//------------------------------//
// Chapter 7: A Productive Day 
// Story: Photo Dash 
// by SS Nomad 
//------------------------------//

	Stepping out of the restroom of the Ponyville train station, Photo Finish surveyed the town through her pink lenses for the first time in a long while.  As the train pulled away behind her, a few ponies seemed to notice her, stopping to gawk and chitter.  Even without her entourage, Photo stood out in a crowd.  Standing amongst all the ponies waiting for their friends and loved ones was a familiar white unicorn, waving a hoof to catch Photo’s attention.
As Photo moved to meet her, Rarity’s expression of barely contained excitement grew, and she spoke with a singsong tone, “Welcome back to Ponyville, Miss Finish.  You know I didn’t actually see you get off the train.”
“Miss Rarity,” Photo deflected, surveying the area around the station, “Zis ist a very nice town.”
“Well I always thought so,” Rarity agreed, gesturing down the road, “My boutique is this way.”
As they both walked the short distance from the station to the boutique, Photo couldn’t help but notice the attention they were drawing.  More than once, she heard the distant click of a camera shutter.  Perfect, free publicity.
As they reached the boutique, Rarity opened the door with her magic, standing aside to let Photo pass, “After you.  I suspect we have oh so much to discuss.”
As Photo stood before the doorway with Rarity, the events of the night before filled her mind.  The panicky, animalistic side of her mind refused to step through what looked like the same trap just half a day ago, but Photo calmed herself and took a step forward, “Ja, zis shoot has ze potential to be qvite an event.”
As they both stepped in, the sound of Rarity closing the door behind her and locking the door sent a chill through Photo’s body.  Spinning around, she saw Rarity innocuously turning the window sign from open to closed and looking at Photo expectantly.  
“So where shall we start?” Rarity asked in a cheery tone, “would you like to see some of my older pieces or my current projects?”
Eyes darting around the room in a faint panic behind her goggles, Photo fought to calm her voice, “Is zhere any particular reason for locking the door?”
Rarity looked back at the door, innocent confusion in her voice, “Well I just figured we didn’t want anypony walking in on our conversation.”
“I vould rather not,” Photo responded abruptly, clearing her throat and trying the sentence again, “I mean, I vould rather ze door be unlocked.”
Looking worried she had offended Photo somehow, Rarity abruptly unlocked the door and stammered out, “Of course, that’s no problem.  The sign saying ‘Closed’ should suffice.”  She forced an awkward laugh.
Immediately much calmer, Photo turned to look at the rest of the room, “Ve should start vith jour most recent pieces.”
“Of course,” Rarity concurred, “this way.”





Taking a break from discussing dresses and scheduling, Rarity and Photo Finish had decided to take tea.  As the day had worn on, the situation had grown more comfortable.  Although Rarity was still simultaneously stressed and delighted to have such a famous pony looking through her wares, she quickly realized that Photo was treating her as a talented artist and not simply somepony to do business with.  At the same time, Photo had managed to quickly push the events of the night before aside after seeing Rarity in her usual state.
As Photo sat and pondered what she’d seen so far, Rarity watched her eagerly, eventually speaking up, “So, I’d love to hear what you’re thinking so far.”
Photo looked over her and tried to put everything to words, “Ze pieces jou have shown me, zhey are magnificent. But…”
Rarity flinched, “‘But?’”
“Zhey are vonderful pieces, and I can tell zhey vill sell vell,” Photo explained, “I just feel zat to really show jour talent, jou need something… more jou.”
Rarity took a moment to internalize the words before accepting, responding in deflated tone, “I think I understand what you mean.  It’s not often I get a proper custom order that I can put my all into.  I find myself just in a holding pattern of making what will sell in order to get by.  Most ponies in town know I’m talented, but they can’t really see my talent, you know?”
Photo watched her friend’s face as Rarity sank into sadness and regret.  She felt a pang, her own regret welling up inside of her.
“I’m sorry,” Photo admitted, “I should have given jou the attention jou deserved.”
Rarity snapped her head to face Photo, letting out a confused, “What?”
Photo continued her confession, “I… vas so distracted by Flütershy zhat I lost focus.  I should have given jou more of a chance.”
As Rarity caught the train of thought, she softly smiled and responded, “Water under the bridge.  Besides, all of Equestria was distracted by Fluttershy from the moment you discovered her, I can’t exactly blame you for being among them.”
Rainbow took off her goggles to look Rarity in the eye, “Thank you.”
As the mood settled, Photo’s mind hung on the whole debacle with Rarity and Fluttershy.  She still regretted it all, but forgiveness took a weight off her back.  Hopefully one day she’d be able to move on from it all, but she would never forget how Fluttershy looked in that thin green dress.  That dress.
