arcanarumlogs | Take your pony to work day!

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Take your pony to work day!

Who: Rarity, Minato and France
When: Back-dated to January 06
Where: On the way to France's home and then in it.
What: Rarity wants to see France's work. Minato takes her to France's home.
Warnings: Extremely fashionable fashion inside.

[Not too long after having ceased talking with Rarity via the mirrors, Minato's on his way down the lilac district road, hands in pockets and tail flicking back and forth behind him. Thanks to the wonderful Rulers of this place, some time ago he was gifted with the tail of a dragon. The dragon was once a carp, and so some fishy qualities have remained, like the koi-like coloration and fins, but either way, it's nuisance at worst and just kind of there at best. It probably looks a little odd, but Minato's gotten over being bothered by it by now, or so it seems.

In any event, when he watches sight of the unicorn, Minato pulls one hand out of his pocket to wave at her until he thinks he has her attention, and then he returns it as he wanders over.]

Hello again.

((ooc: I just copypastad my last tag from the thread with Rarity here, but if y'all want to do prose tags instead, I'm fine with that. Also, once Minato and Rarity get to France's house, just whatever turn order winds up working best? ))

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My, that had been fast! Rarity had been eager to get outside and look around, and she had been stepping from one hoof to the other in anticipation of Minato's arrival. Once she saw him, her ears flattened out of nervousness. He was the first human she had ever seen in person, and she was a bit nervous. But the little pony was finally able to steel her fears and trot over. She had to trust the people here. They may be the only hope she had in getting back to Equestria.

"Oh, you made it! Hello, again!"

"Pleased to meet you in person," Minato said, nodding to her and offering a polite smile. He did his best not to stare overmuch, for he'd never actually seen a unicorn before, and besides, the way she shifted, she seemed a bit nervous. Staring at people was the last thing that had any chance of helping nervousness. "Um... would you prefer to go straight to France's house, or would you like a bit of the tour of this place first? I know it's... a lot to adjust to."

"It certainly is," Rarity agreed. "I just found out that my magic does not work here." The Rulers were so mean! If her friends were here, they would not stand for the way everyone was being treated. If only they and the Elements of Harmony were here. "Perhaps a brief tour would be beneficial."

"That is unfortunate, though you're not the only one who's lost powers in being brought here. I think it's just one of many things the Rulers do to us..." He sighed softly, tail lashing once behind him. But then he shrugged and turned a little, indicating that they might as well be off. "The island is circular, and their castle is at the dead center, though none of us have managed to get inside it, and the Rulers have punished anyone who has tried. There's a large forest that surrounds the castle, but you should be careful if you ever go in. There are dangerous creatures that lurk there. However, the rest of the island is safe enough to wander about on..." He paused, looking sidelong at her. "What sorts of things could you do with your magic, if you don't mind saying?"

The movement of the tail caught Rarity's glance for a second. She did not know humans had tails! The book neglected to mention that. She did not want to seem rude by staring, though, so Rarity quickly looked forward and stepped up to walk beside Minato. She listened with both interest and disdain at what he had to say. These Rulers coltnapped all creatures, took away their magic, and then punished them if they disobeyed? It was like a prison! A beautiful, fairytale prison.

She was looking down at the ground when the boy questioned her abilities. Talking about herself always made Rarity cheer up, and so she raised her head proudly and returned his gaze. "Oh, lots of things!" she said as she forced a smile to her muzzle. "I can move things without needing to carry them. That is how I use scissors... For some reason, scissors are made for people with fingers, but ponies do not have any! Yet they are still sold in stores that way. Come to think of it, needles aren't made for hooves, either..."

For the most part, Minato rarely even thought about his tail anymore. It was a minor inconvenience he'd more or less learned to work around, though it still tended to betray his mood rather more than his subdued facial expressions normally did. But had Rarity voiced her thoughts about this place being a beautiful, fairytale prison, he would have been quick to agree.

As it was, however, he listened to her describing her powers and talking about sewing implements, blinking in confusion. "Are there only ponies where you are from?" Because if that was the case, then it really didn't make sense for their tools to be made for things with hands...

Rarity shook her head. "Oh, no, there are all sorts of other animals. My dear friend Fluttershy keeps animals all over her home, and I, myself have my own kitty-witty!" Poor Opal. Rarity hoped that she was alright. "Another friend of mine is a baby dragon..." Her smile faded completely here and she lowered her head. It must have looked quite uncomely, but Rarity missed her friends a lot. She rarely did anything without them.

