The Art of The Tuxedo Part 2
“Oh, Opalescence, isn’t it just the most magnificent bowtie you have ever seen? Opal?” Rarity, who had just finished her latest fabulous creation, looked around at the lack of response from her dear companion. It was odd; usually her darling Opal was around to at least mewl lazily in place of actual commentary to humor her. The mare didn’t dwell on the peculiarity for long, though, figuring that the little dear was probably off playing with a ball of yarn stolen from her supplies or some such sorts. There were more compelling matters at hoof!
Rarity once again turned to her gorgeous design and sighed contentedly at the sight, marvelling at her own artistic brilliance. Now for the most important part: where to hide it? Her eyes darted around her room, searching for a proper place to safeguard her little project from very possible danger. From years of experience, she knew it was only a matter of time until something woefully tragic would befell her creations. Excess sunlight was always a threat, idle hooves from a customer was another, and then there was the worst case scenario: a certain ponyfied bundle of walking disaster she called sister.
“There is only one thing to do!” The fashionista finally declared with gusto as she headed into her room. Once inside, she cantered to a corner of room, where an innocuous painting hung on the wall, right next to her bed. With magic, she pulled the painting aside, revealing a secret opening, containing a onyx-coated safe sitting within. Opening it with the proper code, Rarity levitated out a strongbox that was lined with emeralds and opened it with her hooves. After casting a few cautious glances around, she finally deemed the situation clear enough and placed her creation within. “It may have cost me two weeks’ worth of Alterna Ten shampoo, but it was well worth the price!” She smiled proudly until she noticed the sun was past its noon position.
“Oh goodness, I’ve certainly lost track of time,” Rarity gasped and with a quick flick of her horn, deposited the safebox back into its hiding place before she hurried into the kitchen. She would have to settle her hunger before she dealt with more important matters, even though the thought of crumbs on any of her attire, in her fur, or, heaven forbid, in her hair, made her shudder. What would Spikey-Wikey think of her if he saw her in such a state? Hopefully a less messy option such as a daffodil sandwich would do the trick. Thus decided, the mare set off to prepare.
Spike checked his breath once more. He'd spent the entire day crunching mints, but he was still nervous, knowing how much Rarity valued proper cleanliness and a breath that doesn’t smell like leftover apple pies. He took a deep breath, no more time to worry, though. It was time to be a stallion, er, dragon, guy thing. “Alright, buddy,” he told his mirror image, “it’s go time!” Spike flexed his arms in a pose reminiscent of Iron Will, coupled with a charming smile that would’ve left Blueblood green in the face. In envy, of course. Too bad the dragon was unable to convince himself of this, as moments later he slapped his face into his claws and groaned.
The dragon wallowed in embarrassment for a few more moments before shaking himself out of his funk. “Alright, just keep it together. As Rainbow would say, ‘stay cool and frosty.’” The drake nodded at his reflection before picking up his gift for Rarity: a beautiful bouquet of flowers that he claw-picked on his own. It was held together by a neat, purple strap and wrapped up by a charming light blue ribbon ending in a nice bow.
With bouquet in toe, Spike marched excitedly towards the library’s wooden entrance, where Twilight was waiting for him.
The unicorn gave Spike a quick hug then looked at the massive and beautiful bouquet he held in both claws. "Wow, Spike," she said. "Rarity's going to love that, but it must've been quite costly!"
"It would’ve," Spike said, grinning proudly, "if I didn’t arrange it by myself.”
Twilight blinked. “Really? I didn’t know you could work with flowers. You’re just chock full of surprises lately.”
“Thanks, Twi. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m afraid I must take my leave. It’s rude to leave a lady waiting!”
Twilight rolled her eyes and pushed Spike outside. “Then get going, Romeo!” After letting out a prolonged sigh and making sure Spike was out of sight, Twilight closed the door and levitated a book before heading to her room.
"Oh dear me!" Rarity exclaimed, marvelling at the claw-crafted bouquet that Spike presented her with on her doorstep. "I have no words," she said tenderly. It was as beautiful as one of her own creations, if not more, and it hardly hurt that it had been made for her. “Where did you even find something like this?" She turned the bouquet this way and that, admiring it.
Spike smiled widely at the mare’s excitement. "Actually I made it myself..." Spike said, blushing as he scratched the back of his neck nervously with a claw. "I saw these flowers and I thought of you and I, uh..." he blurted before the saw the look on Rarity’s face.
Small beads of tears clung at the corner of Rarity’s shimmering eyes, not from misery, but from happiness. The combined joy of something this beautiful, and knowing it had not just been bought, but crafted for her by him, brought warm feelings bubbling forth. Seeing Spike's look of worry, she gave a warm smile and pre-empted his visible concern. Slowly, with great care, she kissed each of his cheeks, leaving marks of lipstick against his purple scales.
