“Stay close,” the pony said while she turned and look at the little filly near her. Their hoofsteps reverberated off the dark rock walls of the cave. Light penetrated the darkness and illuminated their path. Both ponies soon found themselves presented with a vast open field of tents, ponies, knickknacks, oddities, and other manner of goods to be traded. Princess Celestia looked at the pony near her hooves and said with a kind smile, “Welcome to Rainbow Falls, Twilight.”
“Wow,” Twilight said. Her eyes soaked in the spectacle around her. “Rainbow Falls looks just like I imagined it in the book you gave me. I still have it with me.”
An enthusiastic cheer came from several ponies that held up a banner near them. They launched confetti into the air and showered Princess Celestia and Twilight in it. Princess Celestia nodded her head, giving a jovial grin to the crowd of pegasi, unicorn, and earth ponies in front of her. “Thank you for the welcome. I am here to trade just like all of you, so, please, no special favors or treatment.”
Hushed voices greeted Princess Celestia’s ears as several ponies chatted amongst one another.
“A trade is a trade. A deal is a deal. No matter royalty or a pauper, that shall be our creed.” A voice said. The stallion stepped out from the crowd, adjusted his black tie, and then extended his wings while he bowed. He stood up. “Those were the words of my father, my father’s father, and so on, Princess Celestia. Our town will always abide by them.”
“Little ‘Barti?’” Princess Celestia said with a chuckle, “It has been too long. You were just a colt when I last visited.”
“It is a pleasure to see you again as well, Princess Celestia.” Mr. Barter said. The redness in his cheeks faded while the pegasus stallion looked at the unicorn filly. He walked over and patted her on the head with his right wing. “Now, who might this be? She looks to be a fine unicorn. Did you finally get wed without me knowing about it? ”
Princess Celestia blushed. She unfolded her right wing. The soft snow white features ruffled the mane of the pegasus stallion.
“I am Twilight Sparkle, protégé of Princess Celestia. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Barter.” Twilight said with a dignified tone in her voice.
“I see. Well, it is a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Twilight Sparkle.” Mr. Barter said as he bowed. He gave a kind smile he raised his head. Princess Celestia gave the same in return to her friend before she turned it towards Twilight. The pony adjusted his top hat. “How about we dispense with all of the formalities, we got some tradin’ to get to, right?”
Mr. Barter walked alongside Princess Celestia into the center of the town while the crowd around them dispersed. Twilight levitated the book out of her bag. Voices dimmed. Her eyes fixated on each page she turned. Soon, she found the tale that had been last read, three pages just before the end.
“Twilight,” Princess Celestia said in a gentle voice while she levitated the book away and put it back into the filly’s bag, “this will be a good opportunity for you to learn about your surroundings. Tell me, what do you notice?”
“Well,” Twilight said as she placed her right hoof near her mouth. She placed her hoof down before she looked at a stall near her right. “That pony there just traded a rare and limited edition magical compendium book for a dirty old book that has no value.”
Mr. Barter’s ears perked up. His eyes glanced towards the pony behind him. He turned toward the filly and, with a hearty grin, replied, “No, no, no. Those ponies ‘traded’ one another for something they held of equal value. For something to be gained, an item or possession of equal value must be relinquished. The trader exchange was founded on the belief that ponies give and trade items of equal value between one another. It isn’t a sound rule, I am sad to say. There are times when that rule doesn’t hold up. I must step in as the town’s mayor to make sure all trad—“
“Mr. Barter, we’ve got a problem. There’s a stall vendor who needs assistance with a trade.” A pony said while she dashed towards the three ponies with a clipboard levitated in front of her.
“Please don’t tell me it’s the Apple Oil twins and their two unicorn nephews trying to sell those products again? I can’t make these trades work with their shenanigans.” Mr. Barter said.
Twilight tapped Princess Celestia’s right hoof. “Why don’t you oversee the trade? You’re the wisest pony I know, Princess Celestia.”
“We are both here as ordinary traders, dear Twilight. Ponies need to work out their problems on their own.” Princess Celestia said. She turned to see the filly staring at the ground. “Twilight, I can’t interfere. Ponies need to work things out on their own.”
Mr. Barter raised his eyebrow before he tapped his hooves together. “I will be honest Princess Celestia. Your help would be most welcomed. If you oversaw the trades that some felt were unfair, it would help me out quite a bit. There have been a few incidents where my authority hasn’t been recognized. If a princess were to oversee trades, it would alleviate much of the problem since your rule is absolute in Equestria.”