"But not really many beings with hands..." He might have said more, but Rarity looked so sad, now, that he stopped and turned to look at her. With a human, he might have been tempted to put a hand on their shoulder, but he wasn't really sure if such a gesture would be the same for a unicorn. So instead, he simply asked, "... are you worried about them?"

No, no hands at all. Now that she thought about it, it was strange. Rarity would not be able to use scissors or needles here without her magic. Luckily, she could still work a sewing machine. She raised her head and gave Minato a sad nod, but quickly tried to recover from her depression. "But they're all very strong. I'm sure they'll be alright at home. And as much as I wish they were here with me to help, I'd rather them not be trapped."

He nods. "... Your friends aren't here, and it's hard to be separated from them... But that doesn't mean you're alone. And if you need any help, you can always ask."

Rarity nodded sadly at Minato. He was right. It would be good to make new friends instead of crawling through this journey alone. After a moment, she gently bumped her head against Minato's arm affectionately.

"Thank you. You are very kind."

He smiled faintly at the gentle bump, and after a moment of hesitation gently put his hand on her head for a brief moment, just behind her ears. Then he puts his hands back into his pocket.

"It's a difficult transition for everybody. It just... seems best to look at things as positively as you can."

Edited 2012-02-04 11:22 (UTC)

It was interesting to be petted by a hand. Though rarity found that she didn't mind it too much. After all, Minato was comforting, not patronizing her. Her smile became a little bit happier.

"I will try that for now."

Minato nodded, continuing to smile just a little.

"If you ever need anything, while you're here, feel free to let me know. I'll do the best I can to help, and there are others here whom I'm sure who will feel the same.

The pony nodded once again and waved one of her front hooves in the air. "It's the same with me. I will help you, too. I'm not as strong or as quick as my friends, but I will do what I can."

"Thank you. I appreciate that."

He paused a moment to glance around.

"Well... come on, and I'll show you the basic layout of the village here, and then we'll go to France's home."

And so off he led her, pointing out where various stores and things were in the downtown area before circling back to the housing districts and taking her to where France lived and work. As usual, Minato knocked on the door to let France know that someone was coming in before he opened it to let Rarity in. And as usual, Minato left his shoes by the door.

"I'm here for work," Minato called out, in case France was in the middle of something and couldn't leave wherever in the house he was. "I've brought someone with me who wants to see your work. She's new."

Rarity followed Minato through the door of the building. She was feeling a lot better about humans, and knowing that they were there to help her made her feel safer. If she was going to be punished in this strange world, it was good to have allies. Knowing the lay of the land was also beneficial. Now, if only she had her magic.

She appreciated the fact that Minato took off his shoes before stepping fully inside. That was the mark of a true gentleman. It pleased Rarity very much. "I do hope they don't mind," she said to her new friend, all too eager to learn about this designer.

Edited 2012-02-07 21:34 (UTC)

"Ah, just in time!" Francis called from his work room, stepping out to greet Minato and his friend. He was wearing his hair up in a ponytail, instead of down as he usually did. It seems he had gotten to work after his compact had cracked. "I need you to add a bit of la-" It was then that he saw two things which surprised him. One, that his assistant suddenly had a tail, and two, that his assistant had brought with him a pony. In fact, the very same pony who had broken his compact with her shrill scream. It had yet to work again.

"... ah... we have, er, met before. Not for real, simply through our compacts." Trying to get over his shock, he smiled a bit briefly at Rarity. "Bonsoir, mademoiselle. Please, make yourself at home. I will be with you as soon as I can."

Then he turned his attention to Minato, and asked rather quietly. "Erm... pardonnez-moi... but I could not help but notice you suddenly seem to have grown a tail, mon cher."

"I'm sure he'll be fine with it," Minato assured the pony as they waited.

Then, once Francis turned to him in an aside, Minato blinked and shrugged, glancing over his shoulder at the tail. "I've had it for a while, actually. ... maybe I've just gotten the hang of keeping it out of the way?" He paused looking back up at Francis. "I hope you don't mind that I brought Rarity. She wished to see your work... If you tell me what you want me to work on, I can go get started on that, or -- I can help show Rarity around." He looked back at Rarity at this point, hoping she was all right, since apparently these two knew each other already...

