//------------------------------// // Meet the Occupational Offer // Story: No Longer an Enigma // by enigmaMystere //------------------------------// “Alright!” The yellow pegasus behind the turntables grinned, indicating an area right in front of the station. “Come over here, and we’ll get those votes counted, ‘kay?” Enigma and Vinyl obediently approached the center of the stage, the stallion with far less confidence than the mare. He felt like his stomach was twisting in on itself. ...I hope Vinyl can forgive me for saying such things... The white disk jockey hoofbumped her canary yellow friend, positively beaming. “Nice job, Glaze! I gotta say, it’s been a while since I last heard your work.” She lifted her shades, raising a brow in curiosity. “What brings you here?” “Oh, you know. The usual.” The mare glanced around, a bead of perspiration forming on her brow. She coughed, turning her attention to the crowd and raising her auto-tuned voice. “Here’s how this is gonna work! I will call out the names of the participants, and you cheer as loud as you can for who you think won!” She held a hoof over the white unicorn’s back, grinning widely. “Who here thinks Vinyl won?” The audience roared in excitement, stomping their hooves to add to the din. Glaze giggled, moving her hoof over the red pegasus, her smile never wavering. “How about Enigma, folks?” If the reaction was loud before, the cheers for the feminine stallion were deafening. He was quite literally pushed back by the force of their combined voices, feeling the stomps of their hooves through the mahogany stage floor. Stunned, he turned to his opponent, trying to see if she understood this. Something about the way her jaw was currently resting on the floor said she was shocked. “...no way...” She groaned, lowering her head. “...I can’t believe I lost...” Enigma gently rested a hoof on her shoulder, smiling softly. “Don’t worry, Vi...” Her head whipped to him, eyes narrowed in anger. “...nyl. Vinyl.” He chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head with his free hoof. Of course, he didn’t learn from the last time he did that, so he fell flat on his face. “...buck.” Soft laughter filtered through to his ears. Confused, he looked up, seeing the white unicorn giving him a half-smile. “Bro, you are so strange. What happened to your uptight personality from yesterday?” He opened his mouth to respond, but paused, actually taking the time to think about the question. “...I’m not sure...I woke up, took a shower, rushed over here-” He smacked a hoof against his face, groaning. “Dang it, I forgot my medicine!” Vinyl raised an eyebrow at this, her smile disappearing quickly. “...uh huh...” She held a hoof out to the still-sprawled pegasus, a completely neutral look on her face as she helped him up. “Listen, I talked to Tavi yesterday, and she told me how you were...well, new.” She tilted her head, pushing her shades back up her nose. “So I have to ask - do you have a job? ‘Cause I could use a bit more help around here. I’ll even...” She shuddered, slightly moving her head towards the crowd still gathered. “...um...let’s discuss this backstage...” Slightly confused, he followed right behind her. He turned around, seeing that she was closing the door behind him. “Listen...” She sighed, carefully setting herself down on a pile of pillows. “...I don’t know how or why, but I suppose I’m forced to let you rehab me.” Enigma held up a hoof, slightly bothered by her wording. “I don’t think that’s how you use-” “Are you correcting me?” If looks could kill, the red pegasus would have died about fifty times, then and there. Vinyl sighed, taking off her shades completely and looking at him. “I’ll admit, I’m not completely up for you changing an aspect of my life. I’ve been drinking since I was eighteen!” He tilted his head, confused. “...but...isn’t the drinking age twenty-one?” “Details.” She waved a hoof, levitating a card from a nearby cluttered table. “All I needed was the proper identification. I'm so proud of how it turned out!” She hoofed it over to him, a big, cheesy grin on her face. ...this just says ‘McLuvin’’... “Glad you understand everything, bro. Now get to work.” Vinyl strolled out the room, not even sparing Enigma a second glance. The stallion looked up, blinking dumbly. “...huh?” He looked up at the clock, completely shocked. How the hay did I lose twenty minutes!?