Braeburn held his hat down. "Why," He started looking down with a soft smile. "Thank you, 'cuz! Ah'll help with just 'bout everything Ah can. As long as you keep your promise." He chuckled at the orange pony in front of him. His hooves were polished and his mane was slightly ruffled, but just enough to make it still look neat. His green eyes glimmered with anticipation. "Ah hope I can keep my end of the deal, though. If ah don't become a city pony, ah'll jus' about die inside."
His cousin chuckled. "Why, Braeburn. Just 'cos you live somewhere new, don't mean that you'll be new, too!" She opened her eyes to look at him warmly. "But, Ah think It'll do you some good to get out'ta that ol' farm scene you had goin' on." Applejack turned around and opened up the door for the stallion. "This is the room you'll be stayin' in. Hope ya' like it!" She watched as Braeburn trotted into the empty room. All it had was a closet, a mirror, a bed, and a small window with the view of a coast. A coast with a house on it.
He smiled widely. "Oh, Applejack! How can Ah ever repay ya? Ah'll make sure I do what Ah can, when Ah can!" Braeburn laughed delightedly and jumped up onto his bed and looked out the window. "Ah'll start buckin' trees first thing tomorr'ah if Ah got to." He turn his head from the window to his cousin, who was chuckling with delight.
"Now, Braeburn. Bein' a city pony means that you don't have to do all that work." Applejack hesitated longly. "However it wouldn't hurt to help." She let out a quick laugh, and Braeburn joined in. After a while, they stopped. "Well, supper isn't for a while. If you'd like, you can go ahead and go out to the city- change up your look a bit, while your at it. Make some friends." Applejack nodded and trotted away from the room. Leaving the stallion to his own.
Braeburn's smile faded. "Where am I gonna go, though?" He looked outside at the window again. It was a nice looking house. Nothing to shabby, however it was a simple shade of pink that decorated the shingles on the roof. He let out a sigh, watching as a great stallion walked out from the door. "Well, whatever city stallions do isn't none of my business." As the stallion chuckled at the door, Braeburn continued to watch with little interest. Out from the corner of his eyes, came out a slightly pink mare with purple hair. She chuckled lightly and had a very cute face to her. Braeburn tilted his head a bit. "Now that makes more sense." He continued watching, and soon a filly trotted out. She was white with a purple and pink spiraled mane, she had a certain flare to her that made Braeburn laugh a bit as she jumped onto what could have been her father's back and hugged him softly. "Darlin' little family, huh?" He watched with a wide smile as the family talked joyfully, until the mother turned around. She opened her mouth and yelled a name. Braeburn opened his eyes widely. "Another one?" He stumbled over his words, as the door opened wide and a white unicorn with a glimmering purple mane walked out. She looked at her mother and scowled. Braeburn couldn't hear them, but he could make out a few words. "She's beautiful!" He shouted to himself, staring with deep interest. His heart pounded against his chest and fixed his eyes on her. She flicked her ear and looked up, seeing the content Braeburn. She gasped with repulsion, and he ducked down with fear. "Oh, geez! She saw me, she saw me starin' at her through a window! She's gonna think Ah'm a creep!"
Rarity lifted her hoof and pointed violently at the window, staring at her Dad and Mom with anger. "A stallion! A rude, stallion was staring at me through the window before I even got my make-up on! How dare you ever let me leave the house without make-up!" She whined slightly.
Rarity's mother flattened her ears. "Rarity, honey! I don't understand. You're naturally beautiful, why don't you go outside without make-up today, hmm?" Her eyes shined with her smile, making Rarity feel slightly better.
"Yeah, Sis! You're so beautiful, that stallion was probably staring at you because he loves you!" Sweetie Belle laughed, moving away from her dad and to her sister.
Rarity blushed slightly. "Alright, fine. Only because you all buttered me up, though." Rarity put her hoof down and started to trot softly. "Sweetie Belle, would you like to join me?" She glared down at her little sister, who smiled brightly.
