>You went to work for her that summer.
>Just a teenage kid so far from home.
>The antics with your friends and a broken window resulted in you working to pay off her repairs.
>You groan as Pipsqueak and Rumble tail you through Ponyville.
"This sucks! How can Mom just agree to trade me into slavery like that?"
>Your buddies laugh behind you.
"Hey shut up! This is your fault anyways," you say, pointing an accusing finger at Rumble.
>"Me? How is it my fault?"
"It was your sling shot!"
>"It's Pip's slingshot."
>"But it was your idea," replied Pip.
>"Hey, he went through with it."
"You dared me to!"
>"Well maybe you shouldn't have gotten caught," shrugged Rumble.
"Yeah, because I'm some sort of ninja, right?"
>"Well you should be," said Pip. "It's not like there are any other 5 foot apes around to take the blame."
>Ape.
>You press your foot against Pip's shoulder and kick, shoving him to the ground several feet away.
"Don't call me that!"
>"You don't need to get mad," said Pip as he rose to his hooves. "I didn't mean anything by it."
>"Yeah, Anon," said Rumble. "Just cool it. How bad can this be, anyways?"
"That lady's evil, that's how."
>"They say that when her husband passed away a few years ago, she just went crazy," added Pip.
>"Crazy how?" asked Rumble.
"Crazy as in she locks herself in her store and only comes out at night to walk the lakeshore."
>"That's not crazy," scoffed Rumble. "Crazy is like Screwloose."
"Yeah, I suppose that is pretty crazy."
>The three of you at last came upon her shop.
>"Welp, I'm out," said Rumble.
>"Yeah. Good luck, Anon," said Pip. "Oh! Before I forget. Have you talked to your mom about canceling school next year?"
"Yes."
>"And?"
"She said to quit my belly-aching."
>"Way to let us down, Anon," said Rumble.
"Bite me. Lets see you live with your teacher for a week."
>"I'll pass. See you around."
>"See ya, Anon."
>Rumble and Pip turned around to leave you to your fate.
"I hate you both. See you later."
>You turn and stare up at the decorative building before you.
>You knock three times and wait.
 
>The door opened after a quick minute and a white unicorn stood in the doorway.
>Her mane and coat were slightly ruffled in some spots.
>She wore eye glasses and had a measuring tape around her neck.
>"Yes? Oh, it's you. Cheerilee said you would be here earlier."
"Sorry Miss Rarity. Mom had me do som-"
>"You're late. No excuses. You would think Cheerilee would have distilled that into your brain already."
>You scowled hard.
>No one talks bad about your mother...
>"But I suppose we're wasting even more time making idle chatter," she continues.
>Rarity levitates a sponge and bucket to you from inside.
>"First, I want you to clean the windows. When you finish, come find me inside."
>She stepped back and closed the door.
>You stand there holding the bucket of soapy water.
>You contemplate knocking again and throwing it in her face when she answers.
>But your mom told you to work for her, and her word is law.
>You walk around the house, scrubbing each window on the ground floor.
>Looking up the the second story, you wonder if she actually expects you to climb up there and wash them.
>Probably.
>You look around for a ladder or something to use.
>There's no ladder, but there is a tree that you can use to get to the window sill.
>A small ledge pokes out from the building, going around the boutique.
>You can hold onto that while you clean.
>You hold the bucket in your mouth by the handle and climb the tree with ease.
>As you shimmy along a branch, you ready yourself to vault and grab onto the window sill.
>One, two...
>"Hi Anon!"
"Aah!"
>You're startled and fall to the ground with a crash.
>The bucket falls over your head, soaking you.
>A soft blue aura lifts the bucket from your head.
>A pair of light green eyes stare at you when you are able to see.
 
