Rock Star's New Look! (Finished!)

[AlextheAngel]

"Nggh..." Dawn moaned as he stirred in his sleep, his ears twitching at every bump and squeak the train made. If he had not been so used to travelling on the loud thing, then he would have jolted awake with every bump he felt stirring the thing. Back when he first started travelling, it was next to impossible for the young stallion to get more than an hour or two of sleep due to all the noise and movement happening around him. It also did not help that it contributed to the night terrors he was prone to, which would be a major nuisance if he had a show set up the day he were to arrive. However, today he did not have a show he was going to. No, he was travelling to Manehatten for a completely different reason altogether. Ever since he was young, he had always wanted a tattoo, but growing up poor he was never able to afford such a thing... especially for the tattoo design he had in mind. Now that he was rich and famous, he figured that now would be as good a time as any to give himself a bit more of a "Metalhead" look. Of course, he was not getting this tattoo for just the look. To him, it had a bit more meaning behind it.

Dawn let out a heavy yawn and sat up as he felt the train begin to slow to a stop. He stretched a bit and grabbed his saddlebag that held all of his equipment, including his laptop which was basically considered his portable work space where he worked on all of his music editing, and stood up from his seat waiting patiently for the train to come to a complete stop.

 

"Mares and gentlecolts, welcome to Manehatten. Enjoy your stay!"

 

As soon as the uppity voice finished speaking over the intercom, the doors opened, allowing him to finally step off and stretch his legs. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a slip of paper that had the address written on it. All right... just a few blocks away. No big deal. He thought as he began walking. However, he noticed that many of the ponies began to stare curiously at him, obviously recognizing his face. He sighed and continued walking, hoping that a crowd would not form around him and block his path. Luckily, nopony actually approached him, which relieved him quite a bit. He loved his fans greatly, but there are times where he needs a break from signing autographs.

After about thirty minutes of walking through the town, the tattoo parlor he was looking for finally came in sight. He sighed with relief and reached to open the door...

 

"Hey! Excuse me!" Someone called.

 

Dawn stopped and turned around, finding a neon colored mare approaching him, a spark of excitement in her eyes.

 

The mare stopped in front of him blushing furiously and seeming extremely nervous. Obviously, she was a fan of his. "Y-you're Dawn, right? Dawn Whisper?"

 

Dawn smiled, trying to seem as friendly as possible. This would not be the first time he was boldly approached by a fan who was normally shy. "I am, yes." He said, turning away from the door for a moment.

 

The mare's blush intensified, and she rubbed the back of her neck. "Sorry to bother you... I'm a huge fan." She said, smiling. She reached into the bag she carried and pulled a CD case, and Dawn instantly recognized it as one of his. "I... was wondering if you would sign my CD? If you don't have time, I understand..."

 

"Oh, of course!" He said, smiling and pulling out a black marker. He took the CD and quickly signed his name on the cover of it, before handing it back to the mare. "There you go."

 

The neon mare squeaked in excitement and hugged the CD case to her chest, the display seeming rather cute to Dawn. "Eek! Thank you so much!" She said, before happily trotting off, giving him a few glances over her shoulder.

 

Dawn chuckled as he watched her skip away, feeling good that he had made another pony's day. Still smiling, he opened the door to Inkbrands Tattoo Parlor and stepped inside, looking around. "Um... Hello?"

[Zeig]

 

The pounding music coursed through him, but he didn't care, too caught up in the mass of silken onyx within his hooves. She, little minx that she was, only smiled and demurred up at him, coyness tinging the deep purple of her gaze, and buck if that didn't make him run hotter. Just a little more, a little closer - and there it was, the dark corner he could swoop her into. And did.

"Easy baby," he murmured against her head, taking in the startled gasp with a fierce grin of his own, "I've got 'ya." And yes, she relaxed, giving up all pretenses of that shy and fleeting game, eyes smoldering as he leaned in to grab his reward -

- and got a mouthful of pillow for his efforts.

