Coffee was the order of the evening. Even the most conservative guess told them they'd be working until dawn, and every second would count.
Suri was a whirlwind of action - once they'd arrived at Rarity's, she'd immediately grabbed the drawing table and set to work. At seemingly random points, the sketching would stop to wrestle Twilight into place to re-measure something before diving back into her little world of charcoal and paper.
Now four hours later, Suri seemed to finally be reaching the point of satisfaction.
Coco had spent the entire time hovering around - contributing what she could to the design from her greater experience, checking supplies and bustling around the workshop to keep things on track. It came naturally. She'd been assistant to a Suri for years, after all.
And Suri was used to having a Coco by her side. The difference in worlds didn't matter - they fit together like hand and glove with barely a hesitation.
But even they couldn't stay laser-focused forever - which is why Suri had asked the inevitable question. "So, what's this other me like, hm?"
And that had led Coco to telling the whole story. The Equestrian had spared no details, going back into how she had met her Suri and their time together up until the fateful Fashion Week finale. The last time Coco had interacted with her Suri.
When the tale finally ended, Suri was silent. She'd even stopped moving - frozen at the sewing machine with fabric in hand.
Coco exchanged a concerned look with Twilight before hesitantly venturing out. "S-Suri?"
"So that's who I would have been."
Both of the others recoiled at the raw, bitter ash in the Crystal Prepper's voice. It was Twilight who asked next, once she rallied herself. "Suri? What do you mean would have been?"
"Who I would have been," Suri elaborated, "Without the Games."
Twilight - wide-eyed - could only mouth the word 'oh'.
"I still hear it, you know. Your scream. At three am when I can't sleep and I'm just staring at the walls." Suri's hands balled up, grabbing fistfuls of the violet fabric. "And I remember realizing that we'd killed you."
Models weren't supposed to move, particularly not during a fitting. But Twilight still stepped down from the pedestal and hugged Suri from behind. "You didn't."
But Suri shrugged her shoulders, nudging away Twilight's embrace. "We did. At least, it should have killed you. You turning into that... thing and nearly destroying the world was lucky, because at least someone could fix that." She turned around in her chair to face the other two. "It was a wake-up call, Twilight. You know how it is at Crystal Prep - winning is all that matters and consequences are things that happen to other people." Her voice dropped to a murmur. "I think it was the first time any of us got to see what the cost in 'win at any cost' was."
"It's okay. It wasn't your fault - any of your faults. Cinch was--"
Twilight's mollifying words were cut away by Suri like shears through fabric. "We knew what we were doing. We just didn't care." Taking a deep breath, her eyes drifted half-closed. "Afterwards, all of us on the team got together to talk about it. We agreed that it was time to change who we were and to change what Crystal Prep stood for. Dean Cadance taking over for Cinch was a start, but the school wouldn't be better if we weren't better."
From the side, Coco spoke up quietly. "...And she let her guard down recently." The others turned to Coco's sharp frown. "The other me said that she'd managed to blackmail you because you let your guard down, Suri."
The designer nodded slowly. "Since the Games, I've been trying to turn myself around. I wanted to start with Coco - if I could get her on board, then the rest would be easier." Suri laughed sharply. "I needed my assistant."
Coco hadn't forgotten the rest of her other self's earlier statement, however. "She also said you were cheating."
A grimace, and Suri hung her head. "Habits are hard to break. Trying to be better doesn't mean always being better, m'kay?"
Twilight looked scandalized; Coco merely put on a wry smile.
"And now?" ventured the Equestrian.
Taking a long, deep breath, Suri drew herself back up. "Half of why I'm doing this is because you're right. I care what happens to Coco, and hearing you tell me about your Suri just makes me more sure. I don't want that to be either of our futures. The other me sounds miserable."
Twilight perked up, smiling at that admission. "And the other half?"
A wide, sharkish grin overtook Suri's features. "Because I already knew exactly what you're going to wear before I started sketching. We can get this done in one night and win because you, Twilight, come pre-made with an outfit that's going to destroy the competition. You're going to hate it, but I am going to make you a goddess."
Another bolt of violet cloth wrapped around Twilight's chest as she blushed miserably.
Fleur de Lis walked back off the stage, the presentation of Coco Pommel's dress to the judges complete. The glimmering light purple fabric of her sleek sheath dress had visibly wowed the panel - the technical aspects as well as the unique choice in material made Coco an obvious favorite. And with only one competitor left, it was all but over.
Fleur exited stage right, opposite where the remaining designers were gathered. Coco Pommel - the pony - bit her lip as the tension rose. Her fellow Coco slid up beside her in the quiet, her nerves far calmer.
"I saw you came with Suri. I guess instead of pulling out you decided to get help from a failure."
The Equestrian didn't look at her double. "She's not a failure. And I'm not giving up."
The local Coco snorted. "I don't even know what you're trying to do."
