Chapters Wealth Granted from Generosity
Like spires covered in glittering gems, tall buildings scraped against the night sky with their impressive height as each's interior lighting escaped through the various windows that lined their sides. The land, once a simple field of grass and rivers many ages ago, now glowed brightly from its urban covering that stretched on for miles with squared, brick buildings packed tightly against each other. Each of these buildings, both small and impressive, were covered in a multitude of glowing dots that shined from their hollowed interiors. With so many sparks of light gathered together in one area, the earthy land would have been able to over-shown the starry sky in dazzling brightness.
But many centuries ago, when the Princess of the Night had returned from her thousand-year exile, the moon goddess looked over this new grounded rival with a casual indifference more suited for a single campfire, before simply willing her stars to shine just a little bit brighter.
And then the stars did so; shining so visibly so despite the competition it received from the urbanized earth below. It was almost as if the princess had so easily taken a painting of the nighttime city and dabbed her stars with a thicker coat of paint.
With the stars shining as brightly as ever, the ground covered in luminescent dots, and the city's light-speckled towers branching the two, a pony could almost be forgiven for mistaking the skyscrapers for enormous support beams that held up the sky; preventing the two dazzling oceans from slamming into each other.
But down in between the crags of buildings and lights, where paved roads of grayed cobblestone intersected over the city's layout like hairline fissures on skin, ponies dawdled on, under-appreciating of the setting of wonder around them. To them, whom many have been born and lived most of their lives in such a setting, they have grown used to the marvelous sights that surround them. Instead, they focus their attention away from the eye-drawing sights and onto their own lives of little pleasures and daily duties.
For one pony in the city though, one daily duty was lasting much longer than it rightly should.
In a backroom office, behind an old, wooden desk that was absolutely covered in tiny stacks of logistic papers, account reports, and many other lists of economic information, sat a green-coated unicorn. A stallion, this unicorn had youthful features, a messy silver mane, and wore a disheveled suit that gave him an overall ragged appearance.
"Thrift."
At the sound of his name being called, the unicorn looked up to find a pegasus stallion standing at the entrance of his office, a white chef's hat atop his head.
"Evening, Sous," greeted the green-coated unicorn politely, before letting his teal irises travel across the pegasus more closely to notice that his chef uniform was lacking the required apron, "packing it in for the day?" he asked.
A nod, "Shift's over; I'm heading home," Sous said curtly, before giving his employer an inquisitive eyebrow, "what about you?"
Thrift glanced down at his paper-covered desk, momentarily analyzing his workload, "...I'll be awhile."
"Again?"
Levitating a pen over the stacks of paper, Thrift answered, "Yeah... again."
Standing in the doorway stoically, Sous quietly stared across the room at the working unicorn before speaking up, "You know... I could stay awhile and help."
"That's alright, Sous," said Thrift, not even looking up from his papers, "just get on home and get a good night's rest."
"...Right. Good night, Thrift," turning around, Sous trotted out of the office. The sound of his hoofsteps noisily filled up the empty building before a deafening slam of a metal door was sounded off, it's clanging echo bouncing off of the restaurant's walls before it too quieted down to nothing, leaving only the shuffling of papers and pen scratchings to fill up the silence.
Not even a half-hour later of such noise happening, as Thrift tightly closed the small safe under his desk after counting the day's earnings, did a pungent smell fill his nostrils.
"What in Equestria?" spoke up Thrift as his muzzle scrunched inward in disgust. Exiting out of his office, it only took a quick search of his restaurant to discover the filled garbage bag lying lazily against a random corner of the kitchen, its rampant stench dominating his establishment.
"Dang buscolts," Thrift grumbled distastefully under his breath, "or dishwashers, or whoever's supposed to take the darn trash out." His horn lighting up from his magic, the trash bag was soon covered in a teal aura that lifted it up in the air. Turning around and walking across the kitchen with the disgusting bag levitating behind him, Thrift headed toward the metal door located on the opposite side of the kitchen.
Swinging the door open, Thrift stepped into the back alley situated behind his restaurant. The unseen urban gaps of every society, this alley was shadowed between two buildings that shrouded it in rampant darkness. The collection of sweeped-away grime and tattered trash that piled up in this alley, like they do with every alley, were barely visible in the darkness as they stuck like mold to the urban walls.
Set in the dazzling landscape that was the nighttime city, the only source of light that these forgotten crags of society ever received came from the leftover rays of street lampposts situated at the mouth of each alley, and the few twinkling stars that were able to peek over the towering buildings that walled these backstreets.
Stepping into the decrepit alley, Thrift quickly came upon the large dumpster that collected all of the unwanted leftovers of his restaurant. Popping the lid and unceremoniously throwing the bag of garbage into the bin, Thrift turned back to the kitchen door; soon to exit the alley as quick as he entered it.
"Excuse me," spoke up a soft voice behind Thrift, just as the green unicorn was about to head back inside.
Turning around, Thrift found a unicorn mare trotting toward him from the mouth of the alley that led to the street. Coated a bright yellow with an even brighter mane, the blue-eyed mare contrasted greatly with her dreary settings, even more so with the large, unfolded map in her magical aura. What was most disconcerting to Thrift though was the look of hope upon the mare's face.
"Hi! Um, don't mean to be a bother, but can you tell me where I can find Cobblestone street?" she asked, her tone innocent and pleasant.
And just like that, Thrift found his metropolitan blood freeze up in fright as he found himself in the worst nightmare that every city-dweller feared to be in: giving directions to a clueless tourist.
Mares of Harmony save him.
Glancing back to the door wantonly before facing the mare again, Thrift stammered out an escape, "Look, I'd like to help you, I really would, but I'm in the middle of a lot of work right now and need to get back to it and..." as Thrift gestured to the door behind him while excusing himself as politely as he could, he drifted off when he noticed the edges of the mare's small smile curve downward just the slightest bit while her eyes began to lose their brightness, "...and ...yeah, sure. I'll help you," he relented.
Despite the fact that the alleyway was just as dark as ever, nothing seemed to lighten it up like the mare's grin did.
"So Cobblestone street, right?" he asked, which the mare nodded in confirmation, "Alright, well then, what you wanna do is just keep going down the road you were on until you get to Corners street. There you turn left and... and..."
The blonde mare was no longer looking at Thrift, but instead staring at the unfolded map she opened with a confused scrutiny, "Wait, isn't Corners street on the other side of the city?" she asked aloud, then, to his utter horror, the mare actually twisted the map around. Thrift's fear that the mare was really that clueless of a tourist that she had actually been looking at the map upside down this whole time was swiftly discarded when she quickly righted the map back to how she was looking at it previously. Though that respect was spared, the fact that the mare was still quizzically examining the map did not put Thrift at ease.
Standing there, to the back entrance of his restaurant while the confused, lost mare stared at her map, Thrift let loose a tired, quiet sigh that could have been mistaken for a groan if it had been louder, before levitating a ring of keys from his suit pocket.
"Can't believe I'm doing this," he muttered to himself as he locked the door behind him.
"Hey," at the stallion's voice, the mare looked up from her map to see the green unicorn levitating a ring of keys into his suit pocket, "Look..." he said, resentment in his tone, "Cobblestone street isn't that far from here, so... how about I just take you there?"
"Really?" asked the delighted mare, smiling as bright as the street lampposts, "That's so sweet of you to do."
"Yeah, yeah, don't mention it," Thrift replied, casually trotting past the beaming mare, "come on, let's hurry this up. I've got work to get back to."
Heading toward the open street at the mouth of the alley, the mare soon joined up next to Thrift, "I'm Sunflower, by the way," she introduced herself with a cheerful step in her trot.
Briefly glancing back at the appropriately named yellow-coated, blonde mare, whose very mark was a single sunflower, Thrift gave his own introduction, "Thrift," he said tersely, "Thrift Spender."
As Thrift walked, curious blue eyes traced over the golden bit that marked his flank.
Upon a gray road of stone, many tall, rectangular houses were tightly packed against each other on both sides of the street. Pressed against the street and each other so tightly, these brick houses were squeezed out of any yard to have, instead only granting the remaining space for the paved sidewalk. A necessary sacrifice noted by the two unicorns that were able to trot down the road safely, before stopping at the corner of the two intersecting streets.
"And here's Cobblestone street," spoke up Thrift, raising a hoof to gesture to the street on their left, before turning to the yellow mare next to him with a raised eyebrow, "so should I leave you here or do you also need help finding the house?"
She giggled, "No thanks, I'm not that hopeless," she replied with a playful roll of her eyes. She then focused on Thrift more attentively, "but you know... my sis's home is only three houses down and I'm sure that she's got some warm soup cooking right now. I'd doubt she'd mind if-"
"SUNFLOWER!"
The loud yelling of the yellow mare's name caught the attention of both unicorns, who turned to look down the sidewalk to see an auburn-coated mare galloping toward them at an impressive speed.
An impressive speed that may have had something to do with the barely visible rainbow trailing behind her.
Seeing this, Sunflower squeezed her eyes shut and braced her body. A wise move as the running mare was pistoning toward her at an impressive speed that quickly ended with the mare tackling Sunflower into a crushing hug when she reached her.
"Where were you?! You were supposed to be here hours ago!" yelled the mare as she held Sunflower tightly to her, "I knew it. I knew I shouldn't have let you travel here by yourself, you always get lost so easily."
Toughening the squeezing hug surprisingly well, Sunflower rolled her eyes away from the hugging mare in exasperation, "Not that easily, sis," she grumbled under her breath.
The auburn mare pulled away and gave Sunflower an accusing look, "Sunny..." she deadpanned, "you couldn't find your way out of an open cardboard box."
"One time! And I was a filly for Luna's sake!"
As the two mares argued, Thrift stood beside them and silently examined the mare that was apparently Sunflower's sister. Now that she was closer, Thrift could see that the mare was an earth pony, had a pair of bright blue eyes and a blonde mane that was almost just like her sister's. What was different with it though was that the strands of her mane ended in a myriad of colors, almost like she had dipped the ends into a rainbow fountain.
With her rainbow-tipped mane coupled with her impressive speed, where every swift movement seemed to leave a light spectrum in her absence, Thrift realized that this was a mare who had been graced by Loyalty. Almost as an involuntary motion, Thrift found himself glancing up at the black, starry sky above, as if expecting to see a trailing rainbow arching over his head.
"Who's this?" the graced mare asked suddenly, and Thrift pulled his head back in surprise as, with an almost prism-like bolt, the mare snapped from her place beside her sister to just a few inches from Thrift's muzzle; her eyebrows scrunched downward as she gave him an examining look.
Coming to his rescue, Sunflower piped up from behind her sister, "That's Thrift Spender, he helped me find the street."
Hearing this, the mare smiled and politely relented away from Thrift's space, "Really? Well then, I'm Iridescence," she introduced herself, "and thanks for helping my sister," the subtlest of smirks appeared over her face, "seriously, if you hadn't helped her she'd probably end up dead on the corner of Somewhere and Lost street. Poor lass barely knows left from right."
"Oh, come on !" groaned out Sunflower as she exasperated a pain that only a loving family member could bring out.
Iridescence looked back at Sunflower with a warm smile, "It only hurts 'cause you know it's true, sweetie," she said in an infuriating sunny disposition before turning back to Thrift, "anyways, since you went through the trouble of bringing my sister home, why don't you join us for dinner?"
