(Ponyville) A New Chapter (Open)

[Xiee]

"In fact, I had been meaning to get an audience with you yesterday, but I was hesitant because I figured an important pony as yourself had more important things to worry about than little old me here. I was told that you were the pony I needed to talk to about getting a business started? I don't have a lot to get started with, I literally lost everything when I moved here from Canterlot, but I was hoping to start new here. The Business I had was called Frozen Delights. though right now, all I have, all I have are some empty snow cone cups and an empty bottle of raspberry syrup. I had to sell everything I had just to get the train ticket to come here. That happens though when you're an outsider in Canterlot. Maybe if you know a pony that is granting a business loan that I can work on paying back as I get the business running? Any assistance would be appreciated,"

"Nothing is more important than the concern of the Ponies in Ponyville," she said proudly. "You could have just come right in. Sure I may be doing some paperwork, but I always give time to those who wish to see me, especially if its a concern about this town."

Hearing about the Unicorn's loss made the Mayor almost want to hug her but instead she had to do something to at least make the unicorn know that Ponyville is a very accommodating place. Sure, there were a few rotten apples in the marketplace but someone like her, with snowcones as a business would surely liven the place.

I'm sorry about what you lost, but I'm sure a lot of Ponies can help you here. As for starting your business, I may know a few Ponies who might be able to loan you some bits to get started. You might want to talk to Filthy Rich. He's one of the most successful entrepreneurs in town. Don't let the name fool you, though it sounds intimidating, he's a good and honest businesspony at heart and a family pony at that. If you want I can setup a meeting for you two. He usually drops by the Town Hall to check the local business newsboards. I'll make sure to talk to him tomorrow.. As for a place for you to setup shop, there are a few empty tents in the marketplace that are usually open to any roving pony merchants. I'll be glad to let you use one of them for the time being, they're right in the middle of the marketplace so you'll bound to have a lot of customers."

"Hmm... Twilight Sparkle," Lore said partly to himself and partly to the Mayor. "So she's the unicorn that you said was unique, right? Well, I always like meeting unique ponies, so maybe I'll see her in here when I'm finished. It should be ready within a week or so, so i'll have a grand opening ceremony then. And you said you like reading books Ms. Mayor. Is there an author or type of book you like?"

"Yes, she's somewhat of a celebrity but she likes to lay low and bury herself with her books in the library." The Mayor chuckled. "Go ahead and visit her, I'm sure if it's books you'll get her attention easily. As for books, I'm not really much of a chooser. But I mostly read fiction, and the occasional Daring-Do novel. I read books in my free time to alleviate the stress from time to time. I'm definitely looking forward to your bookstores launch! If you want I can give a speech at your opening to draw the crowd in. Oh and make sure that you place your posters at the bulletin boards around the market and Town Hall for everypony to see."

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm nodded to the Mayor, "Okay, that would be most appreciative, and if I can use one of the tents for now, then all I would need to borrow from anypony would be enough to just get the supplies I need. Hopefully I can find them at Sugar Cube Corner, and that they aren't very expensive. I don't want to be overly expensive myself as long as I can still get the supplies I need," she stated thinking abut what she said about Filthy Rich. The name as she said was indeed a bit off putting, but if he was as nice as she said then what could be the harm in asking? The worst he could say is no.

She then listed to her and lore talk about another unicorn named Twilight Sparkle. Hey! she used to live in Canterlot! she thought to herself. She'd never met Twilight because she was always busy with her store, and she could only imagine that a pony so caught up in studies like twilight would be hard pressed to find the time to do anything other than study. She's a celebrity here in Ponyville? she thought to herself though nodding when the mayor said that she like to spend most of her time in the library with her books. They then started talking about some other business stuff so she let the two talk about that and started sorting some of the books. She was still listening though for the Mayors input on her statements though so it didn't look like she was ignoring everypony.

[Lux]

Lore Weaver smiled at the fact that Ice Storm was getting her problem resolved very quickly. She had a temporary place to stay and now a place to sell her frozen treats.

Lore then drew his attention back to the Mayor. Being that she was... well the Mayor... she knew the town and the ponies there. And as Lore loved information, she was probably the best source to get it.

