Inkbrand's Tattoo Parlor [Temp. Closed]

[Zeig]

• Setting / Manehatten
• Status / Open
• MC / Inkbrand
• Intro and Info
  
  Inkbrand's Tattoo Parlor is open for business!
  
  Please remember to respect all fellow RPers.
  
  If enough characters join this thread, a post order will be established. Before that time, please be mindful of other's schedules, and give other characters a chance to respond before you post again. If a post order is established, please try to post in a timely manner, otherwise you will be skipped over.
  
  There is no 'first come first serve' rule, because Inkbrand is biased and has preferences on who he inks. Also, posting in this thread does not guarantee service or a drawn picture, but I will try to get to every character that wants a tattoo.
  
  Inkbrand offers two grades of tattoos - temporary and permanent. Temporary tattoos wash off after about three months. If you want your character to get a permanent tattoo, I will send rough drafts of pictures so we can try and get the tattoo looking exactly how you want. For temporary tattoos, I'll simply draw what is described in RP.
  
  Have fun!

[Zeig]

 

Another day, another bit. Or several tons of bits, if he was lucky.

 

Which, Inkbrand surmised rather blearily as he half-heartedly pulled back the curtains, he had been the past couple of months. His aggressive advertising techniques seemed to have payed off, as it were - more customers, more returning customers, and more references. Not to mention whatever unseen business Radiant Star might have indadvertedly sent his way, too. Some called him pushy, but the results spoke for themselves.

 

After all, the results had paid for a new parlor, one that wasn't the bottom level of his apartment.

 

With another bleary sigh, the tattoo-clad pony slowly set about picking up the odds and ends scattered about his parlor, leftovers of the party he'd hosted a few months ago, before he'd set out for Ponyville. Empty cans and random junk were easily picked up - dust bunnies, a little bit harder. At least Zing had kept up on his promise to take care of the place while he'd been gone, it wasn't too bent out of shape. A little polishing, and it'd be right as rain again.

 

Like any tattoo parlor worth its salt, the walls of his own were covered in a myriad of different designs, all of his own make. Tribal, picturesque, contemporary - if it could be put on paper, it was hanging on the walls. A few designs as tall as ponies were scattered around intermittently as well, full-body designs that had cost clients hooves and legs, but with the added envy of all of Manehatten, if Inkbrand did say so himself.

 

And he did say so himself.

 

A few more curtains were opened, letting the sunlight stream in through the windows. Some parlor owners liked to keep things dark and muted, but not Inkbrand. The parlor was well lit, and even came with a very small kitchen in the back, only large enough to put on some coffee and maybe toast a sandwich. Another locked door led to his supply closet, one that Inkbrand kept under lock and key at all times. Wouldn't do to have a thief wander off with his bread and butter, would it?

 

The silence of a new day was starting to grate on Inkbrand's nerves however, and flicking away the last piece of trash into the can, Inkbrand made a beeline over to his stereo - though, he had to pause as he pulled out the CD Zing had apparently been listening to. "Spice Fillies, really?" he questioned out loud, a sly smile stealing over his face. Oh, this was too rich. No way he was going to let Zing live this one down. But he'd have to call up his friend for a good 'ol fashion ribbing later. For now, Inkbrand flipped through his tunes, eventually settling on one and popping it into the player. It didn't take long for the synthetics and drum beats to shatter the quiet morning, and the grey stallion grinner sharply as he continued about his business, head bobbing, tail weaving, and lungs bellowing in time with the music.

 

"Ah do 'ya do 'ya, do 'ya want to love me baby, ah do 'ya do 'ya, do 'ya want to need me baby!"

 

[tacobob]

"Hmmm...mmmm.", Zelda slowly stirred from an dreamless nap as the sudden rush of activity and noise from her own cabin increased substantially. Curious to what all the hubbub was, the black griffon slowly opened her eyes and glanced out of her window. "Oh, we're almost here.", she chirped. The lush canopies of trees that made up the Whitetail Woods had long vanished as her adorable little gingerbread inspired train crossed into the Island of Manehattan. She starred at the assortment of buildings, big and small, and what was probably the second largest pony head she had ever seen, which was mounted on one of the taller of the skyscrapers. While she had visited some of Equestria's bigger cities, such as Stalliongrad, the old city might as well been a tiny little hamlet compared to the city she was arriving in.

As the train started to slow, the blacksmith snatched up her bag and waited for the doors to open. She had her entire week planned. She would be meeting an client in the 'White Horse Tavern', and during the following day, she had plans to spend a day with an old friend and see a show at the famous Carneighie Hall. But on her first day, she decided it would be the best time to check out Inkbrand's tattoo parlor.

She had met the gregarious stallion not that long ago while attending an soiree at the 'Veiled Garden' pub. Even among artists, musicians and other Bohemians, the branded stallion stood out among the crowd. During the event, she had become somewhat enamored of all of his markings that extended beyond the usual pony 'cutie-mark', and she was invited to visit his parlor the next time she visited his city. So, here she was, and after a quick visit to her hotel where she checked in and left her bags, the young griffon decided to hunt down the pony and his shop, but first there was breakfast. Her eyes spied a vendor selling bagels, muffins and other pastries.

After a quick breakfast, Zelda fumbled for the stallion's business card, which she kept in the pocket of her overalls. After getting a good idea where she was supposed to be going, the griffon started her trek. She had considered flying to the location, but decided it was such a nice day, she would simply 'hoof it' as ponies would say. Ten minutes later, she was staring directly at the parlor. As she pushed open the door, Zelda realized she never did think of what sort of tattoo she wanted, or where it would go. Hopefully Inkbrand would be able to recommend a proper and permanent marking for her.

"Heya Stud, you miss me?", Zelda chirped the moment she spotted the stallion as he danced along to some very poppy music.

[Zeig]

 

It felt like at least an hour, but in reality, it had probably only been maybe ten minutes before Inkbrand grew bored with the cleaning, having picked up the most obvious drops and wiped away the notable spills. The parlor was, considering whose hooves it had been in, in good shape, and if the random newspaper or ink design was flitting about along the floor somewhere, well. It was a bucking tattoo parlor. Any cleaner, and clients might have actually become suspect at the pristine front. Couldn't have that, now could he?

 

But before Inkbrand could do much more than set away the duster and kick the door closed, the sound of the front door opening pulled his attention away from the change in track record, causing the grey stallion to whip his head around to see which of his friends had decided to drop by and be a horrendous pain in the flank.

 

As it turned out, it was one he hadn't been expecting - and one he was fairly sure would be anything but a horrendous pain in the flank.

"Zelda, baby," Inkbrand leered, eyes automatically roving to taking in the sleek and slim appearance the night-dark griffon brought into his shop. Buck, he hadn't seen Zelda since that one time at the Veiled Garden, and sure, she'd seemed genuinely interested in getting some ink. Given his traipsing all over Equestria however, Inkbrand hadn't really given her or others the opportunity to stop by for a tat. Sweet Celestia, how lucky was he to return home the same day Zelda decided to come in for an inking? Or maybe she had been dropping by every once in a while since their first meeting?