"Oh! Uh... thank you, that's kind of you to offer," replied Thrift, smiling weakly as a show of politeness, before scratching the back of his mane awkwardly, "but... I actually have to get back to work, so I'm going to have to decline your offer."
"You sure?" asked Iridescence with a raised eyebrow, "I make a mean peach soup, and it'd sure be a shame to let you leave without having any." She then took a moment to look Thrift up and down, "Hmm, you look white collar. Does this work of yours involve diddling up numbers or some such?"
"...Yeah, kind of," Thrift said hesitantly, not quite sure how to react to being called 'white collar.'
"Then problem solved," she said with a smile, "you join us for dinner, then Sunflower here can help you with your work. She's a mathematician, believe it or not, so she's great with numbers."
Stepping forward, Sunflower gave Thrift another one of her beaming smiles, "I wouldn't mind taking the time to help you at your restaurant," she said sincerely.
Thrift stood there, baffled as he stared at the two smiling mares, "...Look, that's really... generous of you to offer," he said, his tone awkward and uncomfortable, "but—and please don't take this the wrong way, I mean no offence—but I'm not really into the habit of accepting help from ponies I don't really know."
Sunflower's beaming smile no longer beamed. She was still smiling, just not as much as before, "Oh! ...Um, okay."
"I understand," spoke up Iridescence, "really, I do," for a brief moment, her eyes focused onto her rainbow locks before quickly returning back to Thrift, "trust is something that needs to be earned, and city life can be a tough life," she gave him a small smile, "but hey, the dinner offer still stands. So if you ever change your mind, our door'll be open to you."
Thrift returned the smile, "Thank you, I... I may take you up on that offer some time. Until then, it was nice meeting you," he gave her a short, polite nod before turning to Sunflower, "And you too, Miss Sunflower," he said with another nod.
Polite goodbyes done, Thrift Spender then turned around and began his trot back to his restaurant. He only made it a couple steps, before pausing when he noticed that Sunflower had followed him by his side. When he turned to her with a raised eyebrow, she, much to his shock, leaned forward and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
Pulling away with a slight blush on her cheeks, Sunflower showed off another one of her pearly white grins, "Just wanted to say thanks again for, you know, helping me," she informed him in an almost bashful tone, before galloping off back to her sister with a giggle.
Iridescence was removing her hoof from her face as she saw her sister's actions, before turning to Sunflower with a deadpan stare, "You are such a damsel."
Wealth Granted from Generosity
As Thrift traveled the streets, sleepy houses were slowly traded away for the more bustling business and office buildings that made up the city's commercial district. Much more active than the residential area, even at such a late hour, there were still a couple ponies that trotted the streets.
But Thrift paid these ponies no mind. With head held high, yet directed downward toward the gray pavement, his mind was elsewhere as he trotted though the city's muddled transition between residential and commercial.
Abruptly, he stopped his walking.
Standing in front of some apartment block and a random office building, Thrift, with hooves still placed forward, looked back toward the residential district. He looked back toward the housings, where those two mares, Iridescence and Sunflower, were undoubtedly inside their warm home, enjoying their supper together. He looked back and wondered.
...Should he?
Thrift turned back forward toward the commercial district, his expression resolute.
No.
Just as Thrift was about to step forward and continue his trot back to his business; he felt it.
The hoof raised to take a step forward was instead brought up to his chest in bewilderment. Thrift was startled at this sudden sensation and he looked down in confusion at his chest as he pressed his hoof against it. Although he could see nothing visibly different with it, he could not deny the weird feeling that he felt.
Right in the area between where his rib cage hanged and his beating heart sat, something intangible, yet still apart of him, was pulling him.
And the direction that this visceral feeling was pulling him toward was to the alleyway that opened on his left.
Turning his head toward the black gap situated between the two buildings, the pulling sensation in Thrift's chest practically lurched forward as his eyes rested on the dark alley. He didn't know what this feeling was; this pulling sensation. It was obviously some form of magic, but not any that Thrift was familiar with. He was not the most knowledgeable ponies of the arcane, but even he could tell that this pulling sensation was not any form of enchantment or mind control that he was aware of. He felt no burning need to follow where this magical pull guided him, nor did he feel that he was being manipulated against his will. The best explanation that Thrift could give this magical pulling sensation was as if a new path had been formed before him. He had no obligation to go down this new path, but considering that it seemed to have been made specifically for him...
Thrift looked back down the street he was walking by, where the pulling seemed weaker, before turning back to the alleyway.
Hesitant, Thrift took a few wary steps into the alley, before picking up his pace as he entered away from the brightly lit streets. Delving into another urban gap of society once again, Thrift allowed the buildings' shadows to darken his olive coat as he traversed forth between them. His eyes were front-forward as he allowed himself to be pulled to where he needed to be.
Deep into the shadowed chasm of brick and mortar, Thrift ceased his trotting when he felt no longer pulled. The magical sensation had disappeared when he found himself at one of the crossroads that dotted the forgotten backstreets hidden behind the many city buildings.
And sitting in the middle of this particular crossroad, under one of the few spots where the moonlight peaked over the buildings, was a small cat. On Thrift's approach, the cat made no indication that it noticed the unicorn's presence, instead busying itself with licking the fur of one of its paws.
Similar in size to most domesticated cats, this particular one seemed to belong to one of the long-haired breeds as its white coat puffed out in length around its body. Almost entirely white in color, what Thrift found unusual about this cat were its tail and paws. In contrast to the rest of its white appearance, each paw seemed to have been dipped into liquid gold as all four glittered with the golden color that the ore was famous for. Its furry tail seemed to have gone through the same process, except instead of gold, it was silver that had drenched it and now made it shimmer in the moonlight.
With golden paws and a silver tail, this glimmering cat ceased the licking of its paws and showed notice of Thrift's presence. It stared up at him with a look that could only be described as unimpressed.
In a near pompous manner, the cat stood up on all fours and began walking away from Thrift, before stopping at the edge of the moonlight. It turned its flat face back toward Thrift with a look more belonging to what a master would give to a servant, raised one of its golden paws, and proceeded to make a downward swiping motion.
Thrift's eyebrows were raised slightly in surprise at the sight. It seemed that this strange cat was beckoning him to follow.
For a moment, Thrift just stood there in the moonlight awkwardly. Hesitantly, he took one last glance at the open streets at the end of the alley behind him, before quickly following after the cat.
The hallway was mucked with dirt and dust, stains marked the carpet and plastered walls, and even the wooden doors seemed rotted from age. All in all, the hallway gave an accurate image of a neglected apartment block.
As Thrift trotted through the grimy hallway, he glanced down at the golden-pawed cat in front of him who walked forward with a superior air about it as if it presumed that it was the very landlord that owned this place. Having followed the silver tail of this cat through the many twists and turns of the city's back alleys, he had found himself led to the back door of an unfamiliar apartment block. Thinking that the strange cat just wanted his help in getting back into the building where it probably lived, he opened the surprisingly unlocked door and the cat proceeded in before turning around to give him the same paw-beckoning motion that it had given him before, wanting him to know to continue following.
So now he followed the strange cat in an unfamiliar and possibly dangerous building.
As Thrift quietly contemplated his sanity, the silver-tailed cat suddenly stopped before one of the many doors in the hallway. An average looking door, it looked practically identical to all the others in the hallway; there were no marks or numbers to indicate this door above the rest. Yet the silver-tailed cat chose this door above the rest and now sat before it, turning to Thrift to give him a bored, impatient look.
Staring back at the cat for a moment before glancing at the particular door, Thrift let out a tired sigh before knocking against the door three times. The first two knocks yielded nothing, but by the third the door swung open to reveal a bitter, wrinkled mass that may have possibly been a unicorn.
"Who are you!? What do you—" she demanded loudly in a wretched tone, waving around a feather duster threateningly as she fixed Thrift an accusing glare, before cutting herself off as she noticed the golden-pawed cat sitting next to Thrift.
"Opal!" she shouted delightfully. Quickly switching from old croon to loving grandmother, she gave the cat a big smile, "How good it is to see you again! It's been quite a few years since last you came about," the old mare let out a few chuckles, "of course, with her finally back you're probably so much more active now."
The golden-pawed cat apparently named Opal responded to the old mare's sweet ramblings with its first display of affection. Purring softly, the cat stepped forward and began rubbing its back against the old mare's foreleg.
Ceasing her sweet rambling, the old mare suddenly snapped her gaze to Thrift's, her eyes narrowing as she pointed her feather duster at him, "You !" she said, her tone accusatory again, "Where are your manners? Why didn't you tell me you were just the deliverycolt? Shame on you, making an old mare like me think that you're some intruder and yelling at you all unjust-like. It's unseemly!"
Stepping back at the reproach, Thrift could only stammer out, "I... er... what ?"
"Hush now, foal, your elders are conversing" dismissed the old mare before turning back to Opal with a pleasant smile, "Now just hold on here, sweetie, and I'll get you what you love," after she slammed the door closed so fast that the resultant wind blew Thrift's silver mane wildly, the sound of various items being haphazardly thrown about were heard from the other side, along with distasteful muttering coming from the old mare.
Suddenly, the door was flung open again and a basket of assortments was levitated into Thrift's face.
"Here we are!" said the old mare enthusiastically, "One can of tuna given to me by that sweet griffon stall owner in the market, two of the softest towels from that delightful spa masseuse downtown, a bag of the best catnip from Mr. Old Abbey upstairs, and, of course, my specially-brewed shampoo," proclaimed the old mare proudly, before giving Thrift a warning look, "now do be careful with this, it's Opal's favorite, and I can't make another batch all willy-nilly, you hear me?"
Confusion evident on his face, Thrift nonetheless wrapped the basket of assortments into his teal aura of magic as he kept it levitated, "Um... okay, but what is this all—"
"Shush-shush-shush-shush!" shushed the old mare, placing her feather duster over Thrift's muzzle to thoroughly shush him more effectively, "I'm sure that whatever's going on with you will be resolved without me needing to answer all these questions," she informed him distractedly, "just keep following Opal here and you'll be fine."
Shoving the dirty duster out of his face, Thrift gave the old mare a frustrated look, "Why!?" he demanded loudly, his sudden outburst surprising even himself, "Why should I follow this cat? Why am I even following this cat?"
Wrinkled eyes narrowed at Thrift, "What are you, an idiot?" asked the old mare incredulously, before muttering aside to herself, "Poor foal don't even know why he's following a cat," she focused back on him, "Why does anypony follow anypony? Because they're being led somewhere," she smiled knowingly, "...or to someone ."
Thrift stared back at the strange old mare, "...And who is this cat leading me to?"
The old mare let out a few crooning chuckles, "You'll find out who soon enough. Now, if you'll excuse me..." the old mare turned to the golden-pawed cat with an apologetic look, "I know how you hate it and I'm so sorry about how dirty this apartment block has become. I'd clean it like how I'd used to do for the landlord, but these old bones just ain't what they are anymore. I hate to impose on you, but this place could only barely afford to hire a cleaning-mare, and I was wondering if you would..."
Abruptly, the golden-pawed cat named Opal stood up and turned away from the aged mare. Then, after beating its silver tail against the floor three times and causing dust to kick up, the cat casually pawed away from the two ponies and down the hallway without so much as a meow.
"Oh, thank you, Opal! You're such a generous dear!" called out the smiling old mare as she levitated out a brush and a small shovel.
