[Canterlot] A Cause for Celebration

[Inkwell]

Normally Rose Madder wouldn't pay attention to all of the background sensations of life, all of the nice, pleasant details that came to ponies who just sat down and took time off to relax. She thought those were boring, preferring instead to look at the things that didn't belong in the picture. But somehow, she couldn't help but notice how the sun was shining and glinting off the pearly white Canterlot architecture. Her spirits were so high it was a wonder it didn't propel her into the air with the pegasi. She felt like she was going to explode with joy!

Her mood was improved at just the right time, too. Her day job was particularly stressful today; she ended up writing thousands of boring, miserable words describing the operation of a forge, a printing press, and a ton of other junk she didn't want to remember ever again. Plus several of her earlier drafts for manuals were sent back to her with copious edits, forcing complete rewrites. Finally, after hours of tedium, she returned to her apartment, exhausted and contemplating a change of employment.

Then she got the letter. It was from the publishing house, telling her that A Single Note had finally found a home, and would be in store shelves within the month. Enclosed was a check with quite a few more zeroes on it than any Rose had ever gotten before.

Within the hour she was rapidly scribbling joyous letters and sending them out to everyone she knew, the pain of her earlier writing entirely overruled. She told her mother, her father, her old friends back in Trottingham, all of the new ones from Canterlot, and even left a note for her suitemate, despite the fact that she would probably tell her in person, anyway. Then she bounced around her room and on her bed for a few minutes before tiring herself out for a while and realizing that she should probably go out again before she broke something. Besides, it was about dinnertime, and she just had to go out and celebrate what could be the best day of her life.

So she came to her favorite restaurant in all of Canterlot, the Cafe Viridian, an outdoor salad eatery divided from the sidewalk by a vivid green fence; each of the outdoor tables and the cloth umbrellas attached to them had the same shade to them. And of course, there was the food! Oh, she was practically drooling at the thought of it!

Before one of the waiters could show her to a table, she trotted over to the nearest empty one and sat down on the floor, a wide, uncharacteristic grin planted on her face.

[Parodius]

It had been a long day yesterday. Scale Model had come to Canterlot early to get set up at the university. Just finding the university took long enough, since he kept gawking at all the wonderful things he passed as he looked for the campus. Once there, he spent the rest of the day getting his course schedule and finding where they were on the campus. That night, he found a hotel, followed by getting his dorm room assignment and moving in during the morning. All in all, it had been quite a busy group of days, and finally he could relax a little. "Ugh... feel tireder than a rabbit at a dog race..." he muttered as he strolled toward a cafe to quiet his stomach's demands for food. "But at least it's done."

[Inkwell]

Hmm. Service seemed to be taking longer than it needed to. Maybe she just needed to get the attention of one of the waiter ponies. She supposed she should have known this would happen if she didn't wait to be seated.

As she waited for a waiter to call out to, she noticed a knackered-looking colt walking into the cafe. Normally she wouldn't pay him a second glance, or maybe she would have just watched him and made up a story behind him, but she still felt generous and giddy. "Hey you! What's up? Hard day at work? I know the feeling! Work was pretty brutal for me, too!"

[Parodius]

Glancing over, Scale nodded a bit. "Guess you could say that. Just got finished moving in. I'm gonna be attending classes at the university." He looks around. "Brutal day, huh? What sort of work do you do?" he asked.

His belly voiced it's primary concerns at the moment. "Ahh... aheh. Sorry 'bout that. Don't suppose you'd have any recommendations on what's good here?" He reached back toward his flank. "...ahhhh horseapples... I forgot my saddlebags back at the dorm." He claps a hoof over his mouth. "Ehh... Sorry. Forgot t' mind my manners." He looks around again. "Don't suppose you could split a table with a new pony in town? This place looks fuller then an applecart after harvest time."

[Inkwell]

Rose rolled her eyes. "Don't worry about it," she said, using her horn to pull out a chair for him. "I've been meaning to get some company today, and I'd love to help you enjoy this place to the fullest. You got lucky finding it." She pored over the menu for a bit as she waited for him to take that seat.

