As I stepped down from the carriage onto the cobblestone road I immediately noticed many pairs of troll eyes looking at me and my little group. More than a few odd looks, more than a few rude looks. But many others just went about their business, not caring about the random group of slaves that just arrived in town from the castle escorted by a large contingent of guards. As with anywhere else busy people kept on with their work.
This was going to be so much fun! I looked around at the buildings surrounding us. Large wooden stores and businesses that stretched down each and every road. As I had instructed the ones pulling the carriage we were to be brought to the largest clothing store and now it was time to head inside.
“Right, everyone stick with me, I may want to have you model some things but for the most part I already know what I’m looking for.” I said to my friends and walked onto the sidewalk. In front of me was a red-painted building with big glass windows in the front that allowed me to see a massive amount of racks and shelves positively filled with clothes and fabrics of all sort.
The sign above the door read “Tornet’s Emporium”. Wonderful!
“We’ll be starting here!” I cheerfully said to my companions and pulled the door open with my magic, letting us all inside.
To my dismay but not quite surprise the clothes were the standard I had come to expect from the trolls. Lots of very plain and ugly pants, some vests and coats, nothing with any style to it. Most of it was just the same thing over and over again but in a multitude of colors. Except the “multitude” was actually only shades of brown, tan, gray and black. I just don’t understand.
Still there was quite a lot of raw materials and other supplies here that I could use. If I wanted to find anything good that was already made I’d probably have to look at a store that sold things directly brought in from their pirates. Or maybe just rummage through a warehouse or whatever they used for storage before things were taken or sold off elsewhere.
A shame. I couldn’t even have anyone here do some modeling just for fun. In the end I just got a few rolls of fabric. Gertrude carried them into the carriage and we moved on to the next place.
“You know I never cared much about clothes but that store was pretty boring wasn’t it?” Soleil said as we made our way down the street.
It was good to know that even people with a lack of knowledge about fashion could see that.
I also decided to let the part about her not caring much about clothes go for now. I’ll get her in a nice dress later.
“It’s something I’ve noticed all over with the trolls unfortunately.” I said to her. “Another good thing about what I’ve gotten to do lately is that I’ve managed to bring style and flair to the castle while enjoying myself at the same time. And I plan to keep doing that while we free all the slaves as well. Win win!” I finished cheerfully.
And I believe I knew them well enough by now to tell that both Gertrude and Daylight were rolling their eyes without even having to see them.
I had our guards take us to wherever things were first taken after they got processed at the docks. It was a bit of a winding journey down the roads of this town, there were unfortunately no windows in the carriage that Duke Terluff had selected for us so I couldn’t look out and see what the rest of the town looked like or anything. I wonder what the average troll house looked like? Architecture can often be an inspiration for fashion and art.
The carriage stopped again and we found ourselves at the far end of the docks, rows of warehouses were all that stood here. The troll guards deposited us at the nearest one. It must be for the newest stuff brought in.
There was a rather gruff and scraggly troll arguing with our guards about letting us come in here and doing as we pleased. Must be some kind of dockmaster or overseer. Whatever his position was, orders from a duke likely outweighed whatever he wanted.
“That’s a big building, we just looking for whatever now?” Gertrude asked.
“Well I hope they have things organized in there, that would make it a lot easier.” I responded.
It was more likely they had things put together by date though and from where they came from rather than what it actually was. That could make it problematic to find anything I wanted. And I still didn’t know how they handled the storage in here without opening it up, so let’s get on with it.
“Can you be dears and open up this warehouse for us?” I asked a pair of the guards.
The two nodded to each other and went to retrieve a key from the scraggly troll. The large sliding doors of the warehouse were chained together and needed to be unlocked first. After the key was obtained from the overseer the chains were removed from the handles and our guards pulled both of the heavy doors to the side to allow us to walk in without a problem. It was nice that the guards could act so gentlemanly, even if it was just because of Duke Terluff’s orders.
I primly strolled inside with my friends following me and looked around the interior of the warehouse.
“Oh dear.”
Just as I feared. Mountains of boxes and crates thrown everywhere, and some things that were too big for boxes just left out in the open. No direction to anything, no signs or dividers to separate anything, not even any individual packing labels on the boxes to see what was inside without having to open them up.
“Whew, good luck going through all that.” Gertrude whistled from behind me.
I turned and gave her an unamused look. “You seem to be under the impression that you won’t be helping the rest of us out with that.” I grinned at her. “Sorry to disappoint you.”
The poor griffon’s face fell. “Ugh, seriously? We really doing this?”
“Yes darling, I want to see if I can find anything good.” I walked forward to the nearest pile of boxes before speaking to everyone else. “Now I know this isn’t going to be very fun and I promise we won’t do it for long but let’s see what we can find, shall we?”
