//------------------------------//
// High Fashion 
// Story: Friendship Is Monsters 
// by spotty8ee 
//------------------------------//

“Punch out, step, stance, elbow! Punch, step, stance, elbow! Put some oomph in it, you’ll never break a hold like that! Punch, step, stance, elbow! Better! Now do it all together! Strike! Strike! Don’t shortcut, you won’t break the hold half assing it like that!”

“Remember the eyes are always weak! However, you may not know what a monster is capable of, so never look them in the eyes! The throat is your next best bet, but good luck getting through a golem’s skin! Lastly, if they have exterior reproductive organs, those are extremely effective but if you don’t finish it or run away, you’ll have one pissed off foe!”

“Yes, Ms.Trunchbull,” Twilight echoed the others, dying to get out of her sweaty gym clothes and back to her dorm. Two long hours of physical education a day was killing her, and if it wasn’t for the requirements to graduate, she’d have left it all behind long ago. Thankfully this wasn’t a usual gym class. The school offered a multitude of options for phys-ed, including sport-centric ones, basic body building and others. Twilight had chosen one she could actually use, self defense. It was a basic overall course, never really delving into too many detailed moves. They usually repeated actions until they were reflexive and then moved on to new techniques. The instructor, Ms Trunchbull, was a large, muscular woman. She was bossy, stuffy and had a temper to boot, but she knew what she was talking about.

You just didn’t want to cross her; she was the school’s correctional teacher, so if you did something wrong you were in her hands. Say what you will, the woman was creative.

“Good! Keep practicing how to break out of different grips, Monday we’ll focus on what to do after. If you can’t break out of my grip by then, you’re going to have a lot of trouble. We’ll be dealing with how to evade different shapes and sizes, and if you can prove capable of escaping, I may even teach you how to fight back.” She rolled her thick neck, making a loud popping noise that made all the girls grimace. “Now get out of here and be back on time next Monday!”

The girls quickly went for the changing rooms, most whining about how tired and sweaty they were. “Damn requirement,” Moondancer muttered beside her as they changed.

“I know, but this is somewhat useful,” Twilight said.

“Better than throwing a ball around,” Moondancer huffed. “Still makes me stink though. I call the shower first.”

“Dang it!” They left for the dorm quietly, shifting through the excited crowds of hurrying students.

“Who have you been talking to on your computer?” Moondancer asked suddenly, surprising Twilight as they exited the building. “The message thing pings all the time these days, never used to before.”

“Oh, just some new friends of mine…” Twilight explained, blushing a bit when she thought about it. Friends… She and the girls were getting pretty close. She had had one-on-one time with all of them almost.

“I figured. They go to school here?” Moondancer questioned, pulling the door to the dorm rooms open for the both of them. Twilight started to head up the stairs before her roomate.

“Uhhhh-” Twilight thought for a moment. “Noooo… They’re in the city.”

“Like public school?” Moondancer raised a brow. “Which one?”

“Canterlot High. In the Mid Canterlot area,” Twilight said as they entered the hallway and walked to their room.

“Mid Canterlot? Not too many humans live there.” Moondancer blinked and opened their dorm.

“Well-”

“GUYS!” The two looked back as Lemon hurried up the stairs behind them. She panted, out of breath and doubled over on her knees trying to calm her labored breathing. “Oh my god! Oh-”

“Lemon? Are you ok?” Twilight asked, holding the door for her two roommates to enter.

“G-great! Fantastic!” Lemon heaved a breath and straightened back up, excited. “Look! Look at this!” She waved a paper around frantically until Twilight took it.

“Is this-”

“My science test!” Lemon said giddily. “Look at what I got!!”

“A seventy one percent,” Twilight managed before smiling the best she could. Had it been her grade, Twilight wouldn’t have been so eleated. Still, it was an improvement from  what Lemon had previously.

“I passed! I passed!” Lemon shouted, jumping up and down. “All that’s left is biology and I can ace that for sure!”

“Lemme see,” Moondancer spoke, snatching the paper from Twilight. She looked it over boredly. “Well this is just great Lemon Zest.”

“I know right!” Lemon smiled, pumping the air and going to sit on the couch.

“You know what?” Moondancer said, walking to the kitchenette with a tired expression. “I’m gonna put it right here. RIGHT on the refrigerator,” She held it up, placing a magnet over it to keep it in place. “That way we can see it everyday.”

“Alright!” Lemon cheered, missing her roomie’s tone entirely. “I’m gonna go call my dad!”

“You do that.” They watched as Lemon headed for her room, leaving them alone in the main area before Twilight looked at Moondancer, scowling a little.

“Come on, can’t you put a little enthusiasm into it?” Twilight grunted.

“It was a seventy one percent.”

“It's better than she thought she’d do. Besides, she’s really proud of herself, she did work hard.”

“What are you suggesting?” Moondancer asked, brow raised. “A parade?”

“You could at least drop the sarcasm,” Twilight responded, cocking an eyebrow back at her.

“Alright. Alright. I suppose I could…” Moondancer admitted, looking vaguely guilty. “I’ll ‘encourage’ her academic endeavors without my usual mirth.”

Twilight looked at the fridge. “You do know we can’t take this off the fridge ever again.”

“Well that is a given,” Moondancer sighed. “Just like the time we let her plant that seed that a squirrel SPECIFICALLY gave to her and her alone. Especially after we told her it was a magic seed.” They now looked at an oak tree planted in an old pot, taking up a large corner of the living room by the tv. It seemed to be growing toward the window, like it was trying to subtly escape the room. “That ain’t going nowhere.”

“It grew so quickly when she blasted that heavy metal,” Twilight muttered, wincing.

“That was interesting, to a point,” Moondancer grimaced but shook her head. “But such is the price we pay for tomfoolery.”

Twilight glowered at Moondancer, “I wasn’t the one who told her that-”

“At any rate,” Moondancer spoke, ending the conversation; Twilight just frowned, as that wasn’t unusual with Moondancer. “I think we’re forgetting something important.”

Twilight swallowed, remembering the questions Moondancer had been asking before. “What's that?”

“That I called the shower first.”

Twilight blinked, but the bathroom door was shut before she could process the sentence. As the shower started in the other room Twight sighed and went for the couch.

It was hard to live with two extremely different people. Kept things interesting though…

Ping ping

Twilight looked around the room before she spotted her laptop on the coffee table. The device was letting her know that she had a massage on her chat site, and seeing no harm in checking in as she waited her turn for the facilities, she opened it.

Private Chat Opened.

‘OH TWILIGHT! ITS HORRIBLE!’ 

Was the text she first read when it opened. Twilight almost dropped her laptop in her haste to answer.

“Oh my gosh, what happened Rarity?!”

Rarity responded in an instant.

‘OH IT’S JUST TERRIBLE!’

‘What?!’

‘Twight! Do you realize everyone has had some time alone with you but ME?!’

Huh.

‘We cannot let this stand! I want to spend time with you this weekend, maybe do some shopping downtown?’

Twilight’s neck felt sore from the whiplash of this conversation. That's what the fuss was about?! She almost had a heart attack! Twilight had to take a second to steady her thoughts. There wasn’t much going on this weekend…

‘I guess? Ok? When?’

‘Oh excellent, darling! Let's say Saturday, we can meet up around 10! There's a beautiful mall on the North end that I want to show you! I can pick you up.’

Money wasn’t something Twilight was short on. She got a pretty good allowance from her parents for keeping her grades up and doing chores around the house. Plus, with no place she wanted to go but the house and school, she didn’t spend it much. The last time she had spent money was at the movies, and that had been a month ago. If Rarity wanted to do some shopping then Twilight saw no issue with it.

‘Sure, I’ll see you then.’

‘Wonderful! I’ll text you when I arrive!’

Well that was saturday squared away.

Twilight was surprised she had been spending so much time out of the house lately. Just last year she had practically locked herself in the basement with her studies, now she was making movies plans and shopping day trips. It was honestly something Twilight didn’t think would ever happen to her.

