Riddle's Bazaar (Open! For Business!)

[waxworks]

As Riddle listened intently to Jitters, she seemed to have a strange, subtle, hypnotic sway to her body, which didn't carry along to her head. That only seemed to sway and bobble when she was talking.

"Sir, yes, I am Riddle Bits sir, and I thank you for complimenting my bazaar. Sir's worries are..."

She hesitated very slightly. This sort of stuff was personal, not business. But if that sort of information could be used to further her sales then why not? Also there was a small nagging sensation in the back of her head. She'd not met many pegasus ponies in her time in Ponyville, and this was the second one that had expressed concern over her living in a tent in the marketplace. She wondered if perhaps pegasi were overly sensitive to temperatures or the weather. It would make sense, she reasoned with a slight confirming bobble, what with their weather controlling natures. There was a little nudge from her brain to let her know she'd been thinking too long and the pause had started to become awkward. What was the last word she said, worries? Worries are unfounded... unnecessary...

"...appreciated," she bobbled proudly, that worked very well, "but a good merchant, sir, is meant to know the market as their home. Be it desert or mountain, forest or beach, if there are customers, the merchant will find their home, sir."

She felt extremely proud about that, it even sounded like the sort of moral that would've come up in one of her grandfather's stories. Mentally it ran through her head a few times. She really should write that down, mail it home. It was the sort of thing her mother would really appreciate hearing.

"And sir will be pleased to hear that such organisms are very simple to maintain." She waved a hoof over one of the small pots, almost as if she were about to engage in a magic trick, "you gently push the seed into the dirt sir, and whenever the soil is dry to the hoof, sir should add a small cup of water. With time and sunlight, the plant will flourish, sir."

[Deleted]

"Yet again, I do apologise for being quite so blunt in my statement, I just don't think I'd be able to live here in the busy marketplace for the most part, let alone actually living inside a store. However, I do like your system you have here, it's quaint and lively, I imagine you get a lot of service here."

He smiled at Riddle, his face soft in expression and his sincerity conveyed through his body language. He turned his attention back to the small potted plants and investigated them clearly.

"These are quite a wonderful little addition, aren't they? I'd maybe like to take a few of them to decorate my house a little bit, make it feel more organic and real and a little less like a shell, you know? How much are they?"

He cocked his head, looking at Riddle with intense curiosity as he thought about seeing if there was anything else in the store that could help him to decorate his home. He did wonder however, if there were any other stores nearby that could also help him with this, and he realised he should probably ask Riddle herself.

"Oh! And while I remember, may I inquire you to ask if you happen to know anywhere nearby I could find myself some candles? They're quite a neccessity I could be doing with right now, and until I have the old windmill/watermill back up and running, it's actually quite dark in there, and I'm going to have to build lighting fixtures from scratch, but I don't really like being alone in the dark all the time, you know?"

[Sun Riser]

   As Robbie's hunger grew and grew, she tried to stay still and smile sweetly her mouth filled with drool as she smelled the sandwich in her bag. She tried to tame her hunger and just stood and smiled. As Robbie politely stood still, staring off into deep space, she had almost missed another pony talking about an exquisite concoction. Robbie flinched a bit when the mare's mane precariously changed colors and length. Then started to explain something about potions, and showing off her cutiemark, with moved without question. Robbie flushed, not forgetting how she still had not earned her unique mark on her flank. "Well...," Robbie started, trying not to spray her saliva as she spoke, yet she thought about it; slapped a hoof over her mouth then uttered, "I-I have to go." Then quickly trotted away. And passed a well-fitted stallion on her rush home.

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   Sunny trotted through the crowded stalls and small buildings of the Ponyville marketplace. "Wow! This place is huge! And it's only been like a week since I've been here!" Sunny marveled the vendors at the market and was going to one that sold cookies. Yet, a different one caught her eye. What's that? I've never seen that one before. Sunny thought as she slowly trotted closer to the small set. After thinking deeply about what it was, Sunny jumped up in joy, bringing a lot of attention to herself, "WOW! It's a Bazaar!" And with that, she took of, as fast as her one good and one bad wing could possibly take her. Sunny tried to slow to a stop, to avoid another great crash, yet she had ended up hurting the tip of her muzzle as she bumped into the counter.
   Completely forgetting about her small injury, Sunny sprang up to the see what was for sale. "Woah! Candy!" Sunny exclaimed happily, "Woah! Sandwiches! Woah! There's so much stuff!" Sunny decided what to buy with her small amount of money from her dark job. She tried to call the vendor at the bazaar without sounding rude. Yet she was with another customer at the time; so Sunny just stood around at the corner, fidgeting.

