Chapter 79: Freaky Fashion Week
A few weeks had passed since the visit to the Castle of the Two Sisters, but although he'd exhausted just about all of his sources, Shining Armor had failed to find any leads into the mysterious chest. It frustrated him to no end, giving him more than a few sleepless nights.
Sensing that Shining needed a change, Fancy Pants made a few arrangements and early one morning he could hardly contain his excitement as he told his friend. "Since Fleur and I will be going to Manehattan with Miss Rarity for fashion week, I figured the least I could do was invite you and the rest of the gang along. It's my understanding that most of you have never been to Manehattan before, correct?"
Shining nodded, as he and Fancy Pants exchanged this news at Carousel Boutique. "You really sure you want us all to come? I'm sure fashion week will be a blast for you and Rarity, but I know most of the others probably won't be too fascinated by it."
Fancy Pants gave off a knowing wink as he replied. "It's funny you should mention that, because it just so happens that Miss Rarity has made a few 'arrangements' with some ponies in Manehattan. And you'll never believe this, but she managed to get you all tickets to see Hinny of the Hills!"
Shining's eyes grew wide and he nearly spit out his tea in shock! "You can't possibly be serious! Hinny of the Hills is the latest, greatest show to hit Bridleway! Tickets have been sold out for months!"
"Oh, it wasn't anything, really," Rarity boasted. "The costume designer at the theater happens to be one of my best customers, dresses and costumes are always in short supply. So I gave him some of my works and in return he pulled a few strings, and got me the tickets. I'm happy to share them with all of you, I think you're very much going to like Hinny of the Hills," Then she frowned and sighed. "It's too bad I can't take Sweetie Belle with me, but Manehattan is a big city and I don't want her getting lost in the midst of all that fashion week chaos. Guess I'll have to find a foalsitter for her, she won't like that."
Shining hated to see Rarity look so unhappy, especially after she'd gotten him and his friends (as Twilight and her friends) those tickets. Racking his brain to think of a solution, he suddenly recalled what he'd learned about Flash Sentry during that rather eventful night in the castle. "Say, Rarity, if you need a foalsitter, I think I know somepony who might be interested."
Now it was Rarity's turn to act surprised. "Oh, who do you have in mind, exactly?"
"Flash Sentry," Shining explained to Rarity. "It just so happens that he's Scootaloo's uncle on her mom's side of the family. He's already proven he's good with kids, just ask Rumble."
"You think Flash will be up to the challenge of keeping an eye on Sweetie Belle for an entire week?" Rarity asked with concern. "Normally I wouldn't be too worried as she is a growing filly. But all the same she seems to have an unfortunate tendency to get into trouble behind my back. It seems like Fluttershy is the only one who can keep her in line."
Shining trotted over to Rarity and gave her a reassuring pat on the forehead (taking care to avoid the horn). "Don't you worry, Rarity. I have no doubt that Flash will be able to manage for one week. In a lot of ways, he's like a kid himself, so young and so eager to prove himself."
"Well... I suppose it couldn't hurt to give him a chance," Rarity replied after a few moments of consideration. "And knowing that Sweetie Belle will be in good hooves will help me stay focused. Fashion week is going to be very busy, but if it all goes well Fancy Pants and I might be able to drum up enough support to start looking for a new boutique. I've been itching to expand for some time now."
"Relax, your fashion work is second to none," Shining told Rarity. "I'm sure you'll do great. And when you take first place, we're all going to be there to celebrate it with you!"
Fancy Pants smiled. "Good, it's settled. We leave for Manehattan a week from today, so start spreading the news," Then he added. "This will be a wonderful anniversary present for my darling Fleur and I. To think, we've already been married for five years. My, how the time flies."
The week passed quicker than anypony would've expected, it wasn't long before they were boarding the train to Manehattan, and in the blink of an eye it seemed like they had already reached their destination. Rarity especially could hardly contain her excitement!
"Now come along ponies," Rarity called out. "I've found a nice place for us to stay. A fabulous hotel just a block from the train station and right in the heart of this metropolis. Oh Manehattan, what you do to me!"
Big Macintosh and Soarin couldn't help but snicker a little at Rarity's enthusiasm, as much as they liked being able to see the big city in all its glory, Rarity's constant admiration of it always seemed a bit silly.
On the way to the hotel, Applejack noticed a beautiful theater with ponies already lining up to buy tickets to the various shows featured there. "Is that the theater where Hinny of the Hills is playin'?" She asked.
Fancy Pants nodded. "And as luck would have it the Manefair Hotel isn't far from the theater! As you can probably imagine, a lot of Bridleway performers frequently stay there in between shows."
Everypony was amazed (except of course for Rarity, Fancy Pants, and Fleur who already knew this). "Cool!" They all exclaimed.