At that moment Lemon came back into the room, looking significantly less excited than she had before. The girl flopped down on the couch beside her.

“What’s wrong Lemon?” Twilight asked, wincing at the girl’s somber expression. “Was your dad not happy?”

“No, he was ok with it,” Lemon shrugged. “He just found out I only placed second at the contest last weekend. He couldn’t come because he was working…”

“Oh.” Twilight blinked. “Wasn’t that contest for the entire state? Like with humans and monsters?”

“Yeah, it was,” Lemon sighed, playing with her hair.

“I think that's pretty good. I mean your the second best young adult violinist in this state. Not to mention all the monsters you went up against. Were any of them demons? I hear demons are very in tune with the musical instruments.”

“There were a few,” Lemon admitted. “And a girl with six arms…”

“And you beat them?” Twilight asked, smiling when Lemon nodded. “See, I could never even get close to that!”

“Yeah, well, I wish my dad could be as enthusiastic. He’s a musician too, first chair in the Canterlot orchestra. Nothing impresses him unless it’s played off violin strings.”

“Oh, well what does your mom think?”

Lemon stopped playing with her hair and puffed. “I haven’t seen her since the divorce. She’s busy with her new family.”

“Oh,” Twilight finched.

“Look Twilight, I know you're trying to cheer me up, I appreciate it,” Lemon said, sitting up a bit more. “Sometimes it's just nice to bitch about things though. You’re helping just by listening. Don’t beat yourself up.”

“I’m still sorry I brought it up.”

“Yeah but you didn’t know,” Lemon said, looking at her. “I know it's hard to listen to people vent. Drains you and I really appreciate you listening. Whenever Indigo does it to me I know I’m really worn out afterward.”

“Indigo? What does she have to vent about?” Twilight asked, surprised that the popular, sporty girl had anything too arduous to complain over.

“She comes from a big family,” Lemon said. “She’s the youngest of six, and all her older siblings are champions at something.” She looked at the ceiling. “I think she feels like she always has to prove herself.”

“I never knew that,” Twilight frowned. “ I guess add in that she might be family with Kamikaze soon…”

“Shit. I forgot Navy and Shurui were dating now.”

They sat in silence until the bathroom door opened and Moondancer came out, hair wrapped in a towel. She paused at the doorframe, getting some water out of her ear and looking around suspiciously.

“What the hell happened?” She frowned. “Tensions thicker than pea soup in here.”

Twilight sighed.




The next morning at home Twilight awoke early and got ready for the day. She went downstairs and found her mother at the table, groggily eating an uncooked bagel.

“You’re up early…” She murmured as Twilight got a quick breakfast together.

“Hanging out with a friend of mine,” Twilight explained before taking a large bite of a banana. She swallowed it and went for a glass of milk. “Were going to do some shopping.”

“Oh fun,” Her mother said, taking a sleepy drink of her coffee. “You know I haven’t met these friends of yours yet. You should have them over sometime.”

Twilight paused in drinking her milk, looking back with a nervous smile. “I… should… I’ll ask them. Gah- later on. They’re busy these days…”

Velvet was too tired to notice anything off about Twilight and took another bite of her bagel. “Good, good…” She mumbled.

Twilight turned to pour some kibble into Spike’s bowl, the dog barking excited. She wasn’t entirely sure how she was going to explain her new friends to her parents, but hopefully she could stave off any questions until she was ready…

As she put the dog food away her phone pinged and she checked it.

‘I’m just a tiny bit early and at the gatehouse! Get here whenever you can.’ Rarity had texted and Twilight hurriedly threw on her bag, heading for the door.

“I’ll be back later!”

“Have fun!” Her mother called.

Taking her bike Twilight had a quick trip to the gate house, especially since it was saturday morning and most people were still inside, sleeping in and enjoying their day off. After parking her bike and getting through the gates she looked up and down the street, spotting a black SUV across the road. Rarity waving at her from the window.

“Hello Twilight!” Rarity said when the girl got in. “So good to see you again!”

“Yeah, good to see you too,” Twilight nodded, looking around the large vehicle in amazement. “Is this your car?”

“Oh, oh no, no, no!” Rarity chuckled. “I do wish, but it's actually my father’s. He let me borrow it for the day, but not without a little bit of pleading mind you. He loves his cars.”

“He has more than one?”

“Well one’s just for sport. A mustang he keeps fiddling with in the garage,” Rarity explained, starting to pull away. “That is one I will never touch, I can say that much.”

“My dad’s not a car nut, but he has an antique telescope upstairs that I’m never allowed to touch unless the house is on fire and I can manage to save it,” Twilight smiled, Rarity laughing with her. Twilight found this excursion much more relaxed than the others had been, and wondered if she was just getting used to this kind of interaction. Not to mention being out of the community. “So what kind of stores were you thinking of going to?”

“Oh well, the mall is an older one, but it has lots of good deals. I shop there a lot for material. They have a very large fabric store in the back.” Rarity looked back at her. “I was thinking I could make you a dress if you wanted.”

“Really?” Twilight blinked, surprised by the gesture. “You don’t have to do that-”

“Nonsense, I insist!” Rarity said quickly, waving a hand. “I love to create them and I would love to put another dress in my portfolio. Not to mention a human dress is one I’ve never made before.”

“Human dress?” Twilight asked. “How is it any different from any other dresses?”

“With so many different creatures to make clothing for, there’s a lot of things to keep in mind. Take yourself and Rainbow Dash for example. Your arm girth is much smaller than her wingspan. She’d never wear a long sleeve anything. Not to mention her gait and yours are very different. Rainbow’s is much longer and wider set, not to mention her talons would catch on anything looping or frilled. All her dresses need to be short and sleeveless, which would seem boring until you add in other elements. A cloak in the winter. Headpieces. A fashionable belt. Add in that Harpies historically liked wearing bones and shiny objects as accents, which Rainbow also enjoys, and you have a much different dress from what you would wear.”  Rarity smiled. “If I have read right, humans hate to wear real bones on their outfits usually, fake is ok for some though. Not to mention all the fads that come and go, some of them crossing races. A while ago it was popular for rebellious teens to wear collars. Werewolves and other monsters did it, but oddly enough I’ve read humans started that one...”

“That’s a lot to take into account for fashion designing,” Twilight said, impressed by the level of detail.

“There are two kinds of fashion designers. Those who create wearable art statements and those who make art you can wear anywhere,” Rarity stated. “I shift more towards the latter. Understanding the physiology of a creature will help keep them comfortable and natural in an outfit. Understanding the different histories and societies can not only help appeal, but also stave off any faux pas. Whereas humans, harpies, and most other creatures love wearing shiny gems, rock golems and the dwarfish races find wearing them to look condescending. They’d never wear anything shiny.” Rarity nodded behind her. “Not to mention you have to mark the right height for the tail holes and not make them loose enough that people get a look at your undergarments.”

“You must study a lot,” Twilight said.

“There are many books on the subject. Most designers choose a few races and work with them, some races have a hard time shopping in stores because they’re not represented or their numbers are too low. Others, like slime creatures, wear no clothes at all, save for accessories for special occasions. Then a few only wear half clothes, like shirts for centaurs.” Rarity smiled. “Whenever I do manage to get someone to wear my outfits, I make sure to create one just for them! No two dresses are alike.”

Rarity looked back at her. “Is there any store you wanted to look at Twilight?”

“Well I’ve never been to this mall… I guess we’ll have to see what there is.” She smiled, “I wouldn’t mind looking in the book store.”

“We’ll go there first, there’s a lovely section on history I wouldn’t mind looking at while we’re there. I want to find a book about mummy society. I saw a dress on one in public and I wanted to see if I could find out what it’s called.”

“I’ve read a little about mummies, but they were human books so I wouldn’t believe everything they say,” Twilight frowned. “They’re not … flattering. human books about monster tend to be a little skewed towards bad things.”