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    At her small home, Robbie was tinkering with a new kinetic sculpture, one of a blade of grass. "Nature and machines together at last." Robbie smiled happily at she screwed in something there, bent something here. All the while, she was eating a sandwich.

[waxworks]

"Sir is allowed to ask such things," said Riddle, bobbling nonchalantly. "Only about half of the plants are flowers, the rest are vegetables, so if sir wishes for decorative plants, these are the ones sir would want. Of course they're normally two bits each, but seeing as sir needs decoration for his home, I am willing to part with two of them for just three bits, in an effort to help sir make his home more liveable."

Candles. Riddle had one candle, actually. A well-worn, mostly used candle that she'd used to light her tent at night, or when she needed drops of wax to seal the tiny spell-scrolls in the jar. That wouldn't do to sell, not at all. But she did know where somepony could buy more candles, there were a few other vendors around the marketplace, and her friend had mentioned a pony that worked with wax as well but...

Almost imperceptibly, the basil-colored unicorn's ears wiggled. Like someone flicking a switch, an idea came into her head and her merchant skills went into overdrive. She slid around some of the barrel and plank tables to the magic section of the bazaar, swaying almost like some kind of beckoning spirit. "There are many merchants that sell candles, sir. But if I might suggest, a candle holds two problems, sir. If it runs out, you must purchase another. If you still have it when you've built your lights it is no longer needed. But if sir would look here..."

She swept a hoof towards the glowing display of Bubbly Beaker's potions. "Sir will observe that many of these potions cast their own glow, more than enough light to rival any candle." Not only was this true, but Riddle was now wondering why this idea hadn't occurred to her earlier. "They will add a colorful, warm glow to sir's home, and when sir is ready to have his own lights, he can then utilize the potions for their magical effects."

Riddle glanced up to see a pegasus that had just neatly face-planted against one of her tables. With an apologetic grin she bowed to Jitters, "if sir would care to peruse the available selection, while I assist this customer..."

The little unicorn made her way back around the tables and towards the pegasus with her decidedly serpentine trot. Thankfully her customer had been loud and enthusiastic enough to make her intentions quite clear.

"Yes mam, we have much food here, a variety of fresh sandwiches, and if mam so chooses she may enjoy a bag of candied fruit? I might also draw mam's attention to box lunches, which contain one of our fresh sandwiches, an apple, some lemongrass, and fresh water, all for a very low price, mam."

[Deleted]

"I do appreciate the offer, Miss Bits, it would be ever so helpful just to have a little bit of, "greenery", shall we say in my home for once, in my old home, I don't think I actually even had any then, it was very uncommon for a pony to have any form of plants in their house, but living in a sunny, little, gorgeous country town like this, I think it's quite hard to resist!"

A small, but honest smile wove itself onto Jitters' face before he followed Riddle to the potions and such on the table, looking at them intently, curiously. Magic bothered him, frequently, he didn't ever like to admit that it did in case it came to be looked upon as prejudice, but it was moreover the case that he didn't actually think he could explain how it worked, and as such, it bothered his very factual and scientific mind. Exceptions were rarely made to involve magic in his life, but he believed that Riddle could have a point about a potion working towards adding a nice light source to his home, even if temporarily. He was slightly confused though, there didn't seem to be much in the way of indication to what they actually did, so he wasn't sure what ones to pick. He did consider, however, possibly hanging them from the stairways and roof with string, giving his windmill a nice, hearty set of bright and breezy colours dancing off the walls. As he perused them, he watched Riddle deal with the other customer, awaiting to see if any of these would be helpful for him.

