The Diamond Needle

“Sweetie Belle! would you be a dear and fetch the morning paper!” Rarity yelled from her dining table across her Boutique, then took a bite of her toast and sipped some tea.

“Aww do I have to? I have to meet Applebloom and Scootaloo at the tree house soon,” Sweetie Belle ask with a whine as she dragged three pairs of rubber gloves down the stairs.

“Yes Sweetie, your friends can wait a few moments,” Rarity said firmly as she looked over at Sweetie Belle then paused. “I’m Intrigued to ask, what are you three doing with those gloves?”

“We’re trying to get our medical cutie marks!” Sweetie Belle said with a grin that would make Pinkie Pie jealous.

Rarity squinted for a minute or two, then snapped out of processing mode. “Very well, if you are in such a rush just toss it in on your way out.” Rarity replied as she took a bite of her toast.

“Okay! Thanks sis!” Sweetie Belle said as she bolted from the building.

“Don’t forget the-” Rarity was then interrupted by a flying newspaper hurtling towards her. As it smacked her square in the face, knocking her out of her chair and spilling her tea.

Rarity then sat herself up holding a hoof the her face. “Young mare…” she said to herself as she levitated a cloth and cleaned the spilled tea and finished her toast. Rarity was having a slow month so she had little income but a lot of time to relax, which was rare in her line of business. Rarity put her cup and plate in the sink and washed them, then proceeded to the sitting room. “Right lets see the local hullabaloo,” Rarity said to herself as she went through the pages.

“Lets see… local mailmare Derpy found trapped in town well... Carousel Boutique shortage on vain ponies,” Rarity rolled her eyes. “100,000,000 bit prize for winning the E.W. championship, humpf! ruffians, what some ponies will do for a few extra bits.” Rarity continued to read the paper and talk to herself until she heard a knock on the door.

“Who could that be?” Rarity walked over to the door combing her hair as she went.

Rarity swung open the door, a gray mare with a blond mane, crossed yellow eyes, and bubbles for a cutie mark stood with a messenger bag over her shoulder. “Derpy! what a surprise! did they get you out of that well okay?” Rarity greeted.

“Oh hiya Rarity!” Derpy said happily, who sounded like her nose was clogged all the time. “Ya they got me out okay. I am a bit bruised though,” Derpy said as she put a hoof behind her head and blushed.

“Well it’s good to hear you were not too roughed up,” Rarity trailed off. “Do you happen to have any mail for me today?”

“Mail? Oh yes! The mail!” Derpy said as she remembered she was still working. “Here you go Rarity!” Derpy said as she pulled a few notes out of her bag.

“Thank you Derpy! Oh and, do try to stay out of that well from now on.”

“Will do!” Derpy said with a salute then flew off to her next job, she resembled a game of pong as she bounced between buildings to her next stop.

“I do hope nopony ordered any glass,” Rarity said as she went back inside flipping through her mail. “More bills, good thing I’m mindful with my bits.” Rarity opened the bills, It was the normal rate, bills for power, gas, delivery. Then Rarity found one she had not seen before. The letter had purple stains scattered across the surface, the return address read: Canterlot, 564 St.  box 12, Très Cher Établissement

Concerned, Rarity tore open the letter to read its contents. The letter read:

Madam Rarity.

We thank you for visiting Bar fantaisie très cher on your visit to Canterlot’s annual fashion show. We sent you this letter as a bill for buying our “Vin À Une Stupide Prix”. We thank your generous nature for purchasing all of our fine mares and gentlecolts limitless drinks for the night. We also hope you had a very pleasant night with that stallion, he seemed to be very impressed by your wealth. We hope to see you again.

~ Avide Bâtard

Vin À Une Stupide Prix

quantity 640

Bill $74,805,750*

September/16/2014

*Please send the required bits in-person you will be granted 2 weeks to complete the transaction.

Rarity felt her head spin as she held a hoof to her stomach. She then grabbed the closest ice-cream bucket and proceeded to throw-up, Rarity pulled her head out of the bucket then read the letter over again, then repeated the action.

Six hours later, Sweetie belle started coming home with Applebloom and Scootaloo. All of them had a slight frown and they were looking at each other akwardly.

“That was…” Scootaloo broke the silence.

“I erm…” Applebloom tried to reply.

“Oh come on guys It was not that bad!” Sweetie Belle tried to say confidently.

“Really? We just permanitly stiched a banana inside sompony's ear! And I think we left a water bottle in his chest!” Scootaloo said as she shot a discusted look at Sweetie Belle.

“Eh, could have gone worse I'm shure he'll live,” Sweetie Bell said rolling her eyes.

Applebloom attempted to defuse the situation, “Look girls, I think we should all try and get our forgetting cutie marks now. Agreed?”

“Agreed,” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo both said in perfect synchronization.

The trio continued walking for a while until they noticed a foul smell in the air, it smelled like a field of rotten vegetables that had be sitting out for an entire summer.

