Princess Twilight Sparkle trotted down the streets of Ponyville, making her way towards the Carousel Boutique where Rarity was busy working. Rarity had decided to return to her dressmaking shortly after Rainbow Dash entered the portal, claiming that she "recieved a flash of inspiration, and desperately needed to act on it, darling." But since Rainbow Dash had just returned from the pocket dimension, full of excitement and wild tales of Sonic Rainbooms, Twilight had volunteered to go and bring Rarity for her turn to go through the portal. Which led to the present, where Twilight stood before the door of Carousel Boutique. The ornate building stood out from the rest of Ponyville, its elegant trim and pale colors painting a strong contrast between itself and the more common earth pony-made houses in the area.
Twilight reached a hoof out, and loudly knocked on the door. "Rarity?" she called into the building. "Are you ready to go?" Hearing nothing, Twilight focused, magic pouring through her horn and enveloping the doorknob. Without warning, the door flew open, and Twilight jerked, reeling slightly at the feeling of her magic being yanked about like that. Rarity stood in the doorway, a look of utter horror on her face.
"Ready to go? Do you mean ready to go into another world and meet another Rarity? Heavens, darling, do I look ready?"
"Um, yes?" Twilight asked. Rarity didn't look like she wasn't ready. Her mane was in its usual style, and her coat seemed clean. But her response appeared to be the wrong one, as Rarity gasped in shock.
"Twilight! Do you honestly think I can meet an alternate version of myself without properly accessorizing?" Rarity seemed insulted at the notion.
"Neither Applejack or Rainbow Dash brought anything out of the ordinary, Rarity." Twilight reassured her. "I'm sure whatever you bring, you'll be perfectly fine." This seemed to calm Rarity down slightly.
"Hmm, I guess that you're right. I may have been stressing myself out slightly. I suppose that I mustn't keep the other me waiting for too long. She's probably already through the portal."
At about the same time, in another world, a very similar situation was occurring.
"Rarity!" Sunset Shimmer called, ringing the doorbell of the girl's house. "C'mon, Rainbow got back! We're ready for you to go through the portal!" She stood outside, waiting for a couple of moments, before grasping the handle. At that moment, the door flew open, and Sunset nearly tumbled into Rarity's house.
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry, Sunset!" Rarity gasped, helping the girl back up. "I was just trying to figure out what to wear. I never thought that I'd meet a pony version of myself!"
"Yeah." Sunset forced a laugh. "It does sound pretty crazy, doesn't it?"
"Quite. So you said they're ready for me to go through the portal?"
"Yeah, that's why I came to get you."
"Oh, that's perfectly alright, Sunset. I was just making sure that I'm all ready. Do you think what I'm wearing is acceptable? It isn't anything special." Rarity asked. Sunset glanced at her clothes, a blue shirt with a purple skirt, as was her usual.
"I'm sure you'll be fine. Rarity. It's just a friendly meeting of sorts. I wouldn't be surprised if you go through, and the other Rarity isn't even wearing clothes." Sunset smiled.
"What?!"
"Kidding. Maybe. Probably not."
Rarity stood before the mirror, staring into the strange window that it created. As per Twilight's suggestion, she had decided to forgo any sort of formal outfit or clothes of any sort. She shook her head, breaking her gaze from the portal, and turned to look at Twilight. The alicorn looked happy, but a little concerned as well.
"Rarity?" she asked. "Are you ready?"
"I believe that I am." Rarity replied. "Let's see how this turns out, then." With that, she stepped forward, and lightly prodded at the mirror with a hoof. It rippled, acting strangely like water. She nodded, and delicately walked through the shimmering surface. Instantly, her vision was overtaken by a swirl of colors, and a strong whoosh filled her ears, making them twitch. Strangely, it felt as though she was bending, stretching, and contorting in impossible ways, her body bending along with the impossible rainbow that danced before her eyes.
But as quickly as it had come, it was over, and Rarity found herself standing on soft grass. Despite the fact that it had seemed almost evening when she had left Ponyville, the position of the sun here indicated that it was no more than early afternoon. Rarity ignored that for the moment, and gazed around, taking in the sights of a new world. It was familiar, almost disappointingly so. The trees surrounding her could be from almost any forest in Equestria except for the Everfree, and the larger tree situated in the middle of the clearing ahead of her looked exactly like the Ponyville library had.
Seeing as how the library was the biggest landmark in sight, she decided to trot towards it. As she walked, she continued to look about, noticing two small apple trees planted next to each other at the edge of the clearing. I wonder what that's all about, she thought. Maybe Applejack brought them? It does seem like something that she would do. Shaking her head, Rarity continued walking toward the tree, her hooves barely making an imprint on the soft grass beneath her.
Rarity stepped out of the portal, stumbling slightly. She was still dizzy from the experience of going through, something which she was not at all prepared for. She concentrated, waited for the dizzy feelings to go away, and regained her composure. However, that composure was quickly tested when a strangely light feeling came over her, making her ears twitch. Her... pony... ears. Well, this is certainly unexpected. she thought. Running a hand down her back, she could tell that her hair had extended into its longer magical form. I didn't except this to happen, but I guess I cannot complain. These pony ears are rather nice, after all.