"Indeed, and the hotel owner still charges a modest fee in spite of that," Rarity replied. "She figures that since she gets so many customers she can afford to offer rooms at discount rates. Our room was practically a steal, it normally goes for over 5,000 bits in cities like this!" She smiled, and a passionate sigh escaped her lips. "But you know, that's just what I like about Manehattan. It's what makes this city tick. You do something nice for somepony, and then you never know when they'll do something nice for you!"
"So then you can do somethin' nice for us," Applejack replied. "Like gettin' us tickets for Hinny of the Hills."
However, Shining Armor was a bit concerned by Rarity's statement. "You do know that while it's not bad to expect compensation for doing a good deed, you shouldn't always be doing it just because you'll get a reward out of it. Mom was always fond of saying that a good deed is its own reward."
"Oh, of course we know that," Fancy Pants reassuringly replied. "But it's still nice when you know somepony appreciates what you've done. And hospitality like this doesn't come often. Not too long ago this city was on hard times, and most ponies didn't think they had any need to look out for anyone but themselves. Thankfully, with the resurgence of Bridleway with new hit plays, and a new restaurant business, things have been looking up for most of the city," With a sigh he reluctantly added. "But there are still some areas where it's a dog eat dog world. Lots of ponies come here hoping to make it big, only to end up having their dreams crushed and not much money left to start again. It always troubles me to see those down on their luck for no good reason." And he pointed to a cab pulled by a light orange coated earth pony stallion, his blue mane and tail looked noticeably disfigured, as if they'd gone weeks without being brushed. There were some noticeable bangs underneath his dark blue eyes, as he noticed the back left wheel had broken.
Rarity was quick to jump in, and her friends helped out as well. Applejack and Big Macintosh quickly propped up the cab wagon with their backs, while Pinkie made an effort to try and cheer up the cab driver. Meanwhile, with the help of her magic, Rarity was able to fix the wheel and the cab wagon could roll with ease once again. "Always feels nice to help a pony in need," She said to herself. "Now then, shall we press on? The hotel isn't far from here."
Soon after checking in at the hotel, it was time for Rarity and Fancy Pants to check in for the kick off to fashion week. The rules had made it very clear that anyone that failed to check in at Fashion Runway Plaza by two in the afternoon would be immediately disqualified. But unfortunately, every cab in Manehattan had a huge line waiting for it, and to make matters worse it began to rain.
"It's no good, not one of these taxis will clear up in time," Rarity unhappily said to herself. "And to think I worked so hard on that new fabric, only to be disqualified before I could even show it off."
"Hey, you're a prince now, right?" Rainbow Dash asked Shining Armor, noticing his wings. "Can't you use your royal authority to demand that somepony give up their spot in line so Rarity can get to her appointment on time?!"
Shining shook his head. "Even if they were willing to listen, that would be a terrible misuse of my authority. For all I know, the ponies waiting in line might need to get to a job or see a friend or loved one in the hospital."
"Oh, well... guess that would be bad. Darn it, I thought for sure that would work!" Rainbow Dash replied, angrily kicking the ground in frustration.
However, at that very moment, the cab driving stallion from earlier came rolling up to Rarity's location. "Didn't get a chance to introduce myself before, name's Pronto," He told Rarity. "Thanks for your help earlier, that new wheel works like a charm. So, where to, ma'am?"
Rarity immediately climbed into the cab and shouted! "Fashion runway plaza in seven minutes. Can you make it?"
"For you ma'am, you bet I can! Hang onto your six!" Pronto shouted, and quickly sped away!
"Miss Rarity, wait!" Fancy Pants called out, but it was too late, Rarity was gone! "She forgot her dresses! Even if she makes it to the plaza on time she'll have nothing to show! I've got to get them there, now!"
"But Fancy Pants, darling, you'll get all wet and maybe even catch a cold," Fleur protested. "And that would never do."
Fancy Pants shook his head. "I don't care! Neither rain or high wind is gonna stop me from delivering those dresses! I'll be darned if Miss. Rarity gets disqualified because I couldn't help her when she needed it most!"
Fleur sighed. "You're so stubborn, but then that's hardly a surprise. Having a thick head always did run in the family," With a faint smile she lit up her horn, encasing Fancy Pants in a rain poncho and boots. "If you're really going to deliver those dresses, at least you should dress for the occasion. Think of this as an early anniversary present." She told him, giving him a peck on the cheek.
"Thank you for the support, Fleur. Now I must be going! Wish me luck!" Fancy Pants called, as he grabbed the suitcases the dresses were stored in and took off as fast as his hooves would let him!
"Talk about your close calls." Braeburn quipped, as the rest of the gang reluctantly headed back to the hotel. There wasn't anything they could do, the rest was all up to Rarity, Fancy Pants, and luck.
Fancy Pants arrived at the Runway Plaza just in time, Rarity was already freaking out when she noticed that she'd forgotten her dresses! "So careless of you to run off without everything you needed," Fancy Pants lightly scolded. "It's a good thing I noticed or we'd both be in trouble."
