Carousel Boutique
Rarity hummed to herself as she worked on her latest fashion order. Despite her effort to give off an aura of calmness, however, she was trembling like a leaf on the inside. This particular order happened to be for none other than the pop superstar Songbird Serenade, who was visiting Canterlot that week. Here was one client Rarity was very anxious to avoid disappointing. To complicate matters further, Sweetie Belle was in her care for the weekend as their parents were on another trip. She respected her little sister's choice to be a naturist, but still could not help hoping that it would not cause any complications or embarrassment in her own plans. The shop bell rang, causing her to jump in surprise. Had Songbird arrived early? Heading downstairs, she saw to her relief, it was just Twilight holding a rather large glass dome.
"Twilight! What brings you here, darling, and what is that, err... contraption you've brought with you?"
"My latest invention!" Twilight declared proudly. "A mind reading device!"
"Really? How very... delightful. Of course, I don't know how many people would want other people to know what's inside their minds... Not that I mean any offense, you understand!"
"I actually made this to give Sunset's powers some rest, so we can avoid another 'overpowered' incident," she said, referring to the time when their geode powers went haywire due to Rainbow Dash overusing her super speed.
"Ah," Rarity replied. "You know, that's actually a very good and generous idea. Well done, Twilight."
"I wanted to ask if you could be the test subject."
"Me?!" Rarity was not being too keen on being used as a laboratory guinea pig, especially on a day like this.
"Everyone else is busy, so you're the only one left."
"Does it have to be today?" Rarity groaned. "As you can see, I'm already quite busy..."
"It'll just be a quick test session, I promise!"
Being the generous girl she was, Rarity at last agreed to Twilight's begging and led her to her room upstairs. She sat down to let the scientist place the device over her head.
"Now, if this works, whatever you're thinking will be displayed in the glass dome."
Twilight flipped a switch on a control panel connected to the dome, and blurry waves of energy became visible emitting from Rarity's head. Eventually, they solidified into a clear memory of seeing Songbird Serenade performing on television.
"You're doing an outfit for her?" Twilight asked.
"Yes, and I'd rather not disappoint her."
"I guess I can understand that... She's become a big name in music and entertainment." However, both girls were unaware that the device was starting to smoke. Their attention was undoubtedly caught, however, when sparks began to emit from it.
"Twilight," said Rarity in a nervous voice, "I think something's gone wrong..."
Twilight's eyes widened before running over to try to pull the helmet off. Alas, she was a second too late as the device exploded, thankfully doing little damage to Rarity.
Twilight fanned away the resulting smoke with her hands. "Are you all right, Rarity?!"
"Just a... little... woozy..." The young fashionista looked very dazed, and some of her hair was frizzled, but much to Twilight's relief, she was generally unharmed. The shop bell rang again, and Apple Bloom and Scootaloo's voices were heard downstairs.
Sweetie Belle invited them over?! Twilight began to fret over how the three young girls would react to the explosion, and how the disoriented Rarity would be able to continue her work.
"Hey, Sweetie Belle," they heard Apple Bloom say. "Thanks for havin' us over."
"No problem," Rarity's little sister replied.
"Hey, is something burning?" Scootaloo asked. "I can smell smoke."
"It's just one of Twilight's inventions," Sweetie replied. "You can get undressed, Rarity won't mind."
Rarity managed to hear "You can get undressed, Rarity," and by means of an unexpected side effect of the machine's explosion, a strange reaction took place in her mind.
"Yes... I can get undressed..." She droned as she lifted her shirt over her head and tossed it onto the floor. She undid her boots and stepped out of her socks before taking her skirt off. Twilight, who had not yet noticed this, was starting to salvage the pieces of her invention.
"All right, Rarity, I'm so sorry for this little fiasco. I'll just take this thing home and repair it, and-- What the hay?!" Rarity was in the process of unhooking her bra and throwing it on the pile of clothes. Her panties followed shortly after, and her elegant naked body was now on full display. Twilight, of course, was taken by surprise. She knew that unlike the rest of her friends, Rarity had not taken up the naturist lifestyle, and that with her self-conscious character it would not be easy to persuade her to. Yet just now she had fully undressed in full view of Twilight, and did not look in the least concerned over it.
