Shopping at the Boutique (Rarity please)

[IceStorm]

It had been about fifteen minutes since the three ponies Gerty Greeting, Pixel Parcel, and Golden Heart had invited her to come to their anniversary party this afternoon. She was so excited that she could barely contain herself. Her first Ponyville party, and she had only been here for a little over an hour. The only down side was, she didn't bring a lot of her fancy stuff with her. Of course, to most ponies in Canterlot, her style of 'fancy' was still well below their quality, but she liked it and she thought it still looked nice. The simple fact was though, she didn't have any of it with her anymore. She didn't want anything that reminded her of Canterlot at this point other than her business, which after hearing that it could very easily be successful here, she was going to do her best to try to get started.

She trotted along the market area of Ponyville, and much to her surprise, she didn't see much in the way of clothing boutiques. That was, until she looked out closer to the edge of town. The Carousel Boutique, she read. Where have I heard that name before? she thought to herself. The shop itself held up to it's name. It looked exactly like a carousel. I hope they aren't expensive. It looks like this is the only one in town... she thought to herself looking at the mere 10 bits she had in her saddle bag. She could only hope that she wouldn't get laughed out of here because of how little money she had at the moment. Then an idea came to her head. I know! maybe I could work off some of the price if it's more than I can afford. I may not be good at fashion design, but I can at least help in keeping things clean and organized, she thought as she walked through the door. After all, most boutiques are... her thoughts were cut off as she saw how immaculate the shop was.

Everything was pristine, and looked to be of the highest quality that she could only dream of. This unnerved her. She knew that something this high quality would be well outside her price range. Okay, would out right dwarf her price range, and the fact that everything in here was pristine and clean meant that she wouldn't even be able to work anything off because there was no way she could keep this any cleaner than it already was. The more she looked around in the boutique, the more she was amazed by it, and the more she was ready to leave. She knew there was no way she could afford anything here, and she didn't want to waist the shop owner's time. She stopped just as she approached the last items and turned around. Well, maybe I could at least talk to the owner and see what her prices are. I'm expecting very high, but I've been surprised before. she thought to herself.

[RarityDash]

Rarity hummed a song to herself as she worked on one of the many dress orders she had to complete. Today wasn't as busy or hectic as some days, which was nice for a change. It was always pleasant to have a more laid back day every once in a while where she could just focus and get her work done. Days like that were becoming exponentially rarer as her shops reputation only continued to grow. Usually she was simply swamped with work, which made peaceful moments like this all the more sweeter.

The chime of the boutique's door opening sounded then. Rarity smiled. As sweet as the peaceful moments were, she definitely didn't mind taking a moment to serve a customer. No, of course not. Her business and her passion both depended on having new faces walk into her door. Giving a nod, Rarity stepped away from her work bench to greet the customer.

Moving toward the entrance of her shop, she saw the pony. She was a unicorn mare whom Rarity had never seen before. Her coat was pale blue, with a darker blue spot toward her flank; her mane was striped blue and white. She had a distinct look. More importantly, as Rartiy never had seen this pony before, this meant a chance to make a new customer. Rarity had to do her best to impress.

"Greetings! Welcome to Carousel Boutique, darling!" Rarity started with clear excitement. "Ponyville's premier dress shop! From Fillydelphia to Stalliongrad, Las Pegasus to Canterlot, here in Ponyville to under the bright lights of the Ponywalk, ponies rave about our fabulous fashions!" Rarity giggled as she excitedly made her pitch. "I am Rarity, your humble couturier, and it is my guarantee you will leave this fine shop of mine with a dress no short of exquisite!"

Rarity came to a calm and nodded. "Now then. What may I do for you?"

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm continued to look around. Everything in the store was amazing, and Dunder wasn't kidding when he said expensive. She was still trying to place though where she had heard the name before. She wasn't sure, but, she just knew she had heard of it. Just then hoof steps caught her attention, and she turned around to see a beautiful white unicorn mare with a luscious purple mane and tail both, and the three diamonds on her flank as her cutie mark. Everything clicked now, and now she knew why she had heard of this place. This was the boutique that the ponies even back in Fillydelphia were praising. Rarity started off by saying pretty much everything that she had just figured out after Ice Storm saw her. This also unfortunately meant that there was no way she could afford anything. Anything that was done by the great Rarity had to be really expensive and for good reason.

