Chapters The morning sun raised over Ponyville like it did every other morning. Opal jumped up on Rarity's bed and scratched her face demanding that she be fed and making Opal wait is not a very wise idea.
"Opal, that hurts! Give me a minute, you'll get your food!"
Opal growled and hissed at her like she did every morning but also like every morning Rarity went downstairs and gave Opal her food. Sweetie Belle was up as well hoping Rarity was fixing something good for breakfast before she had to head off to school.
"Rarity, what is for breakfast this morning?" asked Sweetie Belle
"Come on Sweetie Belle, what do I look like, your personal chef? Just fix yourself a bowl of cereal, I have to get to the boutique."
This did not please Sweetie Belle one bit. She was a bit annoyed and said, "Come on Rarity, it is still an hour before you open. Couldn't you at least fix me some eggs and toast or something."
"Oh, fine." snapped Rarity
Rarity seemed a bit annoyed that Sweetie Belle wanted something that required preparation that morning as she wanted to hurry up and get to work, as there was a music festival in a few months up in Canterlot but she always starts taking orders early for this one, as the materials for the dresses are hard to come by.
"I'm off to work Sweetie Belle, don't cause any trouble before you go to school, and at school for that matter." shouted Rarity
"Don't worry sis, I won't!" replied Sweetie Belle
Rarity went down to her boutique and opened her door for business. The first pony to come through the door was not a customer though, it was Twilight.
"Hi Twilight, how is everything today?" asked Rarity
"Oh, it's going fine Rarity. There isn't much to do right now so I thought I would come visit you earlier than normal. By the way, why do you have the shop open so early? asked Twilight
Rarity told her about the upcoming music festival in Canterlot and how she has to take orders early as the material for a lot of the dresses she makes for that festival is not easy to get.
"Wow Rarity, it looks like you are going to have your hooves full. How many of those did you make last year?"
Rarity told Twilight that she made ten of them and that the fabric for them comes from Marelaysia and is very expensive so the dresses are not cheap. Twilight knew this and asked Rarity, "How many do you think you will sell this year?"
Rarity replied, "Well I am thinking probably around the same amount, but I have decided to give ponies two ways to pay now."
Twilight asked, "And what is that?
Rarity told her about how she was going to start a cash or credit system instead of being cash only. She felt that it would make her seem like a more friendly businesspony and she hoped that her sales would increase.
Twilight said, "Cash or credit? I don't know about that. Aren't you worried about being taken advantage of? You know some pony could buy a dress from you on credit and then just take off and run, causing you to lose money."
Rarity replied, "Oh, don't worry Twilight, I am not a filly anymore. I already have legally binding contracts for customers who choose the credit option, so if they default on their accounts, I can sue them."
Twilight said, "Well even though you do have these legally binding contracts, they could still find places to hide or even worse, they could leave Equestria all together."
Finally some customers entered the door, and like Rarity greets all her customers, she said, "Welcome to Rarity's Boutique, where everything is chic and unique. What brings you in today?"
Lyra and Octavia came in looking for a dress for the upcoming music festival and they knew that Rarity was the best designer in all of Ponyville and sold her dresses at a decent price.
"We are looking for a dress for the upcoming music festival in Canterlot." replied Lyra
"Well I have plenty of designs and I also have other designs in this catalog that you can choose from. Some of those designs in the catalog take longer to make because I have to order the fabric from all over the world."
Lyra and Octavia looked through the catalog and it was hard for them to decide, there were so many fashionable designs in there but the prices for the material of the dresses they liked were not cheap.
"Why are the prices of some of these dresses so high?" asked Octavia
Rarity replied, "Some of the material for those dresses has to be ordered from the other side of the world and because of public unrest in Marelaysia, prices aren't as cheap."
Lyra was more understanding than Octavia was. Lyra continued to go through the catalog but Octavia was just standing there with a scowl on her face. Eventually though, Octavia returned to looking at the catalog. Finally they both found the dress they want.
Lyra took the catalog to Rarity and said, "I think this one is amazing. It is the same color as my coat and the accents match my eyes perfectly!"
Octavia looked at Rarity, pointed her hoof to the one she wanted and said, "This is the one I want, but do you think that instead of blue accents on it you could make the accents a light shade of purple so they will bring out my eyes more?"
Rarity was pleased that they had found the dresses that they want, she let them know that it would take approximately 60 days for the fabric to arrive and another 10 days to make the dress, which left more than enough time for them to be ready before the music festival.
Lyra levitated a bag of coins out of her saddlebag and asked "Rarity, do you think I could just pay now? I would feel much better if I pay for this while I know I have the money for it."
