Whoever said that Canterlot was the City of Dreams had been pulling that ‘fact’ out of their flank.

It may have been such a place for stuffy, high-born unicorns with more money than sense, but the same couldn’t be said for even ‘low-class’ unicorns trying to make their way in the city. If you were an earth pony, the costs were even higher. For a ground-bound pegasus, forget it.

Razzle Dazzle had spent every bit that she could muster to get out of Cloudsdale. The heights just didn’t agree with her at all, no matter how many doctors, therapists, family member or strangers on the cloudy streets insisted. Foolishly, the mare had thought that Canterlot could hold some promise for a future on the ground. So many high-ranking connections, success stories, and the proximity to the center of the monarchy and their bureaucracy? The potential was truly there to actually wade into the stream of consciousness and future plenty. As an accountant who’d graduated top of her class as well? It should have been a piece of cake.

Reality had hit Razzle Dazzle hard, after the first couple of weeks in her dingy little apartment on the Lower Side, that the ‘current’ of that potential stream was little more than a stagnant pool. The status quo was rigidly enforced, there were few to no opportunities for non-unicorns, and the Princesses were so tied up with their own bureaucratic red tape that even if they wanted to do anything (which Razzle was beginning to doubt very much), the Two Sisters couldn’t.

Razzle had sent out dozens of applications to every possible shop in the main part of the city. Only two had been kind enough to send her polite yet generic rejections after the the cold, rushed interviews.

Sighing, the mottled pink and white pegasus looked through the window of her apartment, up the darkened avenues of the Lower Side and towards the Canterlot Castle, lit up like a twisted mix between a candelabra and an overdone birthday cake. If she were in a better mood, she might have appreciated the view more. However, with her savings quickly running out, it would be best to not get too attached.

Her parents had been right. She’d have to go crawling back to them, be accepted back into their ‘good graces’, exiled to the basement...if she could even make it up to Cloudsdale before freezing in midair from panic.

There was a rough tap at the door. Razzle bolted upright from her bed, her dinnerplate clattering to the floor, empty except for a few crumbs. Who could be calling at this late hour? She had no friends in the city, and she’d made sure to do nothing to get on her building manager’s bad side. Curious, the pegasus trotted over to the door and turned the knob.

It was a unicorn, a stallion done up in a smart cap and a vest with a logo. The unicorn looked to be from one of the messenger services that helped deliver packages between businesses and high-paying individuals. The stallion levitated a clipboard up in front of his face, rudely obscuring his view of Razzle Dazzle. “Package for a Miss Dazzle?” he said in a nasally, rather haughty tone.

“Yes?”

He barely glanced up from his clipboard, almost sneering as he briefly scrutinized the bi-colored pegasus. Thankfully silent, he levitated over a large box, one that came up to Razzy’s hip. He didn’t ask for a signature or any other confirmation, only turning on his heel and leaving. He was out the door of the building before Razzle could even call him back about the package that she had not been expecting.

Resigned, the pegasus mare looked down at the box. Had there been a mistake? No, it was her name on the Addressee label. Looking up into the corner, the Mailing slip only said one name: Gossamer’s Fine Boutique. Gossamer’s? She’d never heard of them. She’d walked up and down the whole of Fashion Row at least five times today alone, so where was Gossamer’s? They certainly look official, with the neat silver stamp of a spinning wheel next to the neat cursive.

With a small dinner knife, Razzle undid the tape and opened the box. Instead of the usual foam pellets, there was high-quality tissue paper. On top of the ruffled pieces of ivory-colored paper was an envelope, addressed to her in that same fancy silver script. There was no way that it could be a mistake, now, but she hadn’t applied to anyplace like Gossamer. Why were they contacting her? Well, she supposed that there was only one way to find out.

Dear Ms. Razzle Dazzle,

Your resume and credentials were passed on to my boutique from one of your prospective employers at Brash Designs. My contact there believed that you may be well suited for an opening that I have at Gossamer's, and I have to agree that what I am seeing is very impressive.