>"Sup?" asked Sweetie Belle.
"Just busy being a slave. What's up with you? I thought you were at your parents' house?"
>"I'm just here to pick something up. I heard about the sling shot."
"Yeah, that was bull crap. How did you ever survive this when you were living here?"
>Sweetie Belle giggled.
>"I understand my sister. And by the way, there's a step ladder in the cellar. I'll get it for you."
"Thanks, I guess."
>Sweetie Belle went into the boutique and returned several minutes later with a box abd a ladder.
>"Here you are. And Rarity said to tell you not to scratch her windows."
>"Thanks. And no promises."
>Sweetie Belle smiled and rolled her eyes.
>"I'll see you around, okay?"
"You got it."
>She walked away, singing softly to herself.
 
>You went back to work.
>After a short while, she stopped you for lunch.
>Taking a seat at the kitchen table, she set a sandwich down in front of you.
>It was made with extreme care.
>Almost like she took a measuring tape to it to get the toothpick and olive perfectly centered.
>You reach to grab it, but get a sharp crack on the hands by a wooden spoon.
>You yelp in pain and stuff your hands beneath your arm pits.
>You glare at Rarity with slitted eyes.
>"Oh don't look at me like that. Where are your manners, young man?" she chastises.
>You remove your hands from you pits and set them on your lap.
"Thank you, Miss Rarity," you say in a sarcastic tone.
>"You're quite welcome, Anonymous."
>Rarity sets another plate across from you and takes a seat herself.
>You watch as she lifts the sandwich to her mouth and gently take a bite.
>You find it slightly odd how she chews with her eyes closed.
>When she swallows, she opens her eyes and you quickly look down as to appear you weren't staring.
>You grab your sandwich and peek up.
>Rarity was watching you.
>You slowly take a bite and chew.
>"Elbows off the table."
"What," you ask, spewing crumbs across the table.
>Rarity looks on in disgust.
>"And no speaking with your mouth full."
>She uses a napkin to wipe the table.
>You remove your elbows from the table and continue eating.
>"Looks like we need to work on your manners, too."
 
>Lunch finishes and she sends you back to doing chores, starting with the dishes.
>As the sun begins its descent, Rarity releases you of your binds and allows you to go home.
>You throw open your front door and plop face-first onto the sofa and groan.
>"Have a good day at work?" asked Cheerilee.
"No. It was horrible. She made me clean her house."
>Cheerilee chuckled.
>"That's about what I expected her to do."
"Then she hit me with a wooden spoon."
>"Oh my. What for?"
"She said I have bad manners."
>Your mother gave you a poker face.
"What?"
>"You do have some bad habits, Anon. Perhaps Miss Rarity can teach you a thing or two and maybe you can pay her with more than simple chores for a broken window."
>Hearing your own mother criticise you has got to be one of the most degrading things ever.
>You turn your face back into the couch.
>"Oh don't pout like that," said Cheerilee. "Things could be worse. Now move your flank and help me make dinner."
>You make an effort to roll off the couch and onto the floor.
>Cheerilee rolls her eyes with a smile.
>She gives you a soft kick to nudge you.
>"What do you want for dinner?"
>You follow your mom into the kitchen and prepare the quickest, simplist thing you can think of.
>Macaroni and tomato juice.
>The two of you eat at the table in relative silence.
"Hey, Mom. Is Miss Rarity crazy?"
>Cheerilee looks at you in shock.
>"Anon! What an awful thing to ask!"
"Sorry. I was talking with the guys and-"
>"No, she's not, but she's probably still reeling from her husband's death."
"But wasn't that many years ago?"
>"Since you were very young and when you could still ride on my back."
"Oh... I do remember hearing about it, but I was just curious."
>"Some ponies just can't seem to cope with it. They were such a young couple, too. It really is quite sad."
"Yeah..."
 
