Chapter 6: The Saddle Row Review
At Saddle Row in Manehattan, the Mane 6, Dusk, Nyx and Daylight were walking down the sidewalk with Rarity leading the way. Dusk, Nyx and Daylight were looking all around.
"Welcome to Saddle Row, an entire street lined with the most fashionable boutiques in all of Equestria!" Rarity announced, turning to face the others. She then looked back ahead.
"If it's supposed to be the most fashionable block of shops, where's Stinky Bottom's Discount Hat Emporium?" Applejack asked, being by Rarity's side.
"I suppose it didn't make the cut," Rarity said. Just then, she looked at one building and gasped. "Here it is! Rarity For You!" Rarity opened the door and inside, the place was completely dusty. There were cobwebs on a chandelier, there were three rack shelves on one wall, which the supporter holding one side of the top shelf broke off and that side of the shelf fell onto the shelf below it, and there was a box by a blue curtain which leads to a back room, which a white mouse comes from behind the box.
"Rarity, it's lovely," Twilight said, a little concerned about the place's condition. The others were looking around. "But are you sure you'll be ready to open tonight?"
Pinkie Pie headed over to one table that had a pile of dust on it. She took a whiff of it. That was a bad idea. The dust particles went into her nose, and she was about to sneeze. She sneezed and the dust flew all over the other ponies. Twilight was covered in dust from the neck down, along with her ears and horn. Rarity had dust covering her whole head, except her mane and horn. Applejack had dust on her mane, nose and hat. Rainbow Dash had dust covering her muzzle, ears, tail and the bottom of her mane. Fluttershy was completely covered in dust from head to tail. Dusk had his mane and tail covered in dust, along with his flanks. The dust covering his mane and tail made him look like Twilight's mane and tail, and the dust covering his flank was in the shape of Twilight's Cutie Mark. Nyx had dust over her eyes, horn and wings, making it look like she was wearing the disguise the other Rarity made for her, along with the enchanted glasses. And the dust covering Daylight looked like a tiara and a gala dress.
"No need to fret over a mere moderate amount of preparation," Rarity said, shaking the dust off of her. "My clothes arrive soon, my sales associate after that, and with a little..." The others, except for the foals, were shaking the dust off of their bodies. Fluttershy had a hard time shaking the dust off of her. Rarity then noticed the dust on Dusk's body. She then snickered. "Oh my, Dusk. Look at you." The adults then looked at Dusk. They all smiled at how funny he was with the dust on him that made him look more like Twilight. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie tried holding in their laughter, but they got out some snickers and quiet giggles.
"What?" Dusk asked. Twilight then used a spell to produce an artificial mirror, showing Dusk his reflection. He then got surprised and looked at his whole body. He then shook the dust off of him. Nyx then noticed the dust on her body and shook it off. Along with Daylight. "That was embarrassing."
"Oh, it wasn't that bad," Twilight said. "Besides, it's only embarrassing if somepony you don't know has it sent all over the media."
"If we get interviewed about this day, nopony tells the reporter that," Rarity said, making Dusk nod. The then handed the rest of them some push brooms. "Anyway, with a little dusting, we'll be ready for the grand opening tonight."
"Rarity! So good to see you!" came a voice with an Italian Accent from the door. At the door, there was a buff, light gray Earth Pony stallion with a military style purple mane with grayish indigo highlights, a bushy mustache and goatee with a five o'clock shadow under the chin, and a cutie mark of three stars with purple and pink stripes in each. He also had on a sports jacket with a light blue t-shirt underneath, a towel behind his neck and a gold chain necklace with a gold coin connected to it. This was the owner of the building, Mister Stripes. He was not alone. He had brought a teenage filly who looks like she came from the 1980's. She was light orange with a mane and tail that were two shades of purple. She also had bushy eyebrows. The mane was tied up in a fluffy scrunchy, she had a blue plaid jacket over a green t shirt, and a pink faux fur scarf. And in her teeth, she had braces. This was Mister Stripes's daughter, Plaid Stripes. "Your store, it's going to be a very good place, I think!" He then laughed. "You've met my daughter, the apple of my ear, the hay in my hoof? You will let her work with you."
Rarity was surprised at the sudden transition that the stallion was implying. She chuckled nervously and said, "It's just, I'm dreadfully busy preparing for tonight's grand opening, as you can see."
Mister Stripes was upset at what Rarity said. He then said, "There are only two things I love more than being pushy." He then pulled in Plaid Stripes. "One is my daughter." Plaid Stripes smiled while looking at Rarity. Mister Stripes then pulled something out of his jacket pocket and showed it to Rarity. "The other is miniature doll furniture." He then got closer to Rarity. "And I would sell my entire mini-furniture collection to make my daughter happy. You understand?" He pulled Rarity in for a hug.
