"Opal! My favorite kitty. My, your... Fur is looking really clean today." Scootaloo sucked up, slowly backing away. Scootaloo stepped backwards and tried her best to peacefully avoid the worst situation. Unfortunately for her, Opal wouldn't listen to Scootaloo's weak pleas for mercy. Opal stepped closer and showed off her devilish grin again. Scootaloo whimpered inaudibly, and she smiled back in intimidation.

"Okay, nice chat we're having. Glad to see your doing well. Bye." Scootaloo turned away and tried to leave, but Opal decided against it and pinned the orange filly to the ground. "Hey! What are you doing!" Scootaloo felt a tight grip on her tail and left hind hoof. Opal swung the fighting filly playfully and showed Scootaloo another unsettling sight of her teeth. Scootaloo chuckled nervously and lost her fake smile immediately.

Scootaloo had to think fast, and land on her feet; just like a cat-- just like the exact cat that threatened to eat her. A huge, thick wad of spit was all she could think of. Luckily her frequent spilling contests with the other school ponies paid off as Opal dropped her and tended to her eye. But her lucky streak ended there as she hit the floor wrong, and all of her air rushed out of her lungs. Scootaloo gasped for air and desperately scratched for decent ground to start running.

The moment she did stand, she took off towards any place to hide. Sprinting in any direction that would get her away from Opal, Scootaloo noticed a small crevice that could serve as an escape route. The orange filly kept on running without turning back. And if Scootaloo did look back, she would have noticed an angry Opalescence chasing after her. Opal approached Scootaloo faster than the tiny pony could run. Opal caught up and loomed over Scootaloo threateningly with her body in a pouncing position.

Scootaloo just stood there and had no idea why she chose to stay, but she did anyway. Opal kept her menacing glance and pinned Scootaloo on the hard floor. Gasping for air, Scootaloo racked her brain for another escape plan but came up with nothing that could aid her. The shrunken pegasus closed her eyes, fearing for her life. Scootaloo felt the rough tongue of Opal slide across her face, and at one point, Opal stopped licking and made a gagging sound. When she opened her eyes to see what happened, she almost laughed in triumph and disbelief at her sudden luck.

Opalescence had completely hated Scootaloo's taste.

The giant Persian cat released Scootaloo from her oppressive paw, and Scootaloo took it as a signal to leave. Scootaloo was equally surprised to see Opal turn away and leave her alone. Scootaloo chucked again before saying aloud,

"I'm glad I didn't take a bath this morning."

***

"It's okay, Sweetie. I'm pretty sure Opal would never do that again." Rarity comforted. Her voice was lowered enough to be soft and alluring to her little sister. She had to keep the excitable fillies in line, or else they'll end up hurting themselves. And with their new size, hurting themselves wasn't necessarily hard to do. Rarity wasn't proud of her manipulation tactics, but it was the easiest thing to come to mind.

"You're okay as long as ya have your big sister here." Applejack said to her own sister. Applejack rehashed the same words of assurance and got the same sort of thanks.

"Wait a minute. What happened to Scootaloo?" Apple Bloom asked. The tiny earth pony jumped to her hooves and snapped out of her state of shock. Rarity looked to Applejack with a look of concern.

"We forgot about Scootaloo!" Rarity gasped.

As if on cue, Opalescence burst into the room, growling and shaking her fore legs as if she was imitating a bucking horse. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle shouted out their friend's name in glee, and Rarity and Applejack breathed deep sighs of relief. Opal shook and turned in every direction, flailing around awkwardly. A little orange form managed to appear Out of Opal's designer collar. Rarity immediately grasped her pet in the light blue aura and lifted the Persian cat right next to her.

"Scootaloo, are you okay?" Rarity asked, removing the pegasus filly from the white fur of the cat.

"I... Hate you guys." Scootaloo said bitterly, looking up at the other ponies with a look of anger.

"Don't say that, Scootaloo." Rarity tried to console the orange filly.

"Seriously, both you two have somepony top save you from danger, but I have nopony." Scootaloo huffed. Rarity felt guilty again by Scootaloo's point, knowing that Scootaloo was right.

"How about I call Rainbow Dash? Maybe she could make you feel better." Rarity offered, hoping to cheer Scootaloo up with her idol. Scootaloo only gasped and tried to convince Rarity with begging and pleading that made her feel like Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. Applejack chuckled loudly and gave an understanding smile.

"Ah get it. You don't want your idol looking down on you... Literally." Applejack said, earning a thankful nod from the shrunken pegasus. Rarity chuckled quietly at Applejack's pun, and had to fight a habit on bringing Rainbow Dash over.