Photo abruptly turned to Rarity, a serious look on her face, “Is zhere any chance jou have old copies of my magazine?”
“I’ve been subscribed for years,” Rarity admitted, a light blush filling her cheeks, “Why?”
“Vhere are zhey?”
“My study,” Rarity gestured.
In a sudden motion, Photo had her goggles back on and was out of the room.  With Rarity in intrigued pursuit, Photo stepped into the study and did a quick scan of the room for the magazines.  Her eyes locked on a magazine sitting on Rarity’s drawing table.  Stepping over to look as Rarity entered the room, she saw the headline.
Photo Finish Secretly a Pegasus?
Her immediate thought was of how convenient it was to stumble across what she’d been looking for.  As she heard Rarity gasp in panic behind her, another thought flooded her mind.  Rarity had read it already.
With an awkward laugh that sounded incredibly forced and was far too loud, Rarity snagged the tabloid with her magic, “Oh dear, seems my sister left her magazines around again.  Your magazines are right over there on the shelf.  I’ll just go put that in the guest room with the rest of her-”
“Could I see that?” Photo asked abruptly, causing Rarity to flinch and lose her grasp on the issue.
Photo lifted the magazine from the floor and walked back over to the drawing table, setting it out to read.  Turning to the right page, she wound up looking at the center spread.  The first thing she saw was a terribly done edit of wings onto a picture of herself, but that was just there to catch the eye.  Her eyes traced over to the pull quote on the facing page.  Overheard shouting after a mid-air collision.  Mid-air collision?  It only took a moment for her to remember.  Just a few days prior, when that bird hit her while landing.  Damn pigeons.  A second piece fell into place.  The pigeon, the one stalking her.  It had to be the same one.
Looking over the rest of the article, it was mostly filled with baseless assumptions, sensationalization, and whatever other dross they could throw in there.  Clearly this article was slapdashed together.  Thinking about it, the timing didn’t even make any sense.  She’d first seen the magazine the same day as the crash.  It took days for even the cheapest rag to write, lay out, and edit their articles, so how did they manage to pull this off?  The only sense she could make was if the article was already mostly ready on that day, and that concept opened up its own can of worms.
Photo turned to Rarity, who looked like a filly who had been caught with the cookie jar, “Vhen did zis come out?”
“They delivered it yesterday,” Rarity answered meekly, “It was a little later than usual.”
After a pause, Photo closed the tabloid and held it up, “Do jou need zis?”
“N- no?” Rarity replied in confusion.
Photo set the magazine aside and nodded, “Back to business, zhen.”
Genuinely surprised Photo wasn’t annoyed with her, Rarity stepped over toward her bookshelf, “Well, um… Which month did you need?”
“Ze first copy with Flütershy,” Photo replied, “page… tvelve? Fourteen?”
Rarity plucked the correct edition from the shelf and walked over to the drawing table to look at it with Photo.  Opening to the twelfth page, Photo grumbled slightly and turned to the page prior to find what she was looking for.  It was the first professional image she’d taken of Fluttershy, wearing that green dress with flowers that Rarity had made.
“Like zis,” Photo said, pointing at the picture.
Rarity looked at the image and then to Photo, “What do you mean?  You think I should use a similar style?”
“No, no, no,” Photo waved off, “Ze reason zis dress looks so magnificent is because it’s on Flütershy.”
“Well that’s…” Rarity hesitated, “I really doubt she’d be interested in modeling again.”
Photo locked up at the memories, but managed to shake it off, “Again, not vhat I mean.  Did you design zis for her in particular?”
“Well, no,” Rarity explained, “but I can’t truly say it wasn’t inspired by her.”
Photo turned to Rarity with a confident smirk, “Ve’ve found it.”
“Found what?”
“Do jou have any other pieces inspired by ponies jou know?” Photo asked, glancing over at the binders full of filed sketches next to the drawing table.
Rarity, catching on, pulled out one of the binders, “This is where I keep the sketches I do when I’m not in the mood for anything serious.”
Photo paged through dozens of sketches, mostly of Rarity and her mutual friends and acquaintances in magnificent dresses.  Each dress was unique, a work of art to fit the pony it was designed for.  They were-
“Perfect,” Photo said aloud, looking up to Rarity, “Jou truly shine with your couture.  I know few ponies who can make zheir dresses work so perfectly vith ze model’s form.”
Rarity began to beam at the compliment, “I… I just make what looks right.  Something that fits who they are as a pony.”
“And zhat is exactly vhat ve need,” Photo announced, turning the pages to look at further sketches.  Her breath caught as she looked at the most recent page.  She was looking at a picture of herself, or at least of Rainbow, in an evening gown.  Photo stared with only one thing on her mind.  She would look so good in that dress.