“Mmm, I suppose that's fair. I’ve found a few old history books about humans that were a little disturbing in perspective myself. You don’t want to know what the orc wrote about humans, I’ll say that much. I suppose history is always going to be skewed, depending on who wrote about it.” Rarity turned onto a new road and Twilight could see the city out her window.

“Yeah, I guess so,” Twilight nodded, looking back at her driver.

Rarity smiled as she pulled into a parking lot in front of a large building. “Here we are! Such a big mall, isn’t it? I think they used to have one of those department stores in here, but it closed. Had to chop it up into smaller areas.”

“Economy’s changed since they started to build these,” Twilight agreed. They both stepped out, the parking lot pretty empty at this time of the day. Rarity led her towards a double door entrance and they went inside. It was a pretty typical mall, though the hall and store ceilings were much higher than Twilight was used to. Then she saw a large owl creature with long legs, looking into a store window, holding some bag and checking for molted feathers.

“That’s a stolas. Not many of them around.” Rarity whispered to her as they walked past, so as to not alert it of what they were talking about. “Demon folk, nice monster over all though.”

“Wow,” Twilight looked back as the stolas walked into a store called ‘Herbs and More’. “What kind of store is that?”

“Sells dried, fresh, and frozen potion ingredients. Lot of creatures like to make their own at home, but store brand is still good.”

“They never sell potions in the Estates,” Twilight admitted. “They’re kind frowned upon, anything magical kinda is.”

“Well that's a shame, it's basically just herbal remedies mixed with a bit of magic. I cannot go out for the day without ‘Wizard Master Zoid’s Hair straightening serum’! It just takes the tats and knots right out of my hair, and my fur!” She gestured to her hooves, where her fur stockings grew long. “These are horrible for tats.”

“It’s cool you can just walk around without shoes on,” Twilight commented. “Must be easy when you go outside.”

“Well I do have some kind of shoes on Twilight.” Rarity lifted a hoof, showing off her silver horseshoe. “These things are delicate. Not to mention we have to hose down whenever we come in, especially when it rains and these things are soaked with mud!” She grimaced. “You don’t want to know what it feels like when mud gets between the two.”

They came to the bookstore first. Heading inside Twilight took a deep breath and sighed. “I love the smell of a bookstore.”

“It is nice. Fabric stores have an excellent smell too, if a bit dusty,” Rarity said. “Was there anything you were looking for in particular?”

“I just love to look around, there are always new books you’ve never seen before at any store,” Twilight said as they walked around. “I once found a very good mystery story at a gas station.”

“I’d rather pay at the machine than go into the store. I know the staff do try but the stores are always grodie,” Rarity shuddered.

They passed some different shelves, all sorted by type of books. Twilight read some of the titles as they went.

‘Snaclula. Blood Recipes and desserts.’

‘Believe In Yourself. Motivation for the Mythological.’

‘Making Yourself a Livelihood After Death. Undead Business Strategies.’ 

They came to the history section, both looking for a book Rarity could use. The satyr hummed. “I can see some about architecture and illnesses, but nothing on society studies… Well besides this Egyptology book.” Rarity tapped it on its shelf. “Very good books, the ‘ology series, but a bit too low on the detail I’m looking for.”

“What about this? ‘Unravel the History of Mummies by D- D… ummm … Dje-hut-im-esu….?’” Twilight asked, pulling it from the bottom shelf.

“Let’s take a peek,” Rarity said, taking it to flip through. “Oh this is quite nice. Very detailed on the customs- Oh! A kalasiris, that's what that dress was called.” She put the book under her arm. “Yes this will do nicely. Thank you Twilight.”

“Happy to help,” Twilight smiled. They milled around the store a little longer, Twilight finding a few new books about studies she had never seen before. Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and a few medical books on different species.

“My you do love to read about a wide range of subjects Twilight,” Rarity commented, looking shocked at the variety of books the girl was carrying, the pile so big the human was practically hidden behind it. “When I come in here with the other girls, they go right for their respective sections. Fluttershy and her animal books, Applejack likes those Soup for the Soul books, and Pinkie goes right to where the humorous ones are shelved,” Rarity shook her head. “Gets her going for a solid four hours of puns.”


“What about Rainbow?” Twilight asked behind her stack.

“She just complains,” The satyr said with a smirk. “It seems like staying in a bookstore will turn her into dust. Or an egghead, whichever is the end for her.”

Twilight chortled, books jostling.

They went to a few other stores after buying their books. Rarity pulled Twilight into a pharmaceutical-like store that sold a variety of healthcare products. Including horn polish, scale cream and talon sharpeners.

“Have you ever done your hair down?” Rarity asked as they looked around the aisle of hair care products and potions, some of which were glowing and bubbling.  “I think it would look quite nice, not that your bun isn’t cute.”

Twilight touched her hair and blushed. “Well, I usually do this to keep it out of my face. My hair doesn't look as good down as it does up.”

“Oh I’m sure that’s not true!” Rarity said. “A little curl here, a little shimmering glitter potion there and it will be like the night sky.”

“I’m not even sure how to curl it first, let alone use any products on it.” Twilight admitted.

“Well when Pinkie Pie can finally have us all together, I’m sure she’ll want to do a little sleep over! I could mess around with some styles then if you want.”

“Well I have read that doing each other hair is an important ritual at a sleepover.,” Twilight hummed.

“Read? Haven’t you gone to a sleepover Twilight?” Rarity asked.

“Um, I sleep away from home at my school dorm all the time,” Twilight said. “I spent some nights at my grandmother’s when I was little.”

“Oh darling… We are going to have an amazing sleepover once the others are free!” Rarity spoke excitedly. “The first one should be important! We’ll do each other’s hair, makeup, have pillow fights and all the stereotypical fun! I’ll message Pinkie when I get home and have it all hooked up!”

“Really?” Twilight asked, a little excited herself.

“Of course! Pinkie may be the party monster but I can do a little planning of my own. We could do so many different hairstyles! I’d never wear a beehive outside like my mother does, but they are very fun to try out!”

After that they looked around a jewelry store. It had a wide variety of necklaces and rings, there were even special items to adorn horns and tails and spike rows.  They were widely ranged in price, depending on the metal and gem. Not to mention you could apparently get charms put on them. Twilight decided to pick out a nice necklace for her mother, for Mother’s Day, before turning to Rarity, only to not see her nearby.

“Rarity, where are you!” Twilight called out, scanning the store.

“Over here, darling!” Rarity answered, waving from the other side of the store.

Confused, Twilight grabbed the pearl necklace with onyx butterfly pendant she was looking at and went to Rarity. “Why are you all the way over here, is there something wrong with those?” Twilight asked, holding up the necklace. When the necklace got close to Rarity, the air started to get blurry. Just as Twilight was about to ask what’s going-

“Twilight, get that thing back!” Rarity shouted. Twilight yelped and ran back to where she got it, putting it back and glancing at Rarity, who had calmed down. “You need to be more careful, dear.”

Twilight trudged back, looking at the floor. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what it is, I wanted to know if it would make a good present for my mom.”

Rarity sighed. She put one hand on Twilight’s shoulder and lifted Twilight’s chin with the other, but Twilight wouldn’t meet her gaze. “It’s okay, you didn’t know. That’s the section with Dark magic charmed jewelry. I forgot you’re not used to magic.”

Twilight finally looked up at Rarity, mind churning before it clicked. She stepped back, eyes wide. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry Rarity, I could’ve hurt you!”

Rarity tilted her head in confusion, then burst out laughing. The sudden laughter broke Twilight’s train of thought, leaving her to stare blankly at Rarity. After reeling in her laughter, Rarity said, “That wouldn’t have done more than a small zap, it’s just a basic charm. If it got too close to me, it might’ve been damaged and you’d have to pay for it. They wouldn’t leave anything strong enough to hurt someone out in the open.”

“Oh.”

“There should be an item number near it, we can check it in the catalogue.”

With the number in hand, Rarity guided them to a table with binders near the register. Some were labeled Light Charms, others Dark, and a few General. Rarity peaked at the number, opened one of the Dark Charms binders, and flipped through.

