Chapter 28 - My Little Assistant (Part 4)
Later that evening…
“Good night, Naruto! Thanks for the meal!” a yellow Earth pony called after dropping the empty bowl at the counter.
“You’re welcome, Carrot!” Naruto replied, before taking off the bowl and dropping it into the sink.
“How’s it going, Spike?” he asked the small drake, who was still diligently working on his skills as instant Ramen maker, next to the counter and out of the outside world’s sight.
“Sorry, Naruto,” Spike replied as he poured another meal into a bowl. “Not yet. And I’m sorry for wasting three whole pots of Ramen today…” he said in a tired voice.
Naruto bit his lip in grief over all the lost Ramen. “But it’s all for a good cause, right?” he thought, attempting to convince himself that this was all worth it.
“Anyway, wanna call it a night?” Naruto asked, looking at a large clock tower in the square. It was already after ten. “I don’t think anypony else will be coming. It’s pretty late already.”
“No, not yet,” Spike answered. “I have to master it today!”
“But you’ve gotta switch back with my clone at Twilight’s, remember?” Naruto reminded him.
“Please, just a little longer!” Spike pleaded, looking away from the bowl and towards Naruto. “Wait…” he muttered, remembering something. “And what about your clone at Rarity’s?”
“Oh, uh…” Naruto said, trying to recall everything he learned when the clone vanished. “Hmm… I don’t know anything,” he finally said. “Probably means he’s still helping Rarity.”
“What?! This late?!” Spike cried.
“Well, I’m not really any good at sewing, so I guess I wasn’t too much of a help to her,” Naruto admitted, smiling sheepishly. “I did stay with her just like I promised I would, though! Believe it!”
“Oh, this is not good! This is not good at all!” Spike cried, starting to panic.
“Don’t worry, Spike,” Naruto said, putting a hoof on his shoulder. “I’m sure she’ll be—” he began, before suddenly stopping mid-sentence.
“Naruto? What’s wrong?” Spike asked, seeing Naruto freezing all of a sudden, his eyes widening in surprise.
“My clone got pricked when he gave Rarity a pin cushion… and vanished. Wow, that’s kind of lame,” Naruto sweatdropped.
“What do you mean ‘vanished’?! What about Rarity?!” Spike demanded.
“Well, the good news is she finished remaking the girls’ dresses,” Naruto reported.
“Oh, that’s good,” Spike said, letting out a sigh of relief. “Wait… The ‘good news’?! There’s bad new too?!”
“The bad news is… she barely even started working on her and Luna’s dresses,” Naruto said.
“Oh no! I’ve gotta get there and help her out!” Spike cried, took off his apron and ran for the door.
“Wait!” Naruto called, causing Spike to stop and look back at him. “I thought you said you weren’t gonna give up until you finished with the Ramen!”
“I’m not!” Spike objected. “It’s just that…” he began to say before looking away, unable to finish what he was saying.
“Just that what?” Naruto asked. In response, Spike let out a sigh.
“Thanks a lot for letting me work here with you, Naruto,” the purple Dragon said quietly. “It was really fun, and I learned a lot from you! But… I don’t think I should work here anymore.”
“Huh?! Why?!” Naruto cried.
“Because… even if I’m really good at something, and even if I really like it… Sometimes there are things that I just have to do, no matter what!” Spike began explaining, looking away. “I kept relying on you today for doing things I should have done myself, and because of that I missed out on a lot of important stuff! I couldn’t help Twilight prepare for the Gala, I couldn’t go thank Rarity for the suit she made for me, and I couldn’t even help her with the dresses, especially when she needed me the most!”
Spike paused to take a breath, and Naruto kept staring at him, trying to understand what the little Dragon was trying to convey.
“What I’m trying to say is… I’m really happy to be working here with you, Naruto. But if that means I’m going to have to give up on other things that are even more important to me, then maybe I shouldn’t work here at all,” he finished explaining, finally looking up at Naruto with a saddened look of resolve.
Naruto’s eyes widened in realization. He then looked down, a guilty look on his face. “I get it now… I’m sorry, Spike. I only thought about using your talent to help my Ramen stand, so I pressured you to stay and forgot that you had other responsibilities. That was really selfish of me. Well, I guess it just wasn’t meant to work out. It was fun working with you for me too, so thanks,” Naruto said, half-smiling at the end.
Spike lighted up and ran to Naruto, hugging him. “Thanks for understanding, Naruto.”
