The Grand Opening of The Diamond Willow Cafe (OPEN)

[TheAddictedFangirl]

Axle observed the situation between the two griffons beside her table. She has to say, it was quite cute how the big brother was always going down against his sister. But then, everything is cute to her. She snickered when what she thought was the big brother was just owned. When that huge glass of ice cream takes a toll on his sister, it's gonna be a handful. She smirked to herself and leaned in closer to the male griffon.

"I would prepare myself If I were you... But don't worry, I'm sure you can handle a hyperactive girl fueled with sugar."

She giggled as she whispered the tease to the male griffon's ear. After so, she gave the cute girl griffon a 'You're awesome' wink and leaned back to sit properly in her own table. She looked up at the cute waitress wearing a maid outfit. She must be the one to take her orders. She glanced at the menu before looking back at the maid again.

"Wooooaahh... The food here is pretty fancy..." She complimented. She sighed inwardly. Is there anything here simple and quick? She might be a bit spoiled when she was still a kid. But not THIS much! She scrunched her nose a bit and flipped the menu to the back. She let out her tongue as her bright pink orbs scanned all the fancy foods displayed. But it quickly went inside when she saw something.

"Hay! Is the what I think it is?!" She read the name again. Yes it is! "Ha! Scratch the others! Get me the Mac 'n Cheese!" She declared happily. She then placed both her hooves behind her back and relaxed for a bit. At least she's eating one of her favorite meals! She looked up at her waitress again with a smile.

"Thanks Sweets." She said as she gave the girl a frienly wink.

Caramel waved happily when Java came into her habitat known as the kitchen. She didn't protest on why he came here. Maybe he needed to make something? He is a butler after all! Being a butler requires initiative and stuff! Or, that's what she's told. She grinned when Java complimented her on the milk. She nodded at him happily. Making her pigtails bounce a bit.

"Thanks! I work super hard!" She said with a sweet smile.

As to the saying about an excellent chef, she jumped up at excitement and squealed a bit. She loves chefs! There so cool! While she, she was just a baker. But she have knowledge on how to make different kinds of foods. So, does that make her a chef? She shrugged to herself. Eh, no matter. As long as she can cook!

When Java took out some kind of metallic can, she looked over from his shoulder curiously. Science always fascinated her. Besides, cooking involves science here and there, so learning more about it shouldn't really be a bother. She eyed it carefully as he opened the can. But she regretted instantly when a puff of fog emerged and filled the place. She leaned back from his shoulder and rubber her eyes for a bit. It kinda hurts. Her eyes must have been wide open. When she looked up, she laughed. Hard. Java looks, "BUAHAHA!! You look so cool Mr. Java!" She said as she wiped a tear away.

When her fits of laughter was over, she noticed that she was in the same situation. She chuckled some. As she observed the pony in front of her, she noticed that his muzzle was still clean! That's definitely unfair! With her childhood spirit arising, she pouted.

"Hey! Your muzzle's still clean!" She raised her hoof and rubbed it against her cheek, after so, she plopped her marked hoof to his muzzle with a slight 'boop'. After so, she leaned her hoof back and laughed at Java's completely filled face. "There! Much better!"

When her second fit of laughter was done she muttered a sheepish apology. She went by the cupboards and took out two small towels. She trotted to the sink and slightly made them damp. After so, she trotted over to Java and lifted her hoof with the damp towel in it. "Your going to need this Mr. Java!" She said as she smiled at him. "Hey! What's the new costumer like?"

[TheAddictedFangirl]

((My computer went crazy here. Just disregard this! ))

[Zeig]

 

The small building stood innocuously against a line of other ones, but Inkbrand hardly payed attention to the details of it other than the OPEN sign hanging in the front, instead focused intently on his companion. It felt like he hadn't done this in forever, not since August's visit to Ponyville - and that had turned into a bit of a mess, too. Today though, today would be for relaxing, buck it, over tea and scones and whatever the buck else they decided they wanted.

 

"It's a huge waste of space, is what it is," Inkbrand bemoaned, and pushed his way inside the building.