 

The latter, probably. He tended to have that effect on ponies.

 

"You know I did," the tattoo-clad stallion said with an almost outrageously flirty smile, voice dropped to a lilting tone as he swaggered up towards the griffon, "haven't stopped thinking 'bout you since our little tête-à-tête up in the white tower city." Inkbrand idly strolled around the griffon as he spoke, running an appreciate and slightly contemplative gaze down her body, his mind already imagining what ink he would brand onto her skin. She'd said she liked abstract over straight up pictures and symbols, if he remembered correctly. Something fierce and cold, befitting her griffon heritage - or subtle and coy, epitomizing the sly simmer in her gaze?

 

Hay, maybe he'd even work his name into her ink, for funsies.

 

"Decided to get that inking after all, huh babe?" Inkbrand eventually questioned, unnecessarily of course. The grey stallion couldn't help the roughish tilt of his lips as he inclined his head further into the parlor, leading the black griffon towards one of the design-covered walls. "I told you I'd take care of you - you just tell me what you want etched out on your body, and I'll do the rest. Going full out for a permanent marking, am I right?" the tattoo-clad stallion continued, though the confidence in his voice didn't betray the hesitance of the question. It wasn't uncommon for clients to request semi-permanent tattoos, attempting to merely test them out, and each time a part of Inkbrand's soul died. Bucking lightweights.

 

Still, if Zelda only wanted a semi-permanent tattoo, that's what she would get. She was a hot as piece of flank, after all - she deserved getting exactly what she wanted.

 

[tacobob]

The griffon gave off a proper, but friendly smile as the pony eyed her up and down, "I was thinking about you as well, as well as your impressive markings. Just can't figure out where I should get inked. Erm.", she glanced around his parlor, "Is there anyplace I can put this?", she slid a backpack from her shoulders, "After I'm finished here, I need to pick up a few supplies, along with some paperwork, mostly contracts and design requests. Boring stuff." Once she was given a place to drop off her stuff, she placed the pack down and took off her boots, "As a fellow artist, sometimes you can't figure out what needs to be done until you see the entire canvas.", she carefully slid out of her overalls and neatly folded them up before placing them on her pile.

"And you better believe I'm getting permanent markings. If I wanted an temporary tattoo, I would have just stopped over at a 'Cantermart' and got one of those little slap-on-tattoos from a vending machine.", she made her way over to the stallion to let him get a better look at her, "We figured out before that I'd probably get something similar to your own tacs. Something tribal. No 'Spice Fillies Forever' for me. I want something that won't become terribly dated the moment I leave your place.", she turned around as she spoke, "And nothing over the rump. I want it to be classy".

She stopped 'modeling' for just a moment. "While I don't wear clothes all the time, I usually have to wear something to keep me protected when I work. If you ever see the old birds at the Rockwington forges. These guys pride themselves on their scorches. They'll say each burn is a badge of honor. Uh-hu. Makes 'em all look like something from a horror movie. I'll stick to protection so I can end up with a hubby one of these days and maybe a kid. But back to tats. Where do you think I should get 'em? I want it to be seen, and not something hidden away."

While the idea of having a kid had sent shivers down her spine in the past, the young griffon had slowly changed her mind about children, mostly due to family friends like Glimmer and a certain impossibly adorable little filly she had encountered during last year's 'Grand Galloping Gala'. Zelda still had plans of giving it time before she ever decided to settle down and start a family. "My art comes from here.", she placed an clawed hand over heart, and while it sounded better in her head, it was still true, "And here.", she lifted up her arms, "Maybe I can get something there? What do you think?"

[Zeig]

 

It was now completely, and utterly, official.

 

He was in love.

 

If Inkbrand's grin had been flirtatious earlier, it was downright lascivious now as the grey Earth Pony eyed Zelda's body with a newly revised vigor, golden eyes sharp and predatory as the canvas in front of him suddenly became a lot more personal. Buck, how rare was it to find a customer with the gumption to get real tattoos, and not wishy-washy, I'm not sure I don't want to commit to anything what if I don't like it ones? Even in Manehatten, most customers still tended to be rather conservative and hesitant about marking up their bodies, preferring to simply "try them out." Pfft.

 

The chance to have his ink permanently staining the gorgeous griffon in front of him was just too good an opportunity, and if there was anything Inkbrand was good at, taking advantage of opportunities was high up on the list, right next to "Tattooing" and "Stallion Studliness". "'Course you want your tattoos to be seen, why the buck else would 'ya get 'em?" Inkbrand affirmed, repeating his walk around the griffon as he contemplatively mapped out where he was going to mark her. She wanted away from the rear…a pity, that. A fierce tattoo all over that magnificent backside would have only made it stand out more. But maybe the tail? Winding from the upper hind leg all the way to the tip. Or just a small ring around the base of the tail, combined with another ring around her left hind leg. Bucking beautiful.

 

Though, Zelda seemed to have a different idea, one that was also not so bad. Working on the skin itself would definitely be easier than penetrating feathers to get the ink to stick, and Inkbrand reached out to take one of Zelda's forelegs, holding it one hoof while he ran his other around the wrist and up to the elbow. "Tribal, huh?" the tattoo-clad stallion murmured to himself, only half paying attention to the griffon he was feeling up as he focused on the patterns already forming in his mind, "tribal and bold." Inkbrand's lips puckered slightly, before they stretch into a smirk as he released his hold on Zelda. He gestured absently for the griffon to take a seat on the elongated seat in the middle of the area, surrounded by raised tables and benches where he'd keep his tattoo supplies, as he himself whipped around to grab a sheet of paper and a pencil, furiously jotting down his sketches.

 

"Classy is my middle name, baby," Inkbrand stated, pausing his work to throw the griffon a cocky wink, before focusing back onto his tank, tongue poking out from his mouth as he glared down at the paper. The scribbles turned until indistinct shapes, some flowing and forming, others stagnant and punctuating. Buck, that one would look real nice wrapped around the base of Zelda's tail. "But classy can have different meanings, you know," he added, cheeky grin on his face as he pushed his rolling chair over towards Zelda so she could see his preliminary sketches, "and a winding tattoo 'round the tail base just screams class, if 'ya know what I mean.

 

"But circling tattoos around the wrist are bucking hot as," he continued, pointing out the horizontally-orientated sketches, before sliding a hoof towards the vertical ones. "'Course, you can always go with a tat that's branded upwards, like this baby here." This, said with a flexing of his right foreleg and accompanying wink, where his own black tattoo was prominently displayed.

 

 

[PyroBlaze]

Sunrise was, to put things frankly, bored out of her mind. She had no dresses to design, and all her friends were busy. Why did their schedules have to clash so much? It seemed like whenever she had free time, her friends were all busy. She usually had to force herself to have free time when they did, which meant she was procrastinating on her work, and that was something she did not enjoy doing. Whether it was for a personal project or for a request through her work, she didn't like waiting until the last minute to work on it. That only made things very stressful and took all the fun out of the creative process. No, she did them as they came, finishing them as soon as she could while still doing her best on them.