“Ah, here it is,” she said, pointing to a picture of the necklace. “Is this the one?”

Twilight nodded and Rarity put the binder on the table, the two of them huddling to read it.


VC122007 Social Butterfly


$1100


Made from natural pearls and onyx, this classic piece from Vampire Crafts is a real conversation starter, in more ways than one.


Not only is it a stunning piece, it’s also charmed with a general purpose social charm, helping wearer relax and be more charismatic.


Charge Time: 50 hours while being worn


Recharge Difficulty: Basic


“Aaaannd I have no clue what this means,” Twilight said, shoulders slumped.

Giggling, Rarity answered, “Oh, it’s pretty simple. This rather charming necklace is charmed with a little spell that makes whoever wears it have an easier time conversing with others. This particular kind is popular in upper class events. It’s got a battery life of 50 hours, and anyone who’s had some basic training with Dark Magic can recharge it.”

“The one I saw was $500, are they the same?”

“It’s most likely on clearance, with a new model coming in soon. That’s a very lucky find, I think it would make an excellent gift!”

“Is that what the binders are for, finding gifts?”

“Yes, it makes it much easier to buy presents for the opposite alignment, though they do tend to be expensive.”

The prices did seem pretty steep. Sure, Twilight had plenty of money, but she thought she was more well-off than average. “Is it common to buy charmed items?”

“Usually it’s only for special occasions, like baby showers, weddings, and graduations, though people who can afford them do tend to buy more.”

“Everfree Estates doesn’t have anything on charms, the closest we have is books on cursed objects. What kind of charms are there?”

“Technically, there are all kinds, though more powerful ones need licenses to use. Most that don’t require a license are either like that necklace, giving the wearer more charisma or more stamina, maybe make them a bit stronger. Then there are ones that are more long term, like ones that ward away disease or bring good fortune. Their effects are harder to measure, but they do definitely seem to help. I got this one that’s supposed to bring inspiration when I was born,” Rarity said as she pulled up the gold necklace she was wearing, revealing a white gold pendant with three diamonds.

“I think I’ll get it, my mom could definitely use some help when dealing with some of the people at the Estates. Do I bring the necklace to the register?”

“Oh no, just bring the number. They have them packaged and safe to handle for anyone in the back. The display is for those who want to see or try them out.”

“Oh, so that’s how the clerks handle them… Say, how do you tell if a monster is light or dark?”

“That’s… a bit complicated. We normally just learn them over time, and if needed, we ask. It’s possible to guess based on what the monster can do, but that requires understanding Light and Dark magic. Do you know the difference between the two?”

Twilight shook her head.

“Well, the most I can tell you is that Light magic tends to be more focused, while Dark tends to be more vague and general. The way I think of it is that Light magic is like gemstones, they can be used in specific ways and are very strong. On the other hand, Dark magic is like fabric, it can be used much more freely, but the end result is easier to break. I’m sorry, I don’t know much about how magic works, only Sunset from our group has studied it.”

They chose to have lunch next and both went to a fast food booth. Twilight was fully expecting Rarity to order a salad or veggie burger, but instead-

“A double meat deluxe, with bacon and cheese please.” Rarity said, a hand on her hip as she placed her order. “And a diet soda.” As they walked back to their table, Rarity caught Twilight staring. “Whatever is the matter dear?”

“Oh nothing…” Twilight blinked. “It’s just, your food…”

“Yes I know, it does look quite fattening doesn't it?” Rarity said, staring at her food. “I usually don’t go for the bacon but it smelt so tantalizing today, so I thought I’d treat myself, you know.”

“Oh it’s not that, it’s just…” Twilight blinked. “Meat.”

“Meat? Why is that- OH!” Rarity laughed. “Oh yes, the half horse, unicorn thing! Yes I see how you could be confused!” They found a table and set their things down, sitting to eat their food. “As odd as it must sound, we satyrs are actually much more carnivores than what you might think! Horses do eat more meat than one may expect. They’re omnivores.”

“How do you know about horses?” Twilight asked.

“I used to ride them as a child.”

Twilight was momentarily taken by the image in her mind, but swatted it away.

“Oh yes, never did it competitively, but I did love it… After my horse Jasper passed however I never really got back into it, it was a hard blow at such a young age,” She took a bite of her burger and patted her lips clean with a napkin. “Do tell me about yourself though dear! Any hobbies?”

“I tinker with science equipment and machines. And play with my dog Spike.”

“Nothing else?”

“Not usually. To be honest it's been awhile since I’ve even gone to a mall. Usually I get my clothes online and have a seamstress fit them for me in Everfree Estates. Though I’m betting there wouldn’t be much clothing for humans here anyway.”

“Oh we don’t usually have stores for just clothing in this area. Too many diverse sizes and shapes. I mean there are a few, but they have to cater to a wide range. Usually people do the same as you or they hire someone like me to make clothes for them personally. Very lucrative business. Speaking of, we should go see the fabric store and pick out something I can use to make you a dress! I was thinking a nice black or blue would be good. What do you think?”

“Thats sounds good. I like pink and purple sometimes, and white.”

“Lets see what they have. Sometimes I find just the perfect material hidden away, like behind a large roll or in the wrong section! It almost awakens a hunter instinct in me!” Rarity said. “Why I remember just last month-”

SCREEEEE!

Twilight almost jolted off her seat when something slammed into the back of her chair. Rarity jumped as well, letting out a sharp whinny before panting. Twilight was also shaken and out of breath, and paled when she saw sharp talons on the back of her chair.

“Rainbow Dash!” Rarity gasped, voice a little rough and angry. “What in the wide world do you think you are doing?!”

Twilight heard a familiar laugh and looked up to see the harpy perched above her. She ruffled her feathers and hopped off the chair. “Ah geeze! You should have seen your faces!” She chortled. “It was so easy to sneak up on you!”

Rarity snorted. “Well thank you for giving Twilight an asthma attack.” She pointed to the human, and Twilight had her puffer shoved to her mouth. “I’m glad we could be of amusement.”

“Aww, I didn’t mean anything by it! I couldn’t help myself!” She said, moving to Twilight’s side. “You ok? Not too much of a scare?”

“N-no. No I’m fine,” Twilight puffed out.

“See? Fine,” Rainbow echoed back to Rarity, talons clicking on the floor. “What are you guys doing here anyway?”

“Just a little shopping.” Rarity shook her head, but seemed to calm down with a sigh. “I would have invited you and the others but most of you are grounded and Fluttershy is helping out at the shelter again... Wait, what are you doing here today Rainbow? I thought you were still grounded.”

“I am,” Rainbow said with a shrug. “I’m just here to pick up some stuff for my dad. Kitchen sink disposal has been acting up. Too many fish bones down it I guess. We needed a new one.” She held up a shopping bag from a repair store. “I was just on my way home when I saw you. Thought I’d drop in, say hi.”

“You mean swoop in I suppose?” Rarity smiled.

“Well yeah. Got my cousin’s wedding next weekend so I won’t see any of you for a bit and-”

“Wedding?” Rarity asked, brows raised.

“Well yeah I-” Rainbow froze. “Oh no…” She held her winged hands up quickly. “Rarity, don’t you dare-”

It was, however, too late. The satyr was lost in thought, muttering to herself and trying to think up outfits that would make suitable wedding attire. Rainbow ran a hand down her face and Twilight inched back up her chair.

“She’s gone,” Rainbow sighed.

“You don’t want a dress?” Twilight asked.