"Sure!" replied Rarity "The normal cost of the dress is 100 bits but since you are paying in cash and paying when you order it, you will get a 25 percent discount, so it will be 75 bits."
"That is great! You have no idea how much I appreciate this!" replied Lyra
As Lyra was paying for the dress Octavia said, "What about me, what will my price be."
"Well, it will depend on how you pay. If you pay in cash it will be 90 bits, but if you decide to use my new credit option, it will be full price, 100 bits."
Octavia scowled at Rarity complaining about the discounts that Lyra received and how much more she will have to pay but left Rarity's Boutique realizing that is just the way it would be.
As they were leaving the shop Lyra smiled and said, "See you in 70 days Rarity! You have a great day!"
Twilight looked at Rarity and said, "Was it me or did Octavia seem a bit well, on edge?"
Rarity replied, "Oh I'm not worried about her grumpiness. She will love her dress when she gets it and I know Lyra will love hers."
Twilight said, "Well I know Lyra will, but you know how Octavia is. She is much more uptight and demands that everything be beyond perfect. Well I have to get home, I have a lot of studying I have to do."
That afternoon Rarity sent off the order for the fabric. She knew it was not going to be cheap but she wanted her customers to be as happy as she is when she sees them wearing their new outfit.
Seventy days had passed since Octavia and Lyra had placed their orders. Rarity also had multiple other orders placed after the musician ponies had placed their orders and left. Twilight was over visiting Rarity when she had finished all the dresses.
"Wow Rarity, those look amazing!" said Twilight
"Thank you! I just hope that my customers like them as these were difficult to make and the fabric was not cheap." replied Rarity
Lyra was the first to arrive at her boutique that day, as she wanted to pick up her dress before anypony else since she paid well in advance. She did not want other ponies knowing the discount that she was able to get.
"Lyra dahling! How are you doing today?" asked Rarity
"I am doing great! I figured I would get here early to pick up my dress because I am so excited to see how it looks on me!" replied Lyra
"Lyra, where is Octavia?" asked Twilight "I really thought you two would come together since you will be performing together."
"With the kind of mood she is in, I am trying to keep my distance from her. She is mad at me because you gave me those discounts for paying early and paying in cash." replied Lyra
Twilight tried to reassure Lyra that everything would be ok and that eventually Octavia would get over it and be her normal self again. Lyra is Octavia's best friend and she is hoping that Octavia won't be mad at her forever.
"I certainly hope you are right." replied Lyra, "She is my best friend after all and I hope a little thing like a discount over the price of a dress wouldn't drive a wedge between us."
Rarity brought out Lyra's dress and she was astonished at how good it looked. She went into the dressing room to try it on, when she came out to ask Rarity how it looked, Rarity said, "Lyra dahling, that looks absolutely perfect on you!"
"I knew you would say that!" replied Lyra "What do you think Twilight? Do you think it looks good on me?"
"Lyra, you look amazing! You are really going to wow the crowd in Canterlot, not just with your music, but with how good you look as well." said Twilight
"Well I better get going," said Lyra "I need to get home and practice."
Lyra left the boutique as happy as can be. Colgate and Vinlyl were the next ponies to come to pick up their dresses. As they entered the store Twilight said, "Wow, I didn't even know that the music festival let ponies with your type of music play."
Colgate replied, "They just started allowing rock musicians this year. Luna was sick and tired of them only having classical musicians up there so Celestia caved in and started letting other types of music there."
Vinyl added, "Yeah, Colgate and I are going to have that place rockin'! I know Luna will finally show up and with her being part of the judging team, we are going to win for sure!"
Rarity came over and showed them their dresses. They weren't the elegant style that Lyra and Octavia ordered. They had a lot more flash to them and while Rarity thought they were not the best looking dresses, Colgate and Vinyl loved them.
"This is perfect Rarity!" said Colgate "This is exactly what I wanted!"
Vinyl added, "This dress looks awesome! We are going to wow that crowd, aren't we Colgate!"
"Hay yeah we will!" shouted Colgate "Are you coming to watch us bring home top prize?" asked Colgate
"I don't know." replied Twilight "It will really depend on my schedule."
"It is still fifty days from now" said Vinyl "You can't put it in well in advance?"
Rarity asked Colgate, "Will this be paid for in cash or are you going to take advantage of my new credit program?"
"I am not going to get something unless I have the money for it, so I am paying in cash." said Colgate
Rarity said, "Alright, those who pay in cash get a ten percent discount, so that will be 90 bits."
Colgate levitated a bag of money out of her saddlebag and paid Rarity for the dress. Vinyl has the same mindset as Colgate and told her that she would also be paying in cash. The two left the boutique very happy and headed off to take their dresses home.