When Rarity asked what she could do for her, Ice Storm was brought back to the present. "Oh, sorry. My mind was drifting elsewhere. My mind was completely blown when I saw you. A lot of Ponies Up in Canterlot, and back in Filly have indeed raved about you," she said to her before blushing a small bit. "The reason I came here was because I was looking for something to wear to a party this afternoon. I only arrived in Ponyville a couple outs ago, and Gerty Greetings and her family have invited me to their anniversary party. The only thing is, is well. I just moved here from Canterlot, and I was far from one of the richer ponies there. It cost me almost everything I had just to get a train ticker here. It was worth it though, to get away from all the degrading the Canterlot residents did to me just because I wasn't born there. The down side is, I unfortunately only have ten bits left to my name. I don't know if you would have anything that would fit in that range. All of your works are simply amazing and deserves every single bit you can get from them. A lot more than I would be able to come up with for a while I'm afraid." She said sheepishly. She had heard rumors that Rarity was one of the six that helped save Equestria twice, but still, there was a limit as to how far generosity could go.

She was even more certain that the fact that she came in here and explained everything, was in the long run a bad move. At this point she only felt like she was wasting Rarity's time that she could be using to handle more important ponies than herself at the moment. She felt absolutely horrible about the fact that she couldn't afford to buy anything. She hated going into a store and not being able to purchase from t because she knew how hard the owners worked for it, especially for something as high quality and magnificent as this. She wouldn't be surprised if Rarity took the fact that she had the nerve to come in here with only ten bits a slap to the face. At the very least she hoped she would be understanding.

[RarityDash]

Raritytried her best to smile as the pony explained her situation. She was surprised that this pony actually had heard of her in both Flillydelphia and Canterlot. Her boastful sales pitch was becoming fact, she supposed. How delightful. Fancypants, Sapphire Shores, Hoity Toity, they all deserved endless praise for helping a small town dress shop like hers reach the next level of notoriety.

This mare's situation was less pleasing though. It happened a lot in a modest town like Ponyville that ponies would enter her shop with no means to pay for one of her high quality dresses. Ten bits just wasn't enough. Even her least pricy off the rack dress sold for fifteen. The time and resources that went into these dresses meant it simply couldn't be done for less. Even if she could do it for ten bits, she couldn't very well take every bit this pony had to her name. Rarity would have to get creative if she was going to make this pony a customer.

"I see. Well, your situation is a difficult one, I must say-- custom dresses here at Carousel Boutique start at twenty-two bits and off the rack prices start at fifteen bits-- but perhaps we may find a working solution yet, darling," Rarity said with an easy nod. "Obviously, we've never met, and while I am a pony who believes firmly in trusting others, just giving you a dress on the promise you'll come back to pay me for it is not smart business."

"If not bits, perhaps you have some manner of collateral to leave with me until you have the opportunity to pay in full?" Rarity suggested with head tilted, as she racked her mind for something this pony could do. It sounded like this mare really needed a dress quickly after all, so Rarity hoped she'd be able to accommodate her. "Or perhaps you can help me with something..."

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm listened as Rarity spoke. She completely understood that her products were over the budget that she had. It was well worth every bit that would be paid for them. She nodded as she said that her situation was indeed difficult, and she easily understood that she couldn't just give her a dress on trust and expect her to come back and pay for it later because they just met. IT would be a horrible business decision. Of course Ice Storm would never betray any shop owner and deprive them of what they are entitled to. That just simply wasn't her way. The very fact that she couldn't afford anything from Rarity bothered her. Not because Rarity couldn't come down in price but because she deserved every bit.

