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// Her Diamond in the Rough 
// Story: Daily Life In Canterlot High 
// by Banchoking 
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Out in the woods, seven familiar girls were having a lovely little picnic near a very large, freshly dug hole in the ground.

"I gotta say I never expected you to end up with a guy like him," Rainbow Dash blurted out through bits of half-chewed banana.

Rarity glanced over at her friend, "Whatever do you mean?"

"Well, you know. You're all about fashion, pretty things, an' makin' a good impression and he's......" Applejack hesitated to finish.

"He makes me smile, he's ever so romantic, and it's fun to ride on his shoulders. Ooh, and he's just so passionate about what he does!" the aspiring fashion designer giggled.

The girls looked over at the still deepening hole the so called, "Diamond Dudes," were digging in.

The newest member of their group, the Twilight Sparkle from this world, raised an eyebrow, "What are they doing exactly?"

Pinkie smiled, "They're collecting rock and mineral samples to help my sister with her thesis so she can get her rocktorate!"

Twilight's nose wrinkled briefly before putting on a polite smile, "You mean her doctorate."

"Yeah, but it's in rock science, so it's a rocktorate!" the party lover responded without missing a beat.

"You mean geology.....or mineralogy.....or....ugh, you get my point," she huffed and went back to drinking her juice.  

Fluttershy put her hand on Rarity's shoulder, "I think it's wonderful you've found someone who makes you happy Rarity. Do you have any plans together this weekend?"

"Thank you dear, and as a matter of fact we do! We're going to the museum tomorrow. I can appreciate the art and he wants to learn how they excavate delicate ruins and artifacts without damaging them, he's also as eager as I am to see their jewelry collection. I guess the museum really does have something for everyone!" she laughed.

Rainbow Dash gave her a look that just screamed disbelief, "He wants to look at jewelry?"

Rarity grinned at the opportunity to brag on her boyfriend, "He may not look it darling, but he and his friends are well versed in judging gemstones. Variety, quality, cut. They can make me look like a novice when they want.

Sunset swallowed a bite of her sandwich, "Well, I'm glad for you too. You were acting kind of....listless just before you two started dating. Like you didn't know what to do with yourself."

Rarity sighed, "I guess I was feeling a bit lonely at the time. Don't get me wrong, you girls are the best company I could ever hope for, but at some point you need something deeper than that."

Rainbow Dash snorted, "I'll bet."

Rarity rolled her eyes, "Really Rainbow Dash! Get your mind out of the gutter. We only had our first kiss yesterday."

"Really?" asked Sunset, sounding mildly surprised.

Rarity smiled and took a sip of her drink, "He's shy, and a proper lady knows how to wait."

"And maybe you're a little gun-shy after that fiasco with Blueblood," Applejack nudged her friend's shoulder.

Rarity turned her nose up and faced away from the farm girl, "I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about."

Twilight's brow furrowed at the name of her old schoolmate, "Wait, Blueblood? As in the one who goes to Crystal Prep? Who's family practically owns the entire state? That Blueblood?"

Rainbow Dash let out a barking laugh, "Yeah, that's him alright! Rarity tried to, 'work her charms,' on him at a charity event and pretty much became his slave for the evening."

The girl in question was blushing heavily but maintained her composure, "Well, that's all in the past now and as I recall none of us walked away from that party without a black mark on our record. So unless you all want your dirty laundry aired as well I suggest we drop the subject."

The laughter hadn't vanished that quickly since Twilight accidently drained Pinky's magic.

Rarity cleared her throat, "Besides, I'm with Fido now and he's the perfect gentleman."

As if on cue, Fido and his friends, Rover and Spot, climbed out of the hole with heavy bags full of samples.

After they placed them carefully in a wheelbarrow, Rover said that he and Spot would go with Pinkie to deliver them to Maud, leaving Fido to fill the hole back in.

As the remaining girls were cleaning up the picnic area, they were treated to one of the most shocking things they had ever seen. Rarity walked over to the huge pile of dirt beside the hole and began shoveling. 

Rarity looked over and, seeing her friends' slack-jawed expressions, chortled, "Oh my! You didn't think I wore work boots here for nothing did you? After all it's a sad woman who can't at least lift a shovel to help her man once in a while." She leaned over and gave her boyfriend a peck on the cheek, causing him to smile and blush lightly.

As the girls continued to clean up their picnic, the steady rhythm of two shovels filled the forest air.