Couture
Rain droplets trickled down Applejack’s window as she watched the wind blow through leaves on the apple trees across the orchard. The young farmer tossed and turned in her bed, she pressed her pillow against her ears to drown out the wild elements outside. “Sometimes I hate the rain, but it gives the water we need to grow our apples."
She raced down the stairs to see the kitchen was completely empty, only to remember that Apple Bloom, Granny Smith and Big Mac went on a trip to Manehattan for a little visit to see Babs and her sister. Applejack rubbed her eyes and blinked a few times as her hazy vision started to set in, walking out of the door into the harsh weather that awaits her with bated breath.
Applejack moved her hat away from her eyes, trotted up the dirt road on the outskirts of the orchard as the slick, slippery mud stuck to the bottom of her hooves. She raced back to the center of Ponyville past the houses and businesses decorated with festive Hearth's Warming Eve lights lined across the snow-covered roofs, watching the rain travel down the bright lights.
With the Carousel Boutique coming into view, her hooves slipped along the long trail of dirt and mud she left behind colliding into Rarity's front door of her business. Applejack tumbled through the door and rolled around the floor with no control of her body in motion, the ringing sound of the door's bell faded soon after her ruckus could be heard from a mile away.
"Ah just hope Rarity isn't too mad about the mess," Applejack's ears perked up to hear Rarity outside, as she trudged through the huge mudslide in front of her boutique and crouched down behind one of the mannequins.
Once the elegant fashionista walked through the door, the sound of the bell ringing could be heard in the empty main floor of the boutique. Rarity placed her supply bags on an empty table over to the side before she pulled her hood down, as the raindrops splash on the silver polished tiles of her home and business. "What a wonderful day of shopping, now I can focus on this commission from Seaddle."
Rarity closed the door behind her as the damp air left a cold draft behind that caused herself to cling onto her shoulders and shake. She sat down in front of her desk on a velvet pillow while her pen and needle moved around in the strong grip of her magic, passing the needle through thread on each hole of the dress displayed across the desk.
The needle looped around individual holes before traveling up and down the dress, she stitched the last hole shut and admired her work. A figure concealed among the shadows could be heard shuffling around the mannequins to avoid drawing Rarity's attention. Rarity cocked her head over to the side, she looked closely at the shadowy image of a western hat on the wall.
"Applejack, I know it's you over there Come on out and save yourself the trouble," Rarity rolled her eyes, as Applejack emerged from the shadows.
"I can explain. On my way here to check on you, I slipped on a mud slide and brought the trail of mud with me on the floor." Applejack hung her head down with Rarity staring daggers, her ferocious expression slowly faded.
"I'm not mad, Applejack. You did leave a trail of mud which I will detest cleaning it up later, but I'm adding the finishing touches to this Couture dress that a mare commissioned for from Seaddle," Rarity buried her muzzle deeply into her supply bag, her mouth was filled with a bouquet of flowers.
"No, no, no. Perfect!" Rarity searched through the flowers for the right one to use, she attached the sunflower to an alabaster hat along with the pearly white dress emblazoned in stunning diamonds.
"What is that Couture dress for?" Applejack's eyes wandered around the dress.
Rarity stopped for a minute to scan from Applejack's frame to how her stance was formed, tapping her chin and intrigued to ask her friend something. "It's a commission from a mare in Seaddle, I'll be heading there tonight and arriving there depending on when the train gets there. But I need somepony to try on the dress for me, so would you come with me to Seaddle and try on the dress?"
For a few minutes of her eyes wandering around the boutique, Applejack couldn't help but chuckle at Rarity graveling down on her knees. "Alright, alright... I'll go with you to Seaddle and try on the dress for you. As long as I'm not entered in no beauty pageant, deal?"
"Deal," Both mares shook their hooves to seal the deal for their trip.
Rarity delicately placed the finished Couture dress with its matching sunflower hat in her saddlebag. Even when packing for a trip or on business, packing lightly came off to her as a surprise. Her head turned to watch the downpour land gracefully on the muddy ground, the sound of raindrops pelting against the windows outside ringed inside of her ears that kept her in a self-induced trance.