"Show you that it isn't everypony for themselves. That Generosity is important. That you're stronger--"
Coco cut her Equestrian double off. "But it is everyone for themselves. That's how Crystal Prep is, and that's how life is." She sighed. "Maybe it's different in your magic horse world, but not here."
Anything further was cut as the announcing judge leaned to the microphone. "Final contestant, miss Popo Commel."
Both Cocos were silent, looking to the far side of the stage. Just behind the curtain there was the sound of a brief spat - they could recognize the tones of both Suri and Twilight, even if the words were muffled and indecipherable. It was brief but enough for the judges to notice with a collective frown.
Then Twilight Sparkle emerged on to the runway, shoved into the limelight. She stumbled - but the mis-step was covered by the sound of Fleur de Lis loudly gasping. After all, she was only one of three people in attendance who had seen Twilight's outfit before.
The look was unmistakable to those few who knew it - the deep violet and magenta that Twilight had worn during her darkest moment. Suri had done a stunning job to recreate her vision of Midnight Sparkle, shifting Twilight from quiet nerd to smoldering she-devil. There were small adjustments of course - her glasses merely had been molded to suggest iridescent flames instead of being made of them; the great raven wings of Midnight were constructed rather than real; and the glowing horn in the middle of Twilight's forehead was missing. Beyond that, however? Midnight Sparkle had returned.
The judges knew none of this, of course. Nor did either Coco. Only Fleur, Suri and Twilight herself had been present for the event. But everyone around the stage could recognize the power being expressed. This was a form Twilight had long shied away from - something she dreaded the memory of. But now, forced into it again?
Twilight could feel the Midnight within her.
The confidence. The danger. The power.
She could feel it and as much as she didn't want to use it? That was the hand fate (and Suri, damn her) had dealt her.
Each strutted step down the runway whittled away a little more of her unease. Every tiny movement drove home to Twilight that she was in control and that she had Midnight's power at her disposal. It came to a peak as she reached the end of the runway.
Twilight twisted; paused; looked back to give a burning wink over her shoulder at the judges. A cant of the hip to strike a pose and show off the tall thigh-high boots she had on - and then she flowed back up the runway with a sway of her hips. She was in control and every bit the demon-goddess Suri had created.
As soon as she was off the stage, Twilight bent over, hugged herself tightly and started shivering as she tried to shove her anxiety back down again.
Neither Coco could quite hear what was said as Fleur came to Twilight's side, holding the distraught student and whispering quietly in her ear.
They couldn't hear the judges either - all three were gathered tightly at the table, Prim Hemline center to their deliberations.
Coco looked to Coco, lip bit in nervous anticipation.
Coco looked back at herself with a sharp frown.
"Good luck," softly offered the Equestrian.
"Shouldn't need it," came the human's less than confident reply.
Minutes ticked by and the two stood in awkward silence. Halfway through the wait, Suri emerged on the far side of the stage to kneel beside Fleur and the slowly recovering Twilight. Neither Coco moved.
Finally, Prim Hemline tapped her microphone to pull in the attention of the designers and models. "While the full slate of rankings will be released, I know all of you are quite eager to find out the competition's ultimate victor. Some of you, I'm certain, will not sleep tonight without being sure." She let that hang for half a minute, allowing tension to build. "The winner of this year's Art of the Dress is... Popo Commel, which I presume is one of you being cheeky with an alias."
One Coco dropped to her knees, letting out a breath she'd been holding far too long. The other closed her eyes and grit her teeth as Suri Polomare gave Twilight a hug before swanning out onto the stage. It had to be her, after all. Explaining a second Coco would never work.
Prim Hemline met Suri in the center of the runway, holding out the victor's spoils - a simple gold trophy of a woman in an elegant dress, mounted on a polished wood base. Small, hardly sizable, but carrying with it the might of victory.
"I can recover." The Equestrian looked to the muttering human. "I can recover," the Crystal Prep Coco repeated to herself. "Twilight will go back to her own school, the other me will go back to her world, and I can handle Suri. I've still got the video. Once she's alone--"
"I decline."
Coco's head swung upwards as those words pierced her quiet ranting.
Suri held the trophy back out to Prim, hand trembling with tight nerves and stilted formality in her voice. "Thank you for the recognition, but I have to withdraw. I accidentally violated the rules of the contest." Judges, designers and models around the room rumbled with surprise. "I failed to read them as carefully as I should have and got help from a previous winner. Rarity did not help my design, but I used her equipment and materials. While the judges may feel I didn't violate the spirit of the rule, it is a violation and I so am relinquishing my win."
Prim Hemline looked at Suri, then down at the trophy in her hands. "I... see. Well, as this sounds to be an honest mistake and you've been forthcoming, I believe the panel will levy no other penalties for your error. And I suppose that means the victory will go to the runner-up - Coco Pommel."