Naruto then turned around and trotted to the Ramen bowl that was about to be scorched by Spike. “Let’s take this to her. She didn’t eat dinner yet, ya know!”
“Yeah,” Spike nodded, when an idea suddenly popped into his head. “But we can’t take it to her like this, ya know!”
In response, Naruto gave Spike a puzzled look.
*****
*Knock* *Knock* *Knock*
“Y-Yes, darling… *yawn* Come in…” a female voice mumbled.
The door to Rarity’s room opened, revealing an orange stallion and a purple baby Dragon, who was carrying a small bowl.
“Oh, Naruto! There you are!” Rarity exclaimed in surprise, looking at him as she lay against her sewing machine, where she had attempted to sew together a few pieces of indigo fabrics. Judging by the vast number of such fabrics lying all around her in a torn mess, it was easy to guess that Rarity’s skills and motoric abilities were heavily reduced by her exhaustion.
“I was so worried when you had just vanished not long ago… and… Spikey?! Just what in Equestria are you doing here?!” she finally asked, her blurred vision finally focusing just enough to notice the little Dragon.
“Oh, Rarity…” Spike muttered in sadness, looking at the mare that was now a mere shadow of her former self. Her coat was a mess, her mane fallen over like withered branches of a tree. Her eyes were red and unfocused, dark sacks hanging beneath them. “I heard you were in trouble, so I had to come back!” he explained.
“Oh, that’s so sweet of you, Spikey… But I’m afraid I shan’t be using your help now. I have a long night ahead of me, and you have to go to sleep. Could you come back… *yawn* …tomorrow?” Rarity asked.
“We thought that you’re probably hungry, since you didn’t have anything for dinner,” Naruto smiled. “So we brought you a little something.”
“Why, thank you. I am actually quite famished and—” she began, when she got a look at the contents of the bowl Spike had brought with him. “Pray tell, what is that?”
Inside the bowl were dry, shriveled noodles and vegetables, covered by light brown powder. Spike placed it down on the floor in front of Rarity. “Just a second!” he then exclaimed, before running downstairs.
Not long afterwards, Spike had brought with him a tea pot filled with water he had just boiled. He ran up to the bowl and began pouring the hot water into it.
Rarity’s eyes widened in amazement to see the shriveled noodles turning into a most familiar and appetizing bowl of Ramen.
“Spike worked all day to get this to work! I hope you’ll be satisfied with the results!” Naruto grinned proudly and paced over to give Rarity a pair of magical chopsticks.
“I-I don’t know what to say…” Rarity muttered quietly, tears starting to form under her tired eyes. “Thank you both so much!”
Rarity took a long, satisfying whiff of her meal. She shakily put on the chopsticks and put them into the bowl, picking up some of the savory noodles. She brought them to her mouth and slurped quietly, the wonderful taste reaching every single taste bud on her tongue. She smiled gently with her eyes closed, as if a great weight was taken off her heart by that single bite.
“Thank… you…” Rarity muttered quietly. *thump*
“Rarity!” Naruto called. The white mare had suddenly slumped down on the floor.
“It’s okay, Naruto! Look!” Spike said, pointing to Rarity’s smiling, peaceful expression. The white mare was ever so slightly shifting up and down, in rhythm with her breathing.
“She’s so beautiful when she sleeps…” Spike muttered, mesmerized.
“Wow, she must be really tired,” Naruto said. “She fell asleep after just one bite. I usually take at least two bowls for that!”
“Anyway, great job with that instant Ramen, Spike! I knew you could do it!” the orange stallion said with a proud grin.
“Thanks, Naruto,” Spike replied happily. “I don’t know how, but… thinking about Rarity really helped my concentration. I felt like I just had to succeed that last time!”
Naruto bent down and picked Rarity up on his back. He then trotted towards her bed and laid her down on it, covering her with the bedsheet.
“Ready to go home?” Naruto asked quietly.
“Yeah,” Spike nodded.
*****
Shortly afterwards, Naruto and Spike had left Carousel Boutique and headed towards the library. The nearly full moon’s pale light was lighting up the way, revealing a Ponyville painted with soft, pure white light.
“So why are you coming with me?” Spike asked. “Don’t you live at Rarity’s?”
“Well, yeah,” Naruto replied. “But there’s something I’ve got to tell Twilight first.”
“Really? What is it?” Spike asked.
“I’m going to tell her everything that happened today,” Naruto answered with a serious expression.
“W-W-Wait!” Spike cried. “But then I’ll be—”
“HOLD IT, BUCKO!” a voice screamed as the front door of the house to Naruto and Spike’s right slammed open, revealing a pink mare.
