//------------------------------// // Tacos // Story: Not a Monster 2: Under Their Spell // by Dreamscape //------------------------------// When Sonata had invited me out for tacos, I was expecting a fast food joint where we would be able to stuff our faces with plenty of delicious, shelled treats for an extremely low price. When I was told to meet up with her at a quaint but rather nice Mexican restaurant, I realized how large her obsession with tacos was. I guess she could be called a connoisseur of the cuisine. The exterior itself was rather bland, a simple tan, stucco building with the restaurant name painted above the doors. “La Yegua Grasa,” I thought to myself, I have no clue what it means, but it seems authentic… possibly. In my previous school I had taken two years of Spanish, one during my freshman year, and the other in my sophomore year. I figured what had been repeatedly ingrained in my head would be stuck there for life, but sadly, it didn’t. Only a few easy words and phrases had stuck. All I could decipher from the title was the fat something. I shrugged it off, realizing the name really didn’t matter, and made my way inside. The interior was a rather stark contrast from the exterior. I had to pause a moment to let it all soak in. Scenes of farming, galloping horses, or small town streets were carved into the chairs, booths, and even the tables, and painted with bright, lively colors. Authentic salmon red tiles covered the floors, and the walls were decorated with an assortment of Mexican knick-knacks including sombreros and flags. A few simple archways separated different dining areas to add more atmosphere. At the edge of my sight, I noticed the blue blur of a waving hand and looked to see a grinning Sonata. Although I had already been warned that the other girls possibly would not join us, I was still rather surprised not to see them. It seemed as though they were always together, a practically inseparable group. I was certainly pleased with the situation though. Sonata seemed rather easy to get along with and enjoyable to be around, just like Pinkie. A jolt of pain pushed at my heart with such a thought. It was rather hard to believe that I was already missing my friend after not seeing her for only a day. “Hey, sup?” she asked cheerfully as I took a seat across from her. “Hey, Sonata,” I said with a smile. “Adagio and Aria didn’t wanna come. Too bad, more tacos for us I guess, right? You are gonna eat a lot of them right?” I laughed in response. “I’ll try my best.” “Good,” she exclaimed with a giggle, “I don’t wanna look fat.” “You, fat?” I complemented. “Well, I guess sirens probably have a lot bigger appetite than you do, and I already have a high metabolism… yeah, I can probably eat, like, one-hundred thousand calories and not get fat. It’s pretty great.” “Oh, I bet,” I said with a laugh as a large basket of chips with a bowl of salsa was set down between us. “Thanks,” I said with a nod to the waitress. “We’ll get the mucho taco combo,” Sonata said with a wink. “And some orange soda?” She turned to me questioningly, I quickly nodded my head. She then shooed the waitress off while she was still in the process of scribbling the order down on a pad of paper. “Oh… that was sort of mean, huh? I just wanted to get back to talking.” “It’s fine,” I mumbled, even though in my mind, I was questioning her motives. Was that truly the only reason she had been somewhat impatient and rude, or had the whole ‘evil’ attitude become instinctual for her. “Anyways… speaking of you being a siren and all,” I figured that with our previous conversation, the perfect time had arisen to ask more about them, “what exactly is it like living here?” Sonata sighed in thought after eating one of the chips, and tapped her finger lightly upon the table. “It’s pretty dull sometimes, and it kinda really sucks that we can never go back to Equestria… but I guess after all these years we’ve sort of gotten used to it.” We, it was as if she included the other girls like they were a singular being. They were certainly close, maybe even closer than Sunset and her friends. “Years, I didn’t think you had been here for too long.” “We’ve been here for a really long time, since way before you were born.” I gazed into her raspberry colored eyes with puzzlement. “But you’re only teenagers?” “Yeah, I guess,” she said with a giggle, “but we sirens age way different than you.” “Oh, I guess that makes sense then,” I said, taking a couple of chips for myself and scooping up a small bite of salsa with one. “So, if you don’t mind my asking, how exactly do you live here?” Sonata responded with a smirk. “Oh, it used to be super easy when we had those amulets. We sort of just tricked people into giving us money. You know, who wouldn’t want to help out some poor, adorable girls with amazing singing voices?” “Oh…” I mumbled, not sure exactly how to respond to such a lifestyle. “But it’s getting really hard now that we don’t have them. We live in an apartment and have to pay bills, buy food, all that stuff. I think we’re going to have to get jobs soon.” She finished her sentence with a blatant pout and puppy dog eyes. I smiled, her cuteness almost overwhelming. “In that case, I can pay for dinner tonight. I have some money, and since I don’t have to pay all that stuff…” I wide smirk appeared on her face and she winked teasingly. “Looks like I’ve still got it, even without that silly amulet.” I glared at her a moment, feeling as though her statement was all a ruse, but then frowned, realizing she was being honest. “All that stuff you said is actually happening though, right?” She nodded her head softly, frowning back. “Oh, alright, I’m still paying, you win.” “Woop! Uh huh! That’s right!” Sonata celebrated jokingly, pumping her fist in the air. “Now stop eating those chips, would ya?” she said, slapping a chip from my hand. “You need to save up for some extremely tasty tacos.” I looked down at the basket which seemed much emptier than then the last time I had seen it. I suddenly realized that I had been eating them throughout our entire conversation. It was nerves, even though I was feeling more comfortable around Sonata, she was still new, and I guess I wasn’t quite as comfortable as I thought I had been. “Uh, heheh,” I mumbled nervously. “Don’t worry, I can still eat… I think.” Our conversation lulled to a halt as the large plate of delicious looking tacos was set before us. Even the toppings of lettuce, tomato, green onions, and cheese looked perfect on their own, but, of course, the best part was the seasoned beef and crispy golden shell. As we chomped away on taco after taco, I couldn’t help but stare at Sonata. The way she smiled and even danced slightly as she chewed was certainly something to behold. Luckily for me, her eyes were closed for the most part as she savored every last bit of the flavor. Whenever she did happen to notice my staring, she responded with a strange glare, causing my cheeks to warm up as I quickly looked away. *** Somehow, we managed to finish every last bite of the tacos. Sonata leaned lazily back against the booth and patted her stomach lightly as I fished my wallet from my pocket and eyed the bill that she pushed my way when it was set down earlier. “Help me up,” she whined and lifted a flimsy arm as placed money along with a tip on the table and stood up. I smiled and grabbed her small hand. She was even lighter than I had expected. Suddenly, I was embraced in quick hug before both of her hands wrapped around my own. “I bet it’s pretty hard not having a bunch of lovey-dovey attention now that you and Sunset broke up,” she said softly as she looked up into my eyes. My eyes quickly and awkwardly darted away. “Uh not really, we sort of weren’t really that close near the end.” “Aww, poor thing,” she cooed. I looked back to see her pouting. She then grasped one of her hands upon my side and I flinched as her soft lips pressed against my cheek, quickly pulling away. “Thanks for the tacos. I’m glad I at least have somebody to eat tacos with… even if it is you.” Whether her final statement was simply a tease or she was serious, I knew I was being used. There was no way a girl like her would come onto someone like me that quickly. She was a siren after all, seduction was her forte, and sadly for me, even though I knew what she was doing, I still loved the attention. Even if they meant nothing, it was nice to have a cute girl like her preforming such intimate actions. She gave my hands a squeeze before letting go, and then brushed a finger across my cheek as she turned for the door. I stood frozen in awe as she left. She had a rather clumsy walk for a siren. I was expecting it to be a bit more sensual and have more flow, but it did fit her personality almost perfectly. Her charm was quite different than the stereotypical definition, and it was working perfectly for her.