Everyone joined me in sifting through the warehouse. It was an absolute treasure trove of knickknacks, junk, refuse, and just about anything else you could think of. I even found a cabinet full of old dictionaries. However that ended up here I have no idea. The most recent arrivals were to the front of the warehouse and earlier ones to the back but that was hardly helpful since there was no other distinguishing factor between any single box or pile. How many ships came in and deposited their ill-gotten cargo here? I can’t remember how many I saw when I first arrived at this port all those days ago but I remember there being more than a few.
I used my magic to pry open a crate that upon inspection was filled with unassembled tables. What a find.
That’s me being sarcastic again by the way.
Soleil had flown up to the tops of some stacks to see if there was anything up there while Spine and Cinder riffled through a series of filing cabinets placed along the wall of the warehouse. Gertrude lazily and half-heartedly pushed her way through some boxes, I’m fairly certain she wasn’t actually looking at anything. Daylight was carefully perusing through the boxes near the front of the warehouse. It was good to know I could at least count on her to be diligent.
“So we’re looking for nice clothes right?” Soleil said as she floated above me. “Cause all I’ve found is some ratty old sheets and a pair of boots.”
“Yes or just some nice material.” I said back up to her. “What we got at the emporium was good but I’d like to see if I can find anything that isn’t normally available at a store.”
I didn’t tell them that I was looking for gifts for them too.
“Feels like you could’ve just had Duke Terluff get all this.” Gertrude said as she opened up a sack lying on the floor to inspect its contents.
“Of course, but then none of us would’ve been able to go on this fun little outing now would we? I think a little rummaging is a fair price to pay for getting to leave the castle and enjoying some alone time together without having to worry about being interrupted by the trolls and marched off to do whatever.” I frowned at her continual cynical attitude but made sure to keep any venom out of my voice. It was better to treat someone like her with positivity than just get in an argument. I get in enough silly arguments with my friends back home.
“Fine, fine, sorry for being such a complainer.” She waved me off and kept looking through things.
Score one for Rarity!
I giggled. “I only jest, darling. We’ll be able to relax and chat on the trip back too and everything.”
After that I got back to my own searching. The sheer amount of unmarked boxes made this a daunting and almost pointless task but I wanted to at least find something that made this little detour worthwhile. I kept popping over box after box and peering inside to see nothing of any value. Random items like pencil holders, hammers, rope, notebooks, etc. I’ll check a few more boxes but by then the others will have probably become tired and bored enough that we should just stop.
I used my magic to pull over a relatively new looking box and opened it up. At first it looked like a whole bunch of nothing again but as I was rummaging through it I finally found something!
It was a little black bow. It would look absolutely perfect on Daylight Gleam. Perhaps positioned right behind her horn or maybe tilted off to the side? Whichever way it complemented her perfectly, finally I had one gift down. The others it would look like I would have to make myself, oh well, no matter for me, it would just take a bit of time since I had so much other work to do first.
For now I deposited the little bow in a bag I found, I didn’t want to give it to Daylight just yet, we needed to be somewhere with a mirror so she could see how it looked on her. I’ll give it to her back at my office.
“Alright darlings, just a little more and then we’ll stop!” I shouted to everyone.
Most just said “okay” and waved back at me but Gertrude gave an exaggerated sigh of relief. I rolled my eyes in response even though she couldn’t see me.
We spent a few more minutes looking through things in our immediate area before stopping and leaving the warehouse, our guards were more than happy to shepherd us back to the carriage and leave this place. I was the last to get on but before I did something caught my attention out of the corner of my eye. A wagon pulling into the warehouse district. It was the same kind of caged wagon that transported me and Captain Anchor and his crew to the castle, the cage on back of this one had two figures that reminded me of an old friend. Capper, I don’t exactly know what your people are called but I’d like to see you again. The two cats were held in chains and looked despondent. New slaves no doubt. I don’t know where they were going or what work was intended for them but I hope things turned out okay for the two.
I would make things turn out okay.
But for now it was time to return to the castle.
“Okay, you can open your eyes now.”
I held Daylight Gleam in front of the mirror and watched as she opened her eyes and saw her gift resting on her head, the black bow slightly off-center so that her horn didn’t obstruct it from the front. It fit in so well with her blonde mane and alabaster coat. Like I said when I first met her she would look very good if she just put in a little extra effort with her mane, and this accessory would go a long way.
She smiled and turned her head back and forth to see it from every direction. “I love it, thank you Rarity.”
“No need for that, I owed you after all.” I turned to my other friends as they watched the two of us. “That goes for you all as well, unfortunately I couldn’t find anything quite as fitting for you while we were at the port so I’ll be making it myself. It will just take a bit of time.”
