"Are you quite sure about this, Applejack?"
"Now Rarity, I know things didn’t exactly go like we were expectin’ with that ‘natural health retreat’ an’ all, but I would put my hat as collateral that this here is the bonafide real deal. The Peach family’s been puttin’ us up in their Ballasteed Inn every time we’ve gone down to Savanneigh, ever since I was a young’un, and they’re good as gold."
"Hm." Rarity gave the brochure Applejack had given her a third once-over. The Inn certainly looked like a dream, with its wrought iron balconies and fountain and little vegetable and flower gardens and fruit trees. The rooms looked even better; perfect for a luxurious rest after a long day of chasing after actors and actresses for costume adjustments. But to have gotten the recommendation from Applejack, of all ponies…
"Out of curiosity, darling, how is it that you know these Peaches?"
"Well… that’s kinda complicated. Y’see, they’re sorta distant cousins by marriage. I think. Maybe it was…" Applejack scratched her head, then went to get their soup from the stove. "Hang on, lemme get my names straight…Lessee, it was Applesauce who… No, that’s no right…"
Rarity tried not to squirm in her chair, already regretting having asked the question. She opened her mouth to take it back, then closed it, not wanting to be rude.
And ended up repeating the gesture twice before Applejack returned with the tray carrying their bowls.
"I got it," the orange mare said after she’d set down her burden. "Great Uncle Honeycrisp married Peach Tart, who was the cousin of their then-patriarch, ol’ Freestone. But they ended up not having any foals, so the families kinda met and separated there. But they still treat us as kin and we still treat them as kin, y’know?"
"Huh. That’s actually rather interesting," Rarity said as she picked up her spoon. "You’d have a lot of connections with such an extended family. I don’t imagine they come to the reunions, though."
"Naw, they got parties of their own. Now that I think about it, you’d get on with ‘em great. They like them big frou frou parties with the big dresses and lots of foods it’s hard to say."
Rarity raised an eyebrow, remembering their last argument the day before. “Really? You sound awfully fond of them for fancy ponies.”
"Well, uh…" Applejack fidgeted, tugging at her mane. "I mean to say... Uh… Shoot, I stuck my hoof in it now, didn’t I?"
"Go oooon," Rarity prompted with her spoon, unable to resist teasing just a teensy bit, and Applejack snorted at her.
"I mean they’re a lot like you, not like my aunt and uncle up in Manehattan. They work real hard at the jobs they got, but they like showing off when they want to throw a shindig. And…uh… sorry about yesterday. I still say those boots didn’t need all those gems on ‘em, but they are real comfortable. So thanks."
"Accepted, darling." After taking a sip of her soup, Rarity picked up the brochure again. "You know, I think I’ll make a reservation after all. Who would I need to see when I check in down there?"
"Well, knowin’ her, that’d be Missus Peach Tea. They have a desk clerk, but she likes to greet all the guests herself, so she’ll probably meet you at the door.”
===
"Meeting" was a bit of an understatement. She’d barely stepped past the front threshold into the foyer when a jolly-sounding voice pealed from the stairs. "There’s our little designer! Let me take a good look at you, missy."
The owner of the voice turned out to be a rather full-figured earth pony mare with a pale gold and deep pink coat and a dark auburn mane and tail streaked with grey. She adjusted wire-rimmed glasses to peer at Rarity, but the pale green eyes behind them were sharp despite their years.
‘Wow’, Rarity’s mind said softly, already supplying a dozen different dress ideas to go with those colors. Before she could get too deep into her thoughts, however, she caught sight of the mare’s cutie mark: a tall glass of iced tea decorated with peach slices. “Er, Madame Peach Tea, I presume?”
"Oh, hah!" The elder mare said, putting a hoof to her heart in glee. “‘Madame’, she says. Honey, you can call me Peachy; everyone around here does. And you’re little Applejack’s friend… Rarity, is it?"
"Yes, Ma- er, Peachy," Rarity replied, more than a bit amused by anyone calling Applejack 'little'. Managing to force back a giggle and turn it into a polite cough, she offered a hoof to shake. “Thank you so much for allowing me to stay in your beautiful auberge during my visit.”
"Oh, pretty and courteous. I like you already,” Peach said with a laugh as she accepted and Rarity tried to hide a blush. “Come on up, I’ll give you the grand tour while they get your bags settled.”
===
"-also, dinner is normally served at six-thirty, but room service is included in the price of the room, so if you don’t feel like eating with others, or you need something at a late hour, just use the little mail tube next to your desk to send a request to the kitchen. Someone’ll be there to whip you something up.."
Rarity was listening, but at the same time, she was also kind of… awed by her hostess. Even with her age and a little added weight, Peach Tea seemed to carry herself with a kind of natural, airy grace Rarity had never really seen before as she both explained the inn’s workings to Rarity and directed ponies handling the daily business. It was different from the affected grace of the Canterlot ponies. Easier-looking.
She realized she’d been staring when Peach Tea looked back, raised an eyebrow, then lifted a hind leg. “Do I have something stuck to my hoof?”