Rarity looked towards Plaid Stripes, who was blinking, which was causing Rarity to feel a little anxious. She then levitated Mister Stripes's foreleg from around her shoulders and said, "I'm sorry. I just don't think it's going to be possible."
"Let me say another way..." Mister Stripes said. He then pressed his nose against Rarity's. "Hire her or I raise rent until you no can afford!" That made Rarity give in.
"Oh, uh, welcome aboard," Rarity said, looking at Plaid Stripes. Plaid Stripes then gestured her right foreleg, telling Rarity to come closer.
As soon as Rarity got closer, assuming that Plaid was going to whisper something into the older mare's ear, Plaid Stripes loudly said, "First idea! Instead of clothes, we sell glow-in-the-dark teeth! Like this." She then chomped her teeth twice. "But they glow in the dark!"
"Golly, what a splendid idea!" Rarity said before chuckling nervously.
"That's a terrible idea," Dusk whispered to his sisters.
"Yeah, what era does she think it is, the 1980's?" Daylight asked, making Dusk and Nyx snicker.
Sometime later, the Mane 6, Dusk, Nyx and Daylight were cleaning up the place. Rarity was walking into the stock room, which was behind the blue curtain. Just then, Rarity screamed from behind it.
"Fluttershy, your assistance is required in the stock room, posthaste!" Rarity called out. Fluttershy walked towards the stock room. Dusk then sighed.
"We shoulda stayed back home," Dusk said. "It's so boring here."
"We could've found somepony to watch you three while we were here, but there wasn't time," Twilight said.
"Not unless you got Sunset Shimmer to watch us," Nyx said.
"Oh, right," Twilight said. "That would've been a better idea." She then sighed. "I shoulda thought that part ahead." Rarity and Fluttershy then came out of the stock room, and Rarity was a tad upset.
"No, no, no!" Rarity said. "I can't have a family of rubbish-scented raccoons living in my boutique!" Just then, some dance music came from the floor above the shop. Everypony looked up at the ceiling. "Uh, did you hear that?"
"Sounds like... dancing music," Daylight said. "Almost reminds me of the music from the adult clubs on the cruise ship I used to live on before coming here."
Rarity groaned and said, "I'm going up there to see what's going on." She then walked out of the store to head up to where the music was coming from. As she left, the others kept cleaning the place. Applejack had some dust put into a dustpan, but the loud music startled her, making the dust go back onto the floor.
"I wish we were having as much fun as they are," Rainbow Dash said, referring to the party attenders upstairs.
"Well, sweeping can be fun, too," Twilight said, holding a push broom in her magic. She then started singing to the beat as she was sweeping. "Sweep, sweep, sweep, sweep." She then spun the bush broom around and then started sweeping in a different direction. "Sweep, sweep, sweep, sweep."
Rainbow Dash and Applejack rolled their eyes. Rainbow Dash then said, "No way that's gonna catch on."
"Eeyup," Applejack said. "Not gonna be catchy at all."
Some time later, Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were sweeping the floor. Twilight was still singing her sweep song. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were also singing it. Pinkie Pie was somehow floating and sweeping the floor with her tail like it was a dust cleaner connected to a spinning propeller.
"Sweep, sweep, sweep, sweep, sweep, sweep, sweep, sweep, sweep, sweep, sweep..." Twilight, Rainbow Dash and Applejack all sang to the beat.
Just then, Rarity came back in, saying, "Apparently, DJ Pon-3 has a residency at the Party Palace upstairs, but security won't let me speak to her." Pinkie Pie was hovering next to Rarity while her tail was still spinning. Just then, Rarity was startled by a certain sound. "Aah! What in the name of Celestia was that?!"
Nyx looked towards the door and saw something at the top. It was an antique horn with the squeezing part in between the door and the doorway. Nyx then asked, "Who put that horn in the doorway?" Rarity looked towards the door and saw the horn. She then saw Plaid Stripes standing next to the door in the way of the swing of the door. She then waved towards Rarity. Nyx then said, "Never mind." She then walked towards Dusk and Daylight and said, "Where did she get these ideas from?" Dusk and Daylight shrugged their shoulders.
Rarity looked over towards her friends, sighed and said, "We'll have to do something about that, after I think of a way to quiet down that music. And after I finish designing the window display!" Just then, they were all startled by a crashing noise. They looked over and saw a buff mailmare dropping a lot of boxes besides the door. Rarity walked over towards the boxes. Ahh! Wait, is this my merchandise shipment from Ponyville? It's completely disorganized!" The mailmare shrugged her shoulders and walked out. Rarity was at a loss for words after what happened. Rarity put her forehooves to the sides of her head and leaned on one of the boxes. Just then, one mare entered the place.
