Persona: Innocent Wish

by Trismegistus

Chapter 25: Fillydelphia

The first time Arata saw Fillydelphia, he remembered the awe he felt when he had first seen Canterlot. Although it lacked the royal flair that Canterlot was so famous for, Fillydelphia more than made up for it with its size and population. The buildings seemed to go higher than any of the clouds, and what was more impressive to Arata was the number of ponies who lived here. Although, Blaze had told him that Fillydephia was much smaller and less populated than Manehattan, it was hard to believe. This was by far the largest city Arata had ever been to, and it wasn’t an experience he was likely to forget.

The trip was scheduled to last for two days, the first day, the girls and Blaze, would go over designs for clothing. Then the next day Arata and Camphor would go over their designs.

The clothier was only three blocks from the hotel they were staying. It was a small shop on the lowest floor of a five story building. All that marked it for passers-by was a small sign reading ‘Éclatant Couture.’ The store’s windows were decorated with dresses and jackets still in the making, ranging from black suits with elegant and colorful ties to multi-layer dresses bearing intricate floral designs.

Ivory Shield, Compass Rose, Vox, and Blaze made their way the short distance to the shop. They were greeted by a unicorn stallion wearing a jacket with a wide collar and striped bow tie. He had a measuring tape draped around his shoulders. His cutiemark was of three spools of thread stacked in a pyramid with a needle resting on the top most spool.

With a deep inhalation, he turned and greeted the group, “Good morning! You must be the ponies getting dresses for the Gala! Oh! I’m just so excited my work will get to go in front of so many high-class ponies. And look at the four of you I have so much potential to work with!”

“Oh, thank you,” Compass Rose blushed.

“Now who would like to go first?” He stared at each one before pausing and putting his hoof to his head. “Oh, how silly of me, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Sartor, I have been a tailor here since I was a little colt. I’ve made dresses and suits for all of the noteworthy ponies here in Fillydelphia.” He looked down the line and pointed to Blaze and Vox, “You two are the couple I was told about, correct?”

Blaze and Vox hadn’t been standing next to each other. In fact they had been on opposite sides of the line.

“Yeah, how’d you know?” Vox asked.

“You both have a Canterlot posture,” He said with a smile, “I’m going to ask that you two go last, since you want to match it will take the most time to coordinate. So that leaves you two, which of you would like to go first?”

“Ivory, you should do it!” Compass Rose exclaimed.

Ivory Shield fidgeted a bit, “I’d rather not. It’s not exactly my ‘thing’. Rose, maybe you should go so I can get an idea of the process.”

Sartor looked at Ivory Shield inquisitively, “No, the best way to get an idea is to go through it! You will go first, I already have inspiration! Come, come I will fetch my sketch pad and we may begin.”

Ivory Shield walked to the set of chairs off to the left side of the shop. To the right, was a small changing area and in the back, the sewing equipment and many of the dresses in progress. The rest of the group sat down on the chairs next to Ivory.

“Now, You are with the guard yes?” The tailor asked watching Ivory closely.

“Affirmative,” She nodded curtly.

“It looks like your posture never breaks; I’ll have to design around that.” He turned to his sketch pad, and quickly drew some rough lines. “What you wear needs to be as stalwart as you are. If we try to mask it with softer lines, it will just draw more attention to your posture, if we go for something ‘poofy’ you will just be uncomfortable.” The pen continued to scribble on the page, “So this is why we will make something familiar.” He levitated the drawing in front of Ivory. “It’s just a simple sketch, but what do you think?”

The design he had sketched, was reminiscent of the uniform she had worn as a cadet in the guard. It had a double set of buttons running along the front, leading into a collar flashier than anything the guard would allow, though not out of place. The front legs were covered by two crisp sleeves, and the end of the dress flared out gently into a skirt.

“Wow,” Ivory Shield gasped. “That’s great. How did you design that so fast?”

“Years of experience my dear; now allow me to take your measurements and we may move onto your friends.” He quickly measured Ivory Shield, making notations next to his sketch.

Compass Rose was up next, she traded seats with Ivory Shield and the process of designing a dress began again.

“You seem to have an idea of what you would like, please share with me!” Sartor said to Rose.

“Well, just a rough idea. I’d like something formal, but not too formal. It really needs to strike the balance between the two. Do you think something like that Is possible for an event like this?”

The tailor smiled and said “Darling, it is my job to make it possible. You are a pegasus, you have the freedom of the skies! We need to capture that and blend it with the formality of the Gala, it will be perfect.” He began to feverishly sketch. For a few minutes he sat silently as he tried to design the perfect dress. Then he broke his silence, “How does this look to you?” Again he showed his client the sketch.

The dress had broad stokes that ran from the shoulders to the tail. The collar hung from the shoulders and formed several folds just below the neck line. The dress had a very simple feel over all, but that made it all the more refined. The back of the dress was lightly pleated, and Sartor had shown how the seams would blend perfectly into the design.

