//------------------------------// // Chapter 8: Coffee Break // Story: A Change In Fashion // by Kevinltk //------------------------------// Glamour softly whined as she slowly stirred awake from her slumber. Letting out a yawn, she opened her eyes to the sight of her own room. As Coco had promised, she and Glamour had cleaned out her work room to give Glamour her own space. Glamour’s bed was just an old mattress Coco had brought out of storage, and there was a drawer full of dressmaking supplies that was too much trouble to move, although Coco made sure to at least knock on the door first if she needed anything from there. Other than the aforementioned furniture and a small dresser for Glamour’s things, the room was not decorated with anything else. Not even a window was present to brighten up the dull room. And Glamour did not mind it at all. It might not be much, but it was a lot better than many of the other places she used that barely passed as shelter. It was also a private place all to herself, a useful perk for any changeling pretending to be a pony. As she did some stretches, her ears perked upon hearing the faint sounds of Coco’s sewing machine coming from the other side of her door. With a sigh, she went outside her room and knocked on the door right across the corridor. “Come in,” Coco’s voice replied amidst the noise. Glamour opened the door, and as expected, Coco was already busily working away, sitting in a chair as she carefully maneuvered a long strip of fabric through her sewing machine. “Morning, Coco,” Glamour greeted, leaning against Coco’s door frame. Coco turned to Glamour with a smile. “Oh, good morning, Glamour. I didn’t wake you, did I?” Glamour shook her head before taking a quick glance over the room. Scraps of fabric and other discarded materials were scattered everywhere, littering the floor and the furniture. It was like a rainbow and a tornado had practiced wrestling in Coco’s room. “I’m guessing you went right to work when you woke up,” said Glamour, also noting Coco’s unmade bed. “Pretty much,” Coco replied, grabbing another sheet of fabric and feeding it into her sewing machine. “I have to get all of these costumes for the theater done.” “Well, it was a good thing we had that lunch date a few days ago. You’ve been busy ever since with this order. Are you at least almost done?” Coco nodded. “I should be done by tomorrow, if all goes well.” “That’s good, but don’t overwork yourself. Speaking of, did you forget about breakfast again?” Coco opened her mouth to say something, but instead, a rumble from her stomach answered for her. Her cheeks glowing red, she let out a whimper as she sank into her chair. Glamour chuckled and headed for the kitchen. “Thought so.” Humming to herself, Glamour used her magic to take two slices of bread out of a bag and stuck them inside a toaster. A cabinet door was also opened, and a can of ground coffee floated towards Glamour in a green aura. Popping open the can’s lid, Glamour frowned when she saw that there was not enough coffee in the can to make even one cup. With a sigh, she threw the can into the trash. As she waited for the toast, Glamour scanned the living room area for any trash. When she first woke up in Coco’s apartment, the living room area was almost as messy as Coco’s room, but thanks to her, she had managed to clear away the clutter and confine it to Coco’s room. On the other side of the room, there was also a dress rack with the result of Coco’s work over the past few days. Close to twenty different colorful costumes were hanging on it, ready to be delivered to the theater. The toaster made a dinging noise, prompting Glamour to transfer the warm, crunchy bread to a plate. After applying a generous spread of jam, she took the toast back to Coco, who had returned to her work while she was away. “Oh, thank you, Glamour,” Coco said when the toast was carefully placed next to her on her worktable. She took a moment to finish working on the fabric she was holding before turning her sewing machine off and grabbing a slice of toast. “I need to thank you again for looking after me and taking care of the chores. I’m sorry that I’m not exactly the best roommate,” Coco said after she took a bite of toast and turned to Glamour. “And I’m sorry that you’ve been cooped up in here. It must be boring for you. Are you sure you don’t have anything else to do?” “It’s the least I could do since you are letting me stay here. Besides, it’s kind of interesting to see you work, even if you do tend to forget a few, well actually more than a few, things while you work.” Coco