 

Not much to say, right off the bat. The cafe was fairly new, if Inkbrand was correct in his assumptions - he'd never seen it serving customers before today - and had that clean, polished look of something newly made and not yet fully utilized. Already, a small hustle and bustle seemed to be filling up the dining area, with presumed waiters and waitresses helping out the customers already settling in. The modest interior and design weren't exactly up to his style, but the relaxing atmosphere was exactly what Inkbrand had been looking for to kick up his hooves and simply share a nice treat with Vinyl for a while.

 

And then maybe she'd treat him to her fabulous white coat, perhaps?

 

Seeing how all the available servers - all one of them, in fact - seemed to be occupied, Inkbrand simply led himself and Vinyl further into the cafe, claiming a small table with two chairs for them to sit down. Menus were already laid out on the table, and Inkbrand idly flipped open his, golden gaze critically roving over the abundance of sweets lining the rows of text. It wasn't often Inkbrand woke up with a sweet tooth, but the thought of sipping down a milkshake while chatting with his friend had just seemed to good to pass up this morning. Head resting lazily on one upturned hoof, the grey stallion allowed his gaze to flick back and forth from the menu and Vinyl Scratch, one eyebrow cocked upwards.

 

"I'm telling you - bright streaks and strong patterns? The stallions will go crazy for that ink, 'specially in all the clubs you host," he badgered, picking up the conversation right where he'd let it drop off. Club lights and pounding music were the perfect environment to introduce some new tats as far as the stallion was concerned, and buck him if some other Manehatten punk got his brushes on her flank. That white coat was all his, baby.

 

[moonshineTheleocat]

The stallion blinked to the girl's crazy childish games. But found it cute anyways. He laughed a bit, and took the cloth from her to clean his muzzle. “Well if the job didn't require me to be professional I'd walk out there like that anyways.” The pony then turned to look out the door to the mare sitting at the table.

“And her? Well I think she's cute. Bit of a party girl,” The stallion laughed as he now to begin to finished preparing his addition to the milkshake. The pan was almost done. And so he added a few mixtures to it, giving it a caramel color, but a sweet mixture of caramel and vanilla. He pulled it from the fire and set it to cool. While a a stack of two pots were put in it's place. One was just merely hot water, and was the bottom most. While the top held chocolate that slowly began to melt. The pony casually began tossing in a few additives to the chocolate a few chopped nuts. A little tiny dust of salt to bring out the sweeter flavor. And finally a light mixture of dark chocolate. Once the suace was done, the pony quickly took a pair of tongues and dipped a fat strawberry down into the waiting chocolate. He swirled it around heavily, before lifting it up. Where he than moved it to a jar that was producing a large amount of fog. He waited for a few seconds, giving the strawberry time to cool before finally dunking it inside.

Right on que, the jar began to hiss softly as a larger plume of fog rolled to the kitchen floor. The pony held the piece of fruit inside for a few seconds longer before finally lifting it for the world to see. The chocolate was frozen solid. The strawberry was frozen solid too. But, the pony new all to well from experience that in a few seconds. This frozen little berry will become just a tad bit softer, and supply a nice chewy texture. Plus... it was perfectly safe to eat! Has all the vitamens of a strawberry that the mad pony never touched. But completely sanitary! A bacterium would have to be some sort of elite demonic little micro-phage to survive something like that! Once he was done. He gently placed it on a saucer, and poured the caramel sauce into a little squirt bottle for easier dispenser. Once he finished up, he took a moment to clean his tools, and put away that special little jar of his, before leaving the kitchen giving the mare a friendly smile

The pony returned to the world outside of the kitchen, and added a gentle layer of syrup to the top of the young griffon's the milkshake. Instead of stirring, the stallion just allowed everything to slowly sink to the bottom. Which allowed for the occasionally delightful difference in taste with every slip to keep the young girl guessing. The next to come was a large cone of whip cream, followed by the froze strawberry on top.

“Enjoy,” the stallion chimed, before finally looking up to see the door slowly close. Signaling a new customer had came in. A smile appeared on his lips as he bowed once more to the two griffons. “Call me if you need me urgently! I will return as much as possible to see that your needs are met!”