Rarity blushed. "I truly am sorry about that, Fancy Pants. Believe me, it won't happen again. Now, I best be going, Prim Headline is due to kick off fashion week at any moment and I can't be late for that!" And after slipping her boss a ruby as compensation for his last minute halfway across town, she was gone.
Fancy Pants smiled and waved, but as soon as Rarity was out of sight he breathed a sigh of relief. "That was too close," Then he sighed again, noticing that the rain had stopped. "Well, for now Rarity has to make an introduction to Prim on her own. With any luck maybe we won't have to show off our designs last." As he made his way backstage however, he accidentally bumped into an earth pony mare about the same size as Rarity, maybe a little smaller. Said mare had a beautiful white coat, a pale light cyan mane and tail with light opal stripes, and eyes an innocent light cyan in color. Her cutie mark was a simple feathered hat colored pink.
"Oh, I'm s-so sorry, sir," The mare apologized profusely. "I really didn't mean to bump into you, honest. Please, you can yell at me all you want, just let me get my coffee for my boss, then I promise I'll be out of your hair for good."
"There's no need to apologize, ma'am, it was my fault for not watching where I was going," Fancy Pants replied, offering the mare a hoof. "My name is Fancy Pants, what's yours?"
"C-Coco, Coco Pommel," The mare answered, clearly uncertain how to respond to Fancy Pant's kind gesture. "And if you don't mind, I really need to get my boss her coffee, she gets mad if I'm not back with it before long. She gets mad if I do much of anything wrong it seems, but I suppose I can't be too mad, she gave me my first job after all."
Fancy Pants seemed to be surprised, not just at how much Coco seemed to be beating herself down, but also by what she was mentioning about her boss. "If you don't mind my asking, just who is your boss? I would like to meet her and maybe put in a good word on your behalf."
"Her name is Suri Polomare," Coco answered. "But if you're going to talk to her, at least wait for me to get her her coffee first. I've wasted enough time talking to you that could've been spent getting Suri her order. Oh, I hope I have enough bits to pay for it, it's always so expensive."
"Tell you what, Coco," Fancy Pants offered. "You tell my your boss' order and I'll get it for you and take it to her myself. You sound like you deserve a break." He then offered her the ruby Rarity had given him earlier. "Here, you keep the change. Something tells me you need it more than I do at the moment."
Coco's eyes lit up and she seemed to be very ecstatic about this sudden display of kindness and generosity. "Oh, thank you! It's more than I deserve!" And she took off with a happy spring in her step, but not before hoofing a small note to Fancy Pants. "Just ask for that at the counter and make sure Suri gets it! Worse comes to worse, tell 'em Suri sent you!"
"Wait, what does your boss look like?" Fancy Pants asked. "I can't give this to Suri if I don't know who she is."
Coco chuckled and briefly turned around to tell Fancy Pants. "You can't miss her. She's an earth pony mare about my size and age, she's got a pink coat, brown eyes, a violet mane and tail styled into beautiful curls, and a cutie mark consisting of three buttons. And I wish you the best of luck dealing with her."
Fancy Pants had no trouble getting Suri's order, and by the time he was to locate her the kick off to fashion week had already concluded. "Well it's about time!" Suri exclaimed, snatching the coffee from Fancy Pants without even bothering to ask or say thank you. It was only after she'd downed the hot drink that she bothered to acknowledge Fancy Pants' existence at all. "Just who are you?! I sent Coco to get my order! Ugh, can't she do anything right?!"
Now, Fancy Pants was normally a patient stallion. He had to be in order to put up with the countless snobs and upper crusts he saw all the time in Canterlot. But Suri's remarks about Coco were enough to set him off. "Excuse you?!" He angrily exclaimed, a profound frown formed on his face. "I'll have you know that I offered to get that coffee for Coco, so if you've got something you want to say about her you can say that to my face."
Upon seeing Fancy Pants' harsh glare, Suri seemed to let up. "Well why didn't you just say so in the first place?" She chuckled to herself, her entire personality suddenly changing. "I guess Coco's finally good for something, but what can you expect when she's got a pony like me to teach her?"
"You mean, she's your protege?" Fancy Pants asked, sounding rather surprised.
Suri nodded. "The poor girl was completely down on her luck when I came across her, she was desperate for a job and out of the kindness of my own heart I took her in. She's a good errand filly, I'll say that much. But I hope she realizes I'm not paying her to take breaks and make others do her work for her. That's not how you get ahead in this big city, it's everypony for themselves and the sooner you learn that, the better."
"Forgive me if I don't necessarily agree with that remark." Fancy Pants replied, trying to hide how much that last part of the sentence had angered him.