Gossamer's Boutique is an establishment in the Lower Side of Canterlot and has had a presence since the 5th Centurium. We are always looking for new talent to join our operations, and I believe that you would be a great asset.

Please, won’t you come by tomorrow for an interview? My assistants at the front desk will be expecting you for 11:00. Regardless of whether you attend or not, I have included a gift for you in this package. I hope that you enjoy using it.

Kindest regards,

Fine Silk
Head Tailor
Gossamer's Fine Boutique

The pale pink mare racked her brains, thinking of the dozens of trips she’d made through the Lower Side and high streets, but came up with nothing. There was a boutique in the Lower Side? And it had been here for about five centuries? No, that couldn’t possible...maybe they’d started off on the high streets, but moved locations after the rent became too costly. And they were reaching out to a pegasus? No prospective employer was usually this forward unless it was a scam, but what did Razzle Dazzle have to lose at this point? At least they’d been polite, and they’d also sent her a gift.

“Oh my!” Razzle Dazzle gasped, green eyes wide as dinner plates as she withdrew a large blanket, a silver duvet. It was immaculately soft and tastefully embroidered with little flowers. This couldn’t have been cheap, and- wait, the duvet was silk! It couldn’t have been anything else, even with the pegasus’ little knowledge of textiles. Even pressing it slightly, the interior didn’t feel like cotton or down, but like even finer silk.

The gift was too much, far too much! And yet, as she pressed her cheek to the shimmering fabric, it seemed to warm Razzle Dazzle, caressing like an imagined lover’s hands against her body and right down to the core of her very being. It was such a lovely gift, and the sender of the letter had indicated that she could keep it, regardless of her interview attendance.

The blanket was around her shoulders and draping over Razzy’s body like a cloak before she could overthink things too much. Even though the duvet was a little heavy, it didn’t smother her body and felt secure...safe… She would go to the interview tomorrow, just to see what sort of position this boutique had available. If they could gift such a fine bedspread as this without expectation of payback, maybe she could earn enough to stay for a few more months and build some connections before leaving Canterlot.

To Razzle Dazzle, that seemed like as good a plan as any, and she flopped down onto her bed, still wrapped in the silver silk, cautiously optimistic about the next day.

Gossamer's Fine Boutique did little to stand out from the other brick-and-mortar buildings around it. The building was a throwback to the days when earth pony labor was still helping the city to expand, before the high-society unicorns had insisted that Canterlot need not grow any bigger. It wasn’t a terribly large boutique, but the outside was neat and clean, and there were ivory drapes over the windows. Razzle Dazzle couldn’t help but look up at the taller windows. There seemed to be slightly thicker drapes on the second and third floor, but it didn’t feel wrong. It was meant to give any visitors due privacy, right? If she were a client, she’d want the same courtesy.

However, Razzle had never been in any exclusive boutiques, Lower Side or not, as a client. She’d never be able to afford the same wares. Still, if the proprietor was willing to offer her a job, she could at least afford rent for the next month.

Pushing open the door solid door with her shoulder, Razzle found herself in a cool reception area. White tiles covered the floor seamlessly, as if carved from one massive rock. The walls were covered with ivory white drapes that seemed to almost melt into the tile. There were a few small fountains set into the wall, but the only real sense of color came from the reception desk. An earth pony mare with a light periwinkle coat looked up from her typewriter, beaming at the guest.

“Good morning,” the receptionist said in a smooth yet cheerful voice, lacking any of the snobbery or pomp of most Canterlot residents. “Are you Miss Razzle Dazzle?”

The pegasus was so taken aback by the courtesy that she stumbled over her words. “Y-yes. I was given a package- I-I mean a letter to come here? At 11?” Shakily, she looked up at the minimalist clock behind the reception desk. She was fifteen minutes early, but you were supposed to show up early to an interview, right? Now, she wasn’t so sure.

“Ah, yes.” The receptionist nodded meaningfully, stepping out from behind the desk. Immediately noticeable was how her navy-blue mane was done up in an intricate series of braids, as was her tail. The hair, also, looked almost impossibly long and soft. No wonder it had to be done up in such a fancy way!

