To say that Rainbow Dash was frustrated would have been an understatement. She and Fluttershy had been all over the Rainbow Falls Traders Exchange, bargained for every kind of obscure item that a pony could think of, and been through all manner of stress to boot, and after all of that, it now seemed as though it had all been in vain. For here they were, back where they started, at the stall which possessed the one thing in this entire place that Rainbow had wanted, a mint-condition first edition copy of "Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Statue".

The book in question was right there, on the table, and was receiving Dash's full attention. But as close as she was to owning it, one stumbling block remained. The book's current owner, the one who was running the stall, was no longer interested in trading for it, at least not for what Rainbow and Fluttershy had been told she'd wanted. And speaking of which, that trade now stood alongside Fluttershy. A massive, two-headed dog, which was at this moment slobbering over the surrounding grass. The stall's owner looked at the thing with some disdain and fear, having already expressed her apprehension for owning it, despite having shown a desire for it earlier.

However, much to Rainbow's good fortune, Fluttershy now spoke out in the animal's defence.

"Oh, it just needs careful training. With a little patience, and a big slobber-pot, they can be a very faithful household pet."

Rainbow looked on as the creature now enthusiastically leapt forward onto the stall, taking it's owner by surprise and lathering her face with a number of affectionate licks. For a brief moment, Dash was worried that this might make the owner even less willing to take the creature. But, to Rainbow's surprise, the mare actually broke out into a smile and started chuckling.

"Oh ho! All right, all right! I'll trade you..."

Dash's expression lit up as she saw the vendor pick up the Daring Do book and hand it over to her, ready for her to take it. The cyan-coloured pegasus broke out into a massive smile as she gazed upon the book, looking upon it with utter awe, not to mention a hungry look not dissimilar to the dog she was standing next to. However, before Dash could claim the book as her own, the owner then pointed a hoof at Fluttershy.

"...if she comes and stays with us in Manehattan until it's trained!"

That remark broke Rainbow out of her trance-like state, replacing her previously-enthusiastic expression with one of shock. She turned around and looked over to Fluttershy, who had been similarly taken aback by this turn of events. It was clear that the demure pegasus was thinking things over. Rainbow knew her long enough to know that she would not be inherently opposed to spending a long time in training an animal, especially since she'd grown so find of the beast in their brief time here. But, even so, it was clear from her somewhat worried expression that there was more on her mind than this.

"Gosh! Training one of these takes a long time. I'll probably be gone from Ponyville for...I don't even know how many moons."

Those words hit Rainbow pretty hard as she saw her friend turn away, weighing her decision in her mind. Turning back, Rainbow looked once more at the book offered before her. This was, after all, the very thing she'd come here to find in the first place. And here it was, so very close. But she knew that this vendor wasn't going to settle for the trade unless Fluttershy went with her, and that absolutely did not sit well with Rainbow one bit, as evidenced by her words to her childhood friend.

"Fluttershy...is this something you're okay with?"

The yellow pegasus looked away a little, as though unwilling to look Rainbow in the eye. Her voice was hushed as she spoke.

"Well, um...if it gets you your book...then I guess I can live with it."

There were moments in Rainbow's life when she could not believe what her friends are willing to do for her, and this was most definitely one of those days. She looked at Fluttershy's face, seeing absolute honesty there, and knew that she was more than willing to go through with this, leave her home, just to make Rainbow's dream of owning this book come true. Rainbow looked down at that book, only a few inches away from her, and gave it an intense glare. When she first came here, it meant the world to her. Now though, it just looked like a pile of paper pages.

Both Fluttershy and the vendor then looked at Dash with confusion as the latter began to chuckle.

"Fluttershy...sometimes I wonder if you should have been the element of loyalty."

The demure mare tilted her head in confusion over that, not quite understanding her friend's words. But what happened next absolutely shocked her, as Dash placed one hoof on the book and pushed it back towards the vendor in a clear sign of rejection, with Dash's expression being one of contentment all the way.

"Thanks for the offer...but I already have everything I need."

The vendor looked somewhat irritated by this, perhaps thinking that this was a complete waste of her time, and turned away from the pair of them to get back to packing her goods away. Rainbow turned to Fluttershy, who was still shocked that Rainbow had done this for her, even knowing it would cost her what she came here for, and looked on as Rainbow placed her hoof on her shoulder, still smiling.

"Come on. The others will be waiting."

It took a few moments, but Fluttershy broke out into her usual smile, and she nodded back at her friend, clearly appreciating that she meant more to her than this. And so the two began to walk back across the Exchange, with their slobbery two-headed dog still in-tow.