consciously. She glanced up and blinked. "What's taking that silly rabbit so long with the cookies...?"
A small white rabbit bounced into the living room, a cookie tin balanced on his head. As he approached, Fluttershy frowned faintly. "Angel? Those are the wrong cookies."
The bunny paused, cocking an ear curiously.
"I told you to bring the good cookies, not the cheap ones," Fluttershy continued.
The cookie tin rolled to the floor as Angel ducked his head.
The pegasus' eyes narrowed. "You ate the good cookies, didn't you?"
Angel turned away, a hind foot thumping sheepishly on the floor.
Fluttershy let out an irritated sigh. "We're going to have a talk about this later," she promised sternly. Angel gulped. The pegasus then turned to her friend and bowed her head. "I'm so sorry, Twilight. I was saving some very good cookies for our tea together, but..."
"It's...it's okay, really," Twilight insisted, staring at her meek friend. "Are...are YOU alright, though, Fluttershy? I mean, that...just now...was totally not like you at all."
Angel hopped up to the edge of the table and deposited the cookies, then bounced sullenly out of the room, ears drooping.
"That obnoxious little poop factory is number one on my naughty list and he knows it," Fluttershy replied furiously--well, at least somewhat annoyedly.
Twilight blinked, tilting her head. "I'm sorry, I could have sworn I was in Fluttershy's house."
Fluttershy squeaked. "Oh my...I'm so sorry!" Her eyes filled with tears. "I never meant for anypony to see me like this ever again--"
"It's okay, it's okay!" Twilight insisted. "I was kidding. Actually, it's nice to see you asserting yourself a little."
Fluttershy stiffened, then ducked her head and lapped at her tea.
"...did I say something wrong?" Twilight asked...
---
"Wow," Twilight Sparkle breathed, wide-eyed, as the pegasus finished her tale. "I go to Cloudsdale for a couple days to help the pegasi, and this is what I miss?"
Fluttershy looked away sheepishly. "I'm...just glad you and Rainbow Dash weren't around for all of that. I...got really out of control."
"Well if it was half as bad as when Discord messed with your head, I'm glad I wasn't here too," Twilight replied, telekinetically refilling both teacups. "But at least you came back around before you did any real damage, right?"
"Y-yes..."
"Did you write to Princess Celestia about it?"
"Yes, I did."
"Good."
Fluttershy helped herself to a cookie from the now-open tin, crunching for a moment. After swallowing, she ducked her head and said softly, "But...there's one thing about that whole mess that still really bothers me."
"What's that?" her unicorn friend asked, tilting her head.
With a soft sigh, Fluttershy said quietly, "I do regret the things I said to my friends--especially the really nasty mean horrible way I said them--but..."
"But?"
"I, um...do kinda think what I said to them is true. Maybe not as bad as I made it sound when I said it but deep down I think that's really what I think."
Twilight observed her calmly for a moment, brow furrowed. At length, she nodded. "That's understandable. Rarity's love of fashion doesn't really fit in very well in Ponyville, and Pinkie Pie...well..." She paused, then shook her head. "Pinkie is Pinkie."
"Well, yes, but...doesn't it make me a terrible friend if I feel that way?"
Twilight shook her head once again. "Deep down, you obviously think Rarity and Pinkie could do a whole lot more for Ponyville and for themselves than what they're doing right now. That doesn't make you horrible, it makes you concerned. That's a good thing." With a tilt of her head, she added, "What would you have them do, if you could persuade them to try something new?"
Fluttershy looked up thoughtfully for a moment. "Well...I honestly don't know *WHAT* Pinkie Pie could do, since she's...well..."
"Yeah..."
"But Rarity..." The pegasus got up and began to pace. "She puts all her talent and energy into making clothes for ponies that only bother to wear clothes maybe what, once or twice a year? If she were in Canterlot it'd be a different story but she belongs in Ponyville and most Ponyville ponies just aren't that big on fashion."
"True," Twilight agreed.
"But I think...no, I *know*...Rarity could use her talents to do something everypony could appreciate."
"Such as?"
Fluttershy stopped pacing by a window, and reached up with a hoof to paw at the curtains. "Well...you see these drapes? They're the most hideous drapes I've ever seen." She let the curtain drop back against the wall. "I've wanted new drapes for some time now, but every shop in Ponyville that sells drapes, well...all they have are ugly, horrible drapes that are just as bad as these."
"Wow, really?" Twilight asked. "I guess I never noticed, or really thought about it."
"Well, it's true. I mean, these are ugly, the drapes in your library are ugly, all the drapes in every place I've been here in Ponyville have been really, really ugly. Except for one place."
"Rarity's boutique?" Twilight guessed.
Fluttershy nodded. "You walk in there and you can tell Rarity decorated the place herself, because everything in there has her style all over it."