"Rarity, are you okay?"
"Never better!" Rarity smiled, almost oblivious to her nudity. "Sorry your invention didn't work like it did."
"Err... that's okay. I can fix it easily. I'm just... glad that you're not hurt."
Just then, the CMC burst into the room, having heard Twilight scream.
"Is everything alright, TwiLIGHT?!" Sweetie's eyes widened in shock as her older sister began to work on her dress again, this time in the nude.
"Everything's fine, Sweetie," the girl smiled. "Just another little accident with an invention."
Sweetie's two friends followed her into the room. Apple Bloom gasped at the sight of the nude Rarity, while Scootaloo grinned with delight, assuming that Sweetie's sister had at last joined their lifestyle.
"What did you do to her?" Sweetie Belle demanded in an unintentional harsh tone.
Twilight nervously tried to explain. "I know this looks bad, but..."
"It's like she's been hypnotized or something!"
"...hypnotized?" Twilight's eyes narrowed at her broken device. "That's it! The device exploding must've triggered a hypnotic trance in Rarity!"
"But why'd she go takin' her clothes off?" Apple Bloom wondered.
Twilight thought for a minute. "Sweetie Belle, when you told the girls 'You can get undressed', Rarity must've heard it as a command."
"So how do we undo that command?" Sweetie cried. "How do we get my sister back to normal?!"
"Sweetie, you needn't fret so much," said Rarity as she worked at the seams of a skirt. "I'm perfectly fine."
"I-I'll go back home and fix this thing so it can be reversed!" Twilight stammered. "Just... try to keep her out of public view."
Scootaloo shrugged. "Hey, we're naked too. We'll be keeping out of sight ourselves."
"I'm sure Miss Hemline won't mind either," Rarity smiled as Twilight placed the broken pieces in a box.
"Wait - you mean Prim Hemline? The fashion critic?" Sweetie Belle looked even more panicked. "She's not coming here or something, is she?!"
"Of course, she owns the boutique."
"That tears it! Girls, we gotta get dressed until this all gets sorted out! Trying to hide ourselves as well as Rarity will just make it harder!" Apple Bloom and Scootaloo nodded as they retreated to Sweetie Belle's room to retrieve their clothes.
"What are you snickerin' about?" Apple Bloom asked Scootaloo in annoyance.
"Sorry... it's just she said 'tears it'... and 'make it harder'..."
"Get your mind outta the gutter! We got somethin' to take care of here! Or rather someone - namely Rarity!"
"And what if Miss Hemline sees her employee working in the nude?"
"We're gonna make sure that doesn't happen! We're gonna keep Rarity outta sight until Twilight gets that machine fixed so that RARITY can be fixed!"
They had just finished putting on their clothes when the bell rang again.
"That must be her!" gulped Sweetie Belle.
"Helllo, Rarity!" Songbird Serenade's voice called out.
"I'm here with Miss Serenade herself," they heard Prim Hemline saying afterwards. "We hope the ensemble you've prepared is befitting of her public image."
"Oh, it is!" Rarity called out, as she stood up, heading towards the door.
Apple Bloom quickly got in the way. "Err, you've been workin' hard, Rarity. Why don't ya have a sit down and let us greet them?"
"But it's important for an artist to meet her patron!" Rarity argued.
Growling in exasperation, Scootaloo took things into her own hands by pushing the naked older girl into one of her own closets. Locking the door, she gave the thumbs up to Sweetie Belle. Ignoring Rarity's muffled protests, the three Cutie Mark Crusaders hurried downstairs to meet Songbird and Prim. They stood in a row, sporting sheepish but polite smiles.
"Where is Rarity?" Prim asked the younger girls.
"She's, uh, putting the finishing touches on the dress," Sweetie sheepishly replied.
Prim frowned judgmentally. "I hope this is not an indication of her slacking off until the last minute."
"Ms. Hemline, you really ought to lighten up," said Songbird. "Besides, we're essentially guests in this house, so we should chill out and be polite."