How could Rarity forget the blond-haired man? He had recently told her that her magic did not work in this stupid place. She was still reeling from the news. Oh, but wait a moment...

"Your work?" she asked, repeating Minato. "You mean... This man is the... The France you were speaking of?" The pony looked back and forth between the two humans. Of course, the name Francis really did sound like France, though she only put the two together now. So, this was the man who was to be her rival! Without waiting for an answer, Rarity immediately began to look around for any signs of France's work.

"You have really had it this whole time?" Francis gaped, staring down at the little tail. "... how could I have not noticed it before? Nom de Dieu, I really do think I am going mad." After a moment to let out a sigh, he shook his head. "Non, non, by all means, she is free to come here. It may be for the best for both of us to show her around, non?"

France hadn't said that Rarity's magic was gone, per se. He'd said that the Rulers had probably taken her magic away. He was fairly certain that the Rulers still possessed some magic - otherwise, how could Domon have just disappeared and reappeared in the square in a dress otherwise? As he turned to speak to Rarity again, he began attempting to explain. "Oui, mademoiselle Rareté, I am... France..." But he trailed off as she suddenly began to ignore him and start poking her nose - er, snout - into things.

"... ah. Well, I suppose this is our cue to assist her, oui?" Francis teased, nudging Minato a little with his elbow and following behind the beautiful little pony.

Minato shrugged at Francis' gaping, flexing his fins a little self-consciously. And then he nodded at the suggestion, turning back to Rarity. However, soon enough she was already poking her way through, and Minato almost wanted to laugh at her attitude change, as he joined Francis in following after her.

"Unfinished things and raw materials are in there," he pointed out for her. "Finished things that have yet to be picked up are in here."

This was all too exciting for Rarity. She was already seeing many things she approved of. This man wasn't half bad. In fact, he had rather stunning ideas.

"Why, these are just marvelous!" she said as she used her hoof to push through the finished clothes on the curtain. "Look at the stitching here... and this pattern is quite beautiful... Oh, my! This one..." On and on she went, complimenting France with each new outfit she saw. His work was inspiring her and she was already feeling less depressed.

Francis was perfectly content to have Minato play tour guide for him. It sort of showed him just how dedicated Minato was to the task, to have remembered exactly where everything was so quickly. So, he turned most of his attention to Rarity, though he did give a smile and a nod to Minato whenever he identified something correctly.

"Ah, merci beaucoup!" He spoke to Rarity now, beaming at her compliments. One could almost see the glow around him, at his pride in his work. "I was inspired suddenly to add some lace around the hem, and before I knew it I was adding all of this lace detail to the other parts. It turned out quite lovely, non?" He did motion to the last one on the line, that she had complimented earlier. "Though this last one is Minato's work, every bit of it!"

He then gave Minato a bit of a smile. "You did well, mon chéri."

Although happy enough to simply show Rarity around (and pleased that she found France's work to her liking after her earlier remarks), when France pointed out that one of the pieces was his own work, Minato blinked and shifted a little awkwardly. He couldn't quite suppress a small smile, though, quite glad that his work met with approval.

"Ah... thank you. But France provided the pattern..."

Rarity immediately turned her attention to Minato. "You made this one?" she asked. "It is definitely my favorite! You have so much style!" Both of them did, but that was something she did not expect from Minato. It really pleased her.

Francis placed his hand on Minato's shoulder, smiling at him. "Mm, providing the pattern is nothing. You were the one who brought it to life!" His smile indicated nothing but pride for the young man's work. Minato's work was met with nothing but approval, from Francis at least. "You did very well for someone who claims to be a novice."

Then, his attention turned to Rarity, who seemed excited and wide-eyed. "Ah, wait until I show you what we have been working on lately! It is not finished, alors, it will be much more put together in the future... mais, it's majesty shows through regardless." He moved towards the room of unfinished works, proudly pulling out a mannequin who had a wonderful ensemble on - that is, on the left side. The right side still needed the sleeve to be sewn on. At the moment it was only being held by pins. "What do you think so far?"

"Ah, thank you. ... I've just had a lot of practice," Minato murmured, shaking his head at the praise. He was actually pleased to hear it and pleased that they were both happy with his work, but of course social custom dictated that he denied it, as he ducked his head again.