“I apologize that the package was delivered to you so late, but our tailors and seamstresses prefer to make sure that our clients are home to receive any orders, missives, or billings from us. Were you happy with the gift that was included?” She still sounded so friendly yet polite, a far cry from the sneering demeanors of many of the other citizens that Razzle had encountered before.

Bashfully, Razzle Dazzle mimicked shuffling her hoof across the floor, but made sure to keep it a few inches above the surface. There was no reason to needlessly muddy up such a pristine location. “Best sleep I’ve had in ages,” she murmured shyly, a frizzy white lock falling into her face. “That quilt really helped.”

The receptionist’s smile was radiant and couldn’t be anything but genuine. “We’re always delighted to hear when our creations please our clients or future hires. My name is Choquette, and I am a receptionist and assistant to Miss Silk. She is very eager to meet you. Please, won’t you sign in to our guest book?” She nodded to a simple binder just to the side of the desk. “I will inform Miss Silk that you have arrived.”

“Alright,” the pegasus mare whispered, eyes cast down towards the ivory parchment. Choquette stepped out from behind the desk fully, showing off a smart business suit in a blue that was complementary to her mane and coat. Razzle Dazzle couldn’t help but notice that the earth mare’s bosom was rather large, but not extraordinarily so. With how trim she was otherwise, it was probably safe to think that Choquette had a child or two, or she’d had some sort of augmenting surgery. The receptionist surely had the looks and personality to attract anyone that she wanted-

Razzle shook her head furiously, her frizzy mane almost slipping out of its bun as she tried to steer the thoughts clear from her head. Fantasizing about the first employee in your potential workplace was not the best way to make a first impression. ‘Keep it together, Razzy,’ she thought furiously as she jotted down her name in the guest book. The last thing that she wanted right now was to turn up to her first interview with the mindset of a horny teenager. The shabby and loose-fitting suit, something she’d always been self-conscious about, would do nothing to help her.

Choquette was quick to return, the sheer curtain barely rustling around her. She stepped to the side of the doorway, almost like a footpony that Razzle might’ve heard announcing the presence of a noble if she were anywhere near high society. The receptionist said nothing, though, only smiling to the interviewee. There was the gentle clatter of hoofsteps on tile, and through the curtain entered-

Razzle Dazzle had never known much in the way of lust or aesthetic appreciation for other ponies in her life, but not even she could deny that Fine Silk was the most gorgeous creature that she’d ever seen, including some of the models that appeared in fancy fashion magazines. Fine Silk put them all to shame.

She was a tall, slender unicorn, but while almost every unicorn that Razzy knew had a mono-color coat and multicolored mane, the designer was the opposite. Alabaster white meshed with rich black over most of her body, and her mane and tail started in a pitch black that faded to white at the ends. Hooded, deep purple eyes were set symmetrically just underneath a slender horn, and her smile was such an entrancing thing, small but sincere. In Razzle’s humble opinion, this mare was more beautiful than Celestia herself.

“Good morning,” Fine Silk said in a warm, rich, slightly accented voice. “I am Fine Silk, the owner and lead tailor of this establishment. You must be Razzle Dazzle, yes?”

The pegasus said nothing. Her mind was almost completely blank, so dumbfounded was she. Her eyes were only now registering the clothes that Fine Silk was wearing: a long, nearly sheer dress that clung tight to her upper body before flaring out behind her, silk gloves, and white stockings and boots that revealed just the barest flash of thigh.

“Ms. Delight? Razzle? Razzy?”

“Mm? Oh!” Razzle almost fell backward, completely mortified that she hadn’t answered her interviewers initial question. ‘Stupid, stupid, stupid!’ she scolded herself mentally. “I- yes, that’s me. I mean, I’m Razzle Dazzle! I’m so sorry, I- I didn’t mean-!”