>The next morning, Rarity had you following her around the market to carry her things.
>Why one pony needs so much junk is beyond you.
>As you're waiting for Rarity to finish her chat with the florist, you hear someone call your name.
>"Hey! Anon!"
>You turn around and look past the pile of stuff in your arms.
"What's up, Pip? Rumble?"
>"We can ask you the same thing," Rumble said with a smirk.
>"Haha. Yeah, Anon. What gives?" chuckled Pip.
>"Thank you, darling," said Rarity. "Have a nice day."
>"You too," said Roseluck.
>"Come along, Anonymous, dear," Rarity said to you.
"Yes, Miss Rarity."
>You look back at Rumble and Pip who were biting their lips to try not to laugh.
>Their stupid smiles gave it away.
"Hey, shut up."
>"Pfft-AHAHAHAHA!"
>They rolled on the ground laughing at your expense.
>You roll your eyes and follow Miss Rarity.
>Your friends get to their hooves and follow you, still giggling like a bunch of idiots.
>"So... Dear? Miss?" asked Rumble. "What are you, her pet now?"
"No. I'm her-"
>"Servant," blurted Pip.
"No, her-"
>"Pack mule," blurted Rumble.
"No! Just an unpayed employee who must work off his debt by doing everything she says."
>A brief silence.
>"I fail to see how that's any different from what we said," said Pip.
>"It's not," said Rumble. "He's just trying to keep the little dignity he has left," he said with a smirk.
"Yeah, pretty much," you concede.
>"Anonymous, darling. Would you be a dear and set those on the counter?"
>Rarity held the door to the boutique open for you.
>You hadn't even noticed you were back yet.
>"Well Anon, you seem busy working against your will, so we're gonna cut out on ya and go play hoofball."
"I wanna play hoofball..." you whine.
>Rarity clears her throat.
"Right. See you guys later."
>You step inside and Rarity follows.
"On the counter, right?"
>"Yes, please. I'll put that stuff away later. Go tidy up my work room if you please."
"Yes ma'm."
>Rarity smiles as you turn around to do as you were told.
>It's only been a day, and it seems you've already learned.
>She was expecting that to take much longer.
>Content, she goes about her business putting her groceries away.
 
>The week goes on.
>You learned the second day how useless it was to even try to fight.
>That wooden spoon of hers scared the hell out of you.
>She even seemed to be lightening up on you with the chores and even allowing you to go at lunch.
>She was extremely grateful to have you do her daily chores because she could focus on getting her orders completed.
>Friday she asked you to stay later that night to help her finish the last big order of the week.
>You agreed on the grounds that you don't have to come in tomorrow.
>You fetched her various tools and fabrics as she expertly sewed and attatched accessories to her dresses.
>It was late in the evening when she finished the dress.
>You wipe the sweat from your brow and Rarity takes a deep sigh of relief.
>"Finally finished," said Rarity.
>You start cleaning up the shop and putting everything away.
>"Oh, there's no need to do that, darling. I'll take care of it later."
"No you won't," you say with a smile. "You'll just put it off and call it 'organized chaos'."
>Rarity smiled.
>"Yeah, I suppose. Thank you for helping me. I really appreciate it."
"No problem, Miss Rarity."
>"Darling please. Just call me Rarity. You make me feel old when you say 'miss' or 'ma'am'."
"Yes ma- Rarity."
>Rarity puffed her cheeks at your near blunder but dismissed it.
>"Well I'm going to pack these dresses for pick up. You're free to go when you finish. If I'm done before you, I'll come help."
"Okay."
>You were gone long before she returned.
>The shop was clean and tidy when you left.
>It was extremely late when you got home.
>Your mom sat up waiting the whole time.
>She jumped to her hooves when you walked through the door.
>"Anonymous! Where have you been?" she asked angrily, but with obvious worry in her eyes.
>She usually asks you about your day, but you understand why she would ask otherwise.
"Miss Rarity asked me to stay late to help her finish a big job in exchange for not coming in tomorrow."
>Cheerilee breathed a sigh of relief.
>"Well that was awfully nice of you, but I'm afraid you are going to work tomorrow."
"What?! Why! We made a deal!"
>"I'm sorry Anon, but your commitment was for a week of work. It's only your last day so it shouldn't be that bad."
"But Moooom," you groan.
>"No buts," she said. "Have you eaten yet?"
"Yes."
>That was a lie.
>You've been too busy to eat.
>"Oh, okay then. Well go take a bath and go to bed. It's way past your curfew."
>You have no objections.
>You're way too tired to argue.
>A quick bath later and you're crawling in your bed.
>You fall asleep as soon as your head hits the pillow.
 