The question still remained though, what was she going to do to occupy her time? She didn't feel like designing anything new, and she didn't feel like reading or anything like that. Eventually, the unicorn decided to go for a walk. She left her home, locking the door behind her as she set off down the street. Maybe she could find something to do if she headed by the shops and such.

None of the shops were interesting her enough for her to enter... She sighed, giving up on that idea and preparing herself to simply continue walking. As she walked however, a certain tattoo parlor caught her eye. Tattoos... She looked down at herself and smiled. Some designs on her orange coat could look pretty nice. Tossing her red mane out of her eyes, she walked into the shop, opening her mouth to speak, but stopping as she noticed the two already inside. A tattoo-clad stallion and a female griffon. She supposed the stallion was the owner. That, or he really liked getting tattoos. She was assuming the former, as the griffoness didn't strike her as the tattooing type... Whatever that was.

"Hmm... I'll just wait over here, I suppose." She said, finding an out of the way chair and making herself comfortable.

[tacobob]

“Weeeell.”, the griffon playfully ran her clawed hands through the stallion’s wild mane as he searched for the right spots to do his art. Zelda couldn’t help but help but be jealous of ponies and their crazy manes. The fuzz on a griffon’s head knew exactly where to stop and that’s where it stayed, from the cradle to the grave. She had seen some of her kind do wonders with hair lotions, extensions and even wigs, but they sure as hades couldn’t stand against a pony’s head of hair. “I’m sure somebody would get a very special marking that only would be seen by one that was very close to them. Mind you, I did read up a little on where one should not get a tattoo. Usually on the sensitive bits."

Zelda let out a chuckle as her hinder was studied, "I've been called an 'magnificent backside' in the past, but it was generally not supposed to be a complement. The tail would be nice, but I believe taking it slow and just seeing how markings would work on one part of me would look, before trying out another bit might work for me..". She felt the need to scrunch up her beak a little, as what she had just said, just did not come out as she wanted it to.

She released her hands from his hair the moment the stallion reached for one of her arms to examine it. "Tribal just doesn't go out of style.", she added, "I go and get the symbol of one of my favorite bands there, I'll probably regret it five years later.", she glanced down at his cute lil' pony legs. "I'm sure your markings have great personal value, but they can also be enjoyed by others as well.", she waited for Inkbrand to finish his sketches before she took a look on what he had done. This gave her time to gab a bit more.

"Ooh!", she bounced, "Believe it or not, I actually got to work with one of Celestia's...", she tried to think the term an old friend of hers used to describe a gaggle of adventurers that helped save Equestria from time to time. "Celestia's Champions. I spent some quality time with the earth pony, Applejack and wow, she was utterly amazing.", the blacksmith sounded like a teenager after her first date, "Just a perfect mix of beauty and strength, and a real class act...Did a few sketches of her, and once the stone comes in, I'll get to make an actual statue of the gal..Ooh.", she purred as she caught sight of the finished sketches.

"I do like the two on the right. Could see having them on my foreleg...Not sure what colors. Don't want to go overboard and just look silly. I do like your blues..", as she studied the paper, she noticed a mare as she entered. A skinny, but pretty little unicorn with an orange coat, "Looks like you have another customer.."

[Zeig]

 

Okay, the sudden fit of fanmare-ing over a vaguely familiar name wasn't at all what he'd been expecting from the suave and smooth griffon. Inkbrand was faintly surprised she didn't keel over from sheer excitement.

Still, it was kind of cute, and the grey stallion listened dutifully as Zelda went on about a mare named Applejack - Element of Loyalty, wasn't she? He could never keep them straight, no matter how many times news of "Celestia's Champions" gabbled over the streets - only half-paying attention to the accolades and lavish praise the griffon was spewing. In all honesty, Inkbrand had never been that much of a fan, perhaps even a bit of a skeptic, the same way he tended to let awed and starstruck whispers of Princesses wash over him. There were other, hotter models to be starstruck over, after all.

Though, it was rather difficult to remain fully indifferent to a group of ponies that had supposedly saved Equestria more times than he had hooves.

"Blue 'n black are always classic," the tattoo-clad stallion was finally able to interject, once the conversation turned back onto more interesting topics, such as tattooing. Another critical run of his hoof over the griffon's rough forearm, more to get a feel for the unique texture of her skin than a desire to feel her up. "Different hues of the same color can work wonders on a dark surface," Inkbrand added knowingly, hoof trailing just a little bit further up her feathers - and that time, for the sole sake of feeling up those smooth and pristine feathers.

Buck, he was going to enjoy branding his ink all over her.

But before Inkbrand could veer into that dangerous territory (any further than he already had), the sound of the door whipping open caught his ears, just as Zelda turned her attention to the same area. An orange and red colored unicorn was walking into the shop, looking for all the world she had wandered in by mistake. However, she didn't hesitate to take a seat down in one of his waiting chairs, seemingly content to wait her turn. Did she already know what sort of inking she wanted, then? Which suited him just fine, of course, but it was a little strange.

Not that Inkbrand had any problem with strange. Not really.

"Sit right on down, babe," Inkbrand instructed, despite the unicorn having already taken a seat to wait for a consult, "be with you in good time. Got to finish up my sterling silver customer here, first." This, said with another exaggeratedly flirty grin shot at Zelda, and Inkbrand, satisfied with the feel of her skin, stood up from his position, beckoning for the griffon to do the same. In short time, he had Zelda splayed out on the tattooing table, raised slightly like a lounging chair so she could watch the tattooing in progress. Another quick detour to his supplies, and Inkbrand had everything he needed to get it on.

"Massage oil," Inkbrand proclaimed rather proudly, waving a rounded bottle at the griffon before popping it open. The barest hint of yellow sparkles escaped the lid before fading from view, quick enough to miss with a single blink. "To soften the skin and set the foundation for the ink to sink under the skin."
It wasn't often that Inkbrand delved the actual process behind his tattooing to a customer, but Zelda seemed genuinely interested - or if she wasn't, at least she was good at pretending interest. The grey Earth Pony let a modicum of oil drop onto one hoof, carefully stopping the bottle before spreading the oil onto both hooves, grinning down at the prone griffon. "And now," he stated, voice dropping to a husky drawl, "we get to the fun stuff."

The oil was heated, a byproduct of the enchantment on it, and it served his purposes just fine as Inkbrand picked up Zelda's left forearm, slowly and purposefully massaging her skin. As much fun as he got rubbing oil all over another pony - especially when they asked for tattoos in unseeming places - it was important to do a good job massaging the area. Botched massaged could cause distortions in the finished tattoo, markings sometimes rubbing off after a few months. Suffice to say, Inkbrand took his craft very seriously.

He just, happened to enjoy it a whole lot, too.