When Rarity asked if she had something for collateral that she could use to come back and pay for the dresses later, Ice Storm Pondered. She didn't have anything in her pack that was worth hardly anything at all. Her head dropped slightly, and she saw the bracelets on her hooves. Her eyes perked up. She didn't know how much they would be worth to Rarity, but her bracelets were worth everything to her. It was the most valuable items that she had with her at the moment. "Well, I don't know how much these are worth, but I do have my bracelets. the two in the front are diamond and the two in the back are Sapphire. They mean the world to me because my mother gave them to me back when we still got along when I was a foal in Fillydelphia. I don't know what they would be worth here, or if they would even be considerable. If not, then I would love to be able to do something for you in return. Right now, I'm still kind of in shock that I'm even standing in the same room. It just pains me that our first meeting had to be with me being... well flat broke for lack of better terms. I do think though that once I find a place to open up Frozen Delights, I will be a regular customer." she said with a smile.

[RarityDash]

Rarity stared at the bracelets. They were lovely. Truly, Rarity was impressed with the quality. They would be more than enough collateral to get this mare a dress. That said, Rarity almost felt bad about the idea. The bracelets seemed to hold a lot of sentimental value to the pony, which made Rarity a little unsure if she should just take them from her or if she even could in good conscious do so.

"Your bracelets are just lovely, darling. They would be more than enough collateral for a wonderful dress, but... I would hate to deprive you of something so clearly important to you for an extended time if it can be avoided..." Rarity said in a heavy voice, still not really sure what to do, but wanting to help the pony.

"If you don't mind me asking, what exactly is it you do? What is this Frozen Delights of yours?" Rarity decided to ask, intrigued. She gave a small laugh and then added, "Oh, and I don't believe I got your name either..."

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm listened when she said that her bracelets would be more than enough for a wonderful dress, and that made her happy. When Rarity said though that she would hate to deprive her of something that was clearly very important to her for any long amount of time if it could be avoided. A short pause and she was going to reply but then Rarity asked what she did, and what her name was. "Oh, how rude of me, I'm so sorry. My name is Ice Storm, and Frozen Delights is a store where ponies will be able to get all kinds of tasty frozen treats. Whether they are looking for Snow Cones, Milkshakes, Ice Cream, Pretty much if it's frozen I can make it. Which also includes Ice sculptures for fancy occasions, and I do also plan on opening an ice skating rink here hopefully in the winter time. It's a lot easier to maintain a lake that is already frozen, not to mentions how difficult it would be to try to make a layer of Ice on a lake thick enough to be safe for ponies could be. I don't know how well the rink will go over here, but the store itself should do great!" She told her. Now she wished that she had saved the last bit of flavoring to show Rarity how wonderful her treats were, but then she also knew that the flavoring syrups could easily stain everything in the room. On second thought, maybe it's a good thing I ran out of flavoring.

"But yes, if it would help me get a dress that I can at least wear to the party, then I would be willing to part with them for as long as I need to. My only concern would be where I would keep the dress after the party. I got so tired of the rudeness of Canterlot that I jumped the gun as they were and came here without even a place to stay. I've basically decided that the park would be as good a place as any, but as for the dress, I couldn't possibly let something like that stay out in the open. Why it would be a complete and utter disgrace against fashion if I were to do that. Maybe Golden Heart and Gerty Greetings will let me leave the dress there until I have a place of my own. IF everything goes well it shouldn't take too long to at least find something small enough to suit me," she said with a smile. She could only hope Rarity would accept. As much as she would love to be able to work something off and help Rarity with anything, she didn't know what she could possibly do to help. Ice Storm didn't know the first thing about fashion, despite living in Canterlot. She did know clean though, and liked being organized, but there wasn't any need for those types of skills here at the moment.

[RarityDash]

Rarity listened with interest. As far as she knew, Ponyville didn't have a shop specializing in frozen treats. That actually sounded quite delightful, she had to say. Ice sculptures and ice skating too? How fun. She could only take the obvious leap in logic and assume that this unicorn's magical talent was for freezing things or at the very least keeping things frozen.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss Ice Storm. Your Frozen Delights sounds simply delightful," Rarity said, giggling at her word choice. "I assure you that once you've opened it, I will be one of the first in line to sample your treats."