"Trust me, I don't like it anymore than you do, but it's a fact," Suri responded, even though her tone didn't sound unpleasant or unhappy. "I didn't make it to fashion week because I play nice. I play to win, and if that means having to step on the competition then so be it. After all, you can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs, m'kay? Now, if you've got nothing more to say, I suggest you scram. I've got some catching up to do with Rarity. I never imagined she'd make it this far, but with you supporting I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I just hope you're both prepared, because I'm not going to settle for second place. I'm going to do whatever it takes to win, m'kay?" And she trotted off, sound quite pleased with herself.
"Coco deserves far better than Suri," Fancy Pants thought to himself. "But what can I do about that? How can I get her away from Suri's corruptive influences?" Then he got an idea, one that he was honestly surprised hadn't taken him longer to think of. "Of course," He realized. "If Princess Celestia could manage having both Shining Armor and his sister as her students, then surely I can do the same with Rarity and Coco." And he set off to find Coco.
Coco could hardly believe her ears when Fancy Pants made the offer to take her on as his second apprentice. "Oh, I'm not sure if you want me. I'm just a lowly assistant for Suri, nothing more."
"But I can tell you're not happy working for her, wouldn't you like to work for somepony who truly appreciates what you have to offer?" Fancy Pants asked her.
"I-I guess so," Coco reluctantly replied. "I mean, Suri hasn't been the best boss to work for. But are you really sure your other apprentice will understand? I don't want to intrude on what you and Rarity already have."
Fancy Pants just chuckled and lightly patted Coco's head. "You leave that to me, Coco my dear. Now come on, Miss. Rarity is no doubt waiting for me and there is much we will have to do for our solo appointment with Prim Headline tomorrow."
Sure enough, just a short time later, Rarity came trotting back out into the hallway with her dresses in tow. She was humming a small tune to herself, and she seemed to have a noticeable spring in her step. Upon seeing Coco, she was most surprised. "Oh, hello. I don't believe we've met. Are you one of Fancy Pants' business contacts?"
"N-no," Coco stuttered in response. "I-I'm Coco Pommel, Fancy Pants has offered to let me work for him for a while as his new apprentice. Delighted to me."
Rarity shook hooves with Coco, in spite of the shock of her statement. "Well, I'm sure Fancy Pants saw something in you when he agreed to take you on. You should feel honored."
"I'm... sure I will be, I look forward to working with you, Rarity." Coco nervously smiled.
Rarity then turned her attention to Fancy Pants. "Not that I mind you taking somepony under your wing or anything, but I would've appreciated having this run by me first. Are you really sure you're up to the task of managing Coco and myself? You only have four hooves you know."
"I appreciate your concern, Miss. Rarity, but I wouldn't take Coco on if I wasn't certain I could handle it," Fancy Pants smiled, and changed the subject. "So, how did things go with Prim Headline? I hope she wasn't too upset by your last minute arrival."
"She was a bit unhappy, but she still gave me a solo appointment," Rarity told Fancy Pants, a slight frown forming on her face. "Unfortunately it was first come first serve, so I'm to show my designs to her last. Same goes for when the contest gets under way tomorrow."
"I see," Fancy Pants replied, sounding more than a little unhappy. "Well then, why don't you stay here and finish setting up so you'll be ready for the solo appointment with Prim? I'll take Coco back to the hotel to meet the others, and you can join us for dinner when you're done here. How does that sound?"
Rarity nodded her head. "Sounds fair enough I suppose. I shouldn't have any trouble with Prim now, the new fabric you and I worked on is sure to be a success."
"Excellent!" Fancy Pants smiled. "Come along, Coco."
"Uh, I'd better go and make sure Suri is okay with me leaving her for you," Coco nervously replied. "You just go back to the hotel and I'll be there in a jiffy. I know my way around the city well enough. Where are you staying?"
"The Manefair Hotel, right near Bridleway," Fancy Pants told Coco. "You sure you can find it?"
"Yes, I'm pretty sure, the Manefair Hotel's pretty easy to spot." Coco replied, before she zipped away to find Suri. Fancy Pants and Rarity then reluctantly parted ways.
Fancy Pants found it most odd when it seemed to take a long time for Coco to come to the Manefair Hotel. Almost two hours had passed before she finally came trotting through the door. "Well it's about time, where have you been?" Fancy Pants asked in an anxious tone. "I was starting to think something horrible had happened to you."
"I-I'm sorry, I.... uh... got a little bit lost and it took some time to find my way," Coco hastily apologized. "I'm sorry I made you worry so much."
Fancy Pants sighed, one look at Coco's eyes made it impossible for him to stay mad at her. "It's alright, I suppose it can be a little difficult to find your way around the big city, even if you've lived in it for such a long time. I should have waited for you and escorted you back to the hotel myself."
"No, it was my fault for saying I knew the way," Coco apologized, putting on the most guilty look she could muster up. "I'll understand if you want to punish me for that."
Fancy Pants only chuckled. "We've got to work on that self-esteem of yours, Coco. You can't keep beating yourself up all the time if you want to make it in the fashion world."
"But Suri always said it's everypony for themselves in this city." Coco protested.