"Feel good," Inkbrand murmured, not really expecting a reply to his not-question. Two hooves worked now to continue spreading the oil up and down the entire length of Zelda's forearm, on the sides and around the back, just in case his artwork spiraled further than intended. Languid and practiced, though a flash of red caught his attention. "Feel free to take a look around," the tattoo-clad stallion spoke up suddenly, breaking concentration enough to send the orange unicorn a lilted grin over one shoulder as he indicated the various drawings and designs he had spread all over the room. "Got any ideas for an inking, or you sort of going with the flow?"
 

 

 

 

[PyroBlaze]

Sunrise smiled slightly as the two addressed her. There wasn't really anything for her to respond to though, and the stallion went back to working on the griffon soon enough. That was fine, she could wait her turn. Her eyes traveled around the shop as she looked over the designs on the walls, trying to figure out what she really wanted. It wasn't like she had an idea or anything, this had been a rather quick decision after all. She just had to find something to fit her, she supposed, which was something she tended to have a good eye for. At least when it came to dresses.

 

The designer looked over as the stallion spoke up, saying she was free to examine the designs on the walls, which she was already doing. He had also asked a question of if she had an idea of what she would actually want.

 

"Well... I'm not quite sure at the moment what I should get." She replied, giving him a slight smile as she went back to looking at the images, standing and trotting around to get better views of the images.

[tacobob]

 

The ebony griffon’s cheeks quickly flushed red as she realized how quickly she had shed her usual cool and collective façade she normally kept when doing business. “Er..heh-heh.”, the blacksmith tried the shake the feeling away, but failed. “That was all a new sensation for me.”, Zelda glanced towards them mare briefly before turning her attention to the stallion. “When I was chick, I would read about the heroes of the past, both pony and griffon, and to actually be In the presence of an honest to goodness world-saving hero just shook me up, but in a good way. It also helped me out of a rather unpleasant bit of artistic funk I had been suffering through.”

 

She finally shifted her thoughts back to the task on hand as Inkbrand surveyed his latest canvas, which just happened to be the griffon's arms. "If I knew you would do this, I might have considered getting a marking somewhere a bit more interesting.", she cooed as the stallion started with the oils and eventually led to a hoof-massage, "But for now, the arms are perfect. They will be easy to take notice of and the colors and patterns should look awesome.", while this all felt rather stimulating, the blacksmith managed to keep as still as possible during the process. "It does feel good so far.", she whispered, not realizing that the stallion was also chatting with his newest customer to be.

 

"So, what's the next step?"

[Elderflower]

 

It was a beautiful day in Manehattan - at least, it had been a beautiful day in Manehattan. Frostlace noticed the dark clouds rolling in just when she was getting to the end of the pint she had with her lunch, a slight pout forming as a single, large raindrop splashed into her last mouthful of ale. The mare sighed and swung back the last of her drink, completely disappointed in the weather. She had stopped at this café in order to unwind and do some ponywatching in the city to wile away the hours until she had to attend the opening of an old family friend’s art exhibit. It’d be hard to do any ponywatching with the rain scaring ponies inside, though. Time to find something else to do to pass the time!

The curvy mare took to the streets and rounded a corner where a line of taxis was forming and collecting wet ponies, thinking she might head to Bridleway to take in a show, when a sign across the street caught her eye. She narrowed her blue-gold gaze and founding herself grinning wickedly. Inkbrand’s Tattoo Parlour, hm? Intriguing. The mare had always imagined she’d look good in ink, and had always considered branding herself with something symbolic of her relationship with her late dedushka. The decision was made as easily as that! Trotting briskly across the store to escape the rain before she was drenched, Frostlace stepped into the parlour and looked around.

There was a lovely, fiery unicorn whom Frost recognized sitting in what looked like the waiting area. The white mare beamed at her before looking towards the artist who seemed quite focused on working with the stunning gryphon who was about to get inked. The artist was quite the looker as well! It seemed as though she had made the right call coming to this place: there was no lack of attractive ponies (and gryphon!) for her to admire while she awaited constultation with the artist.

“Privet, hello!” she called out in her thick Stallian accent, her horn glowing softly and sending ribbons of magic to swirl about her body and dry up most of the rain that had been dripping off of her, “It is hard raining outside now. Very nepriyatnyy, very unpleasant.”

Satisfied that she wouldn’t drip all over the parlour, Frost finally strolled away from the door towards Sunrise, “Privet, privet Sunrise!” she chimed happily, careful to keep her voice quiet so as not to distract the artist at work too much, “I was hoping I might running into you in Manehattan. How schastlivyy this makes me, how happy! Is good to seeing you well!”

In her typical warm and friendly manner, Frost pulled the fiery mare into a hug and kissed her on her cheek before releasing her. “How have you been, milyy?”

[Zeig]

 

Next?

…Oh. Oh right, next. For her tattoo. Buck. He'd just been getting into the massage portion, too. It was a shame Zelda wasn't currently interested in getting a tattoo elsewhere - say, her flaunting flanks and shapely rump - but some canvases needed to be warmed up to the brush.

Or, something.

"Next," the grey Earth Pony proclaimed as he wiped off his hooves, procuring his trusted paintbrush with an added twirl and cocky grin, "comes the best, of course. Just hold your sweet little self still." The paints were all ready, a mixture of blues and dark greys ready to sink into her skin - and forget about the massage, because no matter how nice it was to cop a feel of gorgeous griffon, this truly was the best part, and Inkbrand felt his grin tilt somewhere sharper, wider, as he set his brush against darkened skin.

This was the art of tattooing, no mistake. The sight of his ink slowly settling onto living, breathing canvas, marking them, branding a part of himself and his style onto their body was a high nothing in all the world could match. Not mares, not salt, not even Princess Luna and her over-the-moon flanks. Inkbrand couldn't help the low hum of pleasure that echoed deep in his throat as he slowly, carefully, dragged his brush along Zelda's foreleg, picking up one claw to work the ink around it. When he was through, the black griffon would have a spiraling tattoo ending wrapped around one of her left claws, almost like a wide ring, and the thought was enough to bump his grin a few degrees higher.

Inkbrand wasn't too far gone not to pay attention to his surroundings however, and he cocked one ear in the direction of the mare inside his shop, keeping his eyes focused on the task at hoof. "Well 'ol Inkbrand'll be happy to give you some inking ideas, doll face," the grey stallion said cheerily, almost gleefully as he continued his work. Nothing put him in a better mood than tattooing. "We'll find something to suit whatever body part you're looking to brand."