“Rarity’s dresses are the best,” Rainbow said with no hesitation, though she was wincing. “It’s just so soon and my dad kinda surprised me with it… or he kinda told me and I forgot… either way I didn’t want to bug Rarity with it. She tends to take on orders, even if they mean long nights or no sleep…” Rainbow leaned it. “It’s a little scary…”

“Oh I have the best idea Rainbow!” Rarity said suddenly, drawing their attention back. “We could make a skirt with a Semi-transparent lace trim and some talon rings with gems to match the strap buckles- Oh where is the wedding? The seaside? Oh what am I saying, they’re always seaside with Harpies! We’ll need a cloak then, for when it gets cold-”

“Rarity, it’s fine!” Rainbow frowned. “I can wear my other dress, the one you made for the dance last-”

“That’s hardly wedding attire!” Rarity interrupted, taking Rainbow’s hand. “You must come with us to the fabric store! I will find you the perfect material!” Rarity gasped. “Oh! Black and white! That would be amazing! I could call it the prism! With you as the rainbow coming out of it!!”

“Yeah I’m not getting out of this now,” Rainbow said, blowing her bangs out of her eyes, though she was smiling.

“And Twilight! We’ll get some for you as well, though I may not have it done as soon as Rainbow’s-” Rarity said, starting to eat faster, though she never spoke with food in her mouth. “It will look divine though, I promise!”

“Take all the time you need Rarity. It will look amazing I’m sure,” Twilight smiled, starting on her own food.




The fabric store was something to behold. Shelves spanning the floor to ceiling were stocked with a wide range of materials, so much so that it dimmed the lights. Everything smelt old and dusty, like the store was somehow older than the city it was in and there was a hokey, old timey song playing over the speakers. However it carried an appeal of some sort, like a welcoming feeling, even if it was also a little overwhelming at the same time.

Twilight was taken with some kind of shiny fabric roll nearby. She pulled a bit out to look it over, eyes widening when it shimmered and turned invisible. Twilight waved her hand behind it and found she could see it clearly, though the movement was lagging a little.

“The see-through satin is a nice fabric Twilight, but not good for clothing,” Rarity chuckled a little down the aisle. “Trust me, it show everything behind it, including undergarments.”

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Twilight gawked, putting it back. The fabric shimmered again and returned to normal. “How do they make that?”

“Wild chameleon worms. They make silk that camouflages them into their surroundings,” Rarity stated, taking some black fabric off the rack. “Much more into baromez wool products myself. Of course some people are allergic…”

She turned to Rainbow and held the fabric up to the girl’s side. “Oh this will do nicely. Not too dark as to be for a funeral, but not too light to be grey.”

“It’s all black,” Rainbow frowned.

“HA!” Rarity scoffed, pointing to the rows of black fabric before her. “That’s black, that one is charcoal,” She pointed to a few others. “Ebony. Oil. Midnight.” She pointed to one that Twilight actually had a hard time seeing, it was so black it almost seemed to be sucking the light out of the room. “And of course, the blackests of blacks, Vantablack.”

Rainbow squinted at them.

“This, my dear, is sable,” Rarity said, holding up her swatch.

“That’s some Mantis Shrimp, art student levels Rarity,” Rainbow said, looking confused.

“Mantis what?” Rarity asked, squinting in confusion.

Rainbow groaned and rolled her eyes. “What I’m saying is my eyes can actually see more colors than yours, and I don't see any difference between those two fabrics."

“Well just trust me dear, it’s perfect!” Rarity nodded. “Now we need some white.”

“How many of those are there?” Rainbow asked, rubbing her head.

Now Rarity looked confused. “What do you mean? There's only one.” She waved her hand. “If it changes it’s officially a creamy colour or on the spectrum of another color, like pink or blue.”

Rainbow put a hand to her face.

They wandered from aisle to aisle, looking at fabric colors and patterns as they went. Rarity would find one or the other two would suggest one they liked, then the unicorn satyr would hold it up to see how it matched their colors. Twilight was having fun, especially when she found fabric she had never seen before.

They passed some rolls of fire resistant cloth and a leather section that had dragon hide and tanned unicorn. Rarity said she tried not to use animal fibers in her works much.

“What's dissipating cotton?” Twilight asked as they passed a large display of it.

“You know how, when Pinkie Pie transforms into a wolf, her clothes disappear? Then they come back when she shapeshifts into a human? That's what dissipating cotton does darling,” Rarity said, placing another bunch of fabric into Rainbow’s arms, the harpy peering out from behind it dully. “If they were regular clothes they would remain after she transformed, and probably wouldn’t fit her wolf form well. They may even rip or fall off, quite embarrassing for when she turned back,”

“I dunno if Pinkie would care, honestly.” Rainbow shrugged, a fabric roll falling to the floor from her arms.

“Well I’m sure she- I mean… She must…” Rarity blinked. “Ahh, maybe your right…”

“How does that work?” Twilight asked, eyes wide.

“Charms, transformation materials, and a little of the creature’s own magic thrown in,” Rarity explained. “I’m not sure how it all comes together after the outfit is done but- OH! Twilight, look at this teal, it would be amazing on you!”

Twilight smiled as Rarity placed the teal roll in her arms.

“I was thinking of trying halter neck for both of you! Would that bother either of you? It will look quite nice!” Rarity looked over a few more options as she wandered the aisle.  “As for the skirt styles I was thinking about making it a Gypsy one for Twilight and a Box pleated for you Rainbow.”

“Anything you choose sounds good.”
“I dunno what those even mean.”

They both spoke at once.

Rarity took no notice. “Well it's settled! We have all the fabric we need, we can get started on the design phase!”

“Thank goodness, I can’t hold anymore,” Rainbow winced.

“Here darling, allow me,” Rarity said as she took some rolls. “Now we need to go somewhere we can measure you girls for your outfits. Rainbow, I know your wingspan has gotten bigger, you keep knocking against doorways.”

“Maybe a little,” Rainbow smiled, flexing a wing.

“Why do we need to go someplace else?” Twilight asked.

“This is a public place Twilight, most people want privacy when measuring their body, right?” Rarity said. “Besides, there is no room here.”

As if to prove her point Rainbow tried to step out of the tightly packed alise, knocking against the wall and sending a few rolls to the floor. Rainbow stumbled back into the other shelf, knocking even more down.

Rarity sighed as she and Twilight began to clean up. “See what I mean…”

“We could go to my place. It’s just a quick Skyrail ride,” Rainbow said, shifting her hold on the chosen fabric.

“Skyrail?” Twilight blinked.

“Oh you’re going to love it!” Rarity smiled.




They put their things in Rarity’s car before walking to the edge of the parking lot where there was a subway entry. They walked down the steps into the underground and while it was a little dirty, it was actually better than what Twilight expected to see. Everything was a light blue and there was a mural of Canterlot city on the wall, only small and cartoony. As they put their coins into the turnstiles Twilight frowned.

“Hey Rainbow, how come you use the subway when you can fly? If it’s so close, I mean.”

“Would if I could Twilight,” Rainbow said, flapping her wings a bit. “But it’s just inside the city’s sky limits. I need to get a flyer’s license to do that, cause there so much pedestrian air traffic in the city.” She paused with a grimace. “I did try to get one before… but I didn’t pass.”

“There’s always next time.” Rarity smiled. “Your dad’s said he’d help you.”

“He’s a busy harpy,” Rainbow sighed.

“What about you mom?” Twilight asked.

“Dead- and don’t do the whole, ‘Oh I’m sorry, I didn't know’ thing. She’s been gone a while.” Rainbow said. “I kinda have a hard time remembering her, but we got pictures up so that helps. I was like three.”

“Oh…” Twilight winced.

“Like I said, no need for sympathy. My dad’s pretty good on his own. He just runs the racetrack so he’s very busy.” Rainbow shrugged.

“What kind of racetrack? Cars? Dogs?”

“Nah, it’s up in the air. It’s called The Empyrean Track. They race things like small planes, mid sized flying animals and things called Aerodynamics. Its like acrobatic sky racing, where you have to go through hoops and do tricks while you race,” Rainbow smiled. “I’ve done that one, it’s fun! I was in the junior races.” Rainbow sighed. “I didn’t win though. Probably for the best since dad owns the place, but still steams me a bit.”

“Fluttershy said you were athletic,” Twilight said as they went to wait at the station for their train.