"Rarity, snap out of it. You ready to walk to the train station with me?" Applejack opened the front door, waiting patiently.
"Coming!" Rarity called out, following her closely.
Walking alongside each other down the dirt road towards the train station, they admired the scenery of Ponyville on a clear night with the clouds making way for the stars’ shimmering light in the distance.
Rarity and Applejack walked through the path as the train station appeared closer than they think, they walked up to the platform where a group of ponies lined up waiting for the train. Once they approached the ticket booth, a unicorn stallion stood behind a glass window distributing tickets to the traveling patrons. “Next!” he announced over the intercom, drinking his warm mug full of coffee.
“My friend and I would like two tickets to Seaddle, please.” Rarity asked politely.
“That will be 48 bits,” the stallion added, holding his hoof under the opening on the glass window.
“Why, of course,” Rarity obliged with the request as she pulled out a bag of bits, spilling out the required amount for the two tickets onto the metal surface in front of the glass window.
“Thank you very much, enjoy your trip to Seaddle!” he assembled the bits into a huge pile, and pulled them towards a tip jar next to him.
“Let’s go, Applejack darling,” both went into the train, getting a smile from the driver that warned them about the last call to Seaddle.
“All aboard!” the stallion screamed before the train began to move.
Rarity and Applejack sat in the cabin, the fashionista leaned her head against Applejack, trying to get comfortable on the hard bench where they would spend their trip. Applejack just looked at her and smiled.
“You’re already tired, sugar? We haven’t even begun to ride, to enjoy the ride.”
Rarity sighed, “I’m just thinking, darling. The mare who commissioned this is very… thorough, so I want this dress to be perfect! She’s a high-class mare, she would not want something bad. The problem is I don’t know what is exactly bad in her vision. I don’t know darling, you think she will like it?”
“Of course, Rares. I’m sure ya’ made it right, and she’ll love it. After all, the better fashionista made that,” AJ winked at the other mare, who smiled and let out a little embarrassed laugh.
“Oh Applejack, you shouldn't be that sweet for me.” Rarity leaned over and gave a kiss on her cheek.
“Aw, but I do this because I know that you take pride in your work. If she can not see that when we show it to her then she is missing out,” Applejack turned her around the corner to a champagne cart parked next to their cabin, she helped herself to a bottle of champagne.
She kept a firm grip on the cork covering the top of the champagne bottle, and unscrewed the cork before spitting it out on the floor. The liquid made its way down her throat with her head leaned back and muzzle pointed up to the ceiling as she poured champagne into her glass then guzzled the entire glass of champagne down in two shakes of a lamb’s tail.
“Don’t ya’ want some?” Applejack offered with a raised eyebrow, “I’m more used to beer or cider, but that’s good too.”
“Thank you, dear,” Rarity took some with her magic, “Maybe this can help me to forget about this a little,” she took another sip and looked at the window. The light from the full moon reflected the inside of the cabin, Princess Luna’s stars were absolutely beautiful and bright. Rarity observed the lights coming from the direction where the great Las Pegasus was, she still wanted to get a commission from that city.
“Looking at the stars?” the fashionista’s thoughts were muddled by AJ’s voice.
“Yes, the princess always do a great job. You like to look at them too?” she asked without taking her eyes from the nocturnal beauties.
The answer for Rarity’s question didn’t arrived until the farmer give a big sigh, “Yes I like… I always look at them.” Rarity raised her eyebrow at this, but then realized what she was talking about. Her parents.
“Oh darling, I’m sorry, you… Your parents, no?” Applejack nodded, “I’m sorry, I didn’t…”
“Ya’ don’t need to be sorry, sugar. It’s past. I loved them, I just… Wanted them to be here. I loved them. And I know that they must be proud of me, Apple Bloom and Mac. Mom would be proud to see I have ya’.” AJ smiled at her, Rarity just approached her, rubbing her head against her coat and comforting her head there.
“They must be, darling, you’re a incredible mare.” Rarity kissed her chest, then she yawned, closing her eyes slightly.
“Ya’ too, sugarcube, ya’ too.” Applejack smiled.
