It had been a couple of months since I had seen that grey pony. She used to pop up in clubs during my shows. Sometimes she looks right into my eyes for a few seconds then looks away. Other times she tries not to look at me.
--
I'm tidying up after my latest performance. I've seduced a few stallions to help me pack my stuff into the taxi out the front. I'm just standing around now barking orders occasionally. Stallions are easy to fool when they're off their heads on god knows what. I hear the familiar sound of Tavi's voice.
I turn around and greet her with a smile.
"Do you want to maybe... get a drink with me?" She asks, nervously.
I think for a moment. I smile at her. "I have nothing else to do. Where at?" I brush back my hair.
"There's a bar down the street. I'll buy, so you don't have to." She looks excited on the inside. I'm beginning to think she's some sort of shy stalker.
"Lead the way then, Tavi." I walk after her as she turns to make her way down the street.
"Why are you going for a drink with a total stranger?" Tavi asks, looking me over.
"Well... you seem like a nice stranger. I've drunk with worse. And some other things."
Tavi goes to ask but she pauses. Realization dawns as she catches on to what I was meaning. She stays silent for about half a minute. "I hope you don't think I-"
"No. It's just a drink. It's cool." I cut in, she nods. "So, is this the place?" I ask as we look up at the bar in front of us. It's a fancy establishment in comparison to the places I was used to. No one smashing glasses or stumbling out of the doors blind drunk.
"So uhh.. what do you want to drink?" Tavi asks, still just standing outside the doors.
"I think we should go inside before ordering, Tavi." I walk in before her, shaking my hair out of my eyes. I slide my glasses over my horn to keep them in place and sit at the counter. My eyes wander around the room. The walls are decorated with various hangings and the bar is polished to the point where I can make out the shape of the glasses on my head. Not bad.
Octavia walks in slowly after me, taking a seat at the bar.
"What's your poison?" The bartender asks, a slender stallion wearing a shirt collar.
"Can I have a glass of red wine? Whatever is cheapest." I ask, going for a cheap, kinda fancy drink. Tavi orders after me with some very particular wording. I tune out as look around the bar.
"Soo..." I ask, my eyes wandering back to the mare next to me. "Why is a fancy pony like you attending my gigs?"
Tavi seemed surprised when I call her fancy. "I just enjoy that sort of thing, that's all. Nothing much to it." Her eyes look away from me for several seconds.
"So are you like... my stalker or something?"
"Stalker?!" Octavia stands up from the bar, her face blushing red with eyes as wide as saucers. A glass nearby falls to the ground and smashes. She steps back a bit and attempts to collect her thoughts. "I am a fan, I guess - if that's not creepy!"
I raise an eyebrow as the peculiar mare seems to have trouble finding words to describe why she's interested in me.
"So you're... not stalking me?"
"No. I mean I'm a fan, I mean I-"
I shake my head and walk over to Octavia while she rambles. I lean forward and kiss her on the cheek as she reddens more. She takes a few steps back and touches her cheek with her hoof.
"Y-You ju- with another mare- its indecent!" She begins to ramble again while hiding her obvious excitement.
"Octavia."
"I mean I'm from Canterlot! what would the sta-"
"Octavia." I repeat trying to get her to slow her words down. Her mouth seems to open and shut quickly, all the while she gently touches where I kissed her cheek.
"They'll take advantage of me if they knew what I had done! It's not like I'm into mares or anything so you can forget about that! I'm a proper lady and I do not-"
"TAVI." I screech at her, loud enough to attract a few looks from around the bar.
"Yes...Vinyl Scratch..?"
I use my magic to pull on her collar gently, leading her outside for some air. When we're outside I look back to her as she stares at the ground, searching for some mystery within the cracks of the pavement.
"Let's start this again."
"Right."
"Tavi, why do you come to my shows all the time? It doesn't seem your style."
After a few more seconds of digging into the concrete underneath with her eyes she mumbles, just audibly: "guilty pleasure."
"Cool. Now there was another part." I say, dipping my neck to look at the mare. She turns around to face me.
"What was tha-" Her mouth stops as I gently leave a kiss on her lips. Nothing intimate, just a gesture.
Her heart seems to explode. Her face turns to fire. "Ahh! Again! On the lips! You did it again, you did it again!"
"Did you enjoy it?" I ask, this time she takes a long time to answer.
Her eyes look away to anywhere but mine as she thinks. As she looks like she is about to talk she goes back to thinking. Finally she mumbles "maybe."
I smile at her. "I maybe enjoyed it too then."
"VINYL! WE HAVE THE STUFF IN THE COACH! HURRY UP!" A voice screeches from behind me. I'm suddenly passively dragged by a group of stallions who packed my coach for me.
Octavia looks rejected.
"I'll see you around grey mare!" I call out as I jump into the coach. She waves goodbye to me as the coach begins to move.
Inside, I'm surrounded by stallions, all fans, all grinning ear to ear. I slide my glasses back on over my horn. "Sorry boys, I'm taken."