Quoted By:
>Be Anon
>Today was a special day in Ponyville
>They had a tradition of single stallions being "bid" on by the towns' mares
>Any money that came in went to those less fortunate, and the winning mare would, at most, take the colt to a date, or maybe have him clean their house
>It was all in good fun, and no one really had an issue with it
>You, being a single "stallion" were asked by the group of colts that kept the tradition alive and oversaw everything
>You really didn't have any desire to clean a horses house, but they did ask nicely
>So, you got a haircut, a shave, and put on your best Hawaiian shirt and joined the other stallions that morning
>Hours had passed
>The most prized and desirable colts had been "bought" first
>Then went the less desirable colts
>Then the mommy-issue stallions
>Then the weirdos like Fluttershy's brother
>Eventually, all of them were led away by mares with various levels of enthusiasm
>All except you
>You had sat on your little podium all day, just waiting, and not one horse had come along to try to buy you
>Not one
>This morning, you hadn't given a shit about this whole thing, and now you found yourself getting an unexpected blow to the ol' self-esteem
>Mares weren't even looking your goddamn way, for crying out loud
>Some of the colts running things had been glancing your way since around lunch time
>You ignored them, feeling pretty peeved
>Fucking dumb talking horses...
>"Is he--oh thank Celestia. ANONYMOUS!"
>You jumped, turning to see Rarity
>The mare was sweaty and red-faced, like she had been running
>Which was weird
>Rarity was many things, but a runner wasn't among them
>The unicorn, as if realizing the state she was in, used her magic to clean up her mane and coat as best as she could, coughing into a hoof
>"Anonymous, you haven't been bought yet, have you?" she asked, looking around.
"Nope," you said, with just a hint of bitterness. "Still on the market."
>You watched as visible relief crossed over the mare's face
>"Oh, thank goodness. The mares must have had the same thought as I that you would be a high bid indeed."
>She reached into her saddle bag, and with some difficulty pulled out a big sack
>"My apologizes, darling. I would have been here much sooner, but it took some time to get the proper funds."
"Proper funds? Rare, what are you--"
>The unicorn dropped the sack in front of you, and with a start you realized that it was filled with bits
>"Two thousand bits," the mare said proudly. "It's nowhere near what you're worth, but unfortunately it was all I was able to acquire with the time I had."
>Two thousand bits?!
>Your house cost three hundred!
"Rarity, you really don't need anywhere near that much," you said. "You could probably get me for five bits."
>The mare scoffed
>"Nonsense! Anonymous, dear, you a stallion unlike any I've ever known. Intelligent, dashing, a rouge yes but kind and very good with foals. To even say you're worth a measly FIVE BITS is a disgrace and--"