"A-huh, whassat," the tattoo-clad stallion murmured, words eschewed by the pillow he was currently attempting to eat as he, blearily, awoke from slumber. Such a reckless action immediately proved detrimental as Inkbrand rolled over, only to be greeted by a searing blast of sunlight from Celestia knew where. The grey Earth Pony could only groan as he pulled the half-chewed pillow back over his eyes for protection, half attempting to sweep up the remains of the wonderful dream he'd been having, and half attempting to find it in himself to get up out of bed.

That was a challenge worthy of royalty, in and of itself.

It wasn't a drunken coma that was keeping him down and out of the count, however - despite the affliction being the most common of reasons for a bedridden medley. No, Inkbrand was just tired. That's what happened when he tried to be a Good Pony and go Good Deeds, he supposed - he got a sore back, bruised hooves, and rot-eating friends who could pass out on the side of the road for all he cared.

...Though it was apparent that Sharp Zing hadn't tottered off home. There was clearly somepony moving around downstairs.

With an enormous groan, Inkbrand forced himself out of his comfortable bed and towards his bathroom, lethargically going through the bare necessities of a morning routine. Buck, Zing better not be eating all his food, he hadn't had a chance to go grocery shopping yet. In short order the tattoo-clad stallion had brushed his teeth and splashed his face off, and with a half-hearted attempt at combing his mane through with one hoof, he was making his way down the stairs.

"You're paying me back, you son of a diamond dog," Inkbrand half-growled, half-yawned as he mussed up his mane some more, making his way to the landing and parlor, "for yesterday and anything you're pilfering from my - eh?"

...Huh. That, was not Sharp Zing staring at him from the doorway.

...Huh. Why the buck was this guy that was not Sharp Zing inside his shop?

...

"Oh, 'ya gotta be kidding me," Inkbrand muttered under his breath, glaring at the open doorway. Zing had taken off and forgotten to lock up after himself? Figures - that's exactly what he got for doing his One Good Deed for the day. At least he'd locked up everything last night, especially the closet that housed all his precious materials - magically coded to only himself, too. A quick glance around showed nothing else out of the ordinary, but Inkbrand couldn't help but turn a suspicious eye onto the intruder.

Or, customer. Either or.

"Eh, sorry about that," the grey Earth Pony finally said, waving a vague hoof through the air as he trot around the parlor, checking to make sure everything was in its place, "wasn't really expecting somepony this early." The sun beamed merrily at him from the open doorway, causing Inkbrand to hastily cast his scowl a different direction before he returned his direction back onto the stallion, cocky grin once again in place. "In the market for an inking, yeah?"

Best guess anyways - the stallion didn't look like any mail or delivery pony, and he, well. Was running a tattoo parlor, 'n all.
 

 

 

 

[AlextheAngel]

The first thing that Dawn noticed about the interior of the parlor was the abundance of unique tattoo designs lining the walls. Many of them were unlike anything he had ever seen before, and they intrigued him greatly. His eyes darted about, taking in as much as he could, but still felt a bit overwhelmed. The ones that mainly caught his attention were the full-body designs that would, without a doubt, cost most ponies their entire life savings in order to request. Of course, someone of Dawn's status could easily afford such a thing. However, he was not there for a full-body design... at least, not yet. Depending on how well the quality was of the tattoo he had in mind, he might come back for a few more.

He glanced up when he heart someone trotting down the stares, blinking as the grey tattoo-clad pony came into view, mumbling something under his breath. Dawn backed up a bit, smiling nervously. "Um... Hello. I..." He stopped as he noticed the pony casting him a rather suspicious look, and how exhausted he seemed. He calmed down a bit when they grey Earth Pony apologized to him, trotting around the parlor.

