Post by Sky Blue on Feb 10, 2012 23:28:48 GMT -5
/\/\/\/\/\/\---PONYVILLE MARKET---/\/\/\/\/\/\
This is the business center of Ponyville! Seldom quiet but usually peaceful, this minor mercantile hub combines aspects of the bustling and the bucolic. A multitude of colors and patterns make it visually busy. Carts brimming with baskets, charming stands and ornate tents with pennants are used to sell wares here. The most common products on sale are vegetables and fruits, such as carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, apples, and even pineapples. Sweet treats like tarts and cupcakes can also be found, as can non-edible items like books or cookware.
The marketplace is more than just a place of business, however. It's a common area for the community! Anypony who wanders through Ponyville is likely to pass through here, which makes it a good place to look for friends new and old. It's not unheard of to see painters at work or sportsponies at play here, as the market is a great place for communal activity. Even gentle animals like rabbits and ducks are known to find its lively atmosphere welcoming. Don't you?
Moving with her own new found urgency, Salsa rattles through the list of things she needs. The muttering rapidly follows as she pushes through the doors into the shop. What was it she used? Ah yes... some of that... some of this... does she have this? She surely has this! Ingredients whirl through her head as she tries to remember the last time she singed her own fur.
Salsa Verde
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Standing inside Salsa Verde's condiments shop is a dark unicorn stallion whom appears to be trying out the samples of the spiciest sauces, looking positively delighted with each taste. As the unicorn filly enters in such a pace, he turns, raises an eyebrow lightly, then asks, "I don't suppose you happen to be the owner of this shop, now, do you?"
Smooth Shadow
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A head above most stallions his size, Smooth Shadow is a slender unicorn possessing a dark, bluish-black coat, a black pencil moustache, and bright green eyes. His mane, shiny and slicked back, is pitch black, reaching down the back of his head and stopping just before his neck. Around his neck hangs a necklace consisting of a thin black material, featuring a pendant in the shape of a white star that rests upon his chest. The stallion's tail is a long affair, equally slick and shiny as his mane, though it stops just a few inches from becoming effeminate. Emblazoned upon his flank is a Cutie Mark in the shape of three tarot cards - The Magician, the Three of Wands, and the Queen of Swords - with three green stars above each card.
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Salsa slows her urgent walk into her shop when she sees the strange unicorn, her beady eyes looking him over. Well, he looks like he can be trusted with some of her sauce. One mustn't let them fall into the wrong hooves, after all. She gets behind one of the counters and pokes her head in her supply boxes cluttering things up back there. Finally she pops her head back up, crazy smile on her face. "Yes, there is an owner here. I am the naming of Salsa Verde, and my sauces are the bestness. Yes. Nobody. Nobody makes the better sauce than the Salsa. Never. Many will do the tryings, but they all meet the ends of sticky. Yes." And she starts gathering up a few herbs she tends to use for flavoring her picante sauce, but she finds helps with burns.
"They are the most divine condiments I have ever encountered," the dark unicorn informs her smoothly, before levitating seven jars off of Salsa Verde's shelves, then placing them down on the counter in front of her, at which point he trots over with a charming smile. "I will have these seven jars, please. It is so HARD to find good sauces these days."
The door to the condiments shop is then opened by a hobbling, muddy, pumpkin goo-covered, exhausted-looking filly, whom limps her way over towards the nearest seat, then sits down face-first, leaving her hindquarters in the air.
Sky Blue
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Just half a head taller than most fillies her age, Sky Blue is otherwise quite unremarkable for an Earth Pony, being of a fairly standard build and possessing a brilliant sky blue coat, no doubt the source of her name. Her mane, a mostly tied-back affair that doesn't so much resemble a proper ponytail as an incredibly poor attempt at one, consists of sunset gold hair, the same colour as her eyes, tied back in a few places with cheap yarn. Her tail, the same colour as her mane, is pretty much just left to hang as it is, without any sort of attempt to neaten it up. Positioned upon her flank is a simplistic Cutie Mark representing the Sun, without any further embellishments.
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Salsa gets back on track and sprinkles the herbs into a mortar and grabs a pestle. Levitating it with her horn, and bringing it down to grind up the herbs. "There are seven of my bottlings, yes? Yes. Yes. You are the one who is to be making the choicings of excellents. That will be bits of twenty one." The unicorn works into the herbs, licks her lips, then says, "The throat of the cutting business is that of the condiments and sauceness. Yes."
"... oh, why, certainly," Smooth Shadow replies after a slight pause, before forking out the requested amount of bits, then levitating the jars into his saddlebags. He gives Sky Blue an odd gaze, then asks Salsa in a low voice, "Tell me, what's wrong with your friend, there?" as he jabs a hoof at the muddy filly.
Salsa peers over at Blue. And people say she is crazy. She doesn't sit with her face! But whatever works for the filly. "That is a filly of goodness. She is to here for a needing treatment for a burning. Yes." The unicorn takes the mashed up herbs and takes them back to get some water boiling.