She rested her head against Rarity’s chest, her soft fur tickling the inner regions of her nostrils. The silence filled their train cabin for a more comfortable setting to be alone together on a peaceful night towards Seaddle, as the train’s wheels rolled against train tracks roared through a dark tunnel outside on the outskirts of downtown Seaddle.
The train came to a complete stop as its wheels made a loud screeching sound when it stopped at the main terminal of Seaddle’s train station, crowds of ponies walked out of the train with heavy bags of luggage pulling them by the skin of their teeth. Rarity and Applejack stumbled out of the train doors, with their forelegs and hooves moving from left to right hanging onto Rarity’s filled saddlebag of fashion materials.
“All aboard, who’s coming aboard,” the conductor called out to the next round of ponies coming on board the train, checking the time on his pocket watch. The train went off to its next destination that many ponies would wish to explore any day of the week.
Applejack looked around, surprised with this city. She never visited Seaddle, the ponies in this city seem not to like alcoholic cider, or anything than champagne and wine. After all, this was a big city full of rich ponies, they wouldn’t want to buy some simple cider from a farmer. Quite unlike of what they thought about Rarity’s job.
“So, Rares, where’s the place we going?”
“We’re going to the famous fashion design institute, Trot Lumineux. We going to meet Miss…” She pulled out a paper from her bag that had the mare’s name, “Miss Orange Twist. She seems to be lovely, I can think she’s from Mexicolt because of her accent. I usually don’t take commissions of ponies from other places, even more from a place like Mexicolt.”
“Orange Twist.” Applejack repeated her name. “This name doesn’t looks like a Mexicolt name,” she said thinking out loud.
“What you expected darling? Sombrero or Caliente?” Rarity joked, making Applejack laugh. “If it’s so, don’t say it on her front. She could feel… offended. But, by the way darling, I expected a name like these for Mexicolt pony.” Rarity laughed and shook her head.
“Same here.”
Both continued to walk, talking about random things during their way to Trot Lumineux. Applejack could already imagine how this place was: Full of frou-frou mares, rich mares, snob designers and all these things from the high-class ponies. She would rather just call them frou frou ponies or snobs. She loved the fact that Rarity was not like them. She could be frou frou, but this was her way of being, but she was simple, never snob at anypony. And she’s my frou frou, Applejack thought.
Their mouths hung agape at the sight of Seaddle’s famous fashion institute that has been around since Seaddle was founded, where ponies from all over the globe to pursue a future in fashion design and creative arts. “After you, Applejack,” Rarity stepped over to the side, letting Applejack walk in front of her.
“Thank ya kindly, Rares,” Applejack walked through the revolving doors, her eyes and head spun around like a spinning top on her venture to the main floor of the institute.
She covered her mouth with a hoof stumbling around on four hooves as she leaned down on the floor, her face brushing up on the newly polished silver tiles. Her sickly green face let out a huge yawn that could interrupt all of the students working in the classrooms. Prying her head off of the floor, a mare in a black and white suit looked down at her. “Hello, may I help you?”
Applejack’s eyes shook around her head like ping pong balls, trying to keep her focus on the mare. “Yes, my friend and I would like a room to show this dress she made for Ms.Orange Twist.”
The classy businesspony adjusted her lopsided glasses across her muzzle holding her hoof forward out to Applejack, “I believe that Orange Twist was expecting you and your friend to bring her commissioned dress over here, you two can follow me to her showcase room where she is presenting her line of dresses.”
“That would be nice, thank you.” Rarity cheeks expanded into a huge smile.
Rarity, along with Applejack, followed the pony upstairs to the third floor of Trot Lumineux’s hallway that had six classrooms lined up on each side where Orange Twist’s showcase room was located on the far end of the hallway.
“There you are, here is Ms.Orange’s showcase room. If you need any further assistance with anything else, don’t hesitate to call me!” She waved her hoof before making her way back downstairs to the main foyer of the institute.
Rarity knocked on the door of the showcase room as Orange Twist’s eyes appeared through an opening on the inside of the room. “Yes, and who might this be?”
“I’m Rarity and this is my dear friend, Applejack along with your commissioned dress.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Orange.”
