“Oh, Twilight! Can't you just picture it? Nous, stepping out in a stunning new school uniform for the autumn season!”
“Eh, why do we need to wear different clothes, Rarity? I think this vest you made for me is practical and efficient enough for me.”
“Nonsense, Twilight! Besides, a change of outfit can do wonders for one’s outlook! Not to mention the incoming winds of autumn are treacherous for a girls outfits!”
I was in Carousel Boutique designing my next big hit of the season! Last year was a complete success in the dressing department… but the accessories I designed, UGH! What was I thinking? Earrings resembling leaves and bracelets in the form of chestnuts!? The atrocity!
Never mind that! This year I have envisioned the next Vif Succès for my career! Brown and reddish are the color of today! I asked my dear friend Coco Pommel in Manehattan to buy me the best fabrics she could get me and oh dear! How happy I am with this merchandise! But more happiness was what I felt in my heart when she told me last night that she found a co-designer called Goldie Threads! Apparently, she was really good in ceramic accessories and disguises so I couldn’t wait for her next fashion portrait in the next issue of ‘Bon Chic Femme’!
“Rarity!” My dear sister called me. “We don’t have silver threads for your new dresses!”
“WHAT!? How this could happen?”
I was sure that I had a spare thread of that color!
“Remember that we used that thread to repair Nitpick’s favorite shirt! And also remember that you must retrieve your new stitches for your sewing machine in the plaza of the suburbs area!”
“Agh! I forgot about that thanks to the tests of this morning! Twilight! Would you please come with me to the Chocorette Plaza?”
“I’ll gladly come with you, Rarity! Spike! Stay here with Sweetie Belle and help her with whatever she needs”
“Yes, Ma’am!”
“Excellent! Sweetie Belle, please unfold the fabrics like I taught you last time! They are expensive so treat them carefully!”
“You got it, Rarity! Come, Spike! Let’s eat something first!”
“Oh yeah, I am hungry!”
That girl was livelier than ever since the day we worked in Bittersweet’s clothes together! Sweetie and her friends were more united since they joined the school paper with Muffins… They might have released some disturbingly funny photos and news in the last issue but I don’t think the Principal would mind some pictures of her eating some donuts during the events of the mini cooking contest of Pinkie Pie a few weeks ago.
My travels with Twilight took us to the Designer Emporium! The second best place to buy your fashionista’s necessities in this part of the country. Maximus Plaza’s boutique store had a lovelier selection of materials for dress making but they were remodeling their store. It doesn’t matter since this place was excellent nonetheless.
As we entered the emporium, I couldn’t stop in marveling my eyes with the latest designer equipment available in the market. But my current equipment was in great condition and has never failed me since I always sent them to maintenance from time to time. This was an expensive profession, but one that I was glad to be able to exert it.
“This looks cute!” Twilight said while admiring some high quality cotton.
“This Ulplima cotton is the softest and most workable fabric for the making of light shirts. Sadly, it’s not that durable under extreme conditions so it’s recommended to use it only on formal designs. As a matter of fact, your long shirt is made of this fabric.”
“I didn’t know this was so expensive! Now I feel bad for accepting this clothes you made just for me”
“Nonsense! They were a gift and I really wanted to make a change of garments for you! And speaking of that lovely cotton! In this kind of business, you pay for the quality of the product! You can’t go wrong with most of the fabrics here! UH! This fur imitation is simple divine! And it’s on discount! Buuuuuying!”
I retrieved my package while buying all the materials I needed to work in my new projects. Normally I would carry hundreds of bags after a shopping spree but I already had what I needed in home so this would do. Twilight was helping me carrying some of the bags but suddenly, an embarrassing rumble was heard from our bellies.
“It seems we need to eat something now!”
“Yes, but does this plaza sells vegetarian food?”
“Absolutely, Twilight! I still can’t believe that you never came to the suburbs. I mean, they are the separation between Crystal States and Ponyville!”
“Rarity, it’s Crystal State, not States! I don’t like it when the people in the city call it like that! We are just the capital city, Cheeseburger! Not the actual state! The people in the city sometimes can be so full of themselves!”
“Oh, Darling, you clearly haven’t been in Manehattan or Philidelphia!”
“I don’t like big cities… at least the noisy parts. Ponyville is much better! It feels like a home away from home. If you know what I mean!”
“Absolutely! I don’t think I could stay away from home that long. But enough about this! Follow me and I’ll show you a wonderful place to eat the two of us!”
We walked just a few meters until we arrived to ‘Ensaladas Caseras’! The best family restaurant for vegetarians in this plaza! The inside of the place was pretty homely and rustic in a beautiful way, perfect for the likes of Applejack! There were still a lot people inside, mostly young couples and group of friends but luckily there was an available space for us to eat comfortably.
The menu was meticulously adorned with plant like silhouettes in the thin wood structure. The design showed with simplistic detail each dish available. Once we finished ordering our respective meals, we enjoyed some healthy snacks while talking contented.
“So, Twilight! It’s been nearly a month since you transferred to CHS. How do you feel in your new school?”