He then turned around to find the new customer in the restaurant. And there he was! A stallion no less. Possibly wanting a maid instead. But oddly enough, all the maids were either in the kitchen or busy with another customer. So... he'd just have to tend to him for as long as possible before someone else could take over. The pony turned to a nearby counter, and placed several tea cups on top of little saucers. and slid them all onto a polished metal tray. Not before, of course, making sure that each cup was inspected carefully and free of any grime and hard-water marks. Then came the napkins. Each one folded immaculately into a right triangle. He stacked them in the center of the tray, and slipped it onto his back. He turned to his new patrons and slowly sauntered to them, letting his mind freely wonder.

The closer he drew, the more of the situation at hand he could see. Two ponies in the same booth! Lovely! One was a mare at that! Likely a date or something! Maybe it wouldn't be to bad to have a male server after all. Though, he could barely make out vinyl scratch's tattle tale shades.

He chuckled to himself never thinking that the mare would actually settle down. His hoof steps drew him even closer, and soon he found himself now recognizing that particular style of hair on the gray stallion. The moment he rounded to the side of the table and looked to them both, almost caused the stallion to burst with mad laughter.

Oh how Java could say that he probably wasn't the most welcomed sight to this pony.

“Good evening Sir and Madame~” The pony hummed with a lilting note as he gave an all to professional and some how well practiced bow. When he rose from his bow, he held a smile on his lips. Though a bit more Cheshire, and lacking the teeth. It was a product from the pony's inner thoughts as he looked down to the pony's he was waiting on. “I will be your butler today. Java, is what I preferred to be called by. However, if you wish to be formal you may ask for my actual. As for the menu's, we have a variety of selections to suit your tastes!”

Java slowly lowered his head down on the table and raised his back up to allow the platter to slide onto the center of the table. Once he felt it pass over, he raised up his head and bit down on the edge of one saucer and moved it to Vinyls place, the other went to Ink brand's.

"Right then!," He hummed, now using his hoofs to quickly unfold one napkin, and slip it around Vynls neck. "All the food in the kitchen is prepared from fresh ingredients by a top notch chef." Once he secured it in place, he began the same process of for Inkbrand. " From what I can gather of her, she specializes well in deserts, so do give it a try when you have the chance, madame and sir. Now. Many pardons for budging in. But is the handsome stallion of gray, on a day light day with the mare of white?"

[SymphonicFire]

"Alright, please wait for us to prepare your meal" Eclipse bowed before going back into the kitchen and giving the order to Caramel. "Another order, we have plenty if customers coming in" she said to her as she heard the the shop bell ring. In came two more ponies as she saw Java come to greet them.

Eclipse walks over to them and smiles. "Welcome home, master and mistress. I am Eclipse, allow me to lead you to your table" Eclipse said, bowing to them. She was really getting the hang of this, it was quite easy after practicing with the other customers. She still thought about what Java said about the griffin. She decided to shake it off and concentrate on what she was doing.

[SunsetSombra]

So here it was, Vinyl had actually somewhat made some kinda arrangement to turn up with Inkbrand to a l'il place in Ponyville for something to eat...their previous few encounters had proven somewhat interesting, and she couldn't deny that there was a certain fun spark to Ink that was entertaining to be around him for...although, she mentally noted, she couldn't always tell if he was genuinely trying to get a better look at her or just pondering how he'd art her up. It was, she contemplated, just as likely that he was doing both at the same time, but he never really stated it out loud and she wasn't exactly about to turn around and ask him directly - that'd just make things all shades of weird, and if there was one thing Vinyl preferred, it was keeping this kinda stuff simple!

" Yeah, I know the bright colors and such appeal - trust me, I've got enough pairs of old neon shades to last me several lifetimes! " she quips with a small amused chuckle. " Can't see a thing in them onstage, but it's not really a problem - if ya know what you're working with, it just kinda flows by itself after a while! " the DJ Unicorn adds with a casual shrug that suggested enough experience in the matter to take the comment seriously.

