Chapter 1: Costume Preparations

The needle wove its intricate path through the dark fabric with a level of precision that the alabaster mare prided herself on.  More than that, though, was the wonderfully worked enchantment that she was weaving into the fabric, and into each stitch.  Not only was it nearly indestructible, it would also work to hide the physical aspects of whoever put it on.  Be it wings, or horn, the costume would work to hide that aspect.  A gentle knock stirred Rarity from her concentration, and she let out a small sigh as she put down the costume, as well as her sewing materials.

Trotting over to the door, Rarity called out to whoever was behind the door that she was coming.  With just a small flourish the alabaster mare threw open the door, offering a small bow to whatever patron might be coming by.  However, when she noticed that Fluttershy was the one at her door she threw off her guise as a shop-keeper.  The two shared a quick embrace.  “Oh, Fluttershy, just the pegasus I wanted to see!”

“Hello, Rarity.  You asked me to come by today, so, um...  Well, here I am.”  Rarity smiled quickly at her guest before she started heading back into the store.

“Do come with me, dear.  I need to get the final fittings done, since this needs to fit you perfectly, or the illusion will be spoiled.”  The pegasus nodded before following the unicorn inside, making sure to close the door.  “Now, I know that you wanted it to be a convincing costume, so I took... a few liberties.  Nothing too extreme, mind you.  But...  Well, let’s just say that it’s something magnificent.”

Fluttershy hesitated for a moment when she heard what Rarity had said, remembering all too clearly what had happened in the past when it came to Rarity and her garment themed exploits.  Still, Fluttershy had been quite clear in her request, and so she doubted that Rarity had diverged too much from what she had asked for.

When she got to the back room, where the costume was laid out on the table Rarity was working Fluttershy was surprised to see that it was a bit smaller than she expected.  Still, she trusted Rarity, and so she began the lengthy process of donning the full body sleeve that was her costume.

“... And now we just zip it up... and there you are.  Now, hold still and I’ll make sure that it’s sitting properly.”  Fluttershy remained still as Rarity made some slight alterations to the costume.  She hadn’t been able to look into a mirror yet, but given the glow in Rarity’s eyes, she was fairly sure that it looked good.  Several alterations later, and Rarity stepped back, a satisfied look plain on her face.  “I know that I do good work, but this...  This is by far the most convincing thing I’ve ever crafted.  Not that I really make that many costumes like this...  Still, turn, dear, and look at yourself in the mirror.”

Fluttershy turned in place slowly, both dreading and anticipating what she would see in the mirror.  A tiny, startled, gasp escaped the mare as she saw her reflection staring back at her.  The fur on her body was nearly black, now, and it matched her movements perfectly.  If she didn’t know that she was wearing a costume she’d never suspect that the reflection looking back at her was a mare in a costume.  The coloring of the stripes along her back were flawless, and the tail had just the right shape to it.  She slowly turned in place, looking at herself in the mirror, taking a rare moment to appreciate how she looked.

“Rarity, this is amazing!”  She stopped for a moment when she noticed something amiss, almost letting out a shriek as the realization hit her.  “Rarity!  Where are my wings?!  I can feel them, but they aren’t there!”

The white unicorn let out a soft chuckle as she put a reassuring hoof on the panicking costumed pegasus.  “Dear, I used some enchantments to hide them.  Fear not, they’re still there, simply hidden from sight.  As soon as you take off the costume they’ll be there, ready for you to use.”

A pent up breath escaped the pegasus in an audible burst, and she looked back at Rarity, a smile on her face.  “Oh, that’s a relief.  I was just...  For a moment... I didn’t know what to think.”

“It’s quite alright, Fluttershy.  Now, let’s get that off of you, and I can make the final few adjustments.  I’ll have it ready for you by tomorrow evening, no later than five, so come back then.”

Taking off the costume was even more of an ordeal than putting it on was, and several times Rarity had to take extreme pains to keep the fabric from tearing when Fluttershy’s wings finally resurfaced.  As Rarity began fretting over the costume once again, Fluttershy excused herself, a smile on her face.

Fluttershy walked into her home with the same smile she had when she left the Carousel Boutique.  With the costume part of her attire taken care of, all she had to do now was finish stewing the ‘perfume’ that would accompany her disguise.  It’d been more of an accident than a real attempt at making something so foul smelling, but when Fluttershy discovered this particular chemical concoction she knew that she’d find some way to use it...

Or, at least, a use that was more than just attracting all the local fauna.  Her first accidental creation had taken the better part of a week to completely clean out of her kitchen.  A process that was only made more difficult by the constant interruptions of all of her animal friends.

Angel Bunny was in the kitchen when Fluttershy entered, slowly stirring the pot that held the fragrance.  The gas mask that he was wearing was just too adorable for Fluttershy to take, and so she quickly grabbed the rabbit, pulling him close and rubbing her nose on his cheek.  “Oh, Angel, you look so cute with your little mask on...”

She went on for several more minutes, heaping endless praise upon the rabbit who so dearly wanted to tell Fluttershy just why he was wearing the mask.  As nice as Fluttershy was, there were some things that she just didn’t seem to notice, no matter how hard Angel tried to point it out to her.  Her ‘perfume’ smelled fairly foul to ponies, but to the wildlife of the everfree it was a fairly potent aphrodisiac.  Any animal that got a whiff of that stuff would think that Fluttershy was trying to seduce them.  And that wouldn’t end very well for anypony, or any animal, involved.

When Fluttershy finally let Angel get back to his stirring, she went off to go and take care of some of the other animals that she was currently taking care of.  This left Angel to try and continue his work on the slowly simmering fluid.  Earlier, when Fluttershy had left, she had entrusted the process of making sure that the perfume came out right to Angel.  And Angel had done everything in his power to make sure that the potion came out wrong.  And he had succeeded.

Mostly...

The potion wouldn’t attract animals as much as it had previously.

It would attract ponies instead.  Not much of an improvement, but better than having manticores, or hydras, or cockatrices, or...  Angel shuddered as he cut off that trail of thought.

Ponies were better.  The bunny let out a small sigh as he cast a glance over his shoulder, watching as Fluttershy continued caring for the woodland critters who called her home their own home.

Ponies were much better.