Befuddlement practically pouring over his form at seeing such radically different reactions, Thrift could not help but turn to the old mare in confusion, "Wait, I don't get it. What just—"
"What did I just tell you!?" interrupted the old mare loudly, furiously giving him an indignant look that grandparents reserved for unruly grandchildren, "Keep. Following. Opal!" she enunciated before waving her brush at him threateningly, "Now get out of here! Git! Skedaddle!"
Fully intent on avoiding any unnecessary brush-smacking, Thrift quickly galloped down the hall after the golden-pawed cat with the basket levitating behind him. Reaching the end of the hallway, Thrift took a glance back to see the old mare brushing up the dust that Opal had kicked up into her small shovel.
But as Thrift looked closer, he could see that the dust now had a silvery glint to it that it did not have before.
Wealth Granted from Generosity
Moonlight stretched downwards into the shadowed crags of civilization, illuminating the darkened areas with Luna's azure glow. What had remained hidden in the shadows have now become visible in Luna's gaze as her moon hung overhead in the starry sky.
Now the olive green unicorn, the golden-pawed cat, and the small, metal door that they stood before could be seen clearly without the aid of a lantern.
Taking a deep breath, Thrift let out a tired sigh that misted in the cold night air before him.
The old mare in the apartment block had been eccentric, crazy, and possibly even senile. Yet Thrift Spender still did exactly what she told him to do. He followed the golden-pawed cat, following its silver tail as it led him once again through the forgotten passageways that are the city's alleys. He grumbled and had a sour disposition, but he still followed, carrying the basket of shampoo and canned tuna in his magical aura behind him.
And now he found himself before another door; this time outside in the cold. Thrift thought that it looked very similar to the back entrance of his restaurant and absently wondered if he had been led back unawares.
Trailing his eyes upwards, Thrift arched his head back to better look at the building that the door in front of him was attached to.
"...Definitely not my restaurant," he breathed out in awe.
Like a spire covered in glittering gems, the building reached high up toward the night sky; it's glowing dots of escaped interior lighting intermingling with the ocean of stars above interchangeably, making it incredibly difficult to distinguish where the skyscraper ended and the sky began.
A shiver ran down Thrift's spine as he stared up in awe from the base of this monolith.
He glanced down at Opal, who sat before the door uncaring of the massive building towering over, instead only giving Thrift an expectant look.
Taking a deep breath, Thrift raised his hoof to knock against the door, hoping that this time another crazy, old pony didn't pop out.
Before he even had the chance to bang his hoof against it, Thrift got his answer when the door suddenly opened to reveal a pony that was neither crazy nor old, but unusually not unicorn, earth, nor pegasus in origin.
Decked out in royal armor, the stallion that stood before Thrift had no coat of fur or mane, but instead was skinned in maroon scales that covered the body with ridges of larger scales in-place of the mane that trailed along the back of his neck to his large, lizard-like tail. Where for most ponies there would only be hooves at the end of their legs, this stallion also had three claws at the end of each.
A longma: a dragon-pony hybrid brought into the equine genus long ago by way of one of the multitude of unions that the gods and spirits of the world occasionally indulge in with each other when they're not being vied for by mortals. With the union between the Mare of Generosity and the Guardian of the Elements being specifically responsible for the creation of this subspecies.
Standing slightly taller than him, the longma narrowed his serpentine eyes at Thrift suspiciously before noticing the golden-pawed cat next to him and the basket which Thrift carried. With a grin that showed sharp teeth, he snorted out a puff of magical, green flame. The same green flame that was passed down to all longma from their Ancestral Father.
"Well look at what Opalescence has dragged in," snarked the longma with a chuckle. He then fully turned around and lowered his tail to the floor, to which the golden-pawed cat slowly proceeded to climb up and sit on the longma's back. Turning his head back to Thrift with that same toothy grin, the longma said, "Well, come on then. Let's get you upstairs."
The longma guard began marching away, with Opalescence sitting upright upon his back like a noble lord would upon a righteous steed.
Only standing still to stare at this rare, unusual sight for but a moment, Thrift quickly followed after the longma into the massive building; it's interior composing of clean hallways. After just a minute or so of traversing the hallways that seemed to only lead to utility closets, laundry rooms, and once a kitchen, the trio entered an exquisite lobby room.
Upon marble flooring rested red velvet carpets and clear glass tables adorned with beautiful bouquets of flowers that bloomed impressively outward from their hoof-crafted vases. Grand chandeliers hanged from the ceiling between the massive, marble columns and over the decorated fountains. Around these impressive aspects of architecture, well-dressed ponies headed in and out of the building as red-shirted bellcolts trailed behind them, carrying their large and no-doubt important luggage.
"Wow," muttered Thrift as he looked around in amazement, his bottom lip barely hanging from the surprising sight, "it's been awhile since I've been in a place like this."
The longma guard that he followed did not slow to take in the sights as Thrift did, and he had to quicken his pace to catch up again as they traversed between two grand staircases for the elevator doors that waited beyond. After the guard clicked the elevator call button once, and a couple moments of waiting later, the doors parted and the two proceeded in.
"Good evening, sir," greeted the elevator operator, an elderly, pencil-mustached earth pony attired similarly to the buscolts. Giving the guard a polite nod before raising an eyebrow just a smidge at the golden-pawed cat riding the guard's back, he said, "I assume you will be wanting the top floor?"
The longma guard nodded.
"And ...uh, you , sir?" asked the elevator operator, turning toward Thrift and giving the disheveled-suited and messy-haired unicorn an obvious once over.
"He's with me," informed the guard neutrally.
"...Of course, sir," said the operator before pushing against the large lever on the elevator floor.
As the elevator began its ascent, Thrift tried not to make his huff of indignation too obvious as he discreetly glared holes into the back of the operator's head. Instead, he switched his gaze to the columns of numbers on the side of the elevator that indicated floor levels and watched as numbers of higher increments lighted up before dimming again as the elevator passed their respective floors.
From the corner of his eye, Thrift glanced at the golden-pawed cat that sat upon the longma guard's back. Apparently, who ever owned this cat was able to afford the highest and likely the most expensive room in one of the most luxurious hotels that Thrift has ever seen—and he's seen quite a few in his life.
What itched Thrift's brain the most though was the cat's full name: Opalescence. Why did that name sound so familiar to Thrift? Where did he hear it before?
Thrift's pondering ceased when he was briefly lurched off of his hooves by the elevator's sudden stop.
"Your floor, sirs," monotoned the elevator operator with not but the subtlest of smirks as he watched Thrift's stumbling attempts to regain his footing.
"Thank you," nodded the guard as he stepped out of the elevator, with Thrift quickly following behind him before immediately stopping to stare in awe of the sight before him.
The four alicorn princesses.
Princess Celestia and Princess Luna flew high in the air, with the Princess of Love and the Princess of Friendship flying just below them. By some form of enchantment, each of the princesses's forms stayed in place as they magically floated in the air.
Thrift had to admit, whoever crafted those marble statues had to have been incredibly talented. On top of accurately crafting the princesses' facial features and flowing manes, the mason also crafted their poses in such a way so that each of their horns would always point to the center floating orb that continually dispensed water into the fountain pool below.
The owners of the hotel must have had to pay a fortune for the intricate fountain. Thrift thought that it was too bad that most ponies wouldn't be able to see it as the squared hallroom that it was placed in seemed to be only reserved for the most elite of the elite. Besides the elevator behind Thrift, there were only three doors, one on each wall, that no doubt led to the hotel's most lavish rooms.
"I'm amazed she didn't take you on your offer," a sultry voice echoed across the hallroom, "from what I remember of her, she's usually much more... generous with suitors gall enough to approach her,"
"I wouldn't say that she declined my offer," responded a deeper, smoother voice, "more so that she simply convinced me that I, in her own words, did not truly desire the entrancing diamond atop the mountain."
At the edge of the fountain's pool that laid under the levitating statues of the four princesses, two ponies conversed. One was a white-coated unicorn stallion well-dressed in a black suit with a red rose interwoven in its fabric. The other was a beautiful mare of pegasus breed. Long, black locks pooled over her head and her bright, green eyes hid mischievous allure. What was most entrancing about her though was her red coat, and how it seemed to glitter and sparkle with a light that was its own.
"Is that so?" asked the glittering mare as she leaned forward with an inquisitive smile, "Now you've got me curious, Hearth. After all, I've watched and even helped train you at the behest of your parents for years to become a proper suitor. What in Equestria did she say to you to convince you of letting a diamond like her go?"
With the most obvious of intended-to-be-subtle smirks, the stallion levitated the red rose from his suit and replied, "She said, that on the way to the diamond, I found myself entranced with a sparkling ruby much more treasurable to my heart."
The mare reared her head back in surprise at the rose that now floated in front of her, "Oh!" she whispered breathlessly, shocked. Her eyes flickered between the offered rose and the stallion before her, before she looked away with a blush on her cheeks, "Oh, you prude," she said dismissively, "vying for an older mare like me."
"A twelve year difference is hardly call for such accusations," replied the stallion coolly, the smirk still on his face, "besides, we both know that I've approached much older."
She giggled, "Yes, I suppose you are shameless like that."
It was at this point in their conversation that the two ponies finally noticed the arrival of Thrift and the longma guard who led him. As Thrift followed the guard, he took a glance toward the couple and his gaze met the mare's. At first, she seemed surprised to find somepony like Thrift here, but then a warm smile grew on her face and her gaze became knowing as she watched him pass by.
"That cat on the guard's back," whispered the stallion, "isn't that—"
"Yes," interrupted the mare casually, "It's her's. Her mystical familiar whose silver tail and golden paws can turn dust into silver and water into gold." She turned back to the stallion with a playful smirk on her face, "Why? Are you so disappointed in your failure to attain her herself that you've opted to latch onto her pet as the next best thing?"
"Maybe," replied the stallion, returning the playful smirk, "I mean if only she truly is, as you say, the next best thing. After all, what would be the risk compared to the... golden benefits."
"Well for one, if she doesn't like you, she'll swipe at you with her claws and turn your blood gold," informed the glittering mare in a sugar-sweet tone, "which is quite a curse to live with, I assure you."
The stallion frowned, though there was no truly noticeable disappointment in his expression, "Mmm, I'm going to assume that it's not the blood poisoning that would make up this curse."
"Oh, of course," she replied, turning her head away and closing her eyes in casually uncaring mock-superiority, "you'll be quite fine with golden blood. Magic is funny like that. But," she opened her alluring eyes once more, "depending on how greedy your friends and the ponies around you are, it does make the phrase 'bleeding you dry' take a much more literal meaning."
"Really?" said the stallion in mock-amazement, "Well then, you've convinced me. Generosity's familiar is just too unattainable for the likes of me."
The playful smug grin that the glittering mare wore quickly fell off in surprise when she felt the unicorn's magic pushing against her backside. Suddenly, she found herself pushed into the stallion's chest; her looking up at him, him looking down at her, their muzzles a breath apart.
Placing the rose in her mane, the stallion quietly said, "I suppose I'll just have to settle for one of her graced instead."
Having quite enough of this social dancing, the glittering mare wrapped a hoof around the stallion and brought him in for a kiss. She then pulled a hairbreadth away, faster before he could regain his wits and recuperate, and she whispered, "And I suppose I can continue teaching this spoiled brat how to be generous."
