//------------------------------// // Part 2 // Story: Nothing's Impossible // by The Wizard of Words //------------------------------// Two to one. The current score on the board was two to one. The prismatic-maned pegasus of a doctor had a point above her in a match that most others would probably call over. That wasn’t just bad. It was terrible. It had been years at the very least since she was last in this kind of situation, probably longer than that. It had always been first-strike/strong-lead for her, never giving her opponent anything but a clear picture that they were being outclassed, letting them know that Star was leagues above them. Best way to show you were ready for the next rung on the ladder to the top. But this mare, Aurora? She had tripped up Star once, took the counter thrown back, then immediately delivered her own comeback that would have left an audience screaming for joy in their seats. It made the fighter bite her lip in further annoyance. It was only made worse by how the pegasus seemed so gullible up until then. Star had to get that point back. She couldn’t lose to something like this. There had to be something she could do to make Aurora recognize that she’d taken on the wrong mare. That was the trouble though. This wasn’t some match in a ring she’d gotten tripped up on; this was out in the open with the only ref available sitting in her head. She huffed a spiteful breath, crossing her arms hard over her jacket. She flexed them, tightening them up while leaning back against the wall behind her. The air outside was starting to cool, the sun finally falling out of the sky and giving room for the moon to start to peek out from top of the buildings around her. Street lights began to flicker on, illuminating the otherwise dark roads. They were all secondary to Starfall. What she was more concerned with was the building she was leaning against, the Canterlot Public Clinic. It was still half light, the windows glowing across the street like the lamps above. She couldn’t see anyone inside, not inside the clinic itself at least. They were all in that back room, the one that had doctors and not physicians. The room where Aurora was no doubt still working. Starfall hadn’t the faintest idea what the pegasus was working on specifically, she only knew that the doctor enjoyed it. Enough that, after having the MMA fighter take off her top and feeling her up with a rubber glove, she rushed off to the back room to finish up more of her work. Leaving it to that butterfly marked nurse to dismiss her, of course. That wasn’t why she was staying here right now. Oh no. She was here now because Aurora had agreed to go out to dinner with Starfall following her work, whenever that was over. It was what gave the unicorn her solitary point on the scoreboard, teasing another mare into a date. Often hard to do, but like any fight, she nailed it. The problem was that Aurora seemed just as ready for the curveballs that Star was throwing. Not only did she twist her arm like a perfect chicken-wing to make her take the dang physical, but then she was able to use it as an excuse to make her strip. To turn the tables on her like that, it was just… It was worse than having one of her MMA moves backfire. So now, Star was out here waiting for Aurora to show up, thinking of a way on how to get back at her before they jumped off to that dinner. There were choices, at least a few, but there were just as many options she couldn’t even allow herself to glance at. Humiliation? Oh no, that was a no go. Not for a lack of ideas, Starfall reminded herself. She could think of at least a dozen ways to get the pegasus feeling poorly about herself, the most obvious of which was just to leave right now. Easy to execute, easy to follow-up on, and simple. But no, it wasn’t going to happen. There was a higher chance of her leaving the MMA then doing that. Tactics like humiliation and pranks weren’t how you got points on the board. Those were cheap tricks used by unskilled fighters. Lead-lined fighting mitts, audience cast illusions, pre-fight threatening, post-fight attacks; they were all the lowest of the low when it came to ‘winning’. Celestia may have been strict about that lesson, but Starfall didn’t need her to emphasize it to know it. She learned that lesson before she ever set foot in the White Sister’s gym. Schoolyard bullies going after her brother, picking on him cause they couldn’t ace the tests like he could, trying to throw everything they could get their greasy little hands on. Star snorted angrily at the memory, feeling her hands ball into fists in their crossed state. She hated those bullies, hated them for the cowards that they were. No, Star wasn’t going to try and humiliate Aurora. The pegasus deserved so much more than that. There weren’t any cheap tactics or underhanded moves being made. She was playing the board they stumbled