It was 5 days later. Scootaloo was back in school, and surprisingly wasn't being bothered by Diamond Tiara or Silver Spoon (she thought they probably felt sorry for her). Apple Bloom suddenly was sitting on the otherside of the room, though... the only blank flank in her class yet again, and suddenly very busy with chores.

The little Pegasus had been spending the nights in Twilight Sparkle's library, geting help with her studies for a math test which, despite not beleiving in herself... she Aced it. Today she was going to be rewarded by spending another fun-filled day with her favorite rainbow-maned Pegasus. They had an errand to stop for first, however:

"Why are we going to Rarity's boutique?" Scootaloo nervously asked both Rainbow and Twilight.

"She says she has something for you," said Twilight. "She told me a couple days ago that she'd have it ready today."

"Okay... I'm not sure if I want this."

"You don't have to take it if you don't want to," said Dash. "Just say no thanks!"

"I don't know if it's going to be that easy, RD," said Twilight, chuckling nervously. "I'm not sure what the gift's going to be. She wouldn't tell me! She was acting okay, but... that's kind of why I want us both going."

Scootaloo gulped as they approached the shop. The place was, surprisingly, open for business. She could hear Rarity's sewing machine from all the way outside doing it's magic.

Twilight used her magic to open the door... and the bell dinged. Before the door was even open all the way the machine stopped:

"Welcome to the Carousel Boutique! My name is Rarity! I am the proprietor of this quaint shop. Please let me know how I may assist you!"

Scootaloo saw the speaking mare before she even saw the group. Rarity's mane was a bit less kempt that it usually was and she had on minimal make-up, but no less than the average mare. She was so perky and pleasant it was as if nothing had ever happened.

"Hi Rarity," said Twilight. "How are you?"

Rarity laughed hardly... a little too hardly. It sounded as though she were losing her mind, which would be understandable given what happened:

"Not sleeping the best lately, dear, but that's what they make Darjeeling for! I've plenty of deadlines that won't wait whilst I grieve!" She turned to Scootaloo. "You must be wondering why you are here."

"You can say that again," the filly said, uncomfortably looking around. "Honestly, I don't want to be here. It reminds me of where I used to meet up with Sweetie Belle."

"Oh, you won't be here for long," Rarity assured the little Pegasus, going behind her counter. "Here you are!"

She set Scootaloo's saddle bag and folded Cutie Mark Crusader cape on the counter... both nearly unblemished from the stomping session Scootaloo had put them through, save a few new seams on the cape. She just looked up at the mare in wonder.

"These are yours," said Rarity. "I fixed them for you. Your bag's on its last legs, so be very careful not to over stuff it. As for the cape," Rarity got very close to the filly. "It's surprisingly resilient. There are a few marks where I had to stitch it on the inside, but they can't be seen from far away. You can see why I was so frantic when Sweetie Belle took my supplies! Oh, it's so light and strong, why, I'd imagine if somepony laced all three of your capes together the Crusaders could use them to scale my shop!"

"Thanks, Rarity..." Scootaloo said slowly, taking her bag and cape. "You didn't have to..."

"Oh, it wasn't a problem at all!, deary!" Rarity turned back to Twilight. "Now, if you three don't mind I've got a lot of work to do. Ta-ta for now!"

"Okay then, Rarity..." Twilight said, shooting an uneasy look at Rainbow Dash. "We'll see you later."

The three left the shop. Twilight and Rainbow wanted to say something, but they didn't want to upset Scootaloo. Instead, Scootaloo said it:

"Was Rarity acting kind of crazy back there?"

"Yeah," replied Rainbow, thinking carefully about what she wanted to say next. "About that..."

Twilight took over:

"Rarity said she hasn't been sleeping well! She just needs time to get back to herself. We all do."

Scootaloo nodded in agreement as the two groups parted ways. There was nothing more to be said, but all ponies thought about it. It would have to be put on hold, at least for Scootaloo as it was time for her to spend the day with Rainbow Dash, something she'd been looking forward to all week.

She walked alongside Rainbow and gave her a hug:

"I'm glad I have you, Rainbow."

"Me too, Squirt... me too."