"Thanks for seeing me on such short notice, Rars," Exie said as she followed Rarity.
"It's no trouble at all, Exie," Rarity assured her. "I'm happy you came to see me." The white unicorn led the tan, red-maned mare through her boutique home and into the studio in the back. Exie was impressed; she'd never seen a house quite like Rarity's. Part store, part manor, it exuded decadence and simplicity at the same time.
"Are you in the market for something? A new dress, perhaps?" Rarity inquired as they entered her studio.
"Actually, I came to see you about a repair," Exie replied, looking at the boots on her hooves. "The straps on my boots are getting kind of worn out. One of them broke the other day. I was hoping you could fix it," she explained, raising her hoof for Rarity to see.
"Hmm" Rarity put a hoof to her chin and examined the shoe. "And how exactly were they damaged?"
"I was just kind of in a hurry one day. There... might've been a little chase involved," Exie said.
Rarity raised an eyebrow. "Were you being chased or doing the chasing?"
"Well... maybe a little of both," Exie admitted.
"Is that why that family from Saddle Arabia that came to visit Ponyville left a week early?"
Exie shrugged with a smile. "I wanted to show their daughter a good time while she was here. So, I got her some roller skates and tried to give her a quick, private tour of the Ponyville. You know, see all the places the tourists normally miss. But her parents wouldn't stop bugging us and then their private guards came after us.... I don't know why they left early though."
Rarity's eyes widened a bit. "You don't think they'd be just a little bit concerned that you strapped their daughter to some roller skates and wheeled her all over town?"
"I was gonna buy them a t-shirt," Exie justified.
"I see," Rarity said. "And what was this t-shirt going to say?I let a strange mare have her way with my daughter in Ponyville and all I got was this lousy t-shirt?"
"No," Exie said, a little defensive. "It wasn't going to have any logos or catch on it. Just a picture of Ponyville on the front.. name and number on the back."
"It sounds like you made things quite interesting for the Saddle Arabian royals family to say the least," Rarity remarked.
"Yeah, it was just too bad we couldn't find anywhere private. But it went pretty good for a Tuesday morning."
Rarity examined both of her front boots. "Well, it looks like just one of the straps popped loose but the material is very durable. I should be able to fix and reinforce it so it won't let loose again."
"Thanks Rars," Exie said, taking off her boots.
"Morning!" a voice said from behind them.
"Good morning Sweetiebelle, did you sleep well?" Rarity asked her sister as she approached.
"Yep! Oh, do you have a customer?"
"Hi Sweetiebelle!" Exie turned and greeted the filly.
"Exie's a friend from out of town," Rarity explained. "She came by this morning and asked me if I could fix her boots for her."
"Wow! Those look neat!" Sweetiebelle said when she saw the shoes. "Where'd you get those?"
"I wore them out of a Nightmare Night store in Canterlot a long time ago," Exie said, remembering how she'd came across them. "Ran out of the city on 'em and haven't taken them off since."
Sweetiebelle looked puzzled. "Nightmare Night store? So, they're like a costume?"
Exie smiled. "Yep! One I just never take off," she said with a giggle.
"Cool... you know where I could get a pair?" the filly asked.
"Um, Sweetiebelle?" Rarity interjected. "I don't think this might be the kind of costume you'd want to wear. Besides, it would clash with your Crusaders outfit."
Sweetiebelle frowned. "But they look so cool! And they would go great with my costume from the talent show!"
Rarity strained to explain it to her younger sister. "I just don't think it's the kind of style a young filly should be wearing."
"But why not?" Sweetiebelle asked, her voice cracking in despair.
Exie thought better than to get in the middle of the two. She might be able to explain things to her but better she hear it from her big sister.
"Sweetiebelle," Rarity walked over to her. "These type of boots are more for... grown-up ponies. The kind that want to attract a certain kind of attention."
Sweetiebelle looked confused. "What kind of attention?"
Exie couldn't help it. "The kind that gets ya thrown out of country clubs by angry wives. And chefs," she remarked, again bringing up a truer than life moment.
Sweetiebelle looked even more confused. "Wives angry at boots?"
"Um, Sweetiebelle, don't you think you should go see your friends? Maybe give me some alone time with Exie? She is a client, after all," Rarity said, starting to sweat.
Exie turned quickly to Sweetiebelle. "Uh, not that kind of client. I don't pay for that unless I get a really good recommendation from a friend. Or it's a special occasion like I-"
"Pay for what?" Sweetie asked.
"Out now!!" Rarity yelled, pointing towards the door. The small filly darted out the door of the studio and continued running out of the house.
"Sorry Rars," Exie said. "I didn't know how much you'd told her..."
Rarity opened her mouth to say something and then just stopped. She hadn't told Sweetiebelle anything about the finer things in life; the thought had just never occurred to her. She was her big sister, not their parents. The notion that her Sweetiebelle was more responsibility than she'd thought before was a stunning realization. Rarity might have to take care of more than her basic needs; she might actually have to explain the birds and the bees to her little sister.
"It's all right..." Rarity said, thinking. She returned her attention to the boots. "Well, it seems to be an easy fix. I'm a little bit busy with some other work at the moment but I should have them done by tomorrow."
"Thanks Rarity," Exie said, removing her boots. Her legs underneath were paler than the rest of her, clear evidence of how long she'd had them on. It felt weird having them off but it was only for a day. The white unicorn picked them up with some levitation and carried them over to her work station.
"They should be ready first thing in the morning if you'd like to stop by early again," Rarity called as Exie exited the studio.
"How ever will I get through the night without leather?" Exie asked with a laugh.
"I'm sure you'll find someway to sleep."
Exie laughed again. "Who said anything about sleeping?" Rarity rolled her eyes at the comment. Exiting the Carousel Boutique, Exie didn't notice the pair of young eyes watching her from the staircase.