“Why don’t you look around for a bit, Twilight? I will be back in a little bit.” Princess Celestia said before she departed with Mr. Barter.
As the three ponies departed, Twilight meandered towards the center of town. An ornate fountain statute of Princess Celestia shined in the sun while Twilight sat near the base. Twilight levitated the her book out and re-fixated on the two pages before its end.
“Whatcha readin?” A filly earth pony said to Twilight. She watched as the filly in front of her continued to read. In her hoof, the filly clutched her doll closer. “O wow, is that about Rainbow Falls?”
“Rainbow Falls, a place of trade established by the Barter Family for over three centuries…” Twilight said in a calm tone. Her eyes glanced over ever so often to see the filly grin. She continued the story as the filly placed her doll near the book. “…It’s with time that the small village grew, becoming a well known hub of trade. Many a mystical artifact has been found in the possession of explorers who often visit Rainbow Falls, the items brought for trade between ponies and other inhabitants of Equestria.”
“It’s time to go,” a mare and stallion said, approaching the two.
“Wait,” Twilight said while she stared at the doll and then back at her book,” would you like to trade? I’ve read this book a lot.”
“Trade for what? I don’t have anything to trade with.” The filly said in return as she clutched her doll. “Actually, I do like your book. It would give me something to read. Would you mind trading it for Smarty Pants?”
Princess Celestia walked up towards the three ponies. She gave a kind hearted grin to her protégé.
“Princess Celestia gave this book,” Twilight said while her eyes darted around. “I’ve read it a lot though. A good book needs a good home. You promise to take care of it?”
The filly nodded. She gave her doll to Twilight while she gave her book in return. As the three ponies departed, Princess Celestia levitated Smarty Pants into Twilight’s satchel.
“I’m proud of you, my protégé. I know it wasn’t easy to let go of that book, but you made a worthy trade. That little filly will cherish that book with all her heart, while she can.” Princess Celestia said. She gave a melancholic smile while she waved goodbye to the parents with her wing.
“How did the trade go with the other ponies?” Twilight said.
“Let’s just say that I will be coming back here again. Mr. Barter needs more help than I thought. It appears as though two ponies brought in their nephews to assist them in some deals that weren’t up to the standards this place is known for.” Princess Celestia said. She watched the filly at her side levitate the doll out and give it a hug before placing it back. “So, who is your new friend?”
Both ponies made their way back towards the town’s entrance as the sun began to set.
*** *** ***
“That’s how I got Smarty Pants,” Twilight said to her friends.
“So you trade a rare, precious, one of a kind book Princess Celestia gave you? You trade it for a doll?” Rainbow Dash said before she gulped down some cider.
Rarity sat between Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy at the table inside Applejack’s house. She looked at Twilight. “It does appear as though you made a bad trade. That filly received the better end of the deal. If you don’t find it prying, what happened to the little filly?”
Twilight’s expression grew dim as she looked out the window to see a star shooting star pass by. Her ears lowered, and then she felt her wings twitch at her sides for a second. The cider cup near her remained untouched.
“It’s alright sugar cube, you don’t have to talk about it if ya don’t want to.” Applejack said after she patted her friend on the back.
“There were days where it was harder than others. Smarty Pants, though I knew in my mind it was an inanimate creation of cloth and such, she always listened to me. My big brother best friend forever had his role and I had mine. With Smarty Pants, no matter what happened, I could always go to her for a laugh. I still wish I could thank that little filly for what she gave me.” Twilight said. She slugged down her cider in one gulp.
“Careful Twilight, don’t drink this stuff to fast. It will come back to haunt y—“ Fluttershy said, but stopped herself. Her ears lowered as Twilight produced a loud belch before the purple pony clutched her stomach.
Rainbow Dash picked her friend up and patted her on the back. She gave a sly grin before she made a sound that rivaled her friends.
“So uncou—“Rarity said, yet she interrupted herself with a belch of her own. “O my, excuse me. Applejack, I hope you didn’t pour any of that soda water into this batch of cider.”
“That a girl!” Pinkie Pie said while she let out a belch that rattled the windows and caused Winnona to bark.
Each pony took the last sip of their drink before they left for home. Outside, Twilight stared at sky, witnessing another shooting star cross into horizon. In a quiet voice she said, “Thank you. Thank you for the trade that day. I hope you enjoyed the book.”