//------------------------------// // Memories: Rarity // Story: The Remaining Five // by ABagOVicodin //------------------------------// A headache was coming on. Rarity winced and she levitated all of her current fabrics onto a chair near her dresser, while she raised a hoof to her head. She wanted to go outside and get a massage, that would be a nice way to get rid of this headache, but a massage would take way too much time out of her schedule. She barely had time to sit down and take ten minutes to try and ameliorate her headache, an hour would probably put “Crunch Time” as a necessity. She leaned back against the couch she placed in her main working room, and she laid back against the pillow. Her head rested while her horn glowed for a few moments so that the lights could be turned off and the pillow could be adjusted. “Summer attire, it has to be fun and the model has to be as well. Fun, full of energy and pizzazz.” Rarity thought. As much as she wanted to avoid thinking so she could get over her headache, she couldn't shake the feeling that she had to get these dresses done. Hoity Toity was a colt that you did not want to disappoint. The last time he had showed up at Rarity's store, she had created the dresses for the Gala, and all of the other dresses that he had asked for after her friends put on a wonderful show for him. So when he knocked on Rarity's door, asking for six original dress designs under the summer theme, Rarity knew better then to deny it. She promised that he would have the dresses within a week, which delighted the rich colt since he didn't want to wait any longer than that. Now here she was, enduring a headache while she still tried to piece together the fifth dress. It was the fifth day, and Rarity was starting to panic a small amount. There was no way that she would be able to get this dress done on time, if she allowed her mind to get the best of her. As expected, the large amount of panicking that she was doing, was only making her headache worse, and she winced, letting out a small moan of pain as she rubbed her forehead with her hoof. “Calm down Rarity. Stressing over the problem is just going to make it harder to get over.” She told herself, her blue eyes staring at the dark ceiling. Her horn glowed and she pulled open the drawer to her dresser, where all of her tools lay neat and organized. She pulled out a vial, full of an elixir that was previously created by none other then Zecora. A smile moved across her features as she took the cork out of the neck of the vial, and drained a quarter of the liquid. A warming sensation moved over her head, spreading through her until they reached the bottom of her hooves. Her headache felt like it had melted away, and she almost dropped the vial from the relaxed feeling she felt. However, she kept her concentration, as she stuck the cork back into the vial and levitated it back to its place. Now she could continue, she had dresses to make. Stitches were created, cloth was cut, colors were complemented, ideas were implemented. Rarity spent the whole night stitching together the last two dresses, followed by sleep when she had finally finished that last stitch. The next day was spent rectifying her work, just in case she made any mistakes, and to her, the dresses were not going to have any problem passing Hoity Toity's expectations. Rarity went to bed that night with a large smile on her face, snuggled up with Opal between her hooves. The next day was one that Rarity would never forget. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Rarity rushed around her house, levitating the six mannequins in the middle of her living room and setting them down gently, since the dresses were still attached. Her eyes took a glance at the clock, and she was filled with relief when she found that she still had an hour until Hoity Toity appeared. A certain scent started to fill her nose as she stood there, contemplating what she wanted to have for breakfast. Her eyes widened as she realized that she had procrastinated on her cleaning duties due to these designs. She had managed to get a small amount of cleaning done while she fixed the dresses yesterday, but for the most part, her house was unclean. “This could not be so!” She said, as she stamped her right hoof on the ground. “The house must be clean!” Rarity trusted that her dresses would not be moved while she cleaned, so she quickly dressed herself up in an apron to avoid her coat getting dirty. She barely had time to clean, she couldn't take a shower just in case Hoity Toity were to show up. She was readying a bucket of water and a mop so that she could clean the kitchen, until she heard a knock at the door. “Oh no!” she said, staring out the door frame of the kitchen in horror that Hoity Toity wanted to be early. “Oh this can't be! Oh please Celestia, please!” Rarity added while she walked over to the door. She opened it and the cheerful pink mare had jumped up in the air. “Surprise!” Pinkie said. She had a saddlebag on her back, which looked t be filled with mostly air, but Rarity was able to see the smallest trace of a book's binding within the bag. One of her hooves was holding her bicycle, which she used to move through the air and finally settle down at Rarity's location. She didn't know it back then, but Rarity was able to tell that Pinkie had decided on her bicycle because she did not want to dirty Rarity's house with her hooves. A tear moved down the face of the present Rarity, as she opened her eyes. She wanted to stop the story there, but Pinkie's contribution would be cut short, and that was not what she wanted to remember her by, especially during this time. She