chuckled nervously. “Sorry about that. I just can’t help it. When I start working, I really get into it and lose sight of everything else. The place could be on fire, and I probably would not notice it.” “Well, it also means you’re really passionate and dedicated to your work. And it shows in all the great dresses you make.” Coco giggled. “Thanks. So, have you heard anything from Photo Finish yet?” Glamour shook her head. “No, I haven’t. I’m starting to wonder if she’s—” A knock from the front door caused both of them to turn to the source of the noise. “Were you expecting somepony?” Glamour asked. “No, although it could be somepony from the theater here to check on my work. Could you answer the door?” Glamour nodded and went to the front door. Right before she opened the door, she paused when she thought she heard the faint sound of music coming from the other side. Slowly turning the doorknob, Glamour opened the door by only an inch before it was kicked wide open, knocking her onto her flanks. “I, Photo Finish, have arrived!” I should have known, Glamour thought as she got back up on her hooves, recalling Prim Hemline’s suspicions of Photo Finish’s need for dramatic entrances. She shuddered a bit at the thought of Photo Finish stalking her, waiting for the right opportunity to pop out. She was probably going to start looking behind her shoulder a bit more often now. Looking around, Glamour saw that Coco’s modest apartment was suddenly cramped with the arrival of Photo Finish and her entourage, and the music Glamour heard earlier was now being blasted at full force. “Glamour, darling, how—” The rest of Photo Finish’s words were drowned out by the blaring music. “What?” Glamour yelled out, craning her ear closer to Photo Finish. “How are—” Again, the music made it impossible to hear the rest of the sentence. “What?” Glamour did not have to look behind Photo Finish’s thick shades to know the photographer was rolling her eyes. Photo Finish headed to the rear of her entourage as her ponies moved out of her way to reveal a stallion with a boombox on his back. She pressed a button on the boombox, and the music instantly died down to more tolerable levels. “Glamour, darling, how is my star?” Photo Finish repeated with a smile as if nothing had gone wrong. “Doing just fine, Photo Finish. It is good to see you again.” “Of course it is. It’s always good to see Photo Finish.” Glamour slowly nodded. “Right… So, what brings you here?” She yelped when Photo Finish’s hooves clamped onto her cheeks and brought her face right in front of the eccentric photographer. “I, Photo Finish, have wunderbar news! My publishers are loving the photos we took, and I didn’t even have to tell them to love it!” “That’s great!” Glamour replied with a cheerful smile, only to quickly fade away as her brow furrowed. “Uh, so what does that mean?” “It means it won’t be long before you hit the fashion world by storm! We just need to do one more thing.” “And what’s that?” Instead of answering, Photo Finish let go of Glamour, dropping her to the floor, and walked over to the rack of costumes that Coco made. “Are these all of your dresses?” she asked, holding up an outfit that looked like it would fit in a couple of centuries ago. “No, they are costumes for the theater at—” “Do you have anything new to wear?” “Well, no, not really, but—” “Where is that designer of yours? What’s her name… Momo?” “It’s Coco.” “Yes, yes, where is she?” “Right here, Photo Finish,” Coco called out, rushing into the room and bowing her head to Photo Finish. “Sorry to keep you waiting.” “You!” Photo Finish suddenly pointed a hoof at Coco, causing her to back up a few steps. “Uh, m-me?” “Glamour needs a new dress tomorrow!” “T-t-tomorrow?” Coco’s eyes grew wide. “What’s tomorrow?” Glamour asked. “You, Glamour, are going to have a fashion show! We need you to make an appearance right before your pictures are released to the masses.” “A fashion show? Really? Does Prim Hemline know about this? She’s not exactly rushing to get me back on stage.” “Hemline has no problem with this show because it is about you and only you. She said something about not having to worry about collateral damage.” “Good to know her faith in me has not changed,” Glamour mumbled to herself before speaking to Photo Finish again. "So uh, what exactly will I be doing? Is it going to be a lot like the photo shoot?” “Of course not.” Glamour breathed a sigh of relief. “Because this time you’ll have an actual stage with hundreds of ponies watching your every move. It will be even more wunderbar!” “Right… Yay…” Despite