Summertime was almost near, at least for students at any school. Just a few more days and they would finally begin their well deserved break! Plenty of nice sunny skies, warm air, ice cream, turquoise waters, there was tons of stuff to do in the summer. And soon they, along with most of the Canterlot public were about to have a new addition for fun things to do; a brand new, state-of-the-art amusement park. It was going to be open in a few weeks, and it was going through the final preparations, all being run by the head of the park.
“Experience the world like never before! The one, the only, Equestria-land! Wait, stop, cut!”
The parade stand stopped moving, and the people all in the costumes groaned collectively.
The woman who made the announcement scrunched her face and turned around. She was an adult woman in her early 20s, with flawless yummy yellow skin, curly and poofy hair that had dark pink coloring meshed in white, and a headdress with two leaves holding it together. And thanks to the wonderfully warm weather, she only had need to wear a sleeveless and shoulderless shirt, a long hanging coat with no arms, and denim blue short shorts held together with a leaf belt buckle. The only imperfection that could be even be the slightest bit visible was a little mole just off the side of her face. But it wasn't bad, at least for her.
“I'm sorry, I just... okay, now that I actually see the costumes in physical form, I can see why you were against it, why did I insist a change..."
"Because you keep changing your mind on the costumes, Miss Valencia," said the hired fashion designer who was less than happy.
The woman sighed. "I'm sorry, it's just I want this park to be absolutely perfect and in time for the grand opening, and not to mention the little Light Parade as well, but I just want everything tip top perfect!"
"... No one says tip top," the designer said, deadpan.
"I'm struggling for words right now!" Vignette expressed. "But, maybe, if you're still up for it, mishaps you could, you know, go with the original designs you pitched to begin with?"
There was a brief moment of silence between the two, and the designer's expression didn't change. And neither did the deadpan in her voice. “Miss Valencia. I’m sorry. I cannot work under your conditions anymore. I quit.” And just like that, she walked away.
Vignette stood still in cold silence, slowly trying to keep her cool. She was almost about to snap and scream until she remembered; she had an image to maintain, she could not break her reputation like this, no way! A few deep breaths would always calm her down.
“… Ok. Everybody take five, just, go take a break! I need a stress salad!!”
The people on the platform all shrugged and went their own ways to take a break, and Vignette parked herself at a nearby table, scrunching at her hair.
“Ohhh… that’s the fifth one this month! How am I going to find a new costume designer with only two weeks left!?” And her face planted itself straight onto the surprisingly clean table. Raising her head back up and pushing the piece of hair that was right in her eye away she looked down, thinking contently. “I’ve got to get a new designer, fast. Someone smart, someone with fresh ideas, someone who can breathe some life into this Light Parade…”
She tapped her fingers on the table until a lightbulb flickered over her head. “Wait a minute… that’s it! I’ll send out a want ad, maybe then I can find the right one for the job.”
Immediately she began typing on her phone, loading the page she needed. “Wanted… costume designer… want to design for the parade? Show me your works and any experience you’ve had… in… the… field,” Vignette finished. “Perfect! Now all I have to do is wait.”
She sat idly at the table for a few seconds or so, thinking.
“… This may take a while. Perhaps I can make myself useful?”
The rest of the day at Equestria-Land went smoothly. She made sure everything else had been prepared as it should, all rides and equipment were functioning properly, all vendors and mini fair activities had been set up as well. Since she was in charge of managerial relations, she had to make sure everything was ready in two weeks for the opening. Sure there was bound to be some problems, but she could at least make sure they were ready. Some vendors wouldn’t be arriving until next week, along with some small merchandising for the park, but she had patience for that.
After her shift was done, she went home, got a shower (thank the summer heat for that) and got back to her secondary job; making video content, this time continuing the small mini-series of Lets Plays on Hooftube. She had a lot of fans on that website, not just on Snapgab. And apparently making an account on Hooftube proved to be good luck because ever since she got started, she became more and popular, with the inclusion of doing a variety of different content.
“—Anyways everyone, I will end tonight’s episode here, I am glad we are making miraculous progress. This chapter is a definite improvement over the last one, which in my honest opinion kind of dragged for a little bit, but this one did not waste any time, it picked things up, it was snappy, I am very excited for the final chapter. Hope you all enjoyed the video and remember everyone; be true to yourself!”
After the final edits of the video were done, she hit submit, and let the internet do its thing and let the video go public. Now she could finally relax for the rest of the night. … Hopefully.