A loud bang from upstairs got everyone's attention, along with the approaching sound of bare feet. Sweetie Belle quickly made her way back upstairs. "Sounds like something fell over - I'd better tidy it up!" She left her two friends to keep their visitors distracted.
"Sooo," said Scootaloo nervously, "anyone for charades?"
Prim frowned again, but Songbird just chuckled.
Upstairs, Sweetie Belle struggled to hold her sister back, hoping Twilight would return soon. Grabbing a nearby vase, she dumped the water inside onto Rarity's face, hoping it would get through to her in some way. Rarity blinked for a couple moments before stopping.
"Sweetie Belle, why am I all wet and..." Her eyes widened in shock and horror as she let out one of her trademark screams. She was heard downstairs, of course.
"What in Faust's name was that?!" Prim cried.
"Oh man, I forgot," said Scootaloo. "We were watching a horror movie earlier, and the volume was up pretty high."
"Uh, yeah, that's right," added Apple Bloom. "I guess Sweetie accidentally turned it on again or somethin'. Sorry about that."
"You kids watch horror films? That's pretty hardcore," said Songbird with a smirk.
Rarity, on the other hand, was mortified as Sweetie Belle handed her clothes over.
"Why am I soaking wet and naked?!" she hissed. "Prim will be here any moment, probably with Songbird Serenade herself with her! I simply cannot greet them like this!"
"It's a long story," Sweetie Belle sighed. "Just dry off, get dressed and present the outfit."
As Rarity headed to the bathroom for a towel, Sweetie Belle wondered if her sister had truly recovered from the effects of Twilight's invention, or if this was a temporary flash of awareness at best. A few seconds later, she emerged, fully dressed again.
"Much better," she said. "So, where are your friends, Sweetie?"
"Um... distracting Prim and Songbird?" Sweetie raised her arms nervously.
"WHAT?!"
"Yes, they're here. Now, just try to stay ca--"
"How long have they been here?! Every second they've had to wait for me could lower my chances of success here!"
"But you've more or less finished the dress while you were, ahem..."
"I have?" Rarity's spirits began to lift. "Excellent! Let me just get it, and--"
"I have a meeting to attend to," Prim said. "I trust you can wait?"
"No problem, ma'am," Songbird replied reassuringly.
Sweetie and Rarity overheard the fashion critic leaving and closing the door behind her.
"Well, that's the grumpy one out of the way," said Sweetie in a joking manner. "Trust me, Rarity, Songbird is really cool and understanding. Start talking to her and you'll stop feeling nervous very quickly."
"A-Alright," Rarity regained her composure before grabbing Songbird's dress and heading downstairs.
She began to tremble upon seeing the pop star, but Songbird gave her a warm smile and gave a gesture welcoming Rarity to speak.
"I finished your order," Rarity held up the dress. It was strapless with a short and frilly skirt, giving off something of a 1920s flapper vibe. A striking patchwork combination of black and white decorated it, with a sparkling finish overlying that.
"You're pretty good, Rarity," Songbird smiled. "I bet making this was a snap!" To emphasize her last word, she snapped her fingers. This seemed to trigger something in Rarity as she began to slowly undress again.
"What the--?!" Scootaloo cried out.
Sweetie Belle gulped. It seemed as if the effects of Rarity's accident were not fully reversed after all. Before their eyes, Rarity soon stripped down to her underwear. Due to her trademark fringe obscuring her eyes, Songbird's reaction was largely unreadable. Her mouth was slightly open, obviously in surprise, but her calm demeanor generally never faltered even as Rarity became fully nude before her. Sweetie Belle buried her face in her hands distraught that her sister's reputation was in shambles now.
"...pretty cool, Rarity," Songbird chuckled after a few minutes of awkward silence.
"Pardon, darling?" Rarity asked, her trance making her cheerful.
"Well, I'm glad to see that you're confident enough with your body to bare it all like this. Nudism suits you."
Rarity chuckled and blushed. "Oh, stop."
The Crusaders couldn't believe their ears. Was all the worrying for nothing? They watched in continued shock as the naked Rarity struck up a casual conversation with Songbird.
"Shouldn't we... try to stop this or somethin'?" Apple Bloom whispered.
