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// Fancy Dinners 
// Story: The Schools of Stalliongrad 
// by Nadir 
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Sometimes, Twilight went into the city by herself. It had quite a few amenities for a filly who had grown up in the middle of nowhere. Now that she actually had the chance to shop, go to restaurants, spend time amongst the ponies and all the things they could do, she never stopped. Generally, it would be weekends, but even on school nights without Luna’s instruction she’d head on into the city itself and spend a little bit of time.

Today, however, was the weekend, a lovely Saturday with quite a bit of warmth for the burgeoning spring in Stalliongrad. Warm enough, at least, that she could wear a lovely pink blouse with some ruffles at the tap and a form-fitted black skirt that went to the midpoint of her hind legs. She’d even tied her hair up and all and put on some nice, black shoes that matched the skirt.

Trixie had called her a librarian. 

Which, at the least, had been an improvement over ‘sexy librarian’. That was her first outfit, one that Twilight had quickly tossed after Trixie’s comment forced her face to turn absolutely beet red. 

Thinking about it alone earned a huff from the mare, but nothing could keep her down today. A stroll through the city had found her in the upper districts, and with quite a lot of bits stored in a pocket in her skirt, she figured she could splurge. So why not some nice place? One of those fancy restaurants that only nobles and the like went to?

Not really.

Still, she tried her best to step with confidence into La Petit Mare. Even the outside had seemed positively opulent, the royal blue painted exterior complete with a carousel topped entryway, white and golden paint covered the two columns on either side of the lovely door, though Twilight could only see half of it since it was left open and welcoming, something that she didn’t really see in a lot of the high end restaurants.

She trotted her way in, onto a literal red carpet as she looked around the place with mild awe. The red carpet went on straight forward, on a raised platform with no tables, leading directly towards an open kitchen, open enough that anypony viewing could see tight laced chefs work in shiny metal implements, cooking wonders.

The dining room itself was split in two by the red carpet, the tables in a lower section were ringed by stairs on every side. Hardwood covered the ground beneath them, patterned in a spiral kind of way that culminated in the center of each side’s space. The tables themselves were made of the same wood with lovely white tablecloths and perfectly set places, complete with cushions colored with fabric the same blue as the outside walls.

And speaking of the walls, the inside ones matched the outside color, complete with paintings by renowned artists, landscapes, portraits of the city, and of one pony that showed up in a couple of places that Twilight couldn’t quite place. Has she seen them before? 

Oh. Yes. She had, because they were over at the counter of the kitchen, saying something that Twilight couldn’t hear from this distance. They must be the founder, she surmised, a newfound respect for the olive green fur she’d seen in the paintings welled up inside her. 

A server, wearing a full suit, waited at a small podium at the front. He gave a small bow towards Twilight as she approached, before speaking. “Welcome to La Petit Mare, mademoiselle. Is it just you today?” He asked, a picture of professionalism. 

Twilight gave a nod as she looked around, spying a table for two that she could probably grab. “Oh yes! Just me. It’s my first time coming to a restaurant like this, so I’m really excited to see what kind of experience it provides!” Twilight chirped, sounding like a scholar completely by accident. She couldn’t help it, that kind of thing just came naturally to her. 

The stallion gave a nod, selecting one of the menus from a stack with his golden magic. “Right this way then,” he started.

But he didn’t get very far, not at all. “Twilight? Twilight Sparkle?” The voice behind her sounded almost sickly sweet, adorable and cute while also being mature and refined. To this day, Twilight didn’t understand how that worked, it simply did.

Twilight, of course, turned at the sound of her name. In front of her stood a pink colored mare, gold, pink and purple striped hair, a horn splitting the midst of it. Her mane lay long, the beautiful tresses straight and orderly, the colors mixing together in perfection and honestly looking magnificent in their own right. It was further complimented by the gold leaf tiara in her hair, a Roaman style that had started to come back.

In fact, she wore a white toga style dress, clasped at one shoulder with a golden heart. The bottom of it, the train of her dress, turned transparent and shimmered near the end, an effect that showed off her golden horseshoes to complete the outfit. Around her neck hung a blue, heart shaped pendant on a golden chain, thin and glimmering in the light.