“Heck yeah, it’s my life I do Aerodynamics, soccer, baseball, volleyball, Swoop Drop, Basketball, Football, Air and Earth hunting-”

“Wait, Swoop Drop and Air and Earth Hunting?”

“Swoop Drop is when you free fall from a certain height and try to pull out at the last second you can,” Rainbow said. “It's usually over water so the trick is to get the longest drop, but to not hit the water. It's pretty common amongst flying monsters.” Rainbow waved her hand. “Then Air and Earth is a two person team sport, one flying one not. Basically you work together to hunt something without being able to talk to each other. They spice it up by giving you challenges. Like only the air partner can touch the prey, or the earth partner had to be guided completely by the air partner. “ She said. “I team up with Pinkie Pie. She’s really good and we’ve even won a few tournaments.”

“What do you usually hunt?” Twilight asked, wincing a bit.

“Now a days? A drone or RC thing usually. Sometimes the more richy rich home teams will use a rabbit or something. Nothing unusual for me and Pinkie though. She hunts with her family and we both can eat raw meat. It's just culture.” She looked thoughtful for a moment. “Though Fluttershy made a good point. We really shouldn’t hunt animals unless we intent to eat them, it's kinda messed up otherwise.”

“Attention. Skytrain 4 is now approaching the station.” A message began to play on the PA system. “Please stay behind the line and a keep an eye on children, pets, and tails.”

Rarity reached her arm down, swinging her tail up into her grasp to hold it safely at her side. She caught Twilight staring and smiled. “One cannot be too careful.”

The train clipped in, screeching a little as it slowed to a stop, doors swooshing open. A large assortment of monsters stepped off, most of them with wings of some sort. There was one odd pair that had Twilight blinking, eyes wide. It looked like the grim reaper was stepping off the train, black cloak and all. However he was holding the hand of a smaller grim reaper, dressed in a pink robe with a tutu. She was holding a pony toy under her arm and had a large backpack on her back that looked like a unicorn. They glided off the train towards the exits when the little girl stopped dead, yanking on her parents arm and pulling it off from the elbow down. She didn’t notice as she jumped up and down excited.

“Daddy! Daddy ‘ookit!” She squealed. “Unicorn!!”

She was pointed at Rarity, who smiled and waved back.

The elder grabbed his arm and popped it back on, his voice was very deep and had a creepy vibe, though it was hard to take seriously when he said. “Yes pumpkin, very good. Now we must hurry up and go drop you off at grandma’s so I can go to work.”

He almost had to physically lift her up and carry her out the girl was so excited. Chanting ‘Unicorn! Unicorn!’ as they left.

They all boarded the train and Rarity chuckled. “You wouldn’t believe how often that happens.”

They all sat down on a row of seats, Twilight taking the chance to look around. The train was practically see-through, with plexiglass windows on the sides, ceiling and even floor. Twilight watched a rat scuttle by below before continuing to the wide arrangement of seating, including perches and wide, open areas between bars for larger creatures to stand. When a pregnant bat woman stepped on the train, Rainbow hopped up on the bar arm rest of her seat and the two other girls moved a seat over so she could sit.

“Thank you,” She said, smiling, puffing a bit as she sat, rubbing her stomach.

Movement caught Twilight’s eye, she looked down, wincing when she saw another rat scampering around the bottom of the tracks. “Why do they have windows down there?” She asked, slightly perturbed.

“You’ll see,” Rainbow said with a smile.

The train jerked into motion, lights flickering a little and wheels squeaking under the weight of the car. Slowly they went back up to a traveling speed, train turning through blackened tunnels. They traveled on as normal for a few moments, when there was a flash of light.

Twilight winced, rubbing at her eyes. When she looked around again she gasped. The train was about three stories up in the air over the Canterlot Bay, a large body of water at the edge of the city. The train was traveling through transparent tunnels along the rocky coastline, every window giving a breathtaking view. Seagulls flew out over the cold water on one side, white crashing waves rippling in the distance. On the other were beautiful, naturally carved cliffs, the city visible over the tops.

“I love the look on a newbie’s face their first ride,” Rainbow snickered, adjusting her grip on the rail. She looked around too, before spotting something in the distance. “Oh Twilight look! That's the race track, up there!”

Following where the harpy was pointing, Twilight could make out what looked like a building in the clouds, floating over the bay peacefully. There was a neon sign in front, spelling out “The Empyrean Track”. Now that she was looking in that direction, Twilight could see a few buildings in the clouds, some looking like mansions.

“Do you live up there?” Twilight asked in awe.

Rainbow made a ‘guffawing’ noise. “What do I look like, the Monopoly guy?! My family isn't rich. I mean were good, but not THAT good.” The train rounded the cliff bend and Rainbow pointed behind her. “One of those is mine.”

Built into the cliffside were homes that opened out to the bay with large windows. While beautiful, they were also skinny and looked rather small. Twilight smiled at them. “You must have a good view!”

“Aw yeah! You should see it when a thunderstorm rolls in on the water!” Rainbow said quickly. “Out of this world cool!”

The ride was less than ten minutes before they got off at a new station, this one also built into the cliffs. When they came back up onto the surface Twilight blinked, surprised by the tiny houses on large plots of lawns. “They look so small,” Twilight said. “Like they’re one-room.”

“They are one-room. This neighborhood is called the Warrens. Teeny, tiny one-room houses on top. Big dug out burrow houses underneath. Some creatures feel more comfortable underground. The cliff houses are more for flying monsters, like me and my dad, or sea monsters, like merfolk,” Rainbow said as they walked down the street. “This one is mine.”

They came to a small house where the yard was littered with sports equipment. Rainbow knocked a soccer ball off the walkway before leading them to the door. “Yo dad! I’m home with some friends!” Rainbow shouted as she got the door open and took them inside. The room of the upper building was nothing more than a staircase leading into the earth. Natural rock made up the walls. As they walked down Twilight realized the bottom revealed an open concept kitchen/dining room, another staircase going down into the overlooked living room. Making up the entire wall on the other side of the room was the plexiglass window she had seen before, with a gorgeous view of the bay. All the walls seemed to be just carved cliff rocks, and the floors sturdy wood.

“Rainbow, wipe your talons!” Her father called from the kitchen, boiling some pots. “Now who said you were ungrounded enough to have friends over?”

“Ugh, no one?” Rainbow winced.

“Hello! Mr. Rainbow Blaze! It’s me, Rarity!” The satyr said cheerily from Rainbow’s side. “I invited myself over, terribly sorry, I wasn't thinking! Rainbow just told me she was going to a wedding and I wanted to make her a nice dress for it!”

“Rarity?” He looked up with a smile and came over. He had a striking resemblance to his daughter, though he was a touch more purple in skin. “Well that’s nice of you, with you in charge of it I’m sure Rainbow will look great at the wedding.”

“Thank you sir,” Rarity smiled.

“And whos this?” Rainbow Blaze asked, smiling at Twilight.

“This is Twilight dad. She’s the one who Sunset met, you know, on her adventure?” Rainbow winced.

“Ah! So your the girl who helped Sunset out,” Rainbow Blaze said, holding out his hand. “Pleasure to meet you.”

“L-likewise!” Twilight said quickly, shaking his hand. “You have a lovely home.”

“Aw, it’s fine!” He laughed. “Nice that we can just swoop off the cliffs and catch fresh fish for dinner. Rainbow loved doing that for years!”

“I do like raw fish,” Rainbow nodded.

“Too bad the disposal isn’t fond of it,” Blaze chuckled. “You got the replacement kiddo?”

“Right here!” Rainbow gave her father the bag and he looked it over.

He nodded but still looked expectant. “And the change?”

Rainbow sighed and handed over the wad of bills.

The man laughed and patted her head. “Alright, I’m gonna cook dinner and fix the disposal. You girls have fun.”

“Thank you Mr Blaze!” Rarity said as they walked down the steps to the living room. The went down at least two more levels before Rainbow opened a door to her room. The walls were still natural stone and the floors wood. However the room definitely gave off a different vibe than the main space. It was smaller, with a mirror and a wardrobe. Posters of sports teams covered the walls and there was a pile of clothes on the floor in the corner. What really drew Twilight’s gaze though was the bed.

