Ribbons and Lace

"I really don't think this is necessary... no need to bother anypony..." Fluttershy protested faintly, but Rarity pushed, tugged, and cajoled her along, fuming like a restless volcano the whole way. The nerve! The unmitigated gall! The best must be prepared to be imitated, but this is far beyond the pale!

"Nonsense, Fluttershy," she replied in a tone that brooked no argument, giving the fearful mare another push toward the Carousel Boutique. It was only a few hundred feet more, after all. "You can't just pull the curtains and hide from your problems forever!" A small voice in the back of her head piped up, Earlier today, didn't you apologize to Fluttershy for doing just this sort of thing? But she shoved that into the closet in her mind where she had already stuffed Guilt and Hypocrisy. She'd had something special with Fluttershy, even if the other mare didn't know her identity. A connection nopony else had! And now this, this... counterfeiter thought she (or he) could steal Rarity's idea and beat her to market! The sheer effrontery of it all!

"Ow... Rarity, you're-- ow!" Fluttershy yelped. The unicorn realized she was pulling Fluttershy along by the tail and immediately let go, then took a moment to carefully compress all her anger and outrage into a ball small enough to fit into the mental closet as well.

"I'm so sorry, Fluttershy. I just hate... seeing you like this." Liar. If she hated it so much, she would have put a stop to it already. Back in the closet, you. "You mustn't flee from your fears, but stand up tall and face them... as a dear friend of mine once put it." She offered a strained grin, which Fluttershy returned with even more strain.

After a moment's deliberation, Fluttershy deflated with a small sigh. "I guess you're right," the pegasus replied, finally moving under her own power toward Rarity's home, but still staring nervously around the town square as she went. "But, um, let's get inside first, okay?"

"Of course, darling. Why don't you make yourself comfortable while I fetch everypony else?" She started to give Fluttershy the impostor's letter to take inside, only to realize it had crumpled into a ball in the grip of her magic. "...oops. How clumsy of me," she said with a nervous laugh. She made a cursory effort at flattening it out again, but the pegasus gently plucked the creased note out of the air.

"It's okay," Fluttershy murmured, then turned toward the door with another nearly inaudible sigh.

Rarity had trekked almost all the way to Applejack's barn before she spotted Rainbow Dash reclining on a tree branch alongside the road. Ah, perfect! "Rainbow Dash!" she called. The speedster jerked awake so violently that she tumbled right out of the tree and landed in a heap beneath it. "Goodness, are you all right?" Rarity asked as she trotted up.

"Fine!" the pegasus said, quickly jumping to her hooves and brushing her main roughly back into place as if to say that never happened. "Ow. Never better. What's up?"

"There's been a bit of a... development concerning Fluttershy's situation. Would you mind fetching everpony to the Boutique? I was just on the way to collect Applejack."

Dash flashed her a proud grin. "No problem! I'll have 'em there in ten... well, maybe fifteen minutes. Depends on Twilight. See ya there!" With that, a rainbow trail shot into the sky and arced over toward the barn down the road.

Rarity was surprised to find that she beat Rainbow Dash back to her shop by some minutes. Even more surprising, Applejack and Twilight also arrived before Ponyville's fastest flyer. The explanation came when the door burst open to admit the last two ponies, Rainbow and Pinkie each bearing a large picnic basket overflowing with baked goods on her back.

"Hi, everypony! Dinner's on Pinkie tonight! Well, on Pinkie and Dashie, because I couldn't carry both baskets at once without stacking them up, and--"

"What in tarnation is all this?" Applejack interrupted, peering at the vast variety of bread products in Rainbow's basket.

"Oh, well, for some reason the Cakes really, really overbaked today, so there's tons of leftovers!" Pinkie explained. "And the Day Olds case is way too small for all this, so I thought, 'Pinkie, why don't we bring over dinner for everypony and make a party of it?' And I said, 'That sounds like a great idea! Glad I thought of it!' And then I was like, 'Me too!' So we've got apple fritters, bear claws, cinnamon rolls..."

The whole assembly retired to Rarity's kitchen while Pinkie rattled off her list, and everypony settled in around the dining table with thanks and compliments to the chef.

"So," Twilight said with an orange roll hovering beside her. "What's this all about?"

Fluttershy wordlessly pushed the rumpled note to the middle of the table.

"It would seem," Rarity supplied, "that we have a copycat on our hooves."

