A Missed Stitch.
What was happening was important.
More important than the greatest fashion show the world had ever seen. The job was too much for her alone, for Rarity. She needed somepony familiar with her work. She needed her sister, ever so grateful for her help.
"Do you remember what I told you about standing back stage, at the fashion show? "Sweetie Bell nodded furiously locked deep in concentration. "We concentrate: Moving the cloth so it makes the best impression on the runway. Making it supple: that it floats, it glides! This is what we are doing. “Moving in unison slowly, as they sat in their chairs, looking out through half lidded eyes, as if afloat on water, heads and necks moving back and forth, like subjects under a hypnotist charm.
"Just like I taught you. We are helping, cooperating." Rarity took a deep breath. "The cloth the team is hoofing is part of us. We didn't want it unraveling, in the middle: these hours long session, this test. That would be disastrous! Splintered fibers everywhere, a broken promise and we would lose, lose everything." Sweet Bell nodded her head vigorously.
She understood now how important this job was.....hours before, she didn't.
"Sweetie Bell!!!!"Rarity screamed as she raced forward, looming over the frightened filly, her eyes white with rage and her mouth open her teeth grating.
A moment, a distracted moment. Whether with a yawn or a closing of the eyes, Sweetie Bell missed a course!
A course in the warp , an uneven lump in the weave, then all the threads of tightly woven manna, became an embrocation of a parade, formally fibers of cloth, torqueing and breaking into unrecognizable splinters, haywire spiraling out, as they lost their cohesion, disintegrating into nothing!
At that moment, she felt it. Rarity's eyes popped wide as they bore witnessed. Eyes wide as all their looming, the whole of the ectoplasmic mass evaporated in an instant with a static electric crackle, outward back to her horn!
All that hard work over a night. Gone!
It hurt.
"I don't understand!!!!!!"Sweetie screamed back in unthinking frustration. "I'm tired! I can't keep my eyes open! You've been acting all weird since I got home from school. I haven't eaten anything since yesterday afternoon! I had to turn my friends away at the door. They're probably worried sick about me. You've been babbling nonsense all night long...I couldn't understand what you were saying yesterday and you make even less sense today!"
Rarity began to approach Sweete bell, but the look in her eye and her frazzled hair and her grinding teeth, made Sweetie Bell back away from her sister as she approached. Closer and closer till Sweetie was backed into a corner.
"Na! Stop! Rarity! You're frightening me!" She threw her front legs over her head expecting some kind of impact.
Suddenly Sweetie found herself in a gentle loving embrace.
"Oh! My poor Sweetie Bell." She said nuzzling her "I'm so sorry please forgive me!" Sweetie looked up at her sitter looking down. "I became so involved, I completely forgot to take you into account! I only saw what needed to be done, that I was the only one who could help. So I girded myself to the task, acquired resources, sorry, and started the task. But I would never ever do anything to hurt my beautiful sister."
Rarity let go of her sister.
" Let me show you something."
She opened the door to her planning room, her inspiration room, somewhere Sweetie Bell was never ever allowed to go, invitingly.
"Come in. Let me show you what we are trying to accomplish."
The cloth was for a beloved, popular and important mare in town, it was a special project. Very important in her life's advancement and employment opportunity.
"As they say the gown makes the mare."
Rarity showed Sweetie Bell all the designs, patterns and pictures, all the research that had been put into this very special cloth.
"When the ensemble is fully put together, it will be, form fitting, drawing in at all the proper places when she needs it." Rarity twisted her leg around for emphasis. "She will be able to move with flexibility of a gymnast!"
She detailed everything Sweetie Bell: The astronomical cost of the project, the price of the debt and who would have to pay! Sweetie put her hoof to her face with a gasp at this new information. By the time they left the room Sweetie was crying.
"I'm sorry! I didn't know! I just didn't know and I have put us behind! We could loose everything!"
"Shush, shh, shush now." Rarity said as she petted and comforted her sister.
"All those problems and embarrassments, all, because, of, a, lousy, missed stitch!" Sweetie cried.
"It will be fine."
"But there isn't time!!!"
"No. ,Listen to me." Rarity said sternly ."Gird yourself up! Now, this is what we are going to do: The best way in these times of stress is to act like a lady. We will get through. We are going to act professional. We, you, are going to take a nap. I will talk to Cherillee about you homework.I will go to your friends and mine and tell them everything is fine. We will rest. Then, when we get up, we will put on our finest, and go to El Cezar . I will order. We will enjoy our selves and fill our bellies, all the time being professional and like ladies, you will be able to observe adults for your plays, then we get a good nights sleep. When we wake up, we get clean, we have a professional luncheon and then we WORK!"
"We work like we have never worked before. So be ready."