“PINKIE! KEEP IT DOWN!” a voice from the house yelled.
“OOPS! SORRY, MR. TROTTERS!” Pinkie yelled into the house. “I MEAN… Oops! Sorry, Mr. Trotters!”
Pinkie then tip-hooved outside and closed the door as gently as she could. She then galloped silently towards Naruto, stopping roughly two inches from his muzzle.
“Nopony breaks a Pinkie Promise!” Pinkie yelled angrily, albeit very quietly.
“Sorry, Pinkie. But I just have to tell Twilight!” Naruto retorted.
“B-B-But if you tell Twilight… she’ll be furious! She’ll never trust me again with anything!” Spike cried.
“And losing a friend’s trust is the fastest way to lose a friend forever!” Pinkie confirmed with a strict nod.
“But I—” Naruto tried to explain.
“FOREVER!!!” Pinkie repeated in a loud, ominous tone.
“PINKIE! KEEP IT DOWN!” several voices from nearby houses all shouted at once.
“Sorry!” Pinkie called, albeit again very quietly.
“Pinkie, listen,” Naruto said. “I did a lot of stupid stuff today and already got Spike into trouble with Twilight. I have to tell her the truth so she’ll know that nothing that happened today was his fault. And also, it was my fault Spike wasn’t of any help to her at all today. So if Twilight’s gonna be mad at anypony, it will be me.”
Naruto turned to look at Spike. “Are you okay with that?”
“Well…” Spike said, pondering this. “I guess we really should tell her the truth. It’s probably only a matter of time before she figures it out, anyway. And, well…” he began, looking down. “I feel pretty bad for lying to her too…”
“Well, Pinkie?” Naruto asked, hoping she would be convinced.
“Hmm…” Pinkie muttered, rubbing her chin thoughtfully with her tail.
“Let’s see,” she finally said, pulling out a purple book from her mane. The words ‘DA RULES’ were printed on the book’s cover in golden letters.
She then plucked out of her mane with her other hoof a pair of red reading glasses, put them on and began flipping through the book’s pages, somehow balancing herself on only her hind legs. “Chapter ‘F’, section ‘U’, subsection ‘N’…” she muttered to herself as she was looking for a certain page.
“Here it is! ’If the promisee of a Pinkie Promise permits the promise to be broken, and the promiser is not against the idea of the promisee permitting the Pinkie Promise to be broken by either the promisee or the promiser, then the Pinkie Promise can be broken!’,” Pinkie cited and closed the book, taking off her glasses.
“So…?” Spike asked, confused.
“The Pinkie Promise is hereby unpromised!” Pinkie announced ceremoniously.
“ALRIGHT!” Spike and Naruto yelled at the same time.
“NARUTO! SPIKE! KEEP IT DOWN!” several voices yelled from nearby houses.
“Well then, I’m off now!” Pinkie said, stuffing the book and glasses back into her mane. “See you in three scenes!”
And with that, Pinkie turned around and hopped away, to the confused gazes of Naruto and Spike.
*****
As the two boys approached the library, a great commotion could be heard from inside.
“No, no, no!” Twilight’s voice was heard. “Spike! We’ve been over this a million times already! History section is sorted by book thickness and nature section is sorted by book width and length!”
“What the hay?! That’s not what you said five minutes ago!” Spike’s voice retorted.
*Knock* *Knock* *Knock*
“We’re closed! Come back tomorrow!” Twilight angrily responded to Naruto’s knocking on the front door.
Naruto, however, just went ahead and pulled down the handle, opening the red entry door to the inside. He quickly had to jerk his head backwards to avoid a book carried away by Owlowiscious. The owl was fruitlessly trying to restore order to the now chaotic library; books were strewn over the entire floor, scrolls lay unfolded and crumpled all around and a flask of ink lay on the floor, shattered in a puddle of black liquid.
At the left side of the library, nearby several empty bookshelves and surrounded by stacks books, Twilight was glaring down at ‘Spike’ very angrily, who in return glared back at her. The two of them seemed just about ready to tear each other apart.
“W-W-WHAT THEY HAY IS ALL THIS?!” the real Spike yelled, horrified by the sight.
Every single being in the room turned its eyes to the source of the shout, finding a very angry little Dragon standing at the entrance of the library.
Twilight turned her gaze away from ‘Spike’ with a stunned look, to find Spike and Naruto standing at the entrance. She then looked back at the Spike she was standing next to, and then once more to the one at the entrance. “What?! I… but how?!” she could only utter to the surreal sight of two Spikes.
