Meow

Sterling spared a moment to glance after Ashton as he wandered over to the bar, pleased to see that Martini was taking up the social slack - it was so good having staff on hand again after some months without much help. With one customer covered she could turn her attention back to the feathered female who was still at the table as the griffin seemed interested in carrying on their little chit chat. Sterling only smiled in response to the other as Lola was turning her options over and over again, considering not only herself but the companions whom she was traveling with - the unicorn being one Sterling assumed.

"That's quite understandable, please do keep the Quarry in mind the next time you need accommodations in these parts though." Sterling offered with a smile and nod of her head as wings adjusted against either side of her and helped to straight the vibrant material that was situated on her rear end over her long tail. Sterling laughed ever so slightly at Lola's sly smile as the griffin's interested piqued at the mention of her family name.

"Not much I'm afraid, neither good nor bad - only that it is a well known name among your kind. I'm not quite sure what business others of yours have had through these parts but your family name and a few others have been mentioned in conversation." This was pretty much the truth, Sterling didn't often have time to socialize when she was short-handed with staff, and even less with traveling griffins who didn't always care for the chatter with a pony. On occasion one might be inclined, but not all that often.

(( So sorry about the wait. D: ))

"None that I can think of!" She called over her shoulder to Satchel as she was heading up the stairs to straighten up used rooms. "But you be sure to drop in again on your way back as usual, darling." She offered, pausing at the second floor landing to flash the other a smile. A pretty black-tipped wing lifting to give a bit of a wave to him before she had turned the corner and disappeared down the hallway.

Sterling made quick and easy work of tidying up the rooms that had been used that evening - thankfully neither of the stallions seemed all that messy and after putting a few things in order and removing bed sheets she was headed out again. Descending the stairs she had the bed sheeting piled on her back and paused only a moment to see that her quests were being taken care (which they were thanks to Martini) before heading out back to do some washing.

A quiet hum and a bit of drifting off with her thoughts and the washing was done, bedsheets toss up over a line. Sterling's washing room was behind the Quarry in a room of its own - one with glass windows that would let in the sun and heat to dry wash without allowing the dust in to ruin the cleaning that had been done. Tasks done she was free to rejoin her quests and tender, slipping behind the bar behind the unicorn with a quiet smile and a nod of approval.

Sterling exchanged a few curious glances between griffin and pony before Lola would monopolize her attention for conversation which Sterling was polite enough to grant her. A faint nod of her head was given as Lola went on to mention her lodge situation and the hostess took a moment to consider. "If you'd like I can certainly arrange for your accommodations to be moved here.." It would be a minor deal adjustment between Sterling and the innkeeper in town, usually with the innkeeper borrowing one of Sterling's staff members for a few hours of labor to make up for the customer though Sterling was not familiar with the inn-pony's views of griffins which would certainly change how things were handled.

She was flattered by the other's compliment for her business strategies and as the introduction was made it cleared up the suspicions Sterling had had about the other. "Ah, Silverbeak.. I've heard of your family a bit, at least from a few griffins that come through here though as you could imagine we don't have many. Sterling Stone, a pleasure indeed." She couldn't help but chuckle faintly at the news that she and Ashton shared a name segment as she turned to given the unicorn a slight nod of her head.

Her gaze left Ashton after he'd excused himself from the table and wandered off to greet Martini at the bar. Lola would find she was not a fool at all as Sterling extended a hoof and settled it into the griffin's claw for a friendly shake.

It had been a number of days since Damsel had made a modest purchase at the small bookstore where she'd crossed paths with the stallion know as Escrime searching for his manuscript. The experience had only served to encourage Damsel that the book shop was something she wanted to continue pursuing despite the slight protesting from the aging stallion who could not longer properly run the place. After an evening meal with her father, a trusted friend to the old stallion he had finally agreed to retire - selling his shop to the eager young mare with the hope she could bring the place back to life.