getting a chance to feed again, Glamour was not sure she was ready to face another audience yet. “Good, now I, Photo Finish, must prepare for tomorrow. An artist as great as I, Photo Finish, never rests! And now… I go!” While Photo Finish made it out of the door just fine, her entourage was apparently not used to making their usual dramatic exit in the cramped space. As they bumped against each other, trying to squeeze through Coco’s narrow doorway, Glamour could not help but feel an odd sense of satisfaction. When the last of the entourage finally made it out and Glamour closed the door, Coco let out a long sigh. “You alright, Coco?” Glamour asked right away. “Yeah, I’m okay… Sort of.” Coco frowned. “The theater costumes are due the day after tomorrow, and I thought I had plenty of time to finish them. But now, not only do I have to make a new dress for you, I’ll get more behind when we have to go to the show tomorrow.” “Oh…” Glamour bowed her head. “I’m sorry, Coco. I guess you’re going to have a really tough time because of me.” “It’s not your fault, Glamour. It’s all just unfortunate timing.” Coco sighed again. “I’m going to have to really be careful with my time, but I should still be able to do everything.” “Couldn’t I just wear one of the dresses you already made?” Coco shook her head. “I already showed off all my current ones to Photo Finish. She wants a new one, and I’m pretty sure she’ll notice.” “You could um…” Glamour hesitated before continuing in a halfhearted voice, “skip going to the show. I can just take the dress with me, and you can stay home to finish your work.” “Oh no, I could not do that. A small part of it is to make sure you’re dressed properly, but I really want to be there and cheer you on.” Glamour breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. “Thanks, Coco. To be honest, I’m getting kind of nervous about the show, but knowing that you’re coming is already making me feel better.” “I’m glad to help. Well, I guess I should get started on your dress now,” Coco said, turning back to her room. “Is there anything I can do to help?” “Actually, if it’s not too much trouble, could you brew me some coffee? I’m probably going to need it with all this stuff I have to do.” “About that… I actually tried to make you a cup earlier, but it looks like you’re out.” Coco looked back at Glamour with a small frown on her face. “Really?” After receiving a nod, she sighed. “Guess I’ll have to make do without it. Could you remind me to go buy some more the next time I go grocery shopping?” “Sure, but how about if I go out and grab a cup for you from a coffee shop now?” “Oh no, you don’t have to make a special trip just for that.” Glamour scoffed. “It’s no problem at all, Coco. I don’t have much to do until the show, and I want to do whatever little bit I could to help you out. Besides, I could use a little bit of change from cleaning up after you.” “Hey!” Coco tried to pout, but the sides of her mouth pointing upwards betrayed her. After Glamour giggled, she let out a short chuckle of her own. “Alright, if you really don’t mind…” Coco went into her room for a moment and came back out with a small pouch of bits. “And make sure you get something for yourself too.” “Sure thing, Coco,” Glamour agreed, levitating the bits over to her. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” When Glamour got onto the streets, she tried to remember if there were any nearby coffee shops. Fortunately, one of the things Glamour had noticed during her stay in Manehattan was that the ponies here really liked their coffee, and because of that, it seemed like there was a coffee shop on every street corner to meet that demand. So while she did not know where the nearest coffee shop was, it only took a few minutes of wandering around before she found one. Okay, just get a cup of coffee and go, Glamour told herself as she stepped into the shop. Nothing hard about that. “I got an espresso latte here!” Glamour stopped. “Wait, what?” “No whip, nonfat, extra peppermint frappuccino with two shots!” “Uh…” “Who ordered the quad, long shot, half cafe, salted caramel mocha latte with added vanilla, white chocolate, and hazelnut with whole milk, no whip, extra hot, extra foam, extra drizzle, extra salt, scoop of vanilla bean powder, and light ice… with sprinkles!” Glamour’s eye twitched. Her knowledge of coffee was pretty much limited to just brown. The last few orders might as well have been a foreign language to her. Taking a deep breath, she stepped into the line. As the pony in front of her placed her order, Glamour looked up at the