The sound of his door opening distracted Inkbrand only momentarily, as did the sound of falling rain before it swung back shut. Buck, he hadn't even noticed the change in weather, too busy fawning over his newest canvas. He did, however, take note of a heavily accented voice suddenly speaking up from the doorway - a very hot accent, if Inkbrand's ears weren't deceiving him. It was enough cause for the grey Earth Pony to avert his eyes from Zelda's forelegs, zeroing in on the smoking hot mare that was waltzing into his shop. A smoking hot mare that was completely and utterly -

'Hot bucking clam on a pogo stick,' Inkbrand's mind supplied helpfully, the artist having enough forethought to carefully pull his brush away from Zelda as his golden eyes devoured the silken white coat flouncing past him. Without a hint of color on her flanks, even the mare's mane and tail had only a simple hue to them, not detracting at all from the glorious spread of clean, unaltered skin. The grey stallion let his gaze run appreciatively over the mare's more distracting assets, absentmindedly cleaning off his brush to reapply the ink as he did so. Even her cute mark wasn't overly -

Her, cutie mark wasn't -

It took Inkbrand a moment to realize his mouth had fallen open, and that he was gaping rather unattractively. Hurriedly, the grey stallion tore his gaze away, doing his best to ignore the sudden cold rush that had spread through him, like he'd been thrown into an icy bath. The best remedy was to focus on the task at hand, and Inkbrand threw himself back at Zelda's tattoo with a ferocious intensity, even while his mind raced a mile a minute.

Buck, bucking buck. Her cutie mark was far, far too similar. Even leagues away in Canterlot, she still found a way to remind him.

'Shake it off,' Inkbrand thought, annoyed at himself and just a bit angry that he could still get annoyed over it. 'Bucking hot griffon and bucking hot mares waiting, bud.'

Luckily, the tattoo was small and with a simple design, costing Inkbrand almost no more time in finishing it up. It was enough to chase the sudden dark thunderclouds of his thoughts away as the tattoo artist picked up a cloth to gently wipe away at the surface, cleaning up the area to fully expose the tattoo. With a roguish wink tossed at the white mare and fiery Unicorn, Inkbrand slipped off his stool to extend a hoof towards Zelda, helping her get into a sitting position. "All done, baby," he declared, a lopsided smirk on his face as he held Zelda's foreleg upwards, carefully twisting it so the griffon could see the tattoo spiraling up and down her skin. "How're you digging your first ink brand?"
 

 

 

 

[PyroBlaze]

Sunrise gave The stallion a friendly smile even though he wasn't looking towards her at all. She probably could use some help with this. After all, it wouldn't do to make a mistake with this, tattoos were rather permanent. She continued looking at the various designs, casting a glance out the window and frowning. When had it started raining? That would not be fun on the way back home. Well, at least she could dry herself off rather easily, so it wouldn't be too bad. She just dreaded actually walking through the rain itself. She would have to fix her mane after she got home.

 

She was distracted from her musings by the arrival of another customer to the parlor, one she recognized immediately. The fiery unicorn gave Frost a friendly smile as she approached, saying she was happy to see her. She was a little surprised by the hug she found herself in, which she returned gently, but moreso by the kiss that landed on her cheek, which was something she did not mirror to the icy mare.

 

"It's good to see you as well, Frost. I have been doing well, no reason to complain. It has just been the same old routine around her after I returned though, which was rather nice after all that excitement at the faire. How have you been since all that ruckus, darling?" Sunrise asked, happy to be seeing a friend not living in Manehatten.

[tacobob]

 

 

The black griffon resisted the temptation to turn her head so she could get a good look at the mare that had just entered. She had the familiar accent of an Stalliongrad resident, the same place the blacksmith had spent the better part of an week while working on an interesting little job. She did not want the disrupt the stallion's hard work, so she stayed perfectly still. As Frostlace made her way into the parlor, Zelda was able to get a good look at her, along with the stallion. It was very obvious, she was not a member of the working class there, more likely she was a member of the upper-upper-class. Ho-Boy, now that somepony in her pay-range was getting a marking, soon everypony else will want one. This would be good for guys like Inkbrand.

 

"Er.", her eyes bounced back from the mare and up towards the stallion. "Hey Inky, your..", once again, she resisted moving, and normally would have helped him close that droopy jaw of his, but he at least had reasons to be gawking, The unicorn was extremely beautiful, to the point of it being obnoxious. Zelda also felt the dread of going from the 'cutest chick' in the room to number three, although, considering the stallion was a good deal prettier than she, maybe that would be forth?

 

Once he was able to shake it off, the stallion continued and even finished her new markings, which took a good deal less time to do that she had thought it would. "Oh, I'm digging it." Now it was her turn to be impressed. "Smegging awesome.", she added. While it was just a marking, the whole tribal thing that was now going on with her foreleg just gave her the impression of an new surge of creativity and strength that would soon pour from her during her next project. And that next project would be happening soon, but she still had time. "Oh shib.", it was still raining as well.

 

"You don't mind If I hang around here for a little bit? I don't have to meet my client for a bit, and the eh.", she waved a clawed hand towards the outside, "I'll just stay and watch you work.", she ran the same fingers under his chin and through the stallion's wild blue mane. Thankfully years of working with her talons had dulled the edges. Once Inkbrand gave her room, the griffon slowly rose from her chair and made her way towards her things. After tossing her clothing back on, she reached into her pocket where she kept her bits, "So, how much do I owe yah?"

[Elderflower]

“Uneventful is sounds nice, milyy. The Crystal Empire...bah! So many bad memories...distractions are always being welcome,” the mare sighed and screwed up her face with an angry expression, “At least I taught some few of those thugs a lessons. They will never underestimate a Stallian mare again. Especially not this one. My dedushka taught me well how to be tough. I hope I did him prideful at the Spire.”

Grinning playfully once more, she threw a light, playful punch into the air and tossed the fiery mare a wink. While she did that, she overheard the gryphoness currently be tattooed mention “Inky”...so was that the artist’s nickname? It seemed...well, boring. Expected. A little juvenile. Better-suited for a squid. Blagoobraznyy suited him better, as it suited all handsome stallions...gryphons...caribou...so on, so forth. Frost flicked her glance back in that direction to find Inkbrand staring at her, slackjawed. Well well! This could be fun.

The pale mare flashed the most devilish grin she could muster in the stallion’s direction, garnishing it with a flirtatious little wink before turning back to Sunrise. She gave her long tail a saucy, swishy flick just for good measure.

“In any cases, krasivyy, while I am in Manehattan you must showing me your store and your designs! Perhaps a lunch dating?”

By the sounds of things over where Inkbrand and the gryphoness were engaged, their session had clued up. Smiling, Frost turned to inspect the artist’s work. And she was impressed. The work was perfectly organic in how it suited the lovely, dark birdlion. It seemed a natural part of her. The mare’s expression was full of admiration, and when the gryphon came over closer to the window Frost beamed at her.

“Oshelomlyayushchiy!” she exclaimed, “Stunning! Is perfect fit for stunning gryphoness such as yourself. Many heads will turn! Mine has! It seems I am making right choice to come here. Ah, and please, stay - keep me company while I waiting my turn? Ah! My name! I should give name before asking favour of your company. Is Frostlace. And your name, krasivyy?”