A few days has passed while all the paperwork was being arranged but nearly a week and half later Damsel stood outside the shop she now owned. She couldn't help but smile even at the pitiful sight of the small shop that would need quite a bit of work, it was her's. Stepping forward she stooped to deposit a small stand up bulletin board with a freshly painted sign on the front to stand up near the front door.

Under New Management!

Once that was in place she unlocked the front door and propped it open to get some air and light inside. Sure enough the old shop was still cluttered and messy from her last visit though half of the books that had been piled on the floor were still in the neat piles she had arranged while browsing the weeks before. Her ivory horn immediately began to glow with a faint rosy pink hue and the mare's elegant long mane twisted and wound itself up into a neat bun along with her long tail until most of the golden strands were tucked and clipped into place by pins from a bag she carried over her shoulder.

The saddlebags were lowered on the front counter and the mare set to work humming happily to her. Pile after pile of books were levitated from the floor or from a book shelf and into a box then the box was taken outside where the weather was nice and she could get a little bit of work room in the shop. As books were moved aside Damsel made note of where the building structure needed repairs and which book shelves needed to be fixed or replaced.

CREDITS and THANK YOUS

MINOR CHARACTERS

(Minor Characters will be played when the proper opportunities arise.)

Taxi laughed a bit under his breath and allowed Fluttershy to take over before turning back to his establishment. In a few moments he had the garage door pulled back down into place and kicked the lock back. He felt mighty good about himself.. it was always nice to meet the neighbors, even more so when they were pegasi, though he and Fluttershy reacted different there was no reason why they couldn't be friendly - and he rather liked the kid, he had spunk and spirit.

Chuckling to himself Taxi turned and moved to trot behind and follow the pair for awhile. At first it did seem like all the movement was from the pushing female.. but after awhile the kid's flapping wings would at least give him the balance Fluttershy had mentioned. After awhile of watching Taxi came to two conclusions.. one, he was tired, he'd never made it home after all; two, Fluttershy seemed to have it under control.

"Well, it looks like you two have a handle on this.. I'll be going, just got back from a long trip and my aging wings can use the rest.. not to mention these eyes.." As though to accent the point Taxi gave a rather large yawn.. "That scooter is yours now kid so don't you worry about returning it, but if it gives you any trouble you just let me know and I'll fix it good as new. Nice to meet you Miss Fluttershy, I'm sure you can handle him from here." He remarked, patting Starlight on the head and giving Fluttershy a slight nod - "You two have fun."

Stretching and wiggling a bit to ease out some sleepiness Taxi took off, he was still pretty fast despite getting older as he headed back towards Cloudsdale where he was sure he'd sleep a whole day away.

(Taxi is Out. )

Sterling spare glances between the griffin and pony quite curiously.. this was an interested pair of travelers - it was rare to see such.. actually, come to think of it Sterling was quite sure she'd never seen a griffin and pony that were traveling together. She gave herself a moment to wonder what strange circumstances had let to this before finding the pair were speaking again and providing them her attention. The griffin's suspicions about her company being famished seemed to be right on as the unicorn confirmed that he could do with a bite to eat.

Before heading back to the bar Sterling took a moment to excuse herself from Lola's comments graciously. Thankfully she still had some sandwiches made for the group that were situated at the bar so she collected a few from the try onto a separate plate and returned to settle them before Ashton with a gentle smile.

"I do during most seasons, travelers don't have many accommodations around these parts, it's either here at the Quarry, the inn in town or on the hard rock outside; but my business isn't my only means of income." She explained before returning to Lola a smile similar to the griffin's own.. though she was still trying to determine what about this griffin she knew or recalled.

Sterling was arranging muffins as the ponies began rushing and quite literally stumbling back into the main room of the Quarry, three trays each with a selection of the fruit muffins spread down the bar in perfect intervals so that ponies didn't have to crowd around one tray for a bite to eat. A light chuckle left the pegasus and she gave a light shake of her head to herself but was overall thankful to have ponies back at the Quarry that had been so relatively dead and quiet the past few weeks.

