Snowy-ty
By MixA4
It's that time of year in Equestria, the time of the year where thick, puffy clouds and cold weather ushered in blankets of pearly white snow. Or rather, as you've come to learn, the pegasi help to usher in the clouds and cool weather. Either way, what was once a landscape painted red, orange, and brown has been completely snow-blasted into white. Critters who were once running around gathering food for the winter have all gone into hibernation, leaving you with only the sounds of a winterized Ponyville. Trees, normally holding bouquets of red and orange now held thick, white snow amidst their branches. An Equestrian winter was certainly a marvel to witness.
And, a bitch to sit through.
Oh Celestia, Luna, and Starswirl the Bearded, it was FUCKING COLD. The weather swung from comfortable with a mild sting of cold to a Siberian winter, literally overnight! You went to bed with clear skies outside and woke up in a blizzard! Damn it, these weather-changing horses were efficient, if nothing else! While your house did an effective job at insulating heat, that did nothing to help you when you had to go outside and fetch your everyday supplies. Getting food and not-frosted water from the Ponyville market was like a march of the damned. Frigid temperatures chewed your skin, teaching you the actual definition of 'frostbite'.
It might also just be how you're dressed. You're stuck in fall-clothing with cold resistance that's slightly better than tin foil. When you first stumbled into Equestria, the only things you had were your now useless keys, an almost equally useless phone, a simple wallet, and your summer clothes, consisting of work pants and a short sleeved shirt. The ponies were gracious enough to help you get a home as well as supplies and a job to help you live among them, but clothing has always been a little more than an issue. Currently, you're wearing one of your four fall get-ups, a pair of slightly-too small pants, a simple shirt, and a VERY over sized sweater, at least four sizes too large for your small frame. Although however the sizes in clothes might differentiate, you're very grateful for it. It was all custom tailored by Rarity, the town's own clothier. When you first arrived to Ponyville, she was gracious enough to just MAKE you more clothes. At least, after explaining why you needed them in a world full of almost naked ponies. When fall rolled around, you paid her for more clothes for the coming fall weather, and although sizing is off (What did you expect, perfect sizing from ponies?), the designs truly make you stand out in a crowd.
Which actually why you're out subjecting yourself to a Stalingrad-grade winter day today. You need to go pick up some new clothes from Rarity. Forcing your frost-dampened boots through the snow, you arrive at Rarity's boutique and yank the door open.
“R-Rarity?” You call, stuttering from chills, despite having only been outside for no more than a minute.
“Coming, Darling!” She calls from the back. She pops out from behind a curtain wearing her glasses with a ruler notched behind her ear. You've always thought she looked adorable with those glasses on. “Hello, Anonymous, are you here for your new clothing?”
“No, actually I trudged through the snow to pillage and burn your store to the ground, if that's cool with you?” You say sarcastically.
“Now now, there's no need for the sarcasm.” She replies. “I just thought you'd want to come visit me one time for something other than keeping that monkey-butt of yours covered.”
“Fine, next time I will come to burn your store down!”
She scowls at you, ignoring the remark..
“Would you like to come see the designs, dear? I really think you'll like this set!” She gives you a smile.
You agree and she leads you to the back, where three coats are hung up on a clothing rack, hidden under some wrapping.
“Go on, have a look dear, I think you'll really like them!” She exclaims. You walk over to the rack and pull off the first coat. Based off it's weight, you could tell that there is a set of pants hidden inside as well. “That first one is an outdoor work outfit!” You remove the protective wrap and find a somewhat bulky brown and red work jacket. It looks like a short sleeve fur lined brown jacket with red sleeves and Rarity's cutie mark on both shoulders. The hood and insides are lined with thick cotton, sure to insulate your body heat over long periods. The pants are the same color of brown, although slightly less bulky than the jacket, the amount of insulation looks like it could keep out the cold.
“Do try it on, you can change behind the curtain over there.” Rarity motions to a small changing room in the corner. You're almost eager to, not only because your current clothes are much to cold to stand anymore. Within a few moments, you've stripped off the cool, damp clothes and changed into your new work outfit. It's much warmer, and fits you perfectly! Rarity really put the effort into sizing this one. You step out, looking yourself over.
“Wow, Rarity! This is really nice!” You say.
“And it looks nice on you, dear!” She trots over and begins messing with your collar. “Especially on you~.” She says under her breath.