“I leave the library to you for one day! ONE! DAY!” Spike shouted as he paced forward, not minding at all that Twilight kept staring at him in absolute shock. “And you turn the library I worked WEEKS to organize upside down in that ONE SINGLE DAY! How the HAY did you even do that?!” the purple dragon screamed, still pacing closer to Twilight and ‘Spike’.
“I was alright when you didn’t return from Twilight’s errand and kept on stuffing Ramen. I wasn’t even mad when you didn’t help Rarity’s sewing. But this?! This is just ENRAGING! You have got to be the WORST LIBRARY ASSISTANT IN THE HISTORY OF LIBRARY ASSISTANTS!” Spike continued.
Spike then stopped in his tracks, only a few steps before he was snout to snout with ‘Spike’, breathing heavily and exhaling puffs of smoke from his nostrils.
“So, uh… am I fired?” ‘Spike’ asked cautiously.
“You better believe it!” Spike retorted. “At least now I don’t feel so bad anymore for quitting the Ramen stand!”
“Finally!” ‘Spike’ called happily, letting out a sigh of relief. “I couldn’t take this anymore! If I had to work with this nutso here anymore, I’d go mad! I don’t want to see another book in my life!”
‘Spike’ than performed claw seals. “Transformation Jutsu, Release!” he called, and soon appeared as an orange stallion out of a smoke cloud.
“N-Naruto?!” Twilight cried, still dumbfounded by everything going on.
“Well, guess I can finally get some rest,” Naruto at the entrance smiled. “Release!” he called, crossing his forelegs, before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.
Twilight turned her gaze back and forth from the entrance to Spike to Naruto. “WOULD SOMEPONY TELL ME WHAT THE HAY IS GOING ON HERE?!”
*****
“…and then I decided to come here with Spike and confess everything,” Naruto finished retelling what took place that day. He, Spike and Twilight all sat at the library, explaining everything that happened and led to the surreal scene earlier.
“I see,” Twilight said, deep in thought. “I should have realized something was going on when Spike’s speech pattern got so weird earlier.”
“Hey!” Naruto called in protest.
“But I didn’t expect you to use your ninja abilities to lie to me like that, Naruto,” Twilight said, sounding quite hurt.
“I’m really sorry, Twilight,” Naruto apologized. “But I had to do that to keep you from finding out that Spike was gone.”
“I’m sorry too, Twilight!” Spike cried. “I knew that you needed me, but I didn’t think everything would go so out of hoof so quickly! I really thought nothing would go wrong!”
“Yeah, turns out I’m not really good at sorting books and stuff like that,” Naruto chuckled sheepishly.
“Well, that’s an understatement,” Spike muttered angrily, crossing his arms.
“But I still don’t understand, Spike,” Twilight said. “Why did you make such a big deal of all this? Why didn’t you just tell me?”
“The truth is…” Spike answered quietly. “I’m always busy running errands for you and helping you out with your chores, so I don’t really have a lot of time for myself… Ever since Naruto opened his Ramen stand I’ve been wanting to work there with him, but I couldn’t just leave you, and I knew that you wouldn’t let me go!”
“So he asked me to take his place while he worked with me,” Naruto continued. “That’s why I made a clone to stay with him while I transformed into Spike and helped you out. Well, I tried to help you, anyways.”
“But now I see that it just doesn’t work,” Spike said, looking down. “It’s got to be me that helps you, Twilight. That’s why I quit working at the Ramen stand. So, I’m really sorry for everything that happened today. Please don’t be mad at me or at Naruto. I swear it won’t ever happen again…”
A long silence then lingered in the library, and not even Owlowiscious, who was watching the conversation, made a sound. What finally broke the silence was Twilight, who stood up and paced towards Spike, surprising him when she gave him a big hug.
“Oh, you silly little Dragon… I could never be mad at you,” Twilight smiled. “Besides, I guess all this was partially my fault.”
“Huh? Why?” Naruto asked, baffled.
“Spike’s right,” Twilight said, releasing the little Dragon from her hug. “I don’t give him enough free time to do what he wants. He’s always busy helping me out and when he’s done, he’s just too tired to do anything he wants to do for himself. I thought having Owlowiscious would solve that problem, but I guess I was wrong.”
“I’m sorry, Spike,” Twilight said. “I keep relying on your help without even considering that you might have other hobbies or other things you want to do. I promise not to be so overbearing from now on, and to take care of my own chores myself, without shoving so many onto you. And if you feel that you have to get some time off, just tell me. Deal?” she asked with a smile, raising a hoof.