Twilight had absolutely no idea who she was. How did this mare know who she was, speaking of? “Yes..?” Twilight started, with a bit of trepidation in her voice. It’s not like she was scared - she was in the middle of public with tons of ponies around her. “Who are you?” she asked. Not particularly blunt, but more questioning and confused.

The other mare giggled, half hiding her muzzle behind her hoof and looking oh so amused at the question. “Dearly sorry, Duchess Mi Amore Cadenza,” she offered her hoof out, looking expectantly at Twilight. “But you can absolutely call me Cadence, you adorable thing, you!”

Twilight looked at the hoof, then back at the face, then back towards the hoof. She finally settled on giving it a little shake, since that’s how ponies treated each other. It seemed to satisfy the other mare enough to not say anything at the very least.

“I’m sorry. I still don’t really know who you are, and I’m not sure how you know me,” Twilight apologized again, yet didn’t feel like she should have for a second. This mare came out of nowhere, said her name and called her adorable? It was almost patronizing if it hadn’t been said in such a downright sincere way, or at least sincere as far as Twilight could tell.

Another giggle and a wave of that hoof. “Oh, Twilight! Everypony who is anypony knows who you are by now! The news of Luna taking a new student has absolutely spread through the noble classes like wildfire. You are spreading through the noble class like wildfire!” Cadence noted, with another giggle.

It was news to Twilight. Then again, Luna had specifically mentioned keeping her away from the nobles. A small frown crossed her face and she looked down, though her attention was brought back up by the server trying to get her attention.

"Mademoiselle? Your table?” he asked, insistently. 

Cadence squeaked out in excitement, hooves clapping together in front of her. “How about you eat with me, dear?” she proposed. “We could really get to know each other! You are such a fascinating individual, and I would absolutely not mind paying for dinner tonight if you’d do me the honor of sharing a table?” Cadence proposed. Her lips had gone so delightfully pouty and eyes so pleading, how could Twilight say no to a beautiful mare doing something like that?

Her frown slowly turned into a smile as she watched on and with a nod of her head, she acquiesced. “Very well. I suppose it’ll be a table for two then?” she asked, glancing between the server and Cadence. The pink mare confirmed it, and with a simple levitation of another menu, they were off, lead towards a small table fit for the two of them.

“I didn’t know I would be that popular,” Twilight admitted, making conversation as the two of them were seated. A glass of water for each of them and they’d be left alone with the menus and their conversation. “I guess popular isn’t the right word. Known? I didn’t think I’d be this well known. I really only talk to Luna and a few friends of mine.”

Cadence levitated the water glass to her muzzle, taking a sip and showing off that her magic shone in a bright, cyan light. And only now that they were quite close did Twilight realize the depth of the conversation she’d about to find herself in. A single hint gave it away: Cadence had wings.

Wings and a horn.

Both of them. Only alicorns had both. There were only two alicorns, Luna and Celestia, and they were both Princesses. How could Cadence have both? Shouldn’t she be a princess?

You could likely forgive Twilight for staring in quite the open mouthed way. Her eyes darted back and forth between the wings and the horn, trying to see if one of the two happened to be fake. She couldn’t tell, and nothing in the air spoke of magic. As far as Twilight knew, only the Princesses could do magic without showing it. Then again, she also had thought that only the Princesses had wings and a horn and here she was. 

A giggle interrupted her reverie, as well as a hoof half reaching across the table to wave in her face. “What are you staring at, hmm? I know I’m attractive, but you should try and restrain yourself. It’s improper,” Cadence offered, with the smallest, subtlest of winks to show that she teased and nothing more.

Of course, that alone was enough to send a faint flush on Twilight’s face, mostly because Cadence spoke the truth. She was attractive. Very much so, even. But that hadn’t drawn her attention, not really. Twilight licked at her lips, buying a bit of time before speaking. “I didn’t know there were other alicorns. I’m… sure that people say that all the time to you, but I really thought that Luna and Celestia were the only ones.”