Still, she couldn't deny that the appeal of tattoo's was there - a distinct pattern that you made yourself, rather than the natural markings of a cutie mark...a personal insignia that would show the world your inner creativity and flair. Vinyl was all about inner creativity, being the musical mare she was at heart...and in some regards, that was also one of the things that had helped her handle the impetuous insistance of the stallion currently keeping his eyes on her coat - well, it wasn't like she knew many other tattoo artists out there, so she could hardly tell him that his 'claim' was in any immediate danger of being usurped. Heck, If anything, had she not really encountered him at all, there may never have been any reason at all for Vinyl to have given any real consideration to the idea of getting one in the first place.

It was about then the butler arrived.

“Good evening Sir and Madame~ - I will be your butler today. Java, is what I preferred to be called by... "

Vinyl looks over in the direction of the butler pony and stifles a giggle with a hoof - she honestly wasn't as used to such stiff mannerisms, and thus couldn't resist cracking a smile over it.

" Oh wow, a real life Butler? " she says with a small snerk - resisting the urge to laugh a little louder at his curious probing of their current situation. " Nice to meetcha, Java...and as far as this whole thing goes, it's just a little social thing between friendly associates who, ya know, are discussing...stuff and, uh, things. " she replies, tweaking the shades in thought before glancing at Inkbrand, deliberately putting him in the hotseat for a second. " Isn't that right, Inky? "

hey, she was always up for a little playful sparring when the mood called for it, and it was definitely calling for it just about now!

[ShadowWalking18]

Razor groaned as rubbed his temples as he watched his sister devour the sugary mountain of doom. Worse, the butler had to go and add a whole bunch of other sweet things to it, which only caused a squeal of delight from Glimmer. The strawberry on top stared down at him like some sort of sugary burning eye.

He sighed and took a big gulp from his coffee as he tried to stay calm. As long as Glimmer didn't see or hear anything that could be impressionable, the such. The little fledgling could be a bit of a clawful when she got hyped up on sugar.

He slowly took to eating his own food, and hoped that things played out okay.

Sadly....that doesn't always work out.

The sound of more customers caught Glimmers attention and she wiped her beak clean from ice cream, like a proper lady would, and looked over to see who else had come in. A stallion with all sorts of tattoos on his coat, and a mare with the most awesome pair of sunglasses ever! She wanted a pair like that! They must be on a date.

'Wait! This is the perfect chance!' She thought before returning to eating her ice cream. Sugar was brain food after all.

There was probably no small number of cute maid outfit wearing mares in this place. She had already seen one that had made Razor blush in uncomfort. Which meant that he thought her cute! He only ever got uncomfortable around mares or griffonnesses he thought were cute. Then again...any sort of female around his age or equal could make Razor uncomfortable, but that was beside the point!

Taking a large bite from her sundae she vowed she would not let her brother leave this store until he had gotten the attention of one of these maids! It was her duty to her brother as a sister and to her family to make sure the Ironclaw family line was continued! Even though she had two other brothers that were already on the way to starting their own families. That was but a side thought to the sugar crazed mind of the helpful sister.

First she needed a plan, and that required time....and more ice cream!

She politely waited for the new customers to make their orders, and she made sure it was the maid that she called to when she was able. "Excuse me, another sundae please." She said with a cheer and her best smile.

Razor felt his eyes bulge and looked at his sister, "What? NO!"

Glimmer glared at her brother and with a quick motion of her head, slammed the tip of her beak down ontop of her brothers head, causing his face to hit the table.

Only doctors or those wise on the nature of a griffons skeleton, like a griffon, would now that griffons were not only physically strong, they also had one of the toughest bone structures in all of the world, especially their skulls. Given that flying could result in accidents, especially collisions to the head, and the fact that since griffons did have sharp strong beaks that they used to peck at both prey and enemies, griffon skulls could take a beating.

It still hurt though.

"Yeouch! Why you...." Razor growled as he placed his talons on his head where he got pecked before seeing the glare on his sisters face and looked away with a defeated sigh.

Glimmer giggled with a smile and quickly gave her brother a kiss on the forehead to apologize, which he responded by patting her head before returning to his coffee.

"Another cup of coffee....actually make it three." He said with a sigh, placing a talon over his face. He didn't know what Glimmer was up to...but he knew it was gonna eat his wallet up. And probably his sanity. Oh well, his parents had sent Glimmer along with a good number of bits. He could afford whatever insanity she was gonna cause at least two times over.

