//------------------------------// // Chapter One Hundred Twelve // Story: HiE - A Hollow in Equestria // by Charlie_K //------------------------------// Chapter One Hundred Twelve Rarity didn't feel much like humming as she slowly moved from one display to another in her shop's showroom. Not after everything that'd ended up transpiring over the course of the last few days. Windigos. The very word, and the implications behind it, sent a disturbing chill creeping down her spine even now. She honestly didn't want to think about it, but found it difficult to do anything but think about it. She'd been quite content to regard them as nothing more than a tale of legend. But she could no longer do that, after witnessing their existence with her own eyes. Just the fact that they had been here, in her home of Ponyville, and none of them had been aware of it until they willingly made their presence known, was simply too horrible to properly grasp. Was the peace and harmony of their world truly so fragile, that a few bad moods and disagreements could serve to undo everything, and allow such horrible creatures to return to power? Had they been on the precipice of doom for years, all the while blissfully ignorant of just how close they'd come to living in a frozen wasteland? If not for the timely arrival of Ulquiorra, they would likely all be dead right now. Or worse, finding themselves in a state where they would actually be begging for a death that would never come. Thoughts relating to her own mortality, and the mortality of those around her, were hardly comforting to consider. How many times had they come close to death in their various adventures and efforts to save Equestria? How much closer could they come before it actually took? How much more mental stress could they bear, knowing that the fate of the world was essentially resting on the six of them? Knowing that if they failed, everypony failed? Who would be tasked with taking over should they die before their time? How many times would Ulquiorra be forced to pick up their slack, because they'd gotten sloppy? What would the societal and political landscape of Equestria look like it he was forced to take over full-time? She would rather not think about such horrible implications. If nothing else, the presence of the windigos in their town might've explained some of the more unsavory interactions that'd been going on the last several days; her own included. It was shameful how she'd acted, how snippy she'd been, and how good and right it'd felt to actually indulge in such at the time. Honestly, she didn't want to think about that either. Not with just how horrible she'd been to others. How much of her behavior had been her own, and how much had been the influence of the windigos? Beneath all of her years of culture, was she really just as much a foul brute as Rainbow Dash could be when she got worked up? That demonstration the other day, had that been the real her that'd unconsciously been buried and forgotten about in the name of becoming a socialite? Had it been her true self peaking out from under the mask of culture she'd been wearing for so many years, let loose because her inhibitions had been lowered at the time? Such thoughts were ultimately what led her to wandering between the displays of her show room, going through the motions of her work, but without actually committing to anything of substances. Neither her mind, nor her heart, were truly in it; not with such thoughts and so many others weighing as heavily on her as they were. The door chime sounded behind her, almost causing her to jump at the morbid silence of her shop being disturbed. It took a moment for her to gather her wits and remember where she was. She had a customer. Her focus was needed elsewhere than on herself right now. "W-welcome to Carousel Boutique," she greeted as she turned around, brushing her own thoughts aside as she once again donned her mask of culture and a welcoming smile. There was simply no time to be feeling bad for herself right now. She could always return to that later, once the day was through. "Hiya, Indi!" Shady was easy enough to recognize, even by sound alone. The mare that walked next to her, with her butterscotch colored coat, dark chocolate mane and tail, and paper-based cutie mark, not so much. Honestly, it was hard to see any sort of resemblance between the two, what with such stark differences in their color palettes. If she hadn't met them before, she'd never know -or even guess- they were actually related. "Shady, be nice." the mare in question instructed. "I'm always nice, Mom," Shady quickly replied. "Uh-huh," she muttered sarcastically, before offering a tired, apologetic smile to Rarity. "You'll have to excuse her, Ms. Belle. She's a hoofful even on her good days." "Well, I am average-sized for a foal my age," Shady was quick to retort. "Oh, it's quite alright," Rarity replied and waved her right hoof dismissively. Honestly, the levity was a welcome distraction from her own current thoughts. "What can I do for you today, Mrs. Rebus?" "I have errands to run today, so I figured I'd start by picking up my daughter's saddle bags," the mare explained, her tone easily sounding like it was forced to be firm despite the one it coming from just wanting to take a nap. It was a tone she herself was familiar with all too well at times. "I'm the pack mule for today," Shady quipped. "And don't you forget it, either, you little sod-biscuit," her mother quipped right back, while doing her best to drown out the urge to smirk in amusement with a sour scowl, and losing that battle. Despite her years of practice in projecting an image of culture and refinement in her work, even Rarity found it difficult to conceal her own amusement as she listened to the two. "Yes, well then, I won't keep you waiting but a moment," she replied, her horn