Rarity gave a firm nod. She did truly mean this. She wasn't Pinkie Pie by any stretch when it came to sweet treats, but she did enjoy them when well made. Furthermore, as a pony who had already been through the struggle of starting her own business she believed in helping out others who were just starting. The matter of the dress was a little more uncertain, however, but even there she wanted to help this pony.

"If you're really willing to temporarily part with those bracelets, then it's settled. A fine fashion of this quality boutique is all yours," the unicorn said steadily. "As for storage, I wouldn't mind if you kept the dress here until you had a place to put it yourself. That is, if this place is anymore convenient to you."

[IceStorm]

The decision on whether or not she could part with the bracelets temporarily was a quick and easy one. At this point a nice looking dress was more important to her than her bracelets, not to mention the fact that she absolutely refused to leave a shop that she so dearly supported without the ability to buy something. It was just simply unheard of. Without any hesitation she bent over and removed her bracelets and left them on one of Rarity's counters next to her. The fact that Rarity herself also said that she would be the first in line to sample her new treats also made her very happy. If a pony as well known and liked as Rarity enjoyed her treats, then other ponies would surely come from all over to visit her store. Maybe even some of the stuck ups in Canterlot will realized what it was they lost when she decided to move the store here.

"Thank you Miss Rarity. You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear that. I hope that when you do get to try them, that they are simply divine. I do my best to only serve the highest quality products. After all, eating a poorly made snow cone is like trying to eat a mesh-mash of solid ice. Snow cones should be just that, fine as snow, and with only the perfect amount of flavoring. Not too much, but not too little. I can only hope it goes over better here than it did in Canterlot. It got me buy, but I didn't really have time for anything else. Of course, I didn't have many friends in Canterlot, so it didn't really matter," she concluded on that topic.

"As far as the dress, something simple would be fine, perhaps with a bit of an Icy design. I'm not the greatest at fashion myself, so whatever you think would work for me would be amazing," she said with a smile.

[RarityDash]

Rarity could see where this pony was coming from when it came to Canterlot. From personal experience she knew how very difficult some of the ponies in that city could get, even if she liked a lot of the ponies there too. It remained a difficult place to make an impression, much less a good one. While Rarity sometimes lamented living a cozy, all together ordinary little town like Ponyville, it did definitely have a number of advantages.

"You'll find the ponies of Ponyville are much more accommodating than your typical Canterlot crowd," Rarity said steadily. "Honestly, with this town, if you put a lot of love in what you produce and everypony can tell, you will be rewarded for it."

The unicorn smiled and gave a nod toward her dress racks. "But to find you a dress..." she started. "You said the party is today, so we haven't much time. A full custom dress is impossible, but we should be able to find something already made that suits you."

"Perhaps one of these...?" Rarity started, pulling from the rack three dresses. One was short and sporty, a medium blue in color; one was very simple, sleek cut and a very dark blue in color; and the last was mostly white and dotted with some frosted gems and a little more elegant in cut.

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm made a mental note of everything that Rarity as telling her. She already tried to make everything with love and passion because well, she loved working with ice. It made her absolutely happy when a young filly or colt enjoyed one of her frozen treats with a smile. And the frozen sculptures would add an amazing center piece to any party. Rarity told her though that the ponies here in Ponyville were much more accommodating than the once in Canterlot. That's not really that hard, she thought to herself on the matter. Any pony was more accommodating than a pony in Canterlot.

Rarity also turned her attention though back to the task at hand. The party was only in a few hours, and it was as Rarity had said, Impossible to do a full custom dress in so short a time. She completely understood. Something so amazing took time, and time was something that they didn't have. Instead Rarity showed her a couple of other dresses. The first one as a medium blue in color, and was a bit short, and looked to be more of a sporty type, which Ice Storm, didn't prefer that kind of style. It was a gorgeous dress, but not what she had in mind. The second one was a simple dress that was sleek cut. It was a really deep blue in color and was absolutely beautiful. Ice Storm could definitely see herself in that dress. That was until Rarity showed her the third dress, With the way the dress look, it was almost as if it were small pieces of elegantly cut ice place into a snowy fabric that just screamed her name. It was absolutely stunning, and it was almost exactly what she was looking for.