"Only always!" Sweetie Belle jumped up and chased to her sister. "Bye Mom! Bye Dad! We'll be making dresses all day today!"
Rarity chuckled, and slowly trotted into the city. Ignoring the stallion in the window.
"Oh! Good." Braeburn smiled warmly. "She must've forgot. M-maybe I could go apologize if I go into the city and bye her some flowers." He nodded slightly and moved off from the bed, going to the door and opening it softly. He walked through the hallway and started to creep down the stairs.
"Braeburn?" Apple Bloom pushed her head out of her room. "Where d'ya think your goin' without Applejack's permission?" She trotted slowly out of her room and into the hallway, staring at Braeburn's eyes. "An' why do you look like you might get in trouble if you do this? I know that look anywhere!" Applebloom pointed at Braeburn with rage. "You're gonna steal the apples from the trees aren't ya?"
From behind the filly came another, her bright pink mane bouncing. "Detective Scoots and Bloom! We've got you cornered, thief!"
"No, not yet, Scootaloo!" Applebloom scowled. "We gotta get him actually cornered first." Applebloom turned back to the stairs, to see an empty set of steps. "Uh, hey! Where'd he go?" She faced Scootaloo with a shocked expression.
"You let him get away?!" Scootaloo shouted. Jumping over Applebloom, Scootaloo bolted down the stairs with assistance from her weak wings. However, her speed was too fast to control and she crashed into Braeburn, causing him to make a loud thud, attracting Applejack's attention. "Ha! Got you!" Scootaloo pinned Braeburn down and stared him in the face with a grim smile.
Applebloom followed, tumbling down the stairs and landing beside Braeburn. "Now yer cornered!" Applebloom chuckled. Slamming one of his hooves down. Applejack trotted into the scene.
"Girls! What're you doin' to Braeburn?" She pulled Applebloom off the carpet and put her on her hooves. Scootaloo rolled down and landed beside Applebloom. "Don't you know he's already in a ton of stress? He just moved here and has to find a good shop to get some snazzy clothes."
"We know where he could go!" Applebloom smiled. "Rarity and Sweetie Belle are at the Boutique today! Maybe he could use a new suit, and we could go see Sweetie Belle!" Applebloom looked at her sister with pleading eyes. "Pretty please, sis?"
Applejack tilted her head. "Why, that's a great idea Applebloom. Hey! Maybe you'll get a cutie-mark for being a consultant." Applejack chuckled brightly.
"Consultant?" Scootaloo and Applebloom cheered together. "H-hey! What's a consultant?" Applebloom smiled softly with interest.
"What does it matter?" Braeburn stood up, brushing off the dust that he gathered on his stomach. "Ah need a new suit!" Braeburn let out a loud "Yeehaw" and started galloping away quickly. Applejack pushed for the fillies to follow him.
"Sweetie Belle will love this idea!" Scootaloo shouted happily as the zoomed out the door.
Braeburn's hooves made loud noises against the dirt path of Ponyville. Ponies that stood in his way moved with shock, screaming at him, yelling at him or simply ignoring him. The fillies, however did not have as much as a good chance to get by. If the path he was making was slowly evaporating behind him, the fillies would be stuck and would have to make their own path.
Luckily, they kept up in time and as they made their way up to the Boutique. "Sto-o-o-op!" Applebloom shouted at the top of her lungs, Braeburn stopped, lifting dust into the air. "Braeburn! Y'all just can't run in there like ya would in the country. You must walk in all prim an' proper like. Take Scootaloo for example. Applebloom lifted up her hoof and showed off Scootaloo, who walked slowly with her head in the air. Her wings were spread open and she looked like a snob.
