6) Jumpin' over ver the Moon (River)
Thanks to Fleetwood_Brougham for suggesting the song that inspired this chapter. If you have a tune that you think I would like, feel free to tell me about it in the comments.

A gentle chorus of song birds outside the boutique rings in the new morning. A breeze drifts its way through an open window, flitting lazily around the bedroom before falling on you, stirring you from slumber. You open your eyes to find yourself in the same position you fell asleep in: on your side, and facing Rarity, whose arms are still entwined around you in a loving embrace. You move to place a quick peck on her nose, but decide against it; you don't want to wake her. You instead decide to simply stare at her sleeping figure and allow the tranquility of the moment to pull you back into the depths of sleep.

The moment is short lived, however, as your partner's eyes pop open, revealing two dazzling cerulean sapphires. "Oh, hello..." she mumbles as she begins to wipe the sleep from her eyes.”You're in my bed.... Wait.... YOU'RE IN MY BED?!" both of you snap awake as Rarity instinctively retracts her forelegs from around your neck. "Why are you in my bed?! Explain yourself!" she hisses, glaring daggers into your eyes.

You stumble backwards and fall out of the bed, striking your head against the floor with a sickening crack. You attempt to stand as stars dance in your eyes. "Ow... You fell asleep last night when we were stargazing. I carried you home, but you wouldn't let go of me when I tried to leave. I didn't want to wake you, so I just crawled into bed with you. I apologize if I offended you..."

She remains skeptical, but her features soften. "Oh... Well, I guess you were just trying to be nice..." she hangs her head and sulks. "I'm sorry I snapped like that. It's just... I've had a few... Unpleasant encounters along the lines of waking up with stallions in my bed."

You chuckle softly. "I can't imagine that would be very pleasant at all." You both laugh as you get out of bed and stretch. Rarity throws on a plush, white bathrobe before turning to you. "I'm going to draw a bath. You're welcome to head downstairs and help yourself to whatever's in the kitchen."

The concept of free food entices your appetite as you nod and exit the room, hearing the sound of running water behind you. You descend the stairs and wander your way into the kitchen. It is painted with a tasteful yet vibrant purple, intermingling with eggshell white floors and ceilings. The sparkling white tiles squeak softly under your hooves as you walk, indicating that have been recently polished. The pantries themselves are filled in abundance with all sorts of fancy pastries, creams, grains, wheats... Everything one expects to find in a luxury restaurant.

"Hmm... Perhaps I could whip something up for Rarity," you mutter to nopony in particular. You levitate several pots and pans, and get to work.

-----

"Hello? Helloooo?" Rarity walks down the steps and into the main floor of the boutique. She has finished her bath, but can't seem to find any trace of you. "Perhaps he's still in the kitchen," she mumbles, lazily trotting to the stairway that leads to the kitchen. "Hello? Are you in he-" she steps into the kitchen and freezes, mouth agape. "Oh sweet merciful Celestia..."

The entire kitchen is covered floor to ceiling in flour. Several splotches of gooey yeast stick to the ceiling. A puddle of what appears to be liquefied cake batter drips from the countertops. Food coloring stains the purple cabinets, creating a hideous brown slop that has a coagulated texture. A myriad of dishes, ranging from tiny saucers to monstrous pans lay scattered around the kitchen, most of them still coated in half burnt vegetables and yeast. Residual flour lingers in the air, causing her to cough.

"What... In Celestia's great mane... Did you do?!" her eyes flare, and her face turns beet red as she gives you a stare that could scare a manticore.

You point to the table, where two plates reside on. On it are several squares of an ornate looking breakfast casserole. "I made breakfast!" you flash her a toothy grin. "My mom passed down the recipe to me. It's the best breakfast casserole in all of Equestria!"

At first, it looks like Rarity is going to explode, but she represses her anger into a small but recognizable twitch. "Okay... Dearie." she takes a seat, and hesitantly puts a forkful into her mouth.

“Well?” you squeak expectantly. “What do you think?”

Her face instantly lights up. "My stars! This is amazing!" she immediately gobbles down the rest of it with vigor. "That was... That was the best thing I've ever eaten! You must tell me how you made it!"

You waggle for hoof. "Ah-ah-ah. Family secret. No exceptions."

Her face falls slightly. "Fine," she mumbles deflatedly. "Just promise me you'll make it again?"

You grin, nodding slightly. "Count on it."

She perks up and claps your hooves together. "Oh, wonderful, simply wonderful!" she stands up and tosses a towel to you.

"What is this for?" you ask, giving Rarity a confused look.

"That," she replies with a smirk, "is for cleaning up this mess. I'm certainly not going to get MY hooves dirty with all this." she smiles playfully at you before cantering out of the kitchen.

You sigh, staring at the small mountain of dirty dishes in front of you. You grumble, "I knew I should've just made toast."

-----

You stumble out of the kitchen and into the main boutique, your face covered in a crusty layer of flour and sweat. You thrust a hoof into the air and shout "Victory!" before collapsing onto a couch. Rarity walks over and hands you a towel as she represses chuckle.

"Thank you for doing that, dearie. I really do appreciate it." she plants a quick peck on your cheek, causing you to flush slightly. "Also, thank you for last night. I had an absolutely marvelous time. You certainly know how to treat a lady to a night on the town."

You blush even more at the compliment. "Aw, it was nothing, really. Just trying to give a special mare a special night."