As the couple busied themselves with interlocking each other, on the other side of the intricate fountain, behind the longma guard that busied himself with unlocking the door at the end of the hallroom, Thrift Spender stared in shock at the cat upon the longma's back.
He had heard the couple's conversation.
Opalescence, the golden-pawed, silver-tailed cat that Thrift had been following around the city this whole time, was a Mare of Harmony's familiar. Generosity's familiar, to be specific. Which meant that behind that door was—
*Click* sounded off the door's lock.
Wealth Granted from Generosity
"Now," said the longma, turning his head back to eye Thrift, "when you go inside: follow me, be quiet, be courteous," sharp teeth were revealed in a devious grin, "and don't forget to breathe."
With that, he opened the door and stepped into the room, while Thrift nervously gulped once in hesitation before quickly following after.
The room was lavish, as to be expected of the hotel's best. Its floor was covered in velvet carpet, luxurious furniture placed over it like the rich mahogany coffee table in the room's center. Paintings of green, open landscapes were placed spaciously on the vacant areas of the suite's walls, and marble statues of ponies forever frozen in dramatic poses occupied the corners of the room. Opposite the door to the suite was a balcony hidden behind billowing drapes.
At the far end of the room, toward the right from the suite's entrance, three cushioned couches were placed face-forward of the burning hearth in the wall; its contained fire crackling over the entrapped wood. Centered between the hearth and the three couches that circled it, there was a small, round stand elevated a few inches above the floor. On this stand, a black-furred thestral, or a batpony as they were more commonly called, was poised upon it in a lace, yellow dress; its curtly folds draping over the mare's legs teasingly. Behind ocean-blue locks of mane, the thestral's yellow eyes widened in sudden fright at the sight of Thrift.
"Who is this?" she demanded, flustered, her leather wings splaying over her body in an attempt to cover her dress. Turning an indignant gaze toward the longma guard, she called, "Knight! There was supposed to be no pony here! I requested privacy!"
On the couch between the flustered threstral and the two stallions, a paw, like that of a wolf's, gripped the cushions and pulled up another mare who glanced at the stallions curiously. She had a pearl white coat, different colored eyes of green and red, two small antlers upon her head with a brown fedora between them, and a blue scarf wrapped around her neck.
"Calm yourself, Duchess Rhea," replied the longma as he casually trotted through the room and directed Thrift to sit in the couch on the right, "He has important business here."
After laying himself on the luxurious couch he was directed towards, which, after trudging through the city alleys, made him feel like some sort of stray dirtying up something beautiful, Thrift looked at the longma guard in surprise and couldn't help but stutter out, "I-I do?"
Having stayed quiet in a dignified pose for the entire time she rode upon one of her master's servants, Opalescence decided that this was now the time to switch her steed. The golden-pawed cat suddenly leaped from the guard's back and onto Thrift's own, who stiffened at the unexpected contact, before curling into a ball and purring softly.
The guard showed off a toothy grin after witnessing the golden-pawed cat's move, "Yes," he said, his tone smug, "you do." The guard's eyes glanced up before returning to Thrift, "And you can set the basket down now."
Distracted from the familiar that could turn blood into gold with a casual swipe of its claws now resting on his back, Thrift looked back at the guard with a startled, "What?" before realizing that the basket of assortments that the old mare from the apartment block had given to him was still floating in the air in his teal aura, "Oh! Right," he said as he brought it down to rest on the couch he sat on.
"Whether or not he has business here, this is still highly intrusive," argued Duchess Rhea impetuously, her leathery wings flaring out slightly, "Can't you make him wait outside until my dress fitting is done?"
"Apologies, Duchess Rhea, but I must follow the doctrine of my Order, which includes following the requests of my Lady," replied the longma, his tone smug, "and she has requested that I bring her familiar, and anypony with her familiar, before her at her most available time."
Yellow eyes narrowed at the longma, "And her 'most available time' includes my being here?" Duchess Rhea's calm voice had an undertone of warning in it.
Her warning went ignored by the guard, who flashed sharp teeth in his grin, "Well, she was quite vague on what that phrase specifically constituted, so I had to use my own judgement," he replied.
"Then you're a poor judge."
"Then it's a good thing that I don't work for Equestria's judiciary."
This prompted a giggle from the antlered mare. Now that she was no longer blocked by the back cushions of the couch she sat on, Thrift could see that the antlered mare, on top of her antlers and two wolf paws, also had a thicker coat of black fur around her chest area and a green, serpentine tail. Her form, while definitely equine, also appeared slimmer and curvier than what was normal for ponies.
"Just let it go, Rhea," said the antlered-mare, her tone casual, "the guard's assigned to a Mare of Harmony, so it's her problem, not yours," she grew a smirk, "besides, what are you so worried about? That ponies are going to believe this guy when he says that he was in the same room with both of Celestia's and Luna's daughters?" with a giggle, she placed the tip of her wolf paw over her mouth, "Ooh , you're right, how scandalous ."
"Keep your mind out of the gutter, Canis, it's dirty enough already," Rhea replied in a sideways glance to her cousin before focusing back on the guard, "and what business of his is so important that it needs to interrupt my dress fitting?"
"Why business with the dressmaker of course," replied the guard as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. The smugness never left his face, even as the thestral gritted her teeth enough to show off her elongated fangs, a loud hiss escaping between them.
Just as it seemed that the bat was going to bite the head off of the dragon in fury, did a voice speak up.
"Now Rhea, is that anyway for a proper lady to act? Let alone a duchess?"
And just like that, Duchess Rhea pulled herself back into a more dignified pose, her face flustered red from her actions, while the longma guard's smug grin finally dropped from his face as he stood straighter at attention. Simply put, a duchess and a knight had been completely reigned in by just a single voice; a voice that, even when mixed together with a chastising and teasing tone, still sounded very eloquent.
And Thrift knew who that eloquent voice belonged to.
Past the couches and the stand that they all gathered around, at the far end of the room, there was the balcony that looked out over the nighttime city. The glass doors that allowed one to enter upon the balcony were laid open, although Thrift was only able to notice this by the silk drapes that billowed from the open wind.
And behind these thin drapes, barely perceivable through the silk linen, stood a silhouette; a graceful silhouette of a unicorn mare who stood poised as she looked out over the balcony's view. Even obscured as she was behind the silken drapes, Thrift could tell that the mare had a more luscious mane and stood distinctively taller than most. Before and slightly above the mare, an azure glow, wrapped around what looked like a tiara, floated in front of her, magically gyrating in the air as she casually examined it; a glimmer occasionally shining over it.
Then from out between the drapes, floated the azure-wrapped tiara, revealed to be composed of silver with a yellow gemstone grafted in the middle of it. It levitated across the room, before stopping over Duchess Rhea. Slowly, the tiara began to lower onto her head, but just as it was about to rest on her crown, it suddenly lurched upwards and quickly floated into a glass display case that was situated over the hearth, which snapped shut.
"Hey !" called out Duchess Rhea, annoyance clearly evident on her face.
A giggle, "Now don't fret, dear. You'll get your chance to wear it soon enough," came the mirthful response, which was soon accompanied by soft hoofsteps.
Thrift could see the silhouette approach the billowing drapes.
An azure aura wrapped around the silk drapes, parting them.
...And Thrift's breath hitched at the sight of beauty being revealed.
Like curtains drawing back to reveal a glittering gem, the mare that was presented by the parted drapes was revealed to be even more beautiful than any gemstone yet found by civilized ponies now or ever. She was the epitome of cultured beauty; her features were elegant, her form was slim, and her natural poise seemed refined to a sophisticated degree. Her glamorous coat was a pure white, like that of a rare pearl shimmering brightly under fluorescent lighting; so brightly was her coat that she seemed to magically have this shining radiance that attracted the attention of all eyes to her.
Then there was her mane and tail. The beautiful mare's stylish coiffure draped over her form elaborately as her curving, long locks were tipped off in spiraling curls that poured over her head and down around her neck like an artistic interpretation of a dark, violet waterfall, while her spiraling tail swirled around like it had once been a grapevine that had at one time gripped an outreached branch. Both of her mane and tail enchantingly glittered as if the folds of her hair had been encrusted with minuscule shards of gemstones. Beyond that though, through some unknown magical means, the space around her mane and tail glittered fabulously just as well as her locks did.
The mare's connection to gemstones was an undoubtedly deep one as indicated by the three blue diamonds that served as her mark. But not only that, for atop her head, projecting upwards from above her azure eyes, was her horn. But this was no usual unicorn horn of bone and keratin, as instead the mare's horn appeared to be unbelievably composed entirely of crystalline material. Her horn was like that of white diamond; almost entirely transparent except for an inner snowy hue that glinted from the moonlight behind her.
Here was the Mare of Generosity; the tutelary patron of charity, selflessness, and many other aspects attributed to her for being the living embodiment of the Element of Generosity.
From the balcony, she trotted toward the quartet of ponies, the air glittering around her as if to celebrate just being near her presence. When she reached the ponies, she looked at Duchess Rhea on eye level, despite the fact that the duchess was elevated a few inches above the ground by the stand she stood on.
"Now Rhea, must you always hiss at ponies that get on your nerves?" questioned the glittering Mare of Generosity, mirthful teasing in her tone, "I swear, ten years I've been gone and when I return, I find that you're still hissing at ponies like how you were when you were just a little filly throwing tantrums."
Duchess Rhea's cheeks flustered more red than a strawberry at Generosity's words, "N-no, I did... uh, that-that is that I-I, I mean..." she stuttered out embarrassingly before quickly pointing a hoof at the longma guard, "He started it!" she shouted, and no sooner had she said those words did she immediately regret them as evident by her placing her hoof against her face, "Ugh! No—wait, that is not what I meant."
The Mare of Generosity raised a single chastising eyebrow, "I sincerely hope not."
On the couch, the antlered mare gave the Mare of Generosity a smirk, "Shifting the blame? She is clearly ready for the world of politics."
Generosity returned this smirk with a tender smile that absolutely unnerved Canis, "Are you suggesting that you are an expert on such things, Canis?" she replied sweetly.
Canis's smirk quickly fell at Generosity's words, and she rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly, "Er... yeah ."
The Mare of Generosity's azure gaze fell on the longma guard, and despite his attempt to resolutely stand straight at attention, to Thrift, the way he curled his tail between his legs made him look similar to a foal about to be chastised. Perhaps the behavior was something instinctive for the longma species, attributed to being in the presence of their Ancestral Mother.
"Now Razor," began Generosity, her words as sweet as ever and containing no malice, "I'm not deaf, so I was quite capable of hearing your... conversation with dear Rhea, and while I do appreciate that you keep my business confidential, would you please make an effort to not purposefully antagonize the Duchess."
Looking like a guilty puppy trying to put on a straight face, the longma guard nodded once, "I will do my best, Lady Rarity," he replied in as even a tone as he could manage.
"Splendid!" she rejoiced with an uplifting smile.
And that was when the Mare of Generosity turned to look at the final occupant of the room. She then gained a look of very slight surprise, for there was Thrift Spender, a simple businesspony—a restaurateur, really—wearing a dirty, ragged suit, and sitting among royalty and divine spirits in the highest suite of one the most luxurious hotels in the city. Most ponies would say that he looked out of place.
But Rarity, the Mare of Generosity, was not most ponies. She gave him a small smile and simply said, "Ah, yes. I'll be with you in a moment. Just let me first see to these duchesses."
