“Like, what are you doing here?” Diamond Tiara said as she opened the door.
Cheerilee smiled. She had a sixth sense when it came to the inner workings of the foalish mind, and right now, she knew that Diamond Tiara was ticking through every recent misbehavior. Cheerilee fought to suppress a grin as her student desperately tried to figure out a way to get out of this mess.
“Well, actually, I’m here to see your father,” Cheerilee said. “He’s expecting me.”
Diamond Tiara grimaced, looking over her shoulder quickly, and then back to her teacher. “Um, he’s busy!” she said quickly, moving to shut the door. “He’ll probably be busy all night with work and stuff, but I’ll tell him you came by!”
“Diamond, is that Ms. Cheerilee?” Filthy’s deep voice called from somewhere within the vast mansion. Cheerilee covered her grin with a hoof as the foal winced. “Show her in here, please.”
“Um, come in, I guess,” the foal said, hanging her head. Dragging her hooves, she led Cheerilee through the opulent foyer and down a richly appointed hallway. Finally, after Diamond swallowed loudly, Cheerilee couldn’t bear to twist the hoofscrews any longer.
“You know, Diamond,” she said, tilting her head down toward the glum foal, “I’m not here to talk about school.”
“Oh, really?” Diamond said, perking up briefly before tilting her head and cocking an eyebrow. “Then, like, why are you here?”
“Like I said before, I’m here to see your father,” Cheerilee said brightly as she grinned. She had a good feeling this time. Filthy Rich was a well-respected professional, and not hard on the eyes. Cheerilee had been thrilled when they’d bumped into each other in town and he’d asked her over for dinner.
After staring at her teacher for a few seconds, Diamond Tiara shrugged and continued down the hallway. “He’s in here,” she said, pushing open a polished mahogany door.
“Ah, Cheerilee!” Filthy said, rising from his office chair to shake Cheerilee’s hoof warmly. “Always a pleasure. Please, have a seat.” The stallion opened a cabinet behind him and pulled out a decanter. “Cognac?” he asked, placing two snifters on his desk.
“Oh, I don’t…” Cheerilee said, watching as Filthy filled the glasses, swirling the amber liquid in each. “Well, maybe just this once!” she finished, taking the snifter. It smelled heavenly.
“I brought that back from Prance last time I visited,” Filthy said, taking a sip. “Mmm, excellent. That’s what eight hundred bits a bottle will get you there.”
Cheerilee choked, coughing as she goggled at the businesspony.
“Now, now!” Filthy laughed. “Don’t be concerned. That same bottle would be two thousand bits here! Why do you think I went all the way to Prance? It was practically a bargain!”
“Oh, Filthy, I had no idea!” Cheerilee said, eyeing the glass hesitantly. The cognac had suddenly lost some of its appeal. She couldn't remember the last time she'd spent eight hundred bits on anything.
“Yes, I love a good bargain! I'm sure you do, too!” Filthy chuckled, refilling her snifter. “In fact, let me show you something else.” Filthy opened a desk drawer, pulling out several glossy brochures and sliding them across the desk to Cheerilee. “Have you ever heard of Amneigh?”
Cheerilee frowned as she opened the pamphlets. “The pyramid scheme?” she replied, eyeing Filthy warily.
“Oh, Cheerilee. Cheerilee,” Filthy tsked. “Pyramid scheme? Hardly. Amneigh is Equestria’s premiere cosmetics and sundries company! Why, just take a look at these deals! I’m sure that a pretty mare like you could find hundreds of items that you’d find to be—”
“Dad!” Diamond Tiara said from the doorway, causing both Filthy and Cheerilee to jump. “Hello! She’s a teacher! It’s not like she has any money!”
“Diamond, why don’t you go see what Silver Spoon is up to, okay?” Filthy replied, refilling his glass. “Be back in an hour for dinner.”
“Fine, whatever…”
“Kids,” Filthy chuckled, shrugging. “What are you gonna do?”
Cheerilee forced a smile, politely scanning the brochures momentarily before pushing them back across the desk. “Ah, thank you, but—”
“No, no, no!” Filthy cried. “That’s not all that Amneigh is about!” The stallion leapt up, circling the desk to flip the pamphlet over. “I’m going to get straight to the heart of the matter. You could use some supplemental income, couldn’t you?”
Cheerilee’s eyes darts back and forth briefly before she opened her mouth. “Ah—”
“No, don’t answer that!” Filthy cut in. “We could all use a little bit more, eh?” He elbowed Cheerilee in the side. “You see, Amneigh is also a powerful tool in the hooves of the right mare, and I think that mare could be you.” Filthy threw his leg around her shoulder, sweeping the other in front of them expansively. “Just imagine yourself, leading a team of trained sales professionals, and for each of them you take ten percent off the top! Why, in no time at all, you’ll be able to afford—”
“Mr. Rich!” Cheerilee said, batting his hoof from her shoulder. “Are you telling me that you've invited me over for dinner so that you can try and recruit me into this…” She picked up a brochure and let it drop back to the table. “… business of yours?”
“No, of course not!” Filthy said, returning to his seat. “I apologize! Terribly rude of me! Plus, Barnyard Bargains is my real business! Amneigh’s merely something I have on the side.”
Cheerilee crossed her legs and looked away.
“I deserve that,” Filthy said mildly. “Sometimes I do get a bit carried away. I spend too much time at the office.” Leaning over his desk, he offered the teacher a sheepish smile. “Could we start again?”
“I suppose,” Cheerilee sighed.
Filthy cleared his throat. “Honestly, I wanted to get to know you better,” he said. “It’s been several years since my wife passed…” Cheerilee loosened her tightly crossed legs as he swallowed hard. “I think it’s finally time to move on,” he finished.
“We were all very sorry,” Cheerilee said as the stallion’s eyes welled a bit. “I know how tough it was on Diamond.”
“Yes, but let’s not dwell on that,” Filthy said, opening another drawer. Cheerilee’s brow furrowed as he rifled through several file folders. “Ah, here it is!” he cried, sliding the paper over to Cheerilee. “If you could just fill that out, please.”
“'Application for Temporary Courtship with an Option for Permanency (Pending Evaluation)'?” Cheerilee read, her mouth hanging open as she looked back to the pleased businesspony. “Are you out of your mind?”
“Not at all!” he said, grinning. “I’m getting a nice pool of applicants. Lyra was in here just yesterday!”
“Thank you for the lovely drink,” Cheerilee said, rising and walking to the door.
“Hold on a minute!” Filthy called after her. “Don't you want to hear about the flexible hours and the generous benefits package?! Wait!”