"Why don't we just let them have their chat?" Scootaloo smiled. "See where this leads to, y'know?"
"Are you a nudist yourself by any chance, Miss Serenade?"
"Please, call me Songbird."
"Very well. Are you, Songbird?"
"Welllll, I never really got into it myself, but I had a friend once who did, so I've learned to respect people who choose to."
"Oh, you should try it out after this clothing optional law passes," Rarity smiled, earning more looks of surprise from the CMC.
"How did she find out?!" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Well, it's made quite a splash in the news," said Apple Bloom. "Must've seen it on TV or somethin'."
"They've been getting all kinds of support," Songbird noted. "Maybe I could do a concert for their benefit?"
"Really?" Rarity replied, looking pleased. "That would be greatly appreciated."
"I'll keep in touch," she lifted her hair slightly so Rarity could see her wink. The fashion designer hummed as she carefully placed the dress into a box.
"Well, it's been a pleasure," Songbird smiled as Rarity gave her the box. "Thank you very much for this, Rarity - I'll be sure to wear it at a gig sometime soon."
Rarity waved goodbye as the pop star left. To the Crusaders' relief, she did it while hiding her body behind the door, so nobody outside would see her nudity.
"Well, that was my final job for the week, so how about you and I go somewhere for the weekend, Sweetie Belle?"
"But... we're expecting Twilight to return here later, right?" said Sweetie Belle, making an attempt to be discreet about what led Rarity to this situation.
"Oh, that's alright, we can leave her a note. You know, I rather fancy a visit to that club of yours today..."
Sweetie Belle blushed. She had hoped her sister would have given the naturist lifestyle a try, but under normal circumstances. She followed Rarity to the parking lot behind the boutique, with Apple Bloom and Scootaloo closely behind.
Rarity didn't bother to put anything on for the journey. Even the feeling of fresh outdoor on her body apparently did nothing to break her trance. The trio got into the backseat of her car, still feeling alienated by the situation.
"This is probably gonna lead to trouble," Apple Bloom murmured.
"Oh, y'think?" Sweetie Belle replied, rather sarcastically. "If my sister snaps out of this again in the middle of the club, who knows how crazy she'll go?!"
"Which is why we're gonna try to get her to a cabin," Scootaloo offered.
"Good idea," Sweetie Belle agreed. "She'll be happier there than out in the open, if she does snap out of it."
"What are you three whispering about?" Rarity asked as she took the wheel and drove them out of the parking lot.
"Oh, um, nothing!" Sweetie Belle blushed.
"You know, Sweetie, if you want to talk about anything, you only need to tell me. I'm your sister, and I'll always help you any way I can." The sincere care and trust in Rarity's voice almost made Sweetie confess everything, but the presence of her two friends helped her to hold her tongue, and she simply nodded.
Soon
Green Hill Club
Rarity pulled up into the club's parking lot, ignoring the surprised look the gate operator, Sunleaf, gave her.
"Here we are, girls!" the fashionista announced cheerfully. "Off with your clothes, and let's go and enjoy ourselves, shall we?"
The CMC exchanged looks before disrobing themselves. Once they were all fully bare, they followed Rarity out of the car, voicelessly agreeing to be prepared for any mishaps. The first other members they came across were Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy sitting at the base of a tree, clearly engaged in a romantic moment.
"R-Rarity?!" Fluttershy went bright red at the sight of her fashionista friend completely undressed.
"Hello, girls," Rarity smiled. "Lovely day, isn't it?"
"All right," said Rainbow Dash with an awkward chuckle, "who are you and what have you done with the real Rarity?"
"I am the real Rarity," Rarity chuckled.
"You sure about that? 'Cause I'm one of her closest friends, and I know she's not the 'going around naked in public' type," Rainbow replied, the smirk on her face spreading. "She wouldn't be caught dead here."
"Well, sometimes things change," Rarity shrugged. "Now how about a dip in the pool?"
The CMC ran ahead of her, remembering what happened the last time she got wet.
"What do we do now?" said Scootaloo.
"We could try gettin' other people to fill up the pool before she gets there," suggested Apple Bloom. "Y'know, make it look too restless for her."