"So...you want Rarity to make and sell curtains?"
"Not just curtains," Fluttershy said, pacing again and speaking more rapidly and confidently. "There's so many things a pony with good taste and the talent for design could do to turn a plain house into a beautiful house. I...I just think Rarity could branch out, make things that everypony needs and can use all year long."
Twilight digested that for a moment. "You know, that's a really good idea."
-------------------------------------
Rarity stared at the mostly blank parchment on her drawing table, quill hovering so close to her face the feather tip tickled her nose.
Several minutes passed. Finally, Rarity groaned in exasperation, flinging her quill across the room.
"This. Is. HOPELESS!" she screamed. Ever since the day Fluttershy, following the awful advice of the minotaur Iron Will, tore into her and Pinkie Pie, Rarity had developed a creative block. She had only completed one dress design since, and it was so hideous she wound up burning it.
With a sigh, she trudged across the room to retrieve her quill, deciding to pick it up with her mouth instead of just using magic. She was halfway there when the bell over the front door jingled. Pausing in mid-step, she turned. "Hello! Welcome to Rarity's Bou--"
"Hey Rarity," the familiar voice of Twilight Sparkle interrupted.
"Oh, hello Twilight," Rarity replied. "How did everything go in Cloudsdale?"
"It went okay. It was exhausting, but we got things back on schedule."
"That's good. So, what brings you by?"
"Actually, I need a favor. Well, not a favor favor, I mean of course I'll pay, but it's kind of a...well, you might think this sounds a little crazy..."
Rarity blinked. "You want to commission a new dress?"
"Not a dress, actually," Twilight said. "And I hope my asking this doesn't offend you."
The prim and prissy white unicorn tilted her head curiously and waited expectantly.
"I...kinda need new curtains for the library," Twilight said.
"New...curtains?" Rarity echoed, blinking in confusion.
"Yes," Twilight affirmed. "See, I just happened to notice this morning when I was opening up the library that the curtains are really, really ugly. I'd never actually paid attention to it before, but now..." She shuddered. "Now I can't NOT notice it, and those things have just gotta go."
"Well, I can certainly tell you which shops you might want to look in..."
"Thing is, I've been to every shop that sells curtains here in Ponyville, and they ALL sell really ugly curtains. I'm not gonna waste money on curtains that are just as bad as the ones I want gone."
"Hmm. I certainly understand *that*," Rarity said, nodding.
"So I got to thinking, you're an awesome designer, and I know your thing is fashion and dresses, but..." Twilight took a deep breath. "Do you think you could maybe take a stab at making some curtains for me? Pretty please?"
Rarity tilted her head, lips pursed in thought. "Welllll...." she drawled slowly. "I *am* having a bit of a block on my latest dress design, so...yes, I suppose I can give it a try."
"Thanks a bunch!" Twilight said happily.
"Yes, yes..." Rarity began rummaging through drawers with her magic. "Just let me grab a few things so I can come over and measure the windows..."
---
"Goodness, these ARE hideous."
"Aren't they?" And truthfully, now that Twilight was really looking at them for the first time, they WERE. When she had gone to Rarity's boutique, her intent was to convince the other unicorn to follow Fluttershy's suggestion without necessarily knowing it was the shy pegasus' idea in the first place; now, actually looking intently at the drapes her friend had derided, she saw Fluttershy's point. Even if Rarity did nothing more than wipe her rear end on them, it would be an improvement.
"Even if I wiped my rear end on these, it would be an improvement," Rarity said, clucking her tongue. "Why have I never noticed before how horrid these curtains are?"
"I think everypony is just used to ugly curtains, since there's only one place in Ponyville that has good ones," Twilight suggested.
Rarity smiled. "Flattery won't get you a discount, but..." With a thoughtful expression, she began levitating measuring tape against the windows, taking careful measurements and making sketches. As she worked, she asked, "Had you given any thought as to what you might prefer?"
"Well..." Twilight studied the ceiling for a moment, giving the matter some thought. "That dress you made me for the Gala was so beautiful and had such a pretty pattern...maybe something like that for the curtains?"
"Hmm," Rarity mused. "I hate to reuse an original design, but a thematic relation between your dress and your curtains would..." She trailed off. Her eyes lit up suddenly. "I-DEEE-AAAAA!" Rounding on the other unicorn, she asked, "Quickly, do you have any books on star constellations? Illustrated?"
"Of course," Twilight said, nodding. "I'll get those for you..."
"Take your time, I need to measure every single window in the library..."
By the time Rarity was finished taking measurements, she was positively bouncing with excitement. She leafed through Twilight's star constellation guides, taking notes and nodding thoughtfully. "Yes...yes! This will definitely work...might I borrow these, darling?"
"Of course, be my guest!" Twilight replied.
