Rarity was becoming one of the most popular fashionistas very quickly in Equestria with her newest line of work. Each item was hoof crafted and each item had genuine diamonds in it, this however wasn’t the selling point, the selling point was the price. Each full ensemble was priced at no more than 1,000 bits, which was making Rarity even more popular because one of her biggest clients, Sapphire Shores was parading Rarity’s work off about Canterlot, which in turn gave her even more work.
Naturally ponies started asking questions about where she was getting the Diamonds from and if they were legal however any claims were dismissed as Rarity said she often went out mining with her gem finding spell and her number one favourite dragon, Spike. Our story starts as Rarity finishes her dress and packs up for the night.
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15:36:27pm
Carousel Boutique, Ponyville, Equestria
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“Finally!” The voice chimed out as she finished the next dress to fill an order in her latest line. Rarity trotted into the main room of the Carousel Boutique levitating a beautiful full length dress beside her embedded with diamonds.
“Wow Rarity that looks amazing” Spike piped up as the mare walked into the room.
“Why thank you Spike and for been such an amazing helper lately and one of my friends, I want you to have this,” Rarity said as she levitated a 100 carat diamond over to the young dragon.
“F-for me” the dragon stammered and fainted as Rarity nodded answering his question.
After recovering from fainting the young dragon went about his way while Rarity closed the boutique, the last dress she had made had finished her diamond supply so she would have to go and get more. After the boutique was secure, a cloaked Rarity made her way towards the train station, after all diamonds weren’t easy to mine in Equestria so she had to go out and find them in other places.
“That will be 120 bits miss,” The ticketmaster said as Rarity paid for her train ticket to Saddle Arabia. Passing the ticket master a few sacks of bits he heard a “keep the change” as the mare walked onto the train.
Rarity knew exactly where she was going, after all she payed them a visit every three months, alternating between who she saw and where. Feeling no remorse all she cared about was getting the diamonds to keep fueling her career as a fashion designer.
Saddle Arabia, a country poorer than Equestria but so much richer in precious resources, was in a feud with the griffons which was exactly what Rarity needed to get her diamonds, diamonds mined by orphans or kidnapped foals but to her it didn’t matter as long as she got what she came for.
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Meanwhile at the Golden Oaks Library
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“SPIKE! Where did you get this diamond from?!” Twilight yelled upon finding the diamond sitting on the bench next to the dragons bed, taking in her magic to analyse it.
Despite the muffled response from a mouth full of food Twilight had still understood what he had said, Rarity had given the young dragon a gift before she shut up shop for the night but something about the diamond peaked Twilight’s curiosity. It was perfect… too perfect, a completely and utterly flawless diamond.
“SPIKE! Do you know where Rarity got this diamond from?” Twilight yelled out not realising the dragon was beside her.
“Nah she just gave it to me, I think she got it from some mine or something though.” Spike replied before starting to munch on his afternoon snack again.
“There’s no diamond mines in this part of the world though,” Twilight replied but got no reply in return from the young dragon.
Deciding to investigate more Twilight made her way to the boutique to find that it had already been shut. Catching a glimpse of the familiar purple mane Twilight started following her target to the train station and boarding the train to Saddle Arabia. Not wanting to lose her Twilight paid for a ticket and boarded the train in a different carriage of course. A few hours later the train stopped in Saddle Arabia with Rarity and Twilight disembarking and the stalking resuming.
Saddle Arabia a desert country that was once peaceful but now been plagued by war, a war that had nothing to with the Elements of Harmony yet enabled Rarity to further her fashion career with her diamond encrusted clothes. Still silently following Rarity, Twilight donned a cloak to help hide herself from anypony who might recognize her.
A short while later Rarity arrived at mine and entered it, Twilight not knowing what to expect followed her in, but what Twilight didn’t expect to see were foals mining away and passing the diamonds they found over to the guards who then gave the diamonds to Rarity who inspected them carefully.