"Good Morning ponies.." She chimed in happily - somehow or another Sterling managed to be perky and delightful even in the early morning. A knowing smile crossed her face as her attention turned to Martini as the bartender made her way around to take her place behind it near where Sterling was settled. "Don't you fret darling, I know you got a youngin' so I don't mind you being occasionally late or anything, I'm more then willing to be flexible with you." Sterling reassured the unicorn even as she was fetching a few napkins to set on the bar before the stallions.

Sterling was just glad to have another bartender, being flexible to accommodate for the unicorn's foal was something she was more then willing to do if it meant Martini would keep the job - and be good at it. Turning next to Dio, Sterling smiled, "Good Morning.. This fellow looks like he could use a morning after drink, don't all you bartenders have something like that in your repertoire?" She greeted the stallion before mentioning to Martini and then moving on to her next guest.

"Here you go darling." Sterling chimed in as she settled one strawberry and one banana muffin onto a napkin and pushed them towards Satchel. "Let Martini know if you want anything to drink." A lovely smile spared to the trio before Sterling made her way to the stairs to fetch the used bed linens so they could be washed and hung out to dry.

Taxi chuckled to himself at Fluttershy's gentle scolding - he supposed that was wise to offer the kid some sort of light discipline and warning about his adventures. He'd let the mare handle that further as he fetched the scooter and brought it back. He watched then as Starlight situated himself on the scooter and took a grasp on the handle bars. For awhile Taxi eyed it a bit nervously trying to decide if the handlebar was to high.. yes, a bit and though Starlight got a hold of it Taxi wanted to make sure he could always keep a firm grip when he eventually got good on the thing.

Turning and departing Taxi approached one of the work benches and went searching through the toolboxes before finding a wrench and returning to the pair. "Shftep bacah.." Taxi mumbled around the wrench and gave Starlight a light nudge before he went to work. Screws and bolts loosened and suddenly the handlebar sank. He waved Starlight back and with the foal standing nearby reaching for the handles Taxi adjusted it to the youngster's height before firmly tightening it back.

"I think his flight helmet will serve the same purpose." Taxi remarked after setting the wrench aside with a slight chuckle before he wandered around behind Starlight as the kid got back on to the scooter. "Well, other ponies, they usually have to use their hooves, you put one on the ground and use it to push yourself. But. We as pegasus can use our wings.. Think of it as.. flying on the ground? It'll be a great way to make your wings stronger."

Sterling moved outside the Rhinestone that had finally quieted down after the previous evening, smiling brightly to herself as she lifted herself onto her hind hooves and went through the process of scratching out a few positions on her Help Wanted sign in great satisfaction. Not only did she have business again - but she'd hired not one, but two new staff members in a promising hiring spree. Scratching her pen through the blocky lettering she'd made so it was readable she took a moment to write in a new addition she wanted after how busy it had gotten the previous evening she let herself down and stepped back to look over her work with a slight nod.

HELP WANTED

- Repair Worker(s)

- Cook

- Waiter/Waitress/Server(s)

Inquire Within

With a Bartender and Entertainer now on the payroll she was down to needing a cook and a handy pony or two, but after the bustling crowd she'd decided a few extra serving hooves wouldn't be bad either. She gave a slight sigh to herself in quiet peace and delight before moving back along the porch and slipping inside. Any ponies from the previous night that weren't being housed in their own homes or at the local inn were given rooms here at the Quarry and it being still somewhat early she expected most of them to still be slumbering though Sterling herself was an early riser.

Sterling with the help of her new employees had cleaned up the saloon the previous night and now it was fresh and clean and ready for a new crowd of patrons today. Already Sterling was running over a list of things she might need to do, she'd have to double check her stock of drinks after having so many at the bar last night, and see about restocking her kitchen for when she finally hired a cook. The table that had been knocked over by a clumsy unicorn had been repaired and a new vase and flower arrangement were sitting on it as the usual center piece.

Moving back around the bar and ducking into the kitchen Sterling immediately began wiping up breakfast - this morning would be a mix of different fruit muffins that baked and were then set out on a selection of trays at the bar for when ponies emerged from rooms upstairs or came stumbling in the front door.

