Roberto arrived in front of the Carousel Boutique. He'd seen this building several times during his time in Ponyville but has never actually been inside it, mainly because he never really needed to as he felt the boutique's choices would not be to his liking and he always kept his suits in good condition. Plus, the boutique mostly sold clothes for ponies, which Roberto always thought the idea of ponies wearing fancy clothing to be ridiculous, but he heard that ever since more humans started moving into Ponyville, the boutique started selling human clothes as well, so at least there's that.
Just today, Roberto noticed some tears on his suit, though he had absolutely no idea what caused them as with everything that happened today, they could've been caused by anything. Roberto was not happy about it, as this was one of his favorite suits which he always took great care of. So coming to the Boutique was killing two birds with one stone, as he could talk with another one of Princess Twilight Sparkle's closest friends and get his suit stitched up, it was a win-win.
Roberto knocked on the door of the Carousel Boutique, with one hand still holding his cigar, and from the other side, he heard a reply.
"Come in!" a very posh-sounding, sing-songy voice answered from behind the door. Roberto hadn't even seen this pony named "Rarity" yet, but he could already tell everything about her just from the way she spoke. It wouldn't be the first time Roberto met this kind of person (or pony in this case).
Roberto opened the door and entered the Boutique, and inside he saw three figures occupying themselves with a dress on the table. The other two seem to only be observing what's going on, while the one in the middle is the one doing all the seam work. the two figures standing up and watching the work process was a young yellow stallion with blue hair with a "cutie mark" (Roberto still hated saying that) depicting three sea turtles, and the other was a creature Roberto hadn't seen before in his time in Equestria, only being aware of their existence, it was a yak. The figure in the middle was definitely the one Roberto was looking for, a white unicorn with a stylish purple mane and tail, that was obviously Rarity. Roberto had to admit that Rarity was one beautiful pony, from her clean white coat and her dazzling mane. If she weren't a thinking being who had rights and could talk, she'd probably be a prize possession of his.
The white unicorn looked up from the dress she was working on to see Roberto standing in the doorway, and she greeted him with a smile. "Welcome, sir." Rarity turned to the pony and yak stood beside her for a moment, "I trust you two can do this by yourselves now," she told them before turning back and walking towards Roberto, taking off the glasses she was wearing. "What can I do for you today?"
"You're Rarity, right?" Roberto asked.
"The one and only, darling," Rarity answered while striking a pose and flipping her mane.
Yup, she's exactly as I expected, Roberto thought to himself.
"The name's Roberto Silano, ya can jus' call me Mr. Silano," he said. "I've noticed a few tears formin' on my suit 'ere, I was wonderin' if ya could help stitch it up. Ya'd obviously do a much betta' job than I would."
"Oh, dear! Such a nice suit, too!" Rarity gasped when she noticed the small tears before turning back to face Roberto with a smile. "Why, I'd be happy to help you stitch it up. Don't worry, I'll have it done in no time!"
Rarity's face then winced and scrunched up when she took a whiff of the smoke coming from Roberto's cigar, which was starting to fill up the room. "Pardon me, sir, but could you please put that thing out? It bothers our productivity, and it's making the store smell absolutely dreadful."
Roberto just raised an eyebrow at what Rarity said, but he wasn't going to argue. Roberto would not want to disrespect someone in their own home, and he'd be a total asshole if he did it to someone who was already being kind enough to happily stitch up his suit. So the mob boss opened the door slightly and flicked the cigar out, and when he did he could swear that he heard the mailpony yelp in pain, but he couldn't be sure as he immediately shut the door again and didn't care enough to check.
Rarity smiled again once the cigar was gone. "Wonderful, darling. Now come over here, take off the suit, and I'll fix it right up for you."
Rarity trotted across the room while humming to herself as Roberto took off his suit and followed her. As soon as the suit was off, it was grabbed by a blue aura which caught Roberto off guard until he saw it was Rarity doing it. Despite all the time he's spent in Equestria, magic still managed to make him jump. When you lead a magicless life for so long, something like that is bound to catch you off guard a lot. Rarity placed the suit on the table and put on her glasses again, observing the suit closely.
"Luckily for you, sir, these are very small tears. Shouldn't take more than fifteen minutes," Rarity said as she used her magic to gather all the stitching equipment she needed onto the table. "It's still such a shame, though. Where did you get this lovely suit?"