on like a smart fighter did the ropes of a ring. Not relying on the elastic bands, but getting a solid strike with them. Star had to admit, the first time she pulled that trick off felt great. Aurora must have been feeling the same way. That was why she had to be smart about this. No childish name-calling, no pranking, no running off and leaving a mare to weep. Whatever she was gonna do, it had to be good, solid, but just enough to know that it was an even counter, not an underhanded blow. Teasing seemed good, at least a good option for now. Worked for a solid point before, but Auorora might already be seeing through it now. It was hard to pull the same move on an opponent twice. It was why there was no such thing as a signature move in MMA. Once word got around what it was, didn’t take long for someone else to learn how to counter it. For a mare as smart as Aurora, she probably had an idea of what to expect out of Star now. Hell, she might be in there studying possible comebacks as she waited. So not out, but not a first option. A false front might work. Fake attention was the quickest way to make other ponies feel more important than they often were. It was why Celestia was so keen on not teaching any of the newbies too much longer than she had to. Too much attention on one of them over the others resulted in the idea that they were overtly special, and not the simple reason of needing more attention because they were worse off. In training and mentoring, it was a bad idea. For getting a point in this kind of battle, however, it was perfect for Starfall. There were a hundred and one questions she could ask Aurora. Her job, her past, her likes, dislikes, all the basic stuff and even a little more. Questions, and a lot of them, gave the idea that someone was curious. Thinking a mare was curious gave the idea that the mare was interested. And just next to that was the idea that something good was going to come out of it. What a haymaker it would be to have that same mare suddenly end the evening without so much as a goodbye. That could work. Not public, subtle at first, and striking a decisive blow where it mattered most, at the end of the match. Done right, it could even be a Total Knock Out. That was a good option. But there were a few more ideas. Passive attention, ignorance, playing the idiot, acting the muscle head, maybe even throwing away those manners her parents made her learn at the dinner. Borderline humiliation, but it was more of a reversal than a direct blow. Putting Star, herself, in the humiliation role in order to allow Aurora to feel the burn. Hard to do, but when done right, it was more satisfying than a knockout in the first round. “Oh good, you’re still here!” The voice nearly made Star fall over. She at least slid down the wall. Not off to a great start. Blinking away her thoughts, the unicorn turned to see the pegasus plaguing her thoughts standing just next to her. Took a few seconds longer to fully recognize her, given that Aurora was out of the white lab coat she was wearing before. Still, the rainbow mane, large wings, and blue coat made it kind of hard to not recognize the mare. Clothes were new though, at least different. Not far off from what Star pictured the uptight doctor would wear. A skirt, of course, stretching just far enough to above the knees, colored a boring and rather dull blue, like the sky just before shifting into nighttime. The top was little different. Just one long-sleeved buttoned up top, colored a lighter shade then her skirt. It was cuffed at the sleeves, but without a wrinkle on it. Kinda impressive if she was wearing it all day. Just as impressive if she was saving it. Either she was super careful, or super prepared. Both made for difficult fights. Aurora, however, seemed to take notice of Starfall’s wandering eyes. She started fidgeting slightly, pulling her arms closer to her body as if to shield herself. Poor defense if that was the case, but the message was pretty clear. “W-What?” the mare stumbled on her word. Star noted how the pegasus tucked a stray strand of her red hair behind one of her ears. A common nervous habit, but just like any kind of fight, she had to take careful note of every detail. And, just like those fights, she had to plan her every move. “Nothing,” Star responded easily. “I was just thinking you look nice out of that lab coat.” An honest statement. Can’t do any feints this early in the match. Solid hit nonetheless, given how the blue of Aurora’s natural coat turned a shade pinker. Star smirked at the accomplishment. “But we should start walkin’ if we want to go somewhere to eat. Not in the mood to eat off the sidewalk.” “Huh?” Aurora’s blush faded quickly, her brow knitting instead. “Oh! Right,” she spoke quickly, walking forward the small distance till the two were side-by-side. It took that long for Star to note that the mare was also