On most days, Rarity would go through her work with a look of absolute focus upon her face. Her eyes would be narrowed and it would be as if she had a gaze as piercing as daggers whenever she concentrated on some new dress. But not today. For today, having recently returned from Canterlot, the expression she now bore was simply one of happiness and contentment. Her new store in their nation’s capital had been a success, her manager was handling the work well, and, above all else, the ponies in that great city truly seemed to admire the creations she had made for them. It was as her dreams had always been. She had succeeded. A lifelong ambition, finally fulfilled. And as such, she could not help but have the widest of all smiles plastered on her face, even as she was in the middle of her sewing. As she hummed a happy tune, she brought in a number of vibrantly-coloured fabrics, looking at each one to see which would be the most suitable for her current work.
"Let’s see now...some turquoise...or maybe...yes, lavender! Oh, this simply must go in the front window when it's done!"
Giggling to herself, she got to work, carefully threading the new materials into the main body of the dress, using her magic to levitate a few more needles over from her nearby worktable. As the minutes rolled on, she pondered to herself of just how good it was to be both back home and doing what she loved most; creating beautiful works of art. It was a fire that had, unfortunately, nearly been doused by her time in Canterlot recently, but now, it was back and brighter than ever. And all around there were signs of her creativity flourishing in this homely and familiar environment, with designs and new materials all ready to be implemented around her. If Rarity had been asked then and there to give a definition of "happiness", she would have said, without hesitation, that this is what it was, doing what she loved in a place that she loved. But, while all those pleasant thoughts roamed in her mind, she was soon distracted by the unmistakeable sound of the boutique's front door bell ringing. Turning from her current work, a look of surprise crossed her face.
"Oh, yes! I nearly forgot about the store!"
Breaking out into another smile, she carefully placed her materials on her desk for one moment, before giddily trotting over to the door of her workshop, after which she began to make her way downstairs. After entering the show-room of the boutique, she put on her usual show-mare attitude and began to speak up in a confident manner.
"Welcome one and all to Carousel Boutique! How...may...I...help...you?"
The moment her eyes had actually caught sight of her new customer, the smile began to fade from her, and was instead replaced by a look of utter shock. For there, wandering around some of the display dresses, was a mare she was actually quite familiar with. Bearing a short red mane and a cutie mark of two peppers, this was a mare who had actually been one of Rarity's customers back in Canterlot. So, as one might expect, it was quite a surprise for the fashionista to suddenly find her here, in Ponyville. More than that though, there was a worrisome feeling in her stomach, as the last meeting between her and this mare had not gone all that well. She was one of the ponies who had ordered Rarity's "famed" Princess Dress, and had been more than a little upset when Rarity had made a few changes to it. The meeting that day had been a blow to Rarity's enthusiasm for her work, and to see her here now was, in all honesty, not bringing back pleasant feelings for her. However, it wasn't long before the mare noticed her, with her eyes widening.
"Oh! Miss Rarity! I...I didn't see you there!"
That tone of voice immediately caught Rarity off-guard. It was demure, with a tint of shyness to it, almost completely contrasting with the more abrasive way she'd spoke back in Canterlot. Even her expression seemed different, with what looked like clear nervousness in her eyes. Seeing this, Rarity cleared her throat before putting on another smile and starting to walk up to her.
"Well...this is quite a surprise. I wasn't expecting to see one of my Canterlot customers here of all places."
The mare nodded.
"No...but...there was something I kinda needed to be here for."
Rarity raised an eyebrow at that.
"Oh?"
Immediately, the other mare started to look uncomfortable, her eyes darting from left to right, as if she were unwilling to look Rarity in the eye. It was a nervousness that was then reflected in her tone of voice when she spoke up again.
"Um...I suppose I should introduce myself first, since I never really did that back in Canterlot. My name is Pepper. Pepper Step."
Pepper raised a hoof, clearly wanting Rarity to take and shake it, and while the latter was a little hesitant at first, if there was one thing you could always say about Rarity, it's that never lacked manners. So, now shaking Pepper's hoof, Rarity put on a smile for her.
"Well then, Miss Pepper. Welcome to Carousel Boutique. I hope there's something I can do for you here."
Putting her hoof back on the ground, Pepper let out a nervous cough before replying to that.
"Actually...I was kinda hoping I could do something for you."
Hearing that, a look of confusion crossed Rarity's face, prompting Pepper to begin explaining herself.
"It's just...you and I didn't exactly have the best meeting back in Canterlot, did we?"
The smile that Rarity had tried so hard to keep up was gone now, replaced instead by a more serious look. For a moment, she looked away from Pepper, and when she looked back, she simply gave a nod in response to her question. Seeing this, the other mare let out a sigh.
"When I said what I said...look, I wanted to say...I'm sorry."
Rarity's eyes widened with shock upon hearing that.
"I...forgive me, my dear. But...I was not expecting such a thing from you."
Pepper nodded.
"I don't doubt it. But...I've been thinking about this a lot and...well...you deserve an apology."
