Part 6
A Monument to Fashion
Part 6
There was a sudden chorus of gasps from behind Twilight’s shoulder, “What in the-“ began the violet unicorn as she turned around to see what was going on, “world?” she finished weakly as she found that the crowd had evaporated into thin air, the only sound filling the streets of Ponyville that of doors, windows and shutters being slammed shut as every one of the ponies fled in a panic.
The Princess gave her student a bemused look and Twilight could only shrug helplessly, “Ponies around here are a little, erm, high strung sometimes.”
“I have noticed that.” Celestia observed with a dry little smile. “So, it would seem our questions are about to be answered.”
The mares all turned their attention back to the opening door as it completed its arc and gently thumped up against one of the columns to reveal darkness within. The friends all leaned forward unconsciously, straining to see inside, for some hint of whatever might be concealed within.
“I see something,” Pinkie squeaked in excitement, “I see a light! Lookie!”
Indeed, there was a light visible inside, glowing a pale blue and growing steadily brighter by the moment as it approached the exit. Once more, the girls held their breath, eyes fixed on that glowing light. Even the Princess was leaning forward, more than a little curiosity visible on Celestia’s otherwise inscrutable visage.
Stifling a yawn behind one hoof, a frazzled looking Rarity stepped out from inside the tomb, rubbing at her eyes as she glanced about. Her gaze slid right over the small group staring watching her in silent amazement, the unicorn looking as if she hadn’t had much sleep, her mane sticking out in all directions rather than being held in its usual perfect coiffure.
Her horn glowed brighter as she shut the door behind her than nimbly levitated across the river and set down on the grass in front of them with only a little tired stumble betraying her exhausted state. She looked over her shoulder, nodded to herself, and then walked forward and straight into Princess Celestia, coming to a halt with a surprised “Oof!” She rubbed at her muzzle and finally seemed to really LOOK at what was in front of her, head lifting as she came nose to nose with the gently smiling face of the alicorn.
“P-Princess Celestia? Oh my! I…” Only then did she look at the faces of her five friends, taking careful note of their astonished expressions, “Errr, is something the matter, darlings? Why are you all standing here at this time in the morning?” She fidgeted quickly with her mane, trying to pat down some of the loose curls into some semblance of order.
“Rarity?” Fluttershy was, surprisingly, the first to speak. “That is you, isn’t it?”
“You’re not a zombie? No sudden cravings to shamble or chew on somepony’s delicious brains?” Spike couldn’t quite let the zombie idea go as he peered up at Rarity from between Twilight’s forelegs.
“Yes darling, it’s me,” she answered Fluttershy first, “and no, Spikey-wikey, I can assure you that I have no pressing need to…” She trailed off as she looked back over her shoulder, then at her friends… Over her shoulder again, back at her friends, “Oh. Oh my. I think I owe you all a little explanation, don’t I?”
“A LITTLE?” Rainbow Dash finally exploded, hovering in the air inches from Rarity’s nose, “We thought you were DEAD! We thought Trixie had done something to you! Or Changelings, or Discord or-“
“Sombra.”
“Or Sombra, yeah! Wait, what? What’s Sombra got to do with it?”
“He’s the reason I built that,” Rarity’s voice was soft. “It’s a bit of a long story, darlings. Perhaps we can go inside and I can explain myself properly? I’m a little embarrassed at how this has all come out and really, you’re not seeing me at my best. I’m hardly prepared for a meeting with a Princess!”
“You have nothing to be sorry for, Rarity,” Celestia assured her, “I am as glad as your friends are to see you safe and unharmed. Perhaps you are right, we should move this indoors. Do you need a moment to fix your mane, perhaps? I’m sure Twilight or Spike could make the rest of us some tea while you spruce up, so to speak?”
“That would be lovely, Princess. You’re too kind. Shall I meet you all at the library when I’ve had a chance to, er, compose myself properly?” She flashed a weak, sheepish smile at the group.
“Then we shall see you shortly,” the Princess turned to leave, then paused and looked back over her shoulder. “You tried to use the background pony spell Twilight created, didn’t you?” she mused. “I can still sense the remnants of the magic.”
Rarity’s face fell and she lowered her head to the ground. “I honestly though the spell would hold,” she lamented. “I didn’t want anyone to see it until I was ready for the unveiling.”
“Wait. What the hay is a background pony?” Applejack snorted, “Y’all aren’t makin’ much sense. What’s a spell about a pony gotta do with this?”
“All in good time, darling.” Rarity said hurriedly. “I’m sure Twilight can explain the ins and outs of it as you walk back to the library,” she didn’t wait for a reply as her horn flashed and she quickly let herself into the Boutique, closing the door firmly behind.
“So. Tea?” The Princess said simply with a little smile.
*****
The five friends, plus one relieved dragon and one Princess waited semi-patiently in the library for the arrival of their friend. We say semi-patiently as Rainbow Dash insisted on flitting from one end of the room to the other until Applejack grabbed her by the tail and hauled her down into a chair, the pegasus grumbling softly but not resisting as she settled down and instead took a sip from her third cup of tea.