But the pegasus seemed to be fretting over nothing of offense. Fine Silk was still smiling and she was regarding the pink pegasus with only patient interest, nothing snide. Choquette still stood resolutely at her post, but her own smile had taken on a rather humorous bend to it. It didn’t seem like the receptionist was laughing at her expense, at least.

“It’s fine, my dear,” the unicorn mare said, offering a gloved hand to Razzle in an offer to shake. “No harm done, yes? You’re hardly the first pony to have been impacted by my presence in such a manner.” Fine Silk looked, if anything, a little embarrassed with herself. “With how often something like this has happened, I probably should have sent a warning in my letter. Oh, but what could I have said?” She touched her unoccupied had to her cheek, and that beautiful smile dipped just a little.

Having taken the other hand to shake, it fell to Razzle to offer comfort. “No, please!” she insisted to the beautiful unicorn, clasping that silk glove in both hands. The material made her own clammy hands feel so warm and much less shaky from nerves. “You’re very beautiful, but I should have remembered my manners. I’m so sorry.” Being strictly professional and courteous during the interview had taken second place to offering comfort. It wasn’t even about schmoozing up to a potential future boss at this point! All that mattered was helping Fine Silk to smile again.

Purple eyes fluttered open, and there was a great deal more cheer in them now, sending relief cascading through Razzle. “You are very kind,” Fine Silk murmured, patting Razzle’s hands with both of her own. “We should put this behind us and continue, I suppose. Please, won’t you follow me into my meeting room? I have refreshments and comfortable seating.”

With such a charming smile, and her future on the line, how could Razzle refuse. “Yes, please,” she croaked, and barely realized that Fine Silk was taking her by the hand. Choquette did not follow but offered another encouraging smile to Razzle Dazzle as she passed. The silk curtain brushed over Razzle’s face as she stepped through it, and...was she blushing so much that she was that warm? Sweet Celestia…

“I’m terribly sorry for the mix-up with your name,” Fine Silk murmured. “A few of my assistants make baked goods in their spare time, and one of them brought in some pastries that they’re calling ‘raspberry delights.’ They’ve been on my mind lately.”

“Oh, I’m- it’s no trouble,” the pegasus hiccuped, walking side-by-side with the unicorn. “It’s refreshing that you got my name mostly correct. Some of the others that I’ve been interviewed by didn’t even do that much,” she finished, a little morosely. It felt a little awkward to badmouth previous potential employers to someone involved in their industry, but something about Fine Silk compelled her to be honest.

“That’s a terrible shame. There’s something so memorable about you,” the unicorn said, looking over Razzle Dazzle with an appraising yet friendly eye. “From what I’ve seen so far, at least.”

“Th-thank you.” Why couldn’t she stop stuttering, and why did her face feel like the inside of a volcano?

“So polite and courteous,” Fine Silk whispered with an endearing smile, opening the door for Razzle Dazzle. The meeting room was small, minimalist in design, but still maintained an air of intimacy. Here, the tiles were black while the walls were still draped with the same ivory curtains. The furniture consisted of a glass-topped table and two white loveseats. “I hope that you don’t mind the furnishings. I prefer a more comfortable setting to talk with employees and clients. Please, won’t you sit down?”

“Alright.” At last, a word that she didn’t stumble through! Razzle still waited for Fine Silk to sit down first, on the seat that was furthest from the door and had a black file sitting on top, before she took her own seat. The couch was so very comfortable, conforming to her back almost immediately.

There was a tap at the door, and a small cart was wheeled in by a beautiful chestnut unicorn in a pencil skirt and blouse, with a braided blonde mane and tail. “Miss Silk,” she said in a rich, husky voice. “I have the refreshments that you requested.”

“Thank you so much, Baklava.” The tailor beckoned to the table with a nod, and Baklava levitated over a tier of some sort of dessert, as well as a pot of tea with two cups and a milk jug. Without a word, Baklava nodded and smiled to Razzle Dazzle before departing with her cart. Something about that little smile had Razzy’s heart skipping a beat or two.