“What was that?” You ask.
“Hm? Oh, I was just saying there were some wool gloves in your pocket, for when you need to lift some heavy weight out in the cold.” You reach into your pocket, and sure enough, you find a set of brown gloves. You slip them on.
“Thanks a lot, Rarity! I'm scared to ask how much work this took.” You say, giving the outfit one last look over.
“Oh, don't worry about that, I'm always happy to help.” She smiles at you once again. You can help but notice the sparkle behind those wide blue halos. “You simply must try on one of the other outfits, dear!” You got so caught up in the first one, you almost forgot about the other two. Using her magic, she passes a second outfit from the rack.
“I know you like to work out, but in this weather, a very lightweight outfit like the one you normally wear will get you admitted into Ponyville general. I made you a new outfit that will keep the cold out when you're running.”
Once again, you change into your new clothing, making a point to nicely hang up your work clothes. Inside the second bag is a sleek, gray track shirt and sweat pants with black trim, and three blue gemstones in Rarity's cutie mark above the left breast. There's wool lining all over the set, but not nearly to the extent of your work clothes. Rarity made this one to be light, but warm all at the same time. Yet again, the sizing is spot on, although it does seem to hug your shoulders and show off your muscles.
“Darling, you look cut!” Rarity says, eyeing you up and down. She was right. All the workout sessions with Rainbow Dash must be paying off.
“I feel cut! Like I could run a marathon or do a thousand push ups! This is really comfortable, Rare!” She giggles at the name “Rare”.
“Does it fit you alright, Darling? This one was really hard to get down.”
“It fits perfectly, thank you so much Rarity!”
“Don't thank me yet dear, you have one more outfit!” She uses her magic to bring the last outfit over. In a moment, you've changed into your last outfit, which you presume is meant to be worn over other clothes. It features a very heavy black navy coat with six rows of buttons and thick wool padding on the inside. The insides of the sleeves are a very comfortable mix of fleece and wool, helping to hold heat in even on the coldest of days. The sleeves were intentionally made a little longer than normal, and stretch out to your palms. The coat itself falls all the way down just above your knees. There's a pocket on the inside of the coat, lined with fur and adorned with the insignia of the Elements of Harmony. It also includes a set of wool and fleece pants and undershirt. This outfit could resist some of the coldest of days.
“What do you think of them?” Rarity asks.
“They're perfect Rarity. Thank you so much.” You reply. “How much do I owe you for this set?”
Rarity pauses for a moment. She looks to each outfit, eyeing them intently.
“How's seventy-five bits sound?”
Seventy-five bits? Is she kidding? She might be the Element of Generosity, but seventy-five wouldn't even cover the cost of the material used to make that! You could easily sell the just the Navy coat for seventy-five bits!
“Rarity, that's crazy!” You exclaim.
“Anonymous, I cannot possibly go any lower than-”
“No, I mean that's too cheap! I'd be stealing it at seventy-five bits. I'll give you a hundred eighty five bits for the set, and even that's a bit low by my standards.”
“Anon, dear, I made these exclusively for you. I have no problem accepting seventy-five bits for these.”
"That's the thing, these are custom made! It couldn't have been easy or cheap to make!"
"It wasn't as difficult as you think, dear. I won't take any more than seventy-five bits from you."
“Well, I'm giving you more!” Seriously, at seventy-five bits you'd be stealing the clothes from her.
“Seventy-five bits! I refuse to take more!” She replies stubbornly.
“Rarity, this is-”
“NO MORE!”
This is going nowhere, fast. You pause for a moment.
“Okay, Rarity. How about this.” You begin. “I'll give you seventy-five bits, but I'm going to forget another one hundred ten bits here. I won't even notice the disappearance.”
“Anonymous, I-”
“Rarity, this is going to happen one of two ways. Either you take the full one eighty-five, or you take seventy-five and a random customer finds a sack of one hundred ten bits sitting on your counter. Either way, I'm leaving this boutique without one hundred eighty-five bits today!” Rarity scrunches her face up, trying to come up with something.
“Well, I'll.... I'll.....” She stammers. She's at a loss. “Fine! One eighty-five, but no more!”
You smile victoriously as you start counting bits out. You slide a small bag over to her. She takes it and writes out a receipt.
“Thank you for your generosity, dear.” She says.