"Well you don't work for Suri anymore, you work for me now. So I want you to forget about everything Suri taught you and just focus on what I'm going to teach you. Okay?" Fancy Pants asked Coco in a half kind, half serious tone of voice.
"O-okay." Coco nodded. She wanted to say more, but the words wouldn't come out.
"Say, Fancy, darling, just who is this mare that I see standing before you?" Fleur asked, eyeing the newcomer. "I do hope you're not trying to cheat on me." She joked.
"Of course not, Fleur, haven't I made it clear how much I adore you?" Fancy Pants playfully teased, blushing slightly before he cleared his throat. "This fine young mare you see before you is none other than Coco Pommel. But you can call her Coco. She is my new apprentice."
"New apprentice, huh?" Spike asked, looking at Coco. "So what happened to Rarity? Are you two done working together?"
"No no no, it's nothing like that," Fancy Pants protested with a shake of his head. "Miss. Rarity and I are still working together. It's just that Miss. Pommel here is in need of somepony to help her develop into a promising fashion pony, and I figured it might as well be me."
"And Rarity is okay with this?" Spike asked with concern.
"Absolutely, she was the first one I introduced Coco to and she was perfectly fine with Coco working for me for the time being," Fancy Pants replied. "You needn't worry, by the time fashion week is done I am highly certain that Coco will have developed into a fine student and will be more than ready to make her own way in the world. Look at how greatly Miss. Rarity has flourished since she went into business with me. It wouldn't surprise me if she takes first place in fashion week."
But a short time later, just after everypony else had come back from an exciting afternoon spent touring Manehattan and having a good time, Rarity came bursting back into the hotel room, clearly in tears. She instantly collapsed onto her hotel bed, sobbing loudly to herself. "My generosity has ruined me!"
"What are you talking about? What happened?!" Shining Armor asked, as everypony immediately rushed to Rarity's side.
In between sobbing fits, Rarity explained to the best of her ability. "I gave Suri some of my one of a kind fabric, and she turned around and copied my entire line. Only now it looks like I'm the one copying her. My career as a fashion pony is over!"
"But how did she get all of that done so fast? There's no way she could've copied an entire fashion life all by herself!" Soarin furiously exclaimed. "Can she?"
Coco gulped. "Oh I should've known! It's all my fault!"
Everypony in the room immediately cast daggers at Coco. "Just what do you mean by that?!" Applejack demanded. "You sayin' your the one responsible for all of this?!"
A cold sweat worked its way down Coco's face as she hastily explained. "When I went to say goodbye to Suri and thank her for giving me my first job, she told me she'd let me go if I did one last favor for her. She asked me to help her copy the designs for Rarity's wardrobe so she could pass it off as her own. And she said if I didn't she'd tell Prim that I was the one doing it."
"And you believed her?!" Braeburn exclaimed, steam escaping his nostrils. "It was your word against Suri's and I'm sure Rarity would've backed you up had you told her what Suri was gonna do!"
"Coco, I trusted you! I took you under my wing! And yet you betrayed my business partner and close friend?!" Fancy Pants remarked.
"I, I didn't know what else to do! I've been working for Suri for so long and I know she has ways of getting what she wants!" Coco nervously replied, slowly backing up. "Please, I didn't mean for any of this! She was still my boss when she hatched that plan, and I was told never to say no to your boss if you valued your career!"
Fancy Pants didn't know what more to say to Coco beyond simply. "We will discuss this later," He then turned his attention to Rarity. "So what did you do when you found out about Suri stealing your fabric? What did you tell Prim?"
"I told her nothing, I just ran off and claimed I wasn't feeling well!" Rarity answered, still sobbing. "She said it was fine just as long as I was ready to present my designs tomorrow morning! What am I gonna do?! Suri stole my designs and thanks to the schedule it's going to look like I'm copying her instead of the other way around!"
Much to everyone's surprise it was Applejack who told Rarity. "Come on now, buck up! You gotta get a hold of yourself! You've been in tough spots before and you've always come through, this ain't any different. All you need is to come up with a brand spankin' new line and you'll be back in business. Wallowin' in pity ain't gonna help you for long. So either buck up or go home!"
Rarity's sobs took a while to subside, but slowly but surely Applejack's words sank in. Taking a deep breath she finally sat up in her bed and said firmly. "You're right, Applejack. I've come too far to turn back now! If Suri expects me to lay down and let her walk all over me, she's got another thing coming!" Then she looked around the room, her eyes scanning everything in it. "And I have just the inspiration to do it. A brand new line that will be bigger and bolder than anything I've ever done before! But, I can't do it alone. I'm literally going to have to start from scratch."
"How we can help?" Thunderlane offered. "We all want you to succeed."
"Well, how good are all of you when it comes to sewing and needle work?" Rarity asked.