>Your mom allows you to sleep in late before you go back to the boutique.
>The shop is still open in the morning on Saturdays, so you don't knock as you enter.
"Miss Rar- I mean, Rarity?" you call. "Are you home? My mom said I had to come in today even though you said no."
>You stand in the foyer and wait.
>You don't hear any response so you decide to walk through the shop.
>You don't find her anywhere downstairs so you go upstairs and call her name once more.
>You have apprehensions about walking through her living space without permission, but you proceed.
>You call her name again with no response.
>You come across her bedroom door slightly cracked open.
>Sobs and soft cries can be heard coming from the room.
>You peek in and slowly open the door.
>Rarity was sitting on the edge of her bed, staring down at a picture frame.
"Miss Rarity?"
>Rarity shrieked at the sound of the unexpected voice.
>She quickly stuffed the picture frame into the nightstand drawer and turned towards you.
>"Anon?! W-What are you doing here? I said you don't have to come in today!"
"I-I'm sorry. My mom told me to come in anyways and... Is everything okay?"
>Your show of concern calmed her and she sat back down.
>She pulled the picture from the nightstand once more.
>"I don't even know anymore," she said, her eyes locked onto the photograph.
>You were standing in the doorway, but slowly made your way to the bed.
>You peer over her shoulder at the photo and she tilts it for you to see better.
"Is that?"
>"My late husband, yes," answered Rarity.
>The young stallion in the photo was a unicorn with a brilliant white coat and well-kept blue mane.
"What was his name?"
>"Elusive."
>Rarity smiled.
>"And let me tell you, he was true to his name. It took quite a while for him to agree to a date with me."
>Her smile disappeared.
>"We were only still newlyweds when... It's our anniversary today."
>She began to choke up again.
>You decided it would be wrong to ask what happened.
>You take a seat beside Rarity with no objections from her.
>As she begins to wail again, she leans into you and cries into your chest, wrapping her forelegs around you.
>You sieze up and your eyes go wide.
>You have no idea what to say or do.
>This is beyond your level of normal thinking.
>You never knew anypony who's died so you can't sympathize with her.
>You extend a hand and hover it over her shoulder for several moments before softly bringing it down.
>With no objections, you bring your other hand around her and hold her softly.
>You sit awkwardly for what feels like 20 minutes.
>Rarity has stopped crying and only the occasional sob escapes her.
>You softly caress her mane in silence.
"I'm sorry," you finally say to break the silence.
>"It's not your fault," said Rarity. "It's nopony's fault. I've been trying to make it on my own, but I don't know how much longer I can do this..."
>You tighten your grip ever so slightly.
>Rarity curls in your embrace.
"Maybe you just need someone to talk to."
>"I've tried talking to my friends, but they don't seem to fully understand my pain."
"I wish I could help."
>Rarity turns her head up to you for a moment but goes back to staring at the wall before the two of you.
>"I know you do, darling. But I'm afraid you are also too young to understand a broken heart."
>You sit in relative silence for a few more minutes.
"Well, I think we should go get our day started," you suggest.
>Rarity sits up and smiles at you.
>"Yes, I think that would be best. Thank you for the talk."
>You stand off the bed and walk to the door.
"I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
>"But you don't work tomorrow?" questioned Rarity.
"I know," you say with a reassuring smile.
>You close the bedroom door and leave the boutique.
>You have a whole new understanding and respect for her now.
>You're almost glad your mom forced you to come to work today.
 