Well, nest.

It was circular, with the edges higher than the middle. Multiple blankets made up the insides, and a ton of pillows were scattered around. The main material of the nest seemed to be foam padding, forming its shape.

It struck Twilight then that she was actually over at one of her new friend’s homes. This was the first time she had ever gone to someone’s house without her parents dragging her there for a forced playdate. In fact this was the first non-human house she had ever been in.

There were some things stack on the edge of the nest however. Glinting in the light. Twilight went closer to look. There were shiny, rough stones. A few rings and… bottle caps? “Hey Rainbow, why do you have these-”

“Mine! Those are mine!” Rainbow practically squawked, hopping onto the bed and putting her wings around the objects protectively. Her pupils had slimmed into narrow lines, like a feral cat’s eyes. Twilight took a few steps back and heard Rarity chuckle.

“Oh now Rainbow, she’s not going to take any of those,” The satyr said and she put a hand to Twilight’s shoulder. “Never get between a harpy and anything ‘shiny’,” She sighed. “They love shiny…”

“It’s an Achilles’ heel!” Rainbow moaned, putting her wings down. She eyes her objects, using her talons to pick up and arrange the bottle caps to her liking. “Even awesome monsters have them.”

“But bottle caps? Really?” Rarity asked, making a face. “You treat those like they’re currency…”

“I finds them, I keeps them!” Rainbow said, finally getting out of her nest. “We gonna measure ourselves or what?”

Soon Rainbow stood in front of her mirror as Rarity circled her, taking her measurements down on a piece of paper with a pencil. Both of which Rarity carried everywhere.

“You gained four inches on your wings Rainbow! How are you not ripping your tops up?” Rarity asked.

“I didn’t notice but I just though they shrunk in the wash. I just make sure to go slow,” Rainbow admitted.

“Well I appreciate it, just make sure to come to me when you feel like your clothes are getting too tight for comfort. It’s not like I mind making more!”

“Well yeah, but I like the tops you’ve made me already…”

“And you’ll like the ones I have yet to make even more! Ok, Twilight! Your turn.”

Twilight took Rainbow’s place, shivering a little as Rarity started to measure. The last time she had someone’s hands this close was when she hung out with Kamikaze… and they made that video. She chewed on the inside of her cheek, trying to ignore the impulse to flinch when Rarity measured her bust.

“You alright Twilight? You’re shaking a little,” Rarity asked behind her.

“Oh yes, just cold,” Twilight said, biting her lip.

“Yeah sorry, rocks don’t keep too warm and my race can handle the cold pretty well,” Rainbow commented. “You should see me bulk up in the winter.”

“Fluff up you mean. She gets so many winter feathers,” Rarity chuckled over Rainbow’s outraged noises. When Twilight kept shivering, Rarity hummed. “Are you sure you’re ok dear?”

“I-”

CRASH

Twilight jumped a bit when a wave slammed against the window.

“Whoa. High tide almost already? Must be four practically,” Rainbow blinked. “Oh crap. Tank!”

“Tank?” Twilight asked as the harpy walked out of the room. She went to the bottom of the stairs and yelled up.

“Yo dad! Lettuce me!”

Two heads of lettuce rained down, one Rainbow caught, the other hitting her in the face. She blindly nabbed it in her free arm and glared up the stairs, her dad giving a quick apology before Rainbow came back. She kicked open a hatch in her floor, which lead down even more steps. “You wanna meet Tank?”

Twilight looked back at Rarity, but the girl just smiled and nodded. They followed after Rainbow down the steps, which were a little slippery with slime and water. “This fills up when the tide comes in,” Rainbow shouted back up to them. “Use the railing!”

Twilight took hold of it and they continued down, Rarity yelping and sliding a bit more than the other two. “Damn these hooves,” She sighed.

They came to a cave at the bottom, with a small amount of stone that opened out to the bay. There was a large amount of stones poking up out of the water before the opening. Rainbow put the lettuce in her talon and flew over to the largest rock, which was almost as big as her.  She landed on it and whistled.

“Tank! Feeding time, come on up!”

Twilight jolted when the rock she was on shifted, then from the murky depth came a reptilian head. It blinked sleepily and yawned.

“Twilight, this is tank,” Rainbow said, holding the lettuce out over him. The turtle eyed it before opening its maw and eating it whole.

“He’s certainly… big,” Twilight said, eyes wide.

“He’s a Dragon turtle! A thousand years from now you could build a city on his back!” Rainbow laughed, petting his head. The turtle made a deep noise and nuzzled into her. “Till then, he’s just a bitty baby.”

“That’s is a baby?” Twilight asked, eyes wide. The thing was bigger than her.

“Yup. Maybe more toddler? He’s forty right now.” Rainbow threw the other cabbage into the air, Tank snagging it in his mouth. “Fluttershy’s family brought him in as a rescue from somewhere else and I offered to take him.”

“How many of them are there, if they can get so big?” Twilight asked.

“Egh, not all of them grow to full size. Most of them don’t survive that long actually.” Rainbow shrugged. “Something else usually eats them first, but once they’re past five hundred they’re in the clear!”

“Four Hundred and sixty to go…” Twilight said with attempted optimism.

“It is a long time, I won’t live to see him that big, but just imagine the look on my great, great, great, great… ugh, you get it, granddaughter’s face when she’s living on the back of a giant turtle!” Rainbow chuckled. “Course so long as Tank is taken care of, I don’t mind.”

The turtle chewed on his food and stared vacantly into space, Twilight edged a bit closer, watching her footing on the slippery rocks. “Is he friendly?”

Rainbow responded by whistling again. Tank looked back at her sleepily, following Rainbow’s gesture to glance at Rarity and Twilight. He slowly swam over to the shore side, within arm’s reach. “See for yourself.” Rainbow offered.

Twilight put a hand to his large, scaly neck. He was warm and surprisingly dry for having just come out of the water. She gave him a few light pats and he churred happily. “He is.” Twilight smiled

“He’s a big sucky baby,” Rainbow said fondly, rubbing the reptile on his head.

“Just like his owner,” Rarity agreed.

“Yeah, just like- HEY!”




After they finished measuring for their new dresses, Twilight and Rarity decided to head home. They didn’t want to get Rainbow into any trouble if they stayed too late and Rarity wanted to get home and start on her new projects. One Skytrain and car ride later, Twilight was back at Everfree Estates. A far cry from the beautiful bay side she had seen today.

“I’ll text you when your dress is done, darling!” Rarity smiled, waving from the car. “Take care until next time!”

“See you!” Twilight smiled. As the car drove away, Twilight walked up the gate house with her bags. She flashed her card at the guard, ready to just go back inside-

“Hold on there Ms. Sparkle,” The guard called out, making Twilight come back. “I can see you made some outside purchases, we just need to check for contraband.”

“Oh,” Twilight blanked and handed her bags over through a wall shoot. Her books were no issue, he didn’t even read the titles as he scanned them with an odd wand. When it got the necklace though, it beeped loudly.

“Charmed?” He asked, looking tired. When she nodded he sighed. “Sorry Ms. Sparkle, charmed objects are banned for the safety of the residents. I know most aren’t dangerous but the council is made up of a lot of paranoid elders and they just banned all of them, to be on the safe side.”

“Oh…” Twilight frowned. “Then what happens to the necklace?”

“Well it cannot go in, but we have a protocol,” The guard said. “We make a duplicate of the receipt and send it back to the store for a refund. Meanwhile you get an I.O.U from the community and they pay you back once they get the refund money in the mail. Unless you just want to take it back yourself now.”

“There’s no way I can take it in? No inspection available?” Twilight asked, shocked.

“No ma’am, I’m sorry. I have no sway in such affairs, I’m paid to follow the rules to a T,“ He explained. “However you’re free to take it up with the council at their next meeting. Not sure how well that would go, but you’re free to do it.”