“No, thank you, darling.” You say smugly. She frowns at you, but says nothing. “So, got any other plans for today, Rares? I mean, you have almost two hundred bits to spend however you want.”
“Well, I'm pretty much done with my work for today, so I might go visit Twilight.” She looks at you inquisitively. “Why, is there something you wanted dear?”
“Well, I'm not doing anything, maybe you'd like to just go for a walk or something? We could go see how the pegasi did on flash-freezing Ponyville.” You say. Rarity thinks for a second, then smiles.
“Sure, I do always enjoy the weather at this time of year, and I've been coped up here for the last few days. Just give me a moment to fetch some things, dear.”
A few moments later, you and Rarity are out for a walk on Ponyville's outskirts, near the pond. You've always enjoyed Rarity's company, and today is no exception. She's an absolute delight to be around.
“Then when I walk into the kitchen, there's smoke absolutely everywhere! I see Sweetie Belle stirring a pot of this disgusting brown slop. When I ask her what she's doing there, she looks at me and says 'I'm making us breakfast!” You and Rarity start laughing. “If you thought the smell was bad, just know she tried to give some to Opal, and I didn't see the poor dear again for a whole week!”
“Oh, man. I mean, I'm not world's greatest chef, but I've never tried to make the 'house special' with actual bits of the house!” You and Rarity burst into laughter yet again.
“I love Sweetie Belle,” Rarity says between fits of laughter “but it doesn't take magic to know her special talent will never be cooking.”
“Yeah, sounds like it!” You reply. Suddenly, a thought pops into your head. “Hey Rarity, aren't you cold out here? I can hardly stand the weather with anything short of a furnace being strapped to my back, but a blue scarf has you completely covered against the weather out here!”
“Well, sometimes it does get a little chilly out here, but my beautiful coat manages to keep me warm most of the time.”
She doesn't notice you making a snowball until you've thrown it right at her, pegging her right in the muzzle.
“ANONYMOUS!” She shrieks. “YOU... BUFFON!”
“Still feeling warm?” You snicker, suppressing the urge to laugh. Her face reddens, then curls back into a sadistic smile.
“So that's how you wanna play, huh?” She uses her magic to bring forth several snowballs at once. Your eyes widen.
Shit.
“You forget that I'm made for this weather. You, aren't.” You turn and start sprinting away as snowballs fly past your head. Rarity might have magic, but she apparently doesn't have accuracy. One snowball smacks into the back of your neck, sending icy frost down your navy coat. You dig your hands into the snow and quickly form a snowball to return fire with. You manage to throw it at her and hit the side of her face.
“You want some??” You taunt. “I was the best snowball thrower in my whole family!”
Pfth! A snowball explodes clean into your eyes.
“It's looks like you're not a very good dodger deary!” She taunts. You brush snow out of your eyes and pick up another lump of snow. You throw it back at her, but hardly brush her tail. Meanwhile, she's already prepared five more.
Hell.
You drop to your knees just in time to dodge all but one ball, which hits your shoulder.
“Come on, dear! You can't be that bad at this, can you?” She teases. You scoop up some snow and haphazardly lob it in her direction. Celestia smiles down upon you though, and it's enough to hit square on her horn, causing her to drop her freshly-made snowballs. Now you have the upper hand! While she's busy wiping snow out of her eyes, you take a lump of snow and start crafting the last snowball, the one to end this fight. You file down the ridges, making the ball as aerodynamic as a newly glossed Rainbow Dash. You turn to look at your victim, but she's vanished! Clean from sight! You look around, but all you see is more and more white.
Goddammit. You had to start a snowball fight with a marshmallow pony, the one thing that can blend in perfectly to this icy wasteland. You look around, scanning the corners of trees for the purple of her hair or the blue of her cutie mark. You nervously roll the snowball around in your hands, listening for anything. You hear a crunching off to your right, and immediately turn towards it, only to see rolling fragments of a snowball. Then, all you see is the blue from Rarity's scarf, blinding you.
“Guess whoo~!” She coos.
“Alright, I give up Rarity. You win this fight.” You don't release the snowball. She giggles, placing her hooves around you from behind.
“Oh, darling, Pinkie Pie might be Queen of ambushing, but out in the snow, I reign supreme!” You spin around to face her. Something about the look she's giving you just warms your heart, right through all of the snow. Her eyes are half lidded, with this simple, elegant victorious smile spread across her face.