She got up from her spinning chair and went into her kitchen. It was a small set; a few cupboards, a fridge, a stove, kitchen sink, countertops, an oven, and plenty of floor space with sand orange tiling. Reaching into the fridge she pulled out some leftovers from the night before; should just need some heating up in the microwave.
Opening up the microwave door, she slid the food right inside and closed the door. Her fingers tapped on a few buttons, admittedly cursing herself for setting it for twenty minutes as opposed to two, and reset the timer to the proper settings. As the food began to spin around on the turntable in the microwave, she just stood there, looking at it spin. The only sound that filled her apartment was the microwave doing it’s magic, working on heating her food.
Her eyes went to her cabinets, and then to the outside window, and back to the microwave. Her fingernails tapped on the countertop, making soft clicking noises.
When her food was done, she just placed herself quietly at her small circular dining table, with the only light on from the small fixture above. Sure she had a few placemats set up around the table for company, but the only company that ever came into this apartment was her. Even as she looked across seeing the empty plate and cup across from her, she was still alone. A single hand held her head up as she weakly chewed on her dinner, deep in thought. Out of mild curiosity (and hoping to take her mind off) she checked her phone, looking to see if she had gotten any new emails or notifications.
None.
Okay there were some small dings going off, letting her know that she had just gotten an influx of comments on her newest Hooftube video, but she preferred to check those on her computer.
After one last bite of her food, she stood back up and stared out her massive balcony. It was big and spacious, just enough to host a barbecue. She leaned against the railing, staring outside. It was a warm summer evening, and by now she was only dressed in a tank top and shorts, trying to beat the heat. Her eyes caught sight down below, seeing a few of the homes and buildings below. She could see a teenage girl in one house; laughing, giggling, and it was clear why. She was hanging out with friends, and judging by the party hats and cake, it was clearly a birthday party.
Funny. Over five million followers, and yet I still have no real friends. Is this a blessing, or a curse?
Hoping to try and remove all the pain and depression from the thought, she plopped herself on her couch and turned on the TV. Maybe some binging of her favorite show would change her mind? She flipped through the channels and went straight to one of the streaming services she paid for, throwing her feet up on a coffee table.
“Earth… how underwhelming.”
“The indigenous life is more primitive than I expected it,” the deep voiced character said on the screen.
Nope, she could see where that was going, scary imagery was not what she needed right now. Maybe some good silly comedy was what she needed? Maybe some of her favorite internet people could make her smile.
Just then, she felt the phone in her pocket buzz and vibrate. An email had been sent to her! Getting up and to her computer, she opened up a new tab and opened up her email. Right there it was, sitting in her inbox, unread for her to see. And when she opened it, she read out loud.
“Dear Miss Vignette Valencia, my name is Rarity. I saw your wanted ad for costume designer at the upcoming theme park, Equestria Land, and I was hoping to apply. Within this email, I have provided a resume. I hope to hear from you soon, signed, Rarity La Belle.”
She stopped to think for a moment. Only a few hours had gone by since she posted that ad, and she finally got a response. Maybe this Rarity La Belle was worth looking into. That name did seem a wee bit familiar, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Oh well, she had someone who may had potential! And within the email were a few attached photos of some of her lines. Maybe these were worth the look...
Opening up a few of them, she could not believe her eyes. These designs were... gorgeous! These were unlike anything she had ever seen! These were creative, but beautiful! Interesting, but not over the top! Visually appealing, dazzling, it was everything she was looking for! Now she had to call this girl and have a proper interview at once, this woman could--
Riiinnnnnnng.
Her thoughts were interrupted by her cellphone going off. Recognizing the number, she slid the answer button and held it up to her ear.
"Hello?" Vignette answered. "... Miss Bait, how may I help you? ..." Vignette waited for a moment, sighing in annoyance. "Yes, I know the employees may have weird quirks, but we all have them. ... No I did not know his breath was bad, I'll make sure he has mints on him--listen, Miss Bait. Just do your job the best you can, okay? You wanted this position, didn't you?" Some more silence followed. "Look, part of working in this position is getting along with people. If you cannot do that..." Vignette waited, rolling her eyes. "Okay, listen. Do you still want to help me as my assistant?"
She tapped her fingers on the table.
"Then you need to make a better effort to get along my employees. Understood? ... Okay, goodbye."
She hung up and then rested her head against her chair, spinning for a moment. Facing her calendar, she looked at the date for when Equestria Land would finally open. A smile grew on her face.
"Equestria Land, you are going to make so many men, women, and children happy."