Spike's eyes widened considerably and his cheeks turned bright crimson, the shade soon spread over his entire face like a fast-acting pigment altering disease. He brought both claws up to gingerly touch the places where Rarity had kissed him and felt the dire need to somehow immortalize the moment in stained glass splendor. He was never going to wash his face again, ever. Maybe he could get somepony to preserve it in plaster.
"Thank you, Spike," Rarity nearly whispered, smiling at him once more before gazing lovingly at the bouquet in her magical hold and brushing away the clinging moisture at her eyes.
Spike, both claws still lightly touching his scaly, warm cheeks, leaned in and smiled widely in return. “Trust me, the pleasure was all mine.”
Rarity giggled even as she sniffled delicately, dabbing the last of her tears away with a hoofkerchief. She gestured to the open door with a smile. “Shall we, darling?”
Spike nodded and followed the mare into the boutique, closing the door gently behind him. Asking her guest for a moment alone, Rarity carried her gift up to her bedroom, whereupon she gently placed the flowers in a vase, looking lovingly at the gift that the gentledrake downstairs had gotten specially for her. The pristine purple parchment used as the envelope and the sky blue ribbon wrapped around kept the fresh flowers arranged in a such a way that the bundle almost resembled the facets of jewel themselves. She then gazed at a case adorned with lined emeralds, the same she kept the fire ruby in, along with a certain object she’d need for later, and decided placing both new objects inside, after folding them neatly. After briefly consulting her mental checklist, the unicorn went back downstairs, where Spike was waiting for her.
Upon reaching the bottom of the stairs, Rarity batted her eyelashes with a mildly teasing smile, and inwardly enjoyed immensely the bashful blush she received in return. “Let’s get down to business then,” she said, voice tinged with a lilt as she headed back to her studio now followed by her guest.
When Spike entered the room, he couldn’t help but feel a bit awkward. He had been there before, of course, the studio that also doubled as her bedroom. But being there alone with her in the current situation made the situation slightly different. He gulped as whirling thoughts came to his mind once he took an inadvertent glance at her enormous bed.
“Is something wrong, dear?”
Spike snapped to attention. “N-no! I mean,” the dragon stammered a bit before taking a breath to compose himself. “Nothing at all. Just thought of something funny.”
Rarity stared at the dragon bemusedly, but decided to let it go. She really wanted to get a start on getting the measurements. She already had the design planned out and just needed the numbers to start working. Thus, the white unicorn floated a measuring tape over as she donned her trademark red-rimmed glasses and instructed Spike where to stand before getting on with her task.
Spike felt himself swallowing a nervous lump as Rarity instructed him to spread out his arms as she sidled up to him and began taking his measurements. It only actually lasted for a couple of minutes, but to Spike’s senses each “hmm” and “hum” made by the unicorn as she worked sent tiny shivers jumping across his scales. He finally carefully released his bated breath when Rarity moved away and began jotting numbers down on a small notepad.
“Hold on for just a second, Spike,” Rarity chimed, pulling something out of her drawer with her magic and grabbing it with her hooves before helping herself to a small stool, placing it right in front of him. She got up, ending up face to face with him, and put the mysterious object around his neck. It was a bowtie, the one she had been working on during the morning. The white mare stepped off the stool and levitated a small mirror towards Spike while smiling excitedly.
Spike stared at his reflection in the mirror, finding himself looking at a familiar, youthful dragon now sporting a spectacular purple bowtie with four diamonds on each side, forming an “S.”
Rarity watched from the side, smiling slightly as she evaluated with an experienced, keen eye. Soon her eyebrows scrunched slightly together as her lips pursed in thought. “Hmm...something seems to be smidgen off, please give me a moment.” She levitated the mirror out of the way and stepped back onto the stool, carefully straightening the bowtie with her forehooves.
“There we go, now we—” The unicorn stopped when she realized how close her face was to Spike’s. Her nose was almost pressed against his, and she could actually feel his warm breath over her snout. Without thinking, her eyes fixed themselves on his, which were staring right back at her.
Both their hearts were now beating at a hundred miles per hour, it felt as if they were going to explode at any moment now. That’s when she felt it, the same impulse that had taken over her the day before at lunch when her sister had used her musical talent to put them in a drunken haze of romance. The unicorn didn’t even notice she was leaning closer, her lips ever so close to his, though this time there was no music to go with it; Sweetie Belle wasn’t even home.
“My music doesn’t force anypony to do something they don’t want to do, it only gives them a small push,” Sweetie’s words flashed in the fashionista’s mind, making her realize that what she was about to do, just like yesterday, was purely out of her own free will, something she wanted, nay, needed to do. Her mind went blank again as she got closer and closer to her dragon.
Spike thought he was dreaming as she started leaning towards him. Was she going to kiss him? It certainly looked like it, but it couldn’t be so soon!
Oh, what the hay! The dragon closed his eyes and he too leaned forward, contributing to making the ever diminishing distance between their lips smaller. They were about to reach each other when he felt a familiar sensation in his belly...