And now the snowball is in her face.
“ANON, YOU SAID I WON!” She screams, wiping snow from her face.
“I lied.”
She scowls at you, but then giggles, a smile appears in the corner of her mouth.
“Truce?” She sticks her hoof out to you. You've had enough fun out here. You reach out and grab her hoof, then get hit with a face full of snow.
Okay, she wins.
“Alright, alright! You win!” You dust more snow off your face, Rarity simply giggles. Although your navy coat is very warm, there is now ice in places where there should be no ice. “Hey Rare, would you maybe like to go somewhere and get some lunch?”
“Lunch sounds great, Darling. Did you have anywhere in mind?”
“Sugar cube corner? I could really go for something sweet right now.” Rarity looks away, then back to you and smiles.
“Oh, sure, Dear. I have been meaning to see Pinkie Pie, anyways.”
A short walk later, you arrive at Sugar Cube Corner. You open the door for Rarity, and you're greeted by the sounds of cheerful chatter and a wall of heat, it must be at least thirty degrees warmer inside than out.
“Oh my, the change in temperature feels just lovely, wouldn't you agree Anonymous?” Rarity asks.
“Yeah, no kidding.” You reply. Pinkie Pie is behind a counter, placing the final touches on some freshly made cupcakes. She glances in your direction, and immediately starts laughing.
“PFFFT HAHAHAHA! You look like a cherry, Nony! Your face and ears are all red! Did you spend too much time out in the cold? I mean, I've seen some ponies turn red under some fur, but I can't tell if that's the cold, or a really bad sunburn!”
“Yeah, nice to see you too Pinkie.” You reply sarcastically. “Have any recommendations for today?”
“OH! The Cakes and I just made this new season-themed cupcake thingy that looks like a snowball! We call them SNOWBALLS, because they're covered in powder sugar, and they're really fun to play with, but they aren't cold like snowballs, so it almost didn't make sense at first.”
The talking, it's almost too much for you to comprehend.
“I think I'll have that.” You don't want to admit you understood almost none of that. “Rarity? Care to join me?” You ask. Rarity bites her lip, looking over the menu a little more.
“Sure, I'll have a snowball.” She says.
“The total is five bits, normally it would be six, but since you ordered together, we can knock one bit off for the couple's special! Oh, yeah! Are you two a thing?” Pinkie Pie asks. “I mean I saw you outside together playing and having fun and you just look so happy so I just wanted to know.”
The question catches you and Rarity completely off guard, you both look at each other, stammering, before looking away.
“Well, I wouldn't say together Pinkie Pie, but we have been enjoying the company of one another.” Rarity finally says.
“Oh that makes sense, but anyways, your total is still five bits!” You begin to reach for some bits in your jacket, but Rarity stops you.
“No no, dear, I'll handle this one.” She says, pulling out the sack of bits you paid her earlier.
“Like hell you will! I've already not paid enough to you for the clothes, I can at least cover a bit of lunch!”
“Darling, I insist-”
“Yeah, well, I insist it's too late.” You say, slapping five bits on the counter. “Besides, it was my idea, I'm paying.”
“Ugh, fine.” She sighs. Pinkie Pie grins at you.
“Awww, it's a shame you two aren't dating, you're so cute together!” she coos.
“Pinkie, please.” Rarity says. You could spot a hint of blush under her eyes.
“Awww, fine. Go find a seat, I'll bring your food as soon as it's done.” Pinkie replies. You turn and find that Sugar Cube Corner is absolutely packed with friends, lovers, and groups of ponies alike. Sounds of happy conversation and laughter fill the air as you scan the restaurant for a place to eat. Eventually, you spot a table for two next to a window.
“Right there.” You point, leading the white pony to the table. You pull Rarity's seat out for her before taking your spot opposite from her.
“Wow, it's completely packed in here.” You say.
“Yes, but I rather enjoy it. It gives it that small, happy, community feeling to the place.”
“I always thought you were one for the big cities, like Manehattan or Phillydelphia?” You say.
“Well, yes, I really enjoy those areas, but it's nice to come into a place like this and just be surrounded by familiar faces.”
“Yeah, makes sense.” You feel something pressed up against your butt, like you're sitting on something. You reach into your back pocket and find five bits that you hadn't counted for. “Oh hey, I must have misplaced some bits. See? I told you I had this bill.” Rarity giggles.