wearing high-heels, putting them at just about equal height. She only figured that out after hearing the heels click on the concrete. Star was glad her ears were still in check, but she put a tally against herself for not noting the shoes. A lot of the fancy mares cared so much about shoes she should have at least noticed them. Any criticism Star had for her observation skills were put aside when Aurora linked their arms together. Star had to look to confirm it, staring down at her arm for a moment. Sure enough, there was a dark blue sleeved arm wrapped and the crux of hers, effectively knotting them together. They were linked right around the elbow, held together like some advanced pinning maneuver. Major differences here though was that Aurora wasn’t just holding their arms together, she was leaning over and onto Star as well. In the course of only a few moments, the seemingly nervous pegasus had managed to put Starfall in one of the most precarious positions that she could. As if to add insult to the maneuver, Aurora smiled at her, grinning with a look the unicorn knew instinctively was adorable, complete with half-lidded eyes. They hadn’t even taken a step yet and the doctor was already gaining the upper hand.The hesitation, however, was noticed by the pegasus. “I-I’m sorry,” the doctor spoke as quickly as she had linked her arm around Star’s. “I… I thought this was appropriate for dates. I… Was I too forward?” She was already leaning off of the unicorn, unhooking her arm as she did so. Star, trained for years, was faster. “Hey, no, you’re fine,” Star spoke as she caught Aurora, just before her arm left the crux they made. “Just surprised me is all. I didn’t expect ya to be so quick on the uptake. I just thought I’d be the one leading this night is all.” She had to say that. She had to speak the most reassuring words she could. Otherwise Aurora would have effectively pulled off one of the most impressive improv guilt trips the unicorn had ever experienced. This way, however, there was no gain on either side. Aurora’s face relaxed, her wings laxing behind her as well. That was a good sign, the wings at least. Made it clear to Star that those were going to be a critical thing to keep her eyes on if she was going to be reading the pegasus right at all tonight. “That’s good,” the doctor spoke again. “I was nervous I may have already overstepped the boundaries of physical contact. I’m happy to know nothing has been spoiled.” This mare… she was using a lot of high-brow words to just say she was glad she didn’t screw up. Thing was, Star felt the same way. “Don’t worry ‘bout that.” Starfall returned quickly leaning towards and away from the pegasus. It had the desired effect of the doctor leaning back into her. A common instinct of overcompensation, a good use of a feint. It ended with Aurora leaning on Starfall once again, arms linked together, and the unicorn looking down at her. “I asked you to have dinner with me in order to get through that physical of yours. It’s gonna take a little more than a bit of social awkwardness to get out of it.” Aurora smiled back up at her, unease alleviated, though Star could see only lightly. She would have thought this was new territory for the pegasus. She would have, if the doctor weren’t clearly a pro at it. “I’m glad,” Aurora returned. “Truth be told, I was looking forward to having this late evening with you. I can’t remember the last time any pony asked me out on a date, let alone in the midst of an examination.” Star found that hard to believe. Sneaks and tricks aside, it wasn’t hard to see the blue-coated doctor was very easy on the eyes. If the stallions and mares weren’t flocking to ask her out, something must have been up. Fortunately, she had an entire night to find out. It might even be the winning point of the match. “Well there’s no use in thinkin’ about that kinda stuff now.” Star spoke up again. “I’m here, you’re here, and we got a night to enjoy.” Aurora giggled at the words. That made Star grin. So now the game was beginning again. They had been walking for maybe ten minutes before Starfall realized she had no idea where they were going. She wanted to go to a restaurant, she had promised and planned as much. Problem was there wasn’t really a restaurant she had in mind. The local joint she would usually head to didn’t seem like the greatest place to take a doctor. Goal here was to make a good night with a sudden let down. Somehow taking a doctor to a place like the Salty Salad didn’t seem like a great idea for that to happen. Sure, it had good food, but the usual brawls and typical banter that came from the bar end usually ended in made that a rather bad choice. Fun for the newbies to feel at ease, probably not the prime choice for a doctor to relax in. Star searched her head for a good alternative. Taking away the fast food joints, take-out menus, bar-hopping social