[Sun Riser]

   After pulling away from the other customer for a few seconds, the green mare showed Sunny some selections from the small bazaar. Sunny replied to the minty mare to not waste her time, "Yes ma'am, I would like a bag of candied fruit! And a boxed lunch would go well with it I presume." Sunny tried her best to talk as fancy as the vendor had, she thought it went pretty well. "My, my, you don't happen to have any cookies or any sort of plush here do you?" Sunny asked, "I do love a good cookie." Okay sunny, I think you can stop with the fancy talk now. Sunny giggled a bit and calculated a price in her head. "Hmm, seven bits price. Here you go ma'am!" Sunny dropped seven golden coins on to the counter, flashing another cheerful smile. I thought I stopped with the fancy talk, Sunny mused, Guess not. Then giggled a few more times.

   Because she knew that the vendor was busy with another customer, Sunny started counting the money she had. Then, when she was done with that, she fidgeted a little more. Then after that, the fidgeted with the coins on the counter. As you can see, Sun Riser does not have much patience and always needs to move around, or her brain will get bored and will most likely fall asleep. "Cookies... Cookies..." Sunny mumbled to herself, on the verge on sleep. But she dug a hoof into the ground and that seemed to wake her up. Without even noticing, Sunny's hooves started to dig a small hole in the ground.

[waxworks]

Plushies and cookies, thought Riddle. Not a bad idea. Not bad ideas at all. Of course cookies she'd have to commission from a bakery, and there were plenty of those in Ponyville. She could always charge more than for a normal cookie if she could come up with some design she could commission that was clever or original enough to make it unique without making it necessarily cost more to make. Her tail wagged slightly at the thought. As for plush toys... that idea sunk into part of her brain with a near-audible squeak.

"My humblest apologies mam, we do not yet sell cookies or plushies. But mam has made her selection and I promise our candy is sweeter than any cookie." A glimmer of her magical aura appeared as a small paper bag flipped itself open, and a hearty scoop of the orange and lime candies poured into it. The bag was joined on the counter by a pink box that was tied up with string. "Mam's candy and boxed lunch."

Glancing down, Riddle caught sight of the pony worrying a hole into the ground. Glad that she was not standing on one of the straw mats she had placed in the bazaar, she forced a cheerful smile on her face and bobbled proudly, "yes, seven bits, thank you mam. I am Riddle Bits, and I thank you for doing business with me."

After giving Sun Riser a polite and gracious bow, she contemplated leaping over the middle table and back into the magic section, but then decided on simply walking around to where Jitters was still waiting.

"Has sir decided? If sir requires, I might suggest some that would be most beneficial. This glowing red potion is quite bright and warm, and after drinking will allow sir to eat any spicy food without having his tongue burnt. This luminous turquoise mixture has a very relaxing hue, and will temporarily increase the size of sir's ears. Very useful when one is seeking to clean a pesky, hard-to-reach spot in one's ears, or if sir has a sudden need to hear at a great distance. The shining yellow liquid is a sort of luminescent itself, sir. One sip will have sir's eyes glowing like candlelight for one minute. Two sips, two minutes. Very useful for late-night reading, sir. I advise you not overdo it close to bedtime, sir."

These potions were all on the lowest shelf, and among the cheaper, eight bit ones. There were some brighter ones higher up but the higher you went the more expensive they became, and the more profound their effects.

[Deleted]

Jitters looked very intently at the potions on offer, curious and with a level of interest that made it clear that there were gears turning inside of Jitters' head as he thought of witty and clever ideas that he could use with them, and definitely thought that hanging them from the ceiling of the windmill at different lengths could create some rather interesting colours that would dance on the walls with a beauty that could never really be outshone by any other natural light source and he grinned to himself; finally deciding what the best option would be.

"If it wouldn't be any significant form of a problem, I'd like to buy two of the yellow ones and three red ones, and just one of those more cyan-type coloured ones if that wouldn't be a problem? And of course, I'll take these plants too if that agreeable with you? How much will it all come together to?"

Jitters smiled warmly, happy with his selections, pulling out his wallet to find what bits would be hidden away inside and then an idea occurred to him and his ears perked up wildly as he looked at the smaller unicorn and a smile crossed his face, proud of his idea.

