Clean Solutions At a Steep Expense [Open!]

[Ploomette]

     "Appleoosa! Appleloosa!" Ploomette rang out, mistaking the overexcited welcomes she received days prior as the colloquial greeting. "Do NOT miss out! Do you want to spit fire? Grow a couple inches taller? Shrink a couple inches shorter? Grow scales? Grow hair you wish you had? Lose hair you wish you didn't? Freshly made potions! All ingredients are organic, non-toxic, or both. At least, I, uh," the flamboyant mare took a moment to sniff at the ground dragon claws sitting in a mortar, making sure all her claims were at least arguably correct before going on to correct, "I am ABSOLUTELY sure these won't cause intestinal distress!" Ploomette leapt up onto her booth, which was, on its own, already out in the middle of the dirt road stretching through town. She began vigorously stomping which surprisingly enough, caused next to no movement in any of the goods. Magic, maybe. Luck, more likely.

 

     "Stop now to negotiate costs! Stop NOW to negotiate costs! Stop, now, to negotiate, costs!" Ploomette likely would have interchanged every possible combination of emphasis at increasing volumes had the pegasus not inhaled (and borderline swallowed) a gust of dry desert dirt and dust from a passing carriage. She hit the ground in a flurry of pebbles and loose quills as she struggled to get a breath in---all the way trying her hardest not to make a darned spectacle.

 

So, which was it, Ploomette? Grab attention or lose it?

 

Once she was back on her hooves, an entire minute was spent vigorously shaking dirt out of her coat and wings, and another spent polishing the bottles on the counter with the edge of a pinion. Another cough was forced, albeit a blatantly fake one to break up the awkwardness of her lack of customers. "......every potion gets a free apple fritter with it. Look, I made these. C'mon, guys! They aren't dirty! Are you allergic to kuh-WALITY?" With all the patience of a child in a fifty-person line at the movie theater, Ploomette slammed her elbows onto the counter, politely nodding and grinning at any passerbys as if she hadn't just coughed her lungs out, advertised, danced a jig on the counter, and polished her wares in a span of five minutes. In fact, nobody noticed, as far as she knew. These polite passerbys were just that---politely passing by and focusing on going about their day. At any rate, her rump was nestled into the cushion of the stool she had dragged close with a wingtip, her eyes showing more defeat than her falsely stalwart grin. 

 

-------

 

Quick Rules:

-No free samples. And above all else, Ploomette won't sample them for you.

-Like the above, she will not tolerate being forced to drink anything.

-Theft, aggression, forced sampling, and anything else rude or illegal will prompt her to take action instead of calling the sheriff.

-She does not sell love potions. Potions that negate free-will will garner a dirty look from Ploomette.

-Potions are as permanent as you want them to be. They only carry over to other RPs if YOU want them to.

-Regardless of what she DOESN'T sell, you can ask what she does.

-If it isn't listed under 'don't', you can pretend she sells it.

[Zeig]

 

 

It was entirely by accident, he'd stumbled across this booth. 

 

An excursion into the Painted Pinto Desert, tracking down a WRAITH deserter, had ended in success - naturally - but that he had even been needed in the first place proved how desperate and dangerous an opponent he'd been facing. He'd been desert born and raised, as free in the sand as the bloody Buffalo were, and the three other grunts that had been sent after him had all come back with their tails between their legs. Almost literally. Number One had been so incensed at the traitor and subsequent run-around, that he, Revenant, had been given the...honor, of tracking down and taking care of him.

 

That had been a month ago.

 

Perseverance, however, was his calling card for a well and good reason.

 

Along with the lovely gadgets the WRAITH scientists had outfitted him with, none the least the full bodysuit he was currently wearing underneath a simple cloak. Specifically designed to keep him nice and cool under the hot desert sun, Revenant had been able to track the deserter across the entire Painted Pinto without going barmy in the endless seas of sand and dune, eventually calling him to heel like the insignificant piece of fluff he was.

