//------------------------------//
// That difficult moment late at night when you're alone with your thoughts (edited) 
// Story: It's Just A Bit of Baldness 
// by Charlie_K 
//------------------------------//

It had been a long, very involved day all around. That was Rarity's take on everything that had happened. What had started out as being nothing more than a run of the mill outing for the purpose of gathering gems for use in her work, had somehow led to her discovering a secret about one of her best friends. And that discovery had led her to learning far more about a rather controversial subject, than she ever had reason to believe even existed.

That didn't exactly sound right to her. But whatever. She -thankfully- wasn't being graded on thought structure.

Hard as it was for her to comprehend, Twilight had done a very respectable job in helping her come to realize that nudism -proper nudism, Twilight had stressed- was nothing more than individuals simply choosing to refrain from wearing clothing -or fur in their case- while going about their everyday routines. It was so simple, and yet it still seemed so complex to consider. It was just one of those things that seemed like there should be so much more to it than that.

Nudity. Baldness. Whatever it was that Twilight wished to call it, it was still a subject that just seemed so odd to her, even now as she relaxed in a much needed bubble bath, submerged all the way to her chin.

Twilight had certainly done her best to make it seem less scandalous and indecent than it initially struck her as being. And -much to her own surprise- she had succeeded for the most part. After the initial awkwardness of the whole situation has passed, Twilight's lack of fur wasn't as off-putting as it had initially been. 

Of course that was primarily due to how casual Twilight had been throughout the whole thing; to her it was just another everyday thing, even if it wasn't done every day. If she hadn't been as secure with herself as she had been, the entire experience might have gone far differently for each of them. But fortunately that wasn't the case. Devoid of embarrassment, or forced efforts at maintaining confidence, Twilight had been able to present her interest in nudity, in what was likely the cleanest manner possible.

... That still didn't sound right.

"Oh it's no use," Rarity sighed as she shifted in the tub, water sloshing along the sides as she did so. Try as she might, she just couldn't make her thoughts flow smoothly. They were all too jumbled to properly order them.

But then again, she really didn't have to properly order her own thoughts about nudity. It was Twilight's indulgence, rather than her own. The only reason she really had to give the matter this much thought, was in case she had to try and explain it to their friends, whenever Twilight felt she was ready to read them in on it. She wanted to be properly rehearsed for whenever that time came, so that she wasn't stumbling over her own tongue as she strived to be eloquent. Until then, as far as she was concerned, it was essentially little more than a guilty pleasure her friend was enjoying; sort of like a few indulgences she herself held. Certainly nothing scandalous on her part, but there would still be some embarrassment if they were to ever get out.

Back to the thought of explaining things to the others. She really didn't see that being a likely development. Twilight would most likely be the one informing them about the inner workings, while she simply provided some form of moral support. Try as she might, she really couldn't imagine a set of circumstances that would require her to take the lead, in trying to explain this complex matter to the others.

"Perhaps I'm overthinking this whole thing far too much," she said to herself as she shifted again. It wasn't like the overall goal was to convince the others to follow Twilight's example, and go without their fur. It was just to... make them aware of what Twilight found relaxing, should they ever need to make use of the palace during the summer. They needed -or at least deserved- to be aware of what might be encountered, to avoid any potential awkwardness, and discomfort that might be encountered.

Awkwardness and discomfort. Goodness there had been much of that today. And to make matters worse, a good portion of it had been her own fault.

More awkward than Twilight's nudity, was her own behavior during the aftermath. Seeing her friend in need, she had naturally lent a hoof to scratch her back where she couldn't reach it as her fur grew back in, and was simply miserable during the process. It had been intended as a gesture of good will, and basic friendship. And instead it had morphed into something that came quite close to being incredibly inappropriate. Twilight's skin was so soft, and smooth, it was like a piece of very fine silk being rubbed against her hooves. If she hadn't stopped her when she did, she didn't have a clue as to what might've come about in the aftermath.

She wasn't proud of herself for her actions. All she really could be, was thankful that Twilight had taken it all in stride. If it hadn't been for her understanding, there was no telling how things might've gone.