"Miss Riddle... I don't suppose it would be an issue for you to advertist my store to any patrons? I've just started up and it would be simply splendid if I could get a little bit of service since my business isn't quite on its feet yet, but you don't have to. Of course, the favour will be mutual, I'll point any of my customers towards your quaint and lovely little store that you have here. Last thing I would like to do would be for you to think you were getting the shorter end of the stick in this bargain. But it would be simply marvellous if you could do that for me. Even if not now, will you think about it?"

Jitters tilted his head curiosly, still digging out his money to pay for his purchases.

[waxworks]

Riddle bobbled brightly. Her first prominent sale since she'd arrived in Ponyville. She did it up in her head quickly, six potions from the bottom shelf, eight bits each, plus three bits for the two starter plants. Fifty-one bits. If she'd had wings she would've fluttered. Of course the small mechanical calculator quietly floated out of her saddlebag swathed in her magic and twisted itself around a few times to double check. She really didn't doubt her own math, but when it came to larger orders she would never, under any circumstance, risk possibly accidentally charging a customer too much. Or too little. Perish the thought. Of course she also reminded herself that the potions were on retainer so that twenty-four of it would go to Bubbly Beaker, and well earned too, but still an income of twenty-seven bits not only was a profit, she'd officially made back from her investments more than she'd originally had with her when she came to Ponyville.

"That will be fifty-one bits sir," she said, bobbling and trying to temper her smile down from looking a little too enthusiastic about the money exchange. However upon hearing Jitters' sudden business proposal, her ears suddenly made a scissoring motion. This required thought. Thus far her method of advertising the work of others was to straight-out sell what others made and give them a cut of the gross in exchange for being supplied with their crafts. Of course there was some modest advertising with that, offering additional products for commission in Bubbly Beaker's case and she suddenly thought to ask Streamlined Imagination about such a promotion as well.

"It is most intriguing, sir," she said, swaying thoughtfully, "to promote another business within one's own. But... if I am to do such a thing, then I have two things upon which I must insist. The first, sir, is that I be shown your business in some way. Not that I do not trust sir, but I must make sure I know what I am to promote. Secondly sir, I would very much like to have some small sampling of your wares that I might sell here as part of this advertising, this way the customers may see a sample of what they can have, and I shall split the sales of such objects with sir."

She nodded to herself, that arrangement would work quite nicely. Of course at this point she didn't even know what this young pegasus was selling, and that would be the real test.

[Deleted]

Jitters nodded, agreeing.

"Yes, that's a sufficient case to make, and I do indeed understand your point Miss Bits! My business is currently in the process of starting up, and it will just be a case of selling off doodahs, gadgets, whatchamacallits and gizmos, all of which are of my design of course. I am an inventor by trade, so I assumed that my business would be of good value to me if I sold what I did best! I do need a way to afford to make the renovations on my new home somehow, so I'm working with a dear business partner of mine, Miss Scarlet Prim, who is an utter delight to work with. We have stalls alongside of each other towards the front of the marketplace in two plots of lands alongside a fairly popular ice cream stand. As well as selling my own inventions and whatnots, I do plan to take requests from other ponies and ask them to beta-test the results for me, in doing so, they would acquire the design free of charge, and I would add the successful new idea to my range of products. Simultaneously, I do have quite a knack for fixing anything mechanical, and will be simultaneously opening my store as a sort of "go-to repairs" type of parlor. It's just a more helpful way to make myself money and work on getting the materials for my home. All of the profits made between Miss Scarlet and I get split to paying for our land, and also for our own personal use. However, assuming my store can take off and get any form of popularity, I'd be thrilled to direct customers towards this wonderful and accommodating location you have here. We plan to open tomorrow, I'm currently just taking a break from working out a few more kinks with the stalls before we get to work properly, and then we will be free to take in customers! You can stop by at any point you please, Miss Riddle, and then consider my offer if you'd like."

Jitters was in full businessman swing, and he actually quite enjoyed selling he and his partner's businesses in a positive light like this, it was certainly a way to get significantly more well-known and by far, it was certainly a way to build his way up on the business scale by building a mutual agreement between such a lovely mare such as Riddle.

Suddenly, his ears perked up and his jaw fell as he came to a realisation.