 

Which had all been leading him back to Appleloosa for a bloody well deserved rest before hopping a train back to home - Golden Vortex's home, that was - until a veritable mishmash of color had gnarled his attention fiercely and utterly. It was, after all, very, very difficult to miss the uproariously colorful pony that had apparently set up shop directly in the middle of a dirt road in Appleloosa...which was to say, any of the roads, they were all the same. Still, Revenant couldn't help but wonder how she was making such a dismal showing with her displays - her appearance alone had gotten his attention, and that was before he got wind of exactly what sort of wares she was peddling. 

WRAITH had lost a traitor today, with nothing to show for it but a lesson well learnt. This, however...this, he would have to be daft to ignore.

 

"Quality, no," the stallion called out, slinking away from the shade of a nearby building in order to purposefully stand in front of the booth and the colorful pony, "though I am averse to potions that sound much too good to be true, no matter the stunning appearance of their crafter," he added, the charming flirt naturally escaping his lips as Revenant pulled down his face mask to better converse with the...Pegasus? Butterfly? "Tell me, lovely, these potions of yours...what are their effects? Limitations?" 

 

First, he would figure out exactly what it was she was claiming her creations could do. Then he would take the measures to...test them out.

 

 

[Ploomette]

       Given how slow business was, it wasn't hard to spot an approaching customer. Especially dressed like that. Everyone around her had walked straight out of one of the many old westerns she visually digested as a filly, and smelled like a bushel of apples and apple accessories. But this fellow, instead, came crawling out of a.......a.....hmm. Ploomette wasn't sure there was a genre to compare with it. Perhaps like one of those Mars movies. Martian princess ponies running around in sandy blankets and face covers. Though this was no princess OR martian.

     Hm.

      A single eye twitch. Not two, not three, just a single one. She clearly wasn't completely thrown off by his tone or remarks, having been able to keep them under the wraps. However, it didn't sit entirely well with her that a new customer came strolling up, immediately flirting. Well, borderline. Ploomette's assumption was that he was seeking a discount. Nonetheless, she swallowed her pride and spat out her ego instead. "What, do you walk into a boutique and ask what kind of clothes they have? Gahahahaha!----anyways." She pushed forward a few of the "better known" concoctions. "Enhanced speed, super strength, gossamer wings, wing regeneration----y'know, for those with ol' Canton's Feather----magic enhancerrrrrs.....those! Though, those barely scratch the surface. I brought with me so many potions that I can't fit most of them on the counter! I think the better question is what you're looking for." She cracked a sly grin.

 

      "You may be quite the accusatory yet flattering cur, but that won't get you a discount. If you point something out, I'll give you the spiel....does that sound good to you?" Her perky tone returned with the latter portion of her almost-rambling. Boxes and stools pushed to the side were temporarily used as makeshift tables for more of her less mainstream wares. Bottles varied in size, color, lid, and opaqueness, but all their contents gleamed in garishly bright colors, much like her plumage. "If you want proof of my craftmanship," she began, flaring her massive wings out, "these flappers were made by yours truly, when I was a wee filly. Not convinced? Pick something, and I'll give you a rundown. Primary purposes, secondary perks, side effects, time limits, active ingredients, y'know, the works."

[szalhi]

AppleLoosa was her birth town, the town she would've remained in if it weren't for her condition. Her mother was a scientist, one of the reasons why the Apples are even able to taste as good as they were. She though? She was more like her father, not that she ever knew him very well, but a name like "Loose Cannon" resembled him more than her mother. She was here visiting her mother, who was currently working giving the young mare time to lay back on the streets. No, not drinking, she's not into that... yet. Although it seems now would be the time to try. Not that kind of drink.

 

A mare had a booth set up nearby, and it seemed to have nothing to do with Apples. It was supposedly a potion booth and the mare running the store seemed to have special wings, going by the conversation between the mare and the stallion nearby, Loose wasn't focusing on the mare's body. She got up from her resting position and made her way over initially ignoring the two others. She couldn't read any of the labels on the bottles - if there were labels. The potions the mare described were quite interesting and there were a lot of potions, but she wasn't sure if she was going to risk trying any.