venues, and of course, the usual meet up points for MMA fighters and trainees, she wasn’t left with much. Just a few places she didn’t have the clothes or money to go to. Course, the biggest reason she wasn’t on board for those places was the judging eyes that usually came with them. Not cute enough, not dressed enough, not enough make-up, not enough bits, not doing something right in those places and every eye would stare at you like you were a changeling in daycare. An outsider in the worst of ways. “If I may ask, where are we heading to?” Aurora asked Starfall, looking to the mare she was currently leaning on. The question didn’t scare the unicorn off guard so much as it annoyed her. She hated questions she didn’t have the answer to. More than that, she hated having questions she’d have to admit as much. “I… I got nothin’.” The words spilled out, tasting like venom. “Can’t think of any place that would suit both of us. No point in eating out if one of us is feeling like we’re taking our title match in a foreign ring.” She rubbed her head with her hand, shutting her eyes to block out the street lights above. No stars to see in a city. “Hmm…” She heard the pegasus on her arm hum, probably in thought. For a small amount of time, the only sound was the hoofs clicking across the ground. Well, the heels that Aurora was wearing and the basic sneakers that Star wore. The unicorn’s hooves didn’t click. They were actually meant to be comfortable, not stylish. Starfall stopped rubbing her head when she felt something pull on her arm. Didn’t take her long to realize it was Aurora. Took her a bit longer to notice that the pegasus was standing in front of her now, pulling her forward. Both hands were on her arm, the same arm aiming forward instead of sitting at her side. Only problem was, Starfall was a trained fighter and muscled well enough to take blows as well as she gave them. Aurora was a doctor and probably not an athletic one at that. That meant that when the latter was trying to pull the former, it was more like Aurora was pulling on a tree branch. In other words, about as pointless as hand-squeezing apples.. Did make Star grin though. The doctor was acting pretty cute if nothing else. The pout helped. Wait, did that mean Aurora was taking the advance here? Crap, she was. “Probably be best to tell me what you’re thinking.” Star spoke to the miffed pegasus. She had to move with the grab, just like any basic escape tactic. “We’ll be heading nowhere fast otherwise.” The unicorn felt the pegasus sag at the response, namely because the small amount of force she felt pulling her lazed. “I-I’m sorry,” Aurora spoke up, sounding far more anxious than she initially appeared. Maybe she didn’t expect Star to be so hard to move. Her mistake, and mistakes were what decided a match. Not how many you made, but how well you moved with them. By the way the doctor was acting, she was a regular pro. “I… I think I know where we can go, where you and I can both be comfortable with few distractions, but… I don’t know. The majority of the novels I’ve read emphasise that surprise helps to bolster the emotions felt by individuals in the short term following the reveal.” Star was more impressed how Aurora spoke all that with not only a single breath, but a straight face. “Huh,” the fighter let out at first, processing everything the doctors had said. “That’s… that’s a mouthful.” Star found herself lightly waving a finger in the air as she spoke. Her mistake, unfortunately. She assumed it was by the action Aurora took next. Specifically, how the doctor seemingly curled in on herself, bottom lip between her teeth, aversion of the eyes, tightly tucked wings, it was all pretty amazing thinking back on it. Starfall had taken blunt maces to the chest in training, bo-staff swings to the head, and then many more trips and falls between the two. Yet, the thin pegasus in front of her, looking like she was about to cry, felt much worse than any of those. Star had to react, fast. “So… all that psycho-stuff aside, you know where we can eat?” Best way to avoid a blow was follow its path. Made reversals easier. “I mean, might as well check it out, right?” Star put on a lopsided grin as she asked the question, shrugging her shoulders at the mare still holding her arm out. It worked, again, seemingly. The sudden disappearance of the frown helped. “Alright,” Aurora spoke, once again looking less uncomfortable. That was all the indication she gave before turning around and walking forward again, pulling Star’s arm still. This time, the fighter quickened her pace enough to match the doctor’s, though it wasn’t tough when the latter was wearing high heels. Her wings, tall and wide, were fidgeting against her back. The long cyan feathers that made up the bulk of its mass didn’t so much as twitch in the light wind of the city. Made sense, as they were made to fly above