At the least, Cadence didn’t seem offended. She seemed amused, like she had since the start of the conversation, but not offended. “Everypony does ask that eventually. Some, at least, wait until we’ve ordered drinks for it.” This time, Twilight couldn’t tell if Cadence teased or not, or if she actually did finally show something other than bubbly happiness from the start. 

And speak of the devil. A water came over, a pleasant looking, buttoned up mare with a blonde mane and brown coat. “Good evening, ladies, can I start you off with a drink?” she asked, looking between the two with a light smile.

Cadence answered first. “The Pinot, if you don’t mind. And-” she looked over towards Twilight for a moment, inspecting her. “A chardonnay for her, your best. If that’s alright with you, of course, Twilight.” A smile towards Twilight, one that left her utterly confused.

Mostly cause that’s exactly what she’d planned on having.

“That’s perfect,” Twilight finally answered, getting her smile back on her face as best she could. “Thank you,” she added, towards the server with a bow of her head.

“Thank you, deary,” Cadence added, and the two of them would be left alone once more. “There we have it, drinks are ordered so I can absolutely answer your question.” Cadence had slipped back into that teasing voice of earlier, but Twilight didn’t mind. The smile on her face had come back, meaning that the question probably didn’t sting too badly. 

Naturally, Twilight would reprimand herself for this later. How rude she’d been to somepony who’d only been nice to her. Free dinner and this is how she treated Cadence?

Even further along, Twilight would feel justified in it after all. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

“So!” Cadence started, clapping her hooves together. “My wings!” A flutter of the aforementioned appendages would accompany her words, a single, downy feather lazily drifting down to the ground. “They are the strange bits, really, since I was born with a horn. The wings came later, much later,” Cadence began. 

Cadence settled back in her chair, getting nice and comfortable before she went on with her story. “I am not from Stalliongrad, or Equestria in general, actually. I'm from far away, a village outside the borders, unclaimed land. Equestria has its own charms, but my village couldn’t be beaten. 

Peaceful is how I’d describe it, quiet and idyllic. Or rather, that’s what I would have called it before all this happened.” Another sigh and a shake of her head. “A necromancer came with ill intent and quite the horde of minions following him, zombies, skeletons, you name it and it was there. Now, my village didn’t have the protections of Equestria, didn’t have an army or princesses to swoop in and save the day, so we were left for ourselves.”


For just a moment, Twilight could see the light leave Cadence’s eyes as she thought back on something horrible, something horrific that she’d had to go through. It didn’t last long, Cadence recovering just as quickly as she’d broken, the smell coming back to her face and all.

“My village didn’t do well under her rule. Many good ponies died, but there were some of us who fought back. My mother - Celestia rest her soul - found a ritual, a dark, ugly one that did exactly what we needed. In the dark of night, in caves far away, my mother and several of the villagers enacted the ritual. It shouldn’t have worked, it shouldn’t have been possible. Celestia and Luna later looked over the ritual and found it to be fundamentally flawed in every way. And yet…”

Cadence trailed off, but only for a moment.  “It worked, somehow, and I became an alicorn. Granted, that didn’t make me suddenly a genius in combat magic. Really, the shock and awe of the wings and the horn scared the necromancer more than anything, and most importantly, the ritual feedback through leylines alerted Luna and Celestia of what happened. The two of them showed up and quickly defeated the necromancer.”

Their wine arrived, the server giving them a quick bow and a pour before heading back on out. A muttered thanks from the two mares answered the server, leaving the two alone at the tail end of the story.

“My village,” Cadence went on, a hoof coming up to brush her mane out of her face. “Was completely devastated. After the fight and the months of rule by that beast, most didn’t want to stay. Luna offered them refuge in Stalliongrad, and the majority took it, as did I. After the events, the two of them figured that an alicorn should be part of the noble class at the least and gave me a title of my own, a small duchy that consists of my own people. We’ve done our best to move on, to assimilate and really, I think we’ve done quite the good job!” 