(( OOC; For those that want a time reference, this is the following morning from [bareback Gulch] the Rhinestone Quarry ))

Sterling had almost forgotten how nice it was to have some support staff behind her, taking a moment to spare a lingering glance to Djemba as the griffin complimented the pony's knowledge of her trade and Sterling beamed with some pride. A slight nod of her head was given as the griffin made her order, passing to confirm with the unicorn that he would be having the same before she turned towards the bar.

A swift and approving nod and smile were given to Martini as she arrived to find the wine glasses waiting on a tray for her - perfect! She also approved of the mare's method of getting the drinks - preferring to take them herself in the stead of a non-hired waitress so that her bartender could remain at the bar in case of the arrival of more patrons. As Sterling slid the tray onto her back and balanced it with black-tipped wings she might have considered grabbing a menu however she still hadn't hired a cook and had no steady menu to offer. Instead, as she returned to the table and slid the tray with the wine glasses onto the smooth surface she offered a knowing smile to the pair.

"I don't have to much in the kitchen because I haven't gotten another cook yet but I can wipe you up a little something if either of you are hungry?" Obviously the pair were travelers - Bareback Gulch was relatively small and Sterling knew everyone in town, these two she didn't recognize.

Taxi maintained his silence on their trip as Fluttershy went on to answer Starlight's question and then... to Taxi's surprise the foal piped up with the most interesting tid bit of information. It caught Taxi a bit off guard and he came to a halt no doubt jostling the foal on his back but his wings kept the small one from falling as he did. Switchly his head rotated and he peered over his shoulder to the foal.

"You.. went into Everfree..? Along?" He questioned, his eyes narrowing a bit and for a time it almost looked like the elder was going to scold him.. but a second later, Taxi burst into laughter, his whole body shaking slightly with just how deeply he was laughing. "Well I'll be a donkey's uncle, I knew you had spirit kid, but I didn't know you had that much! That must have been quite an adventure!" Taxi was grinning again and soon enough he was trotting onward again, still chuckling under his breath.

As they passed over the bridge and continued on towards Fluttershy's cottage they'd made a slight detour to the right where a moderately sized structure was established. Taxi's Traveling Station was scribed across the front of the yellow building with a black and white band that replicated Taxi's cutie mark wrapping around the square building, there was one normal door that lead into the main foyer and a larger garage door that accessed the garage where he and employees stored their carts. It was here that Taxi would approach, letting Starlight off his back so that he could work and tug the lines and hoist the garage door.

Inside everything was neatly organized, carts of various sizes lined up against either wall with a work bench and tools set against the back which is where Taxi headed. Off to one side was a separate door into a closet which Taxi opened so he could dig through it, shuffling and rearranging things until he found what he was looking for. "Ah ha!" He exclaimed before withdrawing the scooter, the paint was a bit chipped but it seemed to have a Wonderbolts theme to it, Taxi flipped it over and tested the wheels to make sure they were in working order before wheeling it towards Starlight. "Here kid, give this a try.. lemme know if you need me to shorten or lengthen the handlebars."

Damsel listened on quite curiously as Escrime described his school, her head tilted and eyes drifting in a thoughtful manner as she tried to determine if she'd seen it before.. off the top of her head she hadn't - but she was never one to require fencing lessons, although the idea to learn such a skillful sport intrigued her. As she was thinking these things through Escrime was given enough time to purchase his manuscript and from here Damsel would walk with him back to the door with her bag of books floating along behind her.

"Thank you for the offer, I will visit you someday when I get a chance, I'm rather intrigued to see it." She commented, and truth be told she kind of wondered what kind of research it could provide for the next book she wrote that involved a bit of swordplay. "It was very nice to meet you Escrime, I do hope you enjoy your book and I'm sure we'll cross paths again. Until then, farewell!" She spoke cheerfully, flashing a lovely smile before turning and making her way back home for now.

(and Damsel is out and this thread is pretty much closed/finished.)