the clouds, kinda like how Star’s own horn was meant to channel magic that would normally make a regular mare sick. They were nice to look at though, especially with rainbow locks flowing over the back of them. The mare’s tail was hidden behind the curtain of feathers, but the wings were pretty enough by themselves that it wasn’t a mournful loss. True, they could have used a bit of muscle, probably some tonic, but otherwise they were nice. All that aside though, reeling her mind back in, Starfall didn’t have anymore of a clue for where they were going. What was with this mare? She either explained herself like a freaking book or she assumed everything was common knowledge. Where was the middle ground? “So, where are we headin’?” Star asked the pegasus trying to drag her forward. “Don’t get me wrong, I like a good surprise now and then, but can’t help but wonder where you’re thinking of taking me.” “Well, it is a surprise,” Aurora spoke up, though still refusing to turn around as she did so. “But I know it's someplace that we can both enjoy!” Wow, careful with the details, Star humorlessly thought. Seriously though, she could at least tell her what the dinner was going to be like. “Is it a pub, or a restaurant, or… what?” Star didn’t slow her pace, but the tugging on her arm told her Aurora wanted to go faster. All for speedy workouts, especially when you were trying to build up the endurance, but she hated having to do something quickly without so much as an idea about it. “The first two options are both ‘whats’ as well, referring to a question of the identity of the physical object.” Star felt her arm try and massage her head. She kept it from doing so. “But the diner is not a pub, as they do not serve alcoholic beverages. It can be classified as a restaurant, but so can most other dining places.” Again, the over-detail. She was like a pendulum. “Are we at least close?” Star spoke as she swung, literally so. At least that was what it felt like when the moved around the corner. Her words did get the pegasus to chuckle a little. The move was more obvious this time, making it easy for Starfall to avoid the usual feeling of giddiness it brought. “Closer than we were before,” Aurora cheerily replied. She was seriously slipping, Starfall realized. Maybe she had played too much of her ‘A’ game too early. Common mistake for a lot of newbies, but she didn’t think the doctor was anything like that. Maybe this was a new tactic of hers… just meant Star had to stay careful. But seriously, closer than they were before? Why was she being so sneaky? It was almost too difficult to tell, almost. She could at least tell that the pegasus was starting to look head, her prismatic mane bobbing left and right as she looked for something. Probably a sign or landmark. No different than trying to look for the give-away of a coming strike. “Ah, we’re here.” Star marked a soft point in her favor. She called Aurora right, too bad it didn’t count for a point in her actual favor. But that wasn’t important, not in the immediate sense. Now she needed to sum up the ring the pegasus had brought her to. It was a restaurant, as Aurora had so clearly pointed out all places that served food were, but clearly not a dine-and-dash sort of diner. Wasn’t upscale, not by the way the ponies walking in and out dressed, but was far from a casual sit in either. There was a patio with that white fencing Star never really understood. No roof to guard against the rain and no plant life to make it seem like a garden. Just some funny looking architecture. The actual place itself looked really nice. A lot of windows that were all curtained, guarded by those same white fencing things. Short place though, one floor, which was kinda rare in the city. It was very pretty though, more brightly colored than the rest of the buildings. But again, not in an overly fancy way. A lot of white, some bright oranges and reds, but no frilly pinks, purples, or other colors Starfall knew the upper class called ‘royal’. Guess it was good so far, at least it was the kind of middle ground the unicorn was looking for. Her eyes scanned the name of the place, painted across the top of the place. “The Apple Orchard?” Star spoke the name aloud, not recognizing it. Wasn’t odd, not with how large Canterlot was, but still felt weird finding something new in a place she had lived in all her life. She did feel Aurora lean against her, nodding at unicorn’s questioning tone. “Yes, it’s a nice place I like to eat when I’m waiting for samples to finish in the lab.” Well that answered a question Star didn’t ask. Over or under on those details. “It was founded over a hundred years ago, run by the same family ever since. It’s given them an opportunity to refine their family recipes, kept secret because they grow all their own produce.” “Sounds like you really know the place.” That was a good thing, knowing the