But as France drew their attention to the ensemble he was currently working on, Minato took the opportunity to slip away to his own current assignment to start working on it again, leaving them to their fashion discussion.

Not waiting for an invitation, the excited pony trotted after him, the large curls of her mane and tail bouncing. Rarity oohed and ahhed as France unfolded his vision to her. So this was what a human mannequin looked like. It wasn't different from the mannequins at her shop, just the shape. Oh, this was all so much fun!

"It's beautiful," she replied, tilting her head one way and then the other. "I think I would add just a touch more sequence, though... Around here, maybe!"

France had noticed Minato leaving to do his work. He was certain they would join him again shortly. He was only across the room, after all - they hadn't wanted to take over the whole house with their projects, so all the unfinished projects were still in the same room. For the moment, he let Minato work quietly, and focused his attention on Rarity.

"Ah, merci." Francis could tell something was off, though, when Rarity began examining everything more closely. "You think so?" He took her suggestion in mind and stood back a bit, imagining it in his mind for a moment. Then, he beamed down at her. "That is precisely what it needed, ma belle - more sequins! You have a marvelous eye."

Rarity beamed up at France, pleased to have earned his trust. She had not meant to butt in—though she had a knack for doing just that—and the man's approval made her smile brightly. "Thank you!" Rarity said, practically dancing in place. It was good to feel a bit of normalcy in such a strange place. "I am an arteest myself. I create fashionable designs for all the ponies of Ponyville!"

He certainly did not mind her butting in when she acted as his Muse, giving him a splendid idea such as that. "Ah, so you are a seamstress and a fashion designer? Mon Dieu, it is no wonder Minato brought you to me." His smile grew even wider as he learned more about this fashionable pony. "It seems we would make a good team, non?"

The pony's smile faded just a little bit when France mentioned that Rarity was a seamstress. "Yes, well. But without my magic, I am afraid I cannot sew." It made her sad. "I don't think I could be of any assistance to you..."

Francis noticed this, and stopped, looking a little embarrassed that he caused Rarity to feel insecure about her loss of magic. Slowly, he squatted down a bit, and after a brief moment, he spoke again, giving her his best reassuring smile.

"Ah, that is not such a problem, oui? We already have another talented tailor here at this store. Perhaps he can help you with your designs, and be an extra pair of ha-" Er, that wasn't the right word. He paused only a moment more before he spoke again. "Ah, pardon, hooves. There is a way to work this out!"

Rarity nodded again, and smiled sadly at him. "I would very much like to work with both of you." Idea! "At least I could help design! Although... I've never made clothes for humans before."

"That will certainly be possible, mademoiselle Rareté. I would like to work with you, aussi." He paused, attempting to come up with something else to say.

"There are those on this island who are not human. While many of them are, there are exceptions. You may be my consultant on human clothes, and if we get any non-human customers, I will leave this to you."

He paused another moment, nodding as he agreed with what he thought was quite a good plan. "Does this sound fair?"

"It does!" replied the pleased pony. "Oh, you are a darling!" Rarity rubbed against France's leg affectionately. She wanted her magic back more than anything, especially if she was to remain on this island. Doing something she loved would help pass the time.

He smiled at her in return and gently reached down to stroke her beautiful mane. It was an affectionate gesture in return. "Ah, merci. I am glad this arrangement will work out for the both of us. The three of us, actually!"

Even if he'd been concentrating mostly on his work, Minato had definitely been listening in on the conversation, and at this point, he glances up at them again, smiling faintly. "I'll be happy to help both of you out."

Yes, the three of them. Rarity trotted away from France and moved back over to Minato, who had helped her find a niche. She made a cooing sound as she rubbed their cheeks together.

"Thank you, both, for allowing me to be a part of your team!" She was tearing up by now. Rarity didn't know what she would do without fashion. And helping others. As long as she was in this world, this would be her job, and she would hopefully be able to keep away the Rulers' magic by staying true to herself.

Minato blinked a little at Rarity's invasion of his personal space, but he quickly recovered enough to bring a hand up to stroke her neck and sort of hug her back.

"... thank you for joining it, Rarity."

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Take your pony to work day!

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Apologies for the delay!

not a worry! we can bring in france at any time~

Okay! Let's get them to France's house then~

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/is a late person; sorry guys. :c

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