“Five bits says she shows up in her dress from the Grand Galloping Gala.” Spike suddenly announced as he cleared up the remains of the sandwiches everypony had been nibbling on.
“Fool’s bet, sugarcube. Ten bits says she shows up in something she’s made special just for meetin’ the Princess.” AJ extended her hoof and Spike bumped his fist against it.
“Bet’s on, everypony.” Dash grinned. “You’re so out ten bits, Spike. I gotta go with AJ on this. No way would Rarity be seen dead in last year’s fashion. Errrr… Metaphorically speaking.”
Twilight resisted the urge to smack herself in the face with her hoof for about the twelfth time since she’d got out of bed this morning and decided to move the conversation on to something at least partly constructive, “So Applejack, you were asking about the background pony spell?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah, so ah wuz. So what it is, exactly?”
“Well, basically what it does is it makes you part of the background. Not literally, but it makes you seem nondescript, uninteresting. Ponies will just look right past you unless you do something out of the ordinary to get their attention. It’s a useful spell for if you want to move around without people noticing you but you don’t want to expend the energy to hold up, say, an invisibility spell.”
“So why didn’t it work on Rarity’s, er, construction project?”
“Because I’m not Twilight, darling, and my reach exceeded my grasp, as it were. Rather badly, as it turns out.”
All eyes turned to the front door where Rarity stood, doing her best not to make direct eye-contact with anyone in the room. The sombre, black trimmed dress she was wearing was not one any of the ponies in the room had ever seen before and certainly bore no resemblance to the purple and yellow dress she had worn to the Gala the previous year. AJ flashed Spike a quick, triumphant little smile as the dragon sighed and handed over the bits.
“So, Rarity,” Celestia set her teacup aside and sat back, her multi-hued mane moving gently in that unseen wind, “I believe you have something of a story for us all.”
“Yes. Yes, I suppose I do,” the fashionista whispered as she stepped in and let the door swing shut. "But first I want to say how terribly sorry I am that I made you all worry about me. That was certainly the last thing on my mind,” she rubbed a little at her muzzle, “In truth I haven’t been myself for a while now.”
“So what’s been goin’ on, Rarity?” Dash got to the point in her usual inimitable fashion. “Why make us think you were dead?”
“You weren’t supposed to see it, darling. Not yet, anyway. I’d planned to unveil it at the end of the week once I’d finished a few last little details.” Rarity settled down at last, taking a deep breath before beginning her story, “You know we nearly lost. Things have looked bleak for us before now, certainly, but that day in the Crystal Kingdom with Twilight trapped, the barrier down and Sombra bearing down on us… I honestly though that was going to be the end of it, of us.” She flashed Spike a warm, caring smile, “If it hadn’t been for Spikey-Wikey’s bravery and, ahem, the strong throwing hoof of your brother, we might not be here right now.”
“So?” Dash’s face was a picture of confusion, “We’ve faced death before! We stared down Nightmare Moon! We fought the Changelings, we even kicked Discord’s plot all the way back into a statue. Why was this time different?”
“I honestly don’t know, darling. Perhaps it was just a little too close for comfort; perhaps dealing with monsters, mages and malevolent forces of nature has taken a toll on me but when we got back, all I could think about was that we could have died. I could have died… And there was nopony I could trust to ensure that I was properly immortalized!”
There was a long, stunned silence as the friends all exchanged glances. Celestia said nothing, merely taking another sip from her tea.
“Wut?” Applejack deadpanned. “Y’mean to say you were worried if ponies would REMEMBER ya?”
“Oh no, I’m sure they would remember me. I’m not just any old common pony, after all, but I was worried they wouldn’t remember me properly, in a manner befitting a pony of my style and sophistication.”
That was it. She couldn’t hold back anymore, she had to do it. She’d probably give herself a concussion at this rate, but Twilight couldn’t hold it back any more as she smacked herself in the face with her hoof.
“So the whole making us think you were dead…?” She growled, voice muffled by the hoof she’d applied to her face. Rarity, if anything, managed to look even more embarrassed. She cleared her throat, casting a quick glance at the circle of silent ponies staring back at her before she went on.
“Was really not at all what I had planned! I would never be so cruel to my friends. I just hadn’t realised my spell had failed, you see.” She mumbled. “I’d been up all night working on getting the curtains to hang just SO and I, that is, I didn’t really mean to but I’d been up for so long that I thought it wouldn’t hurt if I just had a little, I mean no-one could SEE it so it wasn’t like anyone would notice if I curled up and had a little, erm, a little… Nap.”
Pinkie had been watching Rarity in silence all through this exchange, her head tilted a little to one side, a puzzled look on her face. “Silly!” She suddenly exclaimed, making everyone jump. Dash had to stifle a fit of coughing as she all but inhaled half a cup of tea, Applejack thumping her on the back till she could breathe again. “You don’t need a big silly thing like that! There’s lots of ponies who’ll remember you and how wonderful you are! What about Fancy Pants? Or Hoity-Toity? They were both huuuuge fans of your dresses! Or Princess Luna! She wouldn’t even be Princess Luna anymore without you!”