The everypony leaned in to read the few lines, then settled back with thoughtful expressions. "What makes y'all think it ain't the same one?" Applejack asked, glancing from Rarity to Fluttershy and back.

"Well, it's certainly a different style," Twilight said. "Typed instead of written, brief and straightforward... it does seem like an entirely different pony wrote this." She leaned in, peering at the paper, then held it up to the light. "Different paper from the first one, too, but it's still nothing you couldn't get at Scrolls, Stationery and Such."

"So Fluttershy has another admirer," Rainbow Dash piped up, hovering above the table with a half-eaten muffin in her hooves. "So what? That's twice as awesome as before."

Twilight took a bite of her roll and shook her head. "Well, the timing seems kind of suspicious. Nopony here told anypony else about the first letter, right?"

"Letters," Rarity corrected without thinking.

Applejack leaned forward, eyebrows rising. "What, ya got another one?"

Fluttershy nodded, her cheeks pinkening slightly.

Rarity cleared her throat and quickly announced, "Fluttershy has declined to share the contents of the second letter." The last thing she needed was for Fluttershy to let the cat out of the proverbial bag now and get the others thinking about what mares might have written it!

Twilight waved the entire subject away with her hoof, unwilling to let herself be sidetracked. "Whatever. The point is, assuming none of us mentioned the admirer to anypony else--" She paused to acknowledge head shakes from the rest of the coterie. "--and assuming this isn't just some weird coincidence, the pony who wrote this note..." Twilight stood up, tapping a hoof on the table for emphasis as she declared, "...must be in this very room!"

In the stunned silence, Fluttershy slowly sank down below table level.

Rarity's eyes widened in horror. Oh no. This was even worse than revealing the contents of her own letter! If they started thinking too hard about that deduction, they might easily draw the right conclusion for the wrong note! Rarity's eyes darted from face to face. But who might have done something suspicious enough to act as her scapegoat?...

Ah.

"Rainbow Dash," Rarity began in an accusatory tone. "Yesterday, you told me you were thinking about the secret admirer, and started to ask me if I thought it would be weird if." She narrowed an eye and glared up at the pegasus, who was glancing nervously between the five ponies who were suddenly scrutinizing her with speculative expressions. "Did you write this?"

"Me?! No way! Listen, Rarity, I know this must look funny, but I swear to Celestia I don't have feelings for Fluttershy! No offense."

"None taken," came a soft voice from under the table.

"Well, I was with Fluttershy when she discovered the letter, and we had been a mile or more from the mailbox," Rarity volunteered primly, then smiled a small smile. "Though of course I concur with the author's sentiments." Mare-stealing backstabber though she might be. How horrible! What kind of way is that to think of one of your friends?!

"I've been trying to sell all this great bread all day!" Pinkie piped up. "I didn't even get to take a lunch break, I was just like--" She bit off a huge mouthful of zucchini bread for verisimilitude. "C'n eh tekk y'r ordrr?" Rarity shuddered and had to look away.

"Well, that doesn't mean you didn't get it delivered by proxy," Twilight pointed out.

"Prrxy?" Thankfully, Pinkie swallowed the mouthful before she continued. "Who's that? I don't think I've ever met him!" She gasped. "There's a new pony in town and you didn't tell me?!"

"She means ya coulda asked somepony else to deliver it," Applejack clarified. "But that purty much tosses out everypony's alibis, don't it? Anyhow, I reckon whoever it is'll come clean in her own time." She chuckled dryly. "Ain't much reason to hide it, is there? We're all friends here."

You know nothing, Rarity mentally scolded the farmer. "Perhaps... someone else could have overheard..." she said weakly.

"Or it might just be coincidence!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, throwing up her hooves. "You never know!"

"Stranger things have happened," Twilight was forced to agree. "And it's possible that one of the mail ponies could have seen the letter in the box, I guess."

"So add Post Haste and Derpy to the suspect list," Rainbow Dash agreed smugly, leaning against the counter.

"And old Mister Zippy!" Pinkie said, to a round of 'eww's and giggles.

Rarity hurried to amend, "And anyone they might have mentioned it to."

After that, the conversation moved back into safer territory and the fashionista let out a slow, controlled breath. That was a close one. She mulled over the conversation, careful to keep her dark thoughts off her face. Twilight's reasoning reinforced her own; she couldn't help but think this author had been inspired by her note, and if its existence were common knowledge in Ponyville, somepony would have either mentioned it to her or tried to pump her for gossip by now.

