She trembled softly with anxiety, watching from the back eagerly. "No talk?"

Trash shook his head. "He let us watch, but no talking."

They were in the back of the toy shop. There was a big stand full of what they had made, proudly labeled with quite a few buzz words noting their environmentally-friendly origins. The biggest was clearly addressed to the foals themselves, Trash Rescues. Adopt your own rescued toy. They needed your help and were ready for adoption.

A filly had her head tilted almost sideway, regarding the whole thing with thoughtful little mmms. "Only one?"

Her mother nodded softly. "Just one."

"Just one..." She raised a hoof and pointed at a tsuki with a big ring in its ear. "That one. She needs a mommy and I'll be it."

"That's a big responsibility," warned the mother with a gentle smile. "But I know you can do it." With a glowing horn, she carefully picked up the toy and moved to the counter.

Angel began quietly clapping her big soft hands, only to notice Trash holding up a hoof. She knew that! She slapped her hand against the hoof, combining a high-five and a brohoof into one in that instant. "We hunt."

"We sell," corrected Trash gently. "But yeah, we did it."

As the day went on, their supply dwindled. Foals came in, toys went out, as it should be. Not every foal went for theirs, but there were enough of them to put a significant dent in the supply.

It was almost closing time, but the jingle of the bell on the door alerted to a potential customer. Large steps suggested a different kind of pony, and certainly not a foal. Angel returned to where she could see and scowled. "Boss horse!" she harshly whispered.

There was Celestia, examining the stand and what toys remained. "Excuse me?"

The shopkeep, Little Surprise, was already looking at her, smiling broader than even before. "Y-yes, Your Highness. How can I help?"

Celestia dipped her head. "You may relax. I'm just curious, do you know who made these?" She was directing a hoof towards the stand of their toys.

"Trash Prince and Angel," quickly replied Little, nodding in a rapid bob. This was written on the stand, but he didn't have the nerve to point that out to the monarch before him. "They're in the back."

"Are they?" Her eyes darted, just barely catching some fuzz withdrawing with the sound of a little squeak from the frightened Angel. "I would care to speak to them, if I may?"

"S-sure! I'll tell them." He broke into a trot quickly, vanishing into the back. "She's asking for you. Princess Celestia! This is the first time she came into my store. Why is she here?! I'm not complaining. Think she'll buy something?!"

Trash shook his head. "I doubt it." He didn't remember Celestia ever having any toys. "I'll find out." He got to walking out front without delay. Angel's hand came down on his shoulder.

"Boss horse. She'll take things," she warned, shaking her head.

"I have to." He gently touched his nose to her arm for a quiet moment before he nudged it forward, brushing her arm off and resuming his journey.

Angel grumped and began to follow. At least she could try to protect her friend from the terrible power of the boss horse.

They all emerged to find Celestia examining a doll that floated in her magic. A different tsuki, small with a big smile and a fake bit of metal (really just a bulge of fluff colored like metal) poking free of its side. It wore a big torc around its neck, glittering and shiny despite its wound.

Trash closed with a lazy smile, his favorite kind. "Hey..."

"Hello yourself." Celestia turned to face him directly. "What was this, before it became... this?"

Trash squinted at the doll, but he had not memorized what specific bits had gone into it.

"Some bed," started Angel. "Took fluff. Some pony bike, take metal." She was gesturing with her hands as she spoke, describing each part. She went down the full list of which specific things became which parts of the doll as if she had written it down.

Celestia softly nodded with each thing. "All those different places, now all one toy..." She sucked softly on air through her teeth. "Is this what you were trying to tell me?" She set the toy down on the counter. "I would like to purchase this. If I may, I would like to purchase it from the craftscreatures that made it.

Trash quirked an ear softly. He was selling something to Celestia? "Woah, alright..." He pointed to the doll. "It's--"

Celestia raised a silencing hoof. "I have my own offer. I would like to extend my blessings, and hope that you will visit some time. You have found a niche, and I think it suits you well."

Trash's smile eased, no longer mildly forced. "Aw, thanks... It's still sixteen bits though."

Celestia burst into a titter of a laugh. "I can afford that." The coins came floating free, making three piles on the counter. "That is higher than the price of most of the others, despite being... what they are. How is that?"

Little hopped in at that, leaning over his own counter, "You see, ponies pay for many things. In this case, they are paying to be good to the environment and feel good about themselves. Foals pay because they look like they want a friend, need a friend, and that is just what some foals want to be."

"I see..." She gently lifted the doll she had purchased. "Why did you steal?"