 

"Potion of speed you say? Would that cause the user to tire quickly as well? Would it damage the muscles? Would it enhance reaction time?" she asked the mare. If the claims of the mare were true then this could be useful for certain situations. "What is a mare like you doing out in a town like this? Diversifying your customers?"

[Zeig]

 

Well...naturally.

 

It was to be reasonably expected that a boutique sold clothing that offered no additional effects aside from covering the user in a cloth of some sort. Didn't take a scientist to figure that out. It was another thing entirely, however, to shout out 'I make potions that do things' and not expect some questions for clarification, because if she was going to claim the ability to grow entire functional body parts then she had better be bloody well prepared to explain their properties.

 

And so far, she was proving a right disappointment as she offered up "proof" in the form of her extravagant wings...as if having a thing gave any sort of proof to the creation of said thing. He could claim he built the building directly to their right and offer its existence as proof of his craftsponyship, but that didn't make it true.

 

The whole operation still sounded right dodgy, in his opinion, but if even half of what this pony was saying was true, well...he couldn't afford to just let her go, now could he?

 

"Blinding, they are," Revenant conceded in his smooth Trottingham accent, not a trace of the disdain running through his mind present on his features. Instead, the gray stallion moved forward to pluck up one of the bottles, idly rolling it over in his hooves. The bottle itself seemed innocuous and simple enough...unless 'obnoxiously bright coloring' could be attributed as a trait. "Sounds like you know your craft well and good. You must be expanding your business from Manehatten or Fillydelphia, I take it," he added, voice rife with sincerity even if he didn't believe a word he'd just said.

 

The pony had been borderline desperate making her sales pitch, as he had clearly observed before approaching...not to mention she was peddling her wares in Appleloosa, of all places. Her bright colors and plumage belonged in a bustling metropolis, not a dusty old town bordering an unforgiving desert. The ponies here valued practicality and precision, and Revenant highly doubted she'd had luck selling these grandiose claims complete with lack of proof to these down-to-earth, sensible ponies. Either the peacock had some ulterior motive and the means to set up shop here...or she had the common sense of a mooncalf.

 

Before he could voice any of his thoughts, however, a rather study looking mare came trotting up to the booth, bludgeoning into the conversation with an ease that spoke of strength and confidence. Revenant didn't release his grip on the bottle he held in his hooves, but instead simply moved over to make some more room as the other mare asked her questions, blood red eyes trained on the owner. 

 

Seems like he'd be getting some answers after all. Blinding.

 

 

[RexDraco]

It was pretty outrageous for a pony to travel to the middle of the desert for supplies. Sad as it was though Appleloosa had some decent lumber and resources unique to the arid habitat. A bald, grey pegasus with tiny wings made his way through the stalls of the home town, looking to resupply, but also follow the sense of magic that caught his attention. While, by all regard: the pegasus was so he was in fact Discord, the god of chaos, in disguise. There was no telling as his tiny frame and knobby knees were far from the desirable traits the predator usually had. Far be it for anyone beyond the Princesses to take note of the discordant aether that cycled his being. To most others he just gave off a odd and goofy vibe.the bucktoothed repair pony trotted about with his saddlebags weighed down by the collective of goods which caught his attention in the passing stalls.

 

Here it was! It was the place that had gotten him hooves over tail excited. Pure chaos seemed to sing from the bottles and baubles of potions. He had been busy at the other end of the stall looking through the clear and colored glasses, letting his reflection morph and contort. He poked out his tongue against his bucked teeth and chuckled. Hello there handsome~! But amidst his tomfoolery voices rang out. The mare Hawking her wares had called the attendance of two other customers.

 

One was somepony who was tall, dark and handsome. He seemed to be wearing a cloak much too big for desert apparel. Honestly the spirit could reckon some horseshoes in this state his bags were starting to wear him out in the softer surface sands scattered about Appleloosa. Dis-- Detached Cable, otherwise given the fond name of Cabby, bounced over and picked up a bottle much to weighty for his clumsy looking hooves to better inspect it with a jiggle and shake.