[Zeig]

 

Inkbrand could have sworn a soft, pleased growl left his throat as black claws, blunt enough to avoid piercing but sharp enough to give them just that extra edge, ran under his chin and through his mane. Normally the grey stallion would have been averse to having his chin scratched in an almost condescending manner - but buck, a sexy griffon doing the scratching? Count him in any day.

The obvious appreciation in Zelda's voice may have had something to do with his mild-mannered response, too, leaving Inkbrand to puff out his chest in some pride as the griffon further inspected his work. The tattoo-clad stallion had yet to have a customer walk out of his salon unsatisfied, but that didn't dampen the well-earned triumph that flew over him every time the customer's eyes widened in awe and pleasure.

It was almost funny, really - Inkbrand didn't consider himself a customer service pony, yet there was just something satisfying about a pony being so utterly pleased at his ink branding their skin.

The inevitable question about the bill came up, another favorite part of his, but one that was not always standard, a fact that Inkbrand could fully appreciate now as he leaned back to allow he griffon room to stand. "You can stay all night long if you'd like, Ze-Ze," the grey stallion invited, a leer flashing over his face as the black griffon bent over to retrieve her things, "I'll even sleep on the couch and everything." Mostly everything, anyways. Inkbrand was courteous enough, however, to wait until Zelda's fabulous backside had straightened out, before he slid from his stool to stalk straight over to the griffon, grin threatening to split his face in two.

"From you, baby?" the grey stallion murmured low against the side of Zelda's head, voice soft enough to not carry towards the other two ponies. "Lazarro's Place. Eight 'o clock, tomorrow."

He didn't offer her choice of payment, didn't ask her a question. Inkbrand let his tail skim whisperingly over the griffon's flanks before turning away towards his other customers, giving her a chance to mull it over. If she really insisted on paying a traditional fare of boring bits, well, Inkbrand couldn't legally say no.

But honestly, he didn't think he'd have to.

The white-coated Unicorn - named Frostlace, it seemed - had moved to vacate his spot next to Zelda, engaging the griffon in conversation, and Inkbrand took the time to leer at her passing flanks as she went, though he had to flinch and jump his gaze over her cutie mark to get down to her shapely legs. Still, it was enough to mollify the stallion as he made his way over to the other Unicorn - Sunrise, her name, and wasn't Frostlace just buck all useful to have around for introductions? - who seemed to still be perusing his designs. Buck, if she still hadn't decided, he'd need to skip over her.

"So, what's it going to be, doll face?" the grey Earth Pony questioned loudly, setting himself straight down on the hardwood floor right next to Sunrise with an equally large grin, "what's your style, what's your thing? Tribal, Stained, Glasswork, Gang, Pattern? Solid colors, giant pictures - you want a beach scene drawn on your flank, I'll ink a bucking beach scene on your flank." Inkbrand wasn't entirely sure if the suggestions he was virtually hurling at the mare were helping, but maybe she was the type that needed some examples sketched out, anyways.
 

 

 

 

[PyroBlaze]

Sunrise giggled lightly at Frostlace's words about teaching the ruffians a lesson. She smiled warmly at her friend as she continued, saying she wanted to see her designs while she was in the city. Now that sounded like a fun time.

 

"You sure did teach them a lesson, darling. I am not nearly as much of a fighter, unfortunately. All I ended up doing was hurting myself by trying to tackle somepony." Sunrise said with a sigh before smiling over at her friend again. "I would love to go out to lunch with you, Frostlace, it sounds like a wonderful time." She finished before Frostlace turned her attention to the griffoness, who had just finished and was now sporting a very nice-looking tattoo on her leg. The gap left by her departing friend was quickly filled by the stallion however, who began asking what it was she would want.

 

"Hmm... Well, considering my cutie mark is already sort of tribal, it might be a good idea to do more in that style, accentuate what's already present." Sunrise said as she looked at one of the designs on the wall. "However, you are the tattooist here, so I'd like to hear your opinion on the matter. What do you think would be a good design for me?" She asked, turning towards the stallion and looking at him.

[Pretzelparty]

Manehattan was one of the more curious cities that the Jarl had ever visited. In Sigrun and her sister's efforts to relate better to the ponies of Equestria, Ylva had suggested that The leader of the Askr clan visit the rest of areas of the nation to gain a better idea of what those they wished to make allies of the Askr clan and the High-king ruled Whitescar. The statuesque cow towered over the most of the ponies that were strolling down the sidewalk, her attempts to casually blend in more or less dead on arrival. In hindsight she really should have figured that a gigantic caribou from a normally freezing cold frigid landscape would draw a couple stares... it probably didn't help that she'd let out one of those earth shaking sneezes of hers when she got off the train here.

 

As Sigrun continued to trot down the street, she had to admit; these ponies were an industrious group of species. So many cultures and philosophies united under a single flag, she could only dream that when her and her sister's work was done that their homeland could be half as impressive as this.

 

Soon Sigrun's silver eyes caught something in their steely gaze; a sign. "Inkbrand's tattoo Parlor" Hm... SHe looked back to her plot and took notice that her own ink had faded on the mark of her clan that she had put on her flank so long ago... Perhaps a touch up or a detailing wouldn't be out of the question. She couldn't afford to look bad especially with that arena battle in Saarverberg coming up. 

 

Taking a deep breath the Cow entered to the shop. Noticing that there were some ponies ahead of her she simply stood by and waited for them to finish ... or for someone to approach her.

​

[tacobob]

 

"I need to discuss business with a new client at a place not that far from here called the 'White Horse Tavern'.", Zelda added as she finished sliding her trusty overalls back on, "I'll.." she turned and noticed the stallion's eyes were all over her, "I'll have a drink, work out a contract and we'll be done. Boring stuff, but you can make things a little less dull for me afterwards if you wish. Heard they make the best 'Manehatten', but I'm sure every other place here makes the same claim. Oh.", she paused as the stallion whispered a few words into her ears. She nodded her head, "Couch? Let's see where the night takes us first.", she purred once more.

 

Elderflower, on 04 Mar 2015 - 12:51 AM, said:

“Oshelomlyayushchiy!” she exclaimed, “Stunning! Is perfect fit for stunning gryphoness such as yourself. Many heads will turn! Mine has! It seems I am making right choice to come here. Ah, and please, stay - keep me company while I waiting my turn? Ah! My name! I should give name before asking favour of your company. Is Frostlace. And your name, krasivyy?”

 

The black griffon felt a light blush forming in her cheeks. It was awfully nice of the snowy unicorn to complement her so, but in all honestly, she felt like an mangy Diamond Dog compared to the beauties that currently resided in the parlor. “Why thank you Lady Frostlace.”, the black griffon gave off a friendly, beaky smile.  As with almost everypony that she had met, the exquisite mare’s name matched up rather nicely with her physical appearance and possibly her personality. Her family had a habit of reusing and recycling everything, from clothing, furniture and even names. Her mother came dangerously close to naming her little chick Grizelda or even Pantilimon, but ended up using her second cousin's name, after the later two fell out of her favor.