And with that, she finished. A slightly worried smile graced Cadence’s lips, magic gripped at the side of the glass, bringing it up to her lips. A pleased sigh escaped her, and to Twilight it seemed like the wine washed away the thoughts on her past.

Twilight hadn’t touched her glass yet, ears pressing back on her head. “I’m sorry,” she blurted out, the words coming hurried and worried. “I shouldn’t have asked, that’s your private business and it was none of mine! I didn’t mean for you to have to-” To what? Relieve it? Bare her soul? Talk about things that nopony should have to talk about? Twilight froze up, not sure how to go on.

Cadence’s smile became more sympathetic, despite the fact that she should have been the one being comforted, not the other way around. “Twilight, take a breath. It’s okay,” she promised, with a small nod of her head. “You don’t need to worry about it, I’m used to sharing this story. What happened to me, what happened to my village, it’s all in the past now. I’ve moved on from it and dealt with it in my own way. And-”

She went on, fluttering her wings with an all the more cocky smile. “I think I came out of this with quite the benefit, don’t you?” she asked, with a tiny, itty bitty wink. “And as much as it pains to admit me, the remnants of my people have a much better life here than they would have back home. Equestria provides a number of benefits that we simply never had. Safety alone has given us leaps and bounds in our quality of life. But alas, you should taste your wine, dear,” Cadence reminded her, with a thin lipped smile and a gesture towards the glass that had never been filled.

The gesture spurred her back into action, no longer staring quite so heavily over towards the other mare, but instead letting her magic awkwardly work at the top of the wine bottle, mercifully popping it open after only a little struggle. She’d shakily bring the thing to her lips and let out a pleasant ‘oh!’ at the flavor. “That’s very nice!” she let out, her words rather high pitched all things considered.

Twilight recovered wonderfully. “It’s a wonderful flavor, isn’t it? I’m glad that you’re safe here though, and I’m glad that your people get to live a better life. I really am sorry to have brought something like that up,” Twilight pressed on, intent on apologizing. Her mood had started to recover, ears coming back up and tail idly swishing behind her “Oh. I uh, meant to ask,” she kept going, trying to change the subject to more peaceful, easy ones. “What do you recommend here? It’s my first time and I have no idea what’s good.” 

Cadence took to the new subject quite easily, also quite eager to get off the old topic. “Oh, nearly everything is good! May I suggest the ratatouille? I know it’s considered peasant fare up here, but I assure you, this restaurant does it like no other!” she offered, planting a hoof tip against the menu.

Luckily, Twilight had never even heard of the dish, so any preconceived notion couldn’t exist in her head. She nodded, looking down towards the menu and reading the description of the thing. “It looks great,” she agreed, with a nod of her head. “What about you? What are you going to get?”

And there Cadence’s smile went, back to that charming wonderfulness that had made Twilight say yes to all this in the first place. “The same thing! What kind of mare would I be if I suggested something and then didn’t get it myself?” she asked. A little giggle escaped her, amusing herself. To be fair, it made Twilight smile too, a light, pleasant thing as the conversation got all the more easy.

Another sip of her wine started to loosen her lips. The alcohol in it had hardly kicked in, but the taste of something sweet and pleasant enough company had started to relax Twilight quite a bit.  “Right, right, I bet it’s gonna be great,” Twilight agreed. She shuffled in her seat, getting comfortable and letting the tension out of her body. Awkward conversation over, she could do this, right?

It’d be up to Cadence to lead the conversation, which made sense considering that Twilight, at the end of the day, still boiled down to being an awkward school student.  “So how are your studies? I hear that Luna herself took you under her wing. What’s that like, if you don’t mind me asking?” she asked.

Before the two could continue, the server did come back, but it took them only a moment to relay their orders, a quick back and forth that seemed easy enough all considered. It left Twilight to answer in turn. “Oh, uh, it’s been wonderful!” Her tail started to wag behind her unintentionally, showing off her bits of happiness without her even knowing it. “She’s taught me so much, and showed me so many things. It’s a wonder what a mare of her stature knows, it’s one of those things that-”

Twilight made a face, trying to think of how to phrase her next few words. “It’s one of those things where you don’t know what you don’t know, you know?” she asked, giggling to herself at the series of ‘knows’ back to back. “I didn’t know how much my knowledge lacked before I got here, and to be completely honest, I didn’t even think that I’d care about the topic we focus on.”