 

“Can ya mix and match these things?” The spoke with a bit of a lip cutting over those front teeth. His large floppy ears and bushy brows wiggled and waggled about. “S'real pretty colors.” He pressed his face to the glass to further deform his reflection with a giggle. “Say I wanna be fast an’ strong. Like a superhero.” He whistled through the tooth.

He looked passed the hooded Earth Pony to the white Earth mare. He could tell why she was interested and it nearly tickled him pink. The goofy looking repairpony seemed to carry a rubber hammer in his saddlebags, that poked out of the space. The front and back of the mallet’s flat head had a symbol print on it that was a silhouette of some creature laughing. His cutie mark looked to be the top half of a wall plug.

[Ploomette]

     A sigh of relief almost heaved from her chest as the mare spoke in Revenant's place, but she kept up a sense of professionalism. "On a smaller level, it's not the the ingredients are an unrelated mishmash that just equate to "make pony go fast", but rather, each one serves a different purpose in upkeeping the desired result. Enhanced speed is the goal and what I advertise because it's the main purpose and....probably why anypony would purchase it in the first place. Stamina factors into it. Minor, but effective magical protection of the joints and muscle to avoid wear and tear from the initial burst of speed, the duration of the potion, and the sudden drop in ability once it wears off again. That's the abridged version. Reaction time on a coordination level won't be enhanced. You could, in theory, catch a speeding bullet, but if you weren't able to think fast enough to do it in the first place, you can't. Is that any help? Any other questions?"

 

She glanced back at Revenant, looking less than amused.

 

"I come from Canterlot, but I've been traveling Equestria for years, now. How else am I supposed to get the ingredients? Shelling out millions for them? Growing dragon scales in my windowsill? Besides, Appleloosa was simply next on my current course. I'm not going to skip out on a town I stay in." She gently reached out a hoof, trying to guide his to set the potion back down. "Don't pick them up, please. Some are not ready to be sold. Can't put the seal on them if nobody buys them, or they might up and spoil in this heat. Chemistry is one thing. Potionmaking is another."

Ploomette paused.

"Plus, I don't want to risk you dropping it. Sorry, pal."

 

Speaking of which! Here comes Cabby! Cabby was not a famous pegasus, probably. Ploomette did swear up and down that he looked familiar (on account of a court summons she dealt with in recent months), but alas, he was far too nondescript for even Ploomette's slightly-above-average sense of facial recognition to even catch onto. Well played. While her tone and gesture was gentle in regards to Revenant picking up merchandise, Ploomette was about to have a genuine aneurysm once Nabby cabbed----Cabby nabbed the other potion. And judging by those particles quaking in the bottle, he had a chronic case of the butterhooves. "Please! Set that back, alright? If you NEED to see one, please ASK first and do NOT DROP or SHAKE THEM." The pegasus cleared her throat, composing her thoughts. First, this uppity guy uses that tone, then this guy, uhh....hmm.

 

"If you want to mix and match, you'll need to take potions with less potency or very small doses. And don't physically mix them. Drink one dose of the potion by itself, wait a minute, and then drink the other. Do not alternate. Failure to comply will result in them not working. Or a bad case of the sniffles. Or both!"

[szalhi]

She didn't know if there was a sign that said not to touch them, but it seems that the mare didn't like the potions to be handled incorrectly. She couldn't blame the mare, this was careful chemistry and any wrong actions could seriously mess things up. At least she had the common sense to not handle them yet. 

 

"Would consuming two potions shortly after each other result in twice the effect or twice the duration?" She asked ignoring the other two ponies. "Or maybe some other effect that I should probably know about." Maybe the world would collapse if everything here were to mix together, how would she know, she's not a chemist. But this mare is a chemist. Nothing has exploded yet. 

 

"Are there any other side effects that maybe you forgot to mention? Like maybe the loss of sight?" She laughed. "Like that one would matter to me, how do you lose something you don't have? Maybe I'll find out." She started digging around for her bits, wherever ponies keep them normally. Her mother would probably get mad if she found out she was taking potions, but she didn't really care. She was a grown mare (barely) and she could make decisions for herself even if they were probably bad. These potions sounded pretty cool to the point that they seemed fake or illegal. 

 

"These are legal right?" 