“And not just ponies.” Fluttershy added, “What about that serpent you donated your tail to for his moustache! He’ll always remember you as being sweet and helpful and kind.”
“Yeah! And what about Discord? You helped us kick his ass!” Dash chipped in. “I mean that was certifiably one hundred and twenty percent AWESOME! He’ll never forget you, whether he likes it or not!” She paused and grinned broadly. “Doubt Prince Blueblood will forget you anytime soon either.” Rarity couldn’t quite muffle her snort of disgust at the mention of her less-than-fairytale Prince.
“I think you have left more of a legacy than you realised, Rarity.” Celestia observed. “You have many friends and admirers within Ponyville and Canterlot and let us not forget your own family. Do you believe Sweetie Belle would let anyone disrespect the memory of her sister? If there was anyone who could make sure that you were, as you say, properly remembered, it would be her.”
Rarity sniffled a bit, wiping a tear from one eye, “Well, when you put it like that... I suppose I hadn’t really thought about it in those terms. You’re right, of course, all of you. No matter what had happened to us then, we all have those who care about us, lives we’ve touched and changed for the better and they’re a far more fitting memorial than any tomb or mausoleum,” she paused a moment, “even if it WAS fabulous.”
“It sounds to me like you’ve got a letter to write to the Princess, Rarity.” Twilight smiled as she trotted over to hug the downcast fashionista, “We’re all just relieved to see you back again. Next time something like this is bothering you, just remember that we’re all here for you and we’ll help out anyway we can.”
“I look forward to reading about the lessons you’ve learned here, Rarity,” the Princess rose as she spoke, “but for now I must be returning to Canterlot. Have you decided what you will do with your memorial?”
“Oh, hmm. No. I suppose it is really a little gauche, isn’t it?” She conceded with a wry smile. “I’ll need to see if someone around town can-”
Whatever Rarity was about to say next will never be known because at that moment there was a loud thud from the door followed by someone going “Owww! Who put that door there?” in a very familiar voice.
Twilight quickly opened the door to find the squint-eyed mailmare rubbing her head with a hoof. “Derpy? Is everything alright?”
“Oh, hey Twilight! Is Rarity here? I heard she wasn’t dead so I figured she’d probably be here. Of course some folks said she might be a zombie, but I don’t see any teeth marks on your head so I guess she’s fine. Oh, hi Princess Celestia!” The gray pegasus eagerly waved a forehoof at the monarch. “How you doing?”
Celestia bowed her head in greeting, “Very well, Ditzy Doo. Thank you for asking. How are your girls?”
“Awww, shucks. I’ll let Sparkler and Dinky know you were asking after them. They’re both doing great! Twilight’s been helping Dinky out with magic lessons and everything.”
Twilight blushed and ducked her head down, then blinked as she remembered why Derpy was here, or more precisely that she didn’t know why Derpy was here. “So why were you looking for Rarity?”
“Oh, uhm… I just don’t know what happened but… That floating building weirdy thing? It sort of… Sank.”
“Sank?” Rarity echoed.
“Sank.” Derpy confirmed with a mournful look.
“I… Just… HOW?” Rarity’s eyes were wide, “It should have stood up to everything short of a hurricane!”
“Well I was heading to Sugarcube Corner to get some muffins and then I got distracted when everypony started running around and panicking and screaming that you were a zombie and I wasn’t really looking where I was going and, well, one thing kinda lead to another and the next thing I knew…” She trailed off as Rarity rubbed at her suddenly aching forehead.
“Well, okay, thank you darling. You’ve probably done me a favour, in truth. I was going to have to get rid of it anyway.”
“Oh. Well, you’re welcome!” The mailmare smiled brightly, “I just wanted to say sorry about it. I’ll try and be more careful in future.” And with that she fluttered off, only narrowly avoiding crashing into the doorframe, muttering to herself as she went, “I just don’t know what went wrong…”
“And I shall be on my way as well, my little ponies.” Celestia stepped to the open door, “Rarity, I look forward to seeing your letter. Twilight, Spike, girls.” She offered a warm smile to the group and turned to leave. As she walked away she could hear Rarity’s voice, “So the tomb was a little much, I admit, but what do you all think about a statue…?”
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And it was all just a misunderstanding.
Also, epic reference to 'Background Pony'. I applaud thee.
3006788 Thanks for sticking around to the end. :)
I smell a sequel hook owing to the fact that Twilight MENTIONED the Background Pony spell....only to be blindsided by it.
I laughed... SO... hard...
You do realize this means I'll have to kill you now.
Brilliant! Nice ending, and great characterization; if it weren't for the issue of mortality and the bit with Trixie and Berry Punch, this would probably fit right in on the show.
That was a good story.