“That’s like, the perfect balance,” She said amazed at how quickly her loose idea was turned into an actual design.

“Excellent! Then I will take your measurements and move on to the happy couple,” He quickly measured Rose the same way he had done for Ivory before speaking once more, “Designing a dress and matching suit may take much longer than the two of yours did.”

“You guys don’t have to hang around,” Vox said politely.

“All right, Rose and I can go hit up a bar. Sartor do you know of any close by?” Ivory asked.

“Yes there is. It’s actually on the third floor. Just take the stair case upstairs and you’ll find it.” He didn’t seem to be giving her his full attention. Instead he was sizing up Blaze and Vox.

Ivory and Rose exited the shop and headed up the stairs.

“Now let us begin! It isn’t often I get to design a matching set like this. Tell me, what do you two want as a theme for the clothing?”

“Well,” Vox began, “We were thinking about a base pattern between the suit and the dress, to show how we are similar. But then set up the accents to show how we are different.”

“I. Love. It.” The clothier exclaimed. “I’m thinking we go with something traditional for the base for both, and then we can add on the individual flair to each! Any pony looking at the two of you will instantly feel your love.”

“I can’t argue with that,” Blaze said eagerly. “I actually had a couple of ideas for the individual flair.”

“I did too,” Vox added.

“Share, share!” Sartor said readying his quill.

Vox gestured for Blaze to go first. “I was thinking of going for a double breasted design. Maybe do a silver trim around the lapel and cuffs.”

“Why not make it a tail coat while we can! It will be splendid.” Sartor suggested.

“I like the sound of that.” Blaze agreed.

“And then I was thinking of adding some silver embroidered patterns to match his. Along with working in one of my headsets or...,” Vox levitated a small device from out of a small bag she carried. “This fits around your neck, and picks up on vibrations in your throat when you talk. I think it would make a neat necklace with a dress too.”

“Mixing technology with classic design, these are the avant-garde ideas that I live for!” He began to feverishly sketch. “I shall make your ideas manifest and magnifique!”

The three spent around an hour as he painstakingly designed the matching outfits. The process was much more complicated than designing one dress. Anytime a design choice had to be made it fell on both Blaze and Vox to reach a consensus before the process could continue. Once the sketch was complete, both of the ponies were more than happy with the design. They said their goodbyes and went to retrieve Ivory and Rose from the bar before heading back to the hotel.

…

While the girls and Blaze were getting fit for their clothing, Camphor had convinced Arata to accompany him to one of his favorite shops in the city. Camphor seemed purposely vague about where it was they were going. The only solid piece of information he got was that there would be food, and they would be spending most of the day there. Since Camphor’s aunt lived in the city he had a surprising amount of knowledge about it.

Camphor led Arata on a two hour long walk away from the hotel. They wove their way out of the commercial district of the city and through a series of side streets. The further out they walked, the smaller the buildings became. Now the buildings and homes, although more densely packed, were the same height and design of those in Foalsdale.

They rounded a corner and Camphor pointed out their destination. At the end of the street was a tea shop, advertising all natural teas, and herbal medicines. The walls were splattered with paint in a tye-dye pattern. And an iron piece sign hung from the door. It was instantly clear to Arata why Camphor had wanted to come here.

“Thiiiiis, is my favorittee tea shop, it’s got everything!” Camphor exclaimed. His shout catching Arata off guard. It wasn’t all that often that Camphor ‘harshed his mellow,’ even when he was shouting.

Camphor opened the door for Arata, who was immediately hit with a wave of smells. It was almost identical to the effect of opening the door to Camphor’s room, although there was clearly more to this smell than just incense.

Inside there was a thin fog clouding the dimly lit space. Chairs and tables filled most of the space, and there were a surprisingly large amount of ponies sipping tea together. They all seemed to be much older than Camphor, possibly Penzance’s age. The walls were lined with drawers reaching to the ceiling with ladders set up along each one to help reach the highest shelves. Camphor stepped in and was quickly greeted by the old mare sitting behind the register by the back wall.

He voice was old and tired, but surprisingly loud, “Hello there Camphor, I didn’t expect to see you back so soon.”

“My frieeend and I wereee in the citttyyyy so I decided to bring him here for some tea,” Camphor explained pulling out a seat at a table for Arata.

“How nice of you, I’ll go get your tea set, it’ll just be a moment,” She slowly walked through a door in the back of the shop.

She came out carrying a simple cast iron teapot and a set of cups, which she gave to Camphor. He walked back over to the table and removed a metal plate from the center. The plate covered a small pit of coals, which Camphor carefully lit before filling the pot with water and placing it over the flame.

“I don’t think I told you this story,” Camphor said pausing to take in the scent of the room, “This is wheerree I got my cutiiieemaarrrrk.”

