Slice of Velvet and Pear

by David Silver

62 - The Mysterious Mare Do Well - Part Three

"I am nothing." It was a reminder. It helped, she found, to remind herself once in a while as she darted through the roads of Ponyville. "I am empty." But she wasn't empty, or nothing, not really. Things came into that void, and she could feel it. A thousand imperfections stood out, waiting to collapse. That mare wasn't paying attention, not enough, to the stroller she was pushing. When she reached the top of the next hill...

Moon darted in, nudging it at the last second. She didn't stop it mid-roll, she made it not get out of the mare's grasp in the first place. The angry shout she got was hardly thankful, but it meant there was nothing for the others to address.

Timely calls of her own, nudging things in line, and, without thought, becoming the ultimate safety inspector for the town, Moon Dancer made the whole place very... boring. Safe, but boring.

---

Rainbow thudded a hoof down, limply sprawled across the ground. "This is so... unfair... How am I supposed to show I'm way better than that 'Mysterious Mare Do Well' if nothing happens?!"

Scootaloo stopped on her walk past at the plaintive cry of her hero. "Wha?" She scurried over. "What are you talking about?"

"Hey, Scoots." Rainbow sat up with a smile. Her favorite little filly was good for bringing a smile. "I'm just being really annoyed right now, sorry."

"What about?" There was no judgment there, just an eager want to help her best pony be her, well, best.

"Well..." Rainbow waved over herself. "Remember how ponies finally started noticing how awesome I was?"

"It's great!" Scootaloo clapped appreciatively at those good times. "What about it?"

"Notice they haven't lately?" Rainbow sagged. "First, you have the 'Mare Do Well' showing up, hogging the lime light. Now... nothing. It's like the whole town fell asleep!"

Scootaloo twirled in place, looking out over the town. "Looks pretty awake to me." She could see plenty of ponies getting their little lives done. "What should they be doing?"

"Getting in trouble!" Rainbow threw up her hooves. "Having pro...blems..." She trailed, tripping over her own words. "Wow... That sounds kinda wrong..."

Scootaloo patted her larger would-be sister. "You're still awesome."

Rainbow grabbed up Scootaloo and did a twirl up into the air, holding the filly. "Yeah. Sorry, I think I got a little carried away."

"You don't have anything to prove to anypony!" Scootaloo spread out her limbs in a flying position, enjoying the motions Rainbow was giving. "You'll always be great."

"Yeah!" Rainbow took off, carrying Scootaloo in a jaunt with the little one's buzzing wings firing. "If this town doesn't need a hero, whatever, right? I'll still be me, being awesome! I'll be here when it comes up."

The two took a cheerful flight together, ceasing their worries about the town that didn't have a pressing need for that much awesome, at least at the moment. "Don't got nopony to prove nothing to!"

---

"You look satisfied." Twilight inclined an ear at Moon, seated with subtle smugness behind a desk. "Did something happen? Very little is going on, over here."

Moon flicked her ears back, good mood punctured. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Twilight waved it away. "It's just been... quiet. The Mare do Well hasn't had to come out." She shrugged at the whole thing. "Not that I miss her. If Rainbow's calmed down, maybe that's a job completed?"

"Has she?" Moon poorly hid the hope in her voice. "Good. I would like your friendship to resume."

Twilight blinked at that, sinking to her haunches. "We didn't stop being friends with her."

"You were not acting like it. The exchange of favors and kind words had ceased..." Moon rubbed behind her head. "You were making secret plans that went against her wishes. That isn't how..." She frowned. "I also performed those things. Please forgive me."

Twilight blinked slowly. "What did you do?"

"I acted against your wishes in a clandestine fashion." Moon stood up. "I am prepared to receive whatever punishment you feel is appropriate."

Twilight inclined her head at Moon. "Alright... How about we start with you saying what you actually did?"

Moon directed a hoof at her head. "Using Pinkie's techniques, I was able to circumvent enough misfortunes around town through active intercession. Pinkie sense, I note, requires very active thought for being about not thinking. If we are done, I'm happy. It was tiring..."

"I see..." Twilight circled around Moon, considering her. "You claim you're the reason things... went quiet? That is... remarkable."

"Sorry."

"You shouldn't be." She rested a hoof on Moon's shoulder. "But, since you got a hoof on it, now you can explain 'Pinkie Sense' in a manner that doesn't sound like a raving mad pony?"

Moon considered that, relaxing from thoughts of punishments. "She is very skilled at not allowing herself to be in the way."

Twilight blinked at that. "Pardon?"

Moon directed a hoof at Twilight. "You're in the way of your own thoughts. You, and I, usually are. It's the default unicorn condition. We have many things to consider. There's no room left over for passive observation. Unless it exists in our very specific sphere of focus, it may as well not exist."

Twilight let one ear fall limp, the other still raised. "I... see... And how does this condition help, or hinder, the 'pinkie sense'?"

Moon took a slow breath, stilling her thoughts. "When you let go of those things and lose your focus..." She slowed, thoughts sliding without her holding them down. "You begin to notice those peripheral senses. Somepony is coming."

"Who? Where?" Twilight turned in place, but saw nopony there to welcome. "I don't see anypony?"

The door swung open, allowing Rarity inside. "Darlings! Marvelous, I was hoping you'd both be here."

Moon nodded at the fabulous unicorn. "I couldn't place the sound of your hooves specifically. Pinkie is a pro at that. I imagine she could have..."

Rarity approached, brow raising higher with each step. "What is she talking about, dear?" She looked to Twilight for help.

"She's... explaining Pinkie sense." Twilight tapped at her chin. "Doing it less... randomly than Pinkie would, but still a bit strange."