"Oh... Is it really that early?" Dawn asked, checking his watch and letting out a heavy sigh. "Sorry about that, I was in a bit of a hurry to get here. The door was unlocked, so I thought this place was open." He reached up and rubbed the back of his neck upon hearing the last question. "I am, actually. My name is Dawn Whisper. I've been looking for a place to get a nice tattoo, and one of my fans recommended this place. You're Inkbrand, right?" He smiled and politely reached out for a hoofshake.

[Zeig]

 

Some bucking friend he was, leaving his shop unlocked like that. Last time he did something nice for Zing, that was for bucking -

"Got it 'n one," Inkbrand said, rather cheerfully for the amount of time he'd been awake, ignoring the hoofshake to instead bump his hoof against the outstretched one, "best bucking tattoo artist in Equestria." The tattoo-clad stallion waved off the comment about the open door, instead gesturing for the stallion to make his way further inward, casually casting an eye out for anything untoward or suspicious strewn about, like a beer can or bits of clothing. "Yeah, opened up about an hour earlier," he hazarded, "went upstairs to...uh, check on my pet. Didn't hear you walk in."

Yeah, yeah, that was good. No sense telling a stallion that the place had been left unlocked last night - he might figure his shop to be an easy target and set up for something a little more extravagant than an innocent tattooing job. 'Course, Inkbrand didn't exactly have any plans to ever leave his shop unlocked ever again, but hay.

Manehattan just wasn't a good place to announce mistakes like that.

Inner musings aside, Inkbrand took a moment to look back over his newfound client, eyeing him critically. Dawn Whisper, huh? Sounded a bit familiar...maybe he was a musician? The shaggy hair indicated either sloppiness or a rough-n-tumble public appeal, both of which would fit a lounging musician. Or maybe he was just an average Pony Joe off the streets.

Either or, all Inkbrand really cared about was if Whisper had the bits to pay up, and the grey Earth Pony wasted no time hefting himself onto his stool, patting one hoof on the tattoo table as he grabbed his sketchpad. "So what kind of tat are you lookin' for," he queried, eyebrows raised questioningly at the other Earth Pony. "what kind of style? If it can be drawn, I can put it on your flank," Inkbrand bragged, briefly casting one hoof around at the myriad of ink designs decorating the parlor walls.

And it was pretty much true. So long as Whisper didn't ask for some bucking Unicorn bullrot, he was all set.
 

 

 

 

[AlextheAngel]

Dawn blinked a bit in surprise when Inkbrand bumped his hoof against his own, rather than shaking it. Not that he could complain at all, as it was all the same for him, but it felt a bit strange. Lately, he had gotten used to the formal, professional hoofshake. Upon hearing the confidence in the tattoo-clad pony's response, Dawn nodded and smiled, seeming rather amused. It was not that he did not believe it or anything, but many ponies he had met who were a bit overconfident had a bad habit of... not meeting expectations. Of course, he did not have much of a reason to question this one, considering how impressive the designs were that covered the walls. He had a feeling that he was going to like this one. "The best in Equestria, hm? All right, then."

 

The beige-colored pony walked further into the shop upon seeing Inkbrand gensure for him to come in. He strolled about for a moment, staring with unwavering interest at all of the different tattoo designs displayed all about. He let out a small chuckle at the artist's excuse for why the door was open. Dawn knew for a fact that he had arrived too early, and had woken Inkbrand up from a rather peaceful slumber given how exhausted he looked when he trotted down the stairs. However, he decided not to say anything. Not just because he feared it would be impolite, but because it was never a good idea to announce that somepony had forgotten to lock up after themselves, no matter where they were in Equestria. He went back to looking at the designs on the walls, completely unaware of the tattoo artist staring at him.

 

Dawn's ears twitched as he heard Inkbrand tap his hoof on the tattoo table, and tore his gaze away from the impressive designs, before making his way to the table. "All right..." He said, running a hoof through his brown mane. "I was thinking of a sort of serpentine dragon. I've heard that they resemble strength and bravery, which is what ninety percent of my songs are about. I visualized having the image of the dragon coiled all down my right foreleg, with its head resting near my hoof. I also think it would be fun if it looked as if the dragon's claws were digging into the skin as if he were latched on."

