Canterlot The Love Chocolate Experiment (Ended)

[Lux]

"Eureka," Sweet Surprise said bursting from the kitchen dressed in a lab coat stained with different types of chocolates and candies, a surgeon's mask, and a pair of safety goggles, "After months of melting, mixing, and or course tasting, I made the perfect chocolate! According to my sweet research, chocolate is known as a... what the name... afar... affable... affordable... oh I remember an aphrodisiac! Yes it was that word which was something that could make a pony love another. I think I found that essence, what makes chocolate a great thing for love, and this is it!"

She held in her hand a small test tube filled with a brown liquid, like diluted chocolate syrup.

"Now all I need is a test subject. Guess that means me. Oh, I hope that this stuff will make me more loveable towards a special somepony stallion!"

She opened the bottle, a scent of rich chocolate filling her nostrils. She then drank the entire test tube and waited.

"No changes yet. Oh well, I guess I need to open up the store!"

Throwing off her Mad Scientist costume, she flipped the sign to Open and waited for the first customer.

[GingerbreadSpy]

Donut Joe was off on a trot through Canterlot to the local candy shop. It was a fair distance from his own donut shop, but he didn't mind that much. He could always use the exercise. He entered the shop, not particularly looking at the pony behind the counter. He looked down at the display case, noting the various candies. "Heeey, Mr. Cocoa. How's the biz?" he said good-naturedly, still not looking up. He trotted over to another display case. "Hmm. Can't remember the last time I was in here." Donut Joe scratched at his messy mane with one hoof as he searched through the candies. "Where yous guys red hots at, anyway? I'm trying out this new recipe. I'm thinking-a callin' it RED HOT DONUTS. I figure you can't go wrong with sweet and hot, am I right? What do you think?" He finally glanced upwards and made an "Oh" sound at realizing that the pony behind the counter wasn't Mr. Cocoa.

[Lux]

Sweet Surprise looked up at the sound of a pony entering the shop and things seemed to slow down. Everything that the dounut pony said was sweet like music and the way that he brushed his mane made butterflies appear in her stomach. Then her heart began to pound as she looked on the pony with a doe eyes fancy. There was no doubt about it, she was in love with the pony at first sight!

[colour=#8b4513]"Hi there," [/colour]she said not in her usual hyperactive tone but in something deeper, more marely as she sauntered out from behind the counter, [colour=#8b4513]"I'm Sweet Surprise. What's you name?" [/colour]

[GingerbreadSpy]

Donut Joe blinked a little when the young mare came out from behind the counter. "You mean you don't know whos I am?" There was some disappointment there, but then a smile as he realized that maybe she was just new and had the potential to be a new customer. More business was always a good thing. He stomped a hoof on the ground and puffed out his chest. "I'm Donut Joe, and I run the best donut shop in Canterlot, if not all of Equestria. You oughtta stop by sometime and try some of my donuts." He noticed the distinct smell of chocolate in the air and grinned. "Heeeeeey, yous been making some chocolate or somethin'? It sure smells good in here. Ha! Maybe I'll have to pick up some chocolate, too. But first, I need those red hots. Think yous can help me out, Sweet Surprise?" He turned back to the display case. "There's just so much candy here; I don't know where to look!"

[Lux]

Of course Sweet Surprise knew who he was! He was Donut Joe, the pony that ran the delectable donut shop in Canterlot. Many ponies knew of him and his store. But really the chocolate mare was flirting with the stallion, which so far yielded no responses.

[colour=#8b4513]"That's right, how silly of me," [/colour]Sweet said in her sweet tone that sounded as rich as dark chocolate,[colour=#8b4513] "You're the one that makes those mouthwatering donuts I just love! Oh the chocolate? That's probably me since I worked with it. Don't I smell like the sweetest chocolate pony? Oh, but you want some red hots. Well, I'm sure I can help out a sweet pony like you find some. Follow me."[/colour]

With that the mare sauntered over again like a dancer to a slanted table with a grid structure. Each grid contained a type of lose candy where ponies could fill a bag.

[colour=#8b4513]"So how many do you need?" [/colour]

[GingerbreadSpy]

Donut Joe beamed with pride at the young mare complimenting his donuts in such a manner. It was strange; he never forgot a face, but he couldn't quite remember hers. Maybe she came in when one of the assistants he hired to help him with his 24-hour shop were there. He paused a moment when she referred to herself as smelling like the sweetest chocolate pony, and then told him he was sweet. His cheeks flushed a little, as he tried to figure out what this meant.

Was she... flirting with him? It wasn't that nopony ever flirted with him. It just didn't happen very often, and when it did, it usually didn't go anywhere. He didn't exactly have mares banging down his door, after all, probably the opposite of that, in fact. It was possible she flirted with all of her customers. It was a great tactic to make customers feel appreciated and special, and it helped with making a sale, too. It wasn't a tactic he employed himself since it usually wasn't something that was as appreciated, but he knew enough about it. He watched as she appeared to practically dance towards a slanted table. Maybe this time was different. Only one way to find out.

Play it cool-like, Joe. Don't go makin'-a fool of yourself. Say somethin' nice to the nice mare, for Celestia's sake.

He started to open his mouth to give her a compliment in turn but quickly closed it when she turned back to ask him how many red hots he needed. His thoughts went through an immediate halt, and it took a moment for him to come up with a response. "Uh, three small bags, I think. If I has any extras, I can always eat the rest."

He lapsed into a short silence as his brain once again refused to cooperate with him.

What's da matta with yous, Joe? You just goin' to stand there like some namby-pamby schoolcolt? You gotta be confident. Fillies dig confidence.