“Maybe you should check deeper, Darling. You might find a missing Element of Harmony in there.”
You make a show of checking your pockets, Rarity watches silently, smiling at you.
“No Elements, but I found Waldo!” Your joke sails completely over her head.
“Waldo, dear? What's a Waldo?”
Right. Horses have never read the 'Where's Waldo' find it books. God damn it.
“Erm, never mind.” You say. A short silence passes between the two of you before Pinkie Pie finally brings two 'snowballs' over to your table, along with two mugs of hot chocolate.
“Uh, Pinkie, we didn't order any hot chocolate.” Rarity stares at the mug placed in front of her.
“OH! I forgot to mention! Hot chocolate comes included with every Snowball.” Before Rarity could interject, Pinkie Pie disappears into the back of Sugar Cube Corner.
“You don't like hot chocolate, Rarity?” You ask, looking at your Snowball. It looks like a ball of cake got caught in a sugar storm, every crack is filed with thin powdered sugar.
“It's not that I don't like hot chocolate, it's that it is always so.... messy.” You grin at her.
“That's part of the fun though!” You take a sip from your hot chocolate, making it a point to wick some whipped cream off on your nose. Rarity giggles.
“Um, dear? Your nose has..” She points at the whipped cream. You purposely screw up your face and cross your eyes to focus on the cream. Rarity giggles a little more.
“Here, I'll get it.” She reaches out with a napkin and wipes the white away.
“Thanks.” You say. A short pause passes between the two of you as you try the Snowball. Sure enough, it was cake rolled around in powdered sugar, but you discover a core made of chocolate. Before long, you're finishing off the last bites of your Snowball. Rarity is about halfway through hers.
Suddenly, you feel the signature tingling sensation in your nose. A sneeze was coming on. You take a deep breath and look away, not wanting to sneeze all over Rarity. You close your eyes, then:
AH-PFFHOO!
Suddenly, Rarity snorts, bursting into laughter, along with a few ponies around your table. Your eyes are still watery, but when they clear up, you see what was so funny. Apparently, some of the sugar went clean up your nose, because in front of you is a mist of sugar. You can't help but start laughing yourself.
“Oh, Anonymous. I'd bet some lucky mare is just thrilled to have you.” Rarity grins at you.
“Actually, no, single.” You say, wiping your nose of the dust. “Can you guess why?” Now, you aren't sure, but you could swear you saw Rarity's eyes dilate when you said that.
“You're single, dear? Honestly, I thought someone would've swept you off your hooves by now!”
“Nope, and I don't blame people- erm, ponies, for not wanting to get tangled up with me anyways, I look like I got smashed by the Ponyville express!”
“Oh, don't be so hard on yourself, dear.” Rarity says. You can't help but notice how her eyes seem to sparkle against the overhanging light, like shimmering sapphires. “You're very handsome, I'm sure the perfect mare will find you soon.” She says something under her breath, but it's just outside your hearing range. You pay no attention to it.
“You're really something too, Rares.” You say. “I'd bet you'll meet the perfect stallion out there soon.”
“Maybe I've already found him..”
“What?” You say, unable to hear over the sound over conversing around you.
“Nothing, dear. Would you like to go now?”
“Oh, sure.” You polish off the last of the hot chocolate head back out into the frigid cold with Rarity. The air seems much colder now that you've become accustomed to the heat of Sugar Cube Corner.
“Well, Anonymous, it's truly been a pleasure today, but I must resume my work now.” Rarity says. “But listen, I do need you to drop by again tomorrow at around noon, are you available?”
“I didn't really make any plans, and I have another day off tomorrow, so I don't see any reason why not.” you reply.
“Excellent! I'll see you tomorrow then, Darling. Ta-ta!” Rarity trots off to her boutique, but you can't help but notice how eager she seems to return. Did you say something to drive her off?
The rest of the day passes pretty much without incident. You mostly just kind of bummed around your house in your new clothes feeling warm and toasty, despite not having any heat running in your house. Pinkie dropped by, commented about how cold your house was, then said something about a huge dance going on in a week or so. Something called a “Gala”. She left shortly after, and pretty soon the grayish skies faded to pitch black. Time for bed. Now, despite working with Applejack and having her drag your ass out of bed at five in the morning, you still retain your habits of staying up well into the night. So much so, that Princess Luna will occasionally pay a visit to your house and chat with you for a few hours, since no one else is awake at those hours. Tonight, however, as you're settling down for bed, you can't help but notice a light across the way. Carousel Boutique's studio lights are still on, shining out into the night. You can clearly see the “Sorry, we're closed.” sign hanging defiantly in the window, but light continues to pour out. You dismiss the thought as she fell asleep again working on a massive project and drift off to sleep.
