//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Dîner // Story: The Canterlot Adventures of a Prench Stallion // by Gatekeeper1073 //------------------------------// Mirage could not help but be a little awed by the building he stood in It was old, for sure.  It's red carpeting worn and faded with age. The dark wood paneling was covered with scuffs. The curtains were threadbare,  the furnishings mismatched and well used.  But nowhere had he seen a place so full of life. Indeed,  it seemed that Ditzy had neglected to mention that she was not living with just a caretaker.  As soon as they had entered, Ditzy had taken off, yelling something about helping with dinner and he should meet "the others". "The others" soon came rushing by, a whirlwind of horns, wings and hooves.  Colts and fillies of every age and race were about the place,  laughing and playing. Most rushed by him, not sparing even a glance his way.  As the large group passed,  he saw a single colt mosey on along. He had a dull green coat with a shock of unruly blonde hair,  with a single dandelion flower for a cutie mark. He was significantly older than many of the young foals around, almost fully grown.  He had an easy smile on his face, and nodded to Mirage as he walked along.  Mirage saw the colts' pace slow down as he put on a thinking look.  He saw the colt start to sway.  And teeter  And totter And with the grace of an oak tree,  he fell on his side with a thump and a squeak.  Mirage continued to look on,  both highly amused and very curious as to the young colt before him.  Unable to keep it in, he shook his head slightly and called out "iz zee floor zat comfortable,  Poulain?" He saw the ears flicker in his direction but the colt didn't move an inch when he responded. "Welp I'd say it's not so bad. Dis here carpet is nice'n rumpled up cause a'lla kids runnin' by. Waitaminute." He perked up and rolled over to get a good look at Mirage,  before standing up.  "Oop! Apologies, sir! I thought I was hearing Mr. Pincher instead." He walked over just as lackadaisical as before, and extended a hoof. "Name's Dandelion Greens. Folks call me Dandy. Welcome ta Bounty's Boardhouse. Best place fer lil' one's ta call home if they don't got one of their own." Mirage smiled and raised his hoof to Dandys’ "Mirage, a pleasure. " Dandy latched his hoof to Mirages’ and gave it an iron grip before pumping it strongly.  "Indeedy-do! Now yer gonna have ta forgive me but un-a-fortunately Bounty's made a rule about seein' sponsors around supper time so you'll need ta come by tomorra ta catch'er. N'less yer invited ta eat,  I guess. " He kept shaking Mirage's hoof,  jarring his shoulder slight with each pump.  "Er, yes, I mean I am invited to eat but where…" Dandy laughed "Oh! Where do I fit in a'lla this? Welp,  I was Bounty's first ever take-in, and did I ever give her Tartarus fer it! Why I remember when I ran off 'cause I was sick 'n' tired of livin' in th' city,  boy was I ever a mean kid, anyway…" Mirage silently wondered if his arm would fall off before or after Dandy was done explaining himself,  and lost track of the conversation before focusing again.  “I somehow managed ta get that kooky whirligig of a necklace ta work, but all I ‘member is everythin’ goin red, real scary that was...” Mirage felt he couldn’t last much longer when he heard the sound of hoof steps coming from a wooden floor off to the right. "...'N' then after that there Hydra spat me out I stumbled my way back ta Klugetown er whatever th’ hay it was ‘n’ got a ride back ta Canterlot with this real piece-a-work cat captain. Cat-p-tain? Anywho…” Just as he was about to get on his knees and beg for release, a miracle happened. A red unicorn mare trotted from the right into his view. He locked eyes with her and sent the best telepathic message he could. Bel ange, libère-moi de ce sort horrible. Je t'en supplie! Faire quelque chose! Apparently it worked, as she started to quickly trot towards Dandy with a small frown on her face. “Hey, Dandy, that’s enough!” Unfortunately Dandy was not so easily dissuaded, and rambled on. “So long story short I got myself turned around right ‘n’ quick ‘n’ I’ve been around ever since helping out Bounty with th’ kids and trackin’ down the ones that get lost ‘n’ such. Say that reminds me, have you seen Ditzy around? Cute lil’ pegasus, grey coat? Ring a bell? If you haven’t I gotta get geared up, supper times happening and… oh that actually reminds me of this one time…” Chers dieux, démons même! Je ne peux pas durer un autre instant! The unicorn was ramping up, going into a full charge. “DANDY, STOP!” Dandy stopped and turned, never releasing his grip but he did stop pumping his hoof. “Oh hey dere, Blaze! Have ya met Mirage…!” The unicorn catapulted herself into Dandy, knocking him over and releasing his grip on Mirages’ hoof. Mirage quickly retracted his hoof, feeling a longing sense of numbness start to pass as he felt a slight cramp start to build. “Des cieux miséricordieux qui ont perduré pour toujours!” he muttered. He looked back and saw the unicorn snuggle/pin the earth pony down. He wasn’t quite sure but thought there was a slight blush to the unicorn’s face. “Dandy!” she scolded “We’ve been over this! You can’t just keep talking and shaking someone’s hoof, you’re going to break them. No one’s able to survive that.” He chuckled a bit and nodded. “Yer absolutely right about that, I’m just glad ta have you around, Blaze. I wouldn’t know what ta do without ya.” He said as he passed a hoof through her short brown hair. Mirage definitely knew she was blushing now. “W-well it’s only because you need help, dummy.” she stammered, looking away. Oooh, est-ce ce qu'ils appellent un tsundere? Comme c'est intéressant ... Their eyes lingered on each other a bit longer than necessary, and they started leaning in when Mirage cleared his throat. Loudly.  