Little recoiled in horror. Had he stolen something?!

Trash knew what she meant and shook his head. "I never stole anything."

"Angel steal," she confessed, pointing at herself. "Angel hunt. Angel hunt steal. Bad hunt. Trash teach better hunt. Make happy little pony, get coins. Is good hunt." Angel bobbed her head fiercely, making her massive ears dance about in the motion. "Trash good mate."

Celestia watched Angel for a quiet moment, matching the defiant gaze of the large rabbit that was somewhat larger than even she, an unusual situation for her. "I see... Then I owe another apology." Her eyes shifted to Trash. "And this one bits will not cover. I didn't trust you and assumed the worst." She raised a hoof to her chest. "I... lost my patience, and that was wrong. At least, in the end, it seems it led to a good place, but that does not excuse my mistake."

Trash reached out and put a hoof right on her hoof and her chest. "We cool," he stated simply with that relaxed smile of his, eyes half-lidded. "We cool." For just a moment he considered asking to return to the castle, but he could remember what sorts of ponies awaited him there. He never got along that well with most of them. "I'll visit." His ears suddenly perked, eyes opening wide a moment. "Oh yeah, give Angel back my gift."

Angel nodded once firmly, full scowl returning. "Boss horse steal too!"

Celestia inclined her head. "I don't have it on me... Tell me and be true." Her eyes were on Angel. "Which of the many things Trash had were stolen by you?"

"One." She held up a big pudgy finger. "One."

"Just one?" She raised her hoof to her chin. "That does explain some things... Give me your address and I will have the rest sent to you. I will offer no more apologies today, they'll lose their meaning." She smiled gently at that. "Instead I will wish you continued fortune. Make little foals smile, that's a lovely goal to have."

The address was given, and Celestia departed, taking her new doll with her riding on her back as if the little tsuki had somehow tamed her. "Good evening, Trash Prince." The door shut gently behind her with the jingle of the bell.

Little sagged in place. "That was nerve-wracking... But she bought something!" He bounced up and began counting coins before frowning. "She... overpaid, by a lot. We have to get her change to her!"

Trash had crashed to his haunches. He heard what Celestia had called him, and a single unbidden tear had rolled down his face.

Angel short-hopped over to the piles. They were the right number, she counted, but they were the biggest 100-bit coins, not the little 1-bit coins. "Boss horse say sorry." She reached and took all but one coin. "Is yours."

Little blinked at the one coin remaining, but it was a 100-bit coin. He lifted it in his magic and quickly got it into the register. "When did she start doing your negotiating?"

Trash laughed softly as he gestured to her with a broad hoof-wave. "This is Angel. She hunts. She hunts good." He raised the same hoof and it was met instantly with a paw, the two smiling at one another.

Little laughed softly. "A fine hunter she is. You two need to resupply me for tomorrow, alright? But, just a warning, have an open mind towards your next line. We made a fad, but it will fade. Like the e is just magnetically drawn to the other three or something." He dusted himself off with a sweep of his hooves as he started towards the front door on his hind legs before falling forward. "Let's close up shop."

Angel set down the coins on their little bedside dresser. Trash placed the rest of the coins with them, their share of the day's sales. "We hunted," he said with confidence, hopping up onto the bed and sitting down.

"Good hunt." She hopped up onto the bed, making it sink towards her, which made Trash slide up against her side. She reached an arm around him, holding him to her side affectionately. "What buy?"

Trash glanced around. "Well, we made enough... we could get a bigger home."

Angel tilted her head left and right, considering... "Bigger here?"

"Yeah, probably have some bigger apartments here." He slid down to his hooves. "Want to ask?"

And they did that, moving from the small one-pony apartment into one sized for two, even if Angel was more than happy sharing the bed. The extra room was still appreciated as a work space, where they could really set themselves up to work without having to put everything away each time. It was their workshop and it made both of them happier.

But there was one other little thing. Angel thrust her head out through the opening of the balcony door, sliding it open the rest of the way and wriggling free. "Is big!" She finally had a big enough opening to come and go the way she preferred from her den.

Trash nodded softly, watching her explore the balcony with joy. "Hey, we still have work to do."

"Oh, yes. Hunt. We hunt." She grabbed him up without even a moment's pause and they were gone right out that balcony, bouncing through the city with the roar of wind in their ears.

They had toys to put together, trash to hunt, and happy foals to make.

Trash gently rubbed the back of her head as they went, affectionately showing his approval of the great tsuki mate he had. They were partners, and that was certainly a good thing.

Author's Note

Fin. How'd I do?