So one of you is my rival, hmm? She stared for a few seconds at Rainbow Dash, imagining her as the challenger for Fluttershy's heart. Then she blinked, shifted her mindset, and stared at Rainbow Dash, her dear friend. Foe. Friend. Foe. Friend. Rarity blinked over and over, trying desperately to see both at the same time.

She looked slowly from face to face, wondering which heart she would have to crush, or be crushed by in turn. Would their friendship... could it... survive that? Could any of them watch their heart's desire with another, day in and day out, and still remain friends? And could she bring herself to do that to one of them?

The sweep of her vision ended where Applejack was coaxing Fluttershy out from under the table. Would the shy mare even stand for such a thing? Or would she retreat from the conflict and deprive both? Her pink mane gradually emerged from the hiding spot, depressingly ribbonless. Perhaps... it would be better if I should simply withdraw from the contest and wish my competitor better luck than I had.

"You all right?" Twilight asked softly beside her.

Rarity realized she could feel a trail of salty coolness winding its way down her cheek. She wiped it away quickly and nodded. "I'm fine. Just... thinking," she said softly.

"Don't give up," the other unicorn said, patting her on the shoulder. "You'll find your prince. Or he'll find you."

The poor dear couldn't possibly understand why Rarity had to excuse herself from the room, eyes brimming.

From the sympathetic glances she received on her return, Rarity assumed that Fluttershy had shared what she'd said about Heart of a Pegasus. That was all right; let them think her heartsick over her old dreams. It was near enough to the truth. Thankfully, though, nopony offered more than the look, except Twilight, who poured a cup of tea from the teapot beside her and passed it over with an apologetic smile. Naturally, the bookworm had used Rarity's breakfast tea instead of the after-dinner tea, but she accepted it anyway and smiled in return.

Pinkie was meanwhile spooning an unholy amount of sugar into her cup. "But don'tcha like feeling pretty?" she asked Fluttershy. "That's what you go to the spa for, right?" She sipped her syrup with every sign of enjoyment.

"It's... flattering... I guess..." Fluttershy said, her hair draping her face again. "But every time I see somepony on the street, I can't help wondering if they're watching me, and... thinking about me..."

Applejack slugged back her tea with a loud slurp and shrugged. "Let 'em watch. Let 'em think. Yer a fine lookin' mare, and there ain't nothin' wrong with folks noticin' that."

"And they woulda been admiring you before anyway." Rainbow Dash folded her arms and shrugged one shoulder. "You just know about it now. So nothing's really different."

"I guess..." the pegasus replied, though she still looked troubled. "I'd... better go give my critters their dinner too before it gets much later. I'll see you girls... around..." She rose and flapped sluggishly into the air, as though still weighed down by her cares.

"Yeah, I'd best get goin' myself," Applejack said, stretching. "Thanks fer the food, Pinkie!"

Rarity stood and trotted alongside Fluttershy to escort her to the door, the sounds of the party breaking up fading behind them. On the way through the boutique, though, Fluttershy stopped suddenly and looked around herself. "Oh... you spent all day helping me with my chores. You must have so much to do now!"

"I'll be all right," Rarity assured her, patting her hoof. "After that nap, I'm not even tired yet. I'll catch up tonight."

Fluttershy hovered for a few seconds, thinking, then offered a shy smile. "Um... well, if you say so. But I really want to make it up to you. What if I come help you with your work tomorrow?"

"That would be lovely," came out of Rarity's mouth before she could even think about it.

The pegasus beamed and gave her a quick hug. "See you tomorrow, then! Good night!"

"Good night, Fluttershy." Rarity's anger and worries faded under a layer of cheerful anticipation as she turned back to see off the rest of her guests.

The visitors having left for their respective beds, Rarity took stock of her workroom, not even trying to keep the smile off her face. Regardless how Fluttershy felt about her suitor... suitors... the simple joy on her face at the prospect of spending another day with Rarity was infectious. That, she thought, was perhaps what she feared losing the most. The fashionista went about with a spring in her step, separating the laborious, solitary tasks from those that would be easier with more hooves or could be done easily while chatting. Or that required a model...

She considered, just for fun, drawing up a few new lingerie designs that Fluttershy could "help" with before morning... Ooh, you naughty filly! Rarity giggled to herself and shook her head as she discarded the notion. She had enough to do without adding vanity projects on top of it. Now, Fluttershy could certainly hold her own in embroidery, so that could wait. Bead and sequin work, though, was for tonight. Setting gemstones, too; that was her own task, and not one she would hand over to anypony else...