"That one!" she said pointing to the white, jeweled dress. "It's almost exactly what I was picturing for the dress. It's one of the most beautiful things that I have seen," She told her sliding her saddle bags off to try it on. When they hit the ground though, she heard the sound of loose change. I just cleaned those up. I really need to get a new change purse when I get everything going. she thought to herself looking inside the bag. Oh! she said to herself after seeing the extra bits in her bag. I forgot that Dunder had given me some extra bits earlier to use for a room for the week. Surely he wouldn't mind if I used some of it to get this dress. A room for a couple nights can't be that much.

"Rarity, how much is that dress exactly? I just remembered that I had a bit more bits than I thought I did thanks to a generous pegasus from the cafe earlier today. It was supposed to go for me getting a room at the in for a week, but I don't think it will take that long to get settled in." she told her pulling out the bits. Even if it was more than thirty bits, she would be able to at least give her a down payment in good faith. That way she could help gain her trust. Rarity seemed like she would be a really, really good friend, and Ice Storm wanted to do everything she could to get on this pony's good side. She was still insanely happy just to be in the same room with her after all, and her large eyes closed smile couldn't make that fact any more well known.

[RarityDash]

Rarity wasn't very surprised when Ice Storm chose the third dress. It really did suit her best. Her level of enthusiasm however was really quite flattering. Rarity blushed a little at hearing such heavy praise for her work. One of the most beautiful things she'd ever seen? Lines like that always made her proud of her job.

She was quite surprised to hear the pony suddenly say she had more bits she had forgot about. She could understand though; she could get rather forgetful herself at times. Rarity was actually pretty glad though; depriving this pony of her valued bracelets really would have made her feel kind of bad. Hopefully that could be avoided now.

"That's quite fortunate, darling, not to mention charitable of your pegasus friend," Rarity said, smiling. "Perhaps you'll have enough to forego parting with your dear bracelets."

Nodding and then looking down at the dress she added. "I'm glad you like this one. It wasn't made with any one pony in mind, but I am quite proud of the design, and I must say that I think you'll look just darling in it!"

"Of the three i showed you, this is unfortunately the priciest. Even if it isn't custom made, the gems, the fabric, the cut... I'd be hard pressed to sell it for less than thirty-five bits," Rarity's voice became heavier as she spoke of pricing. Even at 35 bits her profits would be smaller than usual.

[IceStorm]

Of course the one that I would have to like would be the most expensive of the three. I suppose that's just how my luck would go. Even then, thirty-five bits for a dress like that is so TOTALLY worth it. That is an amazing price for a dress like that, she thought. Even though she didn't have quite enough to pay for the entire thing at this very moment, she was going to make sure that she was able to pay for the entire thing. It was worth every bit put into it and Rarity deserved every bit she wanted from it. Of course the fact that she had a full thirty bits and was only five short helped her as well. It was a lot easier to work up the amount for five to ten bits, than it was an entire thirty-five. Why she would be able to get that in a heart beat almost.

"Then thirty-five is what I shall pay for it. I don't have 'quite' enough for the whole thirty-five today, but I can give you twenty-five today, and it would leave me with five bits, enough to at least get a meal at the cafe should things stretch that far, and ten bits should be easy to come by one I get the shop going. With as marvelous that dress is, I couldn't dream of paying any less for it. In fact, I was shocked when you said that. I was honestly expecting a much higher price, maybe closer to the seventy-five to eighty bit range, but I'm not complaining. It shouldn't take me overly long to come up with the remaining ten bits, and I'll still leave my bracelets here for collateral as well. That is of that's acceptable to you of course. After all, I'm just the customer, and I refuse to pay less than what would be due just because I'm suffering a small set back in life," She said her smile still as big as ever.

[RarityDash]

Rarity smiled at the pony's enthusiasm for her dress and willingness to pay. Her continued compliments only further heightened the dressmaker's spirits.