"Um, Rarity, how about we get you checked in first?" Sweetie Belle offered. "Then we can get a cabin to leave our stuff at."
Rarity shrugged. "All right, if you insist. After all, if I'm here, it will be good manners to let the people running this club know it."
Sweetie Belle led her sister to the office, quietly hoping Twilight found the note.
Carousel Boutique
"SHE'S AT THE GREEN HILL CLUB?!?" The purple skinned genius screamed, causing Spike, Flutter and Ember to cover their ears.
"Twilight, calm down," said Flutter. "It's not like anyone there would be dangerous for her to be around."
"I... I know, I know," Twilight replied, lowering her voice. "But you know Rarity would die of shame if she suddenly came to her sense and found herself there! We've got to take the machine there and end this whole mess!"
"We were actually heading there after I finished walking Ember, so we can give you a lift," Flutter offered.
Twilight gladly accepted, and soon both girls and their dogs were on their way. Twilight had placed the mind reading device in the trunk for safety.
"So that thing you made caused Rarity to act like this?" Flutter asked as she took the wheel.
"Pretty much," Twilight replied.
"And you think that same device will get her back to normal?"
"It's... it's the best option we have. Besides, I started this. The least I can do is try to put it right."
Flutter pulled into the parking lot, passing by the same pink haired lady from a few weeks ago.
Looks like there's interesting things going on here today, the disguised Mayor Mare thought as she watched the two girls undress and take out Twilight's invention. Well, I'm just glad the commotion isn't over me.
"So where would she be?"
"Well, you've told me she's very punctual," said Flutter. "If that's true, she'd probably sign in at the reception before doing anything else. We should start our search there."
"Hey, girls!" Emerald Peace called out. "Nice to see you both here."
"Hey, babe," smiled Flutter, taking the chance to peck her boyfriend on the cheek.
"We're looking for Rarity," Twilight hastily explained. "Have you seen her?"
"You mean, she's decided to join us?" asked Emerald.
"It's... complicated."
"I saw her heading near our cabin!" Fuchsia beamed, hugging Flutter from behind.
"Whoa!" yelped Flutter. "Fuchsia, how do you keep managing to surprise me?"
"It's a gift," Emerald's sister giggled.
"You said she was near your cabin?" Twilight asked frantically.
"Mhm! Along with those CMC girls!"
"We need to get over there, now!"
The duo ran over to the Peace Family's cabin. Flutter had a feeling that the day's craziness wasn't over yet, but she decided not to say so, to avoid rattling Twilight further.
"Are we going to the pool now?" They heard Rarity's voice in the cabin next door.
"Err, we haven't finished putting away our stuff yet!" Sweetie Belle replied, still trying to stall her sister for as long as possible.
"We're here!" Twilight barged into the cabin.
"Oh! Well, hello again, Twilight," said Rarity, who was currently seated on the bed, struggling as Sweetie tried to hold her in place. Twilight quickly slapped the helmet onto Rarity's head and switched it on.
"What are yoooouuu... oohhhh..." Rarity's attempt to speak became unfocused as the machine began to affect her again.
"All right, Twilight, here we are," said Flutter. "How do you mean to help her?"
"I changed the settings to erase the hypnotic trance in her mind."
"Here's hoping it works," said Sweetie Belle, who was worried for her sister and honestly wanted it to. A minute later, the machine powered down, and Rarity slumped into the chair, unconscious.
"Now we can only wait and see how she is when she wakes up," said Twilight.
"We should probably keep this cabin quiet for her," said Flutter. "Where are your friends, Sweetie Belle?"
"Out getting people to swim in the pool," the young girl replied. "Rarity wanted to swim in it, and being doused with water seemed to make her come to her senses for a short time, so we tried to make it too crowded so she'd change her mind."
"Can you help us dress her?" Twilight asked. "It'd be better if she woke up clothed."
"We have bathrobes here," Flutter offered. "She's probably used to just being in one of those."
"Good call," Sweetie Belle ran to the cabin's bathroom to fetch the robe hanging on the door.