"Why, I guess so. But, uh, I don't think ah need to do that for everything." Braeburn lifted his head up, while still looking at Applebloom. He slowly started to trot forward and pushed open the door. Inside, the shop was hollow with very few dresses around. "H-hey! Nobody's here, Applebloom." He turned around, watching the fillies walk in the same way he did.
Applebloom dropped her head. "Wait, what? Sweetie Belle said she'd be here yesterday." Her voice left out an echo. A loud crash was heard from the far back room.
"Scootaloo, Applebloom!" Sweetie Belle ran from the room, her mane ruffled and ruined. "I'm so glad your here-" She paued, looking up at the stallion behind them. "Whose he?"
"This is Braeburn! He needs a suit to become 'city folk'." Scootaloo chuckled. "We wanted Rarity to make a dress. So, what exploded?" Scootaloo walked in the boutique, careless of what dangers might be around the next corner. A quiet trotting sound could be heard and a sudden scream.
"Swee-e-e-etie Bel-l-le!" Rarity whined loudly, walking out to the group of ponies. "What. What exactly is paint doing in my fabric space." Her hooves were decorated in a glittery purple paint. It made her hooves look nice and glossy, and it actually did match her mane. Her cutie-mark glittered just the same. Braeburn moved his eyes to distract himself.
"I was gonna paint the white fabric to make an even prettier fabric! One that matches your mane." Sweetie Belle smiled softly. "Doesn't look stunning?" Sweetie Belle looked at Scootaloo and Applebloom and opened her arm up to display her sister.
"Mm-hmm!"
"It is pretty."
"Ah'd say." Braeburn chuckled quietly. His hat fell into his face and he blushed slightly. "Mah names Braeburn. It's- uh- nice to meet you, Rarity?"
"Haven't we met before?" Rarity walked forward slowly and tilted her head.
"H-have we? Ah don't recall." Braeburn flattened his ears, praying to Celestia that Rarity didn't know it was him in the window, watching her in all her perfection. His face flared red. "Well, Ah'm sorry that Ah forgot, surely other stallions would never forget who you are, it's just ah bit of my mind that's lost." Braeburn took his hat off and bowed. "If we have met before, it's mah pleasure to be in such a refined boutique, such as yours."
Rarity gave out a smile and shut her eyes. "Darling," She started softly. "The pleasure is all mine!" Her eyes opened wide to take a look at his already made suit. "Now, you look dressed just fine, for a stallion of your build, what are you doing here?" She took a step closer and looked at his suits stitches.
"Well, ah've been meanin' to turn mah'self into a city-like pony. Ah heard that you've got the best suits in Ponyville!" Braeburn chuckled softly. He put his hat back on his head and looked into Rarity's eyes with a gleam of interest. "An', if you're willin' to help me, Ah'd be willin' to pay up big bits."
"Hmm." Rarity hesitated. "Well, since I need practice on my stallion suits, I can do it for free." She took a look at Braeburn's hooves and squinted. "However, If you'd like, I can give you a hoof-icure. That would be the pricey one." She stood back up and nodded slowly.
"That'd be weird, though. Wouldn't it? Not many stallions come in and get their hooves done, do they?" Braeburn flattened his ears and looked around shyly.
"Not that often, but it's not like it matters. A stallion like you, ha! You don't need those other ponies opinions."Rarity trotted away. "Now, where are you staying, Braeburn? If you need a place I'm sure I could open up a room in the shop." She turned on lights in the pedestal and spread a curtain open to make a beautiful black background.
"Ah'm stayin' with Applejack, actually. It works out well, Ah get work done and She gets help. It's nice sometime. Ah got a new room, an empty one though. It feels like Ah'll be lonely for a while." Braeburn muttered to himself, as he trotted up to the pedestal and he gleamed in the lights. He had some muscle to him, nothing like Big Mac, though. "Ah was thinkin', for my suit Ah'd like some type of snazzy look, yet a little bit country, too. Ah wanna stay loyal to mah roots."