"I bought it a few years ago in this small store in Little Italy. Nice little place, and had the best suits and shoes you've eva' seen. I liked the place so much that I bought it an' partnered up with the owner. Nice guy, fantastic tailor, we became pretty good friends. Bought quite a lotta suits from 'im eva' since that day. Funny ya so amazed with this one since I don' even think this is my best suit, though this is my personal favorite," the large mob boss explained.
"I see you're someone with an eye for fashion too," Rarity smirked at him as she stitched up the tears. "What happened to the store, then?"
"Well, I helped with business, I gave it my funds, which helped it grow a lot bigga' than when I first saw the place, and it now even has several chains across New York. Now the owner gives me any suit I want fa free."
"How generous of you, darling. I'm sure the owner is very thankful."
"Yeah, I don't like ta toot my own horn, but I like ta think o' myself as a pretty generous guy, especially fa someone who's done me a favor. See, that's what I'm all about, y'know? Favors. Whether it's fa me or someone else, I always make sure it gets repaid."
"It's always good to repay someone's generosity, lets them know you're thankful for what they've done, and you'll always help each other out," Rarity commented.
"Amen ta that," Roberto said.
The mob boss then started looking around the boutique, from the dresses displayed to the two creatures who are trying to stitch their own dress. One thing Roberto noticed about the shop was that most of the mannequins are pony-shaped, not surprising, but he also noticed a few human-shaped ones, two man-shaped and two woman-shaped. They looked pretty new compared to the others, which meant that Rarity was trying her hoof to make human clothes now too. While the clothes on the human mannequins didn't look bad, they didn't feel as perfect as the pony ones, and Roberto concluded that Rarity was still experimenting a bit with her human clothes.
"Ya mind if I ask ya some questions?" Roberto asked the unicorn.
"Why, of course not, darling. Ask away. I live for questions," Rarity answered.
"Who're those two?" Roberto pointed at the two young creatures.
"Oh, that's Sandbar and Yona. They're students over at the School of Friendship, and they've been coming here to help me and learn to make dresses. They've been doing a wonderful job."
"School o' Friendship? What's that?"
"It's a school Twilight opened up to teach ponies and other creatures about the Magic of Friendship. Starlight's the headmare there now."
"The Princess opened up a school ta teach friendship?" Roberto asked. It seemed like the more he learned about these ponies, the less he understood them. Roberto's always been someone who's all for friendship, but he never thought anyone, especially a princess, would be crazy enough to open up an entire school for it.
"Yes, she did. I'm sure you've seen it, it's right across the Sparkling Lake beside the Castle of Friendship."
"'The Castle of Friendship'?" An entire castle? These ponies were crazier than Roberto thought. "Is that the giant crystal tree across town from 'ere?"
"Why yes it is," Rarity confirmed.
"Yeah, yeah, I've seen it. Pretty amazin' architectures, I mus' say. I've always been plannin' on visitin' those places, jus' 'aven't found the time. Been kinda busy establishin' business 'ere an' takin' care o' stuff from home an' visitin' other places around 'ere like Manehatten. I own the 'Giovanni' restaurant," Roberto explained.
"Ooh! You're the owner? I must say, darling, your restaurant is simply divine! The tidiness, the music, the fine dining, it's all so romantic. It'd be perfect for a date between two lovers," Rarity commented with wonder in her sparkling eyes.
"Why, I'm glad ya think so. That restaurant has been a part o' my family fa three generations, an' four once I pass it down ta my sons one day," Roberto explained. "Ya know, I've neva' seen a yak 'round 'ere before. I 'ave heard there's a yak country called Yakistan or somethin' like that."
"Yakyakistan, darling," Rarity corrected. "I haven't been there too many times myself, but I feel that thanks to Yona over there, the yaks are starting to gain a lot of interest for my fashion designs."
"Well, that leads me to my second question. How big is ya business exactly? From the outside, this place seems pretty small, but I've heard ponies talk about ya all the way in Manehatten an' a few otha' places," Roberto asked.
"That's actually quite a story to tell, Mr. Silano. The Carousel Boutique's beginnings were quite humble, starting as just this small shop in Ponyville, but I was quite happy with what I did, and still do. But after just a few years after meeting Twilight, my business has grown quite exponentially. Now my designs are being enjoyed all over Equestria, and I couldn't be happier," Rarity smiled as she held her hooves to her chest.