"Ok I'll go meet this Twilight soon after I get most of the store up and running. I'm sure a fellow booklover will be interested in this place. And you said you like fiction, right? Well there will definitely be fiction here. In fact I picture half of the store being fiction and the other half non fiction. I hope to eventually have a rare books area, but that'll be later. If you could give a speech at the grand opening, that would be great. And thanks about the poster idea. I'll definitely spread them around town. I'm so thankful you stopped by. You gave me lots of advice."

[Xiee]

"The pleasure is all mine." She said with a nod and a smile. "I'll be looking forward to the opening of your bookstore!"

The day was at its height. Lunch was approaching and the Mayor needed to finish some leftover work before she could end her day. But first, lunch was the first thing to do before going back to work. The Mayor had a bright idea and started talking to Lore and Ice.

"Lunch time is almost here. Why don't you two join me at the Cafe? My treat, think of it as a welcome lunch from me."

[IceStorm]

Ice turned when the mayor suggested that they go get some lunch. That it would be her treat, and to think of it as a welcome lunch for them. "Oh, I think that would be a wonderful idea! Be nice to just sit and talk as well." Ice Storm said as she started thinking about what the mayor had said about Twilight. She wondered what she was like, and what other ponies had moved here from Canterlot. This place seemed to be fairly popular amongst ponies there for moving to. With that said, she wondered if she could be able to find any other nice ponies in the outer areas of Canterlot that would like to make their home in a place far more welcoming than Canterlot is. She finished Separating the last few books from the box she was working on and began to head to the door. "I'm ready when everypony else is," she added with a smile.

[Lux]

The Mayor mentioned lunch. Lore didn't realize that it was that time already. But working and talking did eat away time.

"Thank you for offering lunch. I'd be happy to go to the cafe."

He was happy to be offered lunch and especially that the Mayor was so kind to him and Ice Storm. Lore felt that if many of the ponies in Ponyville were as nice as the Mayor was, then he would be doing fine living here. Of course he did wonder if the ponies liked books as well. That would definitely be a plus to his bookstore.

Lore then noticed that Ice Storm had finished sorting all the books into various piles according to their subject. He didn't expect her to do all the books, but sure enough she did.

"Hey thanks, Ice! Now I can start shelving these books into the right areas. That will take some time, but I'll be in good shape with the store when that's done."

Ice then announced that she was ready, and the Mayor seemed eager to go as well. "I'm at a good spot to break for lunch. Lead the way, Ms. Mayor. I'm still getting used to town, so I'm not sure where everything is, including this Cafe."

[Xiee]

The Mayor had lead the two Ponies into her favorite Cafe near the town square. The moment she entered with Ice and Lore a waiter Pony greeted them.

"Hello Mayor!" The Waiter greeted her with a smile. "I see you have company today, shall I prepare your usual spot?"

"Yes please. Oh, and do bring some menus for my guests. I'll have the usual for me."

"Right away Mayor!"

They were quickly shown to a spot near a wide window in the cafe that had a view of the whole square. This was the Mayor's favorite spot, where she always had lunch and sometimes breakfast. The waiter always knew what she ordered and every time she would arrive during lunch, it was almost instant that her order was made and ready in only a few minutes. The three of them took their seats as the Mayor began to describe how wonderful this cafe was.

"I go here almost everyday to have lunch. I just love the view from this spot. And don't you two worry about what to order, remember it's on me so don't be shy."

[IceStorm]

Ice sat down at the table that they were shown to at the cafe, and Ice used her magic to grab the menu and look through it. She wasn't really sure what exactly she wanted. Everything sounded to be a good choice at the moment. Ice knew the Mayor had said to not be to shy, but she still waned to be respectful and not go overboard, and the more she thought about it, the more a salad was really sounding good at the moment. With that she closed the menu and handed it back to the waiter. "I'll just take a Cesar Salad," she said completing her order.

"I can't thank you again for this Ma'dam Mayor, I... I never got treated this nicely in Canterlot. I think maybe I just tried to fit in somewhere where I just didn't belong," she said looking up to the city that extended off of the mountain. She may visit there again at some point, but she would never live there again.