And then there was the issue regarding Spike himself. She hadn't give that subject much thought over the course of the day, until she came back home to the boutique. Much as when she'd left him to deliver his gems to Twilight, Spike was still sleeping peacefully, snoring away without a care in the world. Which wouldn't have been a problem, if not for the fact that he was stretched out on his back.

That had brought Twilight's words back to the forefront of her mind. And in light of such information, she was fairly certain that -for a while at least- it would be hard to look the little dragon in the eyes without getting at least a little flustered. She didn't know what she was going to do with regards to Spike just yet.

But at least she didn't have to give the matter that much thought right now. It was late in the evening, and all she really wanted to do was get ready for bed, and turn in after a hard day.

With that thought in mind, she pulled the plug to the bathtub, and began the process of drying herself off so as to not drip water all over the flooring.

"One of the advantages I've discovered about being a nudist, is that after a bath, it's much easier to get dried off," she remembered Twilight explaining to her. As it had been explained to her, a lack of fur resulted in reduced drying time, and an absence of hair on the towels afterward. She could certainly see that as being a valid point in it all. Although it left her wondering if that advantage applied since a bath helped reduce the amount of itching that occurred during the regrowing process.

"I'll have to be sure to ask Twilight about that the next time I see her," she muttered to herself as she used her magic to squeeze the excess water off of her body.

Maybe the advantage went to those humans and their strange ways. Wash and dry their skin, put on clothing to be decent. It certainly sounded like it had advantages compared to certain perceived complications that went along with having fur. But then again it wasn't all that surprising. Nudity was a concept developed specifically by humans, configured for their own unique circumstances, that Twilight was, for better or worse, trying to adapt for ponies. Perhaps it was simply one of those things that lost something in translation, considering all the trouble that apparently went along with it.

Once she was sufficiently dried off, she hung the towel back up to dry, before making her way to her bedroom, to get ready for turning in for the evening. That was a regimen in and of itself, that started with brushing through her mane and tail to take out whatever tangles might have tried to work their way in over the course of the day.

"I don't have any hard evidence to prove it, but a freshly grown mane just seems a lot... fresher. No tangles, no split ends, none of it."

Yet another memory of Twilight's explanation making itself known. Although to her that one qualified more as a benefit that came from using the regrow spell, rather than going nude; like there was something to look forward to at the end of it all.

Such thoughts and many others were making themselves known throughout the entire regimen of getting ready to turn in for the evening. Each step she went through for the purpose of maintaining her stunning beauty, brought a new part of the conversation to the forefront of her mind. Brushing, combing, lotions, curlers, etc. each and every one of them reminded her of something that Twilight had said to her.

The difficult part about it all, however, was that the more she thought about it, the more sense it was all starting to make. There were certain things that she couldn't deny seemed reasonable -and even a bit logical- now that she was calmer than she'd been previously.

As she picked up another curler to affix her mane in, she stopped when she looked at herself in the mirror. Really, really looked at herself in the mirror, and really took in her reflection. She couldn't pinpoint just what had caused her to stop, curler still gripped in her magic. All she knew was that she had stopped, and was currently thinking.

What if Twilight had been right? What if her coat, mane, and tail all grew back in fresh, and all that had to be endured was a few minutes of uncomfortable itching? The amount of time and effort that could be saved would be substantial. And that was to say nothing of the amount of money she could save, if she suddenly found herself no longer needing to buy so many care products. Over the long run, that could amount to a substantial amount

She looked back at her reflection, and at the supplies present on the vanity top in contemplation.

She had stayed behind at the palace to clean up their little mess so Twilight could keep her appointment with Lyra. And then she had made her way to the palace library, and found the aforementioned medical journal that detailed the spells. She had committed them to memory, reasoning that they could be quite useful in the future, depending on what kind of trouble Sweetie Belle found herself in. Should she ever come home covered in tree sap again, or possibly something even worse, getting her clean would prove to be so much easier to accomplish.

Simply asking Twilight to show her the spells had been a possibility. But... the implications of such were...