Octavia finally showed up to pick up her dress at 3 o'clock in the afternoon. When she entered the boutique she said, "So, is my dress ready?"
"Of course it is! I always have my customers' orders ready on time." replied Rarity
Octavia wanted to try on her dress before she payed for it. She liked how it looked and Rarity thought it looked fabulous.
"So, are you going to pay with cash or would you like to use my new credit program?" asked Rarity
"Well, given that I don't have that much cash right now I would like to use your credit option." replied Octavia
Rarity had Octavia read over the terms and conditions of the credit agreement. It said that customers must get their balance paid off within ninety days of putting the cost of an order on the credit account. It also mentioned finance charges and late fees if monthly payments of one-third of the balance is not paid. Octavia was not thrilled with this but signed the contract anyway.
Rarity asked, "Octavia, aren't you going to read the fine print at the bottom of the page?"
Octavia replied, "No, It probably isn't important enough for me to waste my time with. So how much will be going on my credit account?"
Rarity told her that since she was using credit that it would be 100 bits and that late payments would add 33 bits to the balance and any finance charges would add 15 bits to the balance.
"Don't worry, I will pay my balance every month and will have it all taken care of within ninety days." said Octavia as she left the boutique.
Rarity replied, "I know you will, you have a marvelous day!"
If only Octavia had read the fine print which read, "If the customer does not pay the full balance within ninety days Rarity's Boutique reserves the right to turn the account over to collections, sue the customer or go into their home and confiscate personal property to make up for the balance owed."
The Canterlot Music Festival
The day of the Canterlot Music Festival had arrived. Twilight goes over to Rarity's boutique to see her before she leaves for Canterlot. "Twilight, are you not going to the music festival?" asked Rarity
"No, Spike is sick and I have to stay here to take care of him. Besides, I really didn't want to go anyway. Would you tell Colgate and Vinyl Scratch why I couldn't make it?" replied Twilight
"Of course I will let them know. I hope they aren't disappointed that you won't be able to make it. Oh, look at the time, I better go catch the train to Canterlot. I am sorry Twilight, but I have to go." said Rarity
Twilight was kind of surprised that Rarity would bolt so quickly without even saying goodbye. She was wondering what was going on. She headed home to find that Spike was outside throwing up and did not have much color to him.
"Spike, do you need to go to the doctor? You look horrible!" asked Twilight
Spike replied, "No Twilight, I will be fine. Maybe I just need some soup or something."
Twilight rolled her eyes and sighed, "Well ok. It is whatever you want."
At the train station Rarity was waiting impatiently for the train. She was wanting to get up to Canterlot to see when Octavia was going to make a payment as she had already missed one payment and her balance had increased to 158 bits. Finally the train arrives and heads off to Canterlot. It seems like it takes forever to Rarity as she was not pleased about Octavia owing her so much.
Rarity finally gets to Canterlot and heads up to the courtyard where the music festival is set to take place. She bumps into Vinyl and Colgate. "Hi Rarity! Is Twilight coming?" asked Colgate
"No, Spike is sick and she had to stay home and take care of him. It is too bad that Fluttershy was gathering herbs with Zecora and Discord or she could have watched him." replied Rarity
"Yeah, what a bummer. I was really hoping she could make it." said Vinyl
Rarity told them that Twilight wished them the best and that she was sorry that she couldn't make it. She then asked where Octavia was, as she needs to speak with her.
"Octavia?" replied Colgate "She is over there by the stage. She is still being kind of grumpy towards Lyra over that discount."
"Still." replied Rarity "Good grief, is she going to be mad at her forever?"
Vinyl said, "Yeah, I think so. They are no longer going to perform together after this concert. If Celestia wasn't paying all the musicians here so well for their performances, they probably wouldn't have even shown up."
"Wait a minute." replied Rarity, "You guys are getting paid? What do you get if you win then?"
"We each get an awesome trophy!" shouted Colgate "I swear Vinyl, we are going to look so awesome holding our trophies!"
"Hay yeah Colgate! We've got what it takes to win this baby!"
Rarity said goodbye to them and wished them well and then headed off to find Octavia. Since Celestia is paying the musicians she figured that she would be able to collect what she owes her. She bumps into Lyra on her way to the stage.
"Oh, hi Lyra. How is everything going?" asked Rarity
Lyra replied, "Well they would be going better if Octavia would quit being such a jerk over the discount I got on the dress you made me."
Rarity said, "Well I don't know what to tell you. Colgate and Vinyl told me that you two are splitting after this concert. Is that right?"
"Yep." replied Lyra "We are no longer friends because of her attitude. She thinks I have everything handed to me on a silver platter and I have come to the conclusion that she thinks the world owes her everything."