"Ya know, that's a really nice..." He looked her up and down, his brain grasping frantically for something that made sense and wouldn't sound creepy at all. "Uh, mane, yous got there, Sweet Surprise." He went through a short pause. "I really like it." Another pause. "It's nice... uh, you go to the stylist down the street or somethin'?"

Donut Joe smiled, and he actually managed to pass himself off, there at the end, with some confidence. But inside, he felt a hoof to his own face was in order.

Smooth, Joe. Real smooth.

[Lux]

At first Sweet Surprise wondered if the effects of the potion were working like they should. She felt better about herself no doubt, although she couldn't put her hoo on the specifics. She also clearly was more open and flirty towards Donut Joe. Yet the stallion at the time didn't seem to notice which made Sweet wonder how effective the Love Chocolate Experiment as she named it actually worked.

Yet to her surprise Donut Joe did seem to notice that she was being flirty towards him. His response, however, was not what she expected. He first mentioned how many bags of red hots he needed and then referenced her mane. Yet it was the second part that although was the strangest thing to Sweet under the effects of her love potion sounded like the kindest compliment.

[colour=#8b4513]"Really, you like my mane," [/colour]she said with the girly squeal of a schoolyard filly, [colour=#8b4513]"Oh thank you. Your mane is quite handsome too."[/colour]

[GingerbreadSpy]

Donut Joe gave a little cringe at the squealing but smiled a little. Hey, that had to be a good sign, right? He frowned a little when she complimented his mane back. He tried to glance at his mane, then he glanced back at her with a questioning look. "Seriously?" He didn't think he had even run his mane through with a comb that morning. Sure, he had taken a shower; his mane was definitely clean. But handsome? Get outta town. So, maybe she really was just trying to be nice and friendly. He tried not to look as disappointed as he felt.

Ah well. Better luck next time, I guess.

"Yeah, uh, thanks." Awkward pause. "So, how much yous wanting for the red hots?"

[Lux]

Sweet Surprise could see the awkwardness on Donut Joe's face after complimenting him. She felt like despite her confidence and her flirty behavior, she was getting nowhere. Casually she tried to change tactics.

[colour=#a52a2a]"The red hots are three bits a bag, but if you buy two you get one three free. So, besides baking, what else do you like to do?" [/colour]

[GingerbreadSpy]

"Whoa. Buy two get one free? How can I say no to a deal like that?" Donut Joe fished out six bits and placed them on the table. "Thanks for lettin' me know." He tilted his head slightly when Sweet Surprise started asking him about what he liked to do. The puzzled expression returned, but he made an effort not to look too confused. This young mare was hard to figure out.

"Uh, well, I like sports and hanging out with the guys. Camping, hiking, you know stuff. Gotta love the great outdoors." He gave a shrug. "How about yous? Gotta come outta the shop, sometime, am I right?

[Lux]

Sweet Surprise smiled as Donut Joe's eyes lit up at the sale Sweet was having with the candy. The way to a stallion's heart may be through his stomach after all. The mare then thought about what she liked to do that didn't involve candy making. Her life practically revolved around the store and making candy, but she needed something to make it like she had a life. Her face scrunched up as she thought about something else. Then it dawned on her!

[colour=#8b4513]"Well, I like to go to parties. They don't have to be formal ones, just as long as they're fun. How about you?Do you like parties?" [/colour]

[GingerbreadSpy]

"Sure do. I like to cut loose as much as anypony else. Gimme some balloons, a little music, some cake, and you've got yourself one happy stallion over here." Donut Joe beamed at Sweet Surprise, then frowned a little. "Eh, it's been a while since I've gone to a party, though. I've been waaaay busy taking care of my shop."

[Lux]

Sweet Surprise smiled like a filly on Heart's Warming Day when she heard that Donut Joe liked parties. It was a thing that she and him had in common, and something that made her think that maybe this love chocolate experiment was working. Maybe the power of it was rubbing off on the stallion. Sadly though the stallion seemed to not be able to go to many parties.

[colour=#8b4513]"Oh wow! I'm glad you like parties as much as I do! Yeah, sadly I don't go as much as I want to either. Maybe when both of us are free we can, you know, go to a party together? Of course, it's up to you." [/colour]

[GingerbreadSpy]

Donut Joe blinked in surprise when Sweet Surprise asked him if he would like to go to a party with her. Then, that must mean... She wasn't just interested in him because he was a customer! The disappointment left replaced by a little excitement. "You wanna go to a party with me, huh? I gotta say that sounds like it'd be a lotta fun!" He beamed widely at her, then blushed a little. "Heh, I'd have thought a sweet mare like you would already have some stallion to do things like that with."

[Lux]

Sweet Surprise saw the look on Donut Joe's face change as if a light went on in his mind. Finally it seemed that she got through the pony that they way she acted wasn't to make him buy something but that she was actually attracted to him! She wondered when or if it would happen thinking back to the experiment that she tried with extracting the essence of love from chocolate. Then she realized something: an aphrodisiac like chocolate wasn't guaranteed to make anypony fall in love, but to help make ponies happy and happiness only strengthened the bonds of love or friendship between each other. That meant that the Love Chocolate Experiment didn't work after all! But that could only mean one thing, Sweet Surprise had genuine feelings towards the stallion!

[colour=#8b4513]"Oh that's great that you'd like to go to a party with me," [/colour]the chocolate mare said trying to contain her excitement at her revelations about her little experiment, [colour=#8b4513]"Trust me, you and I are going to have lots of fun!" [/colour]

Donut Joe then asked her why she never had another stallion.

[colour=#8b4513]"Awww... thanks for calling me sweet. You're sweet too. I... don't really know why no pony has been attracted to me like you are. I guess... well... I guess that maybe I didn't think I was somepony that could be seen as anything other than just a friend, like I wasn't able to be loved like that. I know sounds silly right?" [/colour]