nexus_sages | Trixie's lucky day? (Aka +1 unicorn XD)

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Trixie's lucky day? (Aka +1 unicorn XD)

That right there sure would be a unicorn with a bright azure blue coat and cornflower blue mane, trotting right out of nowhere into the forum. The thing that she's pulling, looks like a combination of a cart, storefront and small house behind her... It's not a huge wagon by any means, but one gets the feeling that there is more to it than a first glance would have you believe...

Trixie decreased her speed from a canter, to a trot, and finally a full stop as she looked around the area with a puzzled, but also surprised, look on her face. "Hmmm... Well, this is new..." It didn't take her long to spot what she thought had to be the ugliest sign she'd ever seen, and shortly there after, the 'Welcome to the Nexus' brochure. "Nexus?"

Floating the pamphlet over using magic, she started to read it, and looked quite intrigued by the information. "Interesting... I wonder..."

Clearing her throat, she looked around and asked "Could anyone please tell me what the local currency here is?" She paused and considered things a moment. "Also, do I need a permit to sell items here?"

Well, why not? It's not like she had any urgent business anywhere, any chance to for her to gain knowledge, new items and perhaps sell some of her wares, it would be stupidity of the highest order to let an opportunity like this pass her by.

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"Of course." Ver wouldn't accept reimbursement for that. She's fiercely protective of children and would consider it an honor to be able to help. Don't get her started on the teenaged superheroes. Seriously, don't. "And once the egg is safe, we can try to figure out how they got it."

She hums thoughtfully while she takes all that in. "Sounds like a very personal kind of economy. Where I'm from, items in stores had fixed prices and everyone paid the same. Not a lot of bartering." There's good and bad things about that kind of system, she's aware. Learning to barter around the Nexus has been something of a struggle for her, but she thinks she's getting the hang of it.

"I dunno, orange and mint might work. Maybe humans and unicorns have different tastebuds."

"Sounds like a plan." Trixie would try to give her back whatever the cost was regardless. There were bits put away for rewards and the like for the rescue of kidnapped eggs. "Sometimes it's an honest enough mistake, but..." Yeah, best to get off of that topic unless they wanted to start into complaining about kids in bad situations.

"It is... well, somewhat. There is a standard currency and prices for the more common things, labor for field work and so on is paid in bits." It's normal for her, so she's not thought about it much. "Really, when it comes right down to it, if you're willing to pitch in and do a little work, you're not going to go hungry or be left out in the cold. Good food is inexpensive and common, it's the treats that cost."

Anyone could grow a patch of grass or flowers after all, but treats like cupcakes and sweets needed work. They also hadn't gone into big machines for farming or fabric making, so there are no shortages of jobs.

"Oh, I know..." There is a small glow around her horn and suddenly there will be a pair of pretty, golden coins, floating towards Verity. "Here's a 5 bit coin and a 1 bit coin." It's a nice looking coin, fairly small, solid gold, the only differences between the two is that one has a 5 on one side, and a pretty looking alicorn on the other and the other coin has a 1 and a different alicorn on it.

"The lower values of coins are made of gold, mostly because the palace can make them easily and cheaply... Though I would hate to try and see someone counterfeit the magic in them..." She's used to everyone being able to tell real coins from fakes, it doesn't even cross her mind that other forms of money were much easier to fake.

Back to taste realated things, she makes a face. "Perhaps I'm just biased. I brushed my teeth one morning and then had orange juice... I've never forgotten that awful flavor."

"That's a good system, making sure everyone has enough to get by." That was a pipe dream where she's from. Maybe humans are inherently more greedy than ponies. It would not surprise her; after all, humans think they're standing at the top of a pyramid, dominating other species, and can't see that it's a circle of give-and-take.

Ver takes the coins and looks them over, comparing the two different pictures. "There's magic in them? Wow." Once she's had a good look, she offers them back to Trixie. "We didn't even use gold anymore where I'm from, we'd gone to a currency that was only worth something because the government said it was worth something. That sounds really weird out loud doesn't it?"

She snorts at that idea, because nobody like post-toothpaste orange juice. "I can see where that'd turn you off of the idea."

One of the great things about ~~godlike powers of controlling the narrative~~ a restaurant like this is that the food is always ready quickly. Which is good, because all this talk about sweets has made Ver eager to move on to the dessert course--not that she won't be enjoying her meal.