Rarity asked Lyra if she knew where Octavia was and she pointed her hoof over in the direction of where Octavia was. Rarity heads on over there and gets Octavia's attention.
"Hi Octavia," said Rarity "how's it going?"
"It could be better. You could have given me the same discount you gave Lyra, then none of this would be happening." replied Octavia
"So you are blaming me for this?" replied Rarity "Mentioning your dress, when do you plan on paying on your account? I have already assessed the 33% late fee and the 15 bit finance charge. Your bill is now up to 148 bits. If you don't make a payment it will be up to 196 bits ten days from now."
Octavia became very upset. She replied, "Whatever happened to you being the element of generosity? You are just like every other businesspony I have ever known. Always charging late fees, finance charges and circling over me like a vulture until you get your money. Perhaps I should just wait until after the 90 days to pay you. What would you do then?"
Rarity grunted and told her to hurry up and make a payment or she will owe even more and stormed off. She ran into Colgate and Vinyl again and they asked her how her meeting with Octavia went.
Rarity said, "You don't even want to know how it went. I don't blame Lyra for ending their friendship."
Vinyl replied, "What, they are no longer friends? I never would have imagined that happening."
Colgate added, "With them both being in the classical music stuff I thought their friendship would have lasted forever. I guess friendships can end on the most petty things."
Rarity told them they better get ready for their performance and that she was headed to take a seat to watch the performances.
Octavia and Lyra were the first to take the stage. Something just didn't seem quite between them.
Lyra asked Octavia, "Are you ready for this?"
Octavia snapped back, "Yeah I'm ready for it, just don't screw up."
This irritated Lyra a lot but she didn't say anything. Their performance started and for a while it was going fine, then Octavia started playing the wrong notes and their performance sounded horrible. The audience started booing as loudly as they could. They stopped their performance.
Lyra said, "Octavia, what happened, you're usually so good at this."
Octavia shouted, "How am I supposed to concentrate when I see you in that dress of yours that you got the discount on and I got charged full price for mine? Now I have Rarity following me around demanding a payment. Nopony could concentrate with all that going on."
The audience continued to boo while Octavia kept shouting at Lyra. Lyra finally just walked off the stage, taking her lyre with her knowing that there was no reasoning with her. Security had to come and drag Octavia, screaming and shouting, off the stage.
There were several other performances before it was Colgate and Vinyl's turn, which was the last of the night. The audience looked stunned when they saw the two going up there with an electric guitar and drums.
Vinyl asked, "You ready for this Colgate?"
Colgate replied,"Hay yeah! You bet I am!"
They both shouted out to the audience, "YOU READY TO ROCK?"
The audience cheered and shouted, "HAY YEAH!"
Their performance went perfectly and once they finished the audience was cheering loudly and throwing roses onto the stage.
Vinyl said to Colgate, "You know what? Now you're going to be known as the rock star dentist! It won't be long until we will have ponies all over Equestria wanting to have us perform!"
Colgate replied, "Oh yeah, we'll be going on tour!"
Princess Celestia and Princess Luna flew down to the stage.
Luna and Celestia shouted in unison, "This year's winners of The Canterlot Music Festival are Colgate and Vinyl Scratch!
The audience went wild and cheered as loud as they could when they went up to get their trophies. The two bowed down to the crowd and gave huge smiles for the cameras.
"Thank you everypony, we couldn't have done this without all of you, the most awesome ponies in Equestria!" said Colgate
Vinyl added, "Don't worry, we'll be back soon! After this, we're planning on recording an album!"
As they left the audience cheered "Colgate, Vinyl! Colgate, Vinyl!"
Colgate said on the way out, "You know something Vinyl, we really need to think of a name for our band."
"I agree." replied Vinyl "We can discuss that once we get back to Ponyville. We better get to the train station."
Octavia saw how the crowd was adoring the rockstar ponies and this only made her angrier. She stormed down to the train station and waited for the next train. Octavia was not thrilled that she would have to ride home with Rarity, Lyra, Colgate and Vinyl Scratch. She thought to herself, "This is just going to be SUCH A WONDERFUL TRIP HOME."
It had now been 91 days since Octavia signed the agreement for the credit arrangement and Rarity had yet to see a single bit of what Octavia owes her. Rarity headed over to Octavia's house and knocked on her door. Miss Cheerilee was outside tending to her garden and looked over Rarity's way.
"Hi, Rarity." said Cheerilee "How is everything going?"
Rarity replied, "Oh it's going. It would be better if Octavia were home. She owes money for a dress I made her and she is over three months late."
Cheerilee said, "Well I wouldn't count on seeing her anytime soon. I saw her with a huge bag of bits and she was talking to herself about how she was going to strike it rich in Las Pegasus."