With that, she turned her attention to the still-flustered thestral and gave her a big, yet still lady-like grin, "Now tell me darling," she said as she circled around the duchess, eyeing her like how a mason eyes a sculpture, "how is the dress? Is it not just perfectly fabulous?"
Quickly recovering from her flustered state, Duchess Rhea took a moment to look herself over in her dress, "It's... great," she replied, giving Generosity an appreciative smile, "It's very comfortable and I love the design of it."
Returning the appreciative smile, the Mare of Generosity wore an expression of serenity. Holding this calm expression, she leaned forward, her smile so knowing, and simply said in an expectant tone, "But ..."
Biting her bottom lip like she bit Generosity's bait, Duchess Rhea looked at her with an unsure expression and said, "but... yellow ?" As if to showcase her point, her leathery wings slightly splayed open to better showoff the bright yellow dress that contrasted with her black coat. "I mean, don't you have something... you know, darker ?"
"Why?" asked the Mare of Generosity in a humoring sense of way, "Do you believe that you are unsuited for bright clothing?" Rarity turned her head up and away from the duchess in a pompous manner, "Ugh !" she scoffed, melodramatically, "and here I thought that you were trying to rise above expectations. Yet here you are, wanting to be dressed in the same gloomy attire that ponies expect all thestrals to wear."
Canis chuckled, "You're not falling into the gothy batpony stereotype, are you Rhea?" she asked in a teasing tone.
"Now Canis, you surely are not one to talk," responded Rarity in a sideways glance, "A Kirin acting like a hipster? Somepony inform the Equestria Daily newspaper immediately!" she commented in a light-hearted, sardonic tone.
"Hey now," replied Canis indignantly, "I am not a—"
"Scarf and fedora," interjected Rarity pointedly.
"...hipster," finished Canis lamely, before turning away with a blushing face, her wolf paws twirling the ends of her scarf distractedly.
Smiling a small, smarmy smile at her little brush off, Rarity turned back toward Rhea, "Now Rhea, there is no need for you to wear a darker dress. The yellow one you're wearing now matches your eyes beautifully," a white, shimmering hoof raised Rhea's chin up, "which are just as beautiful, dear."
Under Rhea's yellow irises, her cheeks blushed red, "That's... that's nice of you to say," she replied, stammering, "but the yellow still contrasts with the rest of me."
"Which is a good thing," emphasized Rarity happily, "the contrast will help you stand out, which I'd say is the entire point of the coronation, besides..." a small, knowing glint appeared in Rarity's azure gaze, "contrast is in."
Duchess Rhea scrunched her eyebrows in thought, before looking back at the Mare of Generosity in confusion, "But... it isn't?"
Wearing a small, bright grin, Rarity's diamond horn lit up with magic; her horn's crystalline structure glimmering from the azure color, where then the silver tiara with the yellow gem settled onto Duchess Rhea's head to her sudden surprise, "On the day of your coronation," said Rarity smoothly, "it will be."
Yellow irises looked upwards at the tiara in surprise, and Duchess Rhea started instinctively pawing at the ground awkwardly, "Oh! Um... wow! Thank you, that's... very nice of you to say, but you know I'm not supposed to wear it before the coronation, right?"
"I won't tell if you won't," replied Rarity with a wink, before allowing her horn to light up with magic again and remove the tiara, "But I suppose you should get out of that dress. It's getting late and you'll need to wake up early if you want to catch the train to Canterlot on time. But first, do you remember your oath?"
"Of course," responded Rhea; closing her eyes, she then incited, "I, Rhea, Daughter of Luna, do swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Their Majesties of Equestria, according to law," she opened her eyes, "Not exactly the hardest oath to remember, you know? I'm more worried about the speech I'm going to give."
"Speech?" spoke up Canis questioningly, "I thought that the coronation didn't require a speech?"
"It—ugh —doesn't," grunted Rhea as she tried to delicately remove herself from the dress, "once the coronation of my peerage is finished and I'm granted my dukedom, I'll be heading toward my duchy where I'll go through an enthronement ceremony, which will end with me giving a speech to the assembled citizens of the territory."
"My, my, my , a duchy !" spoke up Rarity enthusiastically as she placed the tiara back into the glass cabinet, "I had no idea that little Rhea grew up to be such a leader. Tell me, where is this domain of yours that you'll be governing?"
"It's the Chimera Islands in the Eastern Sea," answered Rhea, finally slipping herself wholly out of her dress, "and don't worry, despite the name only one of the islands actually has a population of chimera on it. Which is mostly unsettled anyways."
Turning away from the small glass cabinet, Rarity levitated the yellow dress from off of the ground, "I would be more worried about the distance, darling," she informed in a distracted manner as she floated out a mannequin from another room to wrap the dress around, "the Chimera Islands are quite a ways away from Canterlot. It will make time spent with your family sparse."
Finally stepping off of the stand she had stood on for so long, Duchess Rhea set her eyes on the cackling fire of the burning hearth, "It's not as bad you think," she reassured, "I'm required to travel to Canterlot for a whole month once every year to discuss policy, and mother can always visit me in my dreams, so it's not like I'll never see them again."
The hearth's fire let out a particularly loud snap! as one of the logs crumbled.
"...I suppose that is true," responded Rarity neutrally, before turning to Canis with a smile, "and what about you, Canis? Are there any duchies in your future?"
Casually leaning against the couch looking bored, Canis let out a snort, "Yeah, no thanks. When I come of age, I'll just stick to gaining a seat in the House of Nobility as my right of dukedom. I saw the required test my mom gave Rhea when she was requesting sovereignty over the Chimera Islands, and I'd rather not have to memorize the name and location of every single plant, animal, and settlement in the territory on top of learning every significant pony, event, and any other little detail in the territory's history."
Rhea let out a painful groan not too dissimilar to a veteran moaning about old battle wounds, "Ugh ! Don't forget about the three required essays," she moaned miserably, "one about the territory's current economic situation, another for its cultural traditions and attitudes, and finally one about my intentions and plans for the territory as its ruler. Each of which had to be about ten pages long."
"Ah, yes," said Rarity fondly, a faraway look in her eyes, "The Official Test of Requirement for the Royal Governance of Equestrian Territories, written and enacted by Princess Twilight Sparkle," she stated naturally before allowing a hint of humor into her tone, "and approved by Princess Celestia and Princess Luna after extensive editing—or as Rainbow Dash and Applejack called it: dumbing down —of the original test by the Council of Harmony."
Rhea stared up at Rarity, her jaw hanging slack, "Are... are you telling me that the test that I got was the dumbed down version?!" she asked, horror-stricken.
"We also lowered the percentage standard required for approval. It used to be ninety-eight percent; we lowered it to just eighty," replied Rarity casually before giving Rhea an eyes-closed, innocent smile, "You're welcome for that, by the way," she said sweetly.
"...Mother's Mane," Rhea muttered under her breath, "I was just four points away..."
"Anyways," continued Rarity, "the test has proven to be an excellent way of preventing the less... capable side of the nobility from abusing such power, as plenty of territories have done well by themselves without the added oversight of a noble lord," Rarity gave Rhea an inquisitive look, "which does want me to raise the question of why you believe that you should lay claim over these islands."
"It's because I can help," Rhea replied, "I love the Chimera Islands, have so since mom took me there for a family vacation. The islands are beautiful, the ponies there are welcoming, and they've got this awesome cave system that—um," she looks away, her face blushing in embarrassment, "...well, anyways the islands are also poor and suffering from some local shipping problems. As a duchess and the daughter of a princess I can transfer some of the royal funds to the local economy, not to mention promote local trade and—"
"Alright, alright, that's quite enough, dear," interrupted Rarity with a smile, "I can clearly see that you've got your heart in the right place, that's in no doubt," trotting past Rhea, Rarity gestured for her to follow, "but like I said before, it's getting late and you're going to need to look your best at your coronation, so go and get some well-deserved beauty sleep."
"Right, yes, have to sleep," said Rhea as she followed Rarity to the suite's door, "just... thank you so much for the dress, the tiara, and everything else on such short notice. You didn't have to do that, everything was already set up for the coronation, and you only just came back."
Opening the door for the duchess, Rarity let out a small laugh, "That's one way to put it," raising her hoof, she made an exaggerated motion of brushing her shimmering coat, "Why, I don't think I even had the time to brush off any remaining dust from that statuette replica of me before I heard of your coronation and decided that you simply must have the finest attire for the occasion. Speaking of which..." Rarity turned her head toward the longma guard, "Razor, did that art exhibit receive those donations I sent them?"
The maroon-scaled guard was not facing her, but instead directing his attention toward Thrift, who was currently brushing Opalescence's fur. "You're not doing it right," said the guard, "Your brushstrokes need to be longer and slower."
Thrift removed the hairbrush from the golden-pawed cat's fur and gave the guard an annoyed look, "Seriously ?" he asked incredulously, accentuating his point by pointing the brush at the longma's lack of a mane, "I mean, seriously ?"
On the couch next to them, Duchess Canis giggled into her paws.
The guard's answer to that was to give a roll of his draconic eyes before turning his attention to the Mare of Generosity and nodding once, "They did indeed, Lady Rarity, and they kept insisting that your arrival there was more than enough of a contribution, despite the loss of one of their marble statues."
"Yes, I suppose my dramatic return brought the exhibit plenty of attention," commented Rarity with a small laugh, "still, I wouldn't feel right if I didn't make an effort to compensate them for the loss of such exquisite art," she made a practically pompous motion of bobbing her glittering mane back before focusing back on Rhea, "and do not worry at all, darling, I'll make sure that your dress and tiara make it to Canterlot on time."
"What about you?" asked Rhea hopefully, "Will I see you at my coronation?"
Rarity paused and looked slightly away from the duchess, her beautiful face hidden behind a violet, glittering waterfall of mane, "...I have a summit to attend to at Twilight's castle with the rest of the girls," she finally replied regrettably, "it's an old tradition of ours where we all meet together in the Hall of Harmony after we... well, return."
"...Oh," muttered Rhea emptily, a frown forming on her muzzle.
A white, shimmering hoof tenderly raised the thestral's chin up and quickly cast off the frown, "Which I'm sure will be rescheduled when the rest of the girls are informed of your coronation," continued Rarity with a reassuring smile.
Duchess Rhea returned the smile, "Thank you, Rarity, you're too generous."
The Mare of Generosity let out soft chuckles, "Darling, I don't know the meaning of that phrase."
After saying their goodbyes, Rarity gently closed the door and returned back to the circle of furniture. She raised an eyebrow at the sight of the kirin still casually relaxing on the couch; a bottle of red liquor in her wolf paws, which most likely popped out from her personal pocket of space that were granted to all kirin by their Ancestral Father.
"Canis, you should follow your cousin's lead and get some rest," spoke Rarity casually as she trotted past the kirin, "you too will be in attendance of her coronation and I'm sure she wouldn't want you snoring through it."
Canis waved her off, "Don't worry, I'm a natural early-riser," she replied with a smirk, "besides, I'll be out of your mane soon enough. I just need to give you this," with that, she floated off of the couch with nary the aid of any wings and presented the bottle of wine to the Mare of Generosity, who bore a look of intrigue on her features as she grasped the bottle in her azure aura. Turning toward the floating kirin to express her befuddlement, she was instead surprised to find the young duchess presenting to her a sealed envelope that had popped into her paws from thin air.