Rarity nodded. "Now, Braeburn, if you don't mind. I have to do this." Rarity's hooves slid up to Braeburn's shoulders and pulled down on the suit on his body. Braeburn's heart pulsed faster and he tried to hold back on what he knew was coming up. He swallowed down his fear and anxiety and let the beautiful unicorn pull his shirt down. Rarity looked at his chest and chuckled. "A little muscle bound, hm?"
"Oh, well," Braeburn blushed wildly, spreading across his face like a wild fire. "Not anythin' compared to Big Mac's, but Ah got some muscle." He tried hiding his face in his hat, but Rarity had taken that off, too. Now Braeburn stood, awkwardly bare. It was common for ponies to stay like that, but he wasn't used to it. Especially not used to it when a beautiful mare was stripping him down. "So, uh, what were you thinkin' for the, uh, suit?" He stuttered slightly.
"Since you had said you want to stay true to your roots, I was thinking a tan-ish, red-ish look, yet sleek and pale. Nothing to cover up your legs. A collar-neck. Maybe a new hat, too." Rarity squinted and looked at the measuring tape that rapped around his chest. "Hows that sound?"
"S-sounds good." Braeburn shut his eyes and held his breath. He took a quiet breath in as Rarity released the measuring tape and trotted away to go get the fabric.
Scootaloo laughed. She moved over to Applebloom and Sweetie Belle, chuckling. "Don't tell anypony, but I think Rarity and Braeburn are crushing on each other."
Sweetie Belle perked her ears. "Oh, really?!"
Scootaloo pushed Sweetie Belle's head down. "Hush up! They can't know- We gotta try to find a way to make them stick together all day today. Maybe they'll find out soon enough."
Applebloom tilted her head. "What about Spike?"
Sweetie Belle gasped. "Poor little Spike-y Wike-y. He loves Rarity, too, but, He's too young for her, don't you think?"
Scootaloo nodded. "That's why we aren't telling him, until they're together."
"Girls?" Braeburn looked at the triangle of the fillies. "What're y'all talkin' 'bout over there?" He snorted quietly, glaring at the circle of them with distaste and confusion.
"Nothin' Braeburn! Ah'm just making sure these girls know what they're doin' when we make our dresses." Applebloom smiled softly. "We're all gonna make a Grand Galloping Gala dress for each other, just in case we ever get a ticket."
Braeburn smiled softly. "Thats cute." He watched as Rarity strolled back in, behind her was floating fabrics and ribbons.
"Braeburn, I couldn't find the hat mold, so you'll have to come back tomorrow for that, too." Rarity pulled a needle from the pile and tied the thin string to it. She started to press the fabric against Braeburn's chest and pin it together slowly. Another piece came together and went against his back.
"That's okay. Ah didn't really need a new hat anyways." He sighed as Rarity slowly pinned the fabric together and had it float against his body. The magic's waves felt warm against his body, smiling in delight.
Rarity squinted and kept on pressing pieces together, and soon she work on his under belly piece. She started talking again after the long silence. "So, Braeburn, when you first woke up this morning. What did you think about?" She questioned the stallion, trying to know his personality better.
He hesitated for a long time. His heart racing. "The beautiful blue ey- Skies." He corrected himself quickly. "The sky was a beautiful shade of blue, almost like diamonds that shimmered in rows." He looked down at the mare who sewed quickly, and he swallowed deeply. Rarity's cutie-mark was gorgeous, ever more than last time. He felt himself staring, rudely. He shut his eyes and shook his head. "The clouds were a radiant white, I felt like I could just kiss them." He muttered to himself. "Ah love the sky." He grumbled.
"Skies are beautiful, aren't they?" Rarity backed up, finishing her sewing. The suit looked fine, it was still unfinished though. She trotted away again.
Braeburn looked down, looking at himself with relief. "Oh, thank Celestia. Ah'm greatful for skies." He looked back up to see the beautiful mare come back. Red ribbons flaring from her magic.