Spike stared at Twilight, genuinely surprised by her words, before smiling and shaking her hoof. “Deal.”
“So how about right now?” Spike promptly asked. “I have to go do something important.”
“At this late hour? What could be so important?” Twilight asked.
“Rarity still didn’t finish making her dress! I’ve got to get it ready for her before the Gala!” Spike said.
“WHAT?!” Twilight screamed, causing Naruto and Spike to block their ears. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN HER DRESS ISN’T FINISHED?!”
“Rarity saved her own dress for last,” Naruto explained. “It was so important to everypony’s dresses will be perfect, that she didn’t have time to finish working on it. She was so exhausted from making them, she fell asleep.”
“Yeah!” Spike said. “That’s why I have to go and finish it for her! I know I’m not very good at sewing… but I have to at least try!”
“I… I didn’t know…” Twilight mumbled. “I can’t believe we all just asked her to remake our dresses without even thinking about her own dress… How could we be so selfish…?”
“And actually, Princess Luna asked Rarity to make her a dress as well,” Naruto added. “It’s still not finished either.”
“So is it okay, Twilight? Can I go?” Spike asked.
“No,” Twilight replied. “Not without me you don’t,” she smiled.
Spike smiled back at her. “Thanks, Twi!”
“But can you finish them in time by yourselves?” Naruto asked. “I won’t be of much help, really…”
“Probably not…” Twilight said, rubbing her hoof against her chin as she pondered what to do. A moment afterwards, her face lighted up. “But I know a few ponies that with their help we could! Naruto, can you summon four clones, please?”
Naruto grinned and crossed his forelegs. “You don’t have to say another word!”
*****
Not long afterwards…
It didn’t take long for Naruto’s clones to complete their task, and soon enough six ponies and one Dragon were gathered in front of Carousel Boutique.
“I can’t believe we all just abandoned Rarity like this,” Fluttershy said, looking down at the ground.
“Yeah, some friends we turned out to be,” Applejack sighed.
“Don’t worry, everypony,” Twilight said, smiling at the circle of friends around her. “The fact that we’re all here now shows that we all truly care about Rarity. And together, we’ll make sure she gets that beautiful dress she deserves!”
“Well, what are we waiting for?!” Rainbow asked. “We’ve got a couple of EPIC dresses to make!”
“Yeah!” the others replied enthusiastically, raising a hoof to the air.
Naruto opened the front door, and soon everypony trotted inside (except for Pinkie, who hopped inside), before he closed it and turned on the lights.
“Alright,” Twilight said, standing at the middle of the studio. “Let’s break up our work. First, we need to get Rarity’s patterns for the dresses, as well as the mannequins with the bases she made, fabrics and tools.”
“I’ll get the mannequins and the sewing machine,” Naruto offered.
“And I’ll bring the other stuff, Twi!” Spike said.
Twilight nodded as the two boys quietly hurried to the second floor. “Now, who here can use a sewing machine?”
To Twilight’s surprise, Fluttershy hesitantly raised her hoof. “Umm… I can give it a try… if you don’t mind, I mean…” she said quietly.
“Great! We’ll all count on you, Fluttershy!” Twilight smiled. Fluttershy gulped in response.
“Next, we need somepony to pick out the best gems to use for the designs,” Twilight continued.
“Ooh! Me, me! Pick me!” Pinkie called enthusiastically.
“Alright, Pinkie,” Twilight smiled.
“Weehee!” Pinkie cried and literally flew off to get the gems from Rarity’s large jewel box.
“We don’t even have the patterns yet…” Twilight thought, looking at the pink pony. “Oh well. Now we need somepony to get Luna’s dress to Canterlot as quickly as possible, when we finish working on it.”
“Just leave it to me!” Rainbow said, taking to the air. “I’ll be there faster than you can say ‘Future Wonderbolt Extraordinaire’!” she exclaimed, performing a few loops in the air as a demonstration.
“Great!” Twilight smiled. “And I’ll cut the fabrics according to the patterns!”
“What about me, Twi? ‘fraid I can’t really help y’all with making these fancy-shmancy dresses,” Applejack said in concern.
“Don’t worry, Applejack,” Twilight smiled. “I have the perfect assignment for you! How do you feel about tiny lassos?”
*****
The group all worked into the night at Rarity’s shop, struggling to make Rarity’s sketches a reality.