"Oh, no… Oh! I’m sorry!" Rarity said, backing away in mortification. "I didn’t mean to stare, really, it’s just… the way you walk. I mean there’s nothing wrong with it, I- Oh, I’m just making this worse." Feeling like an idiot, she ducked her head to avoid an offended glare and was surprised when Peach Tea started laughing instead.
"Hon," the older mare said when she’d caught her breath, and Rarity chanced peeking through the curls of her hair to see her wiping her eyes before putting her glasses back on her nose. "I could tell you stories about the way I walk. Used to be popular with stallions and mares, I did. Still am, in fact. But instead of boring you with those, how about I teach you how to do it instead?”
"Teach? It’s not a natural gait?" Rarity asked, curiosity overcoming her embarrassment. Actually, now that she thought about it, she had seen something a little bit similar, when Applejack had been performing that ‘Applejewel’ silliness to knock the nonsense out of her. Had she perhaps-?
"Oh, it is now, but that’s because I’ve been doing it since I was even younger than you. After all, you gotta learn the old rules before you make your own.”
Hm. That wasn’t anything like what she’d been taught in the etiquette classes she’d taken after starting to earn her way. “I was always told that you learn the rules to keep to them.”
"Oh, pfft, Canterlot instruction, I imagine," Peach Tea said with a dismissive flip of her hoof. "Those sticks in the mud are so busy trying to be snobs. You stick with me while you’re here, missy, and I’ll show you how etiquette is done the Savanneigh way.”
===
Three days of her working vacation down, and if it hadn’t been for the graciousness of her hostess and the older mare’s family and assistants, she probably would have lost her mind by now. Oh, the director of the play was nice enough and hadn’t given her any trouble, but she’d ended up complaining at length to Peachy about the demanding diva behavior of the actors and actresses she’d come to clothe while they were eating lunch.
"I can tell you one thing, and that’s to kill ‘em with kindness, honey. That’s one of our favorites around here. You just give them the sweetest smile you can muster and insult them to their faces in the most gracious and flowery words that come to mind. Those who catch you on it either know how to play the game or won't dare call you on it, and those who don't won't even notice."
"But… you don’t do that. Not even to that horrid Bluebell Bramble mare that came over yesterday.”
"Didn’t I?" Peachy asked with entirely too distracted an air, a faint smile on her face as she sipped her strawberry lemonade.
"…Oh," Rarity said, figuring it out. "Seems I was in the class that didn’t notice. So I suppose you don’t really wish blessings on her heart, then?" she asked, hiding a grin behind her hoof.
"Today’s lesson," Peachy said, her own smile becoming conspiratorial. "Is a little something I like to call bitter sugar. Trust me when I say this will make the rest of your week a lot easier.”
===
Rarity sighed happily as she sank into her plush bed, hugging a pillow to her chest. Her lessons with Peachy had indeed been making her clients much more pleasant to handle. She’d even succeeded in finishing the lead actress’ last three costumes without so much as a flutter of anger in her stomach. The director had even rewarded her for her improved productivity speed with a ticket for a lovely carriage tour of the city with a preciously bubbly little guide.
As much as the week had started out as a hassle, she was almost sorry it was going to end in two more days. She would have liked more time to spend in the parks and historic districts, especially to look at the gorgeous period dresses in the window rooms of some of the preserved houses.
Her stomach made a little rumble, breaking into her reverie and reminding her that it had been quite some time since lunch. And past dinner, too, she amended after checking the clock. She rolled to her other side and slid off the bed, then picked up the pen off her desk with her magic. “Hm… Some of the house fruit salad and blackberry sweet tea sounds lovely,” she murmured, neatly scripting her request on a sheet of the little notepad and tucking it into the protective tube before sending it on its way.
It had only been a short little while when a knock at the door made Rarity look up from her sketchbook, and she got up to go answer.
"Here y’go, Miss," said a beaming yearling filly with similar coat colors to Peachy, a dark green mane and tail tied into dozens of braids, and a saddlebag over her back, holding up a tray.
"Ah, thank you," Rarity replied, activating her magic to accept. "If it’s not too rude of me to ask, though, are you really staff? You’re a little young, aren’t you?"
"No offense taken. I’m family, but I run errands around the Inn for Auntie Peachy sometimes since she pays for all my materials."
"Materials?" Stepping back, Rarity floated the tray over to the desk and motioned the filly in. "What sort of projects are you involved in?"
"Um… well, I kinda want to be a designer, too," the filly admitted shyly, kicking her hoof. "So, uh, I might have maybe asked if I could bring up dinner when they said it was for a certain guest…"
"Ah, a nefarious plan indeed," Rarity said with a little chuckle. "I have a younger sister you’d get along rather well with. I suppose I can spare a little time and a few pointers though, miss…?"
"Pix-zee!" the filly said, perking up eagerly as she trotted in. "Thanks bunches!" Hopping up onto one of the stools by the desk, Pix-zee started pulling books and sketchbooks out of her bag, when several little embossed and sealed envelopes fell out on the floor. "Oops."