[Lux]

Lore Weaver sat at the table with Ms. Mayor and Ice Storm. It was a typical cafe, filled with a collection of ponies eating and talking. The view however was great, showing both a little of Ponyville and the mountains on which Canterlot was built. Lore wasn't much into the formal restaurants in Canterlot, but there were a few cafes scattered about the city that he did enjoy.

Now to the menu, which Lore had hovering in the air in front of him. Lore heard the Mayor mention that it was her treat, but he definitely didn't want to overstep the Mayor's generosity. He didn't know what she was ordering other that 'the usual.' Ice ordered a Cesar Salad, so if he got something around the same price as her, it should be ok. Lore then used his ability to quickly gather all the information of the menu and saw five other items around the same price. Finally he chose one of the five.

"I'll have the daisy and avacado sandwich please," Lore said as he closed the menu and floated it over to the waitress so she could collect it.

Ice storm then mentioned how nice Ms. Mayor was to them, and lore knew he had to say something.

"I agree with Ice Storm. When I decided to come to Ponyville, I knew where I was going to stay and where my bookstore would be. What I was unsure about was how the ponies were here in Ponyville. But if ponies are just as nice as you are Ms. Mayor, then I am sure that I will have no trouble fitting into this town."

[HighRoller]

[Hi, everypony. I'll be posting in, since it's open. I can leave if my presence gets obtrusive into what y'all already have going on.]

Highroller had just arrived at the cafe moments before the mayor and her guests arrived. He easily recognized her, since he was now making regular visits from his shop in the suburbs of Canterlot in order to foster a gaming group in the lovely hamlet; the mayor was a social, visible official, so naturally he'd seen her around.

Coincidentally, his table was directly next to theirs, and while he thought about listening in, he though it rude to eavesdrop. Besides...this was Ponyville! Everypony here was, for the most part, very friendly, and probably wouldn't mind him cutting in provided they weren't too involved in some sort of deeply personal conversation. The mood seemed light, so he doubted he'd be interrupting anything serious.

The unicorn stood and levitated his glass of iced tea, bringing it with him to stand near the empty fourth seat at the party's table.

"Excuse me, everypony...is this seat taken?" he asked, smiling charmingly and adjusting his glasses with a hoof. The young stallion took a moment to take in the appearances of the other two ponies. He'd never seen them around before. Even though he was a well-to-do business owner in Canterlot, he wasn't precisely a socialite, and as such he didn't meet too many ponies who were too far out of his way.

[IceStorm]

(I'm so sorry that it's taken so long for me to get a post up. The only source of internet I've had for 2 days was my android phone and it's impossible to type a post on one of those things.)

Ice Storm sat their patiently waiting for the waiter to bring the salad to her. She wasn't in any sort of hurry or anything since she had no plans for anything else for the day. It's not like she could find the ponies she needed to talk to about her store right now anyway. So she was content to sit there and listen to the conversation at hand. Lore had agreed with her about trying to fit into a place where they didn't belong. Apparently he knew what that had felt like to not fit in as well. "At the very least you had a plan when you got here. I didn't even have that. I wouldn't change any of it though, even the couple nights I spent out under Luna's moon. The park here is very lovely at night, and it lets me see her arrangements of stars without any difficulties here. It was my favorite thing to do while I drifted off at night was to just look at all the shapes in the sky. I never got a view like that in the park I went to in Canterlot. Which is kinda weird now that I think about it. Shouldn't the view of the stars and the night there be the best that it could possibly be considering Princess Luna lives in Canterlot?" she said with a small giggle. "It's somewhat amusing if you ask me."

Just then another Unicorn had come over to the table. Wow, there are a lot more unicorns than I thought there would be here in Ponyville. Lore, Rarity, the mare Named Twilight, myself, and now this pony. Ponyville was definitely appropriately named, she thought to herself. "Nope that seat is open if you would like to join us," she said with a smile as her salad was brought to her. It looked absolutely amazing. She waited for everypony else to get their food before she started to eat hers though.