"She did what?" shouted Rarity "She has plenty of money to go gambling but she can't pay me? I WILL DESTROY HER!"
Cheerilee looked kind of stunned as she had never seen Rarity act like that before. Rarity stormed off before Cheerilee could say anything. Rarity thought to herself, "Well, I guess it is time to take that precious cello of hers."
Rarity went over to the library to talk to Spike to see if he could help her take Octavia's cello while she was gone.
"Hi Rarity, how is everything going?" said Spike
"Oh, they've been better. Is Twilight around?" asked Rarity
"No, Twilight is not around. She had some sort of official business she had to take care of up in Canterlot." replied Spike
"How long is she going to be gone?" asked Rarity
Spike told her that it was some sort of meeting with other ponies from around the planet and Twilight had to be there for 5 days.
Rarity was thrilled at this news. She was thinking that now would be the perfect time to enlist Spike as her assistant in breaking into Octavia's home and stealing her cello.
"Spike, can I ask you of a favor?" asked Rarity
"Yes oh most beautiful one?" replied Spike
"How would you like a big bowl of gems and a kiss on the cheek? All you have to do is help me with one little thing." said Rarity
"Anything for you Rarity!" replied a lovesick Spike
Rarity took Spike to her boutique and told her about what her plan was. Spike was initially shocked that Rarity would even think of doing something like that. Then she told him why she was going to do that. After she told him that, he was ready to do anything he could to help her.
Night arrived in Ponyville and everypony was turning in for the night. Rarity told Spike that they need to be very quiet and try their best to not be seen. Spike said, "Why don't you just teleport us over there like Twilight does?"
Rarity replied, "I don't know that kind of magic Spike. The most advanced thing I know is levitating things."
"Ok," said Spike "so when are we going to do this?"
Rarity looked out the windows and noticed that there were not any lights on anywhere in Ponyville. "Alright Spike, let's go."
Rarity and Spike were sneaking through town, being as quiet as possible. They finally got over to Octavia's house after sneaking between buildings for about an hour. When they got there, Spike asked Rarity how they were going to get in there.
"Spike, I have magic. I do know how to unlock doors!" whispered Rarity
Rarity and Spike were sneaking through the house when Spike got his claw stuck on something and he couldn't get it dislodged. He finally was able to get his claw loose but broke part of it off. They go into a room in the back of Octavia's house. Rarity lights up her horn to provide a bit of light and there is Octavia's cello, bow and case.
"Rarity, we found it!" shouted Spike
"Shhh..Be quiet Spike. We can't get caught." whispered Rarity
Rarity opened the cello case, levitated the cello and its bow into the case and then closed it. She levitated it as they were leaving. Rarity gets her mane caught on a nail on the wall.
"Ow, Spike help me. My mane is caught on something." said Rarity
Spike crawled up on her back and got her mane away from the nail, but one of her hairs got stuck on the nail. This along with the broken claw of Spike's could be costly for the pair.
They finally got back to the boutique and Rarity and Spike felt a sense of relief. "Well done Spike. Her is a bowl of fire rubies for you!" said Rarity. As promised, Rarity kissed him on the cheek.
Spike said, "Thank you oh most beautiful one. Is there anything else I can do for you?"
"Yeah, don't say a word to Twilight or anypony else about this. This is our little secret, ok." replied Rarity
Spike figured he better get home. After eating the fire rubies he headed back to the library not realizing the events that were to come.
After a week of gambling in Las Pegasus Octavia returns home, in a very bad mood. She lost almost all her money playing poker and the little she didn't lose she had to use for the train ticket to get home. As bad as things went for her, she had another very unpleasant surprise waiting for her in Ponyville.
When she got back home she headed back to the room she practices in thinking to herself, "Well at least I still have my cello so I can play in concerts and make money."
When she got to her practice room and saw that her cello was missing, she shouted, "MY CELLO! WHAT THE HAY HAS HAPPENED TO MY CELLO!"
All of Ponyville could hear her screaming and yelling over her missing instrument. Cheerilee went over and knocked on her door and said, "Octavia, are you ok?"
Octavia replied, "NO, I'M NOT OK. JUST LEAVE ME ALONE.....oh, I'm sorry Miss Cheerilee, I didn't mean to yell at you. I am just so frustrated right now. I have had Rarity stalking me over the money I owe her, I go to Las Pegasus and lose everything and now my cello is missing." Octavia started to cry "Cheerilee, what am I going to do? My cello was the way I made my money, and now it's gone."
"Octavia," Cheerilee replied, "I would suggest you go to the police station and have them come over and see if they can find any clues as to who may have broke in and took it."
"Would you come with me?" asked Octavia, "I don't think I'm in any shape to go there myself."