Twilight shifted in her seat, taking a second to sip at her wine again before going on. “Prophecy and portents still don’t really make a whole lot of sense to me, but I think I’m getting there. Some of the things I’ve seen are-” Another cut off, Twilight frowning as she stared at her glass. It wouldn’t stay as a frown, melting back into a smile   

“I greatly appreciate her trust in me, and that she’s deigned to share the burden of what’s to come with me. It means a lot to know that I’ve been chosen by a mare so wondrous as her.” Twilight had admittedly started to gush. “Seriously, how can you not absolutely adore her?” she asked, with a light tilt of her head, smiling going wide enough to share a bit of teeth. 

“She’s the most wonderful mare that I’ve ever met, and honestly, she could teach me basic mathematics and I think I’d still appreciate every word that she said. It just helps that we’re working on something really interesting - albeit something that I was quite skeptical on at first! I know I’m probably rambling, and I’ve definitely answered the question by now, but I really did have to add that. She did kind of save my life in a strange way!”

Twilight hadn’t really talked or thought much about it, but she hadn’t had plans if this one had failed. She really should have, considering the chances, but it’d been something of a hail mary of hers. Truth be told, Twilight had found herself in an unwinnable, rather stagnant position back home, and with magic schools limited to nobles what were her options?


The military? Possibly, it’s what her brother chose. Or getting used to living in a small village doing nothing of importance for the most of her life. But really, could anypony see her doing that? It’s why this plan seemed so ridiculous - who honestly thought that traveling across a nation and looking to join a school in the middle of the arctic north made sense? Nopony, not really. So when ponies asked Twilight what she would have done had she failed? She had no answer. Not one that anypony wanted to hear, so she’d keep it to herself.

Well, she had planned to keep it to herself. Belatedly, she realized what she’d given away, and it stopped her in her tracks, the mare looking gobsmacked for a moment as she rallied once more. “Er, set my life on the right track, I mean,” she added, with a touch of bashfulness and the faintest of pink blushes on her face. Her tail had stopped it’s wagging too, settling back down while she busied herself with the wine glass. Nearly empty now.

Oh, that’s why she felt buzzed, wasn’t it? Because she was.

“Goodness, that just sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?” Cadence didn’t poke at her moment of vulnerability, and Twilight, admittedly, felt a rush of relief. Perhaps she’d started to grow fond of Cadence with that simple display alone, the emotional awareness to just move on from that part of the conversation wasn’t something that anypony could do. “I didn’t even know that Luna knew things like that. Or that she taught them. To be honest, I always thought fortune telling was… something of a scam,” she finished, with a little giggle that poked fun at herself. 


Twilight eagerly nodded her head. “Same, but it’s not! Not now that Luna has explained how it really works. Um, granted, most of the ponies that you see around the city who say they can do it are lying. It takes a LOT of power and I’m not even really sure I could do it without her. Er, not that I mean to brag, I am a rather powerful unicorn,” Twilight figured. “Granted, you probably have me beat with your alicorn powers. I did mean to ask,” she went on. “How do you know Luna? Beyond the first arrival at your city.”


Another small interruption from the waiter announced the arrival of their food and a refill on both of their glasses. Once more, they’d be left alone, but this time, Twilight had turned the tables! Now Cadence had to talk!

Cadence poked at her food, starting to cut off a small bit for herself. In addition to the ratatouille, a small side of rice graced their plates, brown and full of other roasted veggies. “Well,” she started, with a small sigh. “Luna and I don’t always get along with each other, admittedly. I speak for quite a bit of the nobles and we’ve butt heads every so often. Can you believe that when I came, the nobles were in disarray and chaos? 