She giggles coyly, the melody instantly making your heart melt. “I guess after such a wonderful time, I can tolerate you sleeping with me.”

“Hey!” you say in a vain attempt to defend your honor, “there is a difference between sleeping with you and… you know…” at the implication of sex, your face bursts out in a ravenous blush.

The color of your cheeks only causes Rarity to laugh harder. “Oh, relax dearie, I’m only joking. I think it’s wonderful that you’re so modest in that sense.” She punctuates her point by placing a peck on your forehead. “Now,” she interjects with a tap of her front hooves, “I don’t mean to be rude, but I really need to get started on the dress ensembles for those Manehatten fashionistas. You’re welcome to stay if you’d like, but Celestia knows I don’t have much to entertain you with around here.”

“That’s ok,” you reply. “I have another gig at the Pure and Petite tonight, and I’ll need to practice. If you want, I could stay here and play for you while you work.”

She spins around in a flourish of dress materials, accidentally knocking over a massive column of fabrics. It takes all your magical power to catch the tower and keep it suspended mere inches from the hardwood floors. As difficult as it is to keep the fabrics from falling, it is made no easier as Rarity flies into you at breakneck speeds, enveloping you in a surprisingly strong hug that threatens to break your concentration. “Oh, I would absolutely adore that! Thank you so much!”

She moves in to kiss you, but you wave her off, knowing that the sublime feeling of her lips on yours would break your concentration and send the pile of fabrics to the floor. “Sorry, but-oof-could you please get off me? I think I’m-ungh-gonna drop these fabrics.”

Rarity gives you a confused look. “What fab-oh.” She finally notices the towering pile of fabrics that is only barely kept from toppling over by your now failing magic. “Oh, yes, THAT fabric. Let me help you with that dearie.” She unclamps herself from your withers and reinforces your fading red aura with a vibrant blue sparkle. With some straining, you are both able to raise the shelf back to its original standing position with a residual thud.

Your magic dissipates, and you stumble backwards onto your haunches, miniscule beads of sweat breaking out onto your forehead. You wipe then away with a contented sigh. “Now that THAT’S taken care of, I think I’ll start practicing. Do you know where my saxophone is?”

Rarity points to a small guest closet. “I put it in there while you were out. It should be right in the front.”

“Thanks,” you throw over your shoulder as you trot over to the closet and retrieve your battered case from the closet. You trot over to a small reclining couch on the edge of the shop and sit down, gently placing the case beside you. Several staccato clicks resonate as you slip open the case and lift your piece.

Aside from the ascetically unpleasing layer of dust the instrument has collected while in its case, no real damage has been sustained, thank Celestia. You feel the contours of the piece slide into a natural position near your mouth from muscle memory, the greasy, metallic smell of cleaner pungent on the instrument. You lick your lips before placing them onto the reed and blowing air into the horn, eliciting a controlled wail that resonated throughout the boutique long after the notes had ceased.

Some acoustics, you think as you tune the sax. You always had a natural tendency to tune it a bit flat, but nopony really notices unless they have a trained ear for music. You pull out some sheet music that you want to learn for tonight, and smile as you recognize the tune. You’ve heard this song a couple times before, but never really bothered to learn it until now. The title, Moon River, belays the fact that this is another slow, romantic tune that ponies have come to associate with you.

After a deep inhale, you begin to read the sheet music. This particular version is just the instrumental version, but it is no less impactfully beautiful. The melancholy sighs of your saxophone echo through the halls of the boutique. You are to busy reading the music to notice Rarity put down her dress materials and walk over behind you, swaying slightly to the beat. She remains transfixed to you as you continue to play, oblivious to your audience of one.

As you reach to end of the tune and add a gentle flourish of improvised notes, the mare behind you bursts out in an enthused round of applause. The sudden racket startles you. “Ah!” you shout, bolting upwards and dropping all your sheet music onto ground, where it conveniently separates and plumes in a hundred different directions.

“Oh! I’m so sorry!” Rarity clasps a hoof over her mouth in guilt. “I just… that was really pretty.”

You blush once again at the attention. “Heh… thanks. I really like that tune, I just never really had an occasion to learn it until now.

You turn to begin the arduous task of picking up all your music, but are halted by a pair of hooves entwining themselves around your neck. “Promise me you’ll play that tonight? For me?” Rarity’s voice is hardly more than a whisper, as she is now mere millimeters away from your cheek.

“How could I say no to you?” your voice is sincere as your line is corny, but neither of you care. She holds you in a warming embrace for quite some time, the only sound coming from the soft rustle of leaves outside and the occasional squeal of a distant filly somewhere beyond the walls of the boutique.

Eventually, you break the hug. You plant a kiss on her snout before turning back to pick up your music, still scattered across the floor. A burst of bright red magic binds the paper and replaces it into your case. You take a sideways glance at the clock, disregarding it at first, but doing a double take as you see what time it is.

“Rarity, darling? I need to go to the Pure and Petite. The manager likes me to show up earlier so they can get a sound check in.

You can tell by her reaction she is disappointed, but understands. “Okay dearie, I’ll let you go. Just remember, I’ll be there when the place opens up for business.”

You smile at the mare’s willingness to support your musical endeavor. “Not a chance of me forgetting.” You peck her on the cheek before levitating your saxophone case with your magic and heading for the door, pulling on your jacket as you head out of the boutique and into the light of a late midday sun, putting a spring into your step as you head for town.