“Y’all smell that?” Applebloom asked covering her muzzle.

“Ya it smells like that somepony took a bath in rotten eggs, then dried off in a pool of skunks,” Scootaloo said covering her muzzle trying not to lose her lunch.

Sweetie Belle tried to locate the origin point of the smell.

“It smells like it’s coming from my sister’s place,” Sweetie Belle said surprisingly not phazed by the smell.

“You don’t mind the smell?” Applebloom asked trying hard to not imagine what smell could be worse than the one she was presently smelling.

“I have a feeling I know what’s going on,” Sweetie Belle said as she started walking toward her house, Applebloom and Scootaloo followed close behind. As they walked the smell grew more intense. If one was looking around, one would see that nopony but the three fillies where on the street; it also did not help that the pegasi scheduled fog for the evening that gave an ominous setting to the ordeal.

A cream colored stallion with a brown mane and tail with light chocolate colored hooves and a five o'clock shadow with a microscope cutie mark was curled in the fetal position beside the front door to Rarity’s Boutique. He was mumbling something to himself  “How is that possible…” and “It defies the very fabric of space-time…” he said rocking back and forth.

The three fillies walked up to the door, Sweetie Belle reached for the door knob but the cream pony slammed his hoof in front of the door holding it in place. The cream pony slowly turned his head, he shot a dead, lifeless stare at Sweetie Belle “Turn back,” the cream pony said then continued to rock, retracting his hoof.

The three ponies looked at each other, then with a synchronized nod they opened the door.

The door made a loud hiss as it opened, it was pitch black inside. the cream pony shrieked at the sound then fled. The smell now was almost unbearable, as Applebloom and scootaloo threw their heads in a nearby bush as a splattering sound could be heard. Sweetie Belle still not affected by the smell, continued onward.

“ARE YOU CRAZY?!” Scootaloo yelled stopping Sweetie Belle in her tracks as she turned her head to face Scootaloo.

“You will DIE if you go in there!” Scootaloo objected before throwing-up once again.

“Do I look like I mind?” Sweetie Belle asked raising an eyebrow.

Applebloom pulled her head out of the bush, “How in tarnation can you not notice the smell?!” she managed to say before joining Scootaloo.

“Magic,” Sweetie belle replied with a blank expression.

“Well can you cast a spell to stop us from smelling this?!” Scootaloo said as she wiped some vomit from her mouth.

“Ya! Do us to!” Applebloom said trying to keep her balance.

Sweetie belle thought about the request for a moment “Umm, nah.”

 Before either Scootaloo or Applebloom could reply Sweetie belle was already swallowed by the darkness, as they both gaged once again.

Sweetie belle walked through the house using a candle spell as a light source.

The floor was covered in a odd green leafy slush and the wallpaper was peeling.

“Rarity! are you okay?!” Sweetie Belle called out.

“Sw- Sw- Swe-” Rarity’s voice was halted by a splatter.

“Where are you?!” Sweetie Belle called out once again.

“Th- th- re-” Rarity was interrupted by splattering once more.

Sweetie Belle pieced together that she was most likely trying to say she was in the rest room. Sweetie Belle went up the stairs down the hall to the bathroom door, the same green slush was leaking from the bottom of the door.

“I’m coming in!” Sweetie Belle warned before opening the door, a flood of vomit painted the halls as Sweetie Belle trudged in. There leaned over an overflowing toilet was Rarity, her crystal white coat was stained and her mane was a mess.

“Sweetie go get he…” then Rarity passed out with her head in the bowl.

Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes as she slid Rarity though the halls, down the stairs, and out the door closing it behind her. Rarity’s coat by now was more green and stained then its normal white.

“What happened?!” Scootaloo asked shocked by the state of Rarity.

“I don’t know but it must be bad, or as Rarity would put it ‘Of all the worst things that could happen, this is the! Worst! Possible! Thing!’ ” quoted Sweetie Belle holding a hoof to her chest and speaking in an elegant tone.

“Do y’all think we should get her to the Hospital?” asked Applebloom.

“Nah let her suffer for a bit,” Sweetie Belle said with a evil grin.

“You can’t be serious! Look at the state of her!” Scootaloo shouted whilst pointing a hoof at Rarity.

“Of course I’m not serious featherbrain! now with where was the Hospital?!” Sweetie Belle said with a glare.

“I remember! I’ll go get somepony!” Applebloom said then bolted.

“Right! I will go get some ice!” Scootaloo eagerly said.

“Ice?” Sweetie Belle questioned.

“Ya ice! Cheerilee always gets ice when I hurt myself!” Scootaloo said happily

“Okay... if you think it will help,” Sweetie Belle said with a questioning expression.

“Sweet! I’ll be back soon!” Scootaloo said as she trotted off.

Sweetie Belle noticed that everypony had left, so she put a hoof on Rarity’s forehead and took her temperature, as she felt that this would be what Rarity would do if she was sick.