closed her eyes once more, and the memory was replicated once more in her mind. Rarity let out a sigh as she realized that Pinkie was probably going to want to come in. “It's you Pinkie. How are you doing my friend?” she asked. Pinkie was extremely excited that Rarity was awake, and she bounced into Rarity's house, the door closing behind her. “I am doing just fine and dandy!” she responded. “I just finished helping Rainbow Dash with her problem, and I thought that I would come to you and see if there was anything that you needed help with.” “Oh I can assure you that I am fine.” Rarity said, and she trotted over to the kitchen so that she could start the steps on how to properly mop. Before she was able to do so however, Pinkie had stopped near the six dresses, and she emitted an “Ooh” in interest. Rarity walked over to Pinkie and let out a sigh. She didn't want her friend to touch the dresses, but she rationalized that if Pinkie touched them, her hooves were clean so there would be no dirt on them. Pinkie admired the dresses, remembering not to touch them. The first time that she had touched Rarity's dresses, the two of them did not know each other very well, and Rarity raised her voice a large amount. Pinkie ended up leaving, but that event did not get her down. She just remembered to not touch Rarity's dresses. Pinkie bounced over to the kitchen after she finished marveling at their beauty. One would think that they would spend an entire day staring at the craftsmanship, but Pinkie didn't have the time, and she was used to Rarity creating works of art in dress form. Rarity looked up and down the kitchen, thinking about how she was going to do this. First she had to sweep the floor, so that there would be no large chunks (if there was any, she was usually quick to sweep it up previously) moving around with the mop. While she thought about the direction in which she was going to mop, Pinkie had pulled the broom out of the kitchen closet and started to sweep. Rarity turned to Pinkie and was about to stop her, until she realized that the floor was being swept just like her. She half expected the broom to be thrown around like a ruffian, but Pinkie was perfectly gathering every single thing on the floor into a nice little pile, before it was scooped up into a dustpan and deposited in the trash. Rarity was surprised, but with the amount of time that they had spent together, with Pinkie's eidetic memory, she shouldn't be surprised that Pinkie knew how to sweep “her way”. Pinkie placed the broom and dustpan back in the closet, a big smile on her face as she sat up on the kitchen counter so that Rarity could mop. “So what are the plans for today?” Pinkie asked. “I have a meeting with a very important client.” Rarity replied, while her magic picked up the mop, drained it of the excess water, and then softly placed it on the ground. Her horn glowed, and the magic dragged the mop around, slowly cleaning up the floor of the dirt and grime that would deposit due to a week of work. While it was not as dirty as a certain Apple's family house, there was still noticeable amounts of dirt. Rarity did not let anyone in her house other then her friends if it was this dirty, and as much as she appreciated Pinkie's help, she didn't expect it. If they wanted to help, that was fine. If not, no problem at all. Pinkie kicked her legs back and forth, absentmindedly looking around the kitchen while she spoke, “Is the meeting for those pretty dresses that you have in your room?” She asked. “Why, yes of course. I spent so much time on those dresses. I had to draft a picture of them, and I had to discard twenty different designs because they weren't as good as the ones that I stuck to.” Rarity replied, half of the kitchen cleaned by the time she finished that sentence. “I think the dresses are really pretty!” Pinkie said, “You have really outdone yourself!” Rarity's nervous disposition turned into a smile, and she looked to Pinkie while she continued to mop up the room. She levitated a rag onto the floor to dry up the water, and sporadically drain into the sink. “Thank you Pinkie, that is very kind of you to say.” “Those dresses are my favorite so far! Other then the one you made me for the Gala, they are the best ones I've seen!” “Thank you kindly.” Rarity responded, and as the floor was completely cleaned, she put all of the cleaning tools away, and moved onto the carpet of her living room. This was the room that Hoity Toity was going to inhabit, so she had to make sure that it was perfect. Pinkie jumped off of the counter and zipped through the air until she was standing on the carpet, and she smiled at Rarity while the white mare laughed. Good old Pinkie Pie, she could never get tired of that. She cleared her throat as she started to levitate all of her fabrics and tools onto higher surfaces, so she could clean the carpet. “So Pinkie, do you have any plans for today?” “Nope! I already helped Rainbow Dash, Mr. and Mrs. Cake with their catering order, and I helped Derpy move.” “I see.” Rarity responded, as she levitated the main rug in the living room, rolled it up, and then opened her door so she could take it out. She stopped as she realized that she just showered before Pinkie came here, and she concentrated her magic, levitating the rug over her durable clothesline. She then took a broom from her living room closet, and started to beat the rug. Dirt started to fall out of it, and she started to beat it quickly as she realized that she only had forty five minutes before Hoity Toity would arrive. Pinkie leaned back and forth on her hooves, not bored despite the mundane task that Rarity was taking part in. When the rug was placed back on the floor, Pinkie talked again, “Well is there anything that you need my help with?” She asked. The two mares moved back into the house, and Pinkie moved behind the mannequins so that she could have a rear view of the dresses, while Rarity cleaned up the last of the rugs. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A half hour later, Rarity had not managed to get rid of Pinkie. Despite the numerous hints that Rarity gave, Pinkie was intent on staying for at least a hour, so that the two could catch up. Rarity had no problem with that, but Pinkie was not exactly the kind of pony that she would want around Hoity Toity. The two were completely different, but at least Pinkie was better then Applejack. That still did not help her nerves as the clock was ticking, and Rarity was running out of ways to clue Pinkie in on the fact that Rarity wanted to be alone while these dresses were shown. She finally sighed. “Listen, Pinkie-” she started, but the doorbell rang and her nerves twitched, before she walked over to the door. She had to keep it together, Pinkie couldn't ruin this. Rarity trotted over to the door, and opened it, smiling quickly when she saw that Hoity Toity was at the door. He peered at her through his glasses, and he let out a small laugh upon seeing Rarity in an apron. “Well then, I suppose that you had to fire your maid?” the colt asked. Rarity laughed nervously, and nodded her head, “Uh, yes.” she responded, moving to the side so that the colt could enter. “She was not doing her duties and she had to be let go.” “I see. Well, are those the dresses?” he asked, tilting his glasses up for a moment so that his naked eyes could draw in the colors without the yellow filter. Rarity walked over to the dresses and nodded her head, taking a quick glance of the room. Pinkie had disappeared. Relief flooded through her, and she placed that smile back on her face while she moved over to the mannequins. “As you can see, I perfectly portrayed the theme of summer in these dresses, along with exhibiting six different motifs in summer.” she responded. “I can assure you that these dresses will make anyone who wears them, the belle of the ball.” Hoity Toity smiled and nodded his head, placing the glasses back over his face as he moved to touch the fabric. Rarity could see that his hooves were perfectly clean, so she didn't have to worry. “Perfect color complements, excellent craftsmanship, and I thought the dresses that you showed me a year ago were just created out of luck.” he said, and he laughed his posh laugh a few times. “Well, since you had models for your last six dresses, I assume that you have six models ready to show me how they look?” Rarity felt her heart skip a beat, and she turned to the posh colt, “I um...” she paused, biting her lip and nervously smiling. Hoity Toity raised an eyebrow, “You do have a model for your dresses, do you not?” “Yes she does! I can do it!” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Both of the members of the living room turned towards Pinkie. Hoity Toity laughed a few times, possibly due to the fact that a pink mare wanted to be a model for dresses. Rarity couldn't tell, but he found this suggestion to be silly at best. Rarity walked over to Pinkie, and she whispered into her ear. “I don't think that you can show these dresses in the way that Hoity Toity wants. I'm sorry Pinkie.” “Are you crazy? I know all about modeling!” Pinkie replied, quite loudly, and the white colt seemed taken aback by her informal rejoinder. “I see, well if you are able to model these dresses, then I will not complain, although the mere fact that a pink pony is modeling is... interesting to say the least.” “I'll put these on, and show you that Rarity knows how to make dresses!” Pinkie responded, and she giggled before she turned to Rarity. The white mare looked thunderstruck, as if her career was going to be flushed down the toilet because of this one action. Pinkie was able to sense Rarity's distress, and she placed both of her hooves on her friend's shoulders. “Don't worry Rarity. The plot doesn't allow me to fail.” she said, smiling brightly. Rarity stared back with a confused expression, before Pinkie giggled again and rushed over to the dresses. In a wave of pink colors, all six dresses were taken into a separate room and the door was closed behind her. Hoity Toity looked towards his pocket watch, and Rarity shifted between her hooves in nervousness. “The dresses are nice, are they not?” she asked. “Why yes, they are nice, but I like to see a dress on a pony before I buy it.” the posh colt replied. “It can look as pretty as possible, but only with application will it truly show how great it is.” Rarity nodded her head, and then turned back to the hallway, wishing that Pinkie didn't take so long to get ready. The bedroom door opened a minute later, and Pinkie slowly stepped out. She had put on the dress perfectly, as if she was the mannequin. She slowly walked out, giving Hoity Toity the time to observe her every curve, her flank, her hair which was perfectly blown back into a style that complimented the dress. This certain dress had emblazoned the motif of a party, something that Pinkie was all too familiar with. Right when she stopped, a few feet away from Hoity Toity, there was a loud “Bang!” and the room was covered in party decorations, a pinata, all of the decorations that a party would contain. Rarity looked towards a corner of the room, and Gummy was absentmindedly staring back at her, his mouth on Pinkie's Party Cannon. Hoity Toity was stunned, and he lifted his glasses before he walked around Pinkie, taking in the splendor