When she wrapped the envelope into her aura, she took notice of the purple emblem of a dragon outline sealed onto the envelope's cover and allowed a cool smile to grow on her face.
"Why that big charmer," she acclaimed pleasantly, more to herself than to anypony in the room, before focusing back onto Canis with a quirky, knowing smile, "he got you to deliver this for me, didn't he?"
"Yeah," nodded Canis, "he woke up a little before me and Rhea went on this little excursion of ours and told me to hold onto that stuff for somepony important. Considering he only wakes up from that ten-year nap of his when all of you return, we assumed that it was for you. Not sure how he would know that you would be in this city in particular though."
"Oh, he has his ways," commented Rarity as she unsealed the envelope and took out the contained slip of paper, "let's just say that deep dreams take dragons far." The letter before her, her azure eyes shifted from side-to-side downwards as she read its contents, cooing out a heartwarming, "Aww ," as she finished it.
"Ugh ," groaned out Canis, "could you not do that whole talking vaguely and speaking in riddles thing that all you immortal, divine beings do? I've had to live my entire life surrounded by ponies that did that and quite frankly it's getting far too familiar for my tastes."
Glazing her eyes over Canis, Rarity only looked amused, "Really? Well, if my vague meanings are what typecast me as being simply divine ," she released a short giggle at her pun, "then I see no reason to stop, especially when you've grown so used to them."
Canis rolled her red and green eyes exasperatedly, "Whatever," she replied dismissively before floating over to Rarity's shoulder with a smirk, "so what does the letter say?"
In the Mare of Generosity's magical aura, the letter folded closed before Canis had a chance to read it, "Please, Canis, it's rude to peek over one's shoulder like so. But if you simply must know, it is one of his lovely haikus," she informed.
"A haiku? I didn't know the big guy was so literary minded," commented the floating kirin.
"He was raised by Princess Twilight and lived most of his early life in a library, so yes, he is quite well-versed in the written word," replied Rarity, letting a mirthful smile grow on her muzzle, "which, of course, he's been using to woo me for centuries upon centuries to profound effect. Now, he's so prideful of his literary and lingual skills that I swear he takes my many suitors aside just to give them pointers on how to," with a clearing of the throat, she raised a foreleg up and held her head high in a dignified pose before continuing in an overly aristocratic tone, "court a cherished diamond like me properly ."
"...Wow ," exclaimed Canis, "his pampering must get pretty overbearing sometimes."
With the delivered bottle of wine in her magical grasp, the Mare of Generosity effortlessly uncorked it and brought it under her nose to better take in its delightful aroma, "...Hmm?" she responded distractedly with a sideways glance to Canis, "Ah, right. Overbearing, yes. Quite overbearing indeed..." she uttered noncommittally as she focused back on the opened bottle.
Which she then tilted over to allow the red liquor to pour out of it.
"Whoa! What are you doing?" asked a startled Canis, "You're going to make a mess on the floor."
But the red wine did no such thing as it never had the chance to even reach the suite's velvet floor. Instead it pooled in the middle of the air, captured as it was by the Mare of Generosity's azure aura. After awhile, Rarity receded the now half-filled bottle and brought up the collected sloshing mass of red liquid before her.
"Have some faith, Canis. I would never purposefully dirty up such a lavish room like this one," responded Rarity unpretentiously. Keeping her eyes focused on the floating liquid, she continued, "I'm only crafting a gift."
As the Mare of Generosity finished uttering those words did a glowing energy of white light traverse upwards and throughout her diamond horn, causing its crystalline material to glimmer brightly throughout the room. This arcane energy, radiating from dense power, wrapped around the captured liquor and enclosed it, where it then began to compress inward, forcing the liquid to condense in of itself. This went on for a few brief moments, before finally the white arcane power shrouded the red liquid entirely from sight.
Then, with a sudden flash, the glowing energy disappeared.
And in the Mare of Generosity's azure aura was a sparkling red ruby the size of a foal's hoof.
"There we are," affirmed Rarity, holding up the gem at eye level to give a casual examination, "I'm sure he'll love the taste of this sweetie. Marvelous work, don't you think?" she turned toward the trio of ponies, who each stared wide-eyed in silent awe at the unbelievable transmogrifying that had happened before them.
"Mmm, I shall take that as a 'yes,'" Rarity noted with a distinctively amused smile.
Canis floated up to Rarity, her eyes on the ruby, "May I?" she asked. At Rarity's nod, she took the newly-made ruby into her wolf paws, "Wow," she uttered, amazed as she felt up the gemstone, "and I thought my father could do some crazy stuff with his magic."
"Oh pshaw , Canis. Don't act so amazed," playfully waved off Rarity in a humble tone of only the most barest sense, "after all, all I did was just turn wine into crystal."
"The Mare of Generosity, ladies and gentlecolts," deadpanned Canis with a smirk, "truly a paragon of humility." Her lighthearted jab aside, Canis let the ruby return to Rarity's azure aura, "So..." she began semi-smoothly, "You and the Guardian, huh?"
Placing both the wine bottle and the wine ruby over onto the coffee table, Rarity glanced over to Canis with an eyebrow meticulously raised, "Yes, but it's not just 'him and I,' for either of us."
"Yes, yes, I'm aware of how it is with you spirits and gods. I mean, just look at my parents," accentuated Canis with a laugh, "they're not exactly the Love Princess and Sentinel equivalent of Canterlot that's for sure," she admitted with a chuckle, "that said, considering this whole 'romantic gift exchange' you've got going, you guys seem to hold a special place in each other's heart."
"Of course we do, dear, all of our lovers hold a special place in our hearts," casting her gaze away from the kirin, Rarity's smile was small and genuine, "though some do hold a bigger place than others," she said, before focusing back on Canis, "But anyways, this 'romantic gift exchange,' as you so eloquently put it, is actually a centuries-old tradition we share between us when I return with the rest of the girls."
"When you return, huh? So that's what? Once every sixty years?" asked Canis.
"Seventy, darling."
"Ah, right. The ten years in the afterlife thing," said Canis, before looking back at Rarity more attentively, "Speaking of which, I've been meaning to ask you about that. Why are you and the rest of the Mares of Harmony only around for some sixty years? Why not a more complete lifespan?"
"Because our time here is taken from the years of our original lives," answered Rarity casually.
"Wait," said Canis as she put her paws up in front of her, her expression alarmed, "you mean you guys were only alive for sixty years?"
"Hmm? Oh! Oh heavens no," quickly rectified Rarity, "we all reached the ripe old age of ninety before we passed on."
Canis stared blankly at Rarity. She opened her mouth, closed it, then opened it again, "Okay, you're going to have to help me with the math on that one."
Obliging, Rarity pointed a shimmering hoof upwards, "Ten years spent in Paradise," she pointed the hoof to the floor, "sixty years spent here," laying her hoof down, she bobbed her glittering mane behind her and struck a dramatic pose that showed off her form, "and twenty years spent on the body," she ended with a light chuckle, "because as much as we nostalgically look back on our foalhood, we would rather not have to go through puberty once again, let alone multiple times."
Canis let out a laugh, "As somepony who just finished that phase in her life, I can wholeheartedly say that I understand where you're coming from." Settling down from her laugh, Canis stretched out her limbs and let out a yawn, "Anyways, it's getting late, so I'll head to my own suite now and get some sleep."
"It was nice seeing you again, Canis" spoke Rarity who subtly gestured toward the longma guard to open the door for the kirin duchess, "you've grown into a fine, beautiful mare. And despite the hipster comment, I do think that your attire is quite fashionable."
Giving the guard a slight nod of thanks as she passed the door frame, Canis took a moment to paw at the scarf around her neck, "I'm not really wearing this for looks, but... thank you," she replied, a small blush adorning her cheeks, "See ya at the coronation."
"I will see you then," replied back Rarity, a charitable smile on her. With that said, the longma guard closed the door behind the duchess and Rarity trotted back to the circle of furniture, setting her eyes on the only other unicorn within the suite.
Wealth Granted from Generosity
Thrift Spender met the Mare of Generosity's gaze. For most of his time in the suite, he had spent it silent on the velvet couch, wary of speaking out in a room full of royalty and divinity. Like a dirty stain on the very couch he sat on, Thrift had felt that he looked out of place in his ragged suit and with his messy mane. So he opted to stay quiet, like a mouse; a silent observer hoping to stay unnoticed by the more important ponies.
But now the Mare of Generosity looked upon him, his presence noted and acknowledged by one of the moral icons of Equestrian society. She examined him, analyzed him, and under her gaze Thrift's ragged form practically wilted in the presence of her magnificence.
Finally, with a small shake of her head and a breath of laughter, she spoke.
"Alright Opalescence, that is quite enough," she said with a hint of humor in her tone, "I believe you've frightened the poor dear enough for the night."
Golden paws landed on the velvet carpet and Thrift no longer felt the light weight upon his back as the familiar's presence left him. The cat ambled across the room leisurely, rubbing its back against the Mare of Generosity's legs affectionately as it passed by, before disappearing into another of the suite's rooms.
"I must apologize for making you sit idle for so long, but you know how it is with royalty," spoke the Mare of Generosity to Thrift with a pleasant smile, "anyways, I believe introductions are in order. I'm Rarity, Lady Rarity if you so please," she insisted, "and you are?"
He was being addressed.
Thrift had been having quite the arduous night, more so than he ever thought he would. He had assumed that, at worst, he was in for another long night of sifting through account reports and other such paperwork in his effort to keep his business running.
But that was before he had made the mistake of stepping out his front door, or back alley exit as the case may more accurately be.
What had started out as a simple removal of garbage from his establishment had soon spiraled out of control into an uncomfortable journey through the city's urban environment. From walking Sunflower through the city streets to her sister's home, to being led by the nose by the Mare of Generosity familiar through the dirty alleys and even dirtier apartment blocks where a crazy old mare had convinced him to carry a basket of shampoo and such everywhere he went, until finally having a smug, pointy-toothed guard guide him through the clean and extravagant hallways of the lavish hotel where his alley-endured attire made him feel about as welcome as a stain on the velvet carpets that he had walked upon.
But it wasn't just the journey that had contributed to such an arduous night, as his arrival and stay in this very suite had also provided such sources of stress. Having a familiar lie on his back, whose claws could so casually curse his blood gold, definitely placed uneasiness on his mind. And being in the presence of two members of royalty, whose nobility was of the fact that they had been born from the loins of Equestria's ruling goddesses, would have already been an awkward experience, but to add a living, divine spirit that was the Mare of Generosity into the mix just pushed the feelings of being out of place to higher levels.
And now, after everything that this night had thrown at him, here was the Mare of Generosity, addressing him like he was somepony important.
It was enough to render a common pony dumbstruck.
Sitting up straight, Thrift quickly cleared his throat, and gave the Mare of Generosity a polite smile, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Rarity," he greeted her with a courteous bow of his head, "I'm Thrift Spender, and I can assure you that there is no need to apologize, for however much time spent with a lovely lady such as yourself is always well worth whatever idleness one would have to endure."
Luckily for Thrift, he was not so common a pony as most would believe.