"Feel free to keep your bracelets. Twenty five its is fine as a down payment. You can pay the rest when you are able," Rarity said with a steady nod. She hadn't known her long, but Rarity had met untrustworthy ponies before, and this simply wasn't one. This pony would pay her back. She was nothing but confident in that. "Besides, I think you'll find those bracelets should compliment that dress of yours wonderfully, darling," she added with a small laugh.

"Speaking of which, did you want to try it on? I may need to do some quick alterations if it doesn't fit you quite right," she then suggested, tilting her head and continuing to smile.

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm couldn't believe that Rarity was going to let her keep her bracelets. So far in her short time in Ponyville all the ponies have shown her kindness that she never thought existed. She also added that the bracelets would also complement the dress wonderfully as well. She knew that if it came from Rarity and it was about fashion, it was true. Everything she had heard, and everything she had seen only further proved that. When Rarity asked if she wanted to try it on to make sure it fit properly she nodded. She added that she would need to make a few alterations if it didn't fit exactly right. Ice Storm nodded. "I would love to try it on. I can't wait to look in the mirror while I have it on." she stated. She knew that she would need some help getting it on though. It was a brand new dress and she wasn't completely sure how it was going to fit, so she decided it would be best to let the professional here help her at least get started so she didn't accidentally damage the dress while trying to get it on.

[RarityDash]

Rarity nodded at her customer. "Alright. Let's do this then!" she enthusiastically started as she lifted up the dress.

"Let's make you look fabulous, darling!" she squealed as she moved toward Ice Storm. With surprising speed, the fashion minded unicorn proceeded to fit the pony into the dress. Only moments later, she stepped back to observe.

"It's a little big on you. I'll have to adjust the length, but that should take but a moment," Rarity said nodding, as she studied the pony and the dress closely. Even if the dress wasn't the perfect size right now, she could already tell how excellent this was going to look. She was eager to show it off to the pony. "Do you want to see how you look now, or wait until its perfect?"

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm stood perfectly still while Rarity was fitting her for the dress and made sure if fit on her correctly. It did feel a tad bit large on her, and Rarity noticed it immediately as well. Fortunately Rarity said that it wouldn't take very long to make the alterations needed to help shorten the dress up on her. Ice Storm though was filled with excitement. She was actually buying a dress from Rarity. the very thought of it made her so happy inside that she could start bouncing around the store in glee. Sh restrained herself though. This was a store of fashion and Delicacy. Any type of horseplay, or in Ice Storm's case, a very much over display of pure excitement, would be highly frowned upon and cause damage to several things in the room.

That was something she knew well enough to avoid. She remembered what happened in Canterlot when one of the spoiled foals came into her shop and started bouncing on everything and ended up breaking a table, and spilling a snow cone on another pony. If there was one thing that she knew from snow cones, those syrups stained. It was just a big mess for her to deal with, and that was just with a snow cone. She knew that in fashion it was a lot more difficult than that. It was easy for Ice Storm to replace a spilled snow cone, but a torn up dress from an accident would be completely unacceptable.

Once Rarity was done fitting it to her just to see how much larger it was, Rarity asked her if she wanted to see how she looked now or if she wanted to wait until it's perfect. "Oh, the excitement is killing me inside. I think though, that if I looked at it in it's unfinished state, it would only make me that much more excited to see it when it's done. So that being said, I'd like to wait until everything is finished. I just know it's going to be amazing, but it will be even more amazing to see everything in it's full perfection. I've never actually owned anything this fancy before," she said truthfully. As much as she wanted to look in the mirror, she knew it would only make her fidgety, which Rarity did not need at the moment.

[RarityDash]

"Very well! I more than understand, darling," Rarity said with a pleased nod. She was happy with Ice Storm's choice. She preferred not to present anything less than a perfect finished product, she only asked because it remained the customer's decision. Some ponies were quite lacking in patience after all.

"Let me see what I need to do..." Rarity muttered to herself as she found her tape measure. She started taking various measurements, both of the pony and the dress.