'I just hope I don't have to.' He thought with a feeling of dread.

[SymphonicFire]

Eclipse heard the little griffon call for another sundae as her brother sighed. She giggled as she walked over to them and said "One sundae and another cup of coffee for the master and young mistress". She bowed and gave the order to Carmel and went to make the male griffon's coffee. Once she was done, she walked back to their table and put the cup down infront if him. "Enjoy, master" she smiled as she turned to the young griffoness and said "your sundae is being prepared, please wait a moment."

Now that Eclipse came up close to the griffon, he does seem kinda cute...wait...no, she was forbidden from dating customers and she always sticks to the rules. She doesn't have time to think about this, she has to serve customers and as long as they are in the cafe, she is the waitress; he is the customer.

[SilverSwirl]

Silverbolt winced as he watched the little griffon slam her older brother's skull into the table. It was at this time that a famous face appeared in the cafe with a stallion. His excitement turned to disappointment as Java initiated the customary conversation. He himself was a bit of a music junkie and an opportunity to serve Vinyl didn't come every day. "Well, Java has it handled. I'll still have to talk to him about all that smoke...", he muttered to himself.

He shook his head and stood proudly like a mare. There was no sense in getting all gloomy when they were doing well for an opening day! He'd tell Sunrise about it later. No sense in crowding the pair who seemed to be looking for a relaxing reprieve. He fluttered his wings and left his post, floating towards Java before daintily alighting beside him. "Welcome, sir and Madame. I am the head maid, Silvy. Please make yourself at home and enjoy yourselves.", he said with a melodic voice he had practiced for weeks to get right.

[Zeig]

 

Inkbrand shot a quick look over at Vinyl as she slapped the hated nickname on him, a mix between a glare and an amused quirk of his lips, ears twitching slightly at the sound of it dropping off of anypony's lips except for August's. Still, the grey stallion didn't let it distract him too much as he tilt his head slightly on his raised hoof to get a better look at the…butler, now standing next to their table and grinning like a cat who'd just gotten into the cream.

 

Oh. This was one of those cafes, huh?

 

The tattoo-clad stallion could no longer really say where he stood with the scientist anymore. After all, it was kind of difficult to stay angry at a stallion that had paid out the whazoo for a job, albeit a dangerous one, that now allowed Inkbrand to not worry so much about paying next month's rent. Still, that didn't negate the fact that Inkbrand thought the coffee-colored stallion was weird as buck all, and to see him suddenly popping into existence in a classic butler uniform and talking like a real gentle colt was almost enough to startle a bark of laughter out of him.

Almost.

 

It did sort of remind Inkbrand of his time working in Coffee Cream's cafe a while back - though, the uniforms had been a lot less 'stiff upper back' and a lot more flexible. And that thought was enough to force a snicker through his lips, one that was quickly replaced with a startled snarl as JavaSun attempted to place a napkin under his chin like a bucking foal. "Oi, what're you on?" the tattoo-clad stallion snapped as he recoiled backwards, his good mood valiantly fighting against the vestiges of irritation dancing along his peripherals. Sweet Celestia, what kind of waiter put their hooves on a customer like that?

 

One that did it twice, Inkbrand realized, only just noticing that JavaSun had attempted the same thing with Vinyl. The grey stallion snapped his gaze back onto the coffee-colored Earth Pony, determined not to let JavaSun's eccentricities ruin the otherwise fair morning. "Yeah we are," Inkbrand affirmed, with barely a flicker of a glance towards Vinyl despite her denying the question just a moment ago, "so do us a favor and grab us the largest milkshake you have." He couldn't help the slight curling of his lips however, suddenly rather amused at the image of paparazzi ponies suddenly swarming the place to get a picture of the DJ's apparent coltfriend, and he sent the white unicorn the barest whisper of a wink, privately sharing the joke.

