//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Introductions // Story: Piece by Piece // by Eltirions //------------------------------// 9 December 1008 Rarity opened her eyes and was immediately greeted by the adorable sight of Flurry’s sleeping face, with her stuffed snail - wasn’t its name Whammy? - squeezed between her forelegs. Flurry’s other stuffed toys were spread around on her side of the bed, creating a sort-of-corridor between the filly and the rest of the world. Rarity turned around to look at the clock. 08:17. Early. As usual, her mane was a total disaster that would need to be remedied before she went out of her rooms. What she used nowadays wasn’t as fabulous as her usual style, but it suited her look as a professional and a ruler of a country. As quietly as she could, Rarity got out of the bed, moving very slowly so she wouldn’t wake up Flurry. Once she was in the living room, she opened the curtains with her magic, showing the darkness outside. Well, it wasn’t completely dark. There were plenty of lights on: getting the street lamps fixed had been a priority as part of a larger effort to repair the city’s infrastructure. After all, it was hard to repair the city when there wasn’t a proper way to travel through it. And just why is someone knocking on the door this early in the morning? Rarity tied her hair in a knot with telekinesis as she walked over to the door, finishing doing it just before she opened the door. ‘’Good morning,’’ she greeted. A stone-faced thestral guard bowed his head in reply. ‘’My lady, there is a priority letter from Manehattan that arrived around midnight. It has the Empress’ seal on it.’’ Rarity blinked, before nodding. ‘’I see. Where is the letter now?’’ ‘’Here you go, my lady.’’ And the thestral hooved the letter to her. It did have Nightmare Moon’s seal on it. ‘’Thank you, darling. Do you mind waiting while I read this through?’’ ‘’Of course not, my lady.’’ ‘’Thank you.’’ Rarity broke the seal of the letter, then unfolded it. Dear Rarity, How are you doing? It might seem strange, but I am genuinely interested in how you and Flurry are doing. I hope everything is going alright. But I’m sure I will see it for myself on Hearthswarming Eve. And speaking of… I’ve sent one of my Shadowbolts ahead to you. She should arrive the same day you receive this letter, if I have timed everything right.  As for myself, I have been doing quite fine. There is a lot of work, but I am certain you have that too, so I needn’t explain that part to you. And I will admit that perhaps it was not the smartest idea to keep the capital in Manehattan, but what’s done is done, as they say. The following part is for Flurry. Hello sweetheart, How are you? I hope you’re doing alright, being back home. I’ve tried to keep your dreams safe and pleasant, but I am very busy and the Crystal Empire is far away, so I might not be able to keep out every nightmare. I apologise in advance for that. As you know, I’m going to spend Hearthswarming Eve in the Crystal Empire with you. I don’t know about you, but I want to build a snowpony together, and have a snowball fight. Sounds fun, does it not? To both of you: stay safe and healthy. I can’t wait to see you again. Signed, Nightmare Moon / Auntie Luna Well. ‘’Thank you for delivering this,’’ Rarity said after a moment of silence, looking up from the letter at the guard. ‘’I will write a reply and send it later today. You are dismissed.’’ The guard saluted. ‘’Yes ma’am. Have a pleasant morning.’’ ‘’You too.’’ Rarity closed the door once the guard had started walking down the hallway, and walked over to the couch in the corner of the room, head filled with questions. A Shadowbolt? Who’ll it be? And why is she allowing Flurry to call her Luna? ‘’Auntie?’’ Rarity turned around to see Flurry standing in the doorway to the bedroom. Whammy was next to her on the ground, and she was using her left foreleg to rub her eyes.  ‘’Good morning, darling,’’ Rarity greeted her. ‘’Did you sleep well?’’ Flurry nodded. ‘’Yeah, your bed is just as nice as mine, but with you next to me I was warmer. It was nice.’’ She looked at the letter, still held in Rarity’s magic. ‘’What’s that?’’ ‘’Your aunt sent us a letter,’’ Rarity replied. ‘’It arrived last night, after we went to bed.’’ Flurry’s eyes lit up immediately. ‘’Can you read it to me? Please?’’ ‘’Of course, darling,’’ Rarity agreed. ‘’But I’m a little hungry. Why don’t we have breakfast, and then I can read the letter to you? Does that sound fair?’’ ‘’Okay!’’ Flurry chirped. ‘’Are we eating downstairs or up here?’’ ‘’Downstairs.’’ Ice cream was one thing, as was being buried in work, but Rarity preferred her rooms devoid of food and the stains it inevitably left, thank you very much. Breakfast was a very simple affair: just some hay and bread, with orange juice to wash it down. While they were eating, Rarity read the letter to Flurry, who liked it very much. ‘’I wonder who that Shadowbolt is going to be,’’ she said. ‘’So do I,’’ Rarity replied. ‘’Probably not someone we know though.’’ ‘’Yeah.’’ Flurry turned her head away to look at the clock, then looked back at Rarity. ‘’Auntie, can you tell me what the time is?’’ Note to self: teach her how to read a clock. ‘’It’s almost nine o’clock, Flurry.’’ ‘’Aww…’’ The filly pouted. ‘’How long until it’s afternoon?’’ ‘’Three more hours,’’ Rarity replied. ‘’But I have to go do my work now. Can you play by yourself?’’ Whatever it is you do- I really have been failing in my duty. Flurry’s pout intensified. ‘’I don’t wanna leave you,’’ she admitted softly. Rarity attempted to smile reassuringly. ‘’I’m just going to be in my rooms, upstairs. You know where it is, and if you get lost, just ask one of the guards or servants for directions. And at twelve, we’ll go have lunch together. Remember: you’re always welcome.’’ ‘’Really?’’ Rarity nodded resolutely. ‘’Really.’’ ‘’Thanks, auntie.’’ Flurry shifted her chair closer to Rarity’s, then gave her flank a hug.  Rarity put her leg around Flurry’s neck. ‘’Anytime, Flurry.’’ They stayed like that for half a minute, then they finished up on breakfast and both went their separate ways. The nation didn’t stop being full of people, problems, and those things put together, just because Rarity and her ward needed a moment together. Though I wish it did. Tax problems, remnants of Sombra’s mind-control, destroyed houses, appointments of the people that were qualified to deal with those things, it all ended up on her desk. By the time the clock struck twelve, she was just about ready to throw the forms out of her balcony. But, she didn’t. Instead, she signed off on the last document she had read through before twelve, then got up from her chair and made her way downstairs again. To see Flurry was waiting on her at the end of the stairs. ‘’Hi auntie!’’ ‘’Hello again, darling,’’ Rarity returned the greeting. ‘’Did you have fun while I was working?’’ ‘’Yeah, I did,’’ Flurry replied. ‘’I asked one of the servants to play with me and my toys. It was lots of fun!’’ That’s good. ‘’Do you often ask servants to play with you?’’ ‘’Sometimes,’’ was Flurry’s answer. ‘’When I can’t play outside. But most of the time I can, so it’s not a problem.’’ ‘’When I find the time,’’ Rarity promised, ‘’I’ll play with you, alright?’’ ‘’Yay!’’ Flurry cheered. ‘’But first lunch, right?’’ ‘’Indeed, darling.’’ Lunch was just as simple as breakfast had been. Bread and hay, but this time with milk instead of orange juice, and some vegetables as well, to spice things up a little. ‘’So what are you going to do with your friends today?’’ Rarity inquired between bites. Flurry shrugged. ‘’Dunno yet. Maybe we’ll play tag? Or we’ll have another snowball fight. I don’t know.’’ Rarity hesitated. This might not be a good idea. Screw it, I’m going to ask anyway. ‘’Would you like it if I came along?’’ Flurry looked up. ‘’And played with us?’’ she asked for clarification. ‘’Well, yes.’’ ‘’That would be so cool!’’ Flurry said. ‘’Please, do it!’’ ‘’Okay, I will.’’ Once lunch was finished, they both headed for the gardens just outside the Crystal Palace. While they were connected to the Palace, they were open to anyone who wanted to visit, like the foals that had become Flurry’s friends. The first time Rarity saw them, they were standing next to the statue of a mare posing heroically. There was a light grey colt with a brown and blue mane, a sea-blue filly with a white mane, a ruby-red filly with a purple and yellow mane out of which stuck a golden-coloured bow, and a tall dark green filly, with a dark red mane. ‘’Hi guys!’’ Flurry called out. ‘’This is my auntie, Rarity!’’ ‘’Hello, darlings,’’ Rarity greeted them with a smile and wave. She received four different reactions. The colt stared at her for a moment, then very politely bowed his head. ‘’Good afternoon, my lady. I am Swift Hoof.’’ The blue filly didn’t bow her head. ‘’Hi, miss! My name is Star Glitter!’’ The filly with the bow did a very impressive curtsy for her age. ‘’Good afternoon, Governess Belle. It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Jewel Heart.’’ And finally, the thestral filly didn’t visibly react and just said, ‘’Hello, I am Moon Tower. Nice to meet you.’’ ‘’It is a pleasure to meet you all,’’ Rarity declared. ‘’How are you all doing?’’ ‘’Great!’’ ‘’Good, I suppose.’’ ‘’My day has been exemplary so far, Governess Belle.’’ ‘’Fine.’’ Right, Swift Hoof is polite, Star Glitter is just a typical filly, Jewel Heart really is stuck-up, and Moon Tower is very stand-offish. Flurry is probably the one that keeps them together and will keep on doing so. Rarity cleared her throat. ‘’That is nice to hear. I have been told we are going to be playing games today?’’ ‘’Yes, we are,’’ Flurry said, before blinking. ‘’Auntie, I just had an idea.’’ Rarity glanced at her. ‘’Well?’’ ‘’Can my friends stay for dinner tonight?’’ Where did that come from? Regardless, Rarity put on her most kind and caring smile. ‘’Of course you can come for dinner-’’ ‘’Hey Rares!’’ I know that voice. Rarity turned around and looked up. There, in the sky, floating lazily and wearing the night-black uniform of a Shadowbolt, was Rainbow Dash, with that trademarked smirk on her face. ‘’Rainbow?’’ ‘’In the flesh!’’ the pegasi mare declared. ‘’You miss me?’’ In a burst of speed she dove to the ground, coming to a halt at the last second to land a few meters away from Rarity and the foals. ‘’Hi kids-’’ Rarity shot forward and wrapped her forelegs around Rainbow, with a speed even she was surprised by. ‘’Rares, it’s nice to see you too- oof! - but you’re squishing me!’’ Rainbow said with a very tight voice after about ten seconds of shocked silence. ‘’Right, sorry darling,’’ Rarity apologized as she loosened her grip. ‘’I’m just so glad to see you again!’’ And she really was. You don’t know how much you miss something until it’s gone. Or someone, in this case. ‘’So am I.’’ Rainbow spread her wings and gave her a hug back that was probably just as tight as Rarity’s had been, and the odds were fifty-fifty that she actually knew she was doing it. They kept still like that for a time, Rarity didn’t know how long, before Rainbow finally, very reluctantly it appeared, let go of her. Rarity then let go as well, and stepped aside. ‘’Rainbow, you already know Flurry of course, and these are her friends: Swift Hoof, Star Glitter, Jewel Heart, and Moon Tower. Everyone, this is-’’ ‘’What’s up?’’ Rainbow sauntered forward and winked. ‘’I’m Rainbow Dash, fastest - and coolest! - pegasus in all Equestria!’’ Five seconds of silence as all the children stared at her. Then Flurry Heart cleared her throat. ‘’We’re not in Equestria, Miss Rainbow.’’ Rarity would have tittered at the comment alone, especially the innocent tone of it, but Rainbow’s look of pure surprise and shock was so perfect that she had to do more than titter. With a very un-ladylike snort, she began to laugh. Not very loud, of course, but still noticeable. The look of betrayal from Rainbow, and the laughs and giggles from the foals, only made it worse.