In Rarity’s experience, there was one sure way to make sure that something unexpected would pop up and demand all of her attention. Namely, trying to do anything productive. She frequently lamented the fact that it would often take her a week to complete a full day’s work, simply because of the unending stream of friendship problems, ancient evils, Cutie Mark Crusader activities, and unplanned trips to the Dragon Lands.

She suspected that if she could just have one month of uninterrupted work, no one in Equestria could leave their homes without wearing at least three objects of her design. She also suspected that Rainbow Dash was somehow sabotaging her for that very reason, but she had no way to prove it.

Today, the inevitable interruption came in the form of a knock on her door. As far as interruptions go, this one didn’t seem too bad. The boutique was still standing, she didn’t hear any screams, and there did not appear to be any explosions involved, so it probably didn’t involve the latest unsealed evil or the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

When Rarity opened the door, she found an annoyed Applejack and a determined-looking Twilight. “Hello, darlings. Please, do come in.”

“Now, whatever can I do for you two? Do you need me to make some formal wear for Applejack, perhaps?” It was a good guess, Rarity thought, if perhaps a bit too optimistic. But she tried her best to ignore how Twilight’s mane was curling and her pupils were a bit smaller than usual and just hope that she was right.

“No, we actually have a bit of a friendship problem that we need you solve for us,” Twilight replied in a tone that Rarity did not find very reassuring.

“I’d say it’s a bit more than a ‘friendship problem,’ Twilight,” Applejack countered with a glare. “This has gone straight into ‘legal problem’ territory.” She turned to Rarity and continued. “You see, Twilight here has decided that she can use her fancy princess powers to order me to do whatever she wants. But I say she can’t do that, because I’ve got rights and we have laws against that sort of thing. We want you to help us solve this.”

“Oh my,” Rarity mumbled, as her hopes for a simple problem and a productive day of work shattered before her eyes. “That’s certainly quite the problem, but why did you come to me? Wouldn’t somepony like Mayor Mare, Lady Justice, or even Princess Celestia be more helpful?”

“Probably,” Twilight conceded, “but we’re on a bit of a tight schedule, and they’re all busy at the moment. And we agreed that out of all of our friends, you would be the most likely to make a reasonable decision.”

“I suppose that makes sense. But why are you so rushed that you can’t wait even for a legal professional to help you?”

Applejack sighed. “Apparently Twilight has decided that Princess Celestia’s ‘casual’ visit tomorrow should be as uncasual as possible.”

“What!” Rarity exclaimed. “The Princess is visiting tomorrow, and nopony told me? I’ll have to make a brand new dress to wear. And I’ll need to find—”

“Calm down, Rarity,” Applejack interrupted. “It’s [i]supposed[/i] to be a casual visit. You’ll be fine. Besides, we’ve got more important matters to attend to here.”

“And I was going to come over here and tell you right after I told Applejack, but things have gotten...complicated.”

Rarity took a deep breath and focused herself. [i]Princess Celestia will be here tomorrow,[/i] she thought. [i]That’s important. But my friends are having a disagreement and need my help to sort it out. That’s more important. And it seems to be quite the disagreement too. Very well; it is clear what I must do.[/i] She exhaled. “Okay, I’ll see what I can do. Why don’t you start at the beginning?”

Twilight closed her eyes and began explaining. “This morning, I received a letter from Princess Celestia, stating that she wished to visit for lunch tomorrow.” Twilight became visibly calmer as she explained, as if the mere action of presenting facts was soothing to her. Which, Rarity had to admit, it probably was. “Naturally, I have been spending all of my time since then making sure that everything will be ready for when she arrives. There are two parts of those preparations that are relevant to this discussion. First, I visited Pinkie and the Cakes to tell them about the visit and ask them to make some of the food for the banquet I planned. They were glad to help, but with such a short notice, there was no way that they could make everything we needed in time. So I decided to go to Applejack to ask her to help out.”
“So she shows up at my farm, asking me to make a few dozen pies by tomorrow,” Applejack continued, to Twilight’s apparent annoyance. “And I tell her that I won’t do it. Well, she doesn’t take too kindly to that, so she says that she’ll use her fancy princess powers to order me to do it. And I don’t take too kindly to [i]that[/i], and next thing you know, there’s a lot of arguing going on. But we’re all grown mares, and eventually we decided to act like it, so we agreed to take this problem to you.”