>The next morning, you wake up on your own and make your way to the boutique.
>You knock three times and get invited inside.
"Good morning, Miss Rarity. What do you-"
>Rarity cleared her throat.
"Oh, sorry. Rarity, what do you have for work today?"
>"Well somepony ordered a single dress so it should be an easy day. Why don't you go sweep out the foyer and we'll go from there."
"Okay."
>You do as instructed, but decide to go beyond and sweep and mop the entire shop.
>It's lunchtime when you finish mopping and you go find Rarity.
>She leaves you waiting at the kitchen table while she goes to put the completed dress away.
>After several minutes of waiting, she finally returns with-.
>Your eyes go wide and your jaw hits the table.
>Rarity had walked back into the kitchen wearing a lacy black garment and striped purple socks.
>Her head was slightly turned to give a sultry pose.
>You can tell it's something she hasn't worn in quite a while.
>She had just enough makeup on to bring out her eyes that much more.
>She smiled and her saucer-like sapphire eyes gave an allure gaze with a hunger even a boy can recognize.
>She walked towards the table with an exaggerated hip swing.
>You said nothing.
>All you could do was stare.
>Rarity walked behind you and rose onto herhind legs.
>She threw her forelegs over each shoulder and brought her head down beside yours.
"Miss Rarity I-I... I don't-."
>"Shh..." she hushed quietly.
>She hugged your neck and rubbed her face against yours and sighed.
>You take notice of the wonderful aroma that radiated from her.
>"Don't call me 'Miss'," she said.
>Her scent filled your nostrils, intoxicating you to the point of total obliviation to what she's saying.
>You close your eyes and inhale deeply.
>If you could name the scent, it would have to be something like Vanilla Rose.
>You breathe it in as slow as possible so as to smell her perfume for as long as possible.
>You exhale through your mouth after your lungs fill to capacity.
>A large smile comes across your face.
>You are in a state of total bliss.
>"Do you like it?" askes Rarity.
>Your eyes snap open and your smile disappears.
>Rarity giggled, an obvious difference in her laughter.
>"Elusive bought it for me. When I would wear it, he would go absolutely crazy. I suppose the scent has gotten stronger with age."
>She stood there in silence.
>You still did not speak.
>"I thought about what you said. About how you can help."
>You turn your head slightly to try to look into her eyes.
>"I just need help getting over my depression. And I must say, I've grown particularly fond of your company over the last week."
>She gives a playful nip to your ear lobe.
>"I think I'm ready to let him go."
 
>You find yourself sitting on the edge of her bed.
>Rarity was standing on her hind legs, her forehooves in your hands and sharing a deep, passionate kiss with you.
>Without words, she peeled your shirt off and layed you on your back.
>She had climbed on top and ran her hooves over your smooth skin.
>Her coat felt like velvet to the touch.
>Her silken garments added a second sensation.
>There was a softness in her eyes.when she undid your belt.
"I-I... Uh... I never..."
>Rarity softly touched a hoof to your lips.
>"That's quite alright, darling. Just follow my lead, okay?"
>You nod slowly as she pulls your pants off.
 
>In the blissful afterglow of your heated passion, Rarity curls into you and rests her head on your chest.
>You look down and lock eyes.
>A storm in all its wonder rages in your lover's eyes.
>You ask an innocent question, one she is all too eager to answer.
>She gives you a paying job for the rest of the summer.
>You even got a few benefits on the side.
>Rarity allowed you to bathe in her pristine bathroom before you went home.
>"How was your day?" asked Cheerilee when you did finally get home.
>You walked past her and to your room.
>Your head hit the pillow and you were out.
>And it was still early in the afternoon.
 
>It is now years later.
>You still remember that night.
>You never had another summer where you learned so much.
>And never have you held another mare quite like then or felt the same as you did with her.
>She was definitely somepony special.
>If you could work another summer at the boutique, you wouldn't hesitate in the least.