 

It was considered unwise to underestimate a pony. Dragons, changelings and even griffons of ancient times did, and they ended up with hoof-kicked backsides. While the mare appeared at first to be as dainty as her namesake, there was some muscle behind those curves. The black bird wondered what her name friend did for a living, "I'm a simple blacksmith and sculptor from Canterlot. The pay is decent, but I do get to meet people of all walks of life. Present company included, of course.", she kept her beaky smile on for a moment longer, "I'm usually pretty good at figuring out what a pony does for a living, and while you have the poise and grace of a duchess or other type of upper-class mare, you don't appear to be the type that lets her servants do all the work. Is this correct?"

 

Once it was Sunrise's turn at the chair, Zelda's eyes fell upon the next costumer who entered...

 

Presteza, on 06 Mar 2015 - 9:36 PM, said:

Taking a deep breath the Cow entered to the shop. Noticing that there were some ponies ahead of her she simply stood by and waited for them to finish ... or for someone to approach her.

 

'Holy Holey!', she thought to herself as the caribou entered Inkbrand's shop. She had seen a few of the girl's kind before, but the griffon did not realize they could be so dang-blasted beautiful, nor did she know they shared the same butt-marks that zebras and ponies had. Or was that just a ink-brand of her own? Zelda readied herself to catch the stallion's eyeballs as they would probably pop out of his skull the moment he caught sight of this new and very impressive beauty. While feeling sort of silly, the bird quickly reached into her largest of pockets and pulled out a small sketch pad.

 

"You don't mind sitting there miss?", she waved a claw towards an chair with optimal lighting above it, "There are two girls ahead of you, so I was wondering, if possible and if it would not be too much trouble If I can do a couple quick inspiration sketches of you. I've just never seen many of your people before, and you..Oooh.", she cooed, "Such a sheynie!"

 

 

[Elderflower]

“It is date, then,” Frostlace purred at the fiery mare. They would have to sort out the details later, but the Hoar Witch was rather looking forward to seeing her new friend’s work. In the meantime, Frost’s attention was absorbed by the dark gryphoness with the pretty smile!

She couldn’t help but flinch internally at the mention of servants. To call her staff that...it felt as though it cheapened their roles in her life. After her dedushka had passed and her extended family had moved in (the ones who only cared about the Hoar Witch title and wealth and little else) her real family was found in those ponies who had lived in the Hoar Witch Estate alongside her and worked there as long as she had lived. They had been there for her from the moment she was born, they had been the ones to soothe her hurts, and they were the ones she turned to when something new and exciting happened in her life. Calling them servants would never do them justice.

 

The mare simply offered the gryphoness a warm, gentle smile, “A very close guess, krasivyy. I am not stranger to hard work and am a...Countess of the Hoar Witch family of Stalliongrad,” she said softly, clearly uncomfortable with the title, “But servants? No...is not word for those employed by Hoar Witch name. Under that roof we all are family. Under every roof that is bearing our family crest we all are family. It has been so since my dedushka i babushka took over family Estates and is how my dedushka raised me - I wish to change nothing.”

There was no need to go into the full story: not knowing her parents, her grandmother, or many others in her family outside of her grandfather. It was a heavy topic for casual conversation, and Frost’s status was something she rarely enjoyed speaking of when meeting somepony new. Even without prattling on about her wealth and station, she felt like a spoiled brat. She always felt like everypony could only hear her saying, ‘Ooooo, yes, I am a Countess but I sooooooo love my servants. We’re so close I even know the name of one of the ones that polish my hooves every morning.’ Hah! As if Frostlace would have a hoof polisher.

 

“That all is not matter, though, enough of me now. Tell me of your art, krasivyy. I am not so familiar with the Canterlot scene as I should being. A sculptor and smith, you say? Your sculptures then - are they being metal work? I would love to see what you make...oh! I did not getting your name!”

 

It was then that a rather...unexpected guest stepped in through the door of Inkbrand’s tattoo parlour. A large, curvaceous, and perfectly breathtaking caribou had made an entrance, her stature and countenance impressive in every regard. One quick look in the gryphoness’ direction confirmed that she, too, was in awe of the silver-eyed cow, but wait..silver eyes...and that mark on her rump. Oh!

“Jarl Sigrun,” Frostlace piped up, approaching and bowing her pretty head before the tall cow, “Ah...forgiving any impertinence, please - my name is Frostlace. I was in Crystal Empire during Faire - during the attack. It was...dark time. But your longships and hammers during cleanup was blessing upon the Empire. I am thanking you and yours from bottom of my heart. Clan Askr gave us ponies much reason to hope in wake of despair with all you shared. Resources, work, ritual...all were precious gifts. The Hoar Witch family of Stalliongrad sees you as friend to Equestria and ponykind.”

 

Truth be told, the glimpse that Frostlace had caught of Sigrun in the Crystal Empire had been a very fleeting one. It had been during a party hosted by a Crystal Empire prima ballerina, a party where Frost had met a rather...enticing striped gryphon. He commanded her attentions most of that night, and when Frost finds a potential conquest (as her dear friend Snowfall would call it) it is very hard to pull her away from him. She was glad to have the opportunity to meet the Jarl up close, and here of all places! It almost made her wistful: her one and only caribou fling had been a striking bull she had chanced upon in Kuznitza back home...the Jarl had the same powerful air about her as he had. The Hoar Witch mare simply could not keep that flirtatious grin of hers at bay.

[Zeig]

 

Alright, second customer in a row that really had no idea what she wanted, but was settling on 'tribal'. Sometimes it was difficult to work with a client that was so completely out of their depth, but mostly, it was freeing, giving him to most artistic expression possible. After all, it could be a chore trying to comply with a customer's specific design idea while actually trying to make it look good. Nearly all ponies were artists in their own minds, but in actuality?

Not so much.

The tattoo-clad stallion let out a thoughtful hum as he bodily steered the fiery Unicorn towards the tattooing chair, eyes running critically over her body as he mapped out the best design for her in his head. Sunrise was correct, for the most part - tribal would accentuate her cutie mark. Maybe he could tack on the tattoo as close to her mark as he could, making it seem like her cutie mark actually spiraled down her leg and around the base of her tail? Or a bold and rigid design that would wrap around one leg, a contrast to the wispy lines of her cutie mark but enough of a throwback for anypony to make the connection.

"Tribal it is, sweetheart," Inkbrand affirmed as he maneuvered the mare into a sitting position, boldly running a hoof along her flank and down one hind leg. His touch was a lot more professional than it had been with Zelda, but Inkbrand didn't let that stop him from enjoying the feeling of the smooth fur beneath his hoof. "I'll accentuate your assets alright, count on it." A flirty wink broke Inkbrand's professionalism for a moment, before he slammed himself down into his chair and rolled over to his drawing board, flipping up his sketch pencil and setting to the sheet of paper. Intent as he tended to get on his art, Inkbrand still manage to keep an absent ear trained on the other guests in his parlor, which was how he eventually noticed that another customer had walked into his shop.