"Anyway, I'm a technical writer. I write documentation and user manuals for tools and machines and stuff, and it's pretty damn tedious. Buuuuuuuut..." She broke into a wide beaming grin. "I might not have to do it anymore. I just got a notice in the mail that my novel has been picked up by Obscurus Books!" A light squeal escaped her lips. "I'm gonna be on the bestseller lists! I'm gonna be famous!"

[Parodius]

Scale nodded his thanks, taking the offered seat. "Great to hear! Congratulations!" He smiles. "Just make sure to put away some of that money in case of hard times, right?" He thinks for a while. "Technical writer, eh? I guess it's a necessary job, but not that glamorous. What sorts of tools and stuff?" He rests his hooves on the table.

He pauses. "Oh. Right. Manners again. Sorry." He extends a hoof with a grin. "Name's Scale Model. Nice to meet ya, miss future famous writerpony."

[Inkwell]

Rose extended a hoof and bumped it against Scale Model's, making a light knocking sound as they collided. "I'm Rose Madder," she says with a smile. "But my pen name is Black Orchid. It'll be a household name."

When she remembered the conversation turning to her boring day job, she sighed. "Yeah, it depends. I've been writing a lot of instruction manuals for these things that people buy, then assemble in their own home. Things like bookshelves and bunkbeds, and in one case a portable sauna. You know how those things go. "Insert peg A into slot B." The faster I can get away from that, the better!"

The growling of Rose's stomach interrupted her irritated rant. "Oh, right, food. Let's see, what do we have." She took another look at the menu, scanning the lines with the tip of her hoof. "I think I could do with a bit of potato salad on the side, but I'd also like some Insalata Caprese. How about you?"

[Parodius]

Scale nodded. "Well, I suppose that's needed. ...but yeah. Instructions to put things together don't offer much variation. Some I've seen are nothing but pictures. I can understand wanting to get away from that."

He blinks at the talk of food. "...uhhhh... potato salad's good. I've never heard of In... Ins... that second thing you said. Maybe some tea or lemonade or somethin' to drink." He rubs his chin. "Spot me a few bits? I'll pay ya back tomorrow if ya like."

He looks around. "I'd imagine instructions on how to use things would be a smidgen more interesting, but still be a chore to write." He blinks, then shakes his head. "Ehh... sorry 'bout that. Kinda close to what I'm tryin' to go to school for. ...but only in a non-related kinda related way. I'll shut my trap about boring, dull, technical manuals, lest I prod you into yanking out your mane or something." He grins good-naturedly.

[Inkwell]

Rose nodded and looked around for the waiter. "Oh, it's a delight," she said. "It's basically mozzarella, tomato, and basil with olive oil. Actually, now that I think about it, I'd like some in a sandwich." A well-groomed stallion in a black and green suit arrived at their table. "Oh!" Rose said, looking up at him. "I'd like the Insalata Caprese sandwich with a side of potato salad and a glass of lemonade, please!"

"Very well," he said. "And for you, sir?" Once he took both of their orders, he gave them both a curt nod and left for the kitchen again.

Rose watched him walk away with a smile on her face. "I'll have to remember to give him an extra tip," she muttered, before turning back to Scale Model. "Anyway, it's not like I took on the job thinking I'd like it or stick with it. It was really just something to pay the bills until I got published. And I'd love to cover for you, just this once."

She listened to him talk about his school interests. "You're actually trying to find a livelihood with that sort of thing?" she asked him. "Weird. Why would you do that?" She gave him an odd look, not realizing at the moment that her question was kind of rude.

[Parodius]

Scale Model nodded at the description. "It does sound kinda good." He blinks as the waiter asks for his order. "Uhhh... I guess... same thing. ...and a little salad on the side. ... And some tea." Scale looked over a menu, swallowing a lump in his throat at seeing a whole section of teas. "... er... on second thought, make that lemonade. Nice, simple lemonade." As the waiter heads off, Scale continues looking at all the teas on the menu. What was all that stuff? Earl Grey, Cha... chamo... He wasn't sure how to even pronounce some of those things! Tea was tea, he thought. He looks up, snapping out of his confusion. "Huh? Oh! Right. Yeah, gotta pay the bills somehow. And thanks. I'll return the favor first chance I get."