It wasn't like she felt guilty about not asking. It was still the public library after all, regardless of the fact that it was housed in the palace. Twilight had given her the information on where to find them, and even explained their base reason for existence. She simply hadn't wanted to trouble her friend when she had other pressing matters to attend to.

But now that she was alone with her thoughts, she just couldn't help but at least think about it. Again, what if Twilight was right? What if all she really had to do to maintain her luxurious coat, was spend but a few minutes without it?

Rarity looked back at her reflection again, and then slowly, cautiously glanced around the room, much like she was in a crowded area, and contemplating doing something rather improper. But there was nopony around that would see her do it; not even her precious Opal was present to catch her. Even the blinds were drawn, ensuring that nopony could look in on her.

She could do it, just to try. There would certainly be no harm in it. She didn't possess Twilight's magical aptitude, but the spells hardly looked all that complicated; she doubted that she'd run into any sort of complications that might leave her without her coat.

Yes. She could do it. She could simultaneously try and get a better understanding of why nudity appealed to Twilight so much, and determine if the process of regrowing her fur would leave it soft and smooth again. Two separate tasks at once as it were.

But what if it didn't? What if her fur grew back in perfectly, but it didn't have that rejuvenated quality to it that Twilight believed was present? She would've just undone all the hard work she'd invested so far. She'd have to start all over again. She really hated the idea of starting over...

Tomorrow. She could always try for tomorrow. Yes, that would work. Tomorrow night, rather than subjecting herself to this regimen, she could test out Twilight's way of doing things, and evaluate them for herself. She could find out if the results were really worth the effort involved.

Then again, from what she had witnessed, it did seem like quite a bit of work to just undo her coat, and then redo it five minutes later. Perhaps she could... postpone it for just a little bit?

"I certainly could..." she admitted, trying not to allow herself to become flustered by what she was thinking of doing. There was nothing saying that she had to regrow her coat immediately. Perhaps she could do as Twilight had done and... go down to the kitchen to get herself a late night snack before turning in for the evening. Or perhaps swing by the work room to see if her new state brought with it some inspiration for new designs. Maybe even... venture as far as the front show room to check and see if her ponequins were all in their proper locations, to ensure the designs they bore were presented for maximum effect.

If she were feeling particularly adventurous, she might even go so far as... dare she think it... spending the night in just her skin. That would certainly give her a chance to see what it was like for herself, and form a more educated opinion from there. Yes, she could certainly go that route.

Unless Sweetie Belle was due to spend time at the boutique with her. 

No. That simply wouldn't work out for her. Not as long as Sweetie Belle remained a variable that had to be taken into account. An unpredictable variable as Twilight might put it.

Try as she might, she just couldn't think of a way around that. There really was no way of telling when her little sister might enter into the picture; not with how their parents were, and how they loved traveling at a moment's notice. And if that were to happen... well it went without saying that the results could certainly be unpleasant. She couldn't even begin to imagine how complicated things would become if Sweetie Belle were to catch her in the buff. It could undo everything Twilight had been striving for this whole time if she didn't handle it just right.

"I'm sorry, darling, I simply can't do it," she sighed, speaking more to the absent Twilight, than to her present self. "I'll stand with you whenever you're ready to inform the others about this. I'll help keep Spike preoccupied if you need me to. I'll even let you use my boutique should the need ever arise. But I simply can't join you on this journey you've undertaken for yourself," she said as she slowly resumed rolling her mane up in curlers in preparation of turning in for the night. "Perhaps it's for the best. It would never really work out, I'm afraid. Nudity just simply isn't for me..."

It wasn't so much sadness that Rarity felt, rather... frustration. It wasn't like she was planning to dive right into this like her friend had. Granted she was considering actually doing it, but the duration of which would be a brief experience compared to what Twilight was doing. And even then, she had to be honest with herself and admit that it was only to test Twilight's hypothesis that her fur would be softer afterward; that was really all there was for her to get out of it. But setting things up for just that, was proving to be a rather involved endeavor. She couldn't even begin to imagine how frustrating it must've been for Twilight, who viewed it more as a lifestyle choice, and thus had reason to do it more often than her. Unfortunately there wasn't much that could be done about that.

Or... at least not just yet anyway...


END