And something else besides, apparently.

He only glanced up from his sheet a moment to sneak a peak at the sexy new tattoo wrapped around Zelda's foreleg, but his vision essentially filled up on brown, furry flank, and it took the grey Earth Pony a moment to realize he was staring at a Caribou, of all things. Buck, she was huge. What's more, Frostlace was bowing her head and bestowing platitudes on the Caribou as if she was somepony important, causing Inkbrand's eyebrows to raise up to his mane line. He'd heard about the attack on the Crystal Empire, of course, and been doubly grateful he'd missed out on the Faire thanks to a nasty stomach flu. But seeing a Caribou suddenly all up in his business - 'Ha!' - was a bit of a shock.

Especially when he noticed the mark on her flank, which would bear eerie similarity to a cutie mark if it didn't appear to be rubbing off somewhat. Or perhaps it really was a cute mark, and just faded by design?

With a last look at the Caribou's flank that was more inquisitive than intrusive, for once, Inkbrand let his gaze fall back onto Zelda, an appreciative grin winding up his face as the griffon took care of getting the Caribou settled. New customer essentially taken care of, the grey stallion returned to his work, finishing up his last mock-up as he kicked his chair back over towards Sunrise, waving the sheet around like a banner.

"I'm thinking the upper back leg," he explained, handing the sketches over to the Unicorn, "straight up and down, with the top straying up the stomach and flank. Or would you rather have your permanent inking on the front? Can do a nice wind-up around the neck and left ear, perfect little precursor before the main event," he added, with an obvious leer towards her flanks and cutie mark.

But mostly her flanks.
 

 

 

 

[ShadowWalking18]

Razor skid to a halt outside a shop, looking left and right as he breathed laboriously. This always seem to happen like clock work when this day arrived. And it never ended well for him, and he was going to be a plucked goose before he let it happen again.

 

'Gotta hide. Gotta hide. Gotta hide.' He thought, looking to the shop. Some sort of tattoo place. He quickly opened the door and slipped in, closing the door behind him and leaned against it as he took deep breathes, talon to his heart as he tried to ease his breathing.

 

He turned and looked at the door for several moments, waiting and listening.

 

....nothing.

 

"Oh thank goodness." He sighed in relief. He backed away slowly, eyes intent on the door for a moment, until he felt himself back into someone behind him. It was just a minor bump, but he turned to apologize.

 

"Oh, sorry I-."  He paused as he looked up, eyes bulging, pupils dilating to tiny pinpricks.

 

He had backed up into the leg of a rather tall creature. Given Razors...short stature, this only made the creature look a lot bigger. But that wasn't what had him scared. Phobia kicked in as he stared up at the tall female. Panic taking hold as he yelped slightly and leaped away and backed away to bump into someone else.

 

Razor looked, ready to apologize again, only he felt his heart stop as he was once more too close to another female. A female griffon this time. He then leaped away to fall on his rear to the floor as he stared up at the two girls with eyes wide with terror. His breathing picking up once more and a talon grip over his heart.

 

Two, two of them. In the same room!

 

"I...I...that....not...I...sorry...this...." He sputtered, trying to relax. He shuddered a bit,

 

"I think my heart just stopped a moment there."  He said to himself as he got up to his feet, and backed himself well away from the females. His body still shaking with terror. He gulped and looked around, noticing others about and his face heated up with embarrassment as he waved a shakey talon and said simply, "Uuhh....hello."

[Dio]

Many times, other ponies often got on Daedalus’ case about wearing a hooded coat all the time, especially in warm weather.  This was not one of those times.  With hood up and hooves kept carefully beneath him, he trotted through the rainy streets of Manehattan.  The mage repeated the address he’d memorized, silently mouthing it as he scanned the buildings he was passing.  Finally, it appeared he’d arrived.  The place was certainly open; there was plenty of movement inside, but the rain-slicked street saw fit to reflect its luster upon the storefront, blocking a more detailed view.

 

Oh well.  It wasn’t like he wasn’t going to go in anyway.  Daedalus gave the door a gentle nudge with a hoof and stepped inside.  The parlor was apparently quite popular.  Already a line had formed with eager customers chatting away while the tattoo artist worked his trade.  It looked like he’d come to the right place!  As the entry bell rang, Daedalus made a nod and a hoof wave of acknowledgement to the tattoo artist, a small hopefully appreciated gesture, provided that the artist wasn’t too busy with his next client.

 

Daedalus waited for the excess rain to drip off onto the welcome mat before lowering his hood and hanging up his jacket on one of the nearby hooks.  With jacket removed, he gave his head a shake, straightening up the simple viking braid he had stowed his mane in for the day.  It wouldn’t do to drip all over establishment, after all.

 

His rainwear stowed, Daedalus finally had a chance to look around.  What a sight it was!  He wasn’t sure if he’d walked into a tattoo parlor or a club on ladies’ night!  It wouldn’t do to stare, though, so he shuffled around the gathering and started toward a seat.  Before he could get there, however, there was something of a commotion among the crowd as a young griffon scrabbled about on the floor like a frightened pidgeon.  Daedalus almost laughed at the comical situation, but caught himself.  He instead trotted over to assist the griffon

 

“Slow down there, son!” Deadalus chuckled as he offered a hoof to pull him off the ground.  “I’m sure they won’t bite!”

 

Giving a puckish grin to the rest of the gathered company, he continued, “At least I don’t think you do, do you?”

[PyroBlaze]

Sunrise was a little surprised as she was almost forced towards the chair, though she recovered soon enough and trotted there herself, getting up on it as the stallion directed, watching him. The unicorn watched Inkbrand as he seemed to be looking him over, though she could tell it was to asses what he could do for her. At least that was the majority of the reason. She made a little noise as he ran his hoof over her flank, but otherwise said nothing.

"Hmm... I'm sure you will. You seem to have done a good job of it on yourself and her." Sunrise said, smiling a bit as her eyes traveled over his form and the tattoos all over it. He seemed engrossed in his drawing, so she left him to it, knowing perfectly well it was usually better not to be interrupted while designing.

Her eyes traveled over to the group by the entrance, an eyebrow raising at the new arrival. The caribou was familiar to her instantly, though she hadn't actually seen that much of the cow. It was hard to forget the only caribou with a tattoo, especially when said caribou was the leader of the ones that had helped rebuild after the Faire. Maybe she was here to get some fresh ink on her design, as it did look a bit faded.

She hadn't noticed Inkbrand's return until he began speaking, snapping the fiery unicorn's attention back to him. She looked at the designs he had drawn while listening to his suggested placements, giving a bit of a hum in thought. Eventually she gave a smile, casting a glance at the tattooist looking at her flank.

"Indeed. I like the look of these top two on the right, and I think something like one of those would look wonderful on the front, like you said. Perhaps after that we could get to the 'main event', as you say." She said, looking at him with a smile that said she didn't really mind the level of what Inkbrand was doing, aside from his job.