She paused, thoughtfully chewing on her lower lip, reconsidering the lingerie. Just a moment's thought brought several interesting designs to mind, and it would be a pity to let inspiration go to waste...

The unicorn pulled over her drafting table and set aside a gem-studded choker with matching dog collar, commissioned by a particularly devoted pet owner. Hmm... gem-studded... how about a ruby accented croupiere? Attention-grabbing, but covered in sharp stones, just begging to be removed as things grow more intimate... Her charcoal stick flew, and the design quickly elaborated into a story written in silk; a short but chaste skirt attached to the croupiere, designed to draw the eye with a flattering view of the thighs but to resolutely guard the wearer's honor while the sharp-angled rubies held her suitor at a distance. Then, stealing upon her like a thief in the night, her lover would brave the uncomfortable jabs to find the large buttons which held it on and relieve her of the burden. Beneath it, a clingy pair of frilled ruby-red panties would accent the contours of that which they concealed, barely covering her, like a young mare's final, half-hearted resistance before she finally surrendered the panties, and herself, to her paramour...

Is it hot in here?

Rarity let out a soft 'whew' and dragged herself away to fill her time with less provocative tasks. Clearly, there was inspiration, and then there was inspiration. She would have to watch herself, lest the latter consume time she had intended for less exciting but more profitable pursuits.

Which wasn't to say she couldn't think about it...

The distant sounds of daytime in Ponyville finally penetrated to rouse Rarity from her all-too-brief slumber. She had finally put herself to bed after yawning over Miss Heartstrings' subdued concert-hall dress for the third time, somewhere a few hours shy of sunrise. So much for beauty sleep, she thought with a sigh. When was the last time she slept undisturbed through the night? It felt like months ago. She knew she must have dark bags under her eyes by now.

Oh, well. That was what cosmetics were for. She hauled herself out of bed and set about getting ready for her day.

The outfit she had fancifully dubbed The Debutante's Treasure hung half-completed on a dress form. She wasn't sure, now, what to do with the fore half of the outfit. Something in soft ruffles, maybe, to encourage reserved kissing and gazing into one anothers' eyes before the other pony grew bold enough to storm the bastion of her virtue. But also matching the panties, so she would still look good after that point... Should I add a headdress? Perhaps not, for contrast with the armored flank...

The distant jingle of her door chime interrupted her musings and spurred her to speed up her preparations. "I'll be down in a moment!" she called.

"It's just me," Fluttershy replied in a barely-raised voice.

"Ah, wonderful! By all means, please come on up!"

Rarity was dragging the brush through her mane a few final times when her shy friend appeared. "Good morning, Fluttershy! How are you today?"

"I'm fine," the pegasus said with a tiny shrug. "Did you sleep well?"

"Well enough." Rarity hid a frown as she emerged from her preparations and yet again noted the lack of a red ribbon in Fluttershy's mane. "I appreciate your help today, I truly do. I had hoped you could lend a hoof with one or two projects, and perhaps offer a second opinion on some experimental styles I've been toying with."

Fluttershy gravitated over toward the dummy wearing the half-finished Debutante's Treasure. "Oh, is this one of them?" she asked, craning her neck to look it over.

Rarity felt herself blushing a little as she answered. "Well, yes, but this is something of a personal project. I found some inspiration last night for a new lingerie design."

The pegasus seemed to debate with herself whether to say anything. "Doesn't it seem a little, um, heavy for that?" she asked at last.

Giggling faintly, Rarity nodded. "A bit, at first, but it's rather intentional. Do you think I could convince you to try it on for me later? I'm still thinking about the top, and I'm sure your input would be invaluable."

The pegasus glanced at the dress's thoroughly protected rump with a faint smile. "No problem."

Like the previous evening, Rarity forced herself to turn her back on dress. She had work to do -- real work -- and business came before pleasure. Besides, she mustn't seem too eager to see Fluttershy en dishabille. They began by picking up where Rarity had left off the previous night, working on Lyra's tailored dress. The unicorn's build was far too slender for Fluttershy to actually model the dress, but it was nothing Rarity hadn't sewn a hundred times before anyway. Which was a pity, because if she could use midnight blue instead of plain black... but no. Some venues demanded particularly conservative styles, and all a fashionista could do was suggest flattering accessories and give the client the best fit she could manage. Such 'tailor work' was unsatisfying, but it paid the bills. Rarity said as much as they worked, with Fluttershy hmming and making sympathetic sounds past the needle in her lips as she hemmed the skirt. "Which is why I'm delighted to have a skilled assistant to chat with," the unicorn finished, earning a grin from Fluttershy.