"Oh Goodness me! I haven't paid for my products yet! This is hardly a good start... I apologise sincerely... Here you are Ma'am."

Jitters' face had gone full-scale red as embarrassment waved over his body.

[waxworks]

Hmm, another inventor, thought Riddle. Of course inventors were always a tremendous source of products really, but she let her mind compare and contrast Cogsby and Stream momentarily. While Stream's inventions were essentially so unpredictable as to be exciting games of chance, Cogsby seemed (for the time being) to be the sort to make things that weren't quite as dramatic but certainly reliable. She eagerly accepted the bits she was being offered and considered them for a moment. There had been a thought sneaking around inside her head for a while having to do with improving the Bazaar itself. Possibly some sort of mechanical device could be used to do this, but she'd really need to put more thought into it. After restocking her goods she'd have enough left over to look into expansion again and more products to sell. She already had a few additional ideas bubbling up under her bowler.

"This is very interesting, sir. I would very much like to visit the joint store managed by both sir and Miss Scarlet, and if you are so close by then I cannot refuse such an offer." She swayed like a charmed snake, the idea of being invited to visit other merchants on the prospect of forming trade agreements striking a deeper chord in her. It struck her as the sort of thing her family would've been extremely proud of hearing about. Considering her grandfather was a spice trader that brought together different tribes on a basis of trade necessity, she felt that establishing such routes between different merchants in Ponyville was just the beginning of such things. She smiled at the pegasus brightly, "I am Riddle Bits, and I thank you for visiting my Bazaar!"

[Deleted]

"The honour was surely all mine, Miss Riddle. You have a wonderful setup here, and I do look forward to doing business with you in the future!"

Jitters paused for a moment, thinking to himself as his eyes flitted around the place before looking back at Riddle again and smiling softly.

"And on a more personal level... I really appreciate what you have done for me, these are things I will certainly appreciate to have at home, and just in general, I'm rather glad I found such a wonderful little store. But whilst it's on my mind, if there's any favours I can do for you Ma'am, you just ask! Don't think there's anything you can't come to me about, because considering I have the tools and equipment necessary to fill out the job, and certainly by far the imagination; I'll be glad to assist you in any way possible, especially since you have offered such kindness to me today. Well then! A pleasure it has been in meeting you, dear Miss Riddle, and I do hope to see you again anytime in the immediate and rather present future; but I shall be on my way now."

Jitters bowed to Riddle sincerely, showing his respect to her, before carefully placing all of his products into his saddle bag and comfortably making sure that they were sealed securely before straightening out his hooves and heading out again. He had a little bit of work to finish tonight before the grand opening tomorrow, and he hoped to see Scarlet to let her know about his business deal.

[Tartan Lassie]

    The marketplace was bustling, as it so often is on a sunny afternoon. All the merchants were peddling their wares and ponies of all colours and shapes were chattering and laughing as they dickered over prices and quantities. In the midst of all this, a mare trotted jauntily through the streets. She looked like someone had rolled a once brown Pegasus in some honey. Her hooves made a rhythmic tapping sound as she skipped along.


    Honey Dust was in an excellent mood. It was one of her rare days off that didn’t fall over a weekend. Her little brother was at school, and she had no honey to make. She was completely left to her own devices for today. And, on top of all that, the sun was beating down, making the air pleasantly warm.


    Yes, today is a day for fun, thought Honey. She walked the whole length of the market once before slowing down, a puzzled expression slithering on to her face. Coinciding with her pace, a thought struck the young mare. I have no idea what to do.


    Though she wasn’t a constant worker, her days off were almost always spent with her younger brother and ward, Rusty. Now that she didn’t have a colt to entertain, she couldn’t remember what ponies do to entertain themselves. She had her saddlebag with her, but all it had in it was a couple of jars of Honey, some stray bits and some paper. Very empty, she thought. Maybe I should treat myself… Although Honey was always a little skint, she knew it was bad to be completely austere in terms of shopping. You have to allow yourself a little luxury sometimes, she grinned. Besides, she’d been working a lot lately and she did have a little more than usual.