"Well, if it's burn treatment she's after, maybe you two should visit my shop; I have more elixirs and potions contained within those walls that you could imagine. Burn salves, antidotes, luck elixirs, love potions-"
In a flash, the muddy filly has pinned to the stallion to the ground by her forehooves and exclaims, "YA'LL SELL LOVE POTIONS AND LUCK ELIXIRS? GET THEM FER ME! NOW!"
A clattering sound is heard, and in a surprisingly fast speed, the shopkeeper is right next to the other shopkeeper, practically staring into his soul. "There is a potion of loving? How much if the potion of the loving? It is of the importance having!" She knows a couple stallions she'd love to slip some love potion to. "Will be paying the doubleness for the potions of the lovings!"
"Ah'll pay triple if ya'll give none to her!" Sky Blue exclaims, practically shouting at the poor stallion as she stares at him with eyes almost as crazy as Salsa Verde's, before attempting to flankbump her out of the way.
"She is not even of the right ageness! There is a quadruple!" Salsa says desperately. She rushes over to her counter to get more money. "Entire stock. Quadrupings!" She levitates her cash box onto her counter and works on unlocking it.
"FIVE TIMES THE PRICE FER THE WHOLE STOCK!" Sky Blue shrieks at the top of her voice, before bringing her eyes even closer to the poor stallion, one of hers twitching slightly.
"In control of the sauce of Ponyville! Whole stockings and you will be having all the sauceness and syrupings the youness would ever want in your lifeness! DO THE THINKING OF THAT ITNESS!" Salsa's beady eyes are getting freakishly scary. "There is much powerness to be had in mayonnaise!"
"F-fillies, fillies," Smooth Shadow stammers, looking understandably freaked out by the situation, gently raising his hooves into a calming position. "I've got plenty of love potion to go around..."
"Don't give it all about, GIVE IT T'ME! AH'M THE PRETTY ONE!" the mud and pumpkin-covered filly declares, tilting her head as she smiles down manically at the stallion.
"To the meness! Remember you bought the goodness of my saucings! Discounts DISCOUNTS!" Salsa says, probably looking prettier than the mud-coated filly next to her. Except for her crazed expression. "She doesn't have the sauceing likeness! 6 times costings plus discounts on saucinesses!"
"Uh... ah... visit Smooth Shadow's Parlour of Mysteries!" he unicorn stallion declares cheerfully, before vanishing in a puff of green magic, dropping Sky Blue down onto the ground.
It takes a few moments for Sky Blue to recover from the shock of the disappearing unicorn, at which point she snaps her head up to look at the door to Salsa Verde's shop, then slowly looks around to stare at the shopkeeper, not moving a muscle.
Oh, it is on! Crazy sauce-making filly versus country bumpkin filly who causes destruction in her wake. The insane one soon looks back at her counter and points in a panic. "There is a gnome!" Assuming the other filly falls for it, she'll rocket out her shop door and lock it behind her! Must get love potion!
Even Sky Blue isn't THAT dense, and so it ends up a fight to try and get out of the shop door, each filly pushing against the other, before the hayseed is eventually knocked away from the door and into several jars of extra-spicy sauce, the contents of which start to pour out over the groggy filly.
Salsa can always replace the extra spicy! She's sprinting. Sprinting across the Ponyville Market, not doing a great job of dodging ponies in her path. Once she gets to the potion shop first she can lock the door and buy ALL the love potion and then it's off to the Pumpkin farm!
As she nears the Parlour of Mysteries, there's a smashing of glass back from the direction of the market, followed by a yell of pain, steadily growing louder and louder. "... aaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGH!" A surprisingly fast Sky Blue starts to make her appearance, now coated in mud, pumpkin, and spicy, multi-coloured sauces.
Salsa sees the other filly gaining on her and tries pushing the envelope on speed. She's no Rainbow Dash, but she would think she could outrun an injured filly coated in a few varieties of her signature hot sauces! Comeoncomeoncomeoncomeon!
Salsa Verde makes it into the Parlour of Mysteries while Sky Blue is still several shops away. The suave, sophisticated dark unicorn is busy cowering behind the counter, the tops of his eyes just visible over the woodwork.
Salsa looks around frantically for things to shove up against the door of the shop, finding a couple benches she wedges the m up against the door and hopes to complete the job before her competition gets there. Oh, and she locks the door too. Then her beady eyes fall upon the poor alchemist and dashes for the counter. "THE POTIONS OF LOVINGS!"
"At the original price, that's 300 bits. At six times the price, that's 1800 bits. Please don't hurt me," the unicorn squeaks as he floats over two bell jars and three smaller bottles filled with pink liquid, then sets them down on the counter.
Slamming down her lock box and opening it up, Salsa, with a crazed look in her eyes, a bit of drool escaping her muzzle. "Countings! There is lots of the moneys there!" Fortunately, it's not all her money or she may end up losing her business. She puts all the love potions in her saddlebags. "The salsa is of the victory!"