"Is that so? Y'know, my business started out not too different from yours," Roberto commented.
"Really now? How's that?" Rarity smiled and raised an eyebrow with intrigue.
"My grandfather was a simple immigrant from Italy who came ta New York, he didn' 'ave much with 'im when he came ta the country. One day, he found his passion fa cookin' traditional Italian dishess which caught everyone's attention fa jus' how damn good they were, ta the point he even got hired by a restaurant ta cook for 'em. After a while, he earned enough money to build his own restaurant under his own name, Giovanni's, an' even opened up several stores sellin' Italian products because he wanted everyone ta be able ta cook their own Italian dishes at home. Eventually, the business got bigga', he even started ownin' an' partnerin' up with other businesses, an' now his restaurants are not jus' all ova' New York, but all over the whole damn country! Then the businesses got passed down ta my father, an' then ta me."
"That's quite incredible, darling! I guess fashion and culinary aren't as different as they seem."
"Course they aren't! Both of 'em require skill, practice, an' a good eye fa the right ingredients ta make the perfect final product. They're an art form! An' they can neva' be replicated by corporate bastards tryin' ta make a quick buck outta that product. I've seen so many pizza restaurants around New York, a lotta them aren't even made by Italians. an' the pizza tastes like absolute garbage! I don' understand what it is with Yanks an' alterin' perfect Italian recipes, always addin' unnecessary ingredients that don't belong! I mean c'mon! Pineapple?! Stuffed crust?! What, are our toppings an' crusts not good enough fa you?! Is the recipe practiced fa centuries not suited to ya likin'?!"
"Oh, I'm afraid I don't know much about Italian cuisine, but I can understand how you feel, darling. I've seen a lot of stores around Manehatten that are so shamelessly trying to copy my designs, and they don't even do it very well. The materials are never right, and the colors, oh the colors, they are always the wrong shade. It's simply ghastly to look at!" Rarity ranted as well, before she then calmed down and smiled again. "But, the more I thought about it, it was a great way to promote my own products, because you know what they say, 'imitation is the highest form of flattery'."
"I suppose so," Roberto said. "But still, when my sons were little, I always made sure they only ate authentic Italian pizza. I didn't want their taste buds gettin' corrupted by those cheap fast food pizzas that 'ave no heart or soul put into 'em."
"I'll say, it is always nice for there to be creatures like us to help spread some beauty and fine delicacies onto the world. Helps add a lot of color, wouldn't you say?"
"We really do," Roberto answered. "Speakin' o' spreadin' stuff, that reminds o' the otha' thing I wanted ta ask."
"What may that be?"
"I couldn't help but notice ya got some human mannequins ova' there. Look pretty new, too."
"Oh, those. Well, ever since humans have started moving into Ponyville, I knew I'd have to start learning to make clothes for them. Would be a bit unfair if I made clothes for every other creature except for them, and I always love a challenge of designing new things. At first, I thought it would be difficult to design clothes for humans considering how different their body shapes are compared to us ponies and many other creatures. But then I remembered I've already tried making clothes for dragons and even made one for Capper, though I haven't expanded my business to the rest of Klugetown just yet, and their bodies aren't too different from humans, so I already got some good practice, and it wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be. Though the clothes on those mannequins over there are still failed experiments, I must say. The combinations are dreadful, I suppose I was trying too hard to be creative. Sometimes simplicity is the best route to take."
This was the moment Roberto decided to finally get to the point he's been waiting for. "Y'know, maybe I can help ya out a bit with ya clothes."
"Pardon?"
"Ya wanna learn ta make more clothes fa humans, right? Well, what betta' way ta do it than ta learn from the best clothes? I mean, ya like my suit, right?"
"Oh, I very much do. Normally, I don't do stripes but I think the ones here compliment it very well," Rarity observed the suit she was nearly finished stitching up.
"Damn right, and there's more where that came from. Italian suits are the best ya gonna get, that's why so many men's fashion stores sell 'em. Can't get any betta' than these," Roberto said. "So I was thinkin', maybe I can offa' ya Italian suits ta sell."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Remember that guy that owns the store I buy my clothes from? I can get 'im ta come over 'ere, ask 'im ta teach ya how ta make these Italian suits, he's an expert. Though he mostly makes clothes fa men, an' from what I can gather, ya mostly make clothes fa women, or mares, right?"