But if his sudden charm mixed with his ragged appearance was intended to surprise anypony, it was not to be with Rarity, whose small smile and knowing eyes only expressed pleasant amusement at his words, "Is that so?" she asked, before turning her head away, a hoof placed on her cheek in feigned hurt, "Well then, I'm sorry to inform you that if your words were intent on cheering me up, then they have failed to do so, for now I feel even more distraught than previous for allowing such a charming gentlestallion like yourself wait so long to be addressed."
With a smile, Thrift put a hoof up in mock defense, "Now, now, none of that," assured Thrift soothingly, "I'm nopony to be distraught over; just a simple restaurateur making his way in the world," he claimed sincerely.
"Just a simple restaurateur?" repeated Rarity in amused disbelief, "please, Mr. Spender, I admire your humility but there is no need for you to use it as a veil. My decade-long reprieve not withstanding, I am still a pony that prides herself on knowing who's who in Equestria. Tell me, is your father, Greenback, not still the Chancellor of Their Majesty's Treasury?"
Hesitating for but a moment, Thrift quickly nodded "Yes, he still is," he said calmly, "though I don't see how that is of any importance. The position is not hereditary in any fashion, so I'm still only left with the nomenclature of just a simple restaurateur," he sat up a little straighter, "not that I see anything wrong with that, of course."
"Ah, so you're another proud, independent young pony striking out on his own," commented Rarity; pure, suave amusement in her tone, "Well, I'm sure somepony as well-educated as you has built themselves quite the establishment."
"But of course," replied Thrift as he wore a smug grin upon his face that would make the longma guard seem humble, before donning a look of intrigued curiosity, "speaking of which, I was informed that you had business with me. May I ask what it is?"
The Mare of Generosity giggled lightly, "Oh it's nothing so formal, just a compensation of your services, really."
At her proclamation, Thrift stumbled in his social competence and looked at her in confusion, "My... services?"
The Mare of Generosity's crystalline horn glowed with azure power and a glass bottle of purple liquid floated out of the basket of assortments that were laid next to Thrift on the couch. Bringing the bottle up to her face, the Mare of Generosity wore a small smile on her face as her eyes looked far beyond what was contained in the bottle.
"Sublime's specially-brewed shampoo; Opalescence's favorite," spoke Rarity quietly, before turning to the longma guard, "Razor, remind me in the morning to pay her a visit. It's been ten years since I last spent time with that daughter of mine and I simply must do so before I leave this city."
Thrift Spender nearly chocked on air, "Daughter?!" he thought, shocked.
"Of course, Lady Rarity," nodded the guard, "I shall inform the hotel staff to provide a private chariot at the ready."
"Splendid," smiled Rarity; returning her gaze over the form of Thrift, she provided a gentle smile, "Thank you for delivering this. Opalescence only tolerates the finest of grooming products bar none." Casting her eyes to the side, over toward the dancing flames of the hearth fire, the Mare of Generosity's horn glowed a burning, white light and soon flashes of such magic popped and snapped around the crackling tips of the fiery flames. After awhile, her horn returned to its usual magnificence, while three orange-reddish crystals of warped shape exited the hearth in her azure aura.
"Here," said Rarity, presenting the fiery-like crystals to Thrift, "as compensation for taking so much time out of your day to deliver these to me."
Enveloping the crystals into his own teal aura, Thrift Spender brought them closer to look upon. Like the flames that they had been crystallized from, the orange-reddish gems were shaped as such and emanated a tender heat in his magical grasp that indicated them arcane in some nature. If Thrift remembered correctly, he recalled that these crystals of fire were recognized as rare and extraordinarily valuable in any market, as most deemed them too useful in particular enchantments to so easily part with.
And here were three, being so easily parted to him.
Thrift Spender stared in awe at the three blazed crystals held in his teal grip, completely taken aback at being presented items of such value. Surprised, amazed, enchanted; Thrift felt all of these things, but most of all: he felt confused.
"I... I can't accept these," spoke Thrift, his formal tongue seemingly forgotten. He looked directly at the glittering-maned mare before him, who stood with an expression of calm serenity even as he looked upon her with confusion in his eyes, "I mean, why am I being given something so valuable for just delivering shampoo of all things?"
Tilting her head back ever-so-slightly while a margin of amusement was etched on her face, Rarity brought up a hoof to her lips to halfheartedly stifle her giggles, "I'm sorry," she apologized between her mirthful giggling, "it's just that... you seem to be having trouble fully grasping the concept of what being generous entails."
As the Mare of Generosity settled down her giggles, Thrift quickly realized his folly and offered an awkward, broken smile, "Right, right, what am I saying?" depositing the crystals into a pocket of his coat, Thrift missed Rarity's small frown as he quickly got off of the couch and lowered himself in a courteous bow before the Mare of Generosity, "anyways, I believe I've made a fool of myself before you enough for the night, so if that's all of the business that you require to discuss with me, then I shall remove myself from your presence and quickly see myself out."
Turning on his hooves, Thrift trotted toward the suite's exit, intent on his leaving. As exciting as this night had become and as honored as he was to be in the Mare of Generosity's presence, Thrift still couldn't help but feel uncomfortable and out-of-place in such reputable company, and wished for nothing more than to return back to his work. But whatever plans that Thrift had for his leaving were evaporated when the longma guard suddenly placed himself before the door and studiously barred Thrift from the suite's exit.
"Actually," spoke Rarity, causing Thrift's ears to swivel back around as the Mare of Generosity's alluring voice rubbed up against the back of his neck, "now that I think on it, there is something else that I'd wish to discuss with you. Could I perhaps trouble you to join me on the balcony? I can assure you that the view is quite spectacular and, at the very least, worth the glance."
Thrift turned his head back, only to find the Mare of Generosity's swirling tail quickly receding behind the silk linen of the billowing drapes as she stepped out onto the suite's balcony.
Returning forward, Thrift found the longma guard still resolutely standing in front of the door, all remaining smugness of his personality gone from his face as he stoically guarded the exit.
Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, Thrift turned himself around once more and followed after the Mare of Generosity, letting the balcony drapes dance around him in the wind as he passed them by. Once past these drapes, with his hooves outside on the balcony floor and his messy, silver mane blowing wildly in the high wind, Thrift hesitated in mid-trot at the sight before him.
Two sparkling oceans of lights spanned out as far as his eyes could see, with Luna's starry sea swirling about above and the city's building-covered hills of glittering lights rising upwards below. Situated high up on the balcony of one of the city's sky-reaching towers, where he almost seemed to be centered between the two dazzling oceans, Thrift felt akin to being in a jewel-encrusted cave of enormous breadth.
But as spectacular as the view of the nighttime cityscape was, it was, of course, eclipsed by the sight of the Mare of Generosity, whose glimmering form stood more beautifully than any jewel held by the city.
Standing near the stone railing as she looked out over the city of lights, Rarity bobbed her glittering mane over her shoulder to cast her eyes on Thrift. Offering him a pleasant smile, she spoke, "Quite a view, don't you agree?"
"...Quite," agreed Thrift, absentmindedly nodding as he stared starstruck at the sight, "quite a view indeed."
"Mmm, yes," murmured Rarity, her pleasant smile never leaving her face even as her eyes gained a mischievous tint to them, "so are you to join me by the railing, or are you going to just continue standing there, glamouring at the sight of my finely-shaped backside in the moonlight?"
Her mentioning of her posterior immediately led Thrift's eyes toward her indeed very finely-shaped rump, which caused him to forcibly turn his head away so as to better prevent his face from blushing more so than it already currently was.
"Er, right. Sorry," apologized Thrift, his olive face crimson as he moved closer to the railing next to the Mare of Generosity, who giggled at his embarrassment. At this time, an uncomfortable silence reigned between the two as they looked out across the beautiful city—well, it was uncomfortable for Thrift, who refused to say a word until his blush died down; Rarity on the other hoof seemed to not be bothered by the silence, as evidenced by her serene smile as she looked off into the distance, and was simply quiet for reasons not obvious to Thrift.
"So tell me," she finally spoke, "what was it that you did before you encountered Opal?"
Thrift turned to her, his blush gone from his face, replaced by confusion, "Pardon?"
The Mare of Generosity faced Thrift, her smile all too knowing as she met his gaze, "It's not just shampoo that my familiar is stingy with, you know," she informed him, "she's also very picky about who she let's near her. You see, she only allows ponies she sees as generous approach her. It's why I gave you such valuable gems; a generous gift for such a generous pony," she showed off a grin, "so I'm curious. What was it that she saw of you that she deemed generous?"
Thrift looked down, the lights of the city being reflected in his eyes as he stood silent in contemplation, "Well, um... I helped this lost mare find her way through the city."
Rarity rolled her eyes, "And I nearly crashed the economy once," she replied disparagingly. Raising a hoof, she lightly bopped Thrift on the nose with a smile, "Details , my dear Thrift Spender, details . No good story comes without them. Tell me, who was this mare and how did you come to help her?"
Rubbing his nose at Lady Rarity's bop, Thrift idly wondered where this was all going, but nevertheless conceded her request, "Her name was Sunflower, and I was removing garbage from my restaurant's kitchen when she came up to me in the alleyway, asking for directions to her home."
The Mare of Generosity raised a questioning eyebrow, "She was asking directions to her home?"
Thrift nodded, "Yes—well, to be fair, I believe it was her sister's home, and that she was either visiting or moving in," looking away, down at the city lights, Thrift smiled a small smile as he let out a breath of a chuckle, "that said, new to the city or not, she was apparently somepony that could get lost quite easily, because when I started giving her some simple directions she looked more confused than any pony should ever rightly be. I actually ended up walking her there."
With such pleasant amusement written all over her finely face, the Mare of Generosity leaned forward and said, "How generous of you."
Thrift looked away, "Well, truth be told, I only did that because I had work to get back to and thought that leading her there would be much quicker than taking the time to explain to her the directions."
"Oh, now don't be so cynical," chastised Rarity, "closing the door on her face would have been much quicker," she smiled so knowingly, "what you did was generous."
"Well, if you say so then it must be true," he relented, a smile on his face, "I mean, who am I to argue with the Mare of Generosity?"
Placing a shimmering hoof on her chest in a self-directing manner, the Mare of Generosity spoke in an overly self-assured tone, "I'm so glad that you're competent enough to refer to experts on such matters," she ended in a giggle, "but don't stop now. Tell me, does the dashing stallion get a kiss from this damsel-in-distress as a reward for her rescue at the end of this story?"
Thrift opened his mouth to answer before pausing. He then looked away, a red blush tinting his cheeks.
Rarity raised her hoof over her mouth and gasped in dramatic shock, "He does !" she exclaimed joyously, before grinning expectantly, "Ooh, now you simply must tell me everything."
Thrift was quiet for a moment, rubbing the back of his silvery mane embarrassingly, "Well, when I took her to Cobblestone street—where her house was located—we met her sister, Iridescence, who I think was one of Loyalty's graced," Thrift turned toward Rarity, "do you know her?"
Azure irises lifted up skyward in thought as Rarity answered, "I believe Rainbow mentioned her to me once," she said offhoofedly, "something about trust issues." Looking back at Thrift, Rarity shrugged, "But no, I don't personally know her."
"Well, it's not really important," commented Thrift, looking back out over the horizon, "anyways, she thanked me profusely for bringing Sunflower to her. She invited me into their home, offered me to join them for dinner, and she even said that Sunflower could help me with my work," Thrift chuckled, "apparently the mare with no sense of direction was a mathematician. But anyways, after I politely turned down their offers, Sunflower gave me a kiss on the cheek as I was leaving them."
