//------------------------------//
// Apologies 
// Story: RariYou 
// by Capulus 
//------------------------------//

You wake with a start the next morning, not realising you’d been dreaming. Before you could reflect on it, however, your stomach rumbled loudly, a small spike of pain in your gut.
Ahg, dammit... You look up, at the clock on the wall, and let out a groan as you see it’s almost midday.
Wow, I slept for a while... Lunch won’t be being served yet, and it’s too late for breakfast... May as well go and get my jacket fixed... With a sigh, and a another painful grumble, you slide out of bed, carefully sliding your jacket on, along with your boots, and hat.

You quickly find the old grey mare who you guess owns the inn.
“Excuse me ma’am, do you know if there’s a clothes store, or boutique in town? I need to get my jacket fixed.” You ask her, hating the fact that you have to go to one of those horribly expensive stores. But hey, you don’t know how to sew. You didn’t make the jacket, after all.
“Oh, you’ll want Carousel Boutique, dear.” The mare says, with a smile.
“Don’t worry, Rarity’s nice. She’ll be sure to fix you up.” She says.
“Alright, ma’am, thank you.” You say, putting two bits on the counter as thanks for her help -Since the inn was so cheap, you had a few to spare-, and leaving the inn.

Walking out into the cool, fresh air of Ponyville, you turn, and make your way into town, asking ponies for directions to Rarity’s Carousel Boutique, all the while making sure to avoid that insane white unicorn. The entire time, various ponies look at you with disdain, obviously remembering the trouble you’d had with the unicorn the day earlier.

You could have sworn you heard a small snicker from the mare who pointed you to Rarity’s boutique.

Deciding not to think about it, you finally reach the garishly decorated boutique, about to head in when you see the white unicorn, talking to a mare inside!

Cursing your luck, you duck below a window, and peek inside. The other mare was a light orange, with a blonde mane, and a stetson. Heck, she looked more like a farm pony than a fashion designer. But that didn’t matter; As long as she could fix your jacket, she could look like something out of a bad horror movie for all you care.

After the two talked for a frustrating few minutes, the orange earth mare made her way out, opening the door and walking out, to your confusion. She looked back.
“Big Mac an’ Ah will be sure ta help ya, Rares.” The mare said, with a smile.
“Thank you, darling!” The other mare called, going into the back room. Before you could stand up, the earth mare turned, and collided with you, letting out a small grunt.

“What in th’...” She looked at you, and narrowed her eyes.
“Why are ya spyin’ on Rarity, stranger?” She asked, in her thick southern accent. Jumping up, you stutter nervously.
“Er I um... Er...” You frown, and stop yourself, taking a few moments to speak. 

Before you can manage it, however, the mare raises her eyebrows.
“Hang on a mo’, yer that pony that hurt Rarity yesterday!” She says, narrowing her eyes.

“H-hey!” You protest.
“She attacked me!” You cry.
“And she tore my jacket!” You show the mare the ragtag bits of fabric.

The earth mare stares at you for a little longer than what could be considered comfortable before looking away.
“Humph, fine, Ah believe ya. But because of yer little spat with Rares yesterday, she can’t lift anythin’ heavy. She hurt her back, stranger. Lucky for you, it wasn’t anythin’ serious.” She said, glaring at you.

“Er... I guess that was why you and that... Er... Big Mac guy are helping her with something?” You ask, now feeling less angry, more gulty. You hated hurting ponies, even if they did damage something so important to you.

“Big Mac is mah brother. He’s about a foot talller’n me, and one o’ the tallest ponies in Ponyville.” The mare said, in an offhandedly threatening way.

You go slightly pale, and look inside, then at the mare, who was just a bit taller than you.
“Er... Don’t worry about calling him, I-I can help her... Maybe make up for hurting her...” You say, shuffling your hooves awkwardly, feeling both guilty and frustrated at the same time.

The mare smiles, and nods.
“Make sure ya do, stranger.” She says, turning and trotting away.

You kick the ground in frustration, getting your hooves covered in dirt. With a small groan, you look around, hating to get your coat dirty. You turn, and trot around the boutique, eventually finding a small water tap next to the back door. After fiddling for a moment, you turn it on, and stick your hooves under it, cleaning them off.

You hear the door open, and before you can turn the tap off, the white unicorn, Rarity, pokes her head around the door, her eyes widening as she sees you. You quickly step back, knocking the tap a few times to turn it off. You grab your jacket, which had been tossed onto your back, holding it in front of you as a sort of shield.

“Er, I...” You mumble.
“I-I’m sorry about yesterday.” You manage, ignoring the slightly repulsed look she gives your jacket, then the vaguely worried look she gives you.

After a few seconds of awkward silence, the mare nods.
“I accept your apology.” She says, stepping back inside and closing the door before you can respond.

You stand there, holding your jacket, blinking in slight shock a you hear the door lock. Realising now might not be the best time to try and get inside, you put your jacket on your back, and turn, walking away.
Alright, still not lunch time... Ugh... I’ll just put my jacket back at the inn, then... Well, I guess I’ll explore this town... You think. Glad to have a plan, you set your course for the inn, feeling a pang of hunger as you walk inside, nodding hello to the mare behind the counter, and walking up the inn’s stairwell, walking to your room and putting your jacket on the bed, flattening it out carefully. 

With a small sigh, you put a hoof on the jacket, remembering the pony who gave it to you. Before you can dwell on your memories, however, you decide you should probably go and get to know the town. So, with one last glance at your jacket, you turn, and leave your room.