menu. She saw coffee and iced coffee, but she could barely understand what the other twenty-eight items were. She never expected that she would need a dictionary just to order coffee. With her eyes still trying to decipher what exactly was on the menu, Glamour moved up in line when she noticed the pony in front of her had finished and moved out of the way. “Hi! Welcome to Ponybucks, how can I… Hey wait, you’re Glamour, right?” Hearing her name, Glamour looked down to see a familiar pony behind the cash register. “Oh hi, it’s uh… um… Cappuccino?” “Right!” Cappuccino replied with a big smile. “I thought you looked familiar. You were with Coco when she gave me that gorgeous dress for my date.” Glamour nodded. “How did your date go?” Somehow, Cappuccino’s smile grew even wider. “It was the best night of my life. My coltfriend could not keep his eyes off of me the entire date. I even got compliments from complete strangers when we were in Le Foin. That’s never happened to me before! Things couldn’t have been better! That is, until we finished our dinner.” Cappuccino held up a forehoof, showing off a golden band with a diamond on it. “That’s when he proposed.” She let out a squeal and did a little happy trot in place. “He did? Oh wow, congratulations!” “Thank you, Glamour, and please say thank you to Coco for me as well. Even though my colt, er, my fiance, was going to propose to me regardless of what I wore, Coco’s dress made the whole night more special. Between feeling prettier than I have ever felt before and getting engaged to my special somepony, it’s like a dream come true.” As Cappuccino rested her head on her forehooves that were propped up on the counter, her eyes stared off into space. Judging by the traces of love coming from her, Glamour guessed she was reliving her date. Seeing what Coco’s generosity had helped bring made Glamour smile as well. A moment later, Cappuccino blinked and stood back up in attention. “Oh, I forgot to mention that I actually was planning to visit Coco this weekend to tell her the whole story myself. I was also going to ask if she does wedding dresses. Do you know if she does?” “She probably could. She’s a great designer, and she makes a bunch of the costumes for a theater on Bridleway.” “That would be so great if she could. She helped give me a wonderful date with that marvelous dress, and I’m sure she can do the same for my wedding.” Cappuccino paused, looked behind Glamour, and gasped. “Oh, look at me, I’m holding up you and the line. What would you like?” “Well, Coco has a bunch of work to do today, so I’m just here to get a cup of coffee for her.” “Sure thing.” Glamour mentally wiped her brow, glad that she did not have to go through all those confusing terms to order an ordinary cup of coffee. “So, what kind would you like?” Glamour blinked. “Sorry, what?” “We got light, prench roast, espresso roast, decaf, full city roast, dark, Coltlombian, and then there’s our special house blend, and we also have…” Glamour let out a quiet whimper to herself as she wondered if she had time to curl up in a corner and weep. “Get a white chocolate mocha, Glamour.” Glamour’s confounding coffee conundrum was interrupted, not by Cappuccino, but by another familiar voice from behind her. Looking over her shoulder, Glamour found Grace standing right behind her in line, greeting her with a “Sup”. “Oh hi, Grace. Uh, what were you saying earlier?” “White chocolate mocha. It’s Coco’s favorite.” Glamour’s ears perked up. “Really? That’s great. Thanks, Grace.” She turned back to Cappuccino. “Could I get one white chocolate mocky—” “Mocha.” “Right, mocha instead?” Glamour paused for a moment, remembering that Coco wanted her to get one for herself. “Actually, make that two.” “Coming right up,” Cappuccino cheerfully chirped back. “And don’t worry about paying. It’s on me.” Glamour heard Grace say “Oh really?” right before Grace draped a foreleg over her neck. “How about adding a cinnamon latte to your order for your good old friend Grace that’s always looking out for you?” Glamour raised an eyebrow at Grace’s smile. “Didn’t you want to use a hammer on me a few days ago?” “Hey, it would have gotten you down from the ceiling faster… Maybe.” “Uh, do you know this pony, Glamour?” Cappuccino asked. “Unfortunately,” Glamour answered. She gave an exasperated sigh, making sure to make it as loud and long as possible. “Would it be alright to add her drink as well?” Cappuccino giggled. “It’s no problem. I owe you and Coco a whole lot more than a few free drinks. I’ll get started on your orders right away, and I’ll call you when