[Zeig]

 

Whelp. If he'd had any doubts before, Whisper cleared them up real fast.

Though the music choice left a lot to be inspired, Inkbrand mused privately to himself as he tapped a pencil thoughtfully against his sketchbook, staring at the other stallion. Strength and bravery, really? Did he sing odes tho his public about the inner strength within all ponies, or fighting fear and being brave in the face of the unknown? Please. The tattoo-clad stallion himself was pretty fit, if he did say so himself - and he did - but that seemed kinda awkward to bellow out into a crowd. Give him a roaring guitar with belting lyrics about some pretty mare, and he was golden.

Inkbrand supposed, however, that if it could be sold, it would be sung about. Personally, Inkbrand tended to listen to the lyrics and the instrumental equally, but some ponies just liked a jam they could rock their heads too, for all they could be singing about vegetables.

...Huh. Fruits and vegetables. There was, probably song about those, somewhere. Definitely.

Whatever music Whisper did perform was none of his business, in the long run, and despite Inkbrand's initial impression, the requested tattoo gave him a better image. "Eastern-type dragon, huh?" he questioned pensively, sharp golden eyes still trained on the other stallion. At least the musician pretty much knew what he wanted, which as a far cry from most of the one-time clients that visited his parlor. Heming and hawing and wasting his time, buck. "Easy enough."

With a quick flick of his hoof, the pencil was scratching against the surface of the sketchpad, drawing out the rough preliminary of an eastern-styled dragon. Inkbrand's eyes furrowed as he worked, though they snapped back onto Whisper in short time. "Got any colors in mind?" he asked, running a critical eye over the stallion's body. "'Less you make hair dye jobs a habit of yours, you probably want some shade of red. Hum...maybe a dark purple, for its fur, too."
 

 

 

 

[AlextheAngel]

Dawn nodded, giving a small grin. "Yes, Eastern-styled. Right." He said rather quickly, a trace of uneasiness in his voice. In all honesty, he did not know what style the dragon was that he had in mind, and he worried that not knowing such a simple and particularly obvious title would make him come off as ignorant. Oh, well. What's done is done, no use dwelling on it now. At least he knew the name for future reference, in case he decided to get another dragon tattooed on his pelt.

 

His chest leaped with excitement as he heard the gentle scratching of the pencil tip against the sketch pad, every once in a while glancing at the small design. Inkbrand was a rather excellent artist, if the beige pony did say so himself. It was no wonder that so many have come all the way to Manehatten just for a tattoo. Dawn himself was somewhat of an artist, but he could not draw to save his life. However, he was fairly good with Photoshopping, and had used some of his works as artwork for his first album... that was before countless artists volunteered to create the art for him. If he ever wanted to, then Dawn believed Inkbrand would fit right in with the rest of them...

 

It did not take the tattoo-clad pony very long to finish the sketch, before Dawn heard him asking about the color. He was stumped for a moment, unsure of what to say. He had not thought about color... "W-well, to be honest, I... uh... I thought of maybe a greenish-blue for the primary, but now that I think about it, I think red and dark purple would be much better. People usually say that I don't look the... ah... "Metal" type. So, I think that would be much better." By Celestia, I am a terrible liar...

[Zeig]

 

...Metal, type?

Whether Dawn Whisper was implying that green and blue eastern dragons were more metal than red and purple ones, or that any dragon theme in general was meant to improve his image as a metal musician, was completely lost on Inkbrand. All the grey Earth Pony could do was tilt his head, slightly, with nothing more than a single "Uh-huh" in response.