“Excellent, these will do nicely.” Rarity said as the placed them into a sack “the only thing is they aren’t being mined fast enough anymore, we need to increase production.” she added on, still unaware that one of her closest friends was watching her.
Twilight for her part felt sickened at what she just witnessed taking place, one of her first and closest friends was using blood diamonds in her work and no pony knew where she was getting them from and that she was using foals for slave labour to do so. Resisting the urge to throw up Twilight left the mine and started walking back to the train station she knew exactly what she had to do; she had to get back to Equestria and have the guards arrest Rarity upon her return. She only prayed Rarity and the other girls would forgive her for doing so.
A few hours Twilight was still shaking when she stepped off the train, looking around she realised that there were no royal guards in Ponyville. Frowning Twilight spread her wings and took flight towards Canterlot where she could tell the guards and hopefully they would believe her.
Arriving in Canterlot, Twilight started running around looking for the first guard she could find when a orange pegasus stopped her.
“Woah slow down babe, what’s the rush?” Flash asked out of concern, however the reply he got took him off guard.
“Now’s not the time Flash, Rarity’s mining blood diamonds with foals in Saddle Arabia, we need to arrest her when she arrives back in ponyville” Twilight replied hoping that Flash would help her assemble a team of guards to arrest her friend
“Dont be ridiculous Twilight, Rarity is one of your best friends and one of the Elements of Harmony, she would never mine use blood diamonds.” Flash replied not believing the somewhat distraught mare.
“I don’t have time for this, please just trust me.” Twilight said somewhat angrily back to her crush before turning around getting ready to leave.
“Twi wait. Okay, I’ll help you arrest Rarity, I’ll meet you in Ponyville with some other guards” Flash replied before nuzzling Twilight and leaving her to get back to Ponyville.
After waiting for a few hours at the train station Twilight and the guards wait was over as Rarity disembarked the train with her saddlebags full of diamonds. Rarity was not expecting to see Twilight waiting for her nor did she expect to be arrested a moment later..
“Twilight, darling that wasn’t me, I was mining up in the mountains with my gem finding spell.” Rarity pleaded but Twilight wasn’t having a bar of it.
“Rarity I saw you with my own eyes down in the mine, don’t try to lie to me about it.” Twilight snapped back.
“It. Wasn’t. Me. I. Swear. I don’t know what you saw but it wasn’t me.” Rarity argued back.
“Woah nelly what the hay is going on here.” AJ said as she walked up to the train station and observed the scene in front of her.
Turning to face AJ, Twilight responded “Rarity’s been arrested, she has been mining and selling blood diamonds which are illegal.”
“Twilight you can’t just go and accuse your friends of illegally mining diamonds” AJ said still trying to figure out what was going on.
“Thank you darling, at least somepony believe me” Rarity piped up.
“Shut up! I saw you in the mine, I saw you get the diamonds” Twilight near screamed spinning around on the spot to face Rarity again. “Take her away” she added.
“Yes your majesty” The guards replied before starting to haul Rarity away.
“Now Twilight I think you’re just over reacting and need to calm down, ah mean innocent until proven guilty and all” AJ said before the struggling Rarity kicked over her saddlebags spilling diamonds all over the platform, “oh my ah guess I stand corrected,” she added with a disappointed voice looking down at her hooves.
“I’m sorry darlings, I didn’t mean for you to find out like this,” Rarity said before she was taken out of sight.
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Three days later
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The expressions in the library where all somber as Twilight and her friends and Rarity’s family transpired over the fashionista’s court hearing. Rarity had been convicted of slave labour, smuggling and possession of illegal diamonds. She had narrowly avoided a charge warmongering and treason.
“I can’t believe our darling daughter is a criminal,” Pearl wailed.
“Ah couldn’t believe it either then I saw the evidence with ma own eyes,” Applejack added.
“I can’t believe I looked up to her,” Sweetie Belle cried as Magnum hugged her and Pearl.
“I’m sorry but I couldn’t keep letting her use slave labour for mining diamonds especially not foals,” Twilight said looking down.