Rarity noticed Photo’s distraction and took a chance.  Pointing to the page, she explained, “Ah yes, she’s a good friend of mine.  Actually, she recently mentioned to me that she’d be willing to model some time if I needed.  Do you think I should get in touch with her?”
Shaking her head to snap out of her thoughts, Photo locked eyes with Rarity from behind her goggles.  With a light chuckle at the bold move, Photo shook her head, “Perhaps, but not for zis shoot.  Ze picture gave me an idea, though.”
“Oh?” Rarity questioned.
“I had three models come to mind after looking through zis,” Photo said as a smirk slowly formed on her face, “Two mares and a stallion.”
Rarity looked surprised, rubbing her neck as she contemplated, “Well, I suppose I could make a suit or something.  Not exactly my forte, but I-”
“Oh no, jou vill be making dresses,” Photo elaborated, her grin getting ever wider.
Rarity lit up like she’d just heard about a scandal, “Even for the stallion?”
“Ze traditional types might take issue vith it,” Photo continued, “Just so long as jou’re not afraid of a little controversy-”
Rarity feigned confusion and interrupted, “I’m sorry, Miss Finish, I must have heard you wrong.  I could have sworn you just asked if I was afraid of free publicity.”
Rarity and Photo both chuckled, sharing conspiratorial smiles.
“I vill put you in contact vith ze models I had in mind,” Photo confirmed, adjusting her mane, “I trust jou to have ze talent to make something magnificent for each of-”
She was interrupted by the chime hanging from the front door.  Photo and Rarity both reflexively stepped to look into the main room and see who it was.
“Rarity?  Are you in?  I’m here to return the- Eep!” Fluttershy was standing in the doorway like a startled deer, eyes locked on Photo in panic.
A million thoughts flew through Photo’s mind as she stood there, hunting for anything to say.  She could play it off, she could immediately apologise, she could… She realized there was a consistent first step of each possibility.  Actually saying something and not just standing there like an idiot.
“Flü-” She started to say, but Fluttershy rocketed out the door at a speed Photo had never seen from the mare.  Photo was left, hoof raised toward the fleeing pegasus, shocked and confused.
With Photo frozen in place, Rarity took the initiative to step up beside her and offer some comfort, “Miss Finish… Well, you know how Fluttershy can be.  She’s just being skittish, don’t take it personally.”
Letting out a deep sigh of regret and losing all of her poise and confidence, Photo barely whispered the only thing she could manage, “I’ll need a moment.”





After another cup of tea and some time to think, Rarity decided to check on how Photo Finish was doing.  Rarity eventually found her, sitting on a chair in the workshop, staring out the window into the distance.  Rarity wasn't quite sure what she had just witnessed between her friend and her business associate, but she could see that Photo was devastated by it and she felt the need to help how she could.
Hesitantly, Rarity spoke up, “Are you alright, or will you need some more time?”
“I still can't believe she bolted like zhat,” Photo stated in monotone without looking over, "I wish I understood why."
Rarity let out a sigh and pulled a chair near Photo’s, “I’m not really sure.  I can talk to her, if you’d like.”
Photo smiled weakly at Rarity, “I’d appreciate zhat.”
They sat there in silence for a while, both looking out the window.  It was a nice, peaceful moment, and it helped Photo cope with what had just happened, but she had things to attend to.  She couldn’t just waste her time on regret.
Photo stood and stomped the ground, snapping back to posture, “Well, ze time for sitting around is over.  I’m sorry to have vasted your time.”
“No, no,” Rarity insisted, “It wasn’t a bother.  I understand completely.”
“I vill be giving jour contact information to ze models,” Photo stated, “Zhey should each contact jou soon.”
“Miss Finish?” Rarity faltered for a moment, “Could I just ask one thing?”
Photo turned to her inquisitively.
“I know it’s none of my business,” Rarity prefaced, “and you have no particular reason to confide in me, but…”
“‘But?’”
“The article,” Rarity awkwardly ejected, “is it true?”
Glancing over in the direction of the study, Photo nodded and said nothing.
“But why?” Rarity pressed, “I haven’t been able to make sense of it.”
Photo put a hoof on Rarity’s shoulder, “Vell, jou vere raised believing jou could be vhatever jou vanted vhen you grew up.  Jou had countless idols to look up to, and jou settled on fashion.  Think of every famous pegasus jou know, other than Flütershy.  Vhat do they do?”
Rarity’s expression slowly shifted from confusion to disappointment, “They’re all athletes.  Every single one.”  She paused in thought before rebutting, “But times are changing, it’s not like anypony would have tried to stop you from living your dreams because you were a pegasus.”
“I didn’t vant to be ‘zat pegasus who does photography,’” Photo explained, “I vanted to be judged by my skill alone.”