"I like to think we try our best." Ponies had so many other species to share space with, it was pretty hard to consider themselves 'dominant'... so that likely had a far bit to do with it.

Trixie shakes her head and won't take them back. "Yes, they have magic that keeps them from being defaced, melted, or altered. So go ahead and keep those if you like." She smiles "Those two together are worth about three to four apples. I have enchantment free, pressed coin 'blanks' that I use when trading with small amounts of gold. Though I also have some small ingots as well." Because some people on Equestria wanted metal for jewelery, snacks and enchanting, not bits.

"It might sound odd, but it's really the same as our bits, isn't it? I mean the only difference in our bits is the number and picture on them..." Ooo! The food looked good. It wouldn't take long for Trixie to work her way through her food, even if people kept giving her odd looks for being able to use cutlery with her hooves.

"That's the important thing. Trying to do the best for everyone." That would help. Although, with the mutants and inhumans and alien species, not to mention chimps and dolphins... humans really had no reason to believe in their own inherent superiority in the 616. Not since, oh, '65 or so.

"Useful magic. Thank you." Ver considers the coins again; she'll set the five-bit piece on the table and pocket the other. "We'll leave this for the waiter as part of their tip," she offers by way of explanation. "To thank them for getting our food so quick. Not having dragons snack on the magic coins probably saves everyone a lot of headaches. And some tummy aches."

"That's true. But gold has some inherent value. Ours was paper." The food is quite good, and Trixie can eat it however she wants. Ver had been half expecting magic to be involved. She starts with the fries, separating them into roughly equal piles and sliding hers onto her plate. Anyone whose looks linger too long or get too cruel gets a look back from Ver. She gives good looks, unless you piss her off--then they can get mean.

When Verity tries to put the coin on the table, she'll find it floating back to her hand and another gold coin being left on the table in it's place. This one was a lot more plain than the one Trixie had given her, but it had a weight and purity stamped on it, not a monetary value.

"Keep those coins. They're meant to be something that you can use as part of a collection or something. It wouldn't be fair to tip with them, since they'll be all but worthless to them unless they go to Equestria sometime." And Trixie was planning on buying a good deal of deserts for the both of them anyways, so it's not like she was giving Verity 'funny money'. She smiles "Yes. Having to deal with a dragon that has an upset stomach is not fun."

Trixie looks a bit puzzled "Paper? But that is so expensive... Most of the time paper is used for books, studies and royal documents. You have to use so many resources to make it... The printing ink alone... and it's so fragile..." She pauses "I can see there are going to be some serious cultural differences..."

She's learned to eat with cutlery because while she could use magic, it was rude to do so around others who could not. She frequently ate in mixed company, and it wasn't like it was a hardship to not use it.

"You might be surprised how many kinds of currency people use here. But thank you." She won't fight since Trixie's so determined, but she may end up passing at least one of them on. A certain young god of mischief she knows would find these coins very interesting and Verity does love to spoil him. The coins will both get tucked in a pocket for now.

"We have machines that make paper, so it doesn't take as long and is much more readily available." She gets out her wallet while she's explaining and pulls out a five-dollar bill for Trixie to look over. "The paper is a special blend of wood pulp and cotton, so it's more durable and easy to identify to the touch. The ink is special too, and you see there, that's a little holographic strip embedded in the paper. All of these things are made only for the government and are hard to steal, so forging the notes is really hard. And with paper, you don't have to worry about clipping, plus it's a lot lighter. I could carry thousands of dollars in my pocket without a problem. Well, except for if a pickpocket found me that day."

She nods. "I'd likely not be surprised, I just want to be certain that what I give can be used. I would hate to pay in something, only to find that it's utterly useless to them." Gold clearly held value here, and she didn't want to give someone a protected coin when it was the gold they wanted from it.

"Oh... Hmmm..." The money is interesting, but she thinks highly impractical for use in her world. "But they can still be burnt, cut and water damaged?" It was an interesting idea, but all those components made enchanting it all but impossible... and possibly easy to copy with magic? It was maybe something she'd have to look into to keep from accidentally taking counterfeits.

"That's good thinking." Trixie'll sort out what's valuable on her own. And if she can't, that's what the moneychangers are for.

"Yeah, the paper money's pretty easy to damage. Everything's a trade-off. Choosing one benefit over another usually means choosing one drawback over another too." Magically counterfeiting money isn't something Verity's ever considered. Whether or not it's possible would be an interesting, and dangerous, line of study.