Just a few hours later, Rarity had converted the hotel room into a makeshift workshop, and everypony was working hard. Some, such as Rainbow Dash and Soarin spun yarn and thread, others such as Thunderlane and Fluttershy managed the sewing machines. Even Shining Armor pitched in to help stitch the patterns together (he'd learned a thing or two about sewing from when he'd had to do emergency repairs on Smarty Pants, albeit at great pain to himself).
Fleur wasn't too happy that the plans for her anniversary had to be changed, but she still helped as best she could. "At least we can still reserve dinner for tomorrow night to celebrate Rarity's victory, that will be a wonderful anniversary present." She told herself, as she moved from one station to the next, helping out wherever her skills were most needed.
Fancy Pants made sure to rope Coco into the massive sewing project as well. "This mess is partially your responsibility as well," He told her. "Though I must say I'm quite displeased Miss. Rarity would give some of her fabric away to someone she once knew. Perhaps after the competition if Suri was asking nicely, a small swath would've sufficed."
Even so, the pressures of having to assemble an entire new line in the span of a few hours quickly took its tole on everypony. Most of all, Rarity and Fancy Pants, who had the most at stake.
"I'm sorry to tell you all this, but I don't think we'll be done in time to see Hinny of the Hills," Fancy Pants told all his friends as the dinner hour approached. "The pizza Rarity ordered should be here in half an hour, but we're still only about half way done with the new line."
"But, you already bought us the tickets and we were really looking forward to it." Soarin protested, trying to sound as pleasant as he possibly could.
Fancy Pants sighed and tried to stay cool, but his tone of voice made it clear he was struggling to stay composed. "Oh, I see," He commented, sounding noticeably frustrated. "Look, I'm really sorry about all of this, but if you go to see the play there won't be enough time left to finish the line in time for Miss. Rarity to use it tomorrow. I went out of my way to get those tickets, is it so wrong to expect a little compensation for that?"
"Uh, Fancy Pants, you feeling okay?" Shining asked, sensing that his friend might be getting worked up and not thinking clearly. "I think that between you, Fleur, Rarity, and Coco, there should still be enough ponies to get the line more or less done while the rest of us go to see Hinny of the Hills. It was your gift after all."
Fancy Pants huffed, stomping his hoof down on the floor in frustration. "Well, isn't friendship just magical?!" He complained. "You would all abandon me in my hour of need?!"
"Fancy Pants, what's gotten into you?" Big Macintosh asked with concern. "You ain't actin' like yourself."
"What's gotten into me?! What's gotten into all of you?!" Fancy Pants replied, glaring at everypony present. "Fine, go see your little show for all I care! And then tomorrow you can come and watch as Miss. Rarity and I go down to defeat because we have nothing to show at the fashion show! Congrataponylations fillies, I guess you finally figured out that it's everypony for themselves in Manehattan!" And he exited the room, angrily slamming the door on his way out. Rarity followed a short time later, not saying a word but repeating the same motion as her employer.
The room became deathly silent after that, nopony dared to say a word. For a moment or two they all looked at each other as if considering what to do, before they all sighed and reluctantly went back to work.
Next morning, Fancy Pants and Rarity were quick to dash out the door when they learned that the new fashion line was complete. Fancy Pants making sure to take Coco along with them. "Miss. Rarity, you will present your new line as planned," He explained on the way to the Runway Plaza. "Coco, you are going to trot straight up to Prim and tell her what you and Suri did yesterday. Is that understood?"
"Y-yes sir, I'm truly sorry sir." Coco replied, already profusely apologizing.
"It's not just me you have to apologize to, I hope you realize that," Fancy Pants said seriously, as they neared the designated location. "What you and Suri did could be considered a serious offense. Copying somepony else's work is just like copying a classmate's homework and then passing it off as your own. That kind of dishonesty can get you into serious trouble, even cost you career!"
Coco gulped, but she knew better than to think about trying to back out. "I'll do my best to make things clear for Prim, but I doubt it'll be enough to stop Suri before she presents." She nervously agreed, and as soon as as Rarity had made her way backstage, Coco set off to go find Prim.
However, it was already too late to stop Suri from presenting her line with the stolen fabric. "It wasn't anything, really. It just came to me," She lied, and after taking her bows she was surprised to find Rarity approaching her. "Oh, you gonna show off your one of a kind fabric that's actually mine? Good luck trying to convince Prim you didn't steal it from me. You might as well have stayed home, I'm gonna win that first place prize, 'kay?"
All Rarity said in reply was, "We'll just see about that." and she approached the runway, trying her best not to think about the fact that she was about to present her new line of dresses all by herself.
As for Fancy Pants, he was looking out at the stands, and was quite dismayed to see that none of his friends were present. Even his wife Fleur seemed to have not bothered to show up. Already, he was beginning to regret how he had treated them last night, and wished more than anything he could take back what he'd said. Then, all of a sudden, something unexpected happened. For some reason, when Fancy Pants looked at the rope that blocked off the stands from the runway, he saw it give off a rainbow shimmer and that shimmer was reflected in his eyes. Something seemed to hit him hard, as he realized what he had to do. "I've been so fixated on Coco that I've forgotten all about the reasons why I came here in the first place. I can't believe I was so dumb!" He thought to himself, and immediately he dashed to Rarity's side, just as she had finished showing off her new collection (effectively titled "Hotel Chic").