 

He didn't have time to explain it however, as two other mares wandered over towards their table, both playing up to the part as they welcomed himself and Vinyl to the Cafe. Inkbrand allowed his gaze wander appreciatively over the pleasantly blue colored Pegasus, who looked mightily cute and perky in her maid uniform. "Well thanks sweetheart," he drawled, sending her a toothy grin, "glad to see we're so welcomed by two…er…" Inkbrand trailed off awkwardly, performing a double take as he took a closer look at the second mare. Or, he'd assumed she was a mare - because, 'ya know, maid uniform and all - but upon closer inspection, the pony was quite androgynous and not anywhere near his tastes in mares. She was either a fairly butch mare, like Wicked Rhythm, or a very feminine male. Whichever one it was, Inkbrand felt a grimace slide over his features as he shared another glance with Vinyl, before returning his attentions back towards the crowd of hosts and hostesses.

 

"Large milkshake," the tattoo-clad stallion repeated, leaning slightly on the table with one elbow as he fixed Vinyl in his gaze, "and maybe something smothered with chocolate. Mares go crazy for that stuff, don't they?" Inkbrand questioned innocently - like he didn't already know the answer. He'd yet to meet a mare that didn't like chocolate. Then again, Vinyl wasn't the typical mare. Either or, a shared milkshake was a good start - good enough to put the white unicorn in a good and receptive mood, even?

 

[moonshineTheleocat]

Normally, in the more exquisite restraunt, a waiter professionally ties a napkin around the neck of his guest as a courtesy. For butlers, it was rude to not tie the napkin under the neck of his master. However, in this circumstance, Java didn’t entirely mean to do any such thing. Instead, given his past experiences with the stallion before him, he could easily conclude he was hasty, abrupt, abrasive, a punkish rogue, and finally aggressive minded. Therefore, out of professional foresight, the stallion simply felt it necessary to do such a thing, as the stallion somehow has a way of flat out ruining the gray one’s day. So, Java wouldn’t put the thought of Inkbrand slinging food through the air below the stallion. The least he could do for him if that was the case, is to make sure he and his friend stays as clean as possible.

The stallion’s reaction remained how it was when he received the negative reaction. So instead, he simply withdrew from the action, quickly pulling the napkin away, and placing it by his saucer’s side. His gaze looked up when he saw his boss of the day sauntering to the table, and gave “her” a friendly smile. His eyes showing a hint of curiosity after noticing her previous look of disappoint. Almost as if he was asking if she wanted to take over the table.

His eyes quickly shifted after hearing a loud, dish clattering slam. Apparently the cute little griffon child had nailed her brother square on the noggin, and knocked him out for a short little while. He’d ask if he was ok, but it seems like his partner in crime was already at the scene! Splendid performance indeed!

The stallion looked back to the two, and listened to them bicker with a patient smile. However, his grin turned to something more humorous when their stories had conflicting details. Well, it was never fun to simply accept the truth. So he’d just roll with the idea that the two were dating. But…

The stallions eyes slowly started to wonder about. His gaze slowly drifting off to Inkbrand once more while he was in the heat of… putting on his charms. The stallion’s smile grew increasingly wider as he watched him. How interesting it would be to see the “Ladies” stallion suddenly hit on another stallion. Though, his hopes had been dashed, but not without a small tasteful reward. The grimace Java saw drew an incredibly wicked smirk. The wickedness showing up on Inkbrand’s side.

The stallion’s smile quickly reverted to normal as he turned to face Sylvy, “Madame~ Seeing as Master and Madame are important guests. Would you like to attend to them yourself? Or are you comfortable with leaveing them with me for the evening? I’d be greatly ashamed if something went amiss under my care.”

[ShadowWalking18]

With the sundae portion taken care of, Glimmer immediately go to work on her Master Plan! Operation: GET BIG BROTHER A MAREFRIEND!!!!

'Now....what do I have to work with?' She thought, as she pondered her surroundings. Observation was critical in warfare, espionage and love. Her mommy and daddy said so, and they were always right.

'Hmmm. Well in the comic book, My Café Romance the heroine always meets her one true love after accidentally spilling something on him.' She thought. That was a good start, but the maid didn't seem too clumsy...that would be difficult.

Hmm, or she could order a whole bunch of stuff that made the maid have to approach their table at least ninety percent of the time. Contact was always important, and she could work a way for Razor to end up in conversation with her.

'I got a plan, needs work but I KNOW it will work.' She thought, holding a clenched talon up with a look of motivation in her eyes.