"Thank you. I shall be by sometime in the morning with your new, Rarity Original designer drapes!" With that, the white unicorn cantered cheerfully out of the library.
-------------------------------------
Shortly after breakfast the following morning, Rarity arrived, pulling a cart loaded down with wrapped fabric rolls. Disengaging the harness, she called out, "Twilight, do be a dear and help me get these inside!"
"Sure thing," the librarian replied. "Wow, you really got it done in one night, I'm impressed!"
"I was inspired," Rarity replied offhandedly. "Be careful not to disturb the wrappings; I have them all marked so I'll know which curtain goes to which window."
"Okay," Twilight said, blinking.
Over the next hour and a half, the two unicorns tore down the old drapes and hung Rarity's new designer drapes while Spike looked on in equal parts confusion and admiration. "As you can see," Rarity said as they worked, "I selected different constellations as the patterns for each curtain, chosen to reflect their alignment in the night sky as closely as possible."
"Wow. That's...impressive!" Twilight said.
"I thought you might appreciate the studiousness of it," the fashionista nodded. "It speaks to your exacting and intellectual nature."
"You mean it's pedantic, just like Twilight," Spike opined.
"Well yes," Rarity agreed. At Twilight's cross look, she hastily added, "But it's what we all love about you, mon chere."
"Uh-huh," the violet unicorn replied with a flat stare. She shook her head. "But these ARE amazingly beautiful. And I'm impressed with how you went all-out like this. Seriously, I can't thank you enough!"
"Oh, think nothing of it," Rarity said airily. "Besides...to tell the truth, I've been having a bit of creative block the last few days. Your request was astoundingly well-timed. This little side project may be just the thing I needed to get my creative juices flowing again."
"Happy to be of service!" Twilight said cheerfully. Then, tilting her head, she added, "You know...you call it a side project, but..."
"But?"
"Well...I'll just bet I'm not the only pony in town who's thought about wanting nicer drapes..."
"Yoo-hoo!" a mare's voice called from downstairs. "Is anypony there?"
"Be right down!" Twilight called. "Spike, head down and see if you can help whoever that is while we finish cleaning up here."
The two unicorns packed away the wrappings and the old drapes and levitated them down to Rarity's cart to be disposed of. "You know, you could be right, Twilight," Rarity said as they descended into the library proper. "I certainly enjoyed the novelty of this little project. I'm just not sure if--"
"Oh, hi Miss Cheerilee!" Twilight greeted the library's first guest of the day. "Anything I can help you with?"
"Actually," Cheerilee said, looking around the library in open awe, "I was just passing by on my way to the schoolhouse, and I happened to notice your curtains. I just had to stop and stare, they're simply stunning!"
"Aren't they?" Twilight asked with a smile. "They're new, Rarity just made them for me last night."
"Really now?" Cheerilee asked, turning to the white unicorn. "They're simply LOVELY! Oh, how I wish I had drapes as nice as these for my own home...and for the schoolhouse..."
The two unicorns glanced at one another. Twilight raised an eyebrow meaningfully.
Rarity turned to Cheerilee. "I'll need to go back to the boutique and get my tape measure and sketchbook. I'll be at the schoolhouse as soon as I can."
"Really?" Cheerilee asked, eyes sparkling. "You wouldn't mind?"
"Of course not," Rarity said. "Of course, you understand that I won't be able to quote a price until I know how many windows I'm dealing with..."
"Oh, of course, of course!" Cheerilee said, waving a hoof. "Any price--*ahem* any *reasonable* price is most definitely worth it, for curtains of this quality! Have you SEEN what the local shops are charging for hideous drapes?"
"So I've been told..."
-------------------------------------
It took slightly more than an hour for Rarity to measure and sketch the windows at the schoolhouse and Cheerilee's own residence. When she returned to her boutique, sketchbook tucked in her saddlebag and humming cheerfully, she was taken aback to see a veritable herd of ponies waiting at the door.
"Goodness!" she exclaimed. "Sad as it is to say, I've never seen quite this many ponies at my door before!"
"There she is!" somepony cried. A cheer went up, and the ponies stampeded, crowding the bewildered fashionista.
"Hold on, hold on, one at a time, ponies, one at a TIME!" Rarity declared. She spotted a familiar blue-coated mare, and gestured to her with a forehoof. "Lotus! You first. What can I do for you today?"
"Curtains!" the spa pony replied cheerfully. "Aloe and I both agree, we need new curtains for the spa, and you're just the pony to make them!"
"Curtains for the spa, is it...?" Rarity asked, humming. "Well, yes, of course, especially as I myself frequent your establishment..." She blinked. "Are...ALL of you here about curtains?"
A wave of assent went up from the crowd.
"I see..." Rarity said, sitting on her haunches and blinking. "How...did you all know...?"
