"Hoo-ee, talk about fancy." Applejack marveled the shiny trinkets hidden away in glass cases. "What could a pony even use most of this stuff for."
"I'm afraid you must be lost," a unicorn mare derisively said as she glared at Applejack from behind a counter. "This store is for the most exclusive and well-connected of ponies. Not some commoner like you."
Applejack was fully prepared to jump across the counter, but was stopped by a pearly leg. "Later, this shop is the only one in Canterlot that sells it," she whispered into Applejack's ear as she coaxed her to step back. "You must forgive my companion," Rarity spoke up as she pointed at the storefront window. Parked just outside was the trio of carts overflowing with gems. "You simply cannot expect a pony such as myself to pull something so heavy."
After scrutinizing Rarity a moment the unicorn scoffed. "Just see to it that she keeps her filthy hooves away from our pristine counters."
Applejack growled at her, but a pointed look from Rarity kept her soothed enough not to leap across the counter and assault the snobby unicorn. "Your shop carries a diamond-tipped sewing kit, correct?" she asked as sweetly as she could with a saccharin smile.
The employee gave a haughty, faux laugh. "A dressmaker with fine taste, I see." She slid down the glass counter before retrieving a gilded, gem-encrusted box and placed it atop the glass. Opening it revealed needles, two pairs of scissors, spools of thread, and even a measuring tape. They were all made of gold with brilliantly cut diamonds forming the needle points and scissor blades. The measure and thread seemed to be strung from gold thread.
Rarity adorned a loupe as she closely scrutinized the tools. The metal spools, scissors, and needles weren't solid gold. Merely gold-plated iron or steel. Had she intended to use the set as a decoration she would have thrown that box in that rude pony's face, but she needed to use them as tools. Iron would do better than gold for that purpose. More important were the blades and points. They were indeed genuine diamond. Cloudy and flawed, but diamonds nonetheless. Taking a pair of scissors in her aura, she tried snipping them to see how well the diamond blades meshed. In short, they didn't. The motion was not at all smooth, and they seemed to have a permanent hitch before they could fully close.
This was the only set of diamond-tipped sewing equipment, and it was nothing short of awful. How could she possibly expect to cut strings made of emeralds, rubies, and sapphires with this? She needed precision-crafted diamond for the task. Nothing else would do. This kit was just as pretentious as the ponies peddling it.
"This will not do at all," Rarity disdainfully spat as she replaced the scissors.
The unicorn frowned as she replaced the gilded box. "Surely you do not recognize quality when you see it," she scoffed. "I should have expected as much from a pony that keeps such...uncouth company."
That was the final straw. No, the final straw was the first time this dreadful unicorn opened her maw. She simply endured because she thought she needed something from this store. But that gaudy kit wasn't worth the effort. Hay, a dazzling kit full of flawless gems that worked perfectly probably wasn't. Rarity regretted that it took her this long to figure that out. Sending an apologetic glance to Applejack, she turned back to the unicorn with a scowl.
"Now see here, you prudish shrew..." Rarity put her hooves on the counter so she could lean up near the unicorn's face. "Applejack here,"—she pointed a hoof—"is a wonderful pony. Honest, hardworking, and kind. Three things I seriously doubt you will ever have the luxury of knowing. From where I'm standing the only uncouth one here is you!" She hopped down with a "Hmph!" as she turned to leave with Applejack, only to stop cold as her mouth fell open in shock.
"I dare say, that was certainly...something," Fancy Pants commented with an amused smile.
"O-oh dear." Rarity blushed. "You heard that, did you?"
Fancy nodded a bit. "Indeed."
"Monsieur Fancy Pants!" the unicorn behind the counter eagerly greeted. "I'm dreadfully sorry about that...unfortunate scene. Rest assured in the future we will see to it that only the proper clientele are allowed in."