Spike hung the designs on the wall, and then ran around getting everypony what they needed, whether it was tools, fabrics or even just a second opinion. He also helped Pinkie distinguish between gems, picking out the best ones to use for the dresses.
After Naruto brought down the heavy items, he also served as an errand boy to get everything the girls needed from upstairs, where Rarity had kept most of the fabrics she was going to use for the dresses. The girls needed a lot, since they were less than professional, and not once made a mistake.
Twilight cut the fabrics according to the patterns, while Fluttershy sewed the larger pieces together.
Applejack stitched together the smaller pieces and the gems Pinkie picked to the dress with surprising ease and accuracy using a spool of thread and a pin, claiming it was a bit like the lasso training she had as a foal, before she moved on to the real thing.
However, a few hours later, a major problem arose…
“We’re out of fabrics!” Naruto announced as he headed back to the studio. The others all paused their work and looked at him, worried.
“What?! How can this be?!” Twilight cried. “Rarity should have a lot of fabrics!”
“Well, maybe she ran out of them while… *yawn* …she made your second dresses,” Spike said, barely able to keep awake after all those hours.
“And it sure didn’t help we all made a bunch of mistakes,” Applejack said, motioning over to a pile of used fabrics, now rendered unusable for any decent dress making, either from wrong stitching or cutting.
“What are we gonna do…?” Fluttershy asked.
“Well, if Rarity used a lot of fabric to make us two sets of dresses,” Pinkie said. “Then maybe if we scrap one of the sets we’ll get half of a lot of fabrics!”
“Pinkie, that was really smart of you!” Rainbow exclaimed in surprise.
“I have my moments,” Pinkie grinned. *squee*
“But ain’t our dresses whole different colors? We can’t use them,” Applejack said.
“Not to worry!” Twilight exclaimed. “I may not be able to salvage our mis-stitched fabrics, but I do know a recoloring spell!”
“Alright then,” Naruto said. “The first dress set should be in the dressing room upstairs.”
“Great! Mind getting it for us?” Twilight asked.
“Well, alright but…” Naruto began, looking quite worried.
“Something wrong?” Twilight inquired.
“Well, uh… have any of you seen your second dresses?” Naruto asked. In response, the others, beside Fluttershy, all shook their heads
“I already saw my second dress,” Fluttershy said. “But if you mean my second-second dress, then no.”
“…Right,” Naruto said, seemingly pondering how to tackle the situation. “You know what? I’ll just bring down both sets here. Shadow Clone Jutsu!”
The others all glared at the clones, baffled, but decided not to question Naruto.
*****
A few minutes later…
“Oh… my…” Fluttershy muttered, covering her mouth with her hooves.
“Well… it’s exactly what I asked for, but…” Twilight struggled.
“It looked way cooler in my imagination,” Rainbow said.
“It’s so colorful!” Pinkie exclaimed. “But it’s kinda…”
“Those are the darnedest ugliest dresses I’ve ever seen,” Applejack said flatly.
“Count on the Element of Honesty to spell it out…” Naruto thought in relief.
The group all gazed, horrified, at the new dresses Naruto brought from Rarity’s room, and were lined up against the old ones for comparison.
“I still can’t believe Rarity made them for you… Just imagine if you actually wore them!” Spike said, horrified. A most unwelcome mental image floated up in their minds as a result.
The five mares all got the chills from the very thought.
“I may not get a thing about pony dresses, but even I know horrible clothes when I see them,” Naruto said, struggling not to laugh. “I can’t believe you were all actually going to wear them for the Gala.”
“You know what? I think I’m fine with giving up my new dress for Rarity. I’m totally cool with the first one,” Rainbow quickly said. The other four soon voiced their agreement, while Spike and Naruto smiled at each other.
And so, after Twilight had disassembled the second line of dresses, the group got back to work, making use of the last pieces of fabric they had on hoof. They all worked through most of the night, and Spike even fell asleep one of the dresses’ remains. But would they finish the task in time…?
*****
*BOOM* *BOOM *BOOM*
Rarity jolted up from her bed, startled by sounds of faraway explosions.
“W-When did I fall asleep?! The dresses! I have to finish the—” she began, but froze upon finding where the sounds came from. Turning her head to the window left to her bed, a clear view of Canterlot came into view. The Royal Palace was lighted up in white, and fireworks exploded above it, dyeing it momentarily in changing colors.
It took less than a second for the white Unicorn to piece together what was happening. “T-T-THE GALA! IT’S ALREADY BEGUN!” she screamed, jumped out of her bed and galloped towards the mannequins standing in a row against the wall. Two of them were dressed with merely the bases of what Rarity easily identified as hers and Luna’s dresses. “No! I didn’t finish them!”