places you liked to go to. Starfall knew the gym, her house, and most of the bars around her place in, out, and well enough to recognize them with swimming vision. What that told her fighting instincts was that Aurora was bringing her to what was near equivalent to her home turf. Smart move. “Oh yes, I’ve been good friends with the family since I was a foal!” Starfall didn’t need to look at her to know that the pegasus was beaming. “They used to insist on making me breakfast, lunch, and dinner, doing an excellent job at balancing out the carb ratios of their sweet apples with fatty foods and legumes.” Oh those details. No wonder she was a doctor. Any more thoughts Star had were pushed aside as she felt the pegasus pull at her arm again. Still went about as fast as a rock on a flat surface, but there was enough force to tell the unicorn she should start moving. And she did, knowing that stalling in a match scored poorly. Didn’t take long for them to get inside, the entrance a simple pair of double doors, painted the same bright orange that covered majority of the place. Inside, however, she saw that eating here would be a bit more of a challenge. It did look nice, really nice. Nice enough that she wouldn’t have been surprised to see a crew of paparazzi trailing a local celeb through the place. But even knowing that, she could still see a fair number of ponies wearing clothes she’d expect taxi cab drivers to wear. Oh yeah, there were a few ponies wearing collared shirts and horribly uncomfortable dresses, those stupid wastes of cloth, but there didn’t seem to be any real skewing one way or the other. No, the problem she noticed was simply how full the place was. Cause honestly, it was packed, packed like what Star wanted a stadium to be when she started to really tally her wins in the ring. The kind of packed that would have the announcer proudly declare a match sold-out to a crowd of screaming prepubescent foals. The great kind of packed. How were they supposed to eat in here? “Hello Honey-crisp.” Apparently Aurora was already working on that. She saw the blue mare talking to a hostess behind the podium that sat in most restraints. Said hostess was a mare, colored orange with a hay blonde mane, and dressed in a light green suit. Star didn’t care anything for fashion, like at all, but she knew the mare was wearing the outfit cause it suit her and the restaurant. Had to keep with the theme of the place and all that. “Aurora?” The aqua pegasus grinned at the orange hostess. The other mare only lifted a hand to her mouth, daintily at that. “I hadn’t received word that you were coming to visit us tonight. Did one of our new hires mislabel your request?” “Oh no, of course not,” Aurora returned easily to her friend’s worry. “I was merely surprised by a request to eat out tonight, and we concluded that your establishment would suit our needs best. Do you have seat available for us? I’m sorry to be specific with an already rare request, but a table away from frequent traffic would be best.” The orange mare looked back down at the podium she stood behind instead of speaking in return. Her emerald eyes scanned the sheet beneath her carefully, no doubt looking up a possible table for the pair. Star looked back out at the restaurant. The only table or two she could see that were open were meant for more than just a pair of ponies. Probably not good for a date. At all. “Ah, we have a back room available for two. A small extra stipend will be required, but other than that it is free.” A what room? Star felt her mane whip with the speed her head spun. She could tell her mouth was as open as her eyes were wide. Back rooms were where parties happened, or maybe where the parties really started. What was Aurora planning with this? Was it to get Star riled, make her stumble in the fight? If it is, she was doing a damn good job. “We’ll take it!” Aurora cheered, taking out and placing a choice amount of golden bits on the podium. The hostess, Honey-crisp as she was called, pocketed the coins. “We’ll also have a plate of your Apple Fritters, but only if you make them like we used to as foals.” Star watched as a surprisingly shy grin grew across the orange mare’s features. “We would not even dream of making them any other way for you, Aurora. The Apple Family always treats their friends.” The two giggled, probably at a joke Star didn’t get. Not uncommon. The hostess did grab a pair of menus and began to walk through the sea of tables. Aurora followed, Star not far behind. They maneuvered through the sea of chairs and tables, unavoidably hearing the occasional snippet of conversation from the ponies around them. Aurora seemed determined to apologize to every mare, stallion, and foal she passed, like her being there was untimed or something. Star, herself, found it easier to just maneuver around them like she would the training sticks at the