Rarity took a moment to digest all of this new information before continuing. “I see. This is clearly quite the dilemma that you two have. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions before I decide anything?”

Twilight and Applejack indicated that this was acceptable.

“Twilight first then. Applejack previously mentioned that the Princess’s visit is supposed to be casual. Is this, in fact, the case?”

Twilight opened her mouth to respond, but Applejack beat her to it. “Now wait just a minute. Are you accusing me of lying?”

“Of course not, dearie. I just want to make sure that I hear all of the facts, and that there haven’t been any misunderstandings. It’s the only way I can make a fair decision.” Rarity turned her attention back to Twilight. “Now, what were you going to say?”

“Well, the letter did technically use the phrase ‘casual visit,’ but there's nothing casual about a visit from royalty! You, of all ponies, should know that, Rarity.”

“Yes, you are correct,” Rarity conceded, “but I would like to point out that you are also royalty, and you have casually visited me many times.”

“But I’m just [i]me[/i]! We’ve been friends since before I was a princess. This is [i]Princess Celestia[/i] we’re talking about!”

“Yes, yes, of course. I suppose it was silly of me to mention. My next question is for you, Applejack. I know from personal experience that you are willing to do quite a lot to help out a friend, and up until ten minutes ago, I was quite certain that you two were very good friends. So why did you refuse to help Twilight?”

“Rarity, have you ever made a pie before?”

“Well, maybe once or twice, but certainly not since I met Pinkie Pie. Why do you ask?”

“No matter what impression Pinkie might give you, making pies ain’t easy. Especially not a good Apple Family Apple Pie. Could we make as many pies as Twilight wanted in time? Well, maybe, if we borrowed some ovens and the whole family did nothing but make pies until Celestia arrived. But it would be harder than calming stampeding cattle with a rattlesnake, and I’m not sure we could do it.

“And to make matters worse, it’s planting season. There’s a mountain of work to get done, and not enough time to do it in. We’re already behind because I’ve had to stop working to help deal with disasters and friendship problems nearly every week. Now I’m willing to sacrifice the farm a bit to deal with real problems like those, but it’s not worth the sacrifice just to overdo a casual lunch.” 

Rarity considered this for a moment. “While I do tend to share Twilight’s views on casual visits from royalty, I must admit that your argument has merit. But the solution seems so obvious to me that I can’t imagine it hasn’t occurred to either of you. So why don’t you just ask for help? Surely there are some ponies around who aren’t otherwise occupied preparing for the Princess’s arrival who could help you bake, and you know that we would be glad to provide some assistance with the planting, just like we’ve done with Applebuck season and cider season before.”

“It ain’t that simple, Rarity,” Applejack replied, shaking her head. “The work in the planting season ain’t like harvesting, where Twilight here can just magic all the apples off of the trees. There’s a lot of jobs to do that need a lot of experience to get right, and a lot of what you’d probably call ‘earth pony magic’ involved. So I appreciate the offer, but there just isn’t much you could do to help. And before you ask, every other earth pony around who could help is already too busy working on their own or somepony else’s farms.

“As for help with the pies, I’m afraid that isn’t possible either. When we Apples make pies, we use a secret family recipe that’s been passed down for generations. I can’t just give it away to anypony not in the family, even you girls.”

“Yes, I get all of that,” Twilight interrupted before Rarity had a chance to reply, “but this is an emergency. It is in the best interests of all of Ponyville for you to make the pies or hand over the recipe.”

“Even if that were true, it’s in the worst interests of [i]my family[/i]!” Applejack exclaimed, her voice rising.

“Why won’t you just serve the greater good!” Twilight’s voice rose to challenge Applejack’s.