“My assistants are always so generous, and I never have to worry about fights.” Fine Silk sighed a little and poured a cup of tea for them both. “It’s great that all of my employees get along so well.”

“It really is.” Razzle picked up her own cup and took a sip. The tea was just warm enough to be comfortable and had a deep, almost spicy flavor to it. It was quite delicious! “I’m sure that it’s reflective of you picking the best ponies for the job.”

“In more ways than one.” Silk turned her head to look at Razzle Dazzle with those beautiful purple eyes, giving the pegasus her undivided, benevolent attention. “I’ve noticed, as you probably have, that the hiring situation in Canterlot is hardly equal. While there are laws for equal opportunity in this city, very few seem to follow the letter or spirit of those laws. So many resumes for non-unicorns get passed down here to businesses in the Lower Side for such… insane reasons!”

“It’s a shame,” Razzle agreed, watching Fine Silk with just as much attention as she herself was being afforded. Finally, an employer who was in touch with reality and trying to remedy the situation as much as possible. “The city is supposed to be one of promise and opportunity, but that’s only if you’re a unicorn, I’ve found.”

Fine Silk reached a hand out, eyes sympathetic, and Razzle Dazzle took a hold of it immediately. “That is why I hire based on qualification, not on race. A pegasus can do just as well in fashion as even the most talented unicorn can. Do you want to succeed in the fashion community, Razzle Dazzle?”

Now this was a little embarrassing. “Oh, not fashion specifically,” she said with a soft wince. “I just want experience, more than anything. I’m an accountant by education, but I’d like to learn whatever I can.”

“There is absolutely nothing wrong with that.” With a final pat to the back of Razzle’s hand, Fine Silk leaned back and levitated her tea cup over. “I find it admirable of you to want to enter any sort of industry to increase your knowledge base. That’s the exact attitude that I’m looking for in my new hires.” Leaving the pegasus in flattered silence for just a few seconds, Fine Silk set her cup down and levitated Razzle’s file into her hands. She looked up quickly after opening the file. “Please, won’t you have a raspberry delight?”

“O-oh, yes please!” Suddenly famished and itching for something sweet, Razzle Dazzle finally got a good look at the baked goods that Baklava had previously brought in. They were little cake sandwiches with a soft white sponge, beautiful cream, and perfect raspberries on top of and in the center. She picked one up delicately and took a bite. Her mouth exploded with the rich sweetness of the cake, the cool cream (with something adding on a little sharpness- maybe mint?), and the tang of the raspberry forming a perfect blend. She was barely able to stifle a moan, but her interviewer only smiled at her apparent enjoyment.

“Feel free to have as many as you’d like,” Fine Silk offered. “I want to make sure that you’re as comfortable as possible while we talk. Now, your resume said that you’re a graduate of the Cloudsdale Trade School, I believe. Can you tell me a little about your experience there? Meaningful courses and extracurricular activities?”

Razzle Dazzle happily talked, answering Fine Silk’s questions with just enough detail to give her a good idea without going overboard and exposing too much. The topic of school, previous work experience, her time at race camp as a filly, and the extracurriculars that she’d done while in school all came and went quickly. What had been painfully awkward and stunted in previous interviews felt so much better to talk about with Fine Silk. She didn’t have that same snide arrogance that so many other Canterlot residents had floating about them like a miasma. The words fell easily from Razzy’s lips, but when she stuttered a little, the unicorn only continued to smile and offered another raspberry delight with a gentle “please, won’t you…?” It was all so cordial yet not rigidly formal.

“I believe I have almost everything that I need,” Fine Silk said after a while, setting the file aside. She’d taken a few notes with a tiny pink quill, but not too many. Eye contact with Razzle had seemed much more important. “Though, won’t you please answer one last question that I have? It will have no bearing on my hiring decision, but I don’t want for it to be too personal.”

“I’d love to answer,” Razzle murmured. Her voice had gotten softer as the interview had continued and she’d gotten more comfortable, sinking further into the loveseat. She was almost tired, but there was something about the raspberry delights that gave her energy. Not an adrenaline rush, no. It was much calmer, more soothing to her nerves. “What would you like to know?”