"Why are you apologizing to me?" Fancy asked rhetorically as he motioned to the flabbergasted Rarity and curious Applejack. "These fine ladies are the ones you were so rude to." The attendant just stared slack-jawed at Fancy Pants as he turned to the other two. "An acquaintance mentioned seeing you in town, Rarity. I thought it would be such a delight to see you again, though I must say: remind me often to never draw your ire."
Rarity's cheeks radiated embarrassment. "I simply cannot believe you witnessed that!"
"I say, it's a pleasure seeing you again as well, Applejack." He leaned over to look at the pony that had so amusingly misinterpreted the purpose of a garden party.
"It sure is nice to see a friendly face 'round here," Applejack greeted with a tip of her hat.
"Tell me, how fares the Princess?" Fancy asked as he turned back to Rarity. "It must be so fascinating to be such close friends with a Princess."
Rarity rose a hoof to her lips to try and stifle a giggle as the trio left the shop leaving behind the completely stunned staff. "You know, Twilight Sparkle is terribly modest. She is not quite comfortable being called a Princess."
"You don't say," Fancy replied as they paused.
"Darn tootin'," Applejack chimed in as she hitched herself to the carts. "She prefers to be treated just the same way she used to be. It's a mighty fine attitude if yah ask me."
"How fascinating."
Rarity cleared her throat a bit. "I hate to be so forward, but we are suddenly in quite the tight spot. You see I need a set of diamond-tipped sewing equipment. This was the only shop we could find that had one, but it was...subpar."
"Diamond-tipped?" He raised an eyebrow before recognition crossed his face. "Oh, don't tell me. A fine dressmaker such as yourself; you must be hoping to make something of that new fabric—the crystalline cloth."
Rarity gave him a strange look. "You should know. You're the one that went on and on about it."
"Word travels that quickly does it?" Fancy asked in turn. "I should warn you that Canterlot's finest dressmakers have all tried and failed to properly work that cloth. I'm not certain you can even find it in Canterlot anymore."
"I know." Rarity quizzically gazed at Fancy. "The pony who makes it lives in the Crystal Empire now. You said so."
"Did I?" Fancy raised a hoof to his chin.
"What I need right now are the tools." Rarity waved a hoof as if to waft away the distracted conversation. "If everypony tried to work the cloth, then there should be a set left over somewhere, right?"
"I say, I don't quite know about that, but I can recommend a jewelsmith," he offered as he pointed a hoof.
It was a short, yet eventful trip to the jeweler's. Fancy Pant's entourage found him and they pulled him away, leaving the two mares to their task. Rarity was a bit upset about it, but Applejack was glad to be free from the posh unicorns. Rarity was more than prudish enough for her taste.
"Is this the place?" Applejack raised an eyebrow. The building in front of her didn't look anything like what she imagined. Without her noticing, Rarity had led her away from the opulent main strip and into a shoddy alley. The shop in question had a simple, hoof-painted sign that simply read "Gems" above an entryway cordoned off from the outside by, not a door, but a velveteen curtain.
"This is it," Rarity confirmed as she glanced around. She'd heard of the slums tucked away into the city, but she'd never actually visited them. "Perhaps you should stand near the wagons," she suggested as she pulled the curtain aside.
"Welcome!" a cheery voice greeted as soon as Rarity walked inside. It came from a rusty-red unicorn stallion standing behind a wooden counter. He never looked up from the sapphire under his loupe. In stark contrast to the aging wooden shop, there were shining, shimmering gemstones everywhere. They were on countertops and shelves as well as in bins and barrels. "How can I help you?"
Rarity struggled pull her gaze away from the gems. "I, um...I need a custom job."
"You'll have to be a bit more specific than that miss..." he said as he looked up.
"Rarity," she spoke her own name as she primped her mane. "I must say, this is not at all what I expected."
The red unicorn chuckled as he set the sapphire aside. "Everypony always tells me to sell this old place and get a shining, glamorous shop. But I grew up playing on these floors when my parents and my grandparents before them ran the family business. I wouldn't trade this rough, faded wood for all the bits in Canterlot." Looking up from his memories, he flashed Rarity a smile. "Now, what can I do for you, Miss Rarity?"