they’re ready.” “Yes!” Grace got off Glamour and did a hoof pump. “Free stuff! My favorite! Hey, Glamour, why don’t you sit down with me for a bit? I need something fun to do during my break, but I guess since I’m here with you…” Glamour rolled her eyes and followed Grace. “So, what have the two of you been up to?” Grace asked when they sat down at a table. “You two haven’t been around since that whole hanging off the ceiling thing.” “Coco has been staying home to make costumes for the theater she works at, and I’ve been helping her.” “Helping her? As in making clothes and stuff?” “More like doing chores for her.” “Uh huh… So, is there like a maid costume?” “Yes.” Grace’s eyes widened. “Seriously? Wow, didn’t know Coco was into that sort of thing.” “Not for me!” Glamour cried out, a bit of red tinging her cheeks. “For the theater.” “Aww.” Grace frowned for a few seconds before reverting back to her usual extrovert self. “Oh yeah, Photo Finish is probably going to be visiting you soon. She asked for your address yesterday.” “She already did. She’s putting on a fashion show with just me in it tomorrow.” “Ooh, can I come? I only heard about what happened to you during the last show.” “Are you coming to watch and support me, or are you coming to watch in hopes that I repeat what happened during the last show?” “Yes.” Glamour facehoofed and chuckled. “Figures.” Their talk took a short break when Glamour heard Cappuccino calling her over with their drinks. As soon as Glamour returned and set the drinks on the table, Grace had quickly grabbed her cup and took a big gulp. “Isn’t that hot?” Glamour asked. “Don’t care. Need caffeine,” Grace replied before taking another chug. Ignoring Grace’s loud slurping, Glamour asked, “So, have you known Coco for a long time?” Grace put down her drink, letting out a satisfied sigh before answering, “Hmm… Yes and no.” “What is that supposed to mean?” “The thing is, I’ve seen Coco around for at least a couple of years, but we never talked to each other. We actually only became friends a few weeks before you arrived. I was having a really bad day at work, and out of nowhere, she brought me a cup of coffee. We got to talking, then one thing led to another, and then boom, we’re friends.” “It took you that long to become friends?” “Pretty much. Back then, Coco kept to herself and hardly spoke with anypony else, so it was a surprise when she was the one who came and talked to me like the Coco we have now.” “So basically, something happened a few weeks ago to change Coco.” Glamour thought for a moment and recalled her lunch with Coco. “That wouldn’t happen to be after she quit being Suri’s assistant during Fashion Week, would it?” Grace blinked. “Uh, yeah actually. Coco told you all of that?” “I know that Coco quit because Suri was going after one of the other competitors, but she didn’t tell me the specifics about it.” “Mhmm…” Grace hummed as she slowly sipped away at her coffee. “Could you tell me more about Coco when she was working with Suri?” “Pretty much everypony, including me, saw her as just Suri’s assistant. That’s it. Like I said, I hardly knew her until after the events of Fashion Week.” “Then what exactly happened during Fashion Week? It seems like that was a big turning point for her.” “Um…” For the first time, Glamour saw a Grace who did not know what to say. “Look, I met Suri during the last show, and I got a glimpse of how she treats Coco. Not only that, but every time the subject of Suri is brought up with her, she acts a bit funny and evasive. I’m just a bit worried for Coco, and I want to be sure she’s okay.” Grace silently stared stone-faced at Glamour, lightly tapping on the table with a hoof. Seeing Grace so serious and quiet was another first for Glamour. After a few tense, silent moments passed, Grace finally started talking again. “Well… Alright, fine. But what I tell you next, you are not going to talk about it with anypony else but Coco and I. Got it?” Glamour nodded immediately. Grace took a deep breath. “Alright, so this other designer Suri went after, she made some really cool dresses out of some special fabric. Before the rehearsals for the Fashion Week show started, Suri tricked the other designer into giving her that special fabric, and she used it to make copies of the other designer’s dresses, along with a bit of added flair. If things went Suri’s way, the other designer would have been accused of copying off Suri and be disqualified. “But somehow, the other designer made a whole new set of dresses and won first place while Suri came in second. However, because the