"Now do you three see what I meant about the world being a dangerous place?" Rarity asked, holding Opalescence up as an example. Opal swiped at the fillies with another roar of anger, and they jumped back in fear. Rarity quickly shooed the hissing cat and shut the door to keep Opal outside.

"Yes, Rarity," the three fillies called out in unison. Their voices seeming monotonous and rehearsed, clearly showing that they were used to agreeing like that. Rarity smiled and turned to pony-quin to continue her work. The girls groaned, each of them knowing that it would result in a few hours of just waiting around. Rarity worked slowly, purposefully making sure every detail was meticulously put in the right place. Every stitch, every jewel, and every change of fabric in a single dress.

While the minutes passed, Applejack would leave and come back, running errands and checking in on the fillies from time to time. And each time Applejack would come back to check in on the girls, she would find them bored out of their minds. Applejack scolded Rarity for not finding something to entertain them with, and each time, Rarity would always say she'll find something.

"Rarity! I'm bored!" Sweetie Belle whined loudly. The tiny unicorn's face scrunched in anger as Rarity mad absolutely no attempt in listening to her little sister. Sweetie Belle's complaints being droned out by a quiet hum that would only be heard by Rarity if they were normal size only added to Sweetie's rage. "Rarity!" No response. "Rarity!" This time, Rarity heard Sweetie's call. She looked around and turned her attention back to her work.

"Rarity!" Sweetie called out a final time, finally catching Rarity's full attention.

"What!?" Rarity yelled, her amplified voice nearly shattering the ear drums of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. The air leaving Rarity's mouth had caused a massive hurricane for the fillies, and they clawed for any grip to stay on the work desk. Watching her little sister and her friends caused Rarity to stop her unnecessary yelling.

"Not so loud, Rarity!" The three Crusaders demanded together. Rarity sqeaked out a quiet (but fairly audible to the CMC) squeak that served as an embarrassed apology. The three fillies whose plan just backfired that same morning rubbed their ears in discomfort. Rarity kept her annoyed look and intimidated the children effortlessly with her icy stare.

"Just wait. I'm almost done." Rarity said in between stitches. Of course time went on differently for Rarity, and the Crusaders waited idly, complaining every once and a while. Rarity once again hummed tunes while she worked, but this time she included the three girls in her work. The fashionista would lift one of them high into the air, fit them in a small square of cloth, and manufacture a scale size dress as a template for the full size design.

Rarity lifted Apple Bloom with her light blue magic and levitated the filly in front of her massive face.

"Forgive me for this one, but I think it goes well with you." Rarity reasoned, lifting a design and showing it to the youngest Apple family member in Ponyville. The sight of the design was enough to make the yellow earth pony to disagree entirely.

"But it's all girly and frilly!" Apple Bloom protested. The earth pony began to fight against Rarity's magic but wound up tiring herself out.

"But it matches your coat, now suck it up." Rarity quipped sternly. Rarity practically forced the filly to stay put while she finished the final details of it. Apple Bloom made sure to let out an audible groan, but her attempts at voicing her opinions only caused Rarity to giggle. "At least you're not just standing around."

When Rarity finished, the unicorn held up a tiny mirror to give Apple Bloom a view of her self.

"Ah look like one of them girls from Manehattan." Apple Bloom said solemnly, finding no joy in the outfit. Scootaloo and Sweetie laughed at their friend's plight, while Apple Bloom gave them an angry glare. "And my so-called 'friends' are laughing at me."

"Oh come on, you look pretty in that dress." Applejack said from a distance, only furthering Apple Bloom's humiliation. "Like a princess." Apple Bloom groaned again by the comment.

"Of course my sister walks in." Apple Bloom muttered to herself, cursing whatever force that put her in this situation.

"Well, they're not sitting around anymore. There's that." Applejack joked.

"But where still bored!" Scootaloo shouted, fighting against her own frilly dress. The dress would cause her to trip over her legs and feel ridiculous in her dress.

"We need to do something about this." Rarity finally admitted, annoyed by the constant complaints of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Rarity looked at the little ponies that stood there with nothing to do. Rarity looked around for something to keep them entertained, and more importantly, out of her way. But the only things in the room that even raised her attention were several squares of fabric, a sewing machine, and a large dollhouse that sat in a corner of the room and collected dust.

Rarity remembered the dollhouse that was once hers and smiled with the wave of nostalgia. She had forgotten innocently playing with the dolls as a filly and fabricating stories of romance, drama, and mystery. The white unicorn had almost always created romantic stories, as they were the most enjoyable to act out. And then her mind immediately went to her favorite love story that she had read as a lovesick teenager. Rarity's grin grew wider as the word "idea" rang through her head.