[Xiee]

The Mayor had called the attention of the waiter once again and gave the orders that Lore and Ice had asked for. With a nod the waiter smiled and left.

"I'm glad you've decided to come with me." She smiled. "It's not everyday that I get to talk to new Ponies like you. And yes, I try to make a nice first impression. It is a nice town but there are a few ponies who seem to lack manners. But who am I to tell them what to be like to run their lives? I just make it an effort for everypony to get along. Not just ponies but other creatures as well. We've had a few Griffons visit the town a few times but they didn't stay long. Oh, we do have a resident Zebra who lives at the Everfree forest. She comes to do some shopping once a week in town."

Just as their conversation was going on another Unicorn had just introduced himself. She had recognized him a few times spending some time in the Cafe but really never got a chance to talk to him. From what she knew he was another businessman from Canterlot. This was another chance for her to know someone new, another name to add to the list of residents in Ponyville.

"Oh not at all, please join us. And you are?"

[HighRoller]

The young unicorn smiled and seated himself, as soon as he saw there were no objections. "I'm HighRoller, but most people just call me Roller. I run a game store in Canterlot, but I visit here pretty regularly. There's a group of ponies here that are trying to get into the hobby, and I come ever couple of weeks to check on them and foster their interest."

He rubbed the back of his neck with a hoof. "I...I hope that wasn't too long-winded of an explanation," he said. "Who're your compatriots here today, Mayor Mare?" he asked, smiling and swishing his tail.

[Lux]

Lore listened to Ice Storm explain how she liked Ponyville, even the times she was basically homeless. She made it so nice sounding, sleeping under the stars. He was always interested in the night sky, how the stars were beautifully arranged.

"I guess I'll have to try sleeping under the stars one night then. I know how you feel about the stars in Canterlot. I guess for me since all the places are so big there, I usually can only see a part of the night sky. Now that you mentioned Princess Luna, I must admit that all my life in Canterlot, I never met any of the princesses. I've seen them in a parade or at an even, but never meeting them one on one. Maybe one day..."

He realize that he was drifting off into his own mind, and quickly snapped back to reality. Lore nodded in understanding at what the Mayor said about trying to keep a peaceful atmosphere in Ponyville. That was good. Although it is impossible to change everypony's minds, if this place had more kind and friendly ponies that rude and nasty, he was going to like it here.

Then another pony entered in, and another unicorn. Maybe Lore's impression that there were few unicorns in town was incorrect. He slid over to allow the new unicorn to join the group.

"Hello High Roller. I'm Lore Weaver. I'm opening up a bookstore here in Ponyville. You said you have a game store? What kind of games do you sell?"

[HighRoller]

The young stallion pondered how best to answer Lore Weaver's question. "Hmm...complicated ones. Ones involving custom-build decks of collectible cards, or hand-painted miniatures on a battlefield. Specialist hobby games, I guess you'd call them. I don't know if that tells you what you wanted to know, but feel free to ask more if you like. Of course, I didn't come over here so I could be the center of attention."

He turned toward Ice Storm. "I don't believe I've seen you around before. You're the new arrival, correct?" He nodded to her. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I may not live here, but I thoroughly enjoy my time in Ponyville, and I'm sure you will, too."

[Xiee]

Their food finally arrived as the Mayor gave a smile to the waiter and asked her to bring some Iced Tea for her guests and coffee for herself. She motioned to Lore and Ice to dig in and not to be shy. Listening to High Roller's progress with his gaming group the Mayor happily nibbled on her tossed garden salad. After taking a mouthful and swallowing her food she entered the conversation.

"Weren't you planning on expanding your business over here?" The Mayor asked. "If I recall, your little gaming group is starting to catch wind. Of course we could use the business in town. We haven't met personally but I've heard of your endeavors. It's my responsibility to know what everypony brings to town."

Everything was music to the Mayor's ears. The two new ponies who would potentially bring more revenue to town was a start, plus the possibility of this third pony to open a gaming shop. Something for amusement, something new to her that she could still vaguely grasp its concept. But all it mattered that this meant that Ponies are starting to take notice of Ponyville.