"Alright. Let's get you out of it," the unicorn started as she, using her magic, to quickly but carefully remove the dress from the pony. She nodded when it was fully removed, holding it up before her.

"Now then, time to do the alterations!" Rarity started with excitement as she took the dress over to her workbench and found her sewing tools. "This shouldn't take more than ten minutes really. Feel free to look around the shop if you'd like."

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm could see that Rarity was quite pleased with her answer, and she stood there perfectly still once again while she finished the measurements that she needed to make to make the dress perfect. Once she finished with that Rarity carefully removed the dress and said that she should have the dress ready in about ten minutes, that she could look around the store if she wanted. Ice Storm nodded. A chance to explore the boutique was amazing, especially since once her business was running, she was more than likely going to be a frequent customer of Rarity's Everything was just perfect here, and Rarity herself was such a nice pony, she just had to be there to support her business.

She went over to the shelves and she started to look at some of the more expensive dresses. Everything was absolutely flawless, and she wondered why more ponies haven' swarmed the place. It's not even that pricy for the quality of work that goes into everything made here. Ice decided that it would be best for her to avoid the pricier section for now though. While she was fully confident in herself to not make any mistakes, in a store like this, you always have to expect the unexpected and she didn't want to damage anything, much less something that she couldn't afford. She used this opportunity to pull out the twenty-five bits that she was going to pay Rarity back and she proceeded to put her bracelets back on. A small part inside of her was glad that Rarity was letting her keep them. She wasn't joking when Ice said they meant the world to her. They were the only things she had of her mother from when she was actually a nice pony.

After that Ice Storm just sat by the counter and let Rarity do her work. Any distractions could prove to be costly as well so she just simply watched as Rarity made the alteration. She was getting somewhat of an idea of how everything was done, but an idea is hardly enough information to go off of. The excitement was building in ICe again though the more she watched Rarity work on it, and she looked up to the clock outside. it was already a little bit after two. The party was in less than an hour! She became slightly worried, but she didn't voice anything because she wanted to let Rarity work in peace. There would be plenty of time for chatter when she was done.

[RarityDash]

For several minutes, Rarity focused on the delicate work of properly altering the dress to better fit Ice Storm's form. She remained resolutely focused, only stopping every so often to adjust her work glasses or nod to herself. Everything moved at a nice, steady pace, so much so that Rarity began humming a song to herself as she worked.

Then, after just under ten minutes of expert work, Rarity lifted the dress, studied it and realized she could find no further faults. "It's done!" she declared, beaming with pride.

She moved toward Ice Storm, not intent on wasting a single moment's time. "Hold still now as I put this back on, darling!"

With that, the dressmaker quickly dressed her customer in the altered gown. When that was done, she took a step back. She nodded as she studied Ice Storm. Perfection. She resisted letting out an unbecoming squeal, and instead, just nodded and gave a beaming smile.

"Quickly now, dear. You simply must see yourself!" Rarity muttered, stepping toward a large mirror at the side of the room.

[IceStorm]

It was nearly impossible for the smile on Ice Storm's face to be any larger with how happy she was right now. Short of her using her hooves to stretch her face and make herself look silly anyway. It only grew even more though when Rarity said that she was finished with the dress. With professional speed Rarity had moved over to her and fitted her with the dress once more. This time though the dress fit more more comfortably, and she could tell that everything had been altered with expert precision, and it fit every curve of her body almost as if she were wearing a cloud. It was amazingly comfortable, and she already knew it was going to be beautiful.

Her Excitement was only further fueled by Rarity's own excitement in wanting to show it to her. She quickly followed Rarity over to the mirror that she had moved next to and looked in it. Ice Storm's mouth fell into the largest open-mouth smile that she could muster, and her eyes were filled with the over radiating about of joy that she had just from looking in the mirror. Why if she had a dress like this when she lived in Canterlot, she might have been treated different there. As is was though she was happy she didn't. If her negative experiences in Canterlot never happened, she wouldn't be standing here in the boutique now. She didn't regret anything at this point. "Oh my, Rarity it's beautiful. This one dress has already made everything else I've been through seem so worth it. No, they don't seem, they were totally worth it, and I'd go through everything again just to be able to buy this dress."