“Why won’t [i]you[/i] understand that this [i]won’t[/i] serve the greater good!”

“GIRLS!” Rarity shouted, silencing both challengers. “You must calm down and remain civil, or I will put both of you in outfits so constricting that neither of you will be able to move until the Princess arrives. Do you understand?” The other two mares nodded as they cowered under her gaze.

“Good. Now then, Applejack, would you like to explain exactly why giving Twilight the recipe is such a bad thing? I know you said that you need to keep it in the family, but didn’t you make us all honorary Apples?”

Applejack sighed. “Yes, I did, but it’s not quite the same. And besides, there’s more to it than just that.” She turned to address her opponent. “Twilight, what’s the first thing you’d do if I told you the recipe right now?”

Twilight was caught off guard by the unexpected question. “Umm, I suppose I’d write it down.”

“Exactly. The Apple Family Apple Pie recipe is never written down. My ma taught me how to make the pies by making them with me. I taught Apple Bloom how to make them by making them with her. Someday, I’ll teach my foals how to make them the same way. It’s part of the tradition.”

This was, Rarity thought, rather interesting, and she was sure that Twilight would be taking notes on something like “earth pony culture and traditions” if she weren’t distracted by the debate itself.

“But it’s not even just the tradition that’s an issue here,” Applejack continued. “We all know that no matter what I tell her, Twilight won’t be able to resist writing the recipe down. And then what will happen? Will Spike see it and spread it around without knowing any better? Will it get misplaced and turn up on somepony’s doorstep? There’s no way of knowing how it will happen, but I can promise you that it will only be a matter of time before it does.”

“And how can you possibly be so sure that that will happen?” Twilight countered.

“Have either of you heard of the Blackberry family?”

Twilight indicated that she had never heard of the family, but Rarity thought the name sounded familiar. She thought all the way back to her childhood, and eventually found what she was looking for. “I think I remember going to school with a filly named ‘Pearl Blackberry’ when I was quite young. Though I suppose her name might have been ‘Blueberry.’”

“No, I remember her too. She was a Blackberry, all right,” Applejack confirmed. “I take it you don’t know what happened to her family?”

“I can’t say that I do. I never really thought about it.”

“Well, the Blackberry family had a mighty good pie recipe too. They made the best blackberry pies in Equestria. They didn’t compare to an Apple Family Apple Pie, of course, but they were still mighty good. And just like the Apple family, they kept their recipe very secret.

“But back when we were still young fillies, their recipe got out. Now I don’t know all the details, but I do remember that it involved some sort of mayor somewhere getting them to hoof over the recipe for some big event. Within a few months, the recipe had gotten out and spread across Equestria. Y’all can find it in any cookbook you want to pick up.

“Once ponies could make the blackberry pies themselves or buy them from places like Sugarcube Corner, they stopped buying them from the Blackberry family. Without the income from the pies, most branches of the family, including the one here in Ponyville, couldn’t afford to keep their farms. I hope you can see why I don’t want that to happen to my own family.”

Rarity had to admit to herself that it was a convincing argument. She certainly didn’t want to do be responsible for the downfall of the Apple family, and she was sure that Twilight felt the same way. But on the other hoof, if she was going to play the role of judge here, she wanted to do it right.

“A question for you now, Twilight. The last time I checked, Equestria was not an absolute monarchy, and I assume I would have heard if this had changed. So why do you think that you have the right to force Applejack to help you?”

“Oh, that’s easy. The All Reins Act allows me, as a princess, to issue any orders ‘necessary or appropriate in aid of my respective jurisdictions and agreeable to the usages and principles of law.’”

“Care to translate that for us?” Applejack snarked.

“Basically, as long as there are extenuating circumstances and no applicable law that says otherwise, I can give whatever orders I feel are necessary.”

“Well I say that’s a load of hogwash.”

“Actually, Applejack,” Rarity interrupted, hoping to avoid more yelling and fashionable threats, “Twilight is correct. The All Reins Act does give her that power. It’s been on the books for a long time, probably since before Princess Luna was banished.”

