Half Hour Horses: Legacy Prompts

by HoofAndQuill

LP37: Fleur Lis Dee [General]

The Prompt: The Mare from Canterlot

(Some days you look up and realize that somehow you missed two entire weeks of prompts without noticing. Whoops! I feel like I ought to go back and do them anyway. Anyway here's this week's.)

"Yes, now just hold the fabric just like that... there! Thank you, Spikey-wikey, you are always such a dear."

Rarity smiled graciously at the little dragon, and Spike blushed and nodded, still holding the piles of fabric just so. Rarity knew that the fabric was heavy, and that the positioning put Spike in a somewhat awkward pose, but he was always so willing to help that she could hardly deny him the opportunity. She worked quickly to secure the fabric with a rough stitch, just to keep it in place. Only a few loops of the thread into her work, however, a knock at the door interrupted her. Rarity sighed quietly. "Do hold that pose for just a moment more? I'll only be a moment, I'm sure, and I do want to finish this before Fleur Lis Dee arrives for our little collaboration."

"Sure thing, Rarity!" Spike spoke with just the slightest telling strain in his voice. Rarity rewarded him with another smile, and let her mind drift over her current collection of gems, searching for something with which to repay him more properly.

As she thought, she trotted her way over to the door of her boutique, and spoke as she opened it. "Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where every garment is chi-- Oh! Fleur Lis Dee! I didn't expect you for another day at least!"

Fleur swept her way into the boutique with a flourish. She was, as always, quite a bit taller than the average mare, and thin, with a statuesque figure that set her quite apart from the rest of Canterlot, let alone the rustic earth ponies of a village like Ponyville. "Oh, but I had a few extra things to attend to while I'm here, Rarity, so I thought I'd arrive early."

A porter carrying a dozen heavy-looking suitcases, trunks, and cloth garment bags struggled his way into the boutique behind Fleur, and nearly collapsed as he set the bags down. Rarity absent-mindedly used her magic to pass him a small gem as a tip, before turning to speak to Fleur. "I had meant to meet you at the train station, of course! I do hope you found your way easily enough?"

Fleur Lis Dee stepped elegantly through the Boutique, eyes scanning over the decor and assorted dresses and other garments as she spoke. Rarity couldn't help but feel slightly vulnerable and exposed as this beautiful pony looked over her life's work as though it were just another storefront. "Yes, of course. The stallions here have been most helpful. Oh, such a quaint little space you have here! It will be wonderful to work with you on my new line."

Rarity's eyebrow twitched slightly at the 'quaint', but she bit back any sort of comment. Before she could come up with a suitable reply, a clattering of falling pins and flumph of falling fabric brought her mind back to her work. Rarity looked over to see Spike in a collapsed pile of what might have become a dress at some point, gawking open-mouthed at Fleur. Fleur, for her part, regarded the little dragon with widened eyes a moment before adopting a pretty, confident smile. "And who is this?"

Rarity coughed politely, and lit her horn to pick up the fabrics and other mess from around her friend. "Oh, I'm being perfectly rude, aren't I? Fleur Lis Dee, this is my dear friend Spike. He's a dragon, and assistant to Princess Twilight."

Spike finally snapped out of whatever trance he was in, and bowed in his typical naive, slightly foalish way. "Hi, Fleur Lis Dee, I'm Spike, I mean, I know Rarity said it, but, uh."

Fleur smiled, and something about that smile slightly irritated Rarity. Fleur bowed as well, though not nearly as low, and replied in her calm, composed, elegant voice. "It's good to meet you, Spike. You must be a very important dragon to assist the Princess."

Spike blushed brightly, and took his tail nervously in his claws as he looked aside. "Oh, uh... sure! I'm really important!"

"Spike, dear, Fleur is quite important and wealthy herself, I'm quite certain you have nothing to be embarrassed about." As soon as the words left her lips, Rarity realized that they didn't entirely make sense. "Now, Fleur, I've taken the liberty of cleaning up the guest room and making quite certain it is well-appointed enough to serve for your stay. It may not be quite the elegance and sophistication of Canterlot, but I'm sure you'll be simply delighted at the decor."

Fleur Lis Dee turned toward Rarity, and her eyes flitted over to the door. A slight crease crossed her brow for only a moment. "Oh, it is so difficult to find good help. That porter was supposed to be helping me with my few bags. I'm quite sorry, Rarity, I suppose I should have sent word. The Mayor heard of my visit and has arranged for me to stay at the castle."

"Really?" Spike hopped up in excitement, his nervousness apparently gone. "You're staying with me and Twilight?"

With another smile, Fleur nodded to the dragon. "Yes, I believe so. Though I'm not at all certain how I will carry my luggage all the way there."

"I'll do it! I'm used to carrying stuff around!" Without even waiting for a response, Spike ran over to the pile of bags and trunks, and set himself to gathering them. Fleur made no move to stop him, and indeed looked just a bit smug as she watched the baby dragon collect her things.

Rarity stepped forward again, fluttering her eyelashes as she spoke to Spike. "Spike, darling, I don't doubt that we can find another porter to help you. You simply don't need to do everything yourself."

"Huh?" Spike turned and glanced at her, before smiling up at Fleur again. "It's no problem, Rarity! Happy to help!"

"But I was, I mean, we were working on a project, Spike, and-"

Fleur spoke gently, even as she interrupted Rarity. "Oh, don't worry, Rarity. I'll bring your handsome little helper back tomorrow. I do so look forward to working with you. Come along, Spike, let's make our way to the Princess' castle, shall we?"

Rarity only watched as the two walked out of her suddenly quiet Boutique, without so much as a goodbye. 'Quaint', was it? After she had spent so much time working on a room for that ungrateful mare, and- Rarity sighed, and shook her head. There was no reason to be so upset, Fleur was accustomed to ponies bowing and scraping and doing everything they could to please her. But something still bothered Rarity. Her horn glowed, and she held the various pieces of fabric in her magic as she continued her work on the dress, alone.

Taking her hospitality for granted, taking all the credit for their upcoming fashion line, and now taking her Spike? She would show Fleur Lis Dee what a true fashionista was like. She would show her just how things were done differently here in Ponyville.

Rarity's eyes narrowed as she put a little more flourish on jabbing the needle through the fine fabric. She would also win her little dragon back.