Deciding that the best course was to cause the trip, as that ALWAYS sparked love on the first instant in the comics, Glimmer slowly slide down below the table and hunkered low and waited like a cat for its mouse. And being so small, she was hard to see when hiding low.

As for Razor, well he was so lost in his coffee cup he didn't even notice his sister's disappearance.

[SymphonicFire]

Eclipse was serving another table when something caught her eye. She looked over the table with the griffins and saw that the little griffin had disappeared. She walked over to the male griffin and said "sorry for the interruption master, but the young mistress has disappeared."

[SunsetSombra]

"Large milkshake," the tattoo-clad stallion repeated, leaning slightly on the table with one elbow as he fixed Vinyl in his gaze, "and maybe something smothered with chocolate. Mares go crazy for that stuff, don't they?"

Vinyl couldn't help give a small roll of the eyes as she chuckles to herself - Inkbrand had already proven he was a smart alec when it came to the mares...or at least, that's what she'd casually observed on the way here - Sure, their conversation up to and including this point had been plenty of fun, but she couldn't help but notice that he was definitely the kind who were certainly never shy about making playful passes at ponies when the opportunity arose. Oh, she was never shy about it herself - thats what made this all the more fun...the fact that she knew she could reply to his commentary with a few jabs of her own.

It was the kind of conversation she was used to with a lot of ponies in various places, and thus she was pretty well versed in a good retalitation or three. " Chocolate milkshakes? Oh sure do" You know what else mares love most? "

A thoughtful look creeps over her features for a few seconds, before! " she replies with a slight nod, before leaning in a little to emphasise the Oh-so-importance of the next piece of information. " When the stallion pays for lunch! " The DJ mare breaks out into a small fit of giggles, leaning back again on the chair and returns the gesture of a playful wink at Inkbrand, knowing full well that she probably wouldn't win this exchange without some further resistance.

Still, from the sounds of everything going on currently, this was going to prove an interesting little lunch visit for the mare - the surrounding bustling of the cafe was full of an interesting sense of busy and liveliness...and Vinyl was always fond of watching surrounding ponies. It helped to know just what was going on sometimes - paying attention to the events going on around them might well prove to both be advantageous and interesting all at the same time for the curious partygoing dualtone maned DJ mare!

[moonshineTheleocat]

[believe it's now your turn silver]

[Zeig]

 

Ashamed at something going amiss, huh?

"Little late for that," Inkbrand couldn't help but mutter rather sourly, though more to himself than to JavaSun or the costumed stallion. He really wasn't sure why the androgynous pony was dolled up all pretty-like - maybe the lack of suitable female staff had prompted the cafe owner into dressing up employees to try and garner more business?… - though he did know that some males preferred it. Just like Wicked Rhythm would never be caught dead in a skirt. Buck, she actually liked it when mares mistook her for a stallion and did the whole, batting eyelashes thing, and for a moment Inkbrand had to simply shake his head.

He loved his friends, honest, but understanding them? Sometimes that went way over his head.

At the very least, it seemed as if JavaSun were willing to take his eccentricities elsewhere and leave him the buck alone, for once, and the tattoo-clad stallion turned back towards Vinyl with a toothy smile, leaning in to receive her message with a positively jaunty grin. "Well isn't that standard?" Inkbrand mocked-questioned, with a sly tilt of his lips. "Mares go for the stallion with the most bits, stallion goes for the hottest flank this side of Equestria. It's the cycle of life, baby." Any other mare probably would have taken some insult with the comment and slapped him for it - 'cause they were just so much more enlightened then everypony else, after all - but Inkbrand hardly gave it a thought with Vinyl. She was just chill like that, where he didn't have to worry about stepping on hooves with every little word or sentence.

…Not that he really paid mind anyways, but the point was still there.

…Speaking of paying mind -

"Oh…rot!" Inkbrand suddenly exclaimed, head raising from where it'd been lounging on an upturned hoof, golden eyes widening and fixating on the nearby window, "when'd the sun get that bucking low?" Had it been that far down when they'd entered the cafe? Surely not - it had to have been a few clicks upwards. Did he really lose track of time that badly when hanging out with Vinyl Scratch.

Buck. Apparently so.

