//------------------------------// // 59. Collaboration - by Titanium Dragon // Story: RariJack - The Compilation of Prompts // by Titanium Dragon //------------------------------// Titanium Dragon Collaboration “I don’t see how exactly you can call this a collaboration, Rarity.” Applejack shifted on her hooves, leaning away from Rarity as the unicorn carefully pinned the leather siding onto the fabric covering her flank. “I mean, I’m here and all, but I ain’t exactly helpin’.” “Applejack,” Rarity said, her voice rising as she stepped forward to look her friend in the eye. “You are a vital part of my work.” “I don’t rightly see why. I’m plumb grateful that you’re makin’ me an outfit for the rodeo, but...” “But?” Applejack sighed. “You told everypony and their brother that I helped, but all I really did was pick which one of your ideas to go with.” “Pish posh! Why, without you to act as inspiration for those designs, why, I never would have thought of them in the first place.” “Inspiration?” Applejack arched her eyebrow. “Of course! Your natural beauty has inspired dozens of designs!” “You’re sayin’ you’ve got pictures of me wearin’ a hundred different things? Now this I gotta see.” “Well, not a hundred. But, you know, several.” Applejack laughed. “It’s alright. You don’t have to flatter me.” “Oh, but I do,” Rarity said, prancing around to Applejack’s other side as she picked up another piece of leather in her magic and began to position it on her flank, several pins floating up into the air behind her. “Why, that is the entire reason I’m making these…” she trailed off, frowning. “Duds. They’re called duds, Rarity.” “That is not what they’re called,” Rarity sniffed as she slid the pins in through the leather, holding it in place. “Perfect!” Applejack glanced back at her flank, then back to Rarity. “Wait, you’re sayin’ you’re makin’ these to flatter me? Ain’t flattery insincere by its very nature?” “Er... it sounded much better in my head. What I meant to say was that your rodeo, er, ‘duds’ were so terribly unflattering that I had to rectify the situation.” “So you’re sayin’ I look bad in my duds.” Rarity winced. “Not bad… just, less beautiful than you could be.” Applejack chuckled. “Rarity, I ain’t no beauty to begin with.” “You’re a very pretty pony, Applejack,” Rarity said, using her magic to tug on the outfit several times, frowning as she pulled out another pin to pull the fabric in closer against her barrel. “You just need a little… oomph sometimes.” “Oomph?” “You do know what I mean.” Rarity tilted her head slightly, before smiling, her magic flicking open the straps, loosening Applejack’s outfit before pulling it off entirely and floating it over to one of her clotheshorses. “And done.” She paused. “Well, not done done, we will have to have a final fitting once it has been sewn together, but… what do you think?” Applejack turned around, tilting her head as she approached the clotheshorse before biting her lip. “Well, it looks awful fancy…” “Oh dear. If you don’t like it, you can just say so.” Applejack sighed, shaking her head. “It ain’t that. It looks good. It’s just… you do know that I’m gonna be wrestlin’ around in the dust and the mud and gettin’ kicked while I’m wearin’ this, right?” “Of course, darling! That’s why I used leather siding.” “Yeah, but its gonna get all dirty.” “So?” Rarity shrugged. “It can be cleaned.” She circled around the clotheshorse slowly before brightening up, smiling as she picked up a pencil with her magic, glancing over at Applejack before beginning to draw. “I’m just sayin’, this is an awful lot of work for somethin’ that’s gonna get covered in mud.” “Nonsense. Besides, with the colors, it should blend.” “Heh, like those old red uniforms soldiers used to wear, huh?” Rarity pursed her lips. “Indeed.” Her horn lit up once more, a small piece of red fabric floating over as she began to cut it. “What’cha makin’ there?” “Apples. We can’t have Applejack without any apples, now can we?” Applejack rolled her eyes. “I reckon they don’t need to be lookin’ at my flank to know my name.” “Ah, but it would be striking!” “If you say so.” “Well I do say so.” Rarity tilted her chin up haughtily for a moment before she chuckled. “So that’s it, then? I can go?” Rarity pouted. “Leaving so soon?” Applejack lifted one hoof to rub it against the side of her foreleg. “Well, I kinda gotta get back to the farm to get some work done.” Rarity sighed. “I suppose work must come first. You’ll just have to return tomorrow, then.” Applejack tilted her head. “Er, for what?” “Why, for your dress for the dance, of course.” “The dance?” Applejack stared blankly. “Wait, you mean the dance after the rodeo?” “But of course! You must expect to put in an appearance after you win all those ribbons.” “I dunno, Rarity. I’ve been to those shindigs before, and I don’t much like the idea of fendin’ off stallions who are chasin’ my tail all evening ‘cause I came without a date.” “Well, then, we shall simply have to find you a date, won’t we?” Applejack rolled her eyes. “I don’t want your tryin’ to set me up with one of your stallion friends neither.” “I wouldn’t dream of doing such a thing. I doubt it would work very well anyway.” Rarity waved her hoof dismissively. “I’m sure you have at least one friend who would be happy to attend by your side.” “Uh… who?” Rarity stared at Applejack. “I ain’t too good at these guessin’ games.” Rarity sighed dramatically. “Which of your friends enjoys going to such events?” “Uh… Twilight?” Rarity pursed her lips. “Twilight? The pony who hid with Princess Celestia at the Grand Galloping Gala?” “Okay, not Twilight. Fluttershy don’t like those things, and Rainbow Dash only went ‘cause of the Wonderbolts…” Applejack blinked. “Are you sayin’ I should ask Pinkie Pie?” Rarity facehoofed. “Wait, you mean you?” Applejack took a step back. “You do realize that this ain’t gonna be anything like the Gala, right? It’ll have singing and dancing and ponies smiling and actually being happy.” “I am well aware of this fact,” Rarity said, straightening. “I just thought it would be an interesting change of pace.” “You ain’t never shown much interest in my rodeo work before.” “Well, things change,” Rarity said, fanning herself with her hoof. “I think I would like to see my creation in action.” “And pick up a few extra sales from the ponies watching and asking who made that nice get-up, I reckon.” Rarity giggled. “Well, you know how things go.” Applejack shook her head, grinning. “Fine, fine.” She reached up with her hoof to pull her hat from her head, holding it in against her chest as she gave an overly-elegant bow. “Miss Rarity, would you care to accompany me to the Equestria Rodeo dance?” Rarity smiled, leaning forward and batting her eyelashes. “Why, Applejack, I thought you would never ask.” Next prompt: Caught