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// Albert Wesker and the Luxury Purchase 
// Story: My Little Wesker 
// by Iamdanny0 
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Fluttershy was never going to win awards for her social skill Wesker pondered but then... neither was he. She was affable enough company for the blond pony's liking and had an ability which seemed to evade many of Ponyville's citizens, the ability to not speak incessantly. That isn't to say that they spent the entire journey in complete silence, Wesker made the obligatory small talk and was able to confirm that his theory surrounding the pink-maned pegasus' cutie mark was correct. He also found out that Fluttershy was close friends with a few of the ponies he had met already, Applejack and Pinkie Pie of course but also Twilight and Rarity. She also made a reference to another pegasus called 'Rainbow Dash', who Wesker needed to keep an eye out for, from the sound of her escapades.

Eventually, Wesker and his companion reached Ponyville's town centre, a pleasant enough sprawl of market stands and charming homes. Fluttershy bade farewell as she passed the spa, apparently her and Rarity met there regularly to catch up. "It was nice to meet you, Albert. Have a nice day."

Wesker inclined his head politely, "The same to yourself, Miss Fluttershy, I shall see you later today." She gave a small smile and with that exited into the spa, a building which Wesker felt catered far too readily for the idle and those with too much money lining their pockets but he couldn't begrudge her a little relaxation, it seemed to him as though she was a mildly stressful situation away from a heart attack at all times.

Perhaps you should join her, Albert. It appears to me that you are one stressful situation away from transforming yourself into a monster and trying to drag your rivals into lava.

Wesker sighed, he felt he probably deserved that, his questionable sanity during the last few years of his previous life still irked him. He had seen the fates of Sergei, Birkin and countless others who had lost their minds to the machinations of Spencer and Umbrella as a whole and promised himself that he would never lose control of his ice cold grip on reality, a promise he'd ultimately failed to keep... spectacularly. It was all in the past now, Wesker thought, he was 'back to normal' for want of a better expression and would never allow himself to be consumed with megalomania again... at least, no more than his personality naturally demanded.

A noble goal, Albert, let's see how long you manage to adhere to it before you break... again.

Wesker ignored the persistent Critical and ambled around the market in the fine, spring weather, this certainly beat pulling a plough into a distant second place. The weak glare of the early morning sun in his eyes was irritating, certainly, but it was undoubtedly better than having to walk into it whilst lugging a lump of iron behind him.

Eventually Wesker found the stall which gave him a bolt of culinary inspiration, run by a pony with carrots as her cutie mark. He could create some sort of carrot dish, it fitted the simple sensibilities of the Apple family but they were just versatile enough for Wesker to innovate with his creation.

The price of all the carrots that Wesker bought came to around 4 bits, he wasn't sure enough about Equestria's currency to attempt to bargain so he cordially exchanged them for the orange, root vegetables before tucking them away in the satchel by his side with an air of self-satisfaction. A second bolt of inspiration arrived, hot on the heels of the last. Carrots Vichy! Perfection... at least they would be under his expert care, then Applejack would acknowledge his superiority and then...

Hahaha! Al, you're not used to things being short term and just for fun are you?

Wesker blinked, there was that infernal word again; he supposed the cooking competition he and Applejack had devised was fun, it certainly sparked the competitiveness within him. Furthermore, it was indeed short-term, he didn't stand to properly gain anything from this affair, other than pride and he already had an ample supply of that. He shrugged off his musing, he had picked up an annoying tendency to introspect recently and it was causing him to doubt his previous actions and mindset, something which he had never been inclined to do. The past was the past, all that mattered was the present... and usually the future, but he was starting to feel that wasn't the case in Equestria.