The designer folded her hands into her lap, letting the silk of her dress shimmer in the weak light of the room. “Just a little about your housing situation. I remember from mailing you the duvet yesterday that you are living a little further down in the Lower Side. Is it still a tenable situation for you?” The words were just as soft as Razzle’s voice, hardly judgmental, only kind.

“Oh...no, not really,” Razzle Dazzle sighed sadly, and the admission of such a disappointment wrenched at her oddly. “It was the best I could find on my budget, but I can’t afford to live there after this month. The moving costs from Cloudsdale…”

“I understand.” Fine Silk lifted a previously unseen silver bell from somewhere and rang it briefly, but made no indication that it was for Razzy. The pegasus was just so relaxed, more so than she had been since moving to the city. “I ask because I have an arrangement with some of my employees. They are in much the same situation as you, so I sometimes provide housing for them, on a case by case basis. Separate rooms, a communal kitchen and washroom. The only rent is a five percent deduction from your pay, but I also pay for the utilities. The only living expenses that you would have to actively pay for would be cooking ingredients and in case there was major damage done to the house.” There was a tap at the door, and Fine Silk stood up to answer. “We do not have to discuss it now. We can figure things out once I’ve drawn up an appropriate contract for you.”

Razzle Dazzle almost laid there on the couch, nearly bewildered with the happiness. Her apartment was hardly considered live-in-able; it was old, run down, with faulty wiring and plumbing that rattled in the night. If Fine Silk was truly serious about her employment offer and the housing could be included? Well, that was just fine with Razzy.

Fine Silk appeared back in front of the pegasus with a small box in her arms. “I would like for you to have this,” she explained. “Regardless of my decision to hire you or not, I want your experience with me to be a positive one. This is a nightgown of my own creation, free of charge. I hope that you may find use for it.”

“O-oh.” The stammering was back, and Razzle Dazzle felt oddly shaky as she got to her feet, but she managed. “I...I couldn’t possibly-”

“Please?” The unicorn offered the box directly to her. “Won’t you take it?”

...how could Razzy say no to such a polite insistence? The whole time that she’d been here had been so delightful, it was like a home that she’d never known could be made here in Canterlot. “Yes. Thank you,” she said, taking the glossy box with more care than she had standing up.

Fine Silk’s smile was absolutely radiant. “Wonderful. I’d like to continue our discussion tomorrow, if possible. I do have clients for most of the day, so won’t you please come back at three o’clock?”

“That would be lovely.” Any chance to see the pleasant unicorn and her staff would be nice, honestly.

“Wonderful.” Fine Silk offered a hand, which Razzle took without hesitation. As they walked back to the foyer, Fine Silk seemed to almost press against the pegasus’ side, the silk of her dress brushing against Razzy’s wing. She could hardly complain, though; Fine Silk’s presence alone was making her feel more warm and welcome in Canterlot than in the three months that she’d been here so far.

“Choquette,” the designer said to her employee as she opened the curtain for her interviewee. The receptionist looked up from her typewriter, a thoughtful frown on her face that was quickly replaced with a brilliant smile. “Would you kindly write down Ms. Delight here for a three o’clock tomorrow?”

“Yes, Miss,” the periwinkle earth pony said softly while her boss guided Razzle to the door. Should Razzle smile back at the receptionist? She seemed to be a bit busy. Maybe she would forgive her tomorrow.

With amiable salutations and one last handshake, Razzle practically pranced down the street and back to her run-down apartment building, warm all over and in the highest spirits that she could ever remember being in. Even though she didn’t get up from her bed after eagerly trying on the nightgown and collapsing on her bed, the pegasus settled into a warm relaxation, bumped up by the future employment prospect and the lingering taste of the raspberry delights.

Maybe things would turn out alright, after all.

Author's Note

Good evening, and I hope that you have enjoyed the first chapter of my very first FIMfiction.

Please let me know what you think of the story in the comments, and I'll have the next chapter edited and posted before you know it.