Cheerilee told her that she would go with her to the police station as she knew how Octavia can get when she is really upset. She didn't want her hitting a police officer and then getting thrown in jail.
They finally arrive that the station and go in. "May I help you?" asked Officer Silver Shield
Octavia shouted, "MY CELLO IS MISSING. I GO OUT OF TOWN FOR A WEEK AND THEN I COME HOME TO DISCOVER THAT IT IS GONE. I NEED YOU TO FIND THE CROOK WHO STOLE IT."
Silver Shield repied, "Calm down Octavia. Miss Cheerilee, what are you doing here?"
Cheerilee replied, "I'm just here for moral support. I am her neighbor."
Silver Shield figured that he would first ask Cheerilee if she saw anything strange happening. She said that she saw nothing out of the ordinary going on over there or anywhere else in the neighborhood for that matter.
Silver Shield looked at Octavia and said, "Well we are going to have to go into your home and look for clues. Thieves usually leave behind clues. Let's go take a look."
"Ok. Thanks officer, I really appreciate this." replied Octavia
Silver Shield and Octavia headed over to her house and on their way they saw Spike and Twilight heading to Sugarcube Corner. Spike hid behind Twilight when he saw the officer. Twilight said, "Spike, why are you hiding behind me? It's just Silver Shield and Octavia. It's not like somepony is going crazy."
"Oh, I'm sorry Twilight. I thought I saw something." replied Spike
Octavia and the officer went into her home. The first room they went into was her living room. Silver Shield was looking around when suddenly he saw a dark purple claw on the floor.
"A-Ha! Our first clue. It appears to be the claw of a baby dragon. We can't just assume we know who did it with this one clue, we need to keep looking." said Silver Shield
They continued back to the room where she practices. Silver Shield looked up and noticed there was a nail in the wall and that there was a long strand of purple hair.
Silver Shield said, "Well Octavia, it looks like we might have two thieves here. I want to search the rest of your house to see if there are any other clues as to who may have done this."
"Be my guest officer, I want to catch whoever did this." replied Octavia
Silver Shield searched the rest of Octavia's house but found no other clues. He told Octavia that he needed to go back to the station and figure out for sure who left behind these clues. Once he got the station, he realized the only one who could have left the dragon claw was Spike and that the only pony with that color of hair and in that style was Rarity. So he went out to make his arrests.
He headed towards Sugarcube Corner, as he had seen them head that way before. Once he got in he was greeted by Applejack, "Howdy officer, what brings you over 'round these parts?"
Silver Shield replied, "I am looking for Spike the dragon."
"Spike?" asked Applejack, "He is over there by Pinkie Pie."
Officer Silver Shield went over to where Spike was and said, "Spike, you are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. Do you understand?"
Twilight jumps in, "Officer, why are you arresting Spike? Did he steal some gems from somepony?"
"I think he stole something, but it wasn't any gems." replied Silver Shield
He called for backup to hold Spike while he headed over to Rarity's Boutique. He entered her store and like she greets everypony else that goes into the store, she said, "Welcome to Rarity's Boutique, where everything is chic and unique."
"You're under arrest Rarity." said Silver Shield
"WHAT?" said a stunned Rarity, "What did I do?"
"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. Do you understand?" said Silver Shield
Sweetie Belle comes running down the stairs asking the officer what was happening with her sister. The officer told her that he just needed to ask Rarity some questions.
"Wait officer, I need to grab the credit agreement that Octavia signed, that may be useful in the court proceedings." said Rarity
"I will grab it." said Silver Shield "This is something for me to handle, not the pony being charged with allegedly committing a crime. Also, I need to do a search of your boutique to see if an important piece of evidence is located here."
Officer Silver Shield searched the boutique from top to bottom and finally, he found what he was looking for in her inspiration room, Octavia's cello.
"Rarity, how did this get in your boutique? Did Octavia lend this to you or did you steal it?" asked Silver Shield
"I am going to exercise my right to remain silent." replied Rarity
Officer Silver Shield put the credit agreement in his saddle bag and they headed back to the station.
Officer Silver Shield and Rarity arrived at the police station to find Spike, Twilight and the other officer waiting in the back.
"Twilight, you really need to go out front and wait," said Silver Shield "it is against regulations for anypony else other than the suspects being questions are allowed."
"Fine." replied Twilight, "I would still like to know what Spike is being accused of."
Officer Silver Shield motioned for her to go out front and closed the door.
