Rapidly Written Equine Tales

by Curious Mew

Winning and Giving in Los Pegasus

The garish colors and bright lights of the casino assaulted Twilight Sparkle's eyes while loud and rather unpleasant music launched a simultaneous attack on her ears. The alicorn stood disoriented and tried to take in her surroundings. Based on the architectural style, she surmised that it was supposed to be a representation of the pre-classical era. If so, then the large statue of a grim and fairly comical looking unicorn in the center of the room was presumably supposed to be Starswirl the Bearded. However, they had managed to get his beard completely wrong. It was far too long, even for somepony with the title “the Bearded”, as it snaked around the legs of the statue and off the pedestal on which it rested.

Not that it came as a surprise that accuracy was not a top concern. The employees wore uniforms that looked far more like modern Equestrian armor than anything that existed in Starswirl's time. Twilight sighed and shook her head. She would really need to give a lecture to whoever was in charge. And perhaps suggest a better name than “Unicorniluckia” for the casino. Despite the obvious flaws, it seemed to do well enough. The casino floor was packed with ponies standing at game tables and slot machines.

Twilight Sparkle wore a deep blue robe to hide her wings, as this was just supposed to be a nice vacation to celebrate her coronation. Her friends had suggested it, well really Rainbow Dash had been the driving force and the others had simply gone along. She had been assured that it would be different from anywhere else she had been. That promise, at least, was working out.

The cloak, however, did not seem to work. Perhaps it was because Rainbow Dash, a very visually distinct pony, was standing next to her. Even the most oblivious populace could only be unaware of the looks of a national hero for so long, after all. So, Twilight Sparkle angled her vision towards the ground to avoid the numerous ponies that stopped to gawk at the pair.

Rainbow Dash, on the other hoof, drank in the attention with enthusiasm. She shot smiles and winks at the crowd around them. She even signed a few autographs. She turned to Twilight and grinned. “C'mon, have some fun. That's what we're here for, after all!” she exclaimed.

“Yes,” Twilight replied in exasperation. “We are here to have fun. But my idea of fun does not involve being swarmed by ponies.”

Rainbow Dash shrugged and turned completely away from the crowd. “We're in a casino. Let's play something.”

“Rainbow Dash, the chances of actually winning anything are incredibly low. Casinos don't make money by offering fair chances,” Twilight stated flatly.

Rainbow Dash waved a hoof. “I know, I know. But you don't have to gamble much. Just one bit will get you three chances to win six bits at the most at the slots. Besides, what else are you going to do?”

It was a fair question. Twilight and Rainbow Dash weren't supposed to return to the hotel to meet up with their other friends for a few more hours. “Fine,” Twilight sighed. “But I'm only going to gamble one bit.”

“Suit yourself,” Rainbow Dash replied with a shrug. “I'm going to put all my money into it.”

“Rainbow Dash!”

“I was only joking!” she responded quickly. “I know that the odds aren't fair. I'll only put in one bit, just like you.”

The two friends pushed their way through the crowd toward the slot machines and took two adjacent machines. Rainbow Dash pushed a bit into the slot and pulled the lever.

A bit.

A bale of hay.

An apple.

She snorted and pulled the lever again.

A bit.

A bit.

An orange.

Rainbow Dash pulled the lever for her final chance.

A bale of hay.

A bale of hay.

A bale of hay.

She took off from the ground, jabbed a hoof in the air, and let out a small shout. She shot back down to the floor and waited as the machine presented her winnings. Four bits fell out of the machine and into her outstretched hoof. It wasn't the grand prize, but it was good enough. She turned to Twilight. “Did you get anything?”

“No,” the alicorn answered. “Not that I was expecting to. I'm surprised that you got even the secondary prize, frankly. I heard that the average casino in Los Pegasus pays out rewards to one pony every thirteen hours. I'm not sure if the data is exactly accurate, but it's probably close enough to the truth.”

“So now you're one bit poorer,” Rainbow Dash said slowly, looking at the four bits in her hoof. The quiet seemed to stretch on to Rainbow Dash. “Here,” she said suddenly, holding out two bits. “Since you only gambled because of me.”

“It's fine,” Twilight responded, shaking her head. “It was only one bit.”

“This way we each win a bit,” Rainbow Dash insisted. She grinned. “And if you really have concerns, just buy me something with yours. I hear that this casino has a great historical gift shop. Cheap, too.”

“Sure it does,” Twilight responded sarcastically. “I'm sure that they hired the best historians in Equestria to design the souvenirs. I can't promise anything, but come on.”

The two friends laughed and walked together to the very authentic representations of pre-classical era life present in the gift shop.

Author's Note:

Written for Prompt 409:

Viva Los Pegasus!:
Vacationing in Los Pegasus.