The mare sneezed. Rarity looked towards the mare and said, "Gesundheit!" She then realized who the mare was. It was Coco Pommel, the mare who used to work for the mare that used Rarity's generosity against her to try and win the fashion competition, Suri Polomare. "Oh, Miss Pommel! I'm so glad to see you! Now, as the sole sales associate at Rarity For You, I hate to add to your already overflowing plate of responsibilities, but it looks as though we have just a tad more to do before tonight than I thought."
"Actually, I..." Coco Pommel said before she sneezed in Rarity's face, without covering. "I can't work tonight."
"I think it's quite obvious why she can't work," Dusk said. "Look at her. Red nose, puffy eye sockets, snot coming out of her nostrils. And of course..."
Coco Pommel then sneezed again in Rarity's face. Rarity then said, "Feel better, my sweet. We'll manage without you... somehow." She then got worried at all the mess around her. She looked at Plaid Stripes smiling at her. "And we'll manage glowing teeth..." Then she looked at the horn at the door. "... and car horns..." Then she looked at the disorganized clothes in the boxes. "...and disorganized clothes..." Then she pointed at the ceiling, starting to lose her mind. "...and dance music!" She then sat on her flanks, putting her hooves to the sides of her head. "Am I forgetting anything?" Just then, raccoons came from the stock room and crossed Rarity's path of sight. She then yelled, getting the attention of the ponies outside. "What am I going to do?! My dream is doomed! Doomed, I tell you! Doomed!" She then fell to the floor, covering her head with her hooves.
"I know things haven't gone perfectly so far, but we've done this kind of thing before," Twilight said. "f we all work together..."
Rarity got up and walked towards Twilight, interrupting her. She said, "I appreciate the offer, but this is Manehattan. To make it in the fashion scene here, everything has to be perfect." She then stepped outside where to show where in Manehattan her new store is. "The perfect location!" She then stepped in front of the boxes of her clothes. "The perfect clothes! The perfect opening!"
"Maybe we should just postpone," Twilight said.
Rarity zoomed up to Twilight and said, "Postpone?! Darling, tonight is the last night of the fall season. If we don't open tonight, it won't be..."
Twilight sighed and said, "Perfect."
"Yes. I know what needs to be done," Rarity said. "I just need more of me! Oh, how I wish I could make copies of myself!"
"NOOOO!!" Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Dusk and Nyx all shouted in unison. Daylight raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"Am I missing something?" Daylight asked.
"About a year and a half ago, Pinkie tried to do multiple things at once, but it wasn't going as well as she thought," Dusk said. "So, she went to this ancient pool that copies who looks into it and says some specific words. But..."
"The entire town got overrun by fifty Pinkie Pies!" Rainbow Dash said.
"The biggest mistake of my life was that day!" Pinkie said.
"Fifty?" Daylight asked. "Okay, the Tri-Pies I can handle because there's three of them. But fifty of the same hyperactive pony running around. No way."
"Rarity, we can do this," Twilight said. "And we can stay true to your vision."
Touched to Twilight's words, she asked, "You'd do that?" She then looked towards Fluttershy. "Fluttershy, you'll handle those... strong-smelling raccoons for me?"
"Of course," Fluttershy said.
"Leave Plaid Stripes to me," Applejack said. "Ah'll handle her and her, uh, 'good ideas'."
"Ooh, ooh, ooh! And I can go upstairs to that nonstop party and have tons of fun and eat some cake and set off party cannons and..." Pinkie said before Rarity cleared her throat and gave her a death glare. "And then make them be quiet."
"I'm pretty sure I know somepony who wouldn't mind organizing this merchandise shipment for you," Twilight said, grinning eagerly. "I'm talking about myself." The others looked at her with some confused looks. Then Twilight pleaded. "Oh, please, let me organize it!"
"This all sounds splendid, but I don't even have a single employee, and I'll need the best of the best," Rarity said.
"Oh! This is it, my dears," Rarity said. "If you can handle these problems, I'll focus on the designs for the front window display. We'll show Manehattan what Rarity For You is all about! Oh, what would I do without you?"
"Is there anything we can do?" Dusk asked, referring to himself, Nyx and Daylight.