Rarity picked them up, stacking them neatly. “What are these?”
"Invitations. Auntie always lets everyone on staff come to the Magnolia Blossom Cotillion every spring. And I’m gonna be one of the new presents this year! Ooh!" Pix-zee clapped her hooves. "Why don’t you come?"
"Me?"
"Yeah! It’s the night after tomorrow, so you won’t be gone yet, right?"
"That’s true," Rarity admitted. She’d never been to a cotillion before… it would be rather interesting to see how different the parties were in Savanneigh as well. Not to mention a good test of her newly-learned etiquette abilities. And of course she’d packed a couple of dresses, just in case, so she wasn’t in danger of not having anything to wear. "Are you sure you want to give up one of your invitations, though?"
"Oh, sure, sure, I’ve got plenty. Auntie always has enough printed to invite half the town," the filly said with an airy gesture and toss of her head that was very similar to her aunt's. "Now… pointers?" she asked, putting on the pleading blue eyes and holding up one of the sketchbooks, and Rarity laughed as she picked up her glass of sweet tea and went to take a seat.
===
The band was lively and the flower garlands were beautiful, and after she’d smoothed the skirts of her gold and cream dress, Rarity found herself humming and tapping a few steps of one of the dances Peachy had taught her as she entered the ballroom.
"I take it you approve?" asked a teasing voice before the pony in question appeared at her side, decked out in a glittery pale green gown and silk ribbons that wove through her hair and tail.
"It’s gorgeous," Rarity agreed with a nod and a bright smile.
"It’s not the Gala, but we do try. Make sure you sample the hors d’oeuvres, missy. Mint Julep makes mushroom and grit croquettes that are to die for," her hostess said with a cheery wink before going off to greet others.
Feeling rather light and…comfortable, which was a nice change for such a decorated gathering, Rarity opted to simply wander the crowd first and then head for the table.
She didn’t fail to notice the glances on her way, and smiled inwardly at the fact the fact that those lessons from Peachy seemed to be paying off as well.
"Well land sakes, this is a surprise!"
Looking up from the stuffed tomatoes she’d been eyeing, Rarity blinked in amazement to see Applejack approaching in a simple-looking red frock, but quickly collected herself. “I would think it more surprising for you to be here, darling,” she said leaning in for an affectionate nose bump. “I thought the Peaches weren’t close enough to be at one of their ‘shindigs’, as you put it.”
"Well, me an’ Apple Bloom came down for a sale negotiation yesterday, and nobody says no to Peachy, y’know?" Applejack said with a sheepish grin. "I think Apple Bloom’s wanting to drag her other ‘cousin’ into the Crusaders as well."
Rarity had to politely muffle a giggle at that. “Poor Pix-zee,” she said teasingly. Then she felt her good mood sour as she caught sight of one of the actors from the show she’d been working on approaching. She’d noticed him among those looking earlier, but had paid no mind. Her mistake, apparently.
Applejack noticed, and glanced over her shoulder. “Who’s got a bee in your bonnet?”
"Prelude. He’s been an absolutely insufferable pain in my tail all week," Rarity muttered. Spotting a fan someone had forgotten on the table, she quickly picked it up to hide her scowl.
"Dark grey coat, fancy shirt and vest, too much spray in his mane, walks like everybody else should be bowin’ to ‘im?"
"That’s him." She considered making a quick escape, but sucked in a deep breath. Well, then. She'd wanted a chance to put Peachy's etiquette to work; she supposed this was as tough a test as one could ask for. "Prelude, darling, how are you enjoying the soiree?" she asked, plastering on a syrupy smile as she lowered the fan.
"It’s been a fine evening to be sure, Rarity," the stallion said with a cocksure grin of his own as he leaned entirely too close, prompting a disapproving raised eyebrow from Applejack. "I do believe it would be improved by the two most elegant ponies here sharing a dance, however."
Ugh. "Oh, well bless your precious modest heart," Rarity said, pouring on even more syrup and sugar and throwing in a bat of her eyelashes on top of it. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Applejack’s eyes go wide, and then the other mare coughed. "It honestly pains me to have to turn down such a sweet offer from such a dashingly handsome, humble stallion, but I’m afraid an old friend of mine is here and I simply must catch up on the times. I’m sure you’ll find a much more deserving lady friend to bask in the glow of your companionship, though.”
By the time she’d finished, Applejack had taken off her hat and looked away, covering her face to hide the fact that she was practically shaking to keep from laughing out loud.
"A pity. Some other time then, perhaps," Prelude said before sweeping off, none the wiser, and only then did Applejack start cracking up.
"Seems Savanneigh’s been doing well by you," the other mare said when she’d gotten a hold of herself, wiping a tear.
"It certainly has its charm," Rarity agreed with a considerably more comfortable smile. "I wouldn’t mind coming back for a real vacation sometime soon."
"Glad to hear it."
"Now then, ‘old friend’, how about you take me out for a dance?” Rarity asked with another exaggerated bat of her eyes, and Applejack laughed again before they trotted out to the floor together.