other designer ran off the stage to see her friends or something like that, she didn’t know she won. When the designer came back, Suri convinced her that Prim Hemline was angry and that she was to stay away from her. The first place trophy would have defaulted to Suri if Coco didn’t accept it on the other designer’s behalf and gave it to her.” “So Coco quit because Suri cheated. And I guess that also explains why Suri is really hostile with Coco. Coco cost her the first place trophy, even if she did not deserve it. But why doesn’t Coco just tell me that? It doesn’t seem like it’s something that she needs to hide.” “That’s what I also want to know. Even before Fashion Week. I noticed that Suri did not exactly treat Coco well, always asking her to fetch coffee or criticizing everything she does. What’s worse is that some ponies suspected that Suri used underhoofed tactics to sometimes come out ahead of the competition, but there’s never been any concrete evidence showing that. But for some reason, Coco stuck by her.” “But what about the Fashion Week stuff? It seems like you and Coco know enough to turn her in.” “We do. Between me getting a peek at the other designer’s work before everypony else and Coco’s side of the story, we could get Suri into a lot of trouble.” “Then why don’t you guys do it?” “Because Coco doesn’t want to.” “What? Why not?” “She wouldn’t say. But if I had to guess, it would be because she’s trying to protect her own reputation. You see, it was Coco who actually stitched up all those copies.” Glamour gasped. “W-wait, Coco cheated as well?” “Unknowingly, thankfully. She wasn’t aware that Suri was having her make copies until it was too late. But since she was still Suri’s assistant at the time and had a hoof in the cheating, there’s the risk that ponies would lump her in with Suri. Having a black mark like that on her reputation can pretty much ruin her career.” “So we’re just supposed to keep quiet about it?” “Pretty much. While I would like to see Suri get knocked down a couple of pegs, it’s not worth the risk to Coco.” Glamour sighed and nodded. “Well, thanks anyway for telling me all of this, Grace. It’s something that has been nagging at my mind for a while.” “Sure, no problem.” As Glamour let her gaze drop to the table, she saw that she still had not tried out Coco’s favorite coffee. Using her magic, she floated the drink over to her and took a sip. Glamour’s eyes widened as the sweet drink flooded into her mouth, instantly drowning her gloom in a surge of syrup and sugar. Despite the beverage having cooled to a lukewarm temperature, the delicious drink made her tip her head back farther, allowing her to guzzle down her white chocolate mocha in gusto. When Glamour finished the drink, she let out a satisfied sigh and looked back to Grace who was staring at her with her mouth slightly agape. “Whoa…” Glamour blushed a bit. “Uh, I like sweet stuff?” “No kidding, and I thought Coco liked white chocolate mocha.” “Well, now I do too.” Grace chuckled as she got up. “I noticed. Well, I guess now is a good time for me to head back. I’ll see you at your little fashion show thingy tomorrow. Say hi to Coco for me.” After saying goodbye to Grace, Glamour turned her attention back to the other white chocolate mocha on the table. It was supposed to be Coco’s drink, but it probably had cooled off as well. A small smirk appeared on Glamour’s face as the cup was wrapped in a green aura and floated towards her. I really should get a fresh one for Coco, and no point in letting this one go to waste. It’s not like one more is going to hurt. Glamour’s hoof rapidly knocked on the door to Coco’s apartment until Coco opened it. “Glamour? What took you so long, I was getting—” Coco was cut off when a hot cup of white chocolate mocha floated into her hooves. “HiCocoSorryForBeingLateButIMetCappuccinoAndGraceAndITalkedToGraceForAWhileAndIBoughtYouSomeWhiteChocolateMochaButIHadTheFirstOneAndReallyLikedItSoIDrankYoursTooSoIBoughtAnotherTwoAndEndedUpDrinkingThoseToo.” “Uhh…” Coco slowly blinked. “Wait, did you say you had four cups of white chocolate mocha?” “YesAndIFeelLikeIHaveSoMuchEnergyAndWhyIsEverythingShaking?” Glamour not so much walked, but rather vibrated her way into the apartment. “Glamour, all that caffeine and sugar is not good for you.” “NothingWrongWithMeNopeNopeNopeICanSeeEvenSeeSoundsAnd—” “Glamour, You might feel uh, fine now, but you’re going to eventually—” A loud thump rang through the air as Glamour's face planted into the floor, her rump sticking into the air as muffled snores started emitting from her. “Crash…”