When the contest was over, Fancy Pants didn't stick around to see who would be declared the winner, he immediately dashed back to the hotel, picking up a small bouquet of flowers along the way. He knew it would take more than a token gesture to make up for everything he'd done, especially to his wife, but he at least hoped flowers would be a step in the right direction.
Upon approaching the hotel entrance, Fancy Pants was surprised to see a bell hop stallion pushing a luggage cart around. "Good day to you, sir," The bell hop greeted with a smile. "What can I do for you on this lovely day?"
"I'm sorry, I'm not here to chat," Fancy Pants apologized. "Have you seen the occupants of Room 408?"
"Sure did, saw 'em not too long ago," The bell hop replied. "Looked like they were on their way to the train station, but I didn't stop to ask 'em where they were going."
Fancy Pants could feel his heart sink. "No doubt they've gone back to Ponyville already," He unhappily thought to himself. "And I can't blame them. Guess there's no reason to hang around here, I'll just have to go back to Miss. Rarity and see what the judges thought of her new line." To the bell hop stallion he politely told him. "Thank you for your help young man. Here, why don't you take this as a small token of appreciation?" He forked over a small pocket worth of bits.
"But sir, I didn't do anything!" The bell hop stallion called out, but Fancy Pants was already too far away to hear.
It took Fancy Pants a while to reach fashion runway plaza, but when he did his eyes were immediately greeted with the sad face of Rarity. "So, did we lose?" He asked her, even though the look on her face seemed to tell all.
"I, I don't know. The judges said they're still deciding," Rarity glumly replied. "It's down to either Suri or myself though, I know that much. Prim didn't seem too happy about you running off though."
Fancy Pants sighed, but still trotted up to Rarity and put a hoof around her neck. "Well, at least we gave it the old college try." He told her, trying his best to sound upbeat and optimistic.
Just then, the door burst open, and into the room trotted an entire group worth of familiar ponies (and one dragon)! Fancy Pants could hardly believe his eyes, and neither could Rarity!
"We're sorry, we overslept." Thunderlane apologized.
"By the time we came down here, it was too late. The show was already over." Shining Armor added, sounding rather unhappy.
"So, did you win?" Fluttershy asked, hopefully.
Rarity and Fancy Pants looked at each other, then sighed as Fancy Pants told everyone gathered. "I don't think so, I'm afraid it looks like Suri has won after all," The hearts of everyone in the room sank just a little. But Fancy Pants immediately followed up by saying. "But you know what, I don't care about that silly award anymore! All I care about is how I treated you all, and last night I treated you most awfully."
"Well, you were pretty rotten to put it mildly." Big Macintosh commented with a straight face.
Soarin was quite surprised. "Not quite how I would've chosen to present it, but I suppose that's why you're the Element of Honesty and I'm not." He commented to Big Macintosh.
"Look, last night we may not have seen you two at your best, but we know you well enough to know that's not who you really are," Twilight spoke up on behalf of the group. "It'll take a lot more than that for us to abandon you."
From afar, Coco watched the entire group. She felt tempted to speak up and say something, especially considering what she had just found out. But one look at the group told her she shouldn't bother. They were all so happy, so why should she ruin the moment when it was because of her that their friendship had been pushed to nearly the breaking point in the first place?
Not noticing Coco, Fancy Pants immediately spoke up and offered. "Perhaps the least I can do is make up for our behavior last night. So, how would you all like to see a special encore performance of Hinny of the Hills?"
Later that afternoon, the bridleway theater was mostly empty, except for a small group of ponies and one dragon. All of whom were watching the final scene of Hinny of the Hills.
When the musical had concluded and all the actors and actresses had taken their bows, everyone burst into thunderous applause. Clapping and cheering, or in the case of the ponies stomping their hooves in appreciation.
Even Rainbow Dash couldn't contain her excitement! She flew into the air loudly shouting, "Woohoo, best musical ever!" before she realized how silly she looked, landed, and adopting a more neutral tone added. "I mean... it was 'ight." That got a chuckle out of her friends.
"So, not that I mean to look this here gift horse in the mouth or anythin', but how did you manage to talk the cast into doin' a special encore performance just for us?" Braeburn asked Fancy Pants.
"Well, you remember the costume designer who's a good friend of Miss. Rarity and I?" Fancy Pants asked, to which everyone nodded. "Well, I offered to help him design the costumes for his next play."
The mood in the theater suddenly changed, as everyone realized what that would mean. "Oh." Was all they could bring themselves to say.
"Fancy Pants, you don't have to do that," Rarity offered. "I'm the one who knows how to make costumes, let me help the designer."