"Well, I do mostly focus on mare's clothing, but I'm always willing to expand my horizons. Like I said, darling, I do like a challenge," Rarity smirked.
"Good ta know. Who knows? Maybe later on, I can partner up ya businesses, an' ya can help each otha'. He helps expand ya business ta Earth, I'm sure New Yorkers would love ya stuff, an' ya can help expand his stuff over 'ere. An' maybe besides just 'im teachin' ya, ya can also teach 'im the stuff you know, in case he's interested. I don't know, just a suggestion."
Rarity thought about what he said before finally answering. "Well, I'm not sure about most of that just yet, but I'd be happy to learn from this friend of yours, and I'd be more than happy to teach him a thing or two. Yes, maybe he could teach me about making clothes for humans, and I could teach him about making clothes for ponies. I do hear there are quite a lot of ponies now living in Earth's Manehatten."
"It's called 'Manhatten' where we come from, but yeah. So, you interested?" Roberto asked.
"Sounds good to me, darling! When shall I expect him?"
Three down... Roberto thought.
"He's a pretty busy guy, so I'll 'ave ta ask 'im, but I'll make sure he comes 'ere...at least by next month? How's that sound?"
"I don't think I have too many schedules for next month, so...yeah! Sounds good to me!"
"Great. Trust me, Rarity, you'll make a killin' sellin' Italian suits, an' ya gonna make double the profits."
"Oh, profits, schmofits," Rarity blew a raspberry at that. "It's not about the profits, darling, it's about bringing style to Equestria. Not saying the money isn't important, it's just never been my main concern."
"That's good. People, or ponies, who let themselves get too greedy often end up shootin' themselves in the foot."
Just then. Rarity had finished stitching up the last tear, and she held up the suit with her magic to show it to Roberto. "Ta-da! Good as new!"
"Wow, it really is. I can barely even see where the tears used ta be," Roberto said in awe. He grabbed the suit from Rarity's telekinesis and put it back on himself, and he pulled out a handful of bits from his pocket to pay Rarity. "Here, fa all ya troubles," he said as he placed the load of bits on the table.
Rarity became wide-eyed at just how much money Roberto was giving her. "Oh, this is far too much, Mr. Silano. I only stitched up a few small tears."
"Please, I insist you take it, as a personal 'thank you' from me," Roberto said.
Rarity was shocked by the man just giving her this much bits that easily. She felt pretty bad for accepting the payment, especially since it was far too much from what should be paid. It made her feel like she was ripping him off, stealing from him. But she knew he'd be far more insulted if she rejected it, so she accepted the payment.
"Why thank you to you too, darling. This is very generous of you," Rarity said.
"You're welcome," Roberto replied.
Just before Roberto was about to make his leave, he noticed behind a curtain a mannequin that wore an outfit riddled with colorful gems of all kinds, from red to blue to green and purple. It was unlike anything Roberto had seen before, easily the most dazzling outfit he'd ever seen. He knew a lot of stuck-up nouveau riche millionaires who'd pay a fortune for an outfit like that.
"What is it, Mr. Silano?" Rarity asked, who noticed Roberto had frozen in place and gone quiet.
"That outfit behind the curtain ova' there, ya made that?" Roberto asked.
"Oh, yes. Quite fabulous, if I do say so myself."
"How much did it cost ya to make that outfit?"
"Didn't cost too much at all, darling. I made it all with my own materials," the white unicorn answered.
"What about the gems? That musta cost quite a bit ta get,"
"Not at all, I collected all those gems myself."
"What? Ya found these all by yaself? Where?"
"Where I usually get my gems, on the outskirts of Ponyville. The Diamond Dog mines are still there, but they never try to mess with me anymore."
"Can ya show me where it is?" the mob boss asked.
"Why, certainly. Sandbar, Yona, please watch the shop while I'm away. Won't be long!" Rarity told her two apprentices and the two of them nodded in response, then Rarity trotted out the door. "Follow me, Mr. Silano!"
"Yeah, hold on a sec. I wanna call my sons first," Roberto said as he pulled out his cell phone and followed Rarity through Ponyville.