"Come now Ponies, don't be shy dig in." She said as she took another nibble of her salad.

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm turned to the other pony as he started talking about the games that he sold at his shop. They sounded really fun, and Ice would have been tempted to try one of them if she still lived in Canterlot. She briefly caught him mention that his name was High Roller and he also had mentioned that he hadn't seen her around her either and asked if she was a new arrival. Ice Storm nodded, "Yes actually. I used to live in Canterlot myself, but a large number of the other ponies in the stuck-ups/nobles district and I didn't get along very well. So I abandoned everything I had in Canterlot and moved here only a couple days ago. I was actually living in the park her until earlier this morning when this fine gentlecolt said that I could stay with him at his book shop until I got on my hooves. In return I'm helping him set up and organize his book store so he can get open as soon as possible," she admitted to him. Just even thinking about Canterlot at this point was enough to make her angry inside. She made sure not to show it to everypony there, but the way she got treated in Canterlot made her despise every pony that willingly lived there. This colt here however, at the very least seemed like he was a good person. Perhaps there were a select few in Canterlot that did have the work nice in their vocabulary.

[Lux]

Lore Weaver listened intently to High Roller explaining what he sold at his shop. The unicorn was always interested in, even as a foal, games that challenged his mind. While many of his fellow classmated liked activities like tag and chasing a ball around, Lore liked playing checkers and memory matching games. The thought of a store that sold such games intrigued him.

"That sounds really interesting High Roller. I'll definitely be checking out your store soon. Things are a little crazy now getting the store up and running, but after that I'll stop by."

Lore was so engrossed in High Roller's store that he had forgotten that the waitress had arrived and delivered his sandwich. It was only when the Mayor mentioned the fact, that Lore noticed.

"Wow! This sandwich is amazing! I had this kind before in other cafes, but not like this."

As Lore ate, he heard Ice Storm explain to High Roller how she went to Ponyville. Even though he heard her tale before, it was still unsettling how she seemed tobe so upset with Canterlot that she left for Ponyville without so much of a plan much less a place to stay. Still, he was glad that at least he was able to provide a roof over her head for the time being.

"Well, High Roller, I also lived in Canterlot. I love books, ever since I was a foal, so I wanted to do something with my life involving books. I wanted to be a librarian, but unfortunately there were no jobs available. So, I decided to do the next best thing and become a bookseller. Canterlot already has several bookstores, so I decided to try Ponyville. And now here I am."

[HighRoller]

Roller nodded, sipping an iced tea. "That makes sense. Canterlot is overcrowded with businesses. Competition can be nice, but if there's too much of it, it defeats the purpose of starting a business." He smiled over at Ice Storm. "I'm sorry to hear that you had such a poor experience in Canterlot, miss. I'll be the first to admit not everypony there is on their best behavior with people who they consider to be of...lower status. It's a silly thing, especially when our own ruler is less formal with her subjects than they are with people they meet on the street."

He took a few more sips of tea and looked up at the sky. It was always so nice here...it may not be as bustling as Canterlot or Manehatten, but its pegasi kept the skies in good order.

[Xiee]

The Mayor had finished her lunch and was now sipping a cup of coffee. Meeting new ponies always made her day, yet her day wasn't over. There were lots of paperwork to complete back in Town Hall and she had forgotten that she urgently needed to finish writing a speech for an appearance at the Ponyville Pet Show tomorrow. As she sipped the last of her coffee she stood up.

"Well, I do believe I must get going. I've got papers to sign and a speech to make. I do believe it should take up the rest of my afternoon. You Ponies enjoy and stay a while at the restaurant. It was a pleasure meeting all of you."

She shook the hooves of each one of them.

"Lore Weaver, I look forward to seeing your bookstore open soon. I'll be sure to drop in time to time picking up a book or two."

"Ice Storm, I wish you luck on your endeavor. If there is anything else that you need please don't hesitate to drop by my office."

"High Roller, I look forward to your business if it does ever expand into Ponyville. We'll need all the good and honest merchants we can get."