“Nice to meet you both, come on in I was just about to show my students the next dress that I’ll be wearing to the Summer Sun Celebration,” Orange unlocked the door as the mechanisms of the doorknob slowly rotated to the side and eventually pulled the door open, letting the two friends into the showcase room.
A class of twenty four students waited in anticipation for the next dress that Orange Twist would be showing them next. Pencils and notepads on the ready at Orange’s beck and call to take notes, they watched Orange walk to the stage as spotlights shined down on her, and asked one of her students to dim the lights.
“Attention class, I’m here to present the last presentation of the evening that was given to me as as a commission from a very talented mare from Ponyville, Rarity!” Orange brought her hoof around Rarity, bringing her up onstage.
She yanked her Couture dress onto a clothes rack, and cleared her throat in front of the bright spotlights as the class gave Rarity their full attention as if their eyes were glued to a television screen. “Before I present my dress that I made for your fashion design instructor, my friend, Applejack would like to model this dress for all of you.”
Applejack grabbed the dress off the clothes rack sliding her body through the narrow dress like a stick of butter, she walked down the runway all eyes watching every move that she made, and even the slightest misstep could potentially ruin Rarity’s chances of impressing Orange Twist. She proceeded down the aisle on the runway, as her hoof unexpectedly clutched her stomach and dropped down to her knees.
The weird sensation began in the bottom of her stomach rising up to her throat from the effects that the bubbly champagne had on her, letting out an earth shattering burp that was capable of shaking Seaddle to its core. “Excuse me,” She let out a hearty giggle, rising back up on her hooves and turning around her posterior rocking back and forth.
Orange Twist’s class continued to jot down notes on their notepads, and their eyes left a vacant thousand yard stare at what events just occurred in front of them. Her mouth couldn’t process the right amount of words as she has never experienced anything like this before. Her legs began to tremble and sweat started to flow down her forehead like a rush of water from a broken dam.
“Darling, what’s happening with you?” Rarity murmured between her teeth.
Applejack didn’t answer, she just stood, blinking at the class.
Applejack swallowed. She felt like Fluttershy now, which was very strange for her, a strong and fearless pony like her. She took a deep breath and shook her head. She smiled nervously. What I do? Maybe, I can just roll with it? the farmer thought, Okay, do it for Rares. Applejack sighed heavily to . She then proceeded to demonstrate the design, turning, showing its sides.
Oh, for Celestia’s sake, I feel so… Rarity. Applejack thought, but then gave a little mentally laugh for it, was very ironic. Perhaps the time she stayed with Rarity had taken her to do so, after all, Applejack wouldn’t do this if it was not for her.
“What did ya think, Orange?” Applejack shuffled her hooves along the stage as she stepped off the stage to the stairs.
Orange’s mind still tried to comprehend or make a lick of sense, she shook her head and came to her senses slowly but surely. “I don’t know how to describe what you just did. Dare, if I say that it was exceptional and that I’m grateful that Rarity made the dress for me also that she convinced you to model for her.”
“Tell me about it. It takes a whole lot to get me all gussied up in a dress,” Applejack motioned a hoof up to her face, hiding her flushed cheeks.
“We all have to make sacrifices for the ones we love, even if those sacrifices don’t go as you planned.” Orange’s eyes averted their gaze over to Rarity as she hid her puffy, red eyes where the endless tears streamed down her face.
“Orange Twist, I pray tell that you didn’t take the presentation in the wrong light.” Rarity sniffled, wiping away her tears.
“In the fashion world, it’s better to take risks than choose not to expand your horizons. Your presentation may have been odd at first… but it did surprise me in a good way,” Orange covered her mouth to let out a faint giggle.
“I’m glad you liked it. My friend and I are grateful, we should be heading back to Ponyville. It was an honor meeting you, Orange Twist.”
“You too, Rarity, take care!”
Cold winds whistled outside of the train as ponies slept with each other on comfortable booths near their respective cabins.
“Thank you for everything, Applejack.”
“It was nothing, you would have done the same for me.”
Bundled up next to each other in a warm blanket, they nuzzled their muzzles closely where the cold couldn’t break the warmth of their love.