The more she looked at the dress in the mirror, the more it shown on her. The gems that were dotting the dress sparkled brilliantly, and their coloration made them look like ice, and the pure whiteness of the dress was that of snow, and with the icy blue color of her coat, and the darker blues and whites of her manes made the whole thing exhilarating. "Rarity, I can't thank you enough. This is quite possibly the most wonderful thing I've ever owned. I guarantee you this dress will always be kept pristine," she told her remembering that Gerty and Golden said that everypony was invited. A chance to spend more time with Rarity was something that Ice Storm was all for. "Do you think you'll be able to make it to the party this afternoon? I would love to be able to hang out and talk with you when it's non-business related at some point. You seem to be a really, really good pony to have as a friend," she finished with a smile.

[RarityDash]

Rarity was delighted to see Ice Storm so happy. It made her somewhat lower asking price and agreement to wait an unknown amount of time for what amounted to almost a third of the cost entirely worth it. Seeing such a reaction made everything about Rarity's job just so entirely satisfying. Her smile as she watched the other mare was almost as wide as the one Ice Storm herself wore.

Rarity was also happy to be invited to the party. She smiled. She was glad to see this pony was eager to be her friend. She gave a nod to Ice Storm. "I'd be delighted to attend, dear."

Looking around her empty shop a moment, she then added. "As you can see, today is a quiet day for me. I should have no problems closing the boutique early." She gave a warm laugh. "And I really do enjoy a nice party."

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm looked over to Rarity, and she could easily see that she was happy. Of course at this moment how could anypony be anything but happy?There was a party happening within the hour for two ponies that had spent their lives together that she had gotten invited to without even being in Ponyville for an hour, and Ice herself manages to not only get the chance to not only meet Rarity, but buy something from her as well as possible become her friend! This so far was absolutely the best day that Ice Storm could have had. She didn't know what else could happen on this day that could make her any happier.

As soon as she thought that though, rarity stated that she would indeed love to attend the party. She said that it had been a rather quiet day for her and that she should have no problem closing it early and that she did like a good party. "Yay!" Ice squealed and had to restrain herself from running and giving Rarity a hug. "I've never been to a party here before. Well, I can't really say I've ever been to a party before, what are they like here?" she asked hoping to get some insight on what was to come.

[RarityDash]

Rarity smiled at the other pony's enthusiasm as well as the hug she received. Ice Storm was a really kind, sincere pony; she could tell already. She'd fit in here in Ponyville. Rarity could already tell that much.

"Well, parties in Ponyville usually mean Pinkie Pie. There aren't a lot of ponies like Pinkie. She's kind of unique. However, her parties are invariably entertaining and she is a delight to be around-- most of the time that is, at least," Rarity said with a nod. She found it surprising that this pony had never been to a party. Well, most of the important parties in Canterlot were big social functions like the Gala, she supposed, which was really a different sort of thing entirely.

"There will be fun and games, lots of colorful ponies to enjoy the company of, and most likely some of the tastiest of treats you can imagine," Rarity steadily said. "That's how it usually is here, at least."

[IceStorm]

Ice storm listened as Rarity described Pinkie Pie. She sounded like a fun pony to be around if her parties were that entertaining, and when she listened to how Rarity depicted parties here in Ponyville, she was even more excited to go. Ever since she came to ponyville she's experience nothing but happiness. Now she obviously knew that she couldn't be happy all the time, but as far as today went, she doubted that there was a single thing that could make her unhappy today. So far it has been the most perfect day that she has ever had. She looked outside to the clock tower and saw that the party was going to be starting in about twenty minutes. "Oh, I'm even more excited to go, and it starts in only about twenty minutes. Is there anything I can do to help you close up? I don't know where anything goes obviously but I can help with smaller things if you'd like!" she said to her happily, "Oh, and once I get everything going we should totally do lunch sometime," she said with a small laugh.