flaring to life as she spoke to reach behind the front counter and retrieve the aforementioned article to levitate the parcel in question. "I hope they're to your liking." "I'm quite sure they will be, Ms. Belle. You do excellent work. And I must say, these are no exception." "Somepony wanna fill me in on the details since I'm the one who has to wear them?" Shady asked as she tilted her head to the side. "Of course, dear, it's very important that the target audience be informed of what they're getting," Rarity replied, preparing to go into explanation mode. "The entire body is made from an under and over layer of heavyweight duck canvas to provide it with water-repellent qualities, although you'll find the entire thing quite light upon your back. All of the material edges have been rolled and sewed underneath to prevent fraying, and the bag and corresponding flap corners have all been rounded to reduce the risk of stress points that may come undone in the future. All seams have a tight, double stitching increased durability, and all seams of the bag bodies have been reinforced with a steel rivet at the top to prevent tearing. Since snaps, ties, and clasps would prove problematic for closing, both the flap and the bag have button magnets sewn into the body for ease of closure and opening. Since you don't have your cutie mark yet, I embroidered the image of sunglasses into the upper right corner of the flap with black thread. There's also a thin layer of fiber-fill padding in the wide back strap, to provide comfort and cushioning on your back even under heavier loads. With the entire body done up in a nice cinnamon brown dye to offer a pleasant and complementary contrast with your coat and mane." At hearing all of this, Shady thrust her snout forward, sniffing intently at the saddlebags, before pulling back and letting out a loud whistle. "Well color me impressed!" she stated and grinned. That in itself would've been sufficient praise as far as Rarity was concerned. But Shady had gone further and dove right at her to initiate a hug. It certainly wasn't the first time one of her customers had gotten excited about the quality of her work, but it was the first time in a while. All she could really do was drape the saddlebags over her back. "I apologize for her, I really do," her mother sighed, "if you let me know how much, we can be on our way and get out of your mane." "Of course," Rarity replied, once again reaching behind the counter to retrieve a small bag, and a slip of paper. "Here you are. An itemized list of services rendered, the materials used, hours works, the final price, and your change." "Change?" "Of course," Rarity repeated, "I'm not in the habit of claiming tips that aren't mine. The only thing I don't understand is why you didn't simply stop in and pick them up yesterday when you paid for them." "Paid for..." the mare asked, a look of confusion washing over her face. "Er, Ms. Belle, I didn't pay for anything. I was stopping here today to do that." An uneasy silence washed over the boutique, both mares looking in each other's general directions in confusion, with Shady pulling back to move her head back and forth, as if she was looking between them for clarity as to what was happening. "I'm sorry, could you repeat that? I think I misheard you, Darling," Rarity stated uneasily. "Are you sure? Yesterday there was a knock at my door, but nopony there; just a bag of bits with a note attached: "Enclosed, please find payment for one set of foal saddlebags." I assumed you were simply too busy at the time to actually stop in." The note, much like the receipt, was quickly retrieved and presented to the confused mare for her review, her brow furrowing as she read it over. "This isn't my hoof-writing," she stated as she looked up from it, confusion and unease clearly visible across her face as she spoke. "Maybe this was for some other customer?" Rarity shook her head in equal confusion. "I can't say that it is. I haven't been asked to produce a set of foal-sized saddlebags in months." Again, despite the gesture being entirely futile, Shady turned her head from one mare to another. "Does this mean we get a free set of saddlebags out of the deal?" "Nothing is ever free, Shady, you know that; somepony always has to pay," her mother pointed out, before turning her attention back to the note. "The question is which pony actually did the paying, and why?" "Yes, that's a very good question," Rarity replied and nodded. "Just... consider it on the house for the time being, we'll get this all sorted out later." "As tempting as that does sound, the idea of it doesn't exactly set well with me; it feels a little too close to theft for my tastes." "Nonsense! I won't hear talk like that," Rarity objected firmly. "My work and services are to do with them as I please, even if that means giving it away to whomever I wish. However, if it makes you feel more at ease, I will accept one third of the bill amount as payment, until such time that this matter is resolved. And not one bit more; I'd rather operate at a loss, than unfairly and improperly bill my customers." This really wasn't how she expected to be spending her day when she woke up this morning; trying to unravel the mystery of a payment she couldn't figure out. Granted, it was better than how the day had been shaping up in light of everything that'd occurred over the past few days. But at the same time, better didn't exactly amount to being good. Then again, a mystery -albeit a small one- still beat contemplating what had been troubling her. Given the choice she'd much rather try and sort this out, than try and examine her own character for possible negative aspects. It was something she'd have to do, eventually, but not today. She could find perfectly good reasons to hate herself later on, when she had nothing better to do with her time.