While she's got her wallet out, Ver gets out money for their food. No reason to keep the waitstaff waiting. "But then, I'm from a place that makes coins that cost more to make than they're worth. There's not much sense in that."

"Hmmm... I suppose paper money is fine for your world, but it wouldn't survive long enough to be a viable option in ours. Between the dragons, gryphons, and sea ponies..." It was still an interesting concept in her mind however.

Trixie would be the one to figure out how to counterfeit money, and then immediately find a way to prevent it... Keeping the knowledge of how to do it locked away forever and only releasing the ways to stop it... She's nothing if honest when it comes to things like that.

At the mention of coins costing more to make than their worth, she looks curious. "Isn't that the same as paper money? It's only worth is what one says it has... coins at least contain metal..." She honestly is confused, but she'd not object to a change in the subject either. This was getting to be too technical for a fun dinner out.

"Yeah, sounds like it wouldn't work so well where you're from." Some people around the Nexus use seashells as money. Verity's not going to judge--who has time, trying to figure out all these new systems?

Some people say that knowledge can't be hidden forever. That it craves to be free. Let's hope they're wrong, if Trixie goes down this path.

"Yeah, but the coins are worth so little when you go to spend them in a store, it costs more effort to make the coin. It's... kind of a legacy thing I think? The coin used to be able to buy more. But everything's more expensive than it used to be. And some people just don't want to stop having them around, so... I don't really understand it," she admits finally. "It's just a weird thing people did."

At least if Trixie ends up doing it, she's not going to use it other than to find ways to prevent it. Someone, somewhere will end up figuring it out anyways, at least she's responsible in her magical experiments.

"Hmmm... Well, if nothing else it might fill the subconscious urge to have something that's not so easily destroyed as a form of currency?" She gives a little shrug as she finishes off the last of her food. "I couldn't even begin to come up with a reasonable explanation without knowing a lot more about your world, but you did admit that paper is rather fragile..."

This is true; it's good to have a white hat looking into solutions. Having one do so preemptively is even better.

"True. That could easily be it." Maybe that's why people collect coins. Not rare coins, but trash cans full of pennies saved for forty years. Rare coins are at least valuable and sometimes interesting-looking. Whatever the reason, Ver shrugs it off now; it hardly matters, given her world no longer exists.

It doesn't take her long to finish her food either, and once the bill is settled they can get on their way. She walks with her hands in her pockets, but tries to keep her posture from closing up too much. A little more open and friendly is, she's been assured, a good look for her. The walk to the bakery won't be long or difficult; the streets are broad and well-maintained, and traffic is mostly orderly. It's not this nice everywhere in the Nexus, but Ver tends to stick to the safer parts.

Spotting the bakery from down the street is easy for two reasons: one is the crossed baguettes sign, the other being the pair of children staring entranced through the window to watch the magical mystery machine. It's an elegant machine and an intricate dance it performs, highly magical and yet so mundane. (The third reason is the enchanting smell of browned sugar and fruits in the air.) "Here we are."

Inside is a clean, pale space, well-lit and well-stocked. Delightful cakes and delicate pastries fill the cases, with shelves along the wall holding more durable treats. The woman working behind the counter seems to recognize Ver, giving her a nod when the door opens before going back to the cupcakes she's frosting. There's no rush to decide.

The shop's missing one thing: a number of the pastries aren't labeled. The decorations on the crusts are different and each can be told from the others, but... what's in them? Who knows? If Trixie's not feeling adventurous, she can ask, or stick to the ones that do have labels.

Trixie trots along next to Verity on their way to the bakery, trying not to gawk too much or pester Verity with too many questions. Still, it's obvious that she's very new to this whole Nexus thing to anyone looking at her.

She could smell the bakery before she saw it, and oh did it ever smell good. Trixie wasn't one to indulge in sweets too often, but... Passing that machine and seeing all the treats in the shop... and knowing there were plenty more that were close...

"I have a feeling that I better plan out a regular running route if I'm going to stay in the Nexus for any amount of time..." She grins at Verity "I'll start to resemble the more stocky Shire ponies out north if I'm not careful." Not that there was anything wrong with the stocky ponies out there, but they did have thicker bones and heavier builds...

Ver wouldn't mind the questions, but she might not always have answers. She's still surprised by plenty of things around the Nexus on a regular basis. Even some real old-timers still get surprised.