With that she headed towards one of the waiter Ponies and paid for the bills of her companions and left trotting towards the Town Hall, letting out a hum of satisfaction and joy. Sometimes being the Mayor wasn't so bad after all.

(( OOC: And this is where I drop out. Was fun RPing with you guys! ))

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm casually started eating on her salad careful as to not to get the dressing all over her. "It's okay. I just highly doubt I'll be back there for a while. Speaking of this hobby shop though, it sounds kind of fun. You said that you had a lot of games and things of the like there. May I ask what they are? I've never heard of games that you make things yourself in. I would be most interested in learning about this games once I'm back on my hooves," she commented to High Roller as the mayor stood up. She bid her farewells to every pony adding to ice that if she needed anything to feel free to stop by her office in the town hall. Ice nodded, "I will Madam Mayor. It was a pleasure to meet you," she said turning back to the others at the table. "Anyway, I'm hoping to be able to reopen Frozen Delights here at some point. I just need to figure out whom I would need to talk to about getting everything lined up for getting started. As is now though, what's next on the Agenda Lore for when we get back to your shop?"

[Lux]

"Goodbye Ms. Mayor. Thanks for the company. I'll be sure to let you know about the opening of the store."

Lore listened to Ice mention about how she planned to open her store and about what the next steps would be for the bookstore.

"Well I hope your Frozen Delights stand is open soon. If you need any help setting things up, I can do so. It's the least I can do with you setting up my shop. Speaking of my shop, I think since the boxes of books were grouped together, the next step is loading them onto the shelf. There should be some letters on the box that represent the author's name, so all we have to do is start with the first box of a subject and go from there. It will be a little tedious getting started, but we should have it ready in no time."

[HighRoller]

Roller waved a hoof, bidding the mayor farewell and called out a thanks for the lunch. He sipped his tea and smiled at Ice Storm. "Well, since the games cater to a very particular audience, they're a bit expensive, but a lot of people seem to enjoy them. My favorites are the ones involving dice and miniatures...that is, little miniature ponies on a very small scale. Most of the games involve high adventure or tactical combat."

He laughed softly. "I don't wanna bore you, though. When I get going on my passions, it's exceedingly hard for me to stop." The young stallion continued smiling at the mare. "I hope you get your shop open soon, too. There are plenty of places to get sweets around here, but in the hot months you start wanting something nice and cold."

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm smiled and nodded when Lore said that he hoped that she got her store open soon and that he would even help her with getting everything set up. That it was the least that he could do for her helping him get his shop open. She couldn't help but let out a small laugh, "But you are giving me a place to stay. It would be highly rude of me to accept such an offer without doing something for you in return. And it's not that difficult. Whatever movers you hired to get everything here to Ponyville were really good because everything was mostly organized. Granted the most tedious part is coming up now which is shelving the books, but that won't be that difficult either I don't think," she told him with a smile as the other stallion began speaking again.

He said that since the games normally catered to a very select audience they were pretty expensive, and Ice could understand that. if you had a smaller demographic to try to sell too, then you would have to charge more to make a profit. when he went on about the ones with the dice and the miniatures. the thought of the ones that were about high adventure and tactical combat was also intriguing. "All of these games sound really fun. I can't wait until your shop gets here so that I can try one of them!" she said happily hearing him add that she would be popular come the summer time. "Well, that's the hope anyway. I wasn't all that successful in Canterlot, but then again, I realize now that Canterlot is not the proper demographic for a snow-cone vendor," she said with a laugh.

[Lux]

"Hmm... Maybe I should see what games you have," Lore said, "I'm always interested in thing that challenge my brain. Of course I don't know how much time I'll have earlier on getting the store ready, but maybe later I'll stop by High Roller."

Lore then heard Ice Storm mention how she felt that helping him was the least she could do for him. "Well in any case thanks for helping me. The movers were great at helping me, but I also made an extra effort to see that everything was packed correctly so there would be fewer problems later. But if you're able to after this lunch, Ice Storm, we can at least get some of the books shelves."

Lore, knowing that High Roller was now with them, didn't want to exclude him. "And High Roller, if you want to come by too you can. You don't have to help if you don't want to. But that way we can get to know you more."