Inkbrand barely resisted the urge to slap a hoof to his forehead, couldn't resist the urge to let out the longest, most deep-suffering sigh imaginable, and pushed himself up and away from the table, a grimace on his features. "Buck, I was suppose to be back in Manehatten tonight," he semi-explained, tone for once expressing sincere disappointment. With the high demand for Vinyl's services, hanging out with his friend was a difficult task to accomplish on the best of days, and even this afternoon hadn't seemed like much time at all. But Flare Streak would be waiting after dark for him, and even boarding the train now would make him late. Bucking of course.

"'Nother time, Vinyl," the grey Earth Pony half-promised, half-threatened as he fished out a generous helping of bits onto the table, surely enough for the order he'd placed not too long ago. He set them on top of the table while he ran his opposite hoof through his messy bangs, composing himself enough to shoot a slightly flirtatious glance down at the white Unicorn as he moved around the table, lips ghosting over her cheek. "That is, if you can find the time for your good buddy Inkbrand again, hmm?" he murmured, a last go to hopefully convince his friend that yes, he still wanted her to get a tattoo from him, yes, they would be hanging out in the near future, and yes, her flank was just as fantastic as it'd been when they'd first walked inside this joint.

…Or, something along those lines, anyways.

With one last lingering look and lopsided grin, Inkbrand finally forced himself away and out the doors, breaking into a run almost immediately. If he could make it to the train station before it pulled out for Manehatten, he could still make it in good time. And if not, well…

He'd probably have to bust out the painkillers and bandages, before the night was through.

 

 

 

[[ Exit ]]

 

 

[Mojo]

 

Flim & Flam

 

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Flim?" asked Flam, the mustache wearing unicorn stallion of his brother, the similarly dressed Flim.

 

"I don't see why not, Flam!  After all, the two of us have every right to enter this café and order something to eat!"

 

"But we're not exactly very, popular, in this town."

 

"Stuff and nonsense, brother of mine!  I'm sure our past, history, has long been forgotten," Flim said as the pair walked into the Diamond Willow Café and took a seat at a table near the back of the restaurant.

 

"I think we should've wore disguises, Flim,"

 

"Don't be silly, Flam!  I'll flash the proprietor one of my trademark smiles and all will be well, you'll see!"

 

"I hope you're right," Flam nervously muttered as the two waited to be served.

[SymphonicFire]

Eclipse couldn't find the young griffin anywhere. She spotted two stallions take their seats at the back of the cafe, waiting to be served. "I'll be right back, master" Eclipse said as she bowed. She quickly went to the front desk and grabbed a couple of menus before walking over to the stallions. "Good afternoon, masters. I apologize for being late" she said, laying the menus on the table. The stallions looked almost the same, except one had a mustache. Come to think about it, they look quite familiar. She remembered hearing about stallions like them when it was apple cider season. She was all the way at the back of the line, so the ponies at the front passed the story on until it reached her. They perfectly fit the description. 

 

"I'll take your orders as soon as you have decided" Eclipse said, smiling at the stallions. She remembered that the stallions from the story were chased out of town, so it might not be them.

[SunsetSombra]

Vinyl was bemused as Inkbrand bolted - she wasn't exactly used to seeing that kinda thing happen when she was around, and as such a small crinkle of a frown crossed her forehead...

it was a shame, she had hoped maybe there was a longer discussion of life an' whatever to be had but...hey, sometimes life doesn't work out that way, eh?

 

She looks around for a moment at the cafe, and shrugs shoulders as she decided that it was better to simply proceed with her order off her own willingness to check out the place rather than worrying about whether or not the stallion she'd been having a small conversation with had rocks in his head - perhaps it was being around all that ink an' such that had addled the guys mind. She waved it off internally, gives a small brisk sigh of resoluteness and then looks back at Java with a small amused chuckle. Sometimes life worked out oddly, whether it was for the best or worse was something that could only really just be left to the flip of a coin - just not a whole point in worrying about the whole thing, considering.

 

" Guess he had a train to catch or somethin' " she muses, stretching as she assumes a comfortable position on the chair and lets herself relax properly again. " Well, You can go ahead and scrub his order from the record at least, heh! "