"Rarity, Spike, you two are being charged with breaking into Octavia Melody's house and stealing her cello. We have evidence that shows you two were at the scene of the crime while Octavia was out of town." said Silver Shield
"Oh, I don't know about that. You know, some things do just show up in different places, ha ha ha ha." said a nervous Rarity
"Yeah, what kind of evidence suggests this anyway officer?" said Spike
Officer Silver Shield brought out the bag of evidence and asked them if they knew of anyone else who has dark purple claws and purple hair styled exactly like Rarity's mane. They looked at him with scared looks on their faces.
"The facial expressions say it all." said Silver Shield "I am going to have to take you two up to Canterlot. You will be answering to Princess Luna for this as she is the judge for these sorts of matters."
He told his back up officer to let Octavia know that she needs to go to Canterlot as well, so she can tell Luna about what she came home to and the accounts of what happened while Officer Silver Shield was searching through her home.
On the way out towards the train station Twilight stopped the officer and said, "What are you doing with Spike and Rarity? Where are you taking them and what do you think they did?"
"I can not disclose that information Miss Sparkle. You may come to the court proceedings as well, since Spike is your assistant and Rarity is a friend of yours. The train leaves in ten minutes." replied Silver Shield
Officer Silver Shield kept Twilight and Octavia away from Spike and Rarity. The train ride up to Canterlot seemed to take forever for Spike and Rarity, as they knew they were in a world of trouble.
The train finally arrived in Canterlot after what seemed to take forever for the two defendants. Officer Silver Shield took them to the court room while the backup officer took Octavia to the court room. After escorting them to the court room Silver Shield went and got Princess Luna while his backup kept order in the court room.
"All rise, court is now in session. Overseeing the case of Equestria vs. Rarity and Spike the Dragon is the honorable Princess Luna." said the bailiff
"You may be seated." said Luna
Princess Luna had been detailed on the general happenings involving this case so she knew pretty well as to what was going on.
"I would like the prosecution to tell me what is going on with this and why it has been brought to court." said Luna
"Your honor, this has been brought to court because it is believed that the defendants, Rarity and Spike the Dragon, broke into Octavia's home and stole her cello. We do have evidence that suggests that this could be true." said the prosecutor
Luna replied, "Before we go on with the evidence, I believe we should hear testimony from the individuals involved."
The prosecution first decided to call Octavia Melody to the witness stand.
"Miss Melody," said the prosecutor, "what happened regarding your stolen cello."
Octavia replied, "Well I was gone to Las Pegasus for a week gambling and I figured that since I was not performing at a concert that it would be safe to leave it at home. After all, there has not been a home burglary in the entire history of Ponyville. I then come home to find that my cello is missing."
"Were there any other things that were going on before this that may have led to somepony breaking in and stealing your cello?" asked the prosecutor
Octavia replied, "Well several months ago I had placed an order for a dress at Rarity's Boutique and signed a credit agreement with her. It said that if the balance was not paid within ninety days of signing the agreement that she reserved the right to sue me and or charge late fees and finance charges."
The prosecutor asked, "Was there anything else that Rarity said to you or put in that credit agreement that may have led to this maybe not being theft?"
Octavia replied, "Well she did ask me if I wanted to read the fine print at the bottom of the credit agreement, but I told her it probably wasn't important and that I didn't need to waste my time with it."
Luna had a look on her face thinking that there must have been something in that fine print that may have allowed this to be legit but she did not say anything.
Luna said, "Ok, can I now see the evidence."
"Yes your honor." replied the prosecutor
The prosecutor then took the bag of evidence to Luna and handed it to her. Luna opened the bag and was looking through it. She then said to Officer Silver Shield, "You do know that by placing these two items in the bag together that you have contaminated the evidence don't you?"
"No your honor, I did not realize that. Does that mean the evidence is unusable"? asked Silver Shield
"Yes, this evidence would have had to be placed in separate bags for them to be used in a court of law." replied Luna
Octavia stood up and shouted, "But Luna, they broke into my home. Send them to prison now!"
"ORDER IN THE COURT! Octavia, such outbursts are not allowed in my courtroom. If you do this again you will be held in contempt of court, which is a crime in itself." said Luna
Octavia sat there with a scowl on her face as she thought that since Luna is friends with both Spike and Rarity, that this court proceeding was rigged. She also realized that they could not be tried for either crime again with a different judge as Equestria has a double jeopardy law which forbids ponies getting tried for the same crime twice.
"Officer Silver Shield, may I see the credit agreement?" asked Luna
"Yes your honor." replied Silver Shield
Luna was reading through the credit agreement and realized that what had happened was not a crime, but instead was in the fine print of the credit agreement.
Luna said, "I am looking over this credit agreement and I have found the following. First it states that customers must get their balance paid off within ninety days of putting the cost of an order on the credit account. It also states that there are finance charges and late fees if monthly payments are not made that are one-third of the balance. Did you understand this part of the agreement when you signed the agreement Octavia?"