[Ploomette]

     Once Ploomette made certain nobody else was going to make multi-colored dirt stains out of her wares, she settled back down, briefly taking a moment to dig under the counter until she produced a notebook. It was set atop the counter, a flopped open to a few charts. Which, looked like they meant something, but Ploomette's penmanship was traditional of that of a potionmaker.

 

In other words illegible. 

 

"Depends on what I give you. Bigger doses will just give you an increased duration, smaller ones will increase the duration and slightly, very slightly increase the effect. Don't mix dosages, though. You might just cancel out the effects of the first one you take. By the way, as far as side effects go, I've gotten a few complaints about temporary blurred version after the speed potions wear off. ....many also claimed it might have been because they conked into a few trees before it wore off, though, so I have yet to get a proper conclusion. Personally, last few times I used them, the gradual slowdown as it wore off made me dizzy. No blurred vision!"

 

   Ah, legality. Here came the disclaimers, something Ploomette needed to stress to avoid getting taken to court over the lousiest, pettiest things again. After all, teal was STILL a shade of blue, and that unicorn was just griping.

 

At any rate.

 

     "The potions themselves are legal. But I don't suggest using them for competitive reasons. On the field, they're about the same thing as using a steroid---minus all the bad, long-term side effects of course, but it still does give you an edge over the competition that isn't fair. There are dosages with more....permanent effects that are considered legal in regards to competition, however, that's mainly because these potions are meant to be used in conjunction with exercise. They won't make you instantly stronger or faster or whatever it may be on their own. They just help you hone those skills quicker."

[Zeig]

 

...Bullet?

 

What in Equestria was a bullet?

 

Something apparently very fast, if she was using it as basis in comparison to a speed enhancing potion. Or perhaps she was simply using some slang he wasn't familiar with? Although he'd never heard anything like that in Canterlot, and he spent a considerable time snooping around there. 

 

Word choice notwithstanding, Revenant kept a look of polite interest steadfast on his face, even if he was sorely tempted to curl his upper lip in distaste. He'd made a simple inquiry-slash-comment about the city she'd started her business in, and she had gone off on an entirely different tangent...answering his questions that she had ignored the first time around, but had suddenly decided to go answering despite him having moved on from that conversation long ago. He hadn't even asked her to explain the mechanisms of her potions this time around, since her first answer had basically amounted to "too many details, ask me something else." Yet here she was, blundering through her mishap.

 

And with a none too pleasant look on her face. 

 

What a properly poor salespony. From charming and sincere one moment, to defensive and annoyed the next. All over a simple wonderment of whether she came from Manehatten or Fillydelphia?

 

Unique potions or not, it was becoming increasingly clear that WRAITH had no place for such a mercurial pony. A right shame.

 

...If her potions even worked as claimed. There was still no legitimate proof that her potions performed as expected, and the mare didn't seem open to providing samples or demonstrations. She hadn't even offered her name.

 

The dark grey stallion wordlessly set down the bottle he had procured - bottles the salespony was adamant about being left alone, despite having no indications or warnings for curious and appraising shoppers to not handle the merchandise - easily hiding the annoyance he was feeling behind a lackadaisical grin. Perhaps it was lucky, then, as an odd looking chap suddenly approached the front of the booth, having apparently been spending his time making funny faces at the bottles. Revenant glanced between the two, watching as the salespony succinctly answered his questions with little fuss, before returning her attention to the sturdy-looking mare, who seemed equally immersed in the potions. All of which left the grey stallion with an opening.

 

And let it be said Revenant never took advantage of an opening.

 

"All a bit hard to believe, isn't it," the darkly colored stallion said in a low voice, not quite whispering but speaking in a more private manner as he moved to stand next to the bald Pegasus with short wings. "Enhancements, morphs...not uncommon to see in a temporary spell, right." Princess Twilight Sparkle had, for instance, supposedly morphed a pair of wings onto a Unicorn for a duration...a feat which had required immense amounts of power according to eye witnesses, and hadn't even lasted half a day. "But to see someone claim permanent and fully functioning spells? Nigh impossible for even the most decorated of our Princesses, much less a regular pony. Mighty aces, you think? Or trying to pull the wool over our eyes, eh?" Revenant was careful to voice himself with incredibility and disbelief, the perfect picture of a potential customer being overly incredulous of what might be a scam. 