“It’s a great difference, Rarity! The welcoming setting is extremely nice. I feel bad for Spike since he can’t talk as freely as he would like... in a way is a kind of a waste..”
“You know it’s for the best, darling!” I said reassuring her. “Only those close to us know the whole truth of what happened that day. We got lucky that only a quarter of the school that already knows of the Princess and a small portion of the students of your old school knows to keep something a secret… Well, even if they spoke the truth, the people would consider them nuts!”
“I still can’t believe that Principal Cinch hasn’t done something yet… she can be so vengeful…” Twilight said somewhat afraid.
“Shh… You are under Principal Celestia’s protection now! And you have us for the matter! Whatever that Principal is plotting, it will not work.”
“You are right. I believe I’m just being paranoid!”
“Maybe you are just tired with all that training Rainbow imposed on you! She cares dearly for us and in her mind she thinks that what she is doing is the best for you. She can sometimes be so reckless but that’s normal for her!”
“Hehe! She truly is something else!”
“My ladies! Your orders are here!”
“Oh, Thank you!”
The ornamentation of the pine dishes were beautifully arranged with tender leaves from the lettuce. The salads were exquisitely positioned in the middle while the crisp bread rolls were beside it. The soft fragrances of the pineapple juices were a welcoming change of aroma for our hungry bodies that desired the nourishment before us.
We took a bit of our food and…
“Perfect.” I finally said overjoyed.
“You were right, Rarity! This tastes great!”
We continued to talk about her time during school. It seems my methods to make poor Flash understand that this Twilight is simply not interested in him failed. How treacherous can be the heart when infatuated. Sometimes we forget that we cling to an ideal lover to the point of tinting our sight in pink.
Twilight is simple too innocent for a relationship, for now. I shared to her a little story about my dream of fortune and vain looks after Sunset separated my friends from me for some time in her days of evil. Once, long ago, I was invited by miracle to a dance in the Canterlot castle by an old lady who was client of mine. I felt so lucky because next day I was going to participate in a fashion contest. The best of the best in the high society were there, and I saw him for the first time! Prince Arbelth Blueblood!
He looked like a dream… but that was just a façade from his part. The aristocrats are simple too selfish for the common folk. I wondered if they could develop a bond of friendship with people. Sometimes being rich corrupts the empathy of the spirit.
“And then what happened?” Twilight asked of me with great curiosity.
“Well, after I slapped his face, called him an uncivilized swine and went straight to my hotel, I saw something that reminded of what I do best!”
“And what is that? A fabulous dress?” She asked curious and excited.
“Close, but not exactly! There was a poor family in some forgotten and cold streets. Their faces showed that they were freezing and had great hunger. I couldn’t stay idle and let them be like that so I went back to my room and grabbed my finest and thickest fabrics and made some blankets for them. I gave them the blankets and some food I could manage to give with the money I had. During those days my boutique wasn’t as renowned and successful as it is today so only juices and breads were everything I could manage. But something went terribly wrong the next day for me… briefly at least”
“What happened?”
“Well, the materials I used were supposed to be for the dress-making contest of the next day… and I didn't have spare money to buy more. I was about to retire from the competition but suddenly, a miracle happened. Someone knocked the door of my room. As I opened the door, there was a package that contained new fabrics and tools, spare money and a beautiful note that said something that I always preached in my life and it remind me of it!"
"What did it said!?"
"It said, ‘You gave your all when you should have keep it for yourself, and yet you did it nonetheless! A generous spirit will always be rewarded one way or another!’”
“Who sent you that!?”
“I don’t know! Perhaps one of the wealthy saw what I did that day from their cars and sent me that gift, but that would not explain why I received the materials with the exact money I needed! Perhaps I will never know, but during the competition, I was more inspired than ever with what happened and I won second place! That achievement combined with how popular my dresses were made of my boutique the place it is today!”
“It seems your generosity truly rewarded you that day!”
“Oh, Twilight! When I met Fluttershy for the first time in middle school when she needed a change of clothes, I told her that we all need kindness every now and then. Sometimes helping someone in need even for the silliest of reasons can make massive impacts in other people’s lives. There will always be the backstabbers and selfish people that will try to make you like them. But you must prevail, my friend! For generosity is to reach down to people’s heart and lifting them up. Be brave as well as generous in your ideals. There is nothing wrong for being selfish from time to time, but whatever you have to spare to the needed, you should give it without thinking. And one day, someone, somewhere, will help you from the shadows, just like someone helped me in my time of need.”
“That sounds so… right, Rarity!” Twilight said with complete approval.
“I knew you would understand, darling! Now, let’s finish this and go back to the boutique! We still have like an hour of sunlight before evening arrives. Tomorrow we have more tests and I need to make progress to my designs and study if I don’t want to be behind schedule!”
“Then what are we waiting for!?” She was about to eat quickly.
“Nah- ah- ah! Modals, Darling! Eat slowly! There is no hurry!”
And we enjoyed our time in this lovely afternoon.