Morning comes and passes without incident, and before long you're once again walking over to Rarity's Boutique. You walk inside, but don't see Rarity anywhere. You ring the bell on the counter.
“One second!” Rarity calls from the back. A moment passes before Rarity appears, but when she does, it's definitely a sight. Her hair is completely in disarray, , bits of it are out of place, and other parts are knotted where pencils have been jammed in place. Her glasses are crooked, and although her eyes look exhausted, she seems very happy to see you. Out of fear of how she could react, you do not acknowledge her state.
“Hey Rarity,” You hold your tongue. “You wanted me to come back?” A spark shines in Rarity's eyes as a big smile spreads across her face.
“Yes, Dear! I had a surprise for you! I made one last outfit for you, and I wanted you to try it out!”
One more outfit? Is she crazy? You already unloaded enough for the first three outfits!
“Alright, lead the way.” You say, slightly worried. She leads you once more to the back of the boutique, where the lights have been dimmed. When she flips them on, you almost can't believe your eyes. A brand new suit, modeled in Rarity's own design is hung from a rack. The suit itself was solid black, with a white undershirt, a beautiful purple tie, and slick black dress shoes. This thing was sleek.
“Try it on!” Rarity commands, pushing you behind the curtain. You start slipping into the suit, but begin to worry. You only had enough money for the three outfits you had before. There was almost no way you were going to be able to pay Rarity for a FOURTH outfit today, much less an entire suit! You step out, buttoning the last of the suit. Rarity gasps as her eyes widen.
“Darling, you look.... stunning!” She says. You bite your lip.
“Rarity, I can't afford this!” You say. Rarity dismisses your comment with a wave of her hoof.
“The bill for this one is in your jacket pocket. I think it's fair, and it's all I'm taking for it! You can pay it to me next week.” She says, rather sternly. A small grin spreads across her face as you dig around the inside of the jacket. Your fingers come into contact with a piece of paper, almost glossy to the touch. It doesn't feel like any receipt you've ever gotten. You slowly slide it out, realizing it's a gold slip.
THE GRAND GALLOPING GALA AT CANTERLOT CASTLE : ADMIT ONE
Crimson immediately appears under Rarity's fur when you look at her.
“The Grand Galloping Gala? Isn't that a dance?” You ask. “You're asking me out?” Rarity giggles.
“It's more of an exchange, Darling.” Rarity says. “I give you a suit in exchange for your hoof-er, hand, at the Gala!”
She made you a very suit, so you could accompany her to a massive party, that she paid for you to get into. That isn't the Element of Generosity, that's the Element of Open-Handedness.
“But, this must have taken weeks to make! I can't just take it without giving you some form of compensation!” You say.
“Darling, being with the one creature who makes me happier than all others for a night is enough compensation for me.” She giggles again. “Besides, the suit only took a night to make!”
As if buying you a ticket to the biggest party in Equestria, making you a free suit, and asking you out on a date she paid for weren't bad enough, she did it all in the span of a night. You can't even sit through a movie in a night.
“Rarity, I love the suit, and I'd love to go the Gala with you even more, but you didn't have to do all this for me!”
“Nonsense, dear. It's the love of the labor!” She says. Her voice is becoming increasingly fatigued. She must have really pushed it with this suit. “Or labor of love, or something along those lines..”
“Do you need to sit down?”
“Well, maybe just for a few minutes.” She says, trotting tiredly over to the couch in the boutique's lobby.
“Could you sit with me dear? I've always admired stallions in suits.” She motions for you to join her. You can't really say no at this point, not that you didn't want to. When you sit down, she wraps her hooves around you, snuggling up close to your chest.
“I'm just going to rest my eyes for a moment, darling.” She says, starting to drift off to sleep.
Just before she fully falls asleep, she giggles, tightening her grip on you.
“I'd bet you still didn't figure out that I placed those bits in your back pocket.” She says, falling asleep.
It takes a second, but you finally realize what she's talking about.
She wins. Again.