of her grace and poise. “Absolutely marvelous!” Hoity Toity said, and he moved back to his side of the living room, clopping his hooves up and down on the carpet to show his excitement for the next dress. Pinkie smiled and winked at Rarity before she moved back into her makeshift dressing room. Rarity couldn't believe it. She pulled one of her eyelashes and winced at the pain, before letting it go, making sure that she didn't pull it out to avoid looking less then desired. How did Pinkie know how to be... not her? Rarity was half expecting Ponyville to slowly turn to chaos. Was Discord back? A bunch of questions moved through her head, and she turned when she heard music. Light and cheery music was playing from a phonograph, and Rarity looked towards the sound. Gummy had just released the needle, which caused the phonograph to play. Hoity Toity adjusted his glasses, his expression turning more serious. “I see, this mare is going to try the pool party dress next.” He said to himself. Indeed she did. Pinkie only took half of the time of the previous dress, and when she moved out of the room, she slowly jogged over to the spot before extending her hooves to the air, smiling brightly. The motif of a pool party was not lost on the dress, and another “Bang!” came out of the Party Cannon, a small inflatable pool (filled with water) landing right in front of her. She placed her hooves in the water and Hoity Toity smiled once more. “The perfect attitude in a pool party! While I would not have such a party, since I am more used to things like the Gala, this is the perfect attitude that a pool party would entail! Bravo!” he said, and he clopped his hooves once again. Pinkie smiled and bowed, before moving back into the bedroom. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A complete half hour later, Pinkie had exhibited all of the dresses, putting on a show that would probably mirror the Gala's dresses for how wonderful they were. As Pinkie moved into the bedroom in order to take off the dress, Hoity Toity's sunglasses were on top of his head, so that his eyes could meet Rarity's while they spoke. He took out a large bag of bits from his outfit and gave them to Rarity. Her eyes lit up as she realized how much she was being paid, but she cleared her throat. She couldn't lose her composure in front of him. He hadn't left yet. “Thank you so much for your business.” Rarity said, as she placed her hoof onto her forehead to try and form a pose that he would like. Hoity Toity wasn't interested in poses, he was more interested in the mare that showcased the uniforms. “That was a brilliant show!” he said, as he placed the red cup full of lemonade that he previously acquired on the first dress on Rarity's dresser. He was thirsty, but he was more in the mood for wine. “You have certainly outdone yourself Rarity. I have never seen such beautiful dresses, complemented by a wonderful show such as this. It was as if you made all of this up on the spot!” Rarity laughed nervously, “Of course, imagine that.” she responded, her eyes shifting left and right before she met his gaze once more. “I expect these dresses to be delivered to my suite by tomorrow. I can assure you that I am going to be coming back more often. The train ride to Ponyville and the normal ones who surround you in this town certainly must be getting to you. For me it was worth it, since I am going to be receiving those works of art.” Hoity Toity replied. He walked over to the door, and Rarity opened it with her magic. “What a lady.” he added, smiling as he walked outside. “I will contact you in a week, I would love to have dinner with you to discuss dress patterns for the fall.” “It would be my pleasure.” Rarity responded, holding back the firework of excitement that just exploded in her body. “Ta ta.” And the door closed behind him. Pinkie walked out of the bedroom, shaking herself a small amount and her mane moved back to its original shape. For once, Pinkie was the one who was tackled to the floor. “Pinkie I can't believe that you did all of that!” Rarity exclaimed, as she hugged the pink mare. The brightest smile was on Rarity's face, and Pinkie giggled before the two of them moved back to their hooves. “Well of course, I couldn't let this story have a sad flashback, now could I?” she asked. Rarity was confused, but she decided not to ask. Of all the things that Pinkie was capable of, she never would have guessed that her friend could not be herself, and impress Hoity Toity, a colt that was completely opposite from her. Pinkie moved over to Gummy, and started to clean up the mess that the Party Cannon had left. She was slightly guilty that she dirtied Rarity's room, right after it was cleaned to look perfect for Hoity Toity. For the first time in a while, Rarity couldn't care less. Due to Pinkie's intervention, her reputation was saved, and she got to have dinner with one of the most popular dress designers in Equestria. She hugged Pinkie once more, and Pinkie wrapped her hooves around her friend, her face looking down somewhat for a moment. Her disposition looked depressed, but Rarity wasn't able to see when the two had broken apart. “I can't thank you enough, Pinkie.” Rarity said. “Anything to help a good friend.” Pinkie replied, another giggle resonating to prove her point. “I'm glad that I could help you!” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Rarity's eyes opened, and she looked left and right, noticing every pony who was remembering Pinkie's impact on their life. She dabbed at her leaking eyes with a handkerchief, and she looked down towards her lap. “I can never thank you enough Pinkie... I never got to repay you.”