"I told everypony!" Pinkie Pie chirped, appearing suddenly in front of the startled unicorn. "I went by to say hi to Twilight and I saw the curtains you made and she told me all about how you made them and then how you went to make some more for Miss Cheerilee and I thought that was great and Twilight said she thought more ponies might want new curtains since you're making curtains now so I went around and told EVERYPONY to come to Rarity for new curtains and a whole bunch of ponies came right over--" She paused, gasping for breath. "Oh, and I'm ordering curtains for Sugarcube Corner."
Rarity just stared, blinking. At length, glancing around at the eager crowd, she cleared her throat. "Ahem. Yes. Well. It is certainly true that I have...branched out, as it were...you must understand that this new venture is an experiment at best, but...if you would all kindly form an orderly queue, I can make appointments to measure your windows..."
*Did my entire business model just change literally overnight?* Rarity wondered to herself as she began filling out a schedule of measuring appointments. Even as the ponies she'd scheduled wandered off, more ponies showed up. Soon, Rarity had three long rolls of parchment filled with appointments to measure. She was, to say the least, overwhelmed.
By lunchtime, the furor had abated somewhat. She'd been forced to put a sign on her door stating that her appointment schedule was already full, and anypony who didn't have a slot would simply have to wait. As she ate lunch, she looked around her boutique at the bolts of fabric, the dress dummies, the boxes of precious stones...
"What am I *doing*?!" she wondered aloud. "I'm a *dressmaker*, not a *window-dresser*!"
Then she looked down at the long, long, LOOOOONG appointment list she'd taken down.
Then she thought about all the money she stood to make off this little venture.
Then she smiled.
"Well...I suppose once everypony has new curtains, I can go right back to dressmaking..."
-------------------------------------
The next few weeks were the busiest weeks of Rarity's professional life. Ultimately, nine-tenths of Ponyville's populace had ordered new curtains; she'd also had a handful of orders from Cloudsdale--and even from Canterlot! And the Canterlot orders were extra-special, extra-fancy orders that she could charge three times as much for as the Ponyville orders. Not that she prioritized the elite over her friends and acquaintances, of course. After all, she was a businessmare, and it was first-come, first-serve.
By the fourth week, she was more than ready for a break. She sat at her drawing table, sipping tea, when the bell over the door jingled, and Twilight Sparkle walked in, Fluttershy a pace behind her. "Hey Rarity," Twilight called. "How's the drapery business going?"
"Exhausting, but very profitable," Rarity said. "I can't begin to thank you enough for what you started, Twilight darling. At first, I wasn't thrilled with the idea of spending so much time on something other than dresses, but...I have truly enjoyed this new aspect of my business. And I've made quite a lot of money in the process...far more than I normally make in a year! I really, truly, honestly cannot thank you enough..."
Twilight smiled. "Actually, I'm not the one you need to thank."
"Oh?"
The lavender unicorn took a step to the side and back, and nudged Fluttershy with a forehoof. "This whole thing was actually Fluttershy's idea."
"What?" Fluttershy squeaked. "Oh, um, no, it wasn't...really..."
Rarity tilted her head curiously.
"Yes it was," Twilight said. "Remember, about a month ago, you were telling me about that awful day, and how you thought Rarity could use her talents in a different way to make everypony in Ponyville happy?"
"Well...um...yes...I remember that..."
"So after that, I decided to act on what you said, since I knew you'd never come right out and say it to Rarity's face like you did to me," Twilight explained. "So, Rarity, the one you need to thank for turning you into a successful window-dresser is Fluttershy here."
"I see," Rarity said in an emotionless tone. She stalked slowly up to the petrified pegasus, leaned in close, narrowed her eyes...
And nuzzled her friend's cheek. "Thank you, Fluttershy. This was an absolutely brilliant idea. Oh! I just realized, I haven't made drapes for YOU yet!"
"Oh! Um...it's okay...really..."
"Nonsense, darling! I'll get right on that. And for you, they're gratis."
Twilight watched her two friends and smiled warmly.
-------------------------------------
Dear Princess Celestia,
This past month, I've learned that it's okay to be concerned about friends not living up to their potential. It's not good to criticize your friends for how they choose to live their lives, but it IS good to worry about them and try to gently find helpful ways to nudge them in a more positive direction. I felt bad about things I said to two of my closest friends, and felt worse for meaning a lot of them deep down, but Twilight showed me that it's okay to think your friends can do more with their lives, as long as you're not mean and nasty about it. Oh...I already said that part, didn't I? I'm so sorry.
Yours truly,
Fluttershy
-------------------------------------
As the letter disappeared in a puff of green flame, Fluttershy sat back on her haunches, panting as though she'd just run a marathon.
Twilight trotted over, tilted her head, and asked, "Soooo...any ideas what we can do about Pinkie Pie?"
The yellow pegasus fell flat on her face, hooves splayed in every direction.