In all honesty, Inkbrand wouldn't know much about the former - but if it was the latter, than he could easily see the appeal. Tattoos, for all he loved their potentially introspective nature, were traditionally seen as "edgy", or offbeat. Some ponies simply used tattoos to give themselves a certain look and feel, to appeal to whatever target crowd they were advertising themselves too. One side of him balked at the idea of a pony tattooing themselves purely for show, but the other shrewd, business side of him commended the dedication.

Assuming that business and personal interests collided, of course. If they worked in harmony, well then, hay. Kudos to the pony.

"Red 'n purple it is, then," the tattoo-clad stallion grinned, fetching his massage oils and rolling his stool towards the other stallion's right foreleg. "Keep yourself as still as possible, right? This'll be done quick."

And quick it was, because he was an experienced professional, the best in his business - and perhaps because his client was a stallion and not a smoking hot mare. That certainly helped keep concentration on the tattoo. The massage was finished in short time, allowing Inkbrand to immediately move onto the actual tattooing, thin paintbrush held firmly in his grasp. The overall design wasn't all that difficult, but the needed details - dragon scales, fine hair - required precision.

Precision, and the best bucking tattooing artist in Equestria.

It was a little while later when Inkbrand carefully removed the brush from Whisper's leg, gazing over the tattoo with a critical eye that eventually turned appreciative as he gestured for the other stallion to stand. "And there it is," the grey Earth Pony crowed, jabbing a hoof at the large, full length mirror standing on one side of the tattoo parlor, "all done. Try finding another artist who can paint that onto your flank, eh?"
 

 

 

 

[AlextheAngel]

As soon as Inkbrand began to put the tattoo onto his pelt, Dawn tensed up, but refused to move at all. It hurt, but not horribly so. It was definitely something he could handle without freaking out. He let out a sigh and watched as the other Earth Pony continued embedding the rough sketch of an eastern dragon on his foreleg, wincing every now and then. It was his first tattoo, so it was only natural that he would be a bit jumpy about it. Of course, he made absolutely sure to keep himself still, for fear of accidentally screwing the whole thing up... and possibly having to start over. And from what he heard, getting a tattoo removed was much more painful. Yeah... I'd rather not...

 

He wanted to strike up some sort of conversation, since usually a tattoo would take quite a bit of time to complete. However, before Dawn could even come up with a good topic to ramble on, Inkbrand suddenly stepped back, admiring his handiwork and claiming that he was done. Dawn blinked in surprise. That was... quick. He looked down at his left foreleg, his eyes widening a bit. He stood up from the seat and walked over to the mirror Inkbrand gestured to, staring at the reflection.

 

"Wow." He said, at a loss for words. The image of the dragon was coiled from his shoulder, all the way down to where the dragon's head rested near his hoof. The color looked perfect, and the detail put into the design was none short of amazing. This was a true work of art. He now believed that Inkbrand just night be one of the greatest tattoo artists in Equestria. "That's just... wow. I'm speechless. I... I love it." He said with a chuckle, before reaching into his saddlebag. "How much would that be, then? There's also something I want to give you. Just as a little tip, if that's all right with you?" He had quite a sizable bag of bits in his saddlebag, along with a few strips of paper. "I don't do this often, but I have backstage tickets to my next concert in Canterlot. If you want, I can give you one. You can even invite a friend. Once the concert is over, I usually take the backstage guests out for a few drinks. What do you say?"

[Zeig]

 

Huh. That was a bit strange.

At least he hadn't messed up the tat, even if Inkbrand couldn't figure out why the other stallion had kept wincing and flinching during the tattooing process. Was he ticklish? Didn't like paintbrushes running back and forth over his flank? Or had Whisper just been regretting his choice of tattoo the entire time but'd been too chicken to admit it?

Well, whatever. The tattoo was finished, and as Inkbrand observed Whisper checking out his new ink, he was ninety-eight percent confident that the other stallion was pleased. More than pleased. So pleased, in fact, that the grey Earth Pony didn't bother hiding the smug smile that spread over his face as Whisper expressed his pleasure, running a hoof through his mane. "Well 'ya know," he stated, with a self-satisfied sigh, "I am the best bucking tattoo artist in Equestria for a reason, that."