When he looked back at her, he was a little taken aback at the look Rarity was giving him. He was expecting her to be amused in some fashion, instead her head was tilted at an angle as she looked at him, her face conservatively curious, "Hmm..." she murmured quietly, before slowly trotting around Thrift, her azure eyes examining him up and down as she circled him.
Confused, and feeling uncomfortably exposed under the scrutinizing, Thrift could not help but voice out his question, "Uh, Lady Rarity, what exactly is it that you are doing?"
Due to their position near the balcony's edge, Rarity did not fully commit to circling around Thrift entirely, instead only stopping when she reached opposite from where she had started. "My eyes may not be as piercing as Applejack's," she spoke as her azure irises traveled across his well-worn suit, "or as absorbing as Fluttershy's," she flicked her gaze upwards to meet Thrift's teal eyes, "but they're still very good eyes, especially when it comes to finding the nuances in ponies," a gentle smile, "and I believe I've found your problem."
Befuddled at her words, Thrift Spender could only scrunch his eyebrows downward in confusion and ask, "My... problem?"
The Mare of Generosity stood before him on that high balcony, the wind in her violet mane as its glittering essence intermingled with the starry backdrop beautifully. She looked at him with a sympathetic expression, her small smile so reassuring and her azure stare holding such pity.
"Thrift," she finally spoke quietly, her tone genuine, "you need to learn to accept others' generosity."
Thrift blinked once as he stared at the Mare of Generosity blankly, now even more confused than previously, "What? What are you talking about?" he asked, legitimately lost to her meaning.
"Those two mares," elaborated Rarity, "they wanted to thank you for your help. They invited you to join them for dinner, and even offered to help you with your work. Why did you turn them down?"
"Because I had work to get back to," reasoned Thrift, "and that work involved my restaurant's financial information. I can't just trust ponies I don't know to look over that stuff."
"Really?" said Rarity as she raised a disbelieving eyebrow, "forgive me if this changed in the ten years I've been gone, but aren't our graced looked on highly in Equestria as morally, upstanding ponies?" she asked pointedly, before fixing Thrift a stare; her azure irises washing over him like a bucket of icy cold water, "Or are you implying that my dear friend, Rainbow Dash, would be so callous as to grace a pony who has such nefarious intent?"
Thrift hesitated, a shiver running down his spine at Generosity's words; cold as her stare, "Alright, I see your point," he admitted, "I may have been a bit too overcautious with them. That said, I don't see how this one instance labels me as somepony with some deep problem?"
She was quiet, but then, "Your suit," she verbally pointed.
"My suit?" Thrift glanced down at his attire, at the well-worn clothing ragged with a few small tears here and there.
"Yes," she nodded sagely, "after all, I'd assumed that a restaurateur such as yourself would be able to afford a better suit than that one."
Removing his gaze from his attire, Thrift looked back up at the Mare of Generosity, a glare on his features, "Is that a slander against my business?" he asked, his tone defensive, "I'll have you know that my restaurant does quite well on its own merit. The state of my attire is only due to some unforeseen complications in my establishment's construction that I had no control over. I have to pay the construction company I owe in increments every week, and to keep my restaurant at its finest most of the owed money is taken from a cut of my income," with a huff, Thrift turned his head away from the divine mare in indignation, "I have to take the money from somewhere to pay it off and it's certainly not going to be from the checks of my employees. I thought you would understand that more than any other pony."
As Thrift looked away in his indignant huff, as the deadened silenced between the two increased, he slowly realized that he probably shouldn't have acted so disdainfully toward the powerful, divine spirit of Harmony that could probably get away with throwing him off of the balcony.
Turned away as he was and fearing the no-doubt encroaching retribution, he was wholly unprepared for the sudden rubbing sensation he felt against his neck. With a blush, he was surprised to find the Mare of Generosity nuzzling him in an appreciative and almost proudly manner.
When she pulled back she had a tender smile on her face, "I do understand, Thrift. And I'm also quite proud to see such a noble act in a pony," her smile disappeared, replaced by a frown and a stern expression, "but that only proves my point. Because do you honestly think for one second that I would believe that your father, who I've personally known much longer than you've been alive, wouldn't offer to assist his own son with a financial issue such as this?"
"I..." Thrift stammered, his mouth was open, but no words came out. His eyes stared straight ahead, distant as he struggled to think of what to say, "I... I don't want to impose on them," he finally said weakly.
The Mare of Generosity stood before him, her stern expression softening as she saw his internal struggle. "Thrift," she spoke soothingly, "you come from a rich family—a loving family who'd be happy to help you if you let them," she slowly shook her head, "there's no reason for you to put yourself through poverty like this."
Thrift Spender was quiet, his teal irises sifting in movement as they followed distant, invisible thoughts. His mouth firmed into a frown and his face scrunched inward as his thoughts concentrated.
Then slowly, before the Mare of Generosity, he plopped his rump down on the floor; his eyes downcast, still as they bore holes in the balcony floor under Generosity's hooves.
"You're right," admitted Thrift, not in a whimper of overtly depressed admittance, but in a quiet, withdrawn tone of disturbed realization. Angling his head to rest on the balcony's stone railing, Thrift cast his gaze out across the night horizon with the city lights and the stars glistening in his eyes, "You're right," he said again, "Thinking back on it now, I always told him that I didn't need his money, said that my problem wasn't as big as he was making it out to be. I don't think he ever believed my excuses. Why did I?"
Way up at the top of the luxurious hotel, the high wind blew noisily through Thrift's silver mane.
"In my experience, it's either because a pony is too prideful to accept the help or because they don't think they deserve it."
Thrift glanced over toward the Mare of Generosity, who's tender smile and gentle eyes looked at him with a beautiful mix of empathy and encouragement.
"Now you can be quite the pompous pony and be pretty prideful when it comes to your establishment," she said, bright cheer in her tone that quickly mellowed quiet as she continued, "but I don't believe that pride is your problem."
Thrift didn't say anything. Silent, he just returned his gaze to the starry horizon, his eyes far off in the distance even as they searched inward.
Finally, he spoke.
"I come from a rich family," he said, "so of course I was a spoiled brat," he glanced over to the Mare of Generosity, "I grew out of it of course. I mean, I didn't have this big revelation where I realized how wrong my behavior was, I just... grew up, you know?" at her nod, he looked back into the distance, "When I look back on my colthood, when I look back at all those times I spent father's money on extravagant items without a second thought or how I acted like a pompous foal to everypony I met, I can't help but cringe. I really wanted to distance myself as far as I possibly could from that pony. I stopped spending my father's money, and I always made sure that I didn't impose on or become a burden to anypony," Thrift let out a deep sigh, "Maybe I took to that too excessively? Maybe that behavior led to me having trouble accepting gifts or any sort of help?"
"Perhaps," spoke the Mare of Generosity smoothly as Thrift's ears swiveled in her direction without his looking, "but whatever the reason may be, the important lesson that you must take away from this is just how wealthy you can be if you accept the generosity of others."
Thrift snorted, "I suppose that's true, but you do know that I'm not so shallow as to only be interested in attaining large sums of money, right?"
She didn't respond.
Confused at her silence, Thrift turned his body around to fully face her, and his bottom lip hanged open as he stared at her in awe.
Under the light of Luna's moon, Generosity's coat shimmered with an exuberant fluorescence and her crystalline horn sprayed the luminescent light in a dazzling array of brilliant gleams, all the while the radiant sparkle of her violet, glittering mane reached out and added to the backdrop of stars with its own splendor. It was as if even her own body could not help but generously spread beauty wherever she stood.
Generosity Herself looked at Thrift Spender, her elegant features so serene and her smile so amused as she leaned forward, her lovely face just inches from Thrift's.
"Thrift," she said, her voice so sooth and mirthfully knowing, "I wasn't talking about money ."
So close to her, Thrift couldn't help but gulp before asking in a stutter, "Wh-what do you mean then?"
Azure irises flicked to the left, and Thrift immediately followed them in their direction toward the suite's billowing-draped entrance to find a collection of scissors, combs, coils of measuring tape, and various pieces of colored cloth all floating around in the air in an azure aura.
"Thrift," said Generosity, her voice so sweet even as her crystalline horn glowed white from arcane power, "would you please be a dear and get on the stand?"
KNOCK! KNOCK!
"I'm coming! I'm coming! Hold onto your reigns!" yelled out Iridescence as she walked through her house, grumbling distastefully under her breath at the time as she approached her front door. When she swung it open to reveal her sour face to the urban air, she shouted, "Do you have any idea what—" her voice quieted.
She blinked once, blankly staring straight ahead at who stood before her.
Standing there on her cement porch was the stallion that had guided her clueless, little sister home. Thrift Spender she believed his name was. The thing was though was that he wasn't the same messy-maned, raggedy-suited stallion that she had met before. His silver mane was no longer a mess, instead it was trimmed down and combed back nicely. The ragged suit that he had previously worn was now gone, replaced by a newer, sleeker one that made him look much more presentable for formal occasions. He looked cleaner, more refined.
But what was different the most about him though was how his olive coat seemed to magically shimmer in the moonlight, and how his mane practically glittered with a magic that was its own. It was as if his very soul was shining out of his body.
Thrift Spender pawed at her cement porch awkwardly with his hoof, "I... um... I reconsidered your offer and decided that I would love to come in and join you two for dinner," barely meeting her eyes, he rubbed the back of his neck nervously, his trimmed mane smooth upon his hoof, "but... if it's too late, I'll, um... I'll understand."
Iridescence blinked once, still staring blankly at Thrift.
For a long moment, the two of them stood there, an uncomfortable, raw silence between them.
But then, she began to laugh.
"Pfft—Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha!" she guffawed in front of the embarrassed stallion, bending over in front of him as she yukked it up at how she couldn't believe, yet just knew , what had happened to him on this night.
When she had finally calmed down enough from her uproarious laughing that she was now only chuckling lightly, she quickly moved behind Thrift at a speed that left a prism of light behind her and started enthusiastically pushing him into her home, "Yes, yes, of course you can come in," she laughed heartily, "I'll warm up some of the leftovers and then you just have to tell us about your night."
As he was forced through the doorway, Thrift turned his head back toward the mare behind him, "Hey! Okay, th-there's no need to push like that."
"Sis! What's going on? Who's at the door—oof!"
Thrift turned his head back front-forward just quick enough to see Sunflower accidentally walk into him. Her face in the fur of his chest, when she turned her head up she was stilled to find her's and Thrift's muzzles just a breadth apart, with her looking up at him and him looking down at her.
With the biggest grin to ever grace a pony, Iridescence quickly stepped by them, "I'll, um... I'll just go and get the soup ready," she informed them before speedily disappearing down the hallway, a hoof over her mouth to stifle the barely-contained giggles.
Thrift and Sunflower stood frozen together, silent, too shocked to move or say anything.
But then finally, Thrift showed off a small, genuinely cheerful smile, "Hi," he greeted her, "you're not lost, are you? Because if you are, I wouldn't mind helping you find your way to the kitchen."
For a moment, Sunflower only blinked in surprise at his words, before slowly matching his smile with a bright grin of her own.
"How generous of you."
Author's Note
Longma and Kirin (also known as qilin).kilala97 's work as inspiration for a bit of their design. I don't see why anyone wouldn't?Tales of the Tutelary Spirits for more stories in this universe.