Yet again, confusion grew in Rarity.
"Well...I know you were a bit...forward in your remarks. But, as much as it pains me to say, you did technically have a point at the time. I gave you something you didn't ask for after all."
But Pepper shook her head.
"That's what I thought at the time. But...I was wrong!"
Silence feel between the two mares, after which, Rarity put on a slight frown.
"If you don't mind my asking, Miss Pepper...what has brought this on exactly?"
Pepper opened her mouth to speak, only to find silence as the only thing that would come out. Closing her mouth again, she turned, looking upon a rack of dresses nearby. She walked over to it, with Rarity keeping her eyes on her, and Pepper began to look at each beautiful and unique dress, studying them one-by-one, before finally getting some words out.
"When I finally got my Princess Dress...I was pretty happy. It was the dress everypony wanted. It was in all the magazines, it was talked about by all my friends. To have something that was different from that...well...it felt like I was being denied what I wanted. And...I said some things I shouldn't have said."
Pepper lowered her head, shame now covering her face.
"But then...things changed. A few days afterwards, I started seeing other mares, all with these new and beautiful dresses. I asked where they got them from, and when they told me they'd bought them from your boutique...I had to go and see for myself. So I went, and...I'd never seen so many new and different and...well...beautiful dresses in all my life!"
Rarity gained a look of slight pride at such words, before hastily trying to cover it up, clearing her throat somewhat.
"Yes...well...one does try their best after all."
But Pepper was not amused, and instead turned to look at her once more.
"It wasn't just how good it was. It was how much they just...suited the mares who wore them. There was a dress for everypony. It wasn't just the same dress over and over, like the Princess Dress. Each outfit you made was like...it was like...you'd made it for them before you even knew them. That...that impressed me, more than I can ever say."
Turning back to the other dresses, Pepper touched one briefly, with melancholy now crossing her face.
"When I realised that...I started to look on the dress you'd made for me, my Princess Dress...differently. It didn't seem beautiful to me anymore. It didn't seem...special. I just looked like...like..."
"Repetitive?" Rarity finished.
Pepper turned to her as the fashionista continued.
"It looked as if it no longer had any love or care put behind it, didn’t it?"
Pepper was silent for a few moments, but in the end, she nodded in agreement with that description.
"Yeah. When I realised that...I started to think about...other things. I thought about what I said to you when you tried to make those changes to my dress. I turned it down, even though I knew you were trying to do something different, something that would have made my dress unique. As soon as I understood what I'd done, talked to you and just...just insulted you the way that I did...I felt..."
A sigh escaped her, and she turned to face Rarity in earnest, with her face one of utter seriousness.
"Look...I am truly sorry for what I said back in Canterlot. You were trying to make me something new, something different, something...special. And instead...I just threw it back in your face."
Slowly, Pepper began to hang her head low.
"I'm...I'm sorry."
To say that Rarity was surprised by this sudden behaviour would have been a great understatement, but, that shock soon passed from her, and instead, she broke out into an appreciative smile. Taking a step closer, she gently placed a hoof upon Pepper's shoulder, immediately gaining her attention.
"I thank you for your apology. Consider it accepted."
At that, Pepper seemed shocked.
"Wha...really?!"
Rarity giggled a little.
"Of course, darling! After all, you were hardly the only pony up there that was trying to get me to do the same thing over and over. And if I can forgive them, then I can forgive you."
Hearing those words, Pepper broke out into a big smile of her own, letting out a massive sigh of relief.
"That...that's good. I didn't know how you’d react to all of this."
Rarity waved her off with her hoof.
"Think nothing of it, my dear. We all make mistakes. Now then...since you’re in the mood for some creativity, can I perhaps interest you in some of our selection here?"
Pepper turned from Rarity and started to look around. Indeed, there were many fabulous outfits to choose form. But, rather than be instantly enamoured with them, Pepper seemed, of all things, thoughtful, and then, to Rarity's worry, down on herself.
"Thank you for the offer, Miss Rarity. But...after making you throw away that special Princess Dress you made for me...I don't think I deserve any of this."
It broke Rarity's heart to see one of her customers so down like that. But, fortunately for her, that moment soon passed, and she gained one of her "idea" looks.
"You know...I think we can still get our hooves on that dress, if you like."
Pepper's ears perked up as she looked to her.
"R...really?!"
Rarity nodded.
"Indeed. I mean, I'll have to get in touch with Sassy so she can find it, and it will probably need a bit of cleaning and sprucing up to get back to my proper standards, but..."
But Pepper shook her head enthusiastically.
"Never mind all that! I would love to have that dress you made for me, no matter what state it's in!"
Seeing that excitement in Pepper's face brought a huge smile to Rarity. That, in the end, was exactly why she was in this business in the first place. That look on her customers’ faces when they truly felt love and appreciation for the things she'd made for them. So, seeing her new customer seeming this happy about what had once been a discarded work, Rarity cleared her throat a little before addressing her in as formal a manner as possible.
"Well then, my dear, let's get to it. After all...we’ve got a dress to save!"
