“Oh, I couldn’t possibly sell you that,” the Peddler said, his bronze eyes hidden in the low light. “I mean, what if you were to fall into the wrong hooves?”
The Peddler wore a brown bucket hat with a red brim, and had a single, thick braid of grey hair hanging over his left shoulder. Where it tapered to an end, he wore a red scarf tied around his neck.
“You see, it’s a banned art,” he continued. “If I sell this service to you, how do I know it won’t be traced back to me?”
“You’ve been in this kind of business for a while,” a voice rasped back at him. “And you’ve never been traced before.”
“Ah yes, I gave those lackwits in Canterlot the slip last time. But they’re cracking down. Times are rougher for people like me.”
The man with the raspy voice wore a simple, pinstriped suit which looked like it might have been expensive once. From the myriad wrinkles and stains, it looked like it had not been washed in at least a few months. He licked his lips and wrung his hands, nervously. “I need this,” he said. “It’s my last shot at getting into Canterlot University.”
The Peddler pushed the small, circular spectacles which adorned his muzzle up to his eyes and gave his client a hard look. “Your last shot at getting into Canterlot was a long time ago. They only accept youth, when they first begin to exhibit magic. You’ll never be accepted into the University, and to be frank, this only proves my point. You’re going to blow your cover in seconds, and then you’re going to blow mine. Now get out of my tent.”
The raspy voiced man gripped the table in front of him. “Wait! Please, I… I need this! I’ll do anything!”
The Peddler smiled at the sound of that. This was his favorite part of such transactions. He knew he had the upper hand the entire time. Nobody could provide the services he could, and he knew it. “No, I’m afraid I can’t help you.”
The Peddler raised one hoof to his hat, and pushed it back slightly, revealing a small horn. He raised his other hoof, and extended his arm towards his client. As his horn started to glow a dark red, he flicked his wrist theatrically.
The client cried out in surprise as an invisible force gripped the front of his rumpled jacket and lifted him upwards. The Peddler laughed, “This is the power you’re looking for, right? The power to manipulate the world around you, bend it to your will? I could do anything to you, you know. And from what you’ve told me, if you’re truly as desperate as you sound, nobody would ever know you were gone.”
The client’s voice already raspy voice came out as only a whisper, “Please, I need to get into Canterlot.” He collapsed into a heap as the Peddler released him from his grasp.
“You’re in luck, then. It just so happens I’m in the mood to cut a special deal.”
Rarity looked out the window of the Ponyville express at what was to be her new home. It didn’t look like much, since she had already been to the more glamorous parts of Equestria. But she was willing to give it a chance. The other cities and locales she visited had surprised her, though not always pleasantly.
At first, Rarity had been forced into her study-abroad session almost literally kicking and screaming. She remembered the fit she threw at the train station. “I don’t see why I have to visit every backwards niche of society to rule over them!” she had whined to the nearest train station employee. “I can learn everything I need right here in Canterlot! Have you seen how they dress out there?“
The train passed through a tunnel, and Rarity found herself staring at her own reflection in the window. She felt she had learned a lot since she started her tour of Equestria. Where she had once felt contempt for the savages outside of Canterlot, she now felt a sense of pity. The outsiders needed her, and people like her. It was only the best and brightest who were allowed in Canterlot. In the University of Canterlot, they studied and honed their powers and studied various arts. After graduating from the University, these mages were ready to protect and uphold the rule of the Kingdom of Equestria, serving as soldiers, scholars, and government officials.
Rarity tossed her hair back over one ear and examined her reflection. Her long hair was purple and straight, curling towards the end. Rarity smiled at herself, then pouted prettily, batting her eyelashes. Practice makes perfect, and Rarity liked to think she had perfected the art of pouting.
Rarity was studying to be an emissary of Canterlot. Officials in Canterlot liked to remain aloof and rule over the rest of the domain from afar, and their elitism was becoming a problem. As a response to recent uprisings in the outskirts of the kingdom, with rebels attempting to claim independence, the Princess decreed that a portion of students from Canterlot go to live among the commoners in order to better understand the others. The common folk needed her and people like her to take care of them! How they survived without magic, she would never know.
As the Ponyville express exited the tunnel, Rarity was greeted by a wave of green. She gasped and made another practiced face, mouth opened in a perfect “o” shape. “My, it’s so green! I don’t believe I’ve ever seen so many trees!”
She wrinkled her nose, dissatisfied with her performance. “My, it’s so green! It’s soooo green! How many tree’s there are, I mean! I’ve never seen so many trees!”
That was better, Rarity thought to herself. Though she sounded less sophisticated, she thought it sounded more off-guard, and impressed. She wanted the Ponyville citizens to think she liked their quaint little village.
With all these trees, where would all the Ponies live? Ponyville couldn’t have a population of more than a thousand people or the land would be more developed. Judging from the number of orchards, the economy was probably largely agricultural. She would be surprised if they had any exports other than apples.
Rarity prepared to disembark, magically gathering her possessions from about the cabin into one of her many trunks. Just one more stay out in the goonies before she could return to Canterlot!
She stepped off the train and onto the platform. “My, it’s so green! I’ve never seen so many trees!”
Nailed it.