The still-confused human was shoved out onto the stage by her double, staggering almost directly into Suri.
Without hesitation, Suri hugged Coco tightly. "Congratulations," she whispered.
Reeling from the stunning shift, Coco looked at Suri with an utter lack of understanding. "Why?"
"Maybe I could've beat you on my own," Suri explained quietly. "But working with the other you, I blew you away. And that's kind of the thing, hm? I couldn't do this without Coco Pommel. So it's not right to take it from you, even if it's a different you."
Their quiet talk was interrupted as Prim Hemline presented the trophy to Coco - she took it with a fake smile plastered over her doubts. Waving to the crowd, she whispered through her teeth to her companion. "I don't understand what you're doing, Suri. You won."
"I was wrong," Suri quietly repeated as she stood beside and just behind Coco. An inch out of the limelight - for the moment. "And I'm trying to show you that."
The applause for Coco's win faded away as everyone in the auditorium slowly broke to begin packing up. Twilight, Fleur and the Equestrian Coco stood a respectful distance off, watching as the two designers continued to talk.
Suri gave no ground, taking hold of Coco's forearms and meeting her face to face. "After the Games, all of us who were there decided we wanted to be better people. And I'm trying to be but I know the truth. We're better together, Coco, and today proved that. I can't get to where I need to be without you. I don't want to get there without you." She bit her lip, eyes watery. "For a long time I didn't appreciate what you did for me. That's going to change. I want to be a better person and I want my friend there with me."
Coco gave no response. Not for a painfully long minute. The most she was able to do was meet Suri's earnest eyes for a moment before looking down and away again.
"That's you, 'kay?" Suri managed a little wink and a thin, wry smile.
It was enough to make Coco laugh - this one fresh-laundry warm. "I guess since I won this year, I at least owe you help to win next year."
"And get me disqualified again?" Suri burst out laughing - Coco joined her a moment later.
As they did, Coco pulled Suri into a hug. "Partners?"
Suri nodded, head pressed against Coco's. "Partners."
Neither noticed the flash of light and gasp of surprise from upstage as Twilight and the other Coco sprouted pony ears.
Twilight groaned in frustration, rubbing her hips with annoyance as the cutie mark hidden under her dress pulsed. "Not again. This feels so weird."
Coco simply smiled and basked in it.
Pinkie Pie was prepared and somehow knew the right moment despite never being told any part of what was going on. Nopony questioned how. They just accepted that when she unfurled a banner across the portal room that read WELCOME HOME COCO POMMEL that the dimension-hopping designer would be returning in the next hour or so.
They were right, and the cream-colored mare emerged from the mirror portal twenty-six minutes later.
Instantly, Rarity grappled her into a tight hug. "Darling! So good to see you back from that beastly place!"
Coco returned the embrace in kind. "I didn't think it was that bad."
"Pft!" Rarity sputtered her disdain for the human world. "They're barbarians! Their shame of their own hides means they've reduced the art of fashion to mundane workaday cloth-slop that they take entirely for granted. Why, I expect you had them eating out of your frog with how fabulous you were to them!"
The blush of truth colored Coco's cheeks. "Not... as such. I-- Oh!" She broke the hug so she could pull a bulky spiral-bound sketchpad out of her saddlebag. "The other Rarity asked me to bring this to you."
Rarity's cornflower blue aura snatched it from Coco's hoof with a squeal. "She remembered! I know I asked for some of her sample sketches, but I was afraid she wouldn't--" Her glee collapsed as she flipped to the first page and looked at it. "...That's what humans look like?"
A snickering Twilight nudged Rarity aside. "I think she'll be a minute. Welcome back, Coco. Did everything go alright?"
Leaving her mentor to rant about how awkward bipedal forms were, Coco smiled gently to the Princess. "It was a little bumpy along the way, but it all worked in the end."
"So the other you..."
The earth pony's smile widened. "She's on a better track." Coco paused. "In fact, better than I am."
Twilight tilted her head, curious but not voicing her question.
"She gave me a lot to think about," Coco mused in a half-answer. "Particularly that there's somepony I should talk to. I've been afraid for a long time, but I should at least give her a chance."
Twilight rather obviously didn't get it, but she also didn't argue. "Well, we can work on that afterwards. Unless you mean you wanted to talk to them right now."
Laughing, Coco shook her head. "No, no. Not this instant, Princess, thank you. I can see Pinkie Pie peeking through the door over there and I wouldn't want to miss one of her parties."
That, in turn, made Twilight smile. "You really don't. Plus Applejack's been waiting for you! There's a friend of hers she wants to introduce you to - a new up and coming playwright who's..." The Princess barely suppressed a snicker. "Really on fire."
Coco rather obviously didn't get it, but she still smiled back. "I'd love to." She bowed her head. "Care to lead the way, Princess?"