He closes the menu and floats it back over to join its brethren. "Well... I guess you could say that," he replies to Rose's questions. "Though, more on the production and design side of things than the documentation side of things. I want to make things easier for everypony to use. Sure, most unicorns can use telekinesis in a pinch... but some things are horribly designed for earth ponies and pegasi to use. Like..." Scale paused for a moment, tilting his head in thought. "...like scissors. Lots of scissors seem pretty awkwardly designed for use by anypony other than a unicorn. Sure, they're functional, but it's awkward." He shakes his head with a frown. "Somepony's got to try and make things easier to use. That's why I'm going to the university here in Canterlot."

[Inkwell]

Rose nodded and listened to Scale Model explain his goals. "Oh, I see," she said, looking a bit more interested in the subject matter all of a sudden. "Yeah, that actually does sound kind of interesting. And necessary." She thought a bit about the subject, stroking her chin with a hoof. "Kind of makes you wonder how we got used to tools like those. Seems that someone would have gotten your idea a lot sooner, don't you think? Where did we get those tool designs, anyway?" Her eyes barely glance in his direction, now that her imagination's started to fire up.

[Parodius]

Scale hms, rubbing his chin. "That's a good question." He thinks for a while. "...maybe imported from griffin lands? ... Or there's that dragon-egg-hatching test. Maybe they were designed for dragons to use for somepony." He shrugs. "I don't know. ...but not everypony's lucky enough to have a dragon." He pauses, looking a tad nervous. "... I really hope they don't require me to take one of those magic-based entrance exams even for mostly non-magic courses... I've heard they can get kinda tough."

He shakes his head, trying to forget the worries. "Err... yeah. So! What's this book you got published about?" he asks.

[Inkwell]

Rose nodded at the suggested explanations that Scale Model offered. They were mundane and they made sense, so naturally she disinclined them in favor of other ideas that popped into her head. Perhaps these tools, clearly inclined to be used with fingers, were left over from some ancient civilization that predated ponykind? Hmm, it had potential, though the idea didn't sound scary enough for her. She'd have to come up with some suitably horrific demise for them, or perhaps a hidden artifact of their culture unearthed by archaeologists and bringing misfortune on them.

But then Scale Model asked her about her book, and she quickly shelved those thoughts away for later reference. "My book?" she asked. "Well, it's called A Single Note, and it's about a man who goes into the underworld to bring his wife back to life." Her eyes dart back and forth. "I'll admit it's not for everypony to read. I made it pretty scary and sad. The underworld isn't exactly a happy place, you know." She sighed and looked up at the sky. "I had to take it to several different publishing houses before I found one that didn't think it was too depressing or scary. Maybe bestseller status is a bit too much to hope for, but oh well. It was a labor of love."

[Parodius]

"Ahhhh... a thriller, huh?" He nods a bit. "Back home, if we wanted a good scare, we could just get a bit too close to the forest." He shudders, recalling going in there on a dare when he was younger. "...that... that forest just ain't natural." He shakes his head. "Guess I can skim through it sometime in the store until they yell that it's not a library or something." He grins. "I'm sure it'll do well enough. Gotta keep your hopes up." He blinks as a glass is set in front of him, straw sticking out of it. "Oh.. uh... erh... thank you."

[Inkwell]

Rose Madder nodded and smiled as that same waiter returned with their lemonade. She smiled and started sucking on the straw, letting that sweet and sour medley hit her tongue and cool her throat. "Mmm, this is great, Hollandaise! Keep up the good work!" she told him. He nodded and gave her a little smile before leaving for a table on the other end of the outdoor patio.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right, but my preferred sort of horror is more of an atmospheric thing, you know? I guess that going into that forest might have the same sort of effect, if you're going into the woods and expecting a horrible monster to jump out at you and hurt you but it never does and you see and hear little things like rustling bushes. Now, I don't know what forest you're talking about, but it can't be as unreal as the sort of settings I've mapped out for the underworld. It's really surreal and disquieting. Dark claustrophobic tunnels with dim red lighting made of rusty metal gratings? You try telling me that's not creepy."