“Really?” Arata asked.

“Yeaaaah, when I was a kid we came to Fillydelphia to visit my aunt. She’s, like, into herbal medicine too. She brought me here to show me the collection of herbs and explain what each one does,” Camphor gestured to the drawers on each wall. “I got super excited and asked if I could try making something out of them. With her help, and Peace Blossom’s, she’s the mare at the counter, I got to grind my own batch of herbal tea. I spent hours smelling and tasting the herbs until I finally had a perfect blend. I ground it up with a mortar and pestle and set it in boiling water. Once it finished, we all gathered around and tasted it. That’s when I felt a tingling on my flank, and saw my cutiemark.”

“That’s really, ‘swood’!” Arata said, fascinated by the story. Although he used to feel jealous when ponies recounted the stories of how they got cutiemarks, but since his adventure started he had found the stories to be very interesting. They really showed a lot about the pony telling them.

“The swoodest man,” Camphor smiled.

The mare at the counter seemed to have over heard the story, “You know, we keep what you made as a special blend here. We call it the cutiemark special, although we’ve never been able to make it as good as you have.”

“I don’t think I’d be able to duplicate it either,” Camphor said humbly, “That was just the perfect blend. I’m going to grind up something else today, for Arata.” He tipped his head towards his friend, “I’ll call it the adventure mix.”

“You’re in for a treat,” The mare said to Arata.

She went back to the counter and Camphor stood up and started gathering materials from the various drawers. He would open a shelf, smell the ingredients, and if it suited him he would bring a small quantity back to the table. He repeated this process for about 30 minutes while Arata watched, wondering what each component was.

After closing the final drawer he retrieved a mortar and pestle and began slowly mixing the tea. He would mix together various herbs, smell them, grind, and then adjust, repeating this process for every one of the leaves he had chosen. After another 30 minutes of mixing, the tea was ready to be steeped. Camphor placed the leaves into a mesh basket and set it inside the pot. He then put the lid back on and waited patiently. After a few minutes, he removed the leaves and set them aside.

“How can you tell it’s done?” Arata asked.

“I can feel it.” Camphor said closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

He set the two cups in front of the kettle and slowly poured the blend into each one. Then he slid a cup to Arata. The smell immediately overpowered the incense burning all around them. It didn’t smell like any tea Arata had drank before. He raised it to his lips and slowly took a sip.

The taste was incredible. Thanks to the steam, the small sip filled his entire mouth. As he swallowed it he could feel all of his muscles relaxing.

“Woah,” Arata felt a smile forming on his face.

“Right?” Camphor asked in agreement, taking a sip of his own.

Arata took another sip, and then another. Before he knew it the glass was gone.

“I can see why you got your cutiemark,” Arata said slumping back into his chair.

“Ti dekil uoy dalg m’I, naaam sknaht,” Camphor’s response didn’t match his mouth’s movement, or really sound like anything Arata had ever heard.

“Arata, are you okay?” Camphor asked.

Arata stared at Camphor’s matted hair. Each lock was starting to move independently.

“Camphor, your hair…” Arata let out a gasp.

“Oh no…” Camphor said coming to realize what was happening.

The words finally seemed to be reaching Arata. “What? Oh no?” he asked.

“I put a spice in the tea, it’s normally safe for ponies. In some very very very rare cases it can cause an allergic reaction when ingested.

“Allergy?” Arata asked staring again at Camphor’s mane.

“Right, the allergy can range anywhere from an itchy throat, to vivid hallucinations. It’s very important that you don’t move okay? No matter what you see.” Camphor’s warning wasn’t heard.

The room started to spin around Arata, the colors of the shop changing to a still translucent blue. Arata was now floating in a pool of water. It was relaxing, there nothing to see or hear, just a floating feeling. Slowly, drop by drop the water evaporated from under him turning into a fine mist.

‘You shall have what you wish, but be warned there is a cost to your desire’ the wish came from every direction at once. Just as fast as it had come, the whisper faded leaving Arata alone in an unfamiliar alley way. Slowly one of the walls pulsated and a black shadow oozed from it.

Seeing the threat Arata leapt towards the opening to the alley and called for Taliesin, but his Persona never came. Instead the shadow crept closer and closer until Arata had no choice but to turn and run. With every step he took he could see the exit of the alley getting further and further away. Then the whispering started again ‘erised ruoy ot tsoc’. He felt the shadows touch and was quickly sucked into the black mass.

The story in the tea shop was quite different. Arata had stood up and started to run around the store shouting about his Persona. Some of the patrons were concerned and helped Camphor keep Arata in the store. Then with two ponies blocking the entrance Camphor tackled Arata and held him in place so he could ride out the rest of the hallucination in safety.