“You really don’t have to do something like that...” Gertrude grumbled, rubbing her head in embarrassment. She obviously wasn’t used to receiving gifts from others.
“Speak for yourself, I can’t wait to see what Rarity has in store!” Soleil said, quite a bit happier. “I mean just look at what she can make! I’m sure whatever you’ve thought up for us is gonna be beautiful.”
“Dragons don’t usually wear any kind of clothes but if it’s a gift I’m not gonna say no.” Cinder said with a shrug and Spine nodded along beside her.
“Thank you dears.” I said to them all. “However now there isn’t a lot of time for that, we have quite a bit of work to be doing.”
I set them up with their jobs and got started. There was a long list of orders to fulfill and I had something else I wanted to do today the moment I finished what I had planned. While I sewed and sewed and sewed for the nobles I also looked towards my dress hanging off the slapped together ponyquin I had made. A black and dark blue outfit that screamed “Untouchable Royalty”. The flowing end of it, the high collar and puffy shoulders. I would look very good in that. More than good but strong and belonging. The design was inspired by this castle and island after all. I hope others would be able to see that.
There were only the smallest amount of alterations and finishing touches I needed to make on my dress, and then I would pay Duke Terluff a visit.
For several more hours that day we worked until it was well into the evening. I could tell that the others were getting tired aside from Gertrude who had quite the constitution. Spine in fact was just sleeping in the corner while Daylight’s eyes were staying open less and less. I suppose this would be all for today. With one last push through my sewing machine I hemmed up the bottom of the latest suit I was working on and then stopped.
“Alright, we’ve all had a very busy day. Let’s get some sleep shall we?” I said to them.
Gertrude wiped her forehead and cracked her back, stretching her wings wide. “Phew, not as much trouble as masonry work but still.”
I used my magic to pull out some sheets and blankets from the cabinets that I had Duke Terluff get me when I told him I would be having more people working in here. Daylight helped me set them up in the empty back of the office while Cinder woke up Spine and brought her over.
“Now you all enjoy your rest.” I told them with a bright smile. “It will be busy tomorrow too.”
“You sound like you’re not sleeping yet?” Gertrude asked me.
“I’m not. I have one last piece of business to take care of tonight.” I grabbed my dress from the ponyquin and began putting it on. “Don’t wait up for me, I could be a while.”
“Uh, okay?” Gertrude wasn’t sure what I was going on about but she wasn’t about to bother. Daylight and Soleil had already passed out on the blankets behind her and she wanted to retire as well. With a shrug she turned away from me and I left the office.
Let us hope this goes well.
In my new dress I looked stunning and by far the best I had looked since arriving at this castle. Normally I would not want to wear it before a party but I wanted to be at my best for this. Also I enjoy looking just as good outside as I am inside.
The walk was one I had taken many times now, only passing a few guards who tried their hardest not to stare at my dress. The familiarity of walking to and from my office and Duke Terluff’s home was comforting. If I was wrong and had misjudged things this could be the last time I would be taking this walk. I was certain that wouldn’t be the case though, I knew what I was doing. And I believed in Duke Terluff.
Within a few minutes I had arrived at his front door, as always I didn’t knock, simply entering on my own. Technically I still lived here after all.
I kept my breathing even and steadily walked down the hallway into that first room with the big table. No one was sitting at it but Duke Terluff was definitely home.
“Duke Terluff?” I called out. “It’s me, Rarity, are you here? I’d like to talk to you about something.”
I heard some shuffling coming from his office, seems he was up late working.
“Rarity?” His voice was muffled behind his door but I could hear his feet thumping on the ground before he threw open the door to his office and walked out. “What are-”
He stopped as he saw me in my fantastic new dress, eyes going wide in surprise.
“Oh, I see. So you’ve finished your dress? And the others you had to work on as well I assume? You’ll be a smash hit at Tulepule’s next party for sure.” He said with a grin.
“I certainly will be but that’s not actually the reason I came here to talk with you tonight.” I replied, any smile absent from my face.
He was confused and a bit put off I could tell. First off I think he noticed I wasn’t being playful or sarcastic right now, just blunt. And he likely wasn’t used to being talked to like that. Secondly he preferred things fun and carefree and wasn’t much for the serious stuff. He was a passionate fellow, it’s part of what I liked about him. But this had to be done.
“What is it?” He asked slowly.
“I’ve come to talk to you about my status and the issue of slavery.” Just throwing it out in the open.
The Duke grimaced, eyes looking this way and that, anywhere but me. “And?”
“To put it simply, I want you to help me end it.”
He stood there for a moment. Silent. Frozen.