She smiled around her straw and took another strong sip of lemonade, reducing the level of the drink by half an inch or so. "Sorry. I tend to ramble a bit when discussing my craft. I should probably stop doing that so much. The last time the conversation started going on about heartbeats and ruptured eyeballs ponies really started to look at me funny. I think that was the last time I talked to one of them. Oh well.

"Thanks for your vote of confidence, by the way."

[Parodius]

Scale hesitantly nods in agreement at the thanks, taking a sip as he listens. He thinks about mentioning a few of the monsters lurking in that particular forest, but... he doesn't want to interrupt.

"Yeah, I think everypony starts going on about things when it has to do with what they do. We like it, so it's like cranking up a faucet full blast and words come tumbling out." He smirks. "...though, heartbeats and eyes aren't my forte, I'm afraid." He thinks. a bit more. "I suppose tunnels would be creepy." He tilts his head, sipping his drink a bit more. "Probably creepier if it's not known just what carved them out." He sips his drink again. "...but I don't quite know how to put the thought into words rightly. Guess that's why you're the writer, eh?"

[Inkwell]

Scale Model didn't seem to be fazed by that little admission on her part. She quite fortunately managed to stop herself before she went into too much detail. "Yeah, sometimes it can be really hard to put things into words sometimes, even for a trained writer like me. There's always this one part of storytelling that manages to be a real pain for most people. Take Lovelace, for example." She referred to an obscure griffin writer she wasn't expecting him to have ever heard of. "He's probably the greatest influence on my current work. His stuff has great vocabulary, amazing atmosphere, and horrible dialogue. He couldn't write dialogue to save his life, but thankfully he rarely tried. Apparently he never really socialized all that much."

She took another sip of her lemonade and looked for the waiter. It wasn't that long since she got her lemonade, but she was hungry for mozzarella.

[Parodius]

Scale hms, thinking. "Never heard of 'em. Though, I don't read much more than technical manuals, usually. Sometimes a bit of fiction if it seems interesting or gets recommended to me. But not usually."

He takes another drink, thinking on what else he might idly chat about. "So... uh..." He taps his hoof on the table as he thinks. "... Have you lived in Canterlot for very long?" Safe enough topic, he supposes, looking in the direction Rose glances. He takes another drink, soon resulting in that distinctive slurrrrrrrrrrrrrrk of a straw in an almost empty glass. "...errh... whoops. Guess I was thirstier than I thought." He glances around with an apologetic smile.

[Inkwell]

Or course Scale never heard of Lovelace. Normal griffin authors weren't super-popular in Equestria, and Lovelace's work was weird and gloomy. Then again, the idea of somepony not being all that interested in fiction kind of weirded Rose out. The arts ran in her family, and analytically minded ponies tended not to. "Oh, so maybe you'd read one of the manuals I wrote?" she joked, before taking another sip of lemonade.

He asked her how long she'd been in the city. "Well, I moved here about seven years ago from Trottingham. I'd say that's a fairly long time. If that's an offhoof way of asking me to show you around sometime, well, maybe we'll see." She gave him a little wink, then looked up to see the waiter returning with their meals. "Oh, good! Thanks ever so much!"

Hollandaise nodded and walked away again, leaving the pair to their conversation once more.

[Parodius]

Scale model nodded. "Maybe so. Then again, maybe not. Recent products are sometimes hard to come by where I'm from."

He nods a bit. "Trottingham, eh? I'm just a bumpkin from Ponyville, myself. I haven't really been t--" He freezes, mid-sentence. His mouth opens and closes a few times, somewhat like a fish, as his mind tries to formulate a reply. His face starts getting redder... and redder... and redder... "I-I-I didn't mean... I never... um.. I wouldn't... uhh...I c-..." He eventually decides to cut his losses once he can't even manage to get single-syllable words out. He settles into nibbling at his salad, his face about as red as a tomato even through his light pelt. He practically tries hiding behind his salad bowl. A faint squeak escapes him in thanks for the salad, but he otherwise falls silent.