With the dress finished and carefully hung up well ahead of its deadline, Rarity gave herself permission to have a little fun. Not with the new lingerie... not yet... but a couple of prototypes did need a thorough examination before she sent them for Hoity Toity's review. She began with an outfit built around a daring hat studded with faux phoenix feathers. The triangular hat and flame-colored cloak evoked a fiery, passionate personality, but a cooler tunic of rich violet and gold suggested a more regal, restrained side. It was a bold fashion, one to be attempted only by ponies with certain colorations, but certain to garner attention in any gathering. Naturally, the colors were overwhelming on a pastel-toned mare like Fluttershy. It rather looked to Rarity as if the cloak and hat were trying to eat her, but Fluttershy gazed into the mirror with a faraway smile while the unicorn worked. "You like it?" she asked.

Fluttershy nodded and giggled. "If I squint just right, it looks like Philomena's sitting on my head." She nodded again, watching the long feathers bob.

"In fact, she was the inspiration for that design," Rarity chuckled. "This is my second attempt at an idea that never got off the proverbial drawing board, but I revised it heavily after meeting the Princess's pet in person."

"I think it's lovely! I'll bet Hoity Toity snaps it right up."

"I do hope so. Now, I've also got an evening dress I think will match your coat rather better..." Rarity moved on to a slinky one-shouldered dress in dusty blue with a choker of large, clear diamonds. Quite classic, if one discounted the emerald-studded shoes and matching shrug, and the twisted-wire tiara set with a round-cut blue diamond. That looked better, but the jewel tones were still probably too intense for Fluttershy's personality. She made the appropriately impressed comments, but it wasn't quite her. That outfit was marked as being a little too slinky in the waist -- it made Fluttershy's stomach seem to stick out a bit -- and set aside for refinement.

That led to what Rarity could only think of as 'the main event'. "Now, I hope you'll be patient with me," she said as she levitated the outfit off the dummy and brought the ruffled panties over to Fluttershy's hindlegs. "I'll need to try a few things."

"No problem, Rarity," she said as she stepped into the panties, giving a little squeak as the unicorn magic pulled them up into place. They were quite snug by design, outlining Fluttershy's rear beautifully and even hinting at the details of the mound between her thighs. Rarity bit her tongue as an appreciative 'ooh' tried to slip out. She hurriedly covered the sight with the hefty rump piece, tugging Fluttershy's tail out from under it as the croupiere floated into place.

"Does this mean you're going into the lingerie business for real?" the pegasus asked while Rarity secured the oversized buttons and stepped back to consider the blouse.

"Oh, well... nothing quite that brash," Rarity replied. She hesitated before adding, "...but the thought had occurred to me that you might perhaps have reason to use something of that nature sooner rather than later..." And that I'll want you to have something of that nature to use...

"I... oh. I hadn't thought of that," Fluttershy blushed, then regarded herself in the mirror with fresh intensity. "M... maybe not that soon..."

"Regardless," Rarity grinned, "I shall see to it that, when the time comes, you won't be found wanting."

The pegasus giggled nervously and examined her reflection, gave her hips a little shake, then lowered her head and blushed harder. Her smile didn't fade entirely, though.

Rarity extracted a bolt of the same cloth she'd used for the panties. "Now, I was thinking of something light and ruffled for the top, perhaps inspired by the Andalusian traje de flamingo..."

Fabric and thread flew through the air, the needle darting between and through them like a tiny silver fish among water lilies. Rarity had Fluttershy's measurements practically memorized after all the outfits and revisions she had made for her friend. It was the work of a minute or two to rough out what she had in mind and slip it onto the pegasus.

"Oh, that's lovely, Rarity," Fluttershy said.

Frowning critically, the fashionista waggled her hoof in the air. "Mmm... so-so. Perhaps a vee neck..." Scissors drifted close to Fluttershy's throat. "Hold still, please." Snip, snip. "Yes, that's better... that ruff, though..." A trio of magical tacks secured the center of the ruffle to the chest. "Ah, that's better. Now you have shoulders. Hmm... bare midriff or no?" Her magic tugged the bottom of the blouse up and down a few times before she nodded. "Definitely bare. One moment." A set of pins shot into the fabric to hold it in place as Rarity stepped back, admiring her handiwork.