But Fancy Pants shook his head. "Miss. Rarity, you deserve better than the likes of me. I got so wrapped up in trying to help Coco that I completely neglected you until it was almost too late to help you. Even if you don't win first place here, at least you'll have developed a reputation, you'll have plenty of top notch fashion designers begging to take you on. Any one of them will treat you better than I have these past few days."
"Fancy Pants, you are more than just an employer to me," Rarity spoke up, a few tears forming in her eyes. "In a lot of ways you're one of my best friends. You've always been there for me when it counts. Heck, you were willing to drag yourself through tartarus and back just to get me a tapestry from the Castle of the Two Sisters. How could I possibly abandon you just because you made one mistake? You realized it, you feel sorry about it, and you've gone to great lengths to make up for it. I should think anypony would consider themselves looking to work for you."
"Thank you, Miss. Rarity, but my mind has been made up already," Fancy Pants replied, sounding a bit glum. "I know this job will keep me away from Ponyville for a while, but it was the only way I could make up for causing all of you to miss Hinny of the Hills last night."
"Yeah, we know that. And we're happy for you, really." Pinkie Pie said, as everyone else in attendence silently nodded.
"We're just... you know... sad, for us." Twilight finished.
However, at that very moment, a familiar soft and gentle voice spoke up. "Um, is there room for one more?" Everyone turned and gasped, there was Coco, and she appeared to be holding a small box of some sort in her hooves.
"Coco, what are you doing here?" Fancy Pants asked, sounding quite surprised.
"You left before you could claim your reward," Coco explained, as she approached the stallion to whom she owed so much and gave him the book. "Go ahead, open it." She encouraged.
Fancy Pants did so, and what he saw nearly made his eyes pop out! Inside was a small golden trophy with the number one emblazoned onto it! "But, I don't understand. I thought we lost." He spoke up.
Coco smiled. "You didn't, you won. The judges had a hard time deciding who to give the victory to, until I told Prim what Suri had done. When Suri found out she was furious, so she thought that if you didn't claim your prize and thought you had lost, the judges would consider it a forefit, and the prize would go to the next runner up. I guess she figured that if she couldn't win fashion week, the least she could do was make sure you didn't win either," Then she added. "I've been working for Suri so long that I really did start to believe it was everypony for herself in the big city. But when I saw how your friends and loved ones never abandoned you, even after you treated them badly, I realized that Suri was wrong. So I made sure to tell Suri I quit for good this time!" She then dug into her saddle bag as she told Fancy Pants. "And here, I brought you a little something to say thanks." The gift she hoofed to him was a rainbow colored thread on a spool.
Fancy Pants smiled back, before he said to Coco. "I guess you're going to need a new job now that you're no longer working for Suri. And I'm sorry to say, I'm just not cut out to manage two promising young mares. But as a consolation prize, how would you like to have a job designing costumes for bridleway plays? I'll put in a good word with the costume designer and I'm sure he'll say yes."
Coco was practically ecstatic! "Really?! You'd do that just for me?!"
Fancy Pants nodded. "Think of it as my way of repaying you for the thread."
The rest of fashion week flew by in a blur after that. Fancy Pants and Fleur had a wonderful anniversary, made even sweeter by the fact that Rarity had taken first place.
Rarity enjoyed meeting and working with some of the best designers in all of Equestria, even managing to land a new order from Sapphire Shores who was planning to launch a new Equestria wide tour in a few months (supposedly it was to try and maintain her position as the pony of pop, a new challenger had recently popped up by the name of Countess Coloratura).
Before either Fancy Pants or Rarity would've liked it, fashion week came to a close and it was time to board the train back to Ponyville. Both were sad to say goodbye to the big city, but at the same time they were starting to get a bit homesick.
On the train ride home, Fancy Pants took out the rainbow colored threat on a spool and smiled at it. "You know, I think I'm going to hold onto this thread for a while," He said, looking across to Shining Armor. "I can't really explain it, but there's just something magical about it." If he had been looking, Fancy Pants would've seen the thread give off the same rainbow shimmer that the ropes had given off a few days earlier.
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Yeah. Rather well done on this chapter. Yeah, I'm not surprised Suri would stoop to that just to get Coco's help one last time. Unlike Mike in "Sing", she does NOT have enough confidence in her own abilities to compete without resorting to sabotage. And, yeah, the alterations you made to the chapter make sense all things considered.
Great job on ALL the material and, yeah, once again, I'll definitely be looking forward to seeing your spin on all the other "key" chapters.
oh my god its Suri Polomare I cannot stand her I thought she's gonna be OK character from the beginning but after right in the middle of it she turns out to be awful pony ever
Oh my god rara 😃😃😍😍🥰🥰🥰 thats awesome
As we remember sometimes generosity can be a burden but also awarding And usually people would take advantage of that And it really hurts But never lose who you really are even though it gets hard