Bang. Bang. Bang. CRASH. After three failed attempts to get through via the door, Sky Blue enters through the large window, purple drapes now adorning her ridiculous form as she shouts, "GIVE! ME! THE POTIONS!" and then launches herself at Salsa.
Oh horse apples! And the saucier had barricaded the shop! Making her getaway is going to be a lot harder now! Seeing the earth pony charging after her, the unicorn makes a mad dash for her barricade and tries to get it all clear in time. "THE POTIONS OF LOVINGS HAVE BEEN UNDER THE PAYING FOR BY THE MENESS!" The filly does indeed tackle the saucemare, who soon finds herself in an epic struggle for control of the love potion.
Luckily for Salsa, the jars are rather strong, and being far healthier than the crippled mud-pony, she manages to shake off the hayseed into a stack of jars containing a golden, brightly-coloured liquid, while the impromptu exit that is the window is all clear!
Salsa stands up quickly, beady eyes scanning around, and she sees the window. The desperate unicorn runs and jumps out the window. She has got to hide! She will hide! Not at her shop, though her sauces need protecting. Perhaps she should stash the potions. She changes her mind quickly and runs for her shop. She will have to find a good way to hide the potions. Yes.
It's not long before Sky Blue is on Salsa's trail, hobbling at full speed, now covered in mud, pumpkin entrails, extra spicy cooking sauces, and a bright yellow, fairly viscous liquid. "GIVE ME BACK THEM POTIONS!" she bellows as the unicorn pony nears her shop.
Ooohhhh noooooo! The sauce maker quickly closes her shop and locks the doors. Then checks her windows. She tries moving some shelves in front, then takes herself and her potions into the back room to find a hiding place.
Thud. Thud. Thud. A pregnant pause... and then silence. No sound of the crazy muddy filly. No sound of destruction. No insane screechings.
Salsa finishes carefully secreting away her potions and slowly inches out of her back room. Sky giving up? Even Salsa finds this a little hard to believe. She telekinetically grips her trusty whisk and starts stepping cautiously about her shop.
Nothing. Utter silence. That is, asides from a light scratching sound, one that's rather hard to place - similar to mice scurrying about wood.
Salsa continues to hunt, trying to track the sound, preparing to go after it with her mayonnaise whisk. The same whisk she was using to try and get Sky when she called her sauce 'bad.' "I can do the hearing of the youness," she says in a crazy, dangerous voice.
The scurrying sounds abruptly stop. There is silence. Then, light a demonic creature in a horror film, Sky Blue bursts up through the floor boards, caked in soil, a somewhat insane look in her eyes as she pins Salsa down, then bellows at her, "WHERE ARE THE POTIONS?!"
Salsa eeeeps as she is pinned by the other filly who bursts up from under her floor. But she'll never talk! Never! The potion is hers! She bought it legally for over six times the cost! "You are not of the supposing of the ones who are to be in the hereness. Now do the digging and go on back to your homeness. Byebye!" That might work!
"Tell me... OR THE SAUCE GETS IT," she informs the Salsa in a deadly-serious tone, her eyes narrowing as she points a hoof at a large selection of the filly's most expensive condiments.
Salsa stares, wide eyed and beady, at the other filly. Oh, she wouldn't! "You are not of the WOULDNESS!" Salsa says. No way Sky would destroy her livelihood for the sake of some love potion! That would be madness!
One of Sky Blue's eyes twitches. Her eyes un-narrow. Then, her whole body slumps and she lets out a sigh, before clambering off of the other filly. "Ah'm sorry, Salsa," she informs the other female in a dejected voice, before dropping her rump down dangerously close to the hole on the floorboards. "No matter how badly ah want that potion, ah could never bring mahself t'deprive ya'll of yer only source of income."
Salsa sees the younger filly relent. And she does feel for the filly. Both of them want the same male... or males. She noses Sky gently, then goes into the back room and comes back out with the bottles of love potion and drops them on the floor. She may be quite insane, but sometimes the things she does make a lot of sense some times. No, she's not giving Sky the potion... instead she stomps on each bottle, one by one. Depriving both of them of the hard-earned prize, then looks her friend in the eyes, and says, in an even, but still crazy tone. "We are of the stallionings because we do the earnings of the stallionings! I do not want to do of the cheatness of the more anyness! Am I under the standing?"
Sky Blue's eyes grow wide as she watches the love potion pour away through the floorboards, her eyelid twitching once more. "... ah suppose ah understand," the younger filly replies with a light sigh, her gaze falling to one side... and to the hole in the floorboards, from where she tunnelled in. Then, she glances up at the door. Cabinets in the way. Bingo. With a mighty leap, the muddy filly dives into the tunnel... only to get stuck with her hindquarters sticking out.
The sauce mare sees this and shakes her head, taking the filly's tail in a telekinetic grip and trying to pry her out of the floor. Assuming she succeeds, she will then endeavor to unblock the front of the store. Then turn to the filly. "We can be of the strongness! We are of the making the malenesses want us in the insteadings! Be smartings!" Salsa says, then goes into the backroom to see if she can remake that salve for her friend.