“They only really looked out for themselves and scrapped for every instance of power. I don’t think they realized that they’d have a whole lot more power working together. With their money and influence combined, they went from forces working within their own spaces, to a great group working towards a better tomorrow.”

For a second, Cadence looked out over the room, gesturing towards a couple on the other side, a blue haired stallion with a pink haired, svelte mare. “Take Fancy and Fleur de Lis for example. They’re wonderful sorts really, kind, sweet, charitable, and while they do love their vices and admittedly can be a bit… open about their passions, they really do their best to improve Stalliongrad as a whole. Before this, they gave money, established benefits, all that sort of thing. Now?” 

Cadence smiled and looked back towards Twilight. “Now, they’re able to influence laws, to get Luna’s hoof to move on issues. It’s real change, not small things every now and then. And honestly, sometimes Luna and my group don’t see eye to eye. Oftentimes they do, but when we don’t, I still push my absolute best to enact their will. That, of course, means that Luna doesn’t always love me. It’s a… a working relationship, I think. Does that make sense?”

All the while, Twilight had started to eat, working at the food slowly but surely. “It does!” she answered. Not everypony got along, and despite the fact that Twilight absolutely adored her mentor, she understood that ponies really did have differences of opinions. As long as they weren’t enemies, what did she care? “And this food is absolutely amazing, thank you for the recommendation again! You know, your group is super fascinating. What’s it called? Do you have any events coming up?” she asked, finishing her talk with another sip of the wine. Definitely buzzed now, but in a way that made her all the more talkative. 

Not a bad thing, for sure. “Oh! We do have a name, it’s the Silver Collective, and we have a few events coming up. I can, perhaps, send you our mailing list?” Cadence proposed, finally popping a piece of her own food into her muzzle for the first time. Some quick chewing, a pleased expression on her face, and she’d keep going. “You’re perfectly welcome to come to our public events, but I’m afraid that private ones are reserved for our members, I’m sure you can understand. And speaking of events, have you ever considered accompanying Luna to some of hers?”

Cadence looked over the other patrons for a moment again, before looking back to Twilight. “We’d all absolutely adore seeing you!” A flutter of eyelashes punctuated the sentence, enough to make Twilight feel decidedly weak in the knees. Nopony should be that attractive except Luna, dammit! “Those stuffy old things could use some lightening up, and I dare say that this is the most interesting conversation that I’ve had in… in weeks, actually,” she admitted, with a girlish giggle that was practically a titter.

Twilight paused in her appreciation of the food to blush and take a moment to compose herself before answering. “I can make it!” she volunteered, and then laughed at her own eagerness, lightly shaking her head. “I should say, I’ll absolutely talk to Luna about it and see if we can arrange something. Honestly, I’m so swamped with my studies that I barely have time for other things! I actually,” she blushed at this, more so than from Cadence’s teasing, “fully intended to take some time to read while here. But I’m glad it went this way instead. It’s not often that you have such a great conversation!” Twilight finished, perking right on back up.

Glasses were running low and food had started to disappear on plates. Like it or not, the end of the dinner started to draw close. They still had time, time to talk, time to chat, but in the middle of a busy life, how often did one find themselves with the time to simply talk to a stranger and nothing more.

“I look forward to seeing you there. And I absolutely look forward to what dazzling outfits you’ll choose for your debut, shall we say. Don’t get me wrong, the librarian look is absolutely adorable on you, Twily, but I’m sure you look positively elegant when you’re dressed to the nines,” Cadence proposed. Normally, that would have made her flush, but something about the words caught her off guard. In fact, a single one of the words had done it: ‘Twily’. 

How many ponies were going to call her that? At first it had just been Shining Armor, but now Trixie had done it too, and Cadence as well? Twilight made a decision in her head.

“Sorry, I don’t get called a nickname often. I’d prefer if you used my full name, if that’s okay. That one definitely has some extra baggage to it,” Twilight apologized the best that she could. She’d decided that only her brother and her best friend could call her that, and right now, Cadence was neither of those and could never be one of them. “It was what my brother called me, you see, and it’s special for that. But!” she went on, with a better smile than before. 