[Inkwell]

Rose had levitated her sandwich to her mouth and was in the middle of chewing her first delicious bite of it when Scale Model suddenly started sputtering and blushing in the middle of the conversation. She watched him with a full mouth, doing her best not to laugh and spray her food all over his face. Finally she swallowed and chuckled to herself.

"Heh. You ought to see the look on your face, Scale," she told him, a satisfied smirk on her own face. "If I knew you were that easily excitable I wouldn't have teased you like that. So sorry." She took another bite, most certainly not sorry for precisely that reason.

"I think my brother lives in Ponyville. I didn't tell you that already, did I? I should probably pay him a visit sometime. We haven't seen each other in years!"

[Parodius]

Scale coughed into a hoof, starting to regain his composure. "...sorry... Mom always taught me to try an' be a gentlecolt." He nibbles on his food. "Hm. Small world, I guess," he comments at the brother mention. "Don't know if I'd know him. Didn't get out much sometimes. Nose in a book or helping mom and dad in their shop." He shrugs. "Suppose I knew my way around decently enough there, though. Could point out a few things if ya ever drop in on humble little Ponyville." He pauses, then sighs. "Not lookin' forward to the journey back. The walk up here was brutal. And tedious."

He starts properly eating. "Hm. This stuff isn't too bad. Might have to remember this place and try more of their stuff."

[Inkwell]

"Oh, definitely," Rose says. "I've been looking for a consistently satisfying eating experience all the time I've been in Canterlot, and this is definitely in the top five. I'm surprised how much this place relaxes me. Of course, the help's pretty easy on the eyes, too." She gave herself a little chuckle.

"And I doubt you'd really know Inky that well. From what I've heard, he only just got to Ponyville. Like, a week or so ago. He's beige with a long black mane and round glasses. Maybe you caught a glance of him as you left the place. I dunno." She opened her sandwich and spread a dollop of ranch on the inside, then closed it back up and took a bite. "Mmmf. Maybe I shouldn't have done that. Oh well."

[Parodius]

With a coughing fit, Scale backed away from his food at the 'easy on the eyes' comment. "Wouldn't know anything.. *cough cough* about that. Though I suppose there's nothing wrong with a filly enjoying the scenery, so to speak..."

"Ahhh. I was probably on the road by the time he got into Ponyville. I might see him around when I go back to Ponyville sometime. Gotta check up on Ma and Pa and their shop every now and then." He smirks at the bite and comment. "Too rich tasting? Or worried about the pudge?" He makes a jiggling motion with his hooves. "Never did get that. Fussing over like... five pounds. I usually can't tell the difference at all. No clue how many girls asked if I noticed something different, only for them to get fed up with guesses and say it was lost weight." He scratches his head a tad. "...I guess Mares and Stallions are just cut from different woods. ... or cloths. Whichever makes more sense."

[Inkwell]

Once again Rose Madder managed to get her dining companion flustered with the merest hint of physical arousal! If she didn't know better, she'd think she was starting to enjoy tormenting the poor colt! He'd have to be introduced to intimacy for his own good, even if Rose wouldn't be the one to do it in the end. "Of course not. I couldn't stop myself even if there was."

The comment about regretting the ranch dressing on her sandwich, on the other hand, got a weird digression on beauty standards and weight gain from him. She made a face when he brought it up, too, bad memories reemerging from the depths of her subconscious.

"Actually, if you must know, it's because the tastes don't go well together," she told him. "I could single-handedly demolish an ice cream parlor and I'd never get another inch around my waist." She looked down and poked her toned belly. "My whole family's like that, except maybe my father. Good thing too; my eating habits aren't the best."

Her face had to look a little discouraging at this point. "I just remembered that my third coltfriend left me for a filly with bigger haunches. Weirdo."