“We understand that it is what you had to do, the fate of one for the fate of many,” Magnum sighed as he finished his sentence.
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meanwhile in jail cell
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‘What did I do to end up here’ Rarity thought as she sighed to herself staring at the mirror in her cell. She had a job, a family that loved her, friends that cared about her yet she was greedy, she had wanted more and to get it she had resorted to breaking the law. Rolling over and covering herself with the ratty woollen blanket she had been provided with, Rarity started crying herself to sleep. Little did she know that she would have a visitor that night.
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6 months later
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Everything was peaceful but different without Rarity. Twilight’s nightmares had somewhat stopped with aid from Princess Luna. Deciding that she would start afresh today Twilight left the Golden Oaks Library and started walking around town.when she heard ponies talking about a new clothing store that had opened up in Manehatten and was attracting the likes of Sapphire Shores and other ponies of the higher class.
Getting curious, Twilight walked up to a few mares talking about the store and asked a few questions about where it was and what it was called; after getting her answers she went to the train station and bought a ticket.
It was too good to be true, from what she had gathered, the new clothing store was releasing clothing similar to what Rarity had released, deciding to investigate she now sat in on the train now pulling into the Manehatten train station. Disembarking Twilight started walking through the town looking out for the shop which was the talk of everypony in Equestria. Arriving at her destination Twilight peered into the window and gasped for there working in front of her was Rarity, her friend who currently locked up inside a jail cell but also here.
Entering the store Twilight saw Rarity freeze up as she approached.
“Rarity, how’d you get here? Aren’t you meant to be locked up and we need to talk,” Twilight said in a soft voice as to not make the mare angry.
Sighing Rarity looked up at the Alicorn, “Okay Twilight, I guess I owe you the truth.”
Twilight for her part went and locked up the shop and shut the blinds. “Okay Rarity when you’re ready” she said taking a seat next to the mare.
“Since I owe you here goes” Rarity said getting comfy to tell her story “It was shortly after the war in Saddle Arabia started, I discovered that they had lots of diamonds, so I started a plan to mine them to use in my own work. A few months later you confronted me and I got arrested and convicted. One night in my cell I had the most unlikely visitor, a changeling who offered to take my place for me to escape and start anew someplace else because he had no where else to go. I accepted and fled in the middle of the night to come here.
After I arrived I sought out the one pony I could trust in hopes that she would help me out. Coco gave me a job and a place to stay until I could get on my feet again. After saving up enough bits I created a new persona and opened up this shop.” Sighing Rarity took a mouthful from her water bottle before adding in, “Twilight I’m sorry can you please forgive me and be my friend again?”
Smiling Twilight replied “Of course I’ll be your friend again but can you please come home and confess?”
“Okay Twilight” The mare replied before she got up and started packing up the store.
After two days packing up and selling the store Twilight and Rarity arrived back in Ponyville where the rest of their friends greeted them at the Library, after Rarity had been bailed out by Twilight. The crowd sat in complete and utter silence as Rarity confessed the true story of her blood diamond clothing addiction, getting arrested and living in Manehatten for the last few months..
After a few months of living under bail, Rarity was allowed to re-open the Carousel Boutique on the terms of she wasn’t allowed to sell any jewel encrusted piece of clothing. At first ponies were skeptical but after a while business returned to usual.
Rarity had just finished working for the day when Spike walked in.
“I got you a present Rarity.” The young drake said as he passed Rarity a gift wrapped box.
“Oh Spike, you shouldn’t have, not after the way I behaved,” Rarity said shuddering back at the thoughts of what she had did.
“I insist though, it’s the least I could do for you after what happened,” Spike said he stepped back waiting for her to open it.
“Well if you insist darling” the fashionista replied unwrapping the present to find a small plaque with a diamond mounted to it with an inscription that read “To our friend Rarity who gave up diamonds so she could be with her friends forever, Love Applejack, Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie and Spike”
The last thing spike saw was the teary eyed fashionista running towards him before he was hugged.
The End.