Once she was sure that she was as prepared as she could be, she began to walk through the forest. Sunset had explained to her that there was a large tree in the center of the area that had been transformed into a sort of meeting room, so she decided to try and find her way there.
She identified the large tree rather easily, after all, it was the only tree in the clearing that she assumed was the center of this place. What did Sunset call it? A world? Pocket dimension? I guess 'place' works as good as any. she mused as she strolled across the grass.
Eventually, she reached the edge of the tree. However, she didn't see a way in. She began to circle the tree, looking for some sort of opening bigger than the windows that were placed slightly above her reach. As she was walking, she heard a noise that sounded like door opening, and then closing a second later. A few seconds after that, she came upon a vaguely arch-shaped opening in the tree, which she assumed was the door which she had heard.
Now she knew that someone else was there with her, and she assumed that it could only be the pony Rarity. She slowed down, carefully walking toward the door. An unpleasant feeling grew in the pit of her stomach, nervous feelings floating around her insides like butterflies. She stopped just before the door, and took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves. Don't panic, Rarity! she tried to mentally psych herself up. You're going to step through that door and... Meet another version of yourself... Okay, maybe a little bit of panicking is acceptable. She took another deep breath, and slowly breathed out, trying to push the tension from her mind. Before she could stop herself, she reached up and knocked on the door.
"Hello, is anyone there?" she called. While it was apparently herself in there, it was always polite to knock and ask before barging in on someone. The doorknob began to glow with a light blue aura, suprising Rarity. Is that... magic? she wondered, as the door slid open.
"Yes, hello! Do come in." A voice called out from the inside of the tree, sounding like it was at least half a room away from the door. I suppose it must be magic, then. Rarity mused as she walked inside. Sunset never really explained how that worked in Equestria. Rarity pulled the door closed behind her, and looked around.
The inside of the tree was surprisingly cosy. Due to the green leaves on the tree, she'd almost expected the inside to be full of moss and plants. But instead of all sorts of plant life, the room was filled with an assortment of chairs and couches, arranged in a circle. Some of the chairs seemed sized differently than the others, perhaps to accommodate ponies as well as people. The floor and walls were nice and smooth, especially for being carved out of a living tree. Lighting was provided by small windows and a few lanterns hanging from the ceiling.
The biggest surprise, however, was the white pony sitting in a chair across the room. Her hair, or mane, was purple, and styled almost like Rarity's own hair. Her coat was the same color as Rarity's skin, and when she turned to look at the newcomer, Rarity saw the same eyes she saw whenever she looked in a mirror. Two things were especially surprising to Rarity. One, the pony had a slender horn coming out of her forehead, and two, she wasn't wearing any clothes.
"Hello! You must be me, Rarity." the unicorn spoke, her voice eerily similar to Rarity's.
"Yes, I- I suppose so. It's, well, nice to meet you." Rarity replied, still shocked. Is it normal for ponies to not wear clothes? That must by why Sunset said this Rarity might not even be wearing clothes. She did seem rather amused when she said it.
"It's a pleasure to meet you too." the unicorn smiled at Rarity, then froze slightly. "Darling, are you alright? You seemed... stunned."
"Oh, I'm perfectly alright." Rarity reassured herself and her self. "Just a bit of culture shock, I suppose."
"Really? What was it about?"
"Well- how should I say this. Hmm. I assume that in Equestria, clothes aren't something that is worn all the time?" Rarity was trying to be as delicate as possible with the subject, she just hoped that she was doing it well enough.
"I suppose not, though in cities like Manehattan and Canterlot, ponies do tend to be clothed more often then not. Why? Is it not the same in human culture?"
"Not at all, really. In fact, not wearing clothes is something of a taboo, and is even considered a crime in most places."
"A crime? That seems rather extreme. I can understand the taboo, but making something like that a crime is a little hard for me to understand."
"Yes, well, I never thought to find out the origins of it. So clothes for ponies are more of a way to enhance your looks than anything else?"
"That's it exactly. Most ponies use clothes only for special occasions, or simply to look nice."
"Hmm. That's a very interesting notion. Anyways, since you are me, I'm curious as to what you do in Equestria?"
"Why, thank you for asking! I work as a fashion designer mostly in Ponyville, though I also have opened branches of my boutique in Canterlot and just recently Manehattan."
Rarity's mouth would have dropped open if was ladylike to do so. "You run three boutiques? How old are you?"
"You know never to ask a lady that." Rarity grinned slyly at her human counterpart. "Let's just say that I've had enough time since I graduated school to set up my business."
"Graduated school? That's odd, the girls and I are still in high school in the human world."
"That is certainly very strange. Perhaps the portal affects age somehow? Or maybe the two worlds do not mirror each other in that respect?"
"That could be it." The human Rarity pursed her lips as she thought. "I really can't say, though I suppose I will have to ask Sunset about it."
"And I will have to ask Twilight." A look of excitement so strong it seemed almost predatory grew on pony Rarity's face. "So, do you work with clothes as well in the human world?"
"Well, yes, but only when I have the time. School and homework get in the way sometimes, however."
"That's too bad. But I bet you've had some interesting ideas with your world's fashion." Rarity suddenly got what her counterpart was implying.
"Would you like to share ideas, darling?" she asked, a twin look of excitement spreading across her own face.
"Like to share ideas? Would I ever..."