Fluttershy turned back toward the mirror and gasped, twisting to admire herself. "It's beautiful!" she exclaimed.

"You're beautiful," Rarity corrected, her smile soft and genuine. Then she cleared her throat and it was all business again. "Now, if you wouldn't mind taking off the skirt?"

The pegasus nodded and fumbled for a moment, then the croupiere slid to the floor. Rarity frowned a bit, trotting halfway around her, then murmured, "Oh, dear, I'll need to cut down the ruffles a bit. Your hips are lovely, but perhaps they shouldn't be accentuated quite that much..."

Fluttershy laughed lightly, but Rarity knew she would be turning the same color as the panties if she could see what was going through the unicorn's head. Rarity settled herself with a beautiful view of Fluttershy's hindquarters and started snipping the ruffles down, all the while stealing longing glances at the barely-concealed valley of her marehood. The snug fabric smoothed over every imperfection, begging to be felt, not just seen. Surely the sight would drive any stallion mad with desire.

Or, given the deep, familiar ache beginning to twist in the depths of her belly, any mare of the proper persuasion...

Rarity took her time, but she couldn't dawdle too long. She finished trimming the ruffles at last and nodded, setting aside her scissors. "There, much better. What do you think?"

Fluttershy turned herself in front of the mirror, her smile growing with each new angle. "Oh... wow, Rarity. I never really thought... um, I mean, I look... great! Do you think some stal-- um, somepony would really like to... um... never mind."

Rarity's ears perked up at the switch in terminology. Some pony? Her chest swelled with a warm, fluttering excitement that she hadn't realized she'd been missing until it returned. Every day of seeing the pegasus refuse to respond to her letter had chipped away at her hope, but one word... one tiny, deliberate change of phrase...

The fashionista slowly smiled. "Given the, ah, nature of this outfit, I wonder if you'd allow me to test it out in action, as it were..." She stepped close again, stretching her neck out as if for an embrace.

"Oh! Of course you may," the pegasus giggled, leaning in to press her cheek against Rarity's withers. The unicorn sat back on her haunches and wrapped her arms around Fluttershy, eyes squeezing closed as she did. Mmmmm. Well, there was certainly nothing uncomfortable about the blouse. It felt as inviting as it looked. And the embrace -- even if it was just make-believe -- felt so, so terribly nice.

Kiss her, her bolder side whispered.

She couldn't. She mustn't.

Say you were pretending. Say you got carried away. She'd never hold it against you!

She shouldn't. With the second secret admirer's letter fresh in Fluttershy's mind, she would give herself away instantly.

So? Admit it! Take the chance!

The chance to ruin her friendship? The chance to have her heart broken? She might suspect the other mare's interest, but she didn't know...

Coward.

And then the moment was over. Rarity pulled away, unable to hold back a blush of her own. Maybe... instead... if she could just give Fluttershy an innocent little nudge in the right direction... Please...

"You know, there's just a little something missing here..." Rarity mused aloud.

Fluttershy twisted, looking herself over. "Eep! What? Where?"

"No, no, darling, I mean it needs a little something in lieu of a hat or headdress... Something light and cheerful, but it needs to match the rest..." Her magic produced a length of red ribbon from her supplies -- fine silk, not the cheap stuff that she used to tie up the letter. "Yes, I think this will be perfect!"

The pegasus recoiled from the ribbon as if it were a snake. No, strike that, she probably had great affection for snakes. "Oh, no, I can't wear that!"

Rarity actually felt the cracks spiderweb out across her heart. "But it accents your mane just perfectly--"

"I really don't think that's a good idea--"

"Just have a look in the mirror with it on--"

"Rarity!" Fluttershy's half-panicked shout stopped the unicorn in her tracks, the length of silk drifting to the floor. Fluttershy looked down quickly, her voice pleading. "I said no..."

Rarity's careless smile strained to the breaking point. "Well, all right... if you insist... no ribbon."

The unicorn took a moment to compose herself while Fluttershy got undressed, trying very hard not to think about what just happened. She tried to concentrate on the image of Fluttershy's delightful flank, her ever-so-kissable stomach... her expression of shocked terror as the ribbon floated closer...