Floating in the emptiness of the shadow, Arata felt both restless and at rest. For every time the thought of struggling a soft voice called to him asking him to be still. Out of the emptiness a blue balloon swept up to him and without realizing it he appeared in the basket. Unlike the past times he had been in the Velvet Room the balloon wasn’t floating as easily, there seemed to be bumps and turbulence.

“Hello Arata, I have come here to issue you a warning. The cards tell me that you are about to enter very difficult time, for both you and your friends. The coming times will truly test your abilities and bonds,” Igor smiled widely from behind his bloodshot eyes.

“I am truly excited to see how well you handle the coming times,” Caroline added, as the room faded away and Camphor’s face came into view.

“You’re gonna be okay little man,” Camphor kept repeating as Arata became more and more aware of the situation.

“Wha-what happened to me?” Arata asked finally being allowed to stand.

“You had an allergic reaction to one of the ingredients in the tea. You’ve been tripping for almost two hours. How many hooves am I holding up?” Camphor asked raising a single hoof.

“Just one, I think I’m fine now.” Arata said the memories of his hallucination quickly fading.

“Here, drink this,” Camphor said giving him a batch of tea Peace Blossom had brewed. “It’s a cleansing drink; it will flush anything else from your system. It’s safe for anypony to drink, don’t worry.”

Arata hesitantly accepted the drink, his bond with Camphor helping him trust the drink.

“We should head back to the hotel before it gets too late,” Arata said sipping the tea.

“Right,” Camphor agreed. “But first you need to rest. We’ve got an hour to spare so just sit back and relax.”

After waiting until Camphor was sure Arata was alright, the two headed back. At the hotel they found the rest of the group relaxing, with the three girls fondly talking about their dress designs while Blaze was flipping through what appeared to be a sketch book next to a freshly opened bottle of aged cider.

“Welcome back you two,” Vox greeted, momentarily breaking away from the conversation. “Arata, you look exhausted.”

Arata yawned and collapsed onto a couch. “I’ve had a long day.”

Camphor recounted the story to everypony while Arata fell asleep forgetting the last bits of what he had seen while during the tea induced hallucination. The reactions in the room ranged from unamused, for Ivory Shield, to an unbroken and uncharacteristically long fit of laughter for Blaze.

Blaze finished his fit of laughter and looked at Arata asleep on the couch, “We should let the kid rest for now. Good thing he fell asleep in our room.”

…

The next morning Arata and Camphor headed off to get their suits designed. They were greeted with the same vigor and excitement that the other had seen. Arata didn’t seem to be having any side effects from his allergic reaction; except that the events of the tea shop had turned into an indistinguishable blur in his memory.

“So to begin, how many suits do you own? And would you like this to be usable elsewhere or solely for the Gala?” Sartor asked both of his guests.

“I owwnn one, and naaahhh this is just for the Gala for mee,” Camphor answered, followed by a slow yawn.

“I don’t own any, actually,” Arata started, “I wouldn’t mind if it was only for the Gala, I don’t go to formal events very often.”

“If this is going to be your only suit, I will make it the most versatile one you will ever own! It will look spectacular at the Gala or anywhere else you may need it.”

“Okay, that sounds great,” Arata said with a smile.

Sartor began to sketch a design for Arata, “Now, I think we should keep the jacket modest and black, something that will be comfortable in less formal environments. Then for the Gala you will wear a very formal vest underneath it, I will embroider it with a thin red strip going down the left side to match the streak in your mane. Then you will get two ties, one bowtie to wear to the Gala, this will also have the stripe, and one standard tie for all of your other needs. Then I will give you two white shirts to complete the set.”

All of the information was a bit much to take in for somepony unfamiliar with formal attire. Although the sketch he was presented with helped to get the idea across. “Yeah, sure that’s awesome.”

“Wonderful! Now onto you,” He turned his gaze to Camphor. “I notice the flowers in your mane, and your relaxed attitude.” He started to sketch quickly. “I want to give you a completely white suit except for a flower that you will wear in your mane, two you will wear in your cuffs, one on your lapel, all accompanied by a white top hat. It is a bit different, but I think you will wear it splendidly.” He turned the pad to Camphor.

“Raaaaadddiiicaallll!” Camphor agreed. “I love how the color is accented by the white.”

“Exactly! I’m glad you understand the design!” Sartor said readying his measuring tape. “Now once I get your measurements, we will be finished and you can be on your way!”

Arata and Camphor met up with the rest of the team after finishing their appointment. On the journey back, the whole group could only talk about their new suits and dresses. After a busy weekend, Arata felt closer to his entire team, and had a renewed sense of confidence that they would be able to overcome any challenge that came before them.

Comments

[RadicalDishonesty]

In this chapter it looks like you use the word flare (a bright spark) for the word flair (stylishness) several times.

... I wonder how much of that hallucination was prophetic.

[Trismegistus]

5472094 Thanks! I'll make sure to fix that.