Rarity then started thinking of what the three foals of Twilight could do. She then got an idea and said, "Nyx, you help Twilight with organizing the clothing." Nyx nodded and went with Twilight to organize the clothes. "Dusk, you help Rainbow Dash with hiring some employees." Dusk nodded and followed Rainbow Dash. "And Daylight, you can help me with the window display. Come now." Rarity then walked to the window display with Daylight following. The rest got to work on making Rarity's dream come true.
Things could not have gone more wrong that day. Pinkie went up to the club to switch out the music for the club and got it swapped with shopping music, making the club ponies disappointed. Rainbow and Dusk had no idea of the qualifications of hiring ponies for a clothing store. Applejack had rejected Plaid Stripes's ideas, making her cry to her father. Twilight and Nyx organized the dresses by color, but had second thoughts about it. And Fluttershy had to tell the raccoons to move out, breaking her own heart and enraging the raccoons. All of them did that because they thought that's what Rarity would've wanted.
But they started to turn the tables around when they started doing the things they were assigned their way, while also locking Rarity and Daylight in the display room. Fluttershy apologized to the raccoons and said that they could stay on one condition. Pinkie Pie went back upstairs to apologize to DJ Pon-3 for changing the music, so she offered a proposal to the DJ. Rainbow Dash had gotten the three ponies who were looking for a job there to do a race for the position, even though they didn't get it at first. Twilight and Nyx had the clothes organized, and Applejack had apologized to both Plaid Stripes and her father, and thought of an idea to use Plaid Stripes's ideas for good uses.
Night had come to Manehattan, and Rarity and Daylight were finished. Although, Daylight was fidgeting and keeping her hind legs closer together. Rarity tried opening the door. What she didn't know was that the display room door was blocked by a chair. That was until Twilight unblocked it and opened the door, and Rarity landed face first on the floor.
Twilight awkwardly said, "Wow, looks like we fixed that door just in time!"
"Good, because I really have to pee!" Daylight said, making a run for the restroom. Twilight then helped Rarity up to her hooves and Rarity looked around. Rarity gasped at what she saw.
"Oh! What's all this?" Rarity asked in awe. Impressed by everything in the store, she said, "Oh! I knew I could count on you! All right... I suppose this is the moment of truth..." Rarity then went to the door and opened it, noticing that the bell was back on the door. She then smiled happily at her friends, turned back to the open door, and announced to the ponies outside, "Rarity For You is now open!"
Rarity looked out and saw a line of Manehattan ponies in line to get in. There was a long line. Although, there was a squirrel at the end of the line, but the Earth Pony stallion in front of it shooed the squirrel away. Then the ponies started walking in. Rarity wasn't really prepared for a big crowd. She even said so herself.
"Oh, dear. I wasn't quite prepared for such a crowd," Rarity said, standing next to Rainbow Dash and Dusk. "How will I handle them all?"
"Yo, Blue Bobbin!" Dusk called out. "Come and help out with this stallion."
"Of course," came the blue mare that was applying for the job. "Hello there, good sir. My name's Blue Bobbin. I'll be your personal shopping assistant this evening."
"Right this way, everypony, and one of our talented salesponies can help you out!" Rainbow Dash said. The other two job seekers came up behind them. Then music from DJ Pon-3 started playing, fog machines were going off and flood lights were hung from the ceiling, lighting up certain areas of the place. Then the raccoons, who were cleaned up, were dressed up and serving some kind of delectables to some ponies.
"Ah, a blue corn reduction with shallot confit!" A blue stallion said. "But how can I possibly enjoy it without a...?"
"Spoon?" came Plaid Stripes's voice. She was showing off some gloves on her hooves with 3 spoons connected to them on each glove. She gave one of the gloves to the stallion and he ate from the bowl served by the raccoon.
"Mmm! Exquisite!" the stallion said. "This is the most whimsical and wonderfully fashionable boutique I've ever seen!"
The ponies of the place were pleased at the grand opening, making Rarity blush with pride. Rarity then looked at her friends and gave off tears of joy. Just then, a stallion came up to them.
"Excuse me, miss!" came a voice of a stallion. The group looked towards the voice and saw a reporter standing in front of them.
"I'm Buried Lede of the Manehattan Press," the stallion said. "I've come here to do a report on this amazing place, and how it all came to be."
Rarity looked at her friends, who all smiled and nodded at her.
"Of course, sir," Rarity said. Just then, the sound of a stomach growl came. Dusk blushed in embarrassment. "Perhaps we should take this interview to someplace that offers good food."
"Of course," Buried Lede said. "I know a place. Follow me, all of you."
"Hang on," Twilight said. "We need to wait for..." Just then, Daylight came up to the group. "Oh, never mind then. Let's go." Then they all headed out of the building so they could get interviewed.