After that, it was on to choosing colors for a line of light, stylish jackets for the autumn. She and Fluttershy sat side by side, digging through drawer after drawer of scrap fabric in search of the perfect shades. Rarity's spirits thoroughly dampened, she couldn't quite find the motivation to chatter about much beyond the job at hoof.

The pegasus seemed to reflect her mood. Fluttershy stared into the drawer with a meditative air, then tentatively said, "Um, about last night..."

Rarity's heart picked up its pace. "Hmm?"

The pegasus didn't look up as she spoke. "I told everypony what you said to me about that book while you were, um, out of the room. I hope that's okay, you didn't say it was a secret, but if it was..."

"No, that's all right. I thought you had. I appreciate you handling it for me." The unicorn slumped by a degree or two.

Fluttershy pawed through a few more layers of cloth, the silence stretching uncomfortably. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked at last.

More than anything. "Not at the moment, but thank you," Rarity said automatically. Then she hesitated and sighed faintly, trying to decide how much she could say without letting slip too much. "Well... I suppose seeing you get letters from two different ponies made me... a bit envious." Or rather, jealous. "You get so much attention without even trying, and I..." She choked up a little and scrambled to rein in her emotions, clenching her eyes as the memory of Fluttershy cringing from the ribbon replayed once again. "I work so very hard, and yet I keep coming up empty-hoofed..."

Rarity gasped and stiffened as soft yellow hooves slid around her for the second time that day. "I'm sorry," Fluttershy murmured. "If I could give the admirers to you, you know I would." For a few moments, Rarity didn't dare to speak lest she burst out in tears instead. But the only one I want is you! she howled silently. She clutched the pegasus and tried to push down the burn of sorrow steadily building in her chest.

...but you can't offer what I want. The thought reverberated in her head like the tolling of funeral bells. "I think I want a nap," she managed to choke out.

Fluttershy pulled away with a small nod, allowing her the polite fiction. "Okay. I'll just work on some of that embroidery until you're ready." The pegasus gave her one last glance, as if to say I'm here for you, then trotted on down the stairs.

Perhaps ten minutes later, after composing herself once more, Rarity gazed silently down the staircase at Fluttershy, who was stretched out on a méridienne and working needle and thread slowly back and forth through the embroidery hoop. Rarity let out a long, slow sigh. Far from the gleeful or at least cautiously optimistic response she had expected from her notes, in three days, Fluttershy had shown no sign of returning her interest. Rather the opposite, in fact. The time had come to finally admit defeat; she was doing neither of them any favors by letting this drag on.

Rarity slowly came back down the stairs. "Darling... do go on home. You've done more than enough, and there's no need for you to sit and wait again while I sleep."

Fluttershy started to protest, but then she stopped and gave Rarity a searching look. The unicorn had thought she concealed her emotions admirably, but the worry reflected in Fluttershy's eyes said that she was, in that moment, an open book. "All right," she said at last, setting down the embroidery and trotting over to nuzzle the unicorn's neck. "Let me know if you need anything, okay?"

Rarity nodded and returned a chaste nuzzle of her own. Please tell me that's not going to hurt every time, she thought as Fluttershy glided over to the door.

"Sleep tight," Fluttershy said.

"Thank you," Rarity replied, then turned and trotted back upstairs as the door clicked.

Better a clean break, she told herself, wiping her eyes as she trod slowly to her desk. No pining or second-guessing myself. This is my choice. This... is the end. The lump in her throat choked her again at that thought, but Rarity pushed herself the rest of the way to the desk and pulled out a sheaf of blank pages.

She had phrased the original note so that the other mare's inaction would serve as an answer of its own, but still, that lacked a sense of closure. And she felt she owed Fluttershy some sort of apology for the stress and discomfort she had caused the yellow pegasus. Not to mention, it would be rather silly if Fluttershy could never wear red again for fear of having it interpreted as an overture. Rarity sat down, picked up her quill, and thought for a moment. The flowery kind of language she had used in the previous letters seemed out of place now, given the context. It needed to reflect honest contrition, but also strength; no pathetic groveling or suggestions that she languished without her love. That would just put further guilt on the pegasus. Fluttershy needed her to be strong just now, so strong she would be. No matter what it cost her.

Ah, well... perhaps simple is best. Slowly, Rarity wrote seven careful block letters.

It took two more tries to complete the letter without staining it with tears, but at last, the fateful note lay open on her desk. She folded it twice, then turned away to cry herself to sleep.