The sun peeking out from behind Rarity's boutique disrupted his current thought process once more and he gritted his teeth. He wasn't super-sensitive to light anymore but the brightness still served to remind him of the laboratory accident when he was 15 which had damaged his eyes and caused corneal abrasion. He'd had to wear sunglasses every waking hour, a fact which hadn't duly bothered him as he didn't care what others had thought of him constantly wearing sunglasses, though it was a minor inconvenience. Of course, his rebirth after the Arklay incident heralded the complete renovation of his eyesight but he'd still worn his now trademark eyewear out of habit and due to his serpentine pupils; the irony had not been lost on him.

You did find it funny, Al. Just... no-one could tell.

As though summoned by his thoughts, a female stall owning pony with jet-black hair noticed his cutie mark and waved him towards her, he arched an eyebrow but decided to stroll over, he still had a lot of time to kill until Pinkie Pie's not-so formal soiree.

Wesker's confusion was well hidden and he politely begun speaking, "Good morning Miss, what is it you require?"

The stall owner smiled politely as her eyes flicked down to Wesker's cutie mark again, "Sorry to bother you sir, I don't suppose you're in the market for a pair of sunglasses are you? It's just that, well, I have a pair here that I've been trying to sell for a while and I thought, what with your cutie mark and all..." She let the sentence trail off, point firmly made.

Wesker grazed a hoof across his chin in contemplation, mildly affronted that ponies seemed to think that his 'special talent' appeared to be just wearing sunglasses. "May I see them?" The stall owner's smile widened in gratitude as she dug around on her side of the wooden structure, allowing Wesker to look around the stall he'd been summoned to, it appeared that she sold accessories. Pony watches, pony hats... pony sunglasses too, it appeared. Eventually, she unearthed the elusive glasses and held them up for Wesker's evaluation. The blond pony's eyes widened and he had to hold back a very uncharacteristic gasp; they were practically identical to the sunglasses he'd worn for most of his life, unfortunately his shock appeared to have been registered by the stall owner and she attempted to press the advantage.

"You like 'em, huh? Only 3 bits and they're all yours."

Wesker arched an eyebrow imperiously, "Correct me if I'm wrong, Miss but I believe you told me that you had been 'trying to sell them for a while'?" She nodded, slight frown on her lips at the minor slip-up she had made. "I'll give you 2 bits for them."

The black haired pony made several noises of contemplation before nodding reluctantly, "You sure do drive a hard bargain, sir."

Wesker smirked wryly as he fished into his bag to retrieve her payment, "I am famed for it, Miss." He slipped the sunglasses straight on as soon as they had been handed over by the lightly chuckling female pony.

Completion, it felt odd to see the world the world through a slightly darkened haze again but it also felt as though he had restored some key part of himself that he had lost when discarding the eyewear during the fight with Chris and his partner on the ship. Furthermore, he didn't feel as though this part of him was a danger to himself or others, it was like a calm assurance in his own mind that couldn't be shaken.

Unfortunately, the black-maned pony didn't appear to appreciate the significance of the moment as she merely smiled at Wesker before adding, "Thank you very much, sir. Enjoy your new glasses."

Wesker turned back as he walked off, surveying the stall owner from over the top of the lenses as a light smirk graced his features, "My pleasure, dear heart. I certainly will." His smirk grew as he saw the sheepish grin and light blush spread across her face before he turned back and walked towards a stall which sold herbs and spices. He was still in a positive mood once he'd paid for the thyme he was going to use to season his, undoubtedly soon-to-be, superb carrot dish. He now he had around 4 and a half hours until Pinkie Pie's party and he'd completed all his essential (relatively speaking) tasks for the morning.

Luckily, he had brought a few of Miss Twlight's books with him and removed one from his bag whilst settling down under the shade of a tree, humming contentedly at the familiar feel of his sunglasses shifting slightly down his nose at the movement. As he opened 'An Abridged History of Equestria', he realised that it was very difficult to read the words with his sunglasses on, as he had previously been attuned to the brighter environment.

Wesker sighed as he took the glasses off and settled them down on the grass next to him; practicality had no respect for the significance of his prized eyewear...