“I actually don’t have any dresses. I really only have my traveling outfit, my school uniform, and a few things I’ve picked up here or there. Say, do you know somepony I could get a couple of dresses from? Luna gives me an allowance and I haven’t really been able to spend it all since most of it goes to books. Why not buy a few new outfits, right?” she asked, with a light cant of her head. A glance down to her plate told her that she’d nearly finished her meal, and that it’d soon be time to go home. The second glass of wine had left her head buzzing and not quite wanting to head out yet, not when the conversation felt so lovely.

Cadence pushed her plate away, signaling to herself and the world that she’d finished. Another drink at her wine glass and that’d be empty too, leaving Twilight to get second place. Not that that actually mattered, mind you. It truly didn’t matter who finished eating first or anything, it just meant that Cadence could talk more. “Oh, absolutely. There’s a mare who lives in the castle - first floor, towards Luna’s castle but go past it and it’ll be the first door on your right. Her name is Rarity - Baroness Rarity, actually - and she’s an absolute delight to work with. She can definitely get you suited up in the most wonderful of clothes, she’s truly a miracle worker,” Cadence bragged about someone not herself, something that made Twilight like her more.

It was easy to see yourself as ‘all that’, but much less so to praise your friends and peers in the same way. “Baroness Rarity. I’ll absolutely take the time to go see her then. I bet if she makes some of your clothing, she’s the best there is,” Twilight complemented the both of them at the same time, with a big smile and an enthusiastic wag of her tail.

Another giggle from Cadence, one that was interrupted by the sudden appearance of the bill, something that Cadence took care of with no ifs ands or buts from the younger Twilight. “She truly is,” Cadence agreed, slipping the slip back towards the waiter with a form of paper money that Twilight hadn’t seen much of. Honestly, only the richest ponies used the new paper money. Some argued that it looked and felt cheap, but nopony could argue about how much easier it was to carry around. Thus, the rich adopted it first for convenience and because they simply had more to lug around with them.

“So, what do you say about an appointment… Thursday, four P.M, hmm? Get you set up with a nice dressmaker and see how you feel,” Cadence proposed, with the same easy smile as always. 

Twilight barely caught a glimpse of the bill and saw that it numbered in the three digits. She couldn’t have afforded that, and another rush of gratitude welled up inside of her for Cadence. “That’s perfect. I, admittedly, don’t have a whole lot of money, Cadence. Is Rarity going to be expensive?” she asked, with only a touch of embarrassment, the hint of red on her face.

A waved hoof answered her question. “Not at all, not at all! She works practically for free if you can impress her! And if you don’t - which I sorely doubt - I’ll cover for you, fear not, my little pony,” Cadence assured her. Still, at the same time, the pink alicorn stood up and let her lovely dress fall back to her hooves. “But, I must be going. I’m afraid I have another meeting after this one and it’s of utmost importance.” Cadence grinned, leaning in real close for a moment, “I’m getting my hooves painted,” she admitted, with that girlish giggle. 

Of course, Twilight giggled right back! “Good luck, do be careful!” she imitated Cadence’s tone for a second, giggling at her own silliness. “You’re so generous, Cadence, thank you again for the time. I’m super excited to see you again sometime, and be safe!” Twilight said her goodbyes, starting to get up herself and look the restaurant over. 

A blown kiss and Cadence would take her leave, ending with Twilight standing there ever so awkwardly as she watched her go. It’d been a hell of a mealtime, something that she couldn’t have expected in a thousand years. Twilight started the night only knowing a couple of nobles, and those were the ones who didn’t want the title, and now she ended it with a meeting with another and a friendship with quite the special one. Cadence definitely had an air of uniqueness around her, didn’t she? How could an alicorn not?

Twilight, naturally, made her way home, back towards her dorm room, practically giddy to tell Trixie of what the night had borne for her. And above all else, she went home with the thought that she just had to tell Luna about this! Sure, Cadence said they had a working relationship, but after meeting Twilight too? They’d be the best of friends, she was just sure of it!