“Yes!” Twilight exclaimed triumphantly. “Thank you, Rarity. I knew you would—”

“[i]However[/i],” Rarity interrupted, “I happen to know that it also states that it cannot be used to create an unreasonable burden, and I think Applejack has demonstrated that this would be the case, should she be required to make the pies.”

Applejack started to celebrate just as her opponent had a moment earlier, but she too was interrupted, this time by Twilight.

“But what about the recipe?” Twilight asked? “Just giving me the recipe wouldn’t be an unreasonable burden.”

“Perhaps not,” Rarity conceded, “But I am also aware of the Cooking Assistance and Recipe Exposure Act, which happens to state that cooks, bakers, chefs, and other preparers of food can not be forced to disclose their recipes, secret or otherwise. So I’m sorry, Twilight, but the law is clearly on Applejack’s side. If you want some apple pies, I’m afraid you’ll have to find them elsewhere.”

Twilight sighed and bowed her head in defeat. “Very well, Rarity. I have no further arguments to make, so I accept your ruling.” She turned to face her opponent. “Applejack, I will abide by Rarity’s decision, as we agreed. I’m sorry that I put you through all of this. I hope that you will find it within yourself to forgive me and that we can continue to be friends.”

Much to Rarity and Twilight’s surprise, Applejack pulled Twilight into a hug. “Of course I can. Our friendship is strong enough to withstand an argument like this. And now we know better, so this sort of thing won’t happen again. Now go get yourself ready for that casual lunch.”

A small smile appeared on Twilight’s face. “Thank you. And thank you to you too, Rarity. I hope I’ll see you both when Princess Celestia visits tomorrow.

“Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to find some more desserts for the banquet.” With that, Twilight trotted out the door, and then teleported away to make her preparations.

The two remaining mares turned to each other. “Thanks, Rarity. I really appreciate that you did this for us.”

“Oh, it was nothing,” Rarity lied. “I’m always happy to help two friends reconcile their differences.”

“I just have one question though. How did you even know about those laws? They don’t seem like the sort of things that would come up often in dressmaking.”

Rarity gave a ladylike laugh. “Oh, they most certainly don’t, in my experience. I learned about them when our sisters tried to get their cutie marks in ‘lawyering.’ They tried to sue Pinkie Pie to get her secret ‘super-duper-extra-chocolate-chunk cookie’ recipe. But Pinkie proved surprisingly adept at defending herself, and no cutie marks were received. Though I believe Pinkie taught them the recipe anyway.”

[hr]

The room was dark. Darker than a normal room had any right to be, even during a cloudy night. But it was actually still the middle of the afternoon on a sunny day, and the unnatural darkness was only there because of a spell Twilight had cast to set the mood.

A single candle sat upon a table, providing just enough light to outline the three ponies sitting around it.

“Do you have the goods?” Twilight asked the other two figures.

“We do,” said the first figure.

“Do you have the payment?” asked the second.

“I do,” said Twilight. She dropped a large bag on the table, making the candle flicker and rattle. “One point three thousand bits.”

The first figure dropped a scroll on the table. “And here is one guaranteed genuine Apple Family Apple Pie recipe.”

Twilight picked up the scroll in her magic and opened it. In the dim light, she could barely make out what it said, but it looked like an apple pie recipe to her. As she examined the scroll, the other two figures inspected the bag of bits, and appeared to be equally satisfied.

“How did you get it?” Twilight asked.

The figures chuckled. “Don’t you worry about that,” the second one said. “All you need to know is that it we got it straight from the Apple family.”

Twilight was not entirely satisfied by this explanation, but she knew that it was the best she was going to get. “And the pies?”

“They are being produced as we speak,” the first figure assured her.

“They will all be ready by morning,” the second one added.

“Very well,” Twilight replied before standing up. “I eagerly await your results,” she said as she walked away. She didn’t like dealing with characters like these, but she did what she had to for the greater good.

After she had left the room, the remaining two figures turned to face each other. “See, brother of mine, I told you this community had opportunity for us.”