Last thing he wanted to deal with was a young romance. Quelle horreur! Instantly, the unicorn sprung up and away from Dandy, while Dandy was quickly turning red himself as he lifted himself up. “Apologies again there, Mirage. I ferget that not too many ponies shake like my folks did when I was younger.” Dandy said sheepishly Mirage chuckled “Do not worry, Dandy. Just… let us not do it again, oui?” “Alrighty then!” He agreed. Dandy waved over to the unicorn standing near them. “This here is Autumn Blaze! She’s the best darn pony in the whole building, barring Bounty, of course. She’s been here with me for as long as I can remember. Autumn, meet Mirage.” “A pleasure.” Mirage said, with a small bow. “Likewise,” said Autumn, her cheeks still a little red. She cleared her throat. “I came to see where you got to, Dandy, Dinner’s already getting started! You know how Bounty gets about meal time…” “Boy do I ever!” Agreed Dandy. He motioned for Mirage to follow them. “Come on! We got grub ta eat!” With a shake of his head, Mirage followed after. ----------------------------------------------- Mirage was sandwiched between Dandy and Autumn,  at a table built for 10 that hosted 16. The air was filled with the sounds of laughter and plates clattering as about a dozen young colts and fillies sat and chatted and ate.  He hadn't seen more of Ditzy or even the Madame Bounty, and the riotous sounds of the meal were starting to get to him.  Too many noises. Too much heat.  Too many bodies pushing together.  J'ai besoin de partir Soon he was able to arrange his bowl of soup and bread for an easy grab before managing to get Dandy and Autumn distracted. He slipped away with a quiet word,  carrying his bowl and bread with him.  He walked swiftly through the door before shutting it.  He heaved a sigh of relief before starting to walk to a little end table he saw. Sitting down he chuckled slightly before getting ready to eat.  "Mirage,  it iz good to see you still got it. " A voice came from off to the right.  "Eh. I've done betteh." After letting out a "Yipe!" Mirage turned to glare at the new comer. It turned out to be a dark grey colt,  gazing up at him with a quirked eyebrow. He was standing with his own bowl of soup and bread. He had a red mane and tail that stood out boldly from his body.  And really,  really large ears. They looked like someone had taken two large handkerchiefs and put them almost over lapping on his head. They were perked up just a little, tufts of poofy white fur visible from the inside. The colt frowned. "Whazzah mattah? Youse never seen big ears before, huh?" He snorted before rearing up to put his bowl on the end table as well. "Whatevah. Scootch over a bit, 'M gettin' a chaiah." Mirage nodded, still processing the shock and unexpected visitor. The colt returned, heaving over a chair. He plonked it at the other end of the table and sat down with a sigh. "Dat's betteh." The colt started digging in, only occasionally coming up for air. With a small snort, Mirage did the same, sipping from his bowl and taking small bites from his bread. The colt, after eating about half the bowl, stopped and gave Mirage a once over before starting to talk. "So... who are youse anyway? Not everyday we get a old coot like you coming down ta tha place." Mirage stopped dead and put down the bread he was about to eat, nostrils flaring. He gave a dead eyed glare at the colt. "Coot?" He said coldly The colt gulped visibly, his ears fluttering a little. "eh he... ah... I meant stallion?" he said sheepishly. With a nod, Mirage answered. " I am here because I helped a little filly... Ditzy... and zen she said somezing about helping with the dinner..." He gave a sigh, "And zen I get caught up with Dandy and...well..." The colt winced. "Oh. I get dat. Dandy's swell and all but, he's a bit much at times. And den you were thrown inta dinnah..." He shrugged. "Well, as long as yer eatin'. Mz. Bounty's got a real sticklah fer everybody eatin'. She's a good pony, dat's fer sure." They both nodded, going back to their meals. After the colt finished, he picked up his bowl and gave a nod to Mirage. "Welp, thanks fer the company. It's nice not bein' the only one out here every now and again. See ya." With a nod, Mirage waved him goodbye as the colt walked off. He then returned to finish his soup. After he left, Mirage came to a sudden realization. "Huh, je n'ai jamais eu son nom." he mused to himself. "Yes, he's not one to give out his name lightly. It's sad really." A voice behind him With a now much louder "Yipe!" Mirage spun around to face his newest visitor. He was pretty sure all of these surprises weren't good for his health either. The unicorn mare standing in front of him was a striking golden brown, with a rich two toned green mane and tail. Mirage sucked in a breath. Quelle belle jument. Si j'avais 10 ans de moins, je serais beaucoup plus enclin à la poursuivre. He stood up, taking off his cap before bowing. "Madame Bounty, je suppose?" She nodded with a smile before replying "Oui. Suivez-moi, nous avons beaucoup à discuter Monsieur Mirage."