"Yes. One time, I was outside at night and everything about Night was beautiful. Luna does so well with her work, sometimes I get jealous." Rarity chuckled as she sewed the ribbons onto the tan pieces. They fixed together so well. With Rarity's hooves against Braeburn's shoulders, she felt his muscles and blushed slightly.
"Ah don't see why a beautiful mare like yourself would get jealous." Braeburn sighed quietly. "Well, Ah mean, other mares should be jealous of you." He started to blush, too. From a distance, Scootaloo grinned.
"Hey, Braeburn! We need some help!" Scootaloo cried out. "We can't lift this fabric, It's too heavy!" Rarity perked her ears and turned around, glaring at the fillies.
"Uh- let me get this off for you. I'll put it on a Mare-nequine." Rarity's magic lifted all the light fabric pieces and she put them down. "Would you like some help lifting?"
Braeburn looked at his bare body and flushed a shade of red. "No, thank you, though." He trotted to the other room and looked at the fillies, trying to lift a full roll of a red, velvet fabric. "Girls. Ah'm disappointed. You should've asked Rarity, first." He crawled under the roll and stood up, lifting the fabric on his back.
Rarity followed in, watching the stallion form behind. She blushed slightly, impressed with his strength. "Well. You have more muscle than Big Mac does in my mind."
Braeburn jumped and dropped the fabric, his face burning. "Oh, no I don't. I can't really plow like him." He grumbled. He glared down at the fillies who were each cutting off 1/3 of the bottom panel of the fabric.
"Thanks, Braeburn!" They each smiled widely. Taking their piece of fabric and running, Braeburn and Rarity were left alone.
"Darn fillies." Braeburn grumbled, turning around and moving forward- He accidentally bumped into Rarity. His nose hitting hers softly. "Ach!" He tumbled backwards and looked at her. She fell on the floor, too. "Oh, whoops! I'm sorry, Miss Rarity." He stood up and stuck his hoof up, helping her up. "Sh-shall we finish the suit now?"
"I already have. You just have to try it on, now." Rarity nodded, hiding the blush on her face.
Walking back to the pedestal, Braeburn stood up high and proud. Although his face said something else. Rarity came back with a beautifully designed suit that had an amazing color palette. She moved her hooves down and around Braeburn's body, making sure it fit him. Which it did, it had fit him snugly and he chuckled with warmth. "Wow! Rarity, this suit is amazing. Thanks. How much would it have cost?"
Rarity chuckled. "On the house, for a friend. All you have to do is trot around town and say that Rarity is the best dress-maker in Equestria." Her hooves tied his suit together nicely, they still beamed a beautiful shade of purple. Braeburn laughed softly.
"Will do, Rarity. Will do." Braeburn blinked open his eyes and glared into hers. "Ah'll be sure to come back for mah hat tomorrow, though. Use this as the mold." He put his hat on Rarity's head and chuckled, walking out of the building. "C'mon, Girls! We've gotta go buck some trees."
Applebloom and Scootaloo each poked their heads out of the room. "Bye, Sweetie Belle." They both said in harmony. They followed the older stallion with a grin.
"Bye Applebloom! Bye Scootaloo!" Sweetie Belle waved her hoof in the air with a sweet smile. Once the door shut behind them, she glared over at Rarity.
"Sweetie Belle, do you think your friends could come over tomorrow, too?" Rarity blushed slightly.
"Always, sis. Only if you want them, too." Sweetie Belle smiled warmly and hugged Rarity. "What do you think about Braeburn?"
Rarity closed her eyes. "I hope I see him again, with his southern drawl and green eyes." She smiled warmly and hugged Sweetie Belle back. "Hopefully, He'll be back tomorrow."
Author's Note
Rareburn shipping. Woo.
So I was thinking of Fixing the titles for both the chapter and the book, if you can think of a better book name please tell me via comment, considering I don't check my mail xD