Rarity felt a sudden push that made her flew off the stool just as she heard a... burp? The unicorn fell hard on her side right as a bout of green flames crossed the space where her face had been just seconds ago and some strange object fell a few feet away from where she was laying.
“No! Why in Tartarus did this have to happen right now?!” Spike complained desperately, shaking his fist at the unseen heavens before moving down to assist Rarity, who was still on the ground, in pain from the fall and trying to understand just what the in Celestia’s world had happened. “Please forgive me, Rarity! I had to, if I didn’t then you would’ve—”
Rarity had just processed what had happened. A letter from Princess Celestia had arrived via Spike, and were it not for Spike’s quick reaction, her face would be looking like a roasted marshmallow. “I-It’s okay, I understand, no need to worry about me...” she mumbled.
“A-are you sure you’re okay?” Spike asked, concerned over the pained look on the unicorn’s face.
“Yes, I’m fine, dear,” Rarity said while getting back on her hooves with the drake’s aid, simultaneously thankful and disappointed by the spontaneous arrival of that untimely letter. “Perhaps you should read it now. It could very well be an urgent matter, no?” And it better be.
The dragon opened the letter and gave it a quick read, rolling his eyes as he did so, as an annoyed look appeared on his face. Rarity just stared at him, not wanting to be un-lady like by asking what the letter said and hoping he’d reveal the mystery out of his own volition.
“Princess Celestia...” Spike deadpanned, looking as if somepony just told him that the grass was green and apples were fruits. “Wants to know if Twilight had a nice trip back to Ponyville.”
The thoughts passing through both Spike’s and Rarity’s minds right then, mostly about a certain white alicorn that governed Equestria, were not fit to be repeated in a tale meant for all audiences. However, and this we can say, the prize for worst-timing now had an unanimous nominee: Princess Celestia!
“Thanks again, Rarity, that bowtie you made for me is wonderful, to say the least. I’m pretty sure it will match with the tuxedo perfectly. I can tell I will look fabulous, as a certain somepony might say,” Spike said with a sly chuckle.
Rarity smiled pleasantly. “There’s no need to thank me, Spike, darling. But promise me you won’t eat the trimmings.”
The dragon almost laughed but managed to frown in attempt in trying to look offended. “Sheesh, of course I won’t! How could I eat something so amazing you made and generously gave to me.” He made a big show of harrumphing.
The unicorn gave him an amused smile. “Oh, I’m sorry, truly. Just wanted to be sure, that’s all,” she finished her sentence with few giggles. After a few moments they both burst into laughter. Finally, after several minutes, farewell time had came, and they didn’t seem to enjoy that fact. So they stood there in silence, watching the sky as it slowly turned into darkness, bathing in the pale moonlight. As they stood outside the entrance to Carousel Boutique, they were completely unaware of some ponies giving them curious glances.
Finally, Rarity was the one to break the silence.
“So, Spike, I don’t wish to sound rude, but isn’t it time for you to go, dear?”
After another moment, the dragon nodded almost imperceptibly.
Rarity remained silent. She didn’t want him to go, but she also wanted to finish that certain ensemble she had in mind. Farewells wasn’t something she enjoyed, so the shorter the better. If Spike was going to leave, she felt it was a good time to do it right now.
She was about to speak again, when he suddenly leaned towards her, and she felt his scaly lips pressing against her furry cheek. After a moment he broke the kiss. Her mind went blank, feeling the warmness from the spot his peck took place moments ago, now extending all over her face.
“SeeyalaterRaritythanksforeverything!” Were Spike’s trailing words, as the dragon nearly sprinted down the road in his exit.
The unicorn stood flushed and frozen still like a ponnequin. She was unable to twitch, let alone wave goodbye.
A fair distance away now, Spike was cursing himself for acting so rashly on his emotions. Without turning back during his near dead sprint, he spread his wings and rose into the sky towards the library, thoughts on a still dumbfounded unicorn and feelings left lingering in both his heart and lips.
Once inside her house, Rarity headed to her bedroom, her heart beating wildly. She levitated a fancy box lined with emeralds and opened it with her hooves, retrieving a certain object from its contents and placing it around her neck while stepping towards a mirror.
She gazed at her own reflection. A beautiful white unicorn with gracious purple curls and a set of enormous and charming sapphire eyes adorned with a set of long playful eyelashes stood in front of her, wearing a regal golden necklace with a marvelous sparkling heart-shaped fire ruby in its centre. She held her shining gaze upon it; the one gifted to her by her little Spikey-Wikey, the sweetest, kindest and most generous dragon ever. Soon, she decided the only thing missing from the entire ensemble, was a heartfelt smile. When the pony in the mirror beamed back, Rarity knew those sparkling eyes and rose hued cheeks were because of a certain darling dragon.
The one that now owned her heart.