"I hope Rarity can find it in herself to forgive me for this," Twilight sighed, obviously dreading the thought of losing one of her best friends.
"If we're lucky, she'll probably think it was a bad dream."
"My inventions have caused a lot of havoc, haven't they?" said Twilight sadly. "First my ray that turned Trixie invisible, then that incident with you and your dog Ember, and now this... I'm sorry about all of it. Maybe I should just stop, before I get someone seriously hurt..."
"Actually, I thought it was kinda fun being a dog," Flutter gently placed a hand on Twilight's shoulder.
"So... you don't think I'm dangerous?" Twilight dared to ask. "You're not worried about me really going off the deep end and becoming some kind of young female Dr. Frankenstein?"
"Nah, in fact, I think your inventions have made things a little more interesting."
Twilight smiled, and even chuckled slightly. "Well, I can't argue with that. So you guys really don't mind if I keep experimenting?"
"Not at all," Flutter hugged Twilight before hearing Rarity groan as she slowly came to.
"Ugh..." the girl moaned. "Um, not to be rude, dears... but why are you all stark naked? And where are we?"
"You, um..." Flutter paused, trying to think of an excuse.
"You agreed to drive me and my friends to the Green Hill Club for the weekend," Sweetie Belle spoke up. "Your clothes got dirty so they're in the wash."
"Oh, um, is that so?" Rarity replied, rubbing her eyes and looking understandably confused. "When did I fall asleep?"
"You kinda fainted half an hour ago about your clothes getting dirty," Twilight added.
"Oh... Well, um, do forgive me for that," the fashionista replied with an apologetic smile.
"So... would you be... willing to give naturism a try?" Sweetie Belle asked hopefully.
Rarity began to blush and run her fingers through her hair nervously. "I don't know, Sweetie... I mean, I'm fine with you doing it, but me? Exposing myself in front of others? It feels... scandalous."
"Well, you're already at a nudist club, so it won't be so scandalous here," Twilight smirked.
"I... I suppose..."
"Come on, sis," begged Sweetie Belle. "It'll be nice to do something together, right?"
"I guess it wouldn't hurt..." Rarity sighed as she slowly slipped off the robe. "You've all seen me naked before, didn't you?"
That statement caught Twilight, Flutter and Sweetie a bit off guard. Did Rarity retain some memory of her trance?
"Err... what do you mean, Rarity?" Twilight asked, nervous as to what the answer might be.
"Well, you got me changed into this bathrobe while I was unconscious, correct?"
"Oh yeah, we did!" Sweetie said with a nervous chuckle.
"So, I suppose there's no point in hiding what you've already seen." Rarity fully removed the robe and stood naked before them once again. Her cheeks went red with embarrassment again, but she resisted the urge to cover up.
"You still look pretty, sis."
"Th-thank you, Sweetie," Rarity replied with a slight stutter. The younger girl hugged her around the waist and looked up at her sister with a warm smile, which Rarity returned.
"We've added body painting as a permanent activity," Flutter said.
"Oh, um, is that so?" Rarity asked, wondering what Flutter might be hinting at.
"That's a great idea, Flutter!" Sweetie beamed. "With your artistic talents, imagine what you could come up with, sis!"
"Oh, yes, I do enjoy chances to... be creative." Rarity was unsure how well she'd be able to handle painting other people's nude bodies.
Just then, Emerald poked his head into the cabin.
"Flutter? Mom wants to see you."
"Really?" Flutter asked. "What is it about?"
"She's commissioned Fleck Paint to do a logo for the club and wanted us to be the models for it."
Flutter beamed at the thought of providing such a service. "Count me in!" she grinned, rushing to join her boyfriend outside.
"Fuchsia and Pimpernel are also going to be in the picture."
"Aww, this is going to be great!" Together they made their way towards wherever they were required to pose.
Meanwhile, Twilight and Sweetie led Rarity over to the multipurpose building, where a painting stand had been set up inside. As soon as they stepped into the vicinity, a certain fluffy-haired party-loving friend bounced in front of them.
"OMIGOSH, RARITY, YOU'VE JOINED US!" squealed Pinkie Pie as she hugged the girl like an overgrown teddy bear.