    As she re-entered the market, she looked excitedly around at everything. All kinds of fruits and vegetables were laid out for all to see. Honey frowned at them. It being so rare that she was in the market for something she didn’t actually need, she decided to ignore those sorts of items. Although… I will need lunch at some point, she thought. She skidded to a stop at a small stall. She was sure she hadn’t seen it on her first walk by. Or at all before, now that she thought about it. It was outside a tent. That alone was quite unusual, most of these stalls were carts brought into town each day. But the pony behind it was even odder. A vibrant, grass green pony with bright, curious eyes. She seemed bubbling with excitement. And her tail! A huge bushy thing that looked like the perfect home for some field mice. She was a unicorn, Honey noticed, her horn and ears adorned with interesting jewellery. She looked very exotic to the Pegasus mare and Honey couldn’t help but approach her. The stall was full of all sorts of exciting things and the mare couldn’t help but stand there for a long moment, staring at everything.
"Woah..."

[waxworks]

From within the rows of boards and stacked goods there came a sudden slithering series of movements. It almost seemed as though something was actively hunting through the stacks of crates and wooden planks, the bowler-hat wearing pony suddenly dropping out of sight, only her large, question-mark shaped tail snaking through the aisles. True, there weren't many aisles and really one good gallop and you'd already have run right past her bazaar, but this was Riddle's world now and she was so familiar with every little piece of it that she could probably have gone through it blindfolded.

"Hello mam," she purred, as she bobbled up to her height, almost seeming to rise up out of nowhere in a manner that wasn't shocking or stunning, but almost sort of mystifying. "Welcome to my bazaar mam, we have all manner of things."

Walking backwards, the little pony eagerly gestured with her hooves towards the various displays filled with tempting looking goodies. "We have magical spells and potions, the best to be found in Ponyville, satisfaction guaranteed. Mam might wish to start a garden, we have such things as well, simple, so simple that even a foal could grow such things!"

She slid around one of the bushy, barrel-dwelling green plants to the other side in one liquid movement, "but perhaps mam is hungry? We have sandwiches, boxed lunches, apples, candies, even cookies. Baked fresh today!"

That was true, they were baked fresh that day. Although not by Riddle, no. She was very good at making either raw dough, or burning lumps of coal in an oven. These had been commissioned from the delightful little bakery, and for a reasonable price as well.

"Or if mam seeks excitement, maybe she would care to take a chance on an invention? Such things as cannot be predicted mam, wondrous capabilities sealed away inside glass, just waiting for mam to free them!"

She swayed hypnotically, smiling warmly at Honey, her almond-colored eyes fixed firmly on her.

[Tartan Lassie]

    As Honey approached, mesmerised by the fluffly green tail, the merchant rose out of her stocks to speak to Honey. Her voice was like warm chocolate, and the pegasus found it strange and alluring. She'd always been attracted to exotic things and this mare seemed very much full of intrigue. The basil-coloured mare had an accent that Honey couldn't place and Honey found herself smiling as the merchant took her through her different wares.

    Honey examined everything carefully. Gardening had never interested her very much, though she admitted the seeds did look interesting. But almost as soon as Honey was vaguely disinterested, Riddle had drawn her attention to something else. Honey looked at all the food and had to resist licking her lips hungrily. Such imaginative and delicious-looking treats. But Honey shook her head, she knew she shouldn't be spending money on food, when she had plenty at home. And yet... something about Riddle seemed very persuasive...

    Before Honey could think any longer on that, Riddle had caught her attention with a different set of words. Excitement? That was what Honey was here for, right? But as she examined the inventions she realised she didn't know what any of them really were and regarded them warily. Honey was not a fan of surprises and didn't want to embarrass herself in front of the entire market. She frowned as she realised the mare had finished talking and was looking expectantly at her. Honey pointed at the jellybean jar. "What's that about?"

    Honey could tell, on some deep level, that this mare was a skilled, very skilled, salespony. She was using every trick in the book. But Honey wasn't finding it unpleasant, and desired to spend more time at this stall, and with this mare. That, if you asked Honey, was the mark of a good merchant. "If you don't mind me asking..." Honey started in a friendly manner "How long have you been in Ponyville? Your accent is so unusual, I can't tell where it's from though..." It wasn't just her accent, but her manner and adornments. Honey didn't want to seem too pushy though, but she was very curious about this mare.