The inevitable question of payment came up next, causing Inkbrand to lean backwards in his seat, rubbing the back of his head contemplatively. Before he could give a price however, Whisper surprised him with a tip - and not the usual kind either. Inkbrand raised an eyebrow as he listened, somewhat amused that a musician would consider tickets to his show on equal to a monetary tip - though, that amusement quickly faded as Whisper continued to talk, allowing Inkbrand to pump a hoof into the air.

"Free drinks?" the grey stallion quipped, never questioning if said drinks were actually free or not, "buck yeah, count me in. Bet Red'll get a kick outta this." Well, why the hay not? It'd be a good chance to his work in action, so to speak - maybe even get an earful of whatever crowd exclaiming how amazing Whisper's new tattoo was.

"Let's make it two hundred bits even," Inkbrand finally said, spinning his stool slightly as he eyed the other stallion, flashing the other a quick wink. "And if you have any other rocker friends who're in the market for some new ink, you know where to send them, eh?"

 

 

 

 

 

[AlextheAngel]

Dawn was a bit amused by Inkbrand's smugness, but he was honestly too ecstatic to say anything about it. He was even more amused at the tattoo-clad pony's reaction when the rock star mentioned free drinks. It was a bit strange... usually, ponies would be more excited that they get to spend personal time with one of the best Metal musicians in all of Equestria. Then again, Inkbrand was not too familiar with him, so it was understandable how the concept of free beer would be more appealing. "Excellent! Then these are for you and... um... Red, was it?" He said, sliding the two backstage passes over to Inkbrand. "When you head to the back, just show those to the two guards there. A little warning, though: They tend to get pretty suspicious even with the backstage passes. They once accused one of my best friends of illegally manufacturing them." He said with a chuckle. "You should be fine, though. If worse comes to worse, tell them to ask me personally and I'll work it out. It shouldn't have to come to that, though."

 

He took a moment to count out the bits needed to pay for the glorious tattoo, before also sliding that over to him. "There you go. Two hundred bits, you said?" With that, he stood up from his seat, giving a chuckle at the last comment. "Oh, don't worry about that. I'll make sure to put in a good word for you. Once I do, I can guarantee that you'll be having a lot more customers that usual. I'm pretty popular, after all. Anyway, thanks again. I really appreciate it. And I guess I'll see you next week in Canterlot."

[Zeig]

 

What, really? Did Whisper hire monkeys for security? Or did he actually have so many fans creating fake tickets that they needed to call the musician himself for confirmation?

Eh, whatever, all he really cared about was the free drinks. Inkbrand waved the passes around a bit in the air before settling them back onto the table, grin on his face. "Hey thanks bro," he said cheerfully, taking a moment to stretch his forelegs over his head, alleviating some of the ache that naturally came with bending over to paint tattoos all day. Buck, he needed to visit the spa sometime soon. Nothing said "goodbye aching back" like a professional massage administered by a smoking hot mare.

Well. That and a couple of salt cubes.

Inkbrand didn't bother getting up as Dawn Whisper made to take his leave, though he did have to raise an eyebrow at the other stallion's parting comment. Pretty popular huh? Good to know. The grey stallion waved away Whisper's thanks, grin tilting upwards a notch as he watched the other pony leave, before his shop fell silent once again, allowing Inkbrand to let loose a yawn and absently scratch at his belly.

Still just about mid-day. He was already up, so...he should probably get some work done.

...Yeah no, buck that. The tattoo-clad stallion flounced upwards from his seat, and - after a quick detour to lock the front door - quickly made his way back up the stairs. There was a pillow and a mattress that were both calling out his name, and let it never be said Inkbrand never answered the call.

 

 

 

[[ End ]]