"I need sewing equipment fitted with diamonds," she explained. "Scissors, needles, pins... That sort of thing."
Jotting down Rarity's words onto a notepad he chuckled a bit to himself. "I got a few orders like these a while back. A bunch of dressmakers trying to work cloth made of gemstones. You know that it's impossible, right?"
"Impossible? I should say not," Rarity refuted.
"I've seen that cloth," he claimed as he finished scribbling on the notepad as he looked up at Rarity. "It has diamond in it. It would be like trying to cut a pair of scissors with another pair of scissors. It simply doesn't work."
Rarity slowly nodded as she contemplated his words. "I-I would still like to try it."
"I can have you a set in...three to four weeks," he offered as he looked to a calendar behind him.
"No," Rarity said, shaking her head. "That simply won't do. Is there any way I can convince you to expedite the order?"
A small smile touched his lips. "For a fee. Just how quickly do you need it?"
"Can you get it done in a day or two?"
He sighed as he shook his head. "Three to four days at the earliest, I'm afraid. And that will run you..." he trailed off as he worked an abacus, "...6,200 bits."
"Th-that's outrageous!"
"Most of it is for the rush order. I would have to push back several important clients to focus on your work."
Rarity sighed. "I didn't bring many bits with me, but I do have quite a few gems. I can even provide the needed diamonds. Would it be possible to pay for the entire order with gemstones?"
He raised an eyebrow at the tiny saddlebags on Rarity's sides. "I doubt you brought enough, but we could discuss a time frame based on what you can offer."
Rarity rolled her eyes. This stallion may have been charming, but there was no doubt he was a businesspony at heart. "One moment," she said as she headed out of the shop.
"Yah know I could hear every word," Applejack greeted Rarity in a low enough voice that the shopkeeper wouldn't hear. "He said it wouldn't work."
"He said diamonds cannot cut diamonds," Rarity qualified as she she used her magic to sift diamonds from the rest of the gems. "He is right about that. Diamonds are the hardest gemstone. It's why I have to use them to cut the rest. I just have to convince the weaver to make the cloth sans diamond."
Applejack rolled her eyes as Rarity trotted back into the shop. She probably should have been more supportive of Rarity, but she'd had more than enough of Canterlot already. She couldn't wait to get to the Crystal Empire.
"How is this for an offer?" Rarity emphasized as she ushered in the dozens of diamonds into the shop in her aura. She smiled triumphantly as the red unicorn's jaw dropped and his loupe fell onto the counter in front of him. "Darling, I may be a fashion designer, but my specialty is gemstones!"
"Deal!"
By the time the duo got on the train headed for the Crystal Empire, the sun was already being swallowed by the horizon. In the end Rarity had used up an entire wagon-full of gems. In their place was a wagon full to the brim with bolts of various fabrics as well as dozens upon dozens of bundles of feathers.
"Sure am glad we're finished with that mess," Applejack sighed as she and Rarity plodded towards the sleeper car.
"Yes..." Rarity muttered. It might've been a splendid day for Rarity, but the few shops that even gave Applejack a chance to speak refused to even consider buying from Sweet Apple Acres. "I'm certain you will have much more luck in the Crystal Empire."
"Why do Canterlot unicorns have to be so...snooty?" Applejack flopped into her bed, setting her hat aside.
Rarity sighed. "If you want to be taken seriously in Canterlot you must look and speak just so. It's just the way that it is."
"It ain't right," Applejack groused as she rolled over to stare at at the wall.
"No, I suppose not," Rarity gingerly snuggled into her bunk. "Applejack?"
"Yeah?"
"Thank you... For coming with me, I mean."
"Yeah," Applejack replied again. Unseen by Rarity, a ghost of a smile touched Applejack's lips.