Rarity slowly and grudgingly accepted.  Photo could see the same thoughts that she’d had long ago swirling through Rarity’s mind.  She’d long since accepted the impossibility of it all.
“I should go,” Photo remarked, “I have things to prepare.”  As she turned away to leave, she spoke without looking back, “Thank jou, I haven’t had a chance to get that off my chest recently.”
As she started to step away, Rarity stomped the ground, “I won’t allow it.”  As Photo turned back in confusion, Rarity cut her off and continued, “You wanted to be recognized for your talent?  Done.  Look around yourself.  You’re the most famous fashion photographer in Equestria.  Now you have an opportunity.  Sure, so you didn’t grow up with any pegasi to look up to in anything but sports.  Right now, pegasus foals everywhere are probably thinking the same.  Are you going to let them down?”
Photo was taken aback.  Part of her wanted to argue, wanted to disagree, had gotten so used to the state of things that she had just accepted it.  The rest of her… wasn’t really sure what to think.
“I…” Photo was totally lost, “Jou might be right, but I-”
Rarity shook her head, “No, there’s no room for ‘buts’ here.”
“No,” Photo agreed, “I suppose zhere’s not.”





Rainbow laid on her bed, staring at the ceiling.  She had so much weighing on her mind that it wasn’t all forming into cohesive thoughts.  She couldn’t slow down and process anything, her mind was racing.  With a deep breath, Photo stopped to focus.  One problem at a time.
Fluttershy.  The look of fear in her friend’s eyes still shook Photo, but then again, this was Fluttershy.  Literally scared of her own shadow, that one.  She could try to start up a conversation as Rainbow some day and see where that took her.  Okay, course of action, good first step.
Next, paparazzi.  Now that she had her disguise out of the penthouse, she’d be able to move around more easily.  Downside, if anypony saw inside the bag the game would be up.  Worth the risk, temporarily.  Also, what Rarity had said to her weighed on her mind.  Could she really come out and admit she’d never been an earth pony?  It would be a risky move, but there was something in the way Rarity simply accepted it…  With the tabloids digging into her life, it was only a matter of time until she had to address the issue one way or another.
Maybe there was some more information to be gleaned from the magazine itself, now sitting on her desk.  As she started to sit up to go look, sense got the better of her.  She knew she’d have to stay focused on solving problems or she’d just procrastinate more, and there wasn’t any time left for that.  The party was just barely more than two days away at that point.
The party.  A shiver went down her spine.  How would she attend as both Dash and Photo?  She could try to swap back and forth over the course of the night, but she’d need to do it smart or she’d be noticed.  Even then, she had no idea how many ponies would be there.  For some reason she’d been picturing a big affair, but it suddenly occurred to her that it had been described as a small event with friends.  Blending into and out of the scene might not be an option.  Let alone the hot tub…
Would Twilight even have the magic disguise done in time?  Would it work?  There could be restrictions, it might only work for a short time.  Rainbow had absolutely no idea what to expect of a magical… anything, really.  Worst case, she could still use her old disguise and avoid the tub as Photo.  That would be a disappointment, but it would work.  Okay, yeah, that’s kinda resolved.
Eyes locked on some fixed point miles above her bed, Rainbow brooded.  Everything was falling apart at once, and she had no idea why.  She’d been so good at all this, why was everything falling apart?  When did it start?  Thinking it over, it had all started when she talked to Spitfire about the Wonderbolts shoot.  On her way there, she hit the pigeon, and everything was going downhill since.  Wait, no that’s not quite right.  She had flown to Canterlot to check for Rarity’s letter.
She swore to herself.  There was a reason she’d always tried to keep her two lives apart.  The last time she’d come this close to being outed was the whole fiasco with Fluttershy and Rarity.  She knew from that point to keep her two lives as far apart as possible, yet here she was, doing the exact same thing.  Then again, she wouldn’t be able to live with herself if she didn’t do this for Rarity.  It was her greatest shame as a friend.  She needed to fix it.  Afterwards, so long as everything worked, she’d be done.  Go back to living two different lives with two different sets of ponies.  It was easier that way.
Rolling over to bury her face in her pillow, Rainbow’s mind wandered back to the party.  Her thoughts completely stalled out.  She realized she still had no fresh ideas.  All the could think was swap disguises a few times over the course of the party or… what Twilight had suggested.  The longer she thought about the risks of switching back and forth, the more her hope failed.  Somepony could get curious about where she kept going and follow her.  She could get walked in on while changing.  Changing in a hurry, she could get sloppy and be noticed when she got back.  The more she thought, the deeper she sank into a sudden sadness.  Tears welling in her eyes, she finally admitted it to herself.
It wasn’t going to work.
Rainbow had to cancel.
She had to disappoint Spitfire.