Ver laughs at the assertion, then gives a little shrug because, yeah, it happens. "I go running almost every morning. It helps. I'm sure you don't have to worry about maintaining your girlish, er, foalish figure?" She's not sure that's quite right. Hopefully, the intent was clear even if the words were muddled.

"So, where do we start?"

She takes no offense to the statement, knowing it was going to take a while for them to figure out the differences between their sayings. Trixie just chuckles a little, taking it in the spirit it was meant.

"Hmmm... Pick a side and start ordering two of each?" And that's only a half joke... she'd certainly try and eat till got sick on sweets if she had no control, fortunately she knew better. "Maybe we can order an assortment? I don't think I've ever seen a lot of these..."

Cultural differences do seem to be one of the main problems in the Nexus. Once people stop the bleeding and the screaming.

Ver laughs at the first suggestion, but gives the second some thought. "A sampler is a good idea. Any requests for Marissa before she makes one up?"

The woman behind the counter straightens up when she hears her name, wiping frosting from her fingertips as she ambles over to take their order.

((Don't be afraid to poke me about stuff. Sometimes I'm just brain dead and only thought I've replied, other times my e-mail spazzes and I never realize there is a reply. @@))

"Ah... No meat or eggs?" Because she had no idea what went into a lot of these things. If Verity thought of it, she'd likely want to warn Trixie about lard and other animal based cooking products...

((I figured, with your tooth, you might not be up to RP until you get some relief.))

Verity is thinking about that, and asks, "Is butter, cheese, and or honey okay?"

Either way, she can clarify the finer points with Marissa. No lard or animal by-products at whatever level Trixie finds most acceptable. It may simply come down to vegan, which is a word Trixie'll want to remember. And that's okay too, although it does limit the options somewhat.

((Naw, I'm full of painkillers. RP is about the only thing I am up for atm XD))

Trixie nods. "Those are fine." The general rule for dealing with what Trixie would and wouldn't eat, was 'could the item be taken without harm to the creature providing it?' As long as nobody clued her in on how some humans collected said items, she'd be fine.

(('sfair!))

"Ah, good."

They'll get a nice variety, in that case, mostly sweet but some savory as well. Fruits, nuts, flowers, herbs, and cheeses are mixed together in all sorts of interesting and often unexpected ways. Marissa knows Ver well enough to figure any friend who comes with her is willing to try the unexpected, or would have said otherwise. The pastries they're given are small, a bite or two each, so they can try a number of things--which makes them all the more likely to come back for more. Verity also orders two glasses of lemon and cucumber infused water, so they have something to wash it all down with.

Since it is Trixie's turn to pay, it takes a few moments to figure out just what to pay with and how much... but a couple of gold 'coins' and a gem later, they're paid up... and Trixie has a few small bags filled with sugar, salt and flour as well. Verity may be curious about why Trixie bought those, but in the meantime...

"So... where do you want to sit?"

Ver stands back and lets Trixie figure it out; if the pony needs help, Ver figures she'll ask for it. The bags of ingredients do get a curious look, but she's seen those kinds of things used in alchemy so it wouldn't be hard to believe they'll be useful for other kinds of magic.

"There's tables in the back, around those shelves," she points out. "And it sounds like we might just have the place to ourselves for a while." Ver'll take the drinks, if Trixie can manage the rest?

"Sounds good... Lead the way?"

Trixie is showing off a bit, though she doesn't mean to. Unicorns floating multiple items back home is actually fairly common, and having a few things floating behind her and then onto the table once Verity sits down... It was something she did frequently, often when setting up her cart.

Any levitation magic is showing off to Ver, so might as well get everything in one go. Ver is impressed and there's no doubting it. "Man, I wish I could do that. Grocery shopping would be so much easier."

Once they're situated at a table (and yes, they're the only people back there at the moment), Ver leans back in her seat and motions to the goodies. "You first. I already know what some of them are so that wouldn't be fair."

Trixie's lucky day? (Aka +1 unicorn XD)

\,,/(^_^)\,,/

:3

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Feel free to time skip or move things along as needed? I can run with nearly anything.

okies :) I need a good name for the bakery, any suggestions?

3. 1415926535 ? /ducks thrown pies/ I honestly have no idea.

I would never throw a pie at you. That'd be a waste of good pie!

Fffff!!! It didn't send via e-mail >.< Sorry on the late reply.

I was starting to wonder, but didn't want to bother you.

If it takes me more than about 16 hours to reply, something's likely gone wrong.

I'll keep that in mind.

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