Black Clouds & Silver Lining

by Lucky Seven

She Is Beautiful

“Oh! Maybe this color and… no, that doesn’t match at all. Perhaps it would look better in a light aqua color? Or maybe a dark green? Hm... what do you think, Tenna?”

Watching a seamstress like Rarity at work was a spectacle to be seen, that was for sure. It seemed like she never stopped moving, and breaks didn’t seem to exist in her world. Rather, she liked working non-stop on dresses. It was, after all, her biggest passion in life. Since arriving in Ponyville, Tenna had often wondered what she would be able to do well. Unlike ponies, changelings didn’t have one talent they were especially good at.

“Tenna, are you alright?” The question broke her out of her stupor, and she nodded her head.

“I’m fine, sorry. I was just watching you work, and I guess I zoned out a bit…”

“It’s alright, no harm. I was just wondering which one of these colors you liked?” Rarity asked, holding up three color cards in front of Tenna. After a few moments of thinking it over, she pointed at the one in the middle.

“That one,” she began, “It looks very pretty.”

Turning the color cards around, Rarity smiled at the changeling’s choice. “Seafoam green? Yes, I think I can make that work, as long as you don’t mind some of the dress being light green as well.”

“Oh, I don’t mind. You’re the expert after all, but I did have one question.”

“Ask away, dearie.”

“Can I sit down now? My feet are starting to feel sore…” she complained softly, hoping not to offend the seamstress.

“Of course! Now that I’m finished measuring you, I can begin working on the dress!” Rarity beamed.

‘W-wow, she really enjoys her job...’ Tenna thought to herself. “Um, how long do you think it will take?”

“Hm… I’d say probably… two, three hours?”

“O-only three hours?” Tenna was stunned. She didn’t know much about dressmaking, but she was certain that it took a lot longer than that for most seamstresses. Especially if they were making a dress like the one Rarity was making for her.

“Mhm! I am the best fashionista in all of Ponyville!” she jokingly bragged, making Tenna giggle.

“Do you mind if I stay here while you work on it?” Tenna asked, not wanting to be a distraction.

“That’s quite alright. I could use your opinion on some aspects of the dress, after all,” Rarity said, and Tenna went to sit down on one of the many couches in the main room of the boutique. “There’s also fresh coffee if you’d like some.”

That struck Tenna as odd. Pretty much every pony she had met so far drank tea, yet the most posh of them all seemed to prefer coffee. Heck, she’d had almost four cups already since Tenna had arrived. “Oh, no thanks. I don’t, um, drink pony stuff.”

“What ever do you mean, darling?” Rarity asked as she cut a piece of cloth, “coffee was invented by the gryphons.”

“Oh, um, what I meant was… I don’t need food…”

“But… surely you must be thirsty!” Rarity exclaimed. “You’ve been here all morning and haven’t had a thing to drink!”

“No, I mean, I don’t need it,” Tenna put more emphasis on the word ‘nee’, hoping Rarity would catch on.

“You don’t… need food? At all?” Rarity couldn’t believe her ears. How could anyone survive without ever eating or drinking? Such a thing was almost impossible to believe.

“N-no… Changelings don’t need to eat food to survive. We just need love…”

“Oh, I see. I suppose that does make sense, in a weird way,” Rarity cut another piece of cloth. “Can you eat food, though?”

“I can, but I don’t think it tastes very good. I only really eat it if I can’t find any love…”

“Are you, um,” Rarity put her hoof to her chin, unable to think of the right way to ask her question, but Tenna seemed to understand what she was getting at.

“You’re being very nice to me, and that’s keeping me full,” the changeling smiled. “But I do wonder why you’re making a dress for someone like me…”

“Just think of it as me welcoming you to Ponyville,” Rarity said, stitching two pieces of cloth together. “I can tell you’re going to look absolutely ethereal in it.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that… I’m not as pretty as you or Fluttershy…”

“I will have none of that! You are much prettier than you think, especially for a changeling!” she exclaimed, blushing right afterwards. “No offense.”

“I-it’s alright, it’s just sort of weird looking different from the other changelings,” she explained, making Rarity laugh.

“Trust me, darling, being different is nothing to be ashamed of. Why… you’re a diamond in the rough!” she complimented Tenna as she continued working with the cloth she had picked out. Not knowing how to respond, Tenna simply smiled at the alabaster mare.

“So tell me, Tenna, what brought you to my boutique this morning? Certainly it wasn’t of your own accord,” Rarity ventured a guess, to which Tenna nodded.

“Pinkie Pie basically dragged me over here, and everyone was staring,” Tenna giggled a bit at the thought of it. She had looked pretty silly, being dragged down the street by an insane pink pony who seemed like she never had to breathe when speaking.

“Ah, that definitely makes sense. Pinkie never seems to notice when ponies don’t want to do something. She sees things the way she wants to, and that’s how it’s always been.”

“Well, I’m just glad she’s happy,” Tenna smiled, making Rarity smile as well.

“And that’s certainly a good thing. You wouldn’t want to be around her when she’s… sad.”

“Why not? Is it bad?”

“You’ll find out one day…” Rarity said simply, laughing. “Now, about that dress…”