“This is it!” Rarity cried. “The end! La grand finale! I’m finished!” she sobbed, falling back onto her bed. “I’ve disappointed the Princess and I couldn’t make it to the Gala! This is officially the worst night of my lifeeeee!!!”
Rarity continued crying into her bed, not noticing that behind her, the moon’s light was starting to grow stronger. Violet light poured from it through the window and into the room.
A sphere of light rose from the light cast on the floor, and then grew and changed its shape to that of a pony. The brightness then began to diminish, revealing the Princess of the Night.
Seeing the crying mare, Princess Luna trotted towards Rarity, placing a comforting hoof on her shoulder. Feeling the gentle touch, Rarity turned around and looked through her tears to see who the visitor was.
“P-P-Princess… Luna?” Rarity sniffled. “I’m… I’m… I’M SORRY!!!” Rarity screamed, her crying beginning anew as she groveled at Luna’s hooves. “I couldn’t keep my promise, and I destroyed what should have been the best night of your life!”
Surprisingly, Luna let out a light chuckle. “Fear not, my little pony, for naught is destroyed,” she said calmly.
“H-Huh?” Rarity muttered. “But… the Gala! It’s starting any minute now and the dresses are not nearly done yet!”
“It might be difficult to grasp, but you should understand that all this is naught but a dream. Mere imagery shown to you by your heart,” Luna explained with a smile.
“A… a dream?” Rarity asked, baffled. She wiped her tears and slowly rose to her hooves. “But if this is a dream, then what are you doing here, Princess? How can you be inside my dream?”
“For the longest time, I have thought that my role and importance were inferior to that of my sister, Princess Celestia,” Luna began explaining. “Since ponies sleep during my night, I had come to think that I had no role in their lives. However, thanks to a very special somepony, I now realize that there is something I can do that my sister cannot. I can visit ponies in their dreams, and by helping them confront their nightmares, they would be able to face their daily strifes, which cause them.”
“That sounds wonderful!” Rarity smiled, before her concerned expression reappeared. “But if this is a dream, then that means I truly did fall asleep! And I truly did not finish either of our dresses!”
“True,” Luna confirmed. “But that was only due to your generous heart, and because you’ve put your friends’ wishes before your own.”
“It doesn’t matter anymore…” Rarity sighed. “I won’t have the time to finish the dresses. I’m truly, truly sorry,” she said, looking down. To her surprise, she could hear Luna chuckling again, and looked back up at her.
“But your generosity did not go unnoticed and unappreciated,” the dark blue Alicorn said.
“What… whatever do you mean?” Rarity inquired, baffled.
“Have faith in your friends. All will turn out just fine,” Luna assured with a smile.
“I… well, alright. I suppose I have no other choice,” Rarity consented, although she had no idea what Luna had meant.
“For now, forget your worries. Sleep well, my little pony,” Luna said softly and bowed down towards Rarity. Luna’s horn gently touched Rarity’s forehead. With a purple glow from it Rarity closed her eyes, falling into a dreamless sleep.
*****
The chirping of the birds and the warmness of the early morning sun’s light had gently woken Rarity up. She slowly opened her eyes, finding herself momentarily blinded by the sunlight.
“Morning, Rarity!” a cheerful voice rang a few moments afterwards.
“S-Spike…?” Rarity muttered, immediately recognizing the voice. She sat up and looked around her room, her eyes shooting open in surprise to see Twilight, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Applejack, Pinkie, Naruto and Spike standing next to the door, smiling at her.
“W-What are you all doing here so early?” Rarity asked, dumbfounded.
“Well, we just wanted to show you a little something…” Twilight said, smiling.
Everypony moved aside to reveal a mannequin dressed in a beautiful pink and magenta dress, which had golden linings and was embroidered with beautiful purple and pink gems. A dress which looked very familiar to Rarity.
Rarity’s eyes widened as she slowly got off her bed and trotted to the creation. “My… my dress? But… I don’t understand,” she mumbled, stunned, as she surveyed the dress with her eyes and placed a hoof on it, as if to confirm its realness.
“We’re all really sorry, Rarity. We were all so focused on our own dresses, we never even bothered to ask how your own dress was proceeding,” Twilight said shamefully. “We took advantage of your talent and pretty much coerced you into making them again, after you worked on the first set so hard…”
“We should have appreciated all of the hard work you put into them, and seen beyond just the exterior,” Fluttershy said sadly.