Seconds later, Rarity began to create little costumes for each of the Crusaders. Sweetie, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo would trot up to the working unicorn, but they were always moved back by Rarity's magic. At one point, Rarity grew sick of the constant barrage of the crusaders and she finally pinned them down with thread, wrapping them up until they couldn't move.

***

"No! I'm not doing it!" Sweetie declined, puffing her cheeks out in anger. Sweetie Belle felt ridiculous in her costume and tried her best to remove her dress. Sweetie's mane was adorned in a small cloth that was formed into a fake flower crown.

"Please?" Rarity pleaded, putting face that had her lip quiver and her eyes sparkle. "You owe me anyway." Sweetie Belle groaned at the memory of her selling her soul.

"Fine..." Sweetie agreed, making Rarity squeal with glee. Rarity levitated her shrunken sister and placed her on the balcony of the plastic home. Sweetie straightened out the ruffles in her bright pink dress and recited,

"O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and-- line!" Rarity immediately groaned in agony. It took every ounce of self restraint to avoid yelling the lines towards Sweetie Belle.

"Refuse thy name!" Scootaloo finished, blurting the lines from below the plastic balcony.

"Finally somepony who's making sense." Rarity declared, "Have you read this before."

"My mom loves Shakespeare, and I'm almost as crazy about it."

"I didn't picture you as quite the thespian." Rarity mused, surprised that a tomboyish pony like Scootaloo would be interested in the writings of a renowned playwright. Sweetie Belle only scoffed at the connection forming between her friend and her older sister.

" 'I didn't picture you as quite the thespian.' " Sweetie mimicked to her friend Apple Bloom, raising her pitch an octave and causing her friend who waited inside of the dollhouse to laugh.

"Okay girls from the top." Rarity instructed, placing the girls in position.

The dollhouse was perched on a counter across from Rarity's bed. The white coated unicorn laid on the bed with a book containing the transcript of the play. Applejack sat next Rarity and situated herself with various snacks. The Crusaders had now invested so much time with their forced rehearsals, that they were now convinced on giving a somewhat decent show.

The Crusaders put on a makeshift production of Romeo and Juliet with Sweetie Belle overacting, Apple Bloom fumbling lines, and surprisingly, Scootaloo reciting some monologues expertly. After some clear screw-ups, Rarity would give her own narration to help the troubled fillies remember the lines and specific scenes they were in.

"The orchard was dimly lit, as the rest of Lord Capulet's guests left his marvelous feast. Save for one colt, enamored by Capulet's beautiful daughter, so he strayed behind. Romeo avoided the likes of his friends and walked the routes of the villa's wall. It was like that until he came upon a certain familiar voice..."

***

"Well that was interesting..." Applejack commented, referring to a specific scene.

"I honestly didn't expect them to..." Rarity explained, feeling slightly ashamed.

"Gah! I need-- more-- mouthwash!" Scootaloo gasped, dumping her head in a bottle of non-alcoholic mouthwash. Rarity felt bad for the two, but she couldn't help but giggle at the adorable reactions of the two.

"It tastes like a garbage dump!" Sweetie Belle whined, dumping her head in the same drink. Apple Bloom now had a definite piece of blackmail if either of them decided to bring up the frilly dress from earlier the same day.

"Wow it's late!" Rarity quickly changed the subject, feeling the awkwardness of the situation set in.

"Yeah, me an' Apple Bloom should head on home." Applejack agreed, getting up from the bed.

"Nonsense! You two could stay here. I don't want you losing your sister out in the dark." Rarity suggested worriedly, causing the girls to feel humbled again by their own size.

"Thanks for the offer Rair'." Applejack said, lifting her little sister and placing her on her hat. Applejack nodded curtly and respectfully, almost knocking off Apple Bloom in the process. Applejack caught her sister an lifted her back into place. Rarity led her friend towards a guest room and wished the two a good night. After she dealt with the Apple family members, Rarity looked towards Scootaloo.

"Do you think your parents, will mind if you stay the night?" Rarity asked, concerned for the safety of the pegasus. Scootaloo shook her head and made herself comfortable.

"Probably a lot less than me being the size of an appetizer." Scootaloo replied slyly.

"Do you girls mind if you share a bed?" Rarity inquired, making the girls scream "no!" in unison. "Okay." Rarity lifted the two carefully with her magic. She prepared two separate beds made from the small, plush pillows from her fainting couch. Rarity set the two shrunken children on separate bed-side tables.

"Good night girls." Rarity said cheerfully. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle repeated Rarity's words and began to let themselves fall asleep in the warmth of a blanket that was hundreds of times their sizes.

Later that night, the Cutie Mark Crusaders each had a nightmare...