“Normally I would laugh.” He finally said. “But I don’t think you’re making a joke this time.”
“I most certainly am not.” I gave him a pitying look. “Sorry to put you on the spot like this though.”
Duke Terluff scratched the back of his head and with a heavy sigh took a seat at his table. “Although I would like to help you, I don’t have that power. Even as a duke. The best I can do for you is keep you as my personal attendant, and you can keep making your dresses and gather as much power and respect as you want. But you will never stop being a slave or be allowed to leave this place. I’m sorry.” He motioned for me to join him at the table and I did, making sure not to wrinkle my dress. “You are… my friend. I won’t put on airs or try to act aloof about that anymore. I enjoy your company, my wife likes you, you’ve done a great service to me many times over now. And I would like to grant your wish and free you from this place but it’s just not possible.”
I closed my eyes and breathed in. Then out.
“Duke Terluff, you’re misunderstanding me. I didn’t say I wanted you to free me. I said I wanted you to help me end slavery. In its entirety. I want to free every last slave in this castle and bring down the whole system.”
He stood up in shock, knocking over his chair. I winced at the loud sound as it struck the tiled floor.
“Are you mad?! What could possess you of such an idea? To even mention something like that is a crime here! And it’s frankly absurd to even hope for!” He shook his balled up fists in my face, a mixture of anger and pure disbelief written on his features.
But I was not backing down.
“I want to do it simply because I have to. I can’t stand knowing this place exists as it is and treats all manner of creatures so terribly.” I bluntly said to him.
“How could you think I would help you with this?” He stood in front of me, his large troll body towering over me. “I could have you thrown back in the slave quarters or down in those dreadful stadiums for saying such a thing to me, you know?”
“Yes, you could.” I agreed. And then gave him a friendly smile. “But you wont.”
“And why not?!” He practically shouted down at me.
“Because you’re a good person.”
He just about deflated like a balloon.
“You can’t just say that like it’s true… and even if it is it doesn’t just solve everything.” He pulled out another chair and sat back down limply, like a wet towel tossed over a shower rod.
“I think I’m a fairly good judge of one’s character.” I said as I stepped down from my chair and put a hoof on his knee. “You have been nothing but kind and fair to me since we met. And anyone who loves their wife as much as you can’t be so bad.”
Duke Terluff blushed, looking away in embarrassment.
“You may have turned a blind-eye to unpleasant things or been oblivious to them but who can blame you for that?” I continued on. “I even became enraptured by the good life here and forgot myself for a time. It happens.”
“But so what?” He started up again. “Even if I don’t agree with things you’re asking me to turn my back on and essentially go to war with my own kingdom.”
“Duke Terluff.” I stared into his beady eyes with my big blue ones. “How many good nights of sleep will you be able to get after this if you don’t do anything to help? You couldn’t just go back to ignoring it all again. It would eat you up inside, knowing that things are wrong but doing nothing to change them. If there was something like this going on in Equestria you could bet that I would do everything in my power to make it right.”
He turned from me and planted his elbows on the table, burying his head in his hands.“I’ve had abolitionists hunted down in the past too.”
I coughed. “Yes, well...”
The duke raised his head. “I do want to make things better. I’ve always wanted to improve things here, but I was too lazy and too caught up in having fun.” His eyes looked off to the wall, avoiding my gaze in embarrassment. “Until I met you.”
“Until we became friends.” I said, my voice a proud smile.
“I love my home. And my people. But we could be better, couldn’t we?” He asked no one in particular his gaze unfocused.
“I… I think so, yes.”
And I did. Terluff, Tyluck, they and others were proof of it. The Changelings changed from being monsters to benevolent creatures, Starlight changed, Discord of all people changed. I think the trolls could change too. However this was a bit different. This was a society and culture that we were trying to change.
“Duke Terluff, I told you before that I initially came here as a sort of ambassador from Equestria. Sent to learn about you and your country. I think we would be glad to set up relations with you when you’ve fixed the problems.”
He pulled his head back out of the clouds and stared at me, a sad look coming onto his face as he registered what I said.
“But all we’ve talked about is still just a pipe dream. I can’t do anything to end slavery here. I’d be arrested or just executed for trying to bring up the subject. This is the way things have always been here, it’s part of our kingdom. The King and High Priest would never in a million years change things.”
A smirk came onto my face.
I walked away from him to the room with the fireplace, standing in front of it and making a show of looking as noble as possible.
“Duke Terluff, my dear friend, you’ve misunderstood my intentions again. I know full well that we can’t just talk our way through things here. Even the highest nobles are bound to the King’s orders aren’t they? And tradition and conformity holds an iron grip on so many. Drastic change is in order. It’s going to be a revolution, darling.”