 

In reality though, the Trottingham pony was curious as to what the other customers were thinking. He hadn't been wrong - this was magic that even the Alicorn Princesses were not capable of, yet here was a common pony claiming herself capable of such magics with permanent, lasting effects. He couldn't be the only pony entirely leery of these bold claims, could he?

 

...At least, not the only sensible one.

 

 

[Ploomette]

     "....you're....joking, right?"

 

     There wasn't any particularly hint of nervousness in her voice, just a bit of suspicion. Not the same suspicion he had raised, of course, seeing as it felt to her like he was jumping to far too many conclusions. Or maybe he was carefully walking to his own sensible conclusions, and Ploomette was leaping right over them in favor of....actually, not even she had a hold on her own train of thought. "We've only discussed ones that, even while 'permanent', weren't the hugest effects on the body. Let me try to break it down a bit." Ploomette unfolded a wing, flopping it over the empty edge of the counter. "I can't do this to somebody that doesn't already have wings. While I can permanently increase---albeit gradually, as I've explained---someone's top speed and stamina, I can't permanently slap wings onto anybody. I can only permanently enhance what's already there, in that regard. Does that make sense? I could enhance a unicorn's magical prowess, enhance a pegasus's wings, or increase an earth pony's inherent durability and 'green hoof' to some extent, but I can't mix those up permanently. It wears off. It always wears off. 

 

....don't know about alicorns, but how many of those are running around, huh? Four, right? That's an entirely different boat that I won't worry about right now."

 

     Ploomette heaved a sigh. This one sounding a lot more sorry than the last few.

 

     "That doesn't even scratch the surface in regards to other species, but seeing as everyone present is a pony, I thought that sufficed for now. Anymore questions? I'm uh...." Ploomette idly tapped a hoof, pulling her wing off the counter in its place. "......sssssssorry for being so antsy. I'm not sure whether it's nerve-wracking or refreshing that you're this skeptical, but, you get the idea. I'm Ploomette by the way, did I say that already? Ahahahaha...."

 

   Ploomette learned a lot of things in her many years of potion-making and all-around-adventuring. She learned how to stir corrosive substances. She learned where and how to legally obtain ingredients that came off of people. She learned how to grow all things things that didn't come off of other people. But cashier school was not on her resume. 

 

Heaven forbid she ever have to answer a question that wasn't answered with 'yes' or 'no'. 

 

 

 

[szalhi]

"Well, that's disappointing. Thought you could turn me into an Alicorn, of which there are actually five." She actually wasn't disappointed, becoming an Alicorn would be as scary as gaining a new sense. "Although it would attract a lot of attention if that were to happen."  Attention that she didn't particularly want right now. The Quiet stallion next to her seemed to doubt the effects of the potions. She could see how since the mare was obviously not a unicorn, but there's a first time for everything. Zebra's don't have horns but they are known for their chemistry.

 

The mare running the stall finally gave a name, implying that the name wasn't already written down somewhere on the stall. "Oh so the name's Ploomette, I thought you forgot your name from a potion's side effect ahahahaha... 'tis just a joke..." She joked while slightly backing away. She moved back up to the stall. 

 

She finally focused on the wings that Ploomette had, they were pretty big. Who would decide one day to just have big wings? Maybe a crazy pony. Or a pony that wanted to test the limits of potions. There were a lot of potions there, the only possible reason she could think of as to why one would have so many is for variety. "Are those wings permanent? Also, what are the craziest potions you have here?"

[RexDraco]

 

Cabby pouted at being told not to mismanage the potions. Setting the container down he would snort. He was not some ordinary, clumsy pony -- whoops! He stepped forward a few steps and tumbled head over hooves. His chin hit the ground with a ring, stars floating overhead from the force of the strike. He flapped his wings and Flutter off the ground. Rubbing his jaw a bit he pushed his face  with his hooves  feeling everything out of  place. He shook his head back proper shape: flopping ears perking back up and snub muzzle poking back out from its flat squish. With soft clocking his hooves touched back to the dry, Appleloosa ground and his tiny wings curled back along his spine.