"Yes your honor, I understood the terms and conditions." replied Octavia
Princess Luna proceeded, "Despite understanding these terms, you failed to make your payments anyway."
"Yes your honor." replied Octavia
"From what I understand, you were paid 1200 bits for your performance at The Canterlot Music Festival. Is that correct." said Luna
"Yes your honor, I did." replied Octavia
Luna asked, "Why didn't you just go pay at least what you owed Rarity's Boutique at the time?"
Octavia was getting agitated and said, "I just didn't think about it at the time. I didn't think it was that important."
Luna continued, "Also from what I understand you took over 1000 bits with you on a trip to Las Pegasus to go gambling when the 90 day agreement on the credit agreement would pass. Is that correct? Did you know that the deadline would pass while you were out of town?"
Octavia replied, "Yes your honor, I knew it would pass but I figured that since Rarity had asked for a one-third of the balance payment after the first month was over, that she didn't deserve to have any of it."
Luna replied, "Now that is not a good attitude to have, especially when it comes to a legal document such as a credit agreement. I have checked out the fine print and it reads, "Customers must pay off their full balance within ninety days or late fees and finances charges will be assessed, Rarity's Boutique reserves the right to file a lawsuit against the customer and/or confiscate customer's property with or without customer's consent. You should have read the find print Octavia."
"This can't be a legal document your honor. Who approved this type of credit agreement anyway." said Octavia
Luna replied, "Given that not only am I a princess and a judge, I also handle what types of agreements such as this are legal or illegal. I decided that this agreement and the consequences of non-payment are perfectly legal."
"What does that mean?" asked the prosecutor
"It means that Rarity and Spike are free to go. I am clearing both of you of all charges." said Luna
"YOU SON OF A MULE" shouted Octavia "I HOPE CELESTIA BANISHES YOU TO THE MOON AGAIN FOR THIS. MAY THE FLEAS OF A THOUSAND MULES INFEST YOUR HOOVES!"
Luna shouted, "Order in the court! Octavia, I warned you. I am holding you in contempt of court. I am sentencing you to 30 days in prison."
Octavia said, "When will I get my cello back?"
Luna replied, "You will get your cello back once you pay your debt if full. The Bank of Equestria is going to pay Rarity's Boutique a sum of 500 bits. Once you pay this debt to Equestria, your cello will be returned to you."
Octavia sneered, "And how am I supposed to earn that kind of money without my cello? My livelihood is my performing in concerts."
Luna replied, "That is your problem. Bailiff, take Octavia to the dungeon. Rarity, Spike, you two are free to go. You have a great day."
"You too your honor." replied Spike and Rarity
"Court is adjourned." said the bailiff
Twilight who was in the audience all the time hugged Rarity and Spike as they headed out of the courtroom. Octavia could be heard shouting and screaming as she was taken down to the dungeon to serve her sentence for contempt of court.
On the train ride home Twilight said to the two, "Rarity, I am thinking you should just have a cash only policy from now on after what happened. Spike, I know Rarity means the world to you but I am very disappointed in you doing this. Luna didn't punish you but I will."
"What is my punishment going to be?" asked Spike
Twilight replied, "You are confined to the library for the same sentence Octavia got in the dungeon, thirty days. You are also not allowed to see Rarity during this time period. Sorry Rarity, but I can't have you coming over until thirty-one days from now."
Rarity looked shocked at what Twilight's punishment for Spike was. She said, "Twilight, how could you impose such a punishment on my Spikey-wikey? I am sure that going to court was punishment enough."
Twilight replied, "I'm sorry Rarity, but if I don't punish him any, he will not learn his lesson. It is like what happened when my brother stole the neighbor's vase and used it for target practice. He wasn't punished by Princess Celestia but my parents did give him a thirty day punishment of not being able to leave the house. So I figure that this would be a fair punishment."
The train arrived in Ponyville after a 45 minute ride. Rarity headed back to her boutique and shouted, "Bye Twilight, I will see you in a month my Spikey-wikey."
"Good bye Rarity!" shouted Spike
Once they got back to the library Twilight told Spike that not only would he not be allowed to leave the library but that he would clean the library on a daily basis and that he is forbidden from eating any ice cream during his thirty day punishment.
Spike didn't like it but he agreed to it. He was glad that he did not get punished by Princess Luna.
"Twilight, I know I shouldn't have let Rarity have so much influence over me. I guess that is where my crush on her caused me to be bad. I hope you can forgive me." said Spike
Twilight replied, "Oh Spike, I've forgiven you, but that doesn't mean you don't have to serve your punishment."
It was late so they decided to go to bed and get some rest after an extremely stressful day.