Free my patoot.

“Guess I have to do the I.O.U…” Twilight sighed.

“Again I am sorry for the inconvenience,” The guard said, taking the receipt out of the bag and writing up a paper for her. “We do have a list of banned objects online if you’re interested in checking before you shop again. I know this is a hassle.”

“It’s ok. You’re just doing your job…” Twilight sighed. She took her bags back and the I.O.U.

“You have a fine day Ms. Sparkle,” The guard said and waved her off.

Twilight sighed as she unlocked her bike and started for home. This place was getting more and more constraining every time she left… When Twilighted got home she arrived to find both her parents’ vehicles parked in the driveway. Odd, Mom usually grocery shopped at this time and dad went to the local planetarium to do volunteer tours.

Twilight was puzzled until she spotted a clean, white coupe parked on the road.

Grandma.

Twilight hurried to the door and let herself in. “Hello?”

“Twilight!” Her mother hurried over, looking haggard with her hair a bit out of place and jaw clenched into a smile. “Welcome home honey! Why don’t you go say hello to Grandma?!”

That translated to ‘Your grandmother is driving me crazy, tap in!’

“Of course,” Twilight smiled, setting her bags down and making her way to the living room.

Soft Twilight was, ironically, a hard looking woman, with her clothes nicely pressed and her hair cemented in style with a pound of hairspray at least. She was pink with white hair with purple streaks, glasses perched on the bridge of her nose. She was staring at the wall harshly until Twilight came in, and she softened with a smile.

“Hello dear,” Soft Twilight said, lifting her arm to give Twilight a small hug.

“Hi Grandma! How are you?”

“Fine, Fine,” She patted Twilight’s shoulder. “Just got back from a community meeting and thought I’d drop in.” She straightened her lapel pin as Twilight sat next to her on the couch. “So many people got so touchy-feely the last few weeks, we we’re talking about writing new bylaws about public displays of affection.”

Twilight tried to not look guilty. “Really?”

“People hugging and kissing in public is a crime now, is it?” Twilights mother sighed, coming in.

“It is when they start to get too… erhm… enthusiastic,” Soft Twilight frowned. “Course it won’t be anything too severe. Kissing for longer than ten seconds outside of your own property and that kind of thing. Quick pecks and hugs are fine, it’s just when you have someone pinned to a wall for more than five minutes, I start to get uncomfortable.”

Velvet Twilight opened and closed her mouth before sighing. “Fair point.”

“Well it's still just an idea. We’re having another meeting about it next week if you have anything you want to add. Even if you’re not on the board you can still have your opinion heard as a speaker.”

“Well I- I don’t know if I’ll have time...” She muttered.

“As usual,” Soft Twilight sighed, rolling her eyes.

Twilight Velvet scowled.

“Well I suppose you do have work to do,” Soft said, sitting up straighter. “And that's just a small issue compared to the incident we had more than a month ago.”

“You mean the vampire thing?” Night Light asked, sitting in the chair in the corner.

Twilight felt her mouth dry.

“Well of course that's what I mean,” Soft said quickly. “We’ve been discussing the increase to security spending on the annual budget. Keep the monsters out like they’re supposed to.”

“S- Uh, the vampire didn’t do anything to hurt anyone, right?” Twilight frowned. “Maybe it was just an accident.”

“Oh Twilight, you’re so naive. There is no way a monster could ‘accidently’ come in here. Not with walls on all four sides. We have them clearly marked and guarded. One would have to knowingly sneak inside.” Soft frowned. “Whatever that thing wanted it thankfully didn’t get far. I shudder to think what could have happened had it gotten to the preschool, or a more populated area of the estate.” She looked around at them. “Of course, that leaves the question of how it disappeared like it did. One minute it's almost caught, then poof into thin air. Wouldn’t put it past them to have that ability. I’ve been meaning to come by and ask if you had seen anything.”

“Well Nighty and I were both out when that happened,” Velvet said. “I didn’t even know until I got home for dinner.”

“I see, well it's good you were out of harm's way,” Soft said, patting Velvets hand. “And what about you Twilight? It was March break, was it not?”

“Oh, I ah-” Twilight swallowed. “I was in the basement all day, experimenting.”

“I see, I expected as much,” Soft nodded. “Well wherever it went, let’s hope it’s learned a lesson.”

Twilight looked around at her parents before asking. “Grandma. Why do you dislike monsters so much?”

Her parents both winced, sensing the woman's lecture a mile away. Twilight was too, but she wanted to know.

“What do you mean why? They enslaved and killed our ancestors for centuries!” Soft gasped. “Why our freedom wasn’t even a right until two hundred years ago, and we had to fight tooth and nail for it! Your five times great grandparents were living in the city of Underlot, for crying out loud!”

Twilight winced. Underlot was a ‘city’ the humans secretly founded under the city of Canterlot, in the sewer system. It was no longer in use, as after the treaty was signed they all hesitantly came out to live on the surface again. The space was now a historical area and had tours, but to Twilight's family it was a kind of heritage area.

Their ancestors had hidden there for hundreds of years, living off bean sprouts, chicory, Dandelions and whatever else could survive with little to no sunlight. Not to mention all the rats.

They had a lot of relatives that still liked the taste of rats at holidays dinners. Twilight couldn’t get into it…

“Your six times great grandmother had never even seen the sun! Now we have the freedom to do as we please, but for how long I ask you? Sure a treaty was signed but it’s just a fancy piece of paper. All it would take is for them to change their minds and WHAM! We’re back where we started!” Soft snapped, shaking her head.

“Mom, they would not do that. Don’t scare her,” Velvet said, shaking her head.

“Who says they wouldn’t?” Soft asked, brow raised. She took a breath before sighing. “Ah well, Twilight wanted an answer and I gave her one! My mother taught me what her mother taught her and so on. If you want to survive in this world you need to keep your guard up. Never trust the monster races if you can help it,“ Soft scoffed. “Why would we even try? It’s in our blood to stay away from them. We hail from the greatest monster slayer to ever live-”

“Oh enough with monster slaying bloodline, mother!” Velvet sighed. “We don’t even know if we actually are! There's no written record of human society until two hundred years ago! That story is all spoken history!”

“It’s all we have,” Soft said. “We didn’t have time before the treaty was signed, what with being hunted and treated like animals!”

“SO!” Night Light said loudly, catching the women off guard. “About that kissing law, what kinds of fines were you thinking of setting?”

Soft Twilight and Velvet Twilight shared a glance before relenting to Night Light’s less tense conversation. Twilight herself sat on the couch, tuning it out.

If you want to survive in this world you need to keep your guard up. Never trust the monster races.

“Well, for all it’s worth, I trust my friends with almost everything. They won’t hurt you Twilight, or at least not because they want to,“ Sunset had said. “I’m sure you’ll say the same thing if you hang out with them a bit.

Could she really trust her friends? Even if they were monsters? Her grandmother may be a little racist and have an older worldview, but those worries didn’t come from nothing…

That was so long ago though. Sunset and the others had been nothing but nice and friendly the entire time she was with them. They had interests and passions. They had flaws and issues, just like anyone else. Trying to destroy all of humanity seemed far from their comfort zone. Not to mention their morality.

An image came to mind of the angry gorgon she had seen outside the movie theater.

Watch it yah stupid stock!

Twilight swallowed tightly. Even if her friends were trustworthy… That wasn’t the same for all the monsters out there…

Some of them liked things the way they were, three hundred years or so ago.

And would likely try to change it back, any way they could…

They won’t hurt you Twilight, or at least not because they want to. 

“Mine! Those are mine!” Rainbow practically squawked, hopping onto the bed and putting her wings around the objects protectively. Her pupils had slimmed into narrow lines, like a feral cat’s eyes.

The two worlds Twilight had been juggling lately were getting harder and harder to keep separate. Sooner or later they were going to collide, and she would have to tell her parents and the rest of her family about her new friends.

She could only hope she had her feelings ironed out by then.