"N-Not exactly!" Rarity screamed.
"She's just giving the place a try, Pinkie," Twilight quickly explained. "She hasn't decided if she'll be a member yet."
"Well, you wanna body paint with us?" Pinkie asked, gesturing to Sweet Leaf sitting behind the stand.
"Who... who will our subject be?" Rarity asked, still rather apprehensive.
"How about you?" Sweet Leaf asked.
"Yeah!" grinned Pinkie. "You like being all decorated and fancy-looking, right?"
"Yessss... though it's usually by means of clothing," the fashionista replied, her skin already tingling at the thought of brushes lathering paint all over it.
"We can make it look like clothing," Sweet Leaf grinned.
"Really?" Rarity said. "Well, I suppose that might be possible... you could easily make it look like a leotard or something like that."
"That's gonna be child's play," Sweet Leaf giggled, referring to her and Flutter's gymnastics "outfits."
"Go on, Rarity," smiled Twilight. "This might be fun if you open yourself up to it, even just this once."
"I-I guess..." Rarity sighed as she sat down on one of the stools.
"Yay!" cheered Pinkie, grabbing some paintbrushes and a palette.
"If you like, you can choose how you want to be painted," Sweet Leaf offered. "Maybe we can give you diamond patterns or something? Pinkie's told me how fond you are of jewellery."
"Sure, I guess," Rarity tensed herself as the two began to work on her body. Their brushes danced over her skin, leaving trails of silver and blue paint, and eventually diamond shapes were visible all over her. They eventually stepped back to admire their handiwork. Rarity was now covered in blue and silver diamonds, with a rich purple filling the areas in between. For a finishing touch, Sweet Leaf had added mask-like silver patterns around her eyes. Rarity blushed when she noticed two of the diamonds were placed on her chest. Pinkie pushed in a full-length mirror, allowing her friend to see herself in full.
"Wow... I must admit, you two have done an impressive job with me," Rarity said.
"Turn around," Pinkie giggled. As Rarity did so, she saw two more diamonds decorating her rear end.
"Honestly, Pinkie," Rarity remarked, shaking her head. But she couldn't hide the amused smile on her face.
At the same time, Viridian Specs and his mother had just pulled up into the parking lot. They were greeted by Rosie Peace as they entered the club, and immediately noticed something different about her.
"You've cut your hair," Olive remarked.
"It's true," Rosie replied, her previously shoulder-length hair now being a chin-length bob. "I decided that as manager of the club, I ought to look more... casually professional, you know?"
"I think it suits her," Night Sky said from the office behind the desk.
"Well, shorter hair is easier to clean and maintain, I can tell you that," said Olive, patting her own hair that she kept in her usual bun. Just then, the disguised Mayor Mare stepped into the office.
"Oh," remarked Rosie, "it's you again, Ms. Shock."
"Ms. who?" said Viridian.
"Err, Pink Shock at your service, young man," the woman replied in a disguised voice.
However, Olive Grain was not fooled. After all, her career involved knowing the Mayor on a personal basis. "The only 'shock' here," she said with a frown, "is that someone of your status would be so dishonest as to sneak into here in disguise, Mayor." She rearranged the woman's hair to Mayor Mare's more familiar style, revealing her boss' identity to everyone in the room.
"Y-You really are Mayor Mare?!" Rosie almost fell out of her seat at this revelation.
"She is. And she's obviously been deceiving you," Olive said matter-of-factly.
"For a good reason," the revealed politician said. "You know how stressful it is being Mayor?"
Olive's expression softened. "Now that you mention it, I have seen you looking pretty worn out over all your work."
"And if anyone recognized me, they'd swarm all over me."
"Well," said Rosie, "the main purpose of this club is to get a break from stress. If you let everyone know that you're visiting, I could easily arrange for them not to give you grief or spread word of your presence."
"Thank you, Miss Peace."
"Does anyone else know about this side of you?" Olive asked. Mayor Mare looked away at that question.
"Come on, I know your habit of doing that when you're afraid to admit something. Tell us."
"...someone's been blackmailing me about it..."
"WHAT?!?"