"Kudos for attempting it, darling." Rarity nodded at Moon. "Now, since I have you, how did Celestia like the design? I saw her guard once or twice! Does that mean she enjoyed it? Spare not a single detail!"

Moon cringed, realizing there was at least one other error she had to face. "I'm sorry... Luna was not informed of your dress."

"She wasn't?" Rarity leaned in, brows falling in a frown. "Why wasn't she? I saw somepony running around with it!"

Twilight looked between the two. "Did I miss something?"

"I asked Rarity--" She waved at Rarity. "To construct a uniform I used to... interfere with your plans. I was a poor friend. Pear Butter talked sense into me."

"I'm glad she did that." Rarity nodded, hoof curling to her chin. "Reasonable mare, that one. You cut that out!" She swatted at Moon. "And you fix what you did! You still have the uniform, do you not? Share it with Luna and I will forgive you."

"Hm." Moon trotted off, returning with the outfit floating over her head. "I do have it, but I am unsure if Luna has any need for it."

"Only one way to be sure." Rarity inclined her head at it. "Show it to her. Let her be the judge of it. You are friends with her, are you not, dear? Go ahead and work your magic."

"Magic will not help in this--" She stopped, being prodded by Twilight. "Yes?"

"She meant that figuratively." Twilight angled at Rarity.

"Oh..." It took a moment for Moon to puzzle that out, but it did click. "Yes. I will do my utmost." She carefully folded the outfit in her magic. "Then we will be even?"

"We will be even," completed Rarity with confidence. "So who was wearing that, you? I did use your sizes... That makes sense... You were in an awful hurry! What were you doing?"

"Getting in our way," laughed out Twilight. "Apparently... There was a lot of miscommunication going on."

Rarity pressed a hoof to her cheek. "We really should speak more forthrightly."

Moon frowned at Rarity. "Even when Rainbow Dash is involved."

"Point..." Rarity took a step back, looking properly chastised. "I will try to do better, really dear. Now, you get that to Luna. I hope she likes it! Hm, you can't tell me how she likes it yet, so..." She turned to Twilight. "Your turn! You are about the closest friend Applejack has, being her honorary sister and all, hm?"

"Yes?" Twilight shrugged as Rarity came in closer. "Was that the question? It's, um, not a contest. We're all dear friends, I hope?"

"Of course." Rarity tittered in laughter. "But to ignore hierarchies is foalish. You are the dearest friend of Applejack and Moon Dancer here. If I had questions I wasn't going to ask them directly, you are the next best pony to ask. Let's just be honest with ourselves, darling."

"I see." Twilight nodded, accepting the logic. "What was the question then? Moon is right here, if you have one for her."

"Already asked," she sang out. "Done with her, lovely mare she is. Applejack has begun cooking for important ponies on the regular, I hear. I want to work with her, or through her depending on how you look at it..." Rarity fluttered her lashes at Twilight. "The chefs in Princess Celestia's employ deserve good working attires!"

"Oh, that's true." Twilight floated over a cup of water, and it had a dragon attached to it. "Spike?"

"I was getting a drink." He released the cup, falling to his feet. "And you shared the idea?"

"Sorry about that." Twilight smooched the top of his head. "You keep this one." She returned the stolen cup of water, already reaching for a second out of sight. "I can't see very well from here."

"You can't see at all." Spike peered at the corner that blocked the view of the kitchen. "Be careful with that."

Twilight shook her head. "I know this place like the back of my hoof." A new glass hovered with her magic towards her reach and sip. "So long as there isn't somecreature attached to it, there shouldn't be a problem. Applejack, to return to the other idea, is unlikely to want to solicit her teammembers. She's awfully shy about that."

"I feared that..." Rarity tapped at her chin. "But if we think of it more as a service, to them? Surely, being such talented chefs, they make messes. It's impossible to avoid, darling. Their things must get dirty and worn. Somepony has to replace them. She just happens to know a mare that can do the job."

"Does she?"

Rarity blinked at that question and slowly turned a hoof to point at herself.

"You can," pressed Twilight. "But do you want to? Do you want to make the same outfit dozens on dozens of times?"

Rarity laughed at the idea. "Of course! Think of the..." She frowned, thinking more of the eventual monotony. "And the prestige," she continued weakly, her will sapping as she envisioned it all. "You... may have a point, dear." She tapped Twilight on the head. "This is why I came to you, darling. I knew you'd have the answer! It may not have been the one I came for, but a fine answer indeed."

Moon looked up from writing her letter. "Spike, could you send this, please? To Luna."

"Nope." He puffed the letter, sending it away. "I can only send to one place. Celestia will have to get it to Luna."

"Oh, hm..." Moon watched the sparkle get further away. "I should have addressed that better."

Twilight giggled at the small problem. "I'm certain she'll figure it out. Have faith in your teacher."

"She is a very wise pony..." Moon set the issue aside. "What will we have for dinner?"

Author's Note:

And... end arc, I feel. Agree? Lemme know!

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Comments

[TheGJ90]

So, with a sliver of the power of Pinkie Sense, Moon Dancer has circumvented her friends' efforts in a way that humbled Rainbow Dash more effectively than they could.

Pinkie will be so proud!

[Booster Spice]

Rarity diverted from trying to clothe a whole city, but if she made uniforms for a specific group, she could get all the stress of the assembly line without the requisite burnout, and maybe gain extra insides into mix and match modular basis for other future less than yearly anniversaries etc?

[redandready45]

It's good to see Moon using logic to deal with problems.

[howard035]

You both created a better ending to Mare- do- well than most fics AND created an interesting explanation for Pinkie Sense in the same chapter!

[David Silver]

11692808
In many ways, this fic could be called a fix fic. But I did not want to be one of those spiteful or angry ones. Way better to be creative and consider how things could really work instead of vent about how we want things to be.