gym. Can’t block them, gotta avoid them, getting ready for reversals. It didn’t take long for them to reach a wall on the far side of the restaurant, a wall lined with doors that were all framed by bright green drapes. The orange and green did go together, but it was disturbingly weird seeing backrooms in a place like this. Half of Star expected to walk in and see booze on the table with a slim-dressed mare waiting for them. Those were her instincts. Her more logical half, taught and trained by Celestia outside of the ring, told her to think before she acted. Star’s thoughts right now, as Honey-Crisp opened the door, were telling her that there was no way a nervous mare like Aurora was walking into any room like that. What lay beyond the door was far off from what Starfall’s instincts told her. They were in the back room now, surprisingly well-lit given the other kind of rooms Star had found herself in. No dark corners, no oversized table, and there was a window placed just beside their table. Didn’t show much other than a semi-barren street outside, but you would never see something like that in the unicorn’s usual bars. Star looked to Aurora, the pegasus standing beside her own seat. Instinct took over unicorn, as she so often let it. “Hey, let me get that.” Without another word she pulled the chair back for the doctor. It earned only a singular moment of surprise, but was quickly replaced with the pegasus gratefully taking the seat, her wings pulling closer to her back. When she was down, Star pushed the chair forward, easily given the light weight of the doctor. That was a compliment for most mares, if she could remember that right. “You are very polite. That’s good.” That was good, but that wasn’t Aurora talking. Star turned her head to see the hostess still standing in the room, eyeing the fighter with a subtle grin. It was the kind of grin Star got from the odd sponsor or interviewer, the ones that they knew something special and were looking to use it. The kind of ponies that were planning something before you even passed the ropes of the ring. “I would hate to see the mare that was able woo Aurora into a night alone to be thinking more of what comes after the meal.” Did this just turn into a two on one match? They were in a backroom of the restaurant, alone, likely out of sound as well as sight, on the home turf of the earth pony’s family, which happened to be old friends of Aurora’s. Sounded like that was what it was going to be. Star resisted the urge to kick herself for missing it. “Oh Crisp, don’t tease Star,” Aurora, of all mares, spoke up. “I appreciate the help, but Star and I are simply having a nice evening together.” Well that was true. “We are hoping to generate a quality level of conversation that allots for a significant increase for our understanding in one another, hopefully allowing us to generate a more long-term friendship.” That was, without a doubt, so far off from what Star was thinking that it didn’t even qualify as a feint. That was more like some drunk’s attempt to recite MMA pledge then fake out a mare. It didn’t look like Honey-Crisp believed Aurora any more than Star did. The fighter watched the orange hostess turn eyes from the blue pegasus to the lavender unicorn, one eyebrow cocked noticeably higher than the other. The grin that slowly grew across her lips was as unnerving as the look itself. “Well then, I won’t interrupt your evening any more than I have to.” What did that mean? “I’ll be right back with those Apple Fritters and some water. Please let me know if you need anything else.” Then, with a simple and clearly practiced bow, the orange mare left the room. That left Starfall alone with Aurora, enclosed in a backroom that was more enclosed than any other ring she had stood in. There were walls instead of ropes, a table to replace boxing gloves, and a hostess in place of a referee. It took her this long to realize just how out of her element she was. That wasn’t good at all. But she couldn’t show that. Not even a hint. Signs of weakness were the quickest way to give another pony a sense of confidence. Fear may have been the mind-killer, but confidence was the life-giver. A fighter with confidence was sometimes harder to fight than a well-trained one. She couldn’t let the pegasus see any of her unease. So, in a move she had been taught by her parents, Starfall gently pulled out her chair and sat down. She fought the urge bend over her plate, hunch over the table like she would at her home. This was a meal with another pony, one she had literally only met a few hours ago. Manners were very important. Even Celestia had told her as much. “Alright,” Aurora let out, adjusting herself in her seat. She coughed into her hand, clearing her throat for something. Star resisted the urge to crack her knuckles. “So, um… where do start?” In her head, Starfall heard a bell ring. Match start.