 

“I have to agree with spectacles here.” He motioned to the Earth mare. “Temporary effects doesn't sound very exciting. Or not bein’ able ta mix.’em.” He raised a hoof to poke one of the bottle. To increase at was already there, huh?

 

As the god of chaos he was tickled by Revenant’s demure doubt. She flustered pretty easily. For somepony with such flashy wings you'd think she would be used.to being put on the spot. But the bespectacled mare raised a good point. It certainly countered the stallion’s question. Her wings were far from natural and if they could only upscore something already part of you, did that make somepony a liar and the other goading for conflict? Such a delight.

“That's a good question. And what if you were an alicorn and had many parts from different ponies? I've an alicorn friend and she would love one for a big of a show at our next party.” He nodded and moved to poke another bottle, tipping it a bit.

[Zeig]

 

Bloody Tautarus in a hoofbasket. Wasn't so bucking hard, now was it.

 

Despite his annoyance at the mare - now identified as Ploomette - diving headfirst into the semi-private conversation he'd been having with another lovely customer, Revenant supposed he couldn't be all that put out. It could only be expected that a shopkeeper would want to dispel doubts about her products from conversing customers...even if she seemed, for some reason, annoyed that her word wasn't being taken at face value. Perhaps she was, in truth, from areas akin to Ponyville and the like, where strangers were trusted and taken at their word simply out of sheer niceness. 

 

Sheer mental gaffs, if someone asked him. Equestria had long since stamped that inbred trust right alongside the wreckage that had almost claimed his life. 

 

Whatever inner thoughts were rolling through his head, though, the grey colored stallion gave a slight start, as if he'd been taken by surprise at Plomette's sudden expositional narrative, even going so far as to adapt a somewhat mollified and sheepish look to mimic some guilt over having his words be heard by the potion maker herself. No, he supposed he couldn't be too annoyed at her annoyance, because the mare had - at last, bloody finally - revealed an important piece of detail that would have most likely steered the stallion away from the booth in the first place.

 

So. The permanent potions only worked on what was already present? Meaning a WRAITH agent couldn't slap on a tail and fins for underwater recon, or a Unicorn couldn't grow a pair of wings to strike down their target from the air...at least not permanently. Meaning such things could be accomplished for a temporary duration, still? Or were they just outright impossible? And her statements appeared contradictory, as well. She could only permanently enhance what already exists on a pony...but wasn't a Unicorn's magical prowess an innate thing? A Pegasus' wings? Why could those potions not be mixed to have permanent effects if she could permanently enhance what a pony already had?

 

It made little sense...but, at the very least, he was starting to get somewhere.

 

"S'alright love," is what Revenant said out loud, beaming brilliantly at the brightly colored Pegasus, "and I'm right chuffed to make your acquaintance properly. Call me Golden Vortex." Potions that could permanently, albeit gradually, enhance a pony's speed, stamina...reflexes? Agility? "And now, if I'm understanding right...those flutters you've come on," a quick nod to the mare's enormous, colorful wings, "they're not permanent, then? You've a need to reapply a temporary potion every so often to gain them? How often?" She had said that those types of potions 'wear off. They always wear off.' It would be golden to figure out how long such body-morphing effects lasted.

 

Even in the midst of his curiosity, however, Revenant couldn't help but glance askance at the other stallion, one eyebrow raised as he casually mentioned a friendship with one of the Princesses. Odd little chap. He seemed perfectly lucid - if a bit funny - but his instincts were too sharpened to not pay attention to the other's words. He...well, he supposed it wouldn't have been too far out of the question for him to have befriended one of them at some point. The newest one was called the Princess of Friendship, for pithy's sake. 

 

Entirely too trusting and easily manipulated, the lot of them. Exactly why an untried and untested purple twat of a Unicorn had had to step in and save Equestria while its two rulers sat on their flanks and did...whatever it was they did all day while their country was driven to ruin.