Sweetie Bell nodded, then yawned. She did not remember how she got in bed.
Rarity stumbled about town, buying time for Sweetie Bell at the cost of a detailed report and lecture from her sister of the events, then going to Applejack who understood, being a working lady herself, and surprisingly Pinkie Pie who gifted a cappuccino chocolate cupcake with lots of caffeine.
"Remember Rarity, be in bed at exactly two hours two minutes from now. "She then turned and whispered. "That's how long the caffeine buzz will last..."Then petted her on the head and spronged away.
She told Rainbow to keep Scootaloo away.
She was surprised to have trouble with Twilight, who wanted to help, but was rapidly draining the energy away from the cupcake Pinkie had given her.
"No Twilight, we do not need escorts, this is not a date."
"I appreciate your help and all the research you gave me was very useful. I'll make sure you are compensated."
" No making breakfast will be very relaxing."
" Certainly not! You can't help."
"I DON"T CARE WHAT OR HOW LONG YOU'VE STUDIED, EXPERIENCE IS WHAT I NEED AND SWEETIE HAS MORE THAT YOU! So in the name of friendship: KINDLY BUT OUT!"
She passed Pinkie on the way out.
"Remember, you have twenty-three minutes and three seconds to be in bed after this warning. "Pinkie chirped ."Twilight! She's just a little grumpy."
Rarity got home, went to her bed and passed out, right on the tick.
When Sweetie woke she girded herself bringing in strength from within, reading herself for the task.
It was very hard.
She had to ignore her friends.
She had to be harder than rock as she ate.
She then forced herself to sleep.
She woke and scrubbed herself clean.
They had breakfast....and then the worked!!
It seemed like for days, but like a trooper Sweetie bell caught every weave. ...but they weren't done when the cloth was finished, they had to cut the pasterns.
Sweetie followed her sister's instructions to the letter, they were perfect as they packed them up. The pieces would be fitted and stitched in place where the customer was staying.
After delivery, the too sisters waited, concentrating. A team worked with the cloth to place every peace in optimal arrangement.
Rarity watched Sweetie's eyes dart. "Just, let them move it, where it needs to go, every breath, make room in the weave for the needle."
"Rarity!" Sweetie Bell said weekly beside her. "I can't...I can't...!"
"You can..."she said turning not blinking, not taking her eyes of the wall as if she could see through it." They're almost done!"
A moment later, she could feel the pressure removed. She let out a sigh. Another successful design. Locking's Law: property acquired at cost, now the extension of another being.
Not her problem anymore, as when the customer would put money down and walk out with the dress and never was it again except at party.
"Now we wait again. "She turned her eyes, then bit her lip. "Oh dear, more work." said Rarity.
Presently, nurse Red Heart came to them. "The patient is conscious, there is some residual from your help from the surgery. She knows who you are, she wants to thank you. Are you ready to receive instructions?" she asked coldly.
"Locking, why do you always bite me in the flank: first when I study the metaphysics of real estate and patent law for my business and now here! "Rarity took a deep cleansing breath. "We are."She said.
Nurse Red Heart's eyes moved to Sweetie bell. "Are you ready for instructions?"
"Whatever to help."
"No. Do what I say...."She said with cold authority. She then instructed them on the procedure. Accept the gratitude, thank her, and convey her trust to the medical staff. She would need them now.
They came in.
"Rarity!" The mare said weakly and breathlessly. "Thank you so much for all your hard work in this operation. I can already feel the mesh. I can feel the hernias and stretched ligaments pulling together, pulling the prolapses back. . Thank you, oh, thank you, my neighbor!" Berry Punch said.
"We all must always help our neighbors when they are in need!" Rarity said.
"Sweetie Bell!" Berry said beaming, "Thank you so much for making and preparing the mesh ," and complemented her. "You're such a good on, a good girl, helping your sitter!" Berry smiled," I hope my little filly will do such wonderful things!"
"Thank you!" They accepted her gratitude.
Then, they passed her before she could think, like a hoof ball under a jersey, to nurse Red Heart.
" We could have done nothing without expert advice from the hospital, the doctors and medical staff." As they left the room the medical staff was already taking care of Berry Punches immediate needs.
They were hurried down the hall to a room the nurses had prepared for them. As the door was closed, both fell to the floor, in each other’s embraces, weeping to relieve the stress.
"Oh God Rarity! Being Generous is hard work."
"Yes it is darling! Yes it is!"
Like an interceding angle, Red Heart came in, brought them water, commended them and with a strong back of a earth pony, lifted them back to health and recovery.
"Thank you. We should have used mesh during the first surgery... We wouldn't have had a stitch come undone and had to redo everything." Red Heart said with sad a smile. "Now with the mesh, we shouldn't have to do surgery again as long as Berry takes care of herself."