“Because of us, you didn’t have enough time to make your own dress,” Applejack said. “So Twilight, Spike and Naruto here got us together last night and…”
“We made you your own dress ourselves!” Rainbow Dash smirked. “And Princess Luna’s too, so you don’t have to worry about a thing! I personally express mailed it to Canterlot!”
“Naruto and I mostly just helped by getting your designs and materials from your room,” Spike smiled. Naruto grinned, crossing his arms behind his head.
“So do you like it? Or do you LOVE IT?” Pinkie asked with an excited grin.
“I… I don’t know what to say…” Rarity muttered, tears starting to run down her eyes. “Thank you… THANK YOU SO MUCH, EVERYPONY!”
*****
Dear Princess Celestia,
This week, Spike and my friend, Rarity, have both learned that if you try to please everypony, you often end up pleasing nopony, especially yourself. Naruto and I have also learned another lesson: while it’s nice to have talented friends you can rely on, you have to remember that they have more to them than just their talents. You have to let them go when they have to go, but in return, you can rest assured that you can always count on them whenever they are truly needed.
Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle
“And… done!” Spike announced as he finished writing the letter. He then rolled the scroll tightly and tied it with a red ribbon.
“Great job, Spike,” Twilight smiled. “Fire at will!”
Spike took a deep breath, and then released it as a stream of green flames. The scroll burned away into sparkling green smoke, which then flew outside through the library’s open window.
“All done, Twi!” Spike reported. “Can I go now?”
“But Spike, the library is still a mess!” Twilight exclaimed, pointing to one of the many unorganized stacks of books that lay on the floor next to the bookshelves.
“Oh, please! Just today! It’s a special day today!” Spike pleaded.
Twilight smiled. “Alright. Today’s an exception.”
“Yes! Thanks, Twilight!” Spike called before turning around and making for the exit.
“Say ‘hi’ to Naruto for me! And don’t forget we have to get ready for tonight!” Twilight called after him.
“Alright!” Spike answered as he closed the door after him.
“I can’t wait for tonight to come!” Twilight thought in excitement. “I’m sure it will just be… the best night ever!”
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just when i feel like going back to naruto crossover fanfics, this updates, cool
Hooray! Update buck yeah! I'm looking forward to the next chapter.
'Da Rules', huh? Pinkie must have had some Fairly Odd Parents. I'm pretty tired, so rhyming is a problem right now. I like the resolution here, and I like the fact that you actually did account for Spike's absence, and did your own thing instead of going with the Fashion Show.
Great chapter. I can't wait for the next chapter Luna is my favorite character. I also hope Luna and Naruto get together I believe they would make a great couple
Overall, this was a fairly solid chapter. Though I admit I'm more excited to see things change in terms of what happens next. Seeing Naruto at the gala and more than likely butt heads with all the snobs there should be amusing to say the least and interaction with Luna might be nice as well.
It's fairly clear you want to try and pair Naruto with Luna, but I'm wondering if that's the only pairing or if you have something else in mind as well. Just wondering is all and also when to expect the next chapter.
Also kind of wondering if you plan to do anything more with the whole Luna entering Naruto's dreams things, cause if Naruto was aware what was going on in a dream is a dream, well he could easily use that to his advantage and live out some of the fantasies he's always wanted. Specifically
phenomenalphoebe.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/road7.jpg
This.
Just some food for thought.
6151391
I didn't know my writing could have such an influence!
I'm really glad it made you feel better, and I hope you'll successfully cope with your hardships!
This was extremely satisfying; although I won't deny I'm hoping for more!
6193164 Actually, it was earlier in the fight. Remember when Neji ran through the army of Narutos and struck one, then others started poofing? Naruto had purposely placed it back to make Neji think it was the real him. The video here shows it, if you watch it from 12:40 to about 14:52:
6193184
THE DUB! IT BURNSSSSSSSSSS!
But yeah, guess I was wrong. Good job!
I guess we'll all just have to tolerate this plot hole.
6193542 I prefer subs myself, if only because the dubs tend to screw you over when it comes to the injury parts, except when it comes to movies...
Wonderful story! I hope it will not end so quickly?
6197159
Thank you!
Don't worry, I won't be surprised if it eventually hits 100 chapters...
6198916 Yes, something tells me that there will be more than 100 chapter
I've always hated that phrase. My name is Will.
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Hope I didn't make you lose the will to live.
Woona is indeed best pone.
You know, those dresses are even uglier than I remembered.
