Sketchy Salad Symphony

by Sketchy Sounds

4th Movement

Sketchy woke to the soft warmth of sunlight poking through the blinds of his bedroom window. Judging by the angle of the light, it was probably getting close to midday. He stretched, yawned, and flopped out of bed, shaking off the tiredness. He squinted slightly as he pulled open the blinds, then opened the large French window out to the small turret balcony and stepped outside to take in a deep breath of fresh air.

“Ahhhh...” he breathed out, the morning air invigorating him. He turned and headed down the stairs in order to see to the task of feeding himself. A glance at the bedside clock on the way informed him it was about 11:30 in the morning. A decent night’s sleep then, considering he’d retired for bed last night at some hour around 4am.

As he was tucking into a hearty breakfast of porridge, a knock came at his door. He blinked and looked up, figuring that it was probably the mail. He was slightly and pleasantly surprised, therefore, to find his rosy-coated unicorn friend standing on the other side of the door when he opened it.

“Sally!” he said happily. “What a lovely surprise, come on in!”

Salad obliged him, a smile on her face. “Thankin’ yuh kindly, Sketchy.” she said, trotting in. “Did Ah interrupt yer breakfast or somethin’?” she asked, noting the half-finished bowl of porridge. Sketchy nodded, returning to the table and stuffing his nose back into it.

“It’s cool though.” he said, his mouth half-full of the oat-filled food.

“Heh heh. So Ah see.” Salad replied, giggling a bit. “Uh, anyways. Ah came here ta ask yuh somethin’. Do yuh reckon you’ll be free this evenin’?”

Sketchy looked up from his breakfast. “Should be, yeah. Why, what’s up?”

“Ah, nuthin’ much, sugar-cube. Ah just figured, maybe you’d like to swing by mah place for dinner. Yuh know, just spend some time chatterin’ over a good meal. Sound good to ya?”

Sketchy grinned. “Sounds great! I’ll be there, you can count on it.”

“Okey dokey then, hon. Stop on by about seven in the evenin’, alright?”

“Sure thing. It’ll be fairly dead by then, won’t it?”

“Ah reckon so. Ain’t so many folks after a light snack at that time a’ day.”

“Cool.” he replied, swallowing the last of his breakfast. “Should give us space to blether then. I take it you’ve an otherwise busy day ahead, right?”

“Eeyup! Ah only came round tuh invite you over fer later. I’ll need to be gettin’ back over there and helpin’ out for another coupla hours.”

“Alrighty. Well I’ll see you then, Sally. I’ll be looking forward to it!”

“Me too, hon, me too.” Salad replied. But not fer the reasons yer thinkin’! she thought to herself, hiding a delighted grin as she turned and headed for the door. “Ah’ll see yuh later, Sketchy!” she called, having pulled open the door. As for her friend, he’d now headed into the wash room. He poked his head out, nodding.

“Later, Sal!”

---

Some time after she’d left, Sketchy headed on his way out of his apartment. It was a pleasantly warm day in Canterlot today, with a cool breeze whispering through the streets. He had a satchel slung across his back, carrying some of his essential tools of the trade: a sketch pad, a pencil, an eraser, a sharpener for said pencil and a small selection of coloured pens and pencils. His destination was the local park, across the other side of town. It was a rich source of subject matter for an artist, and one could never tell when the unexpected would occur; hence it made for an attractive prospect for someone like himself.

Heading into the park, he found himself a relatively secluded spot under the shade of a large tree to recline in and ply his trade. There were plenty of other ponies out enjoying the weather this Saturday afternoon, as the summer sun cast its welcoming warm glow on them. He smiled to himself as he pulled his pad from its bag, along with his pencil and other materials, and set to looking through the assorted figures for something to catch his eye. It didn’t take long for him to notice something interesting, as he cast his eyes upward.

Lying somewhat lazily on a small cloud overhead, he spotted something coloured a deep, dark black. He could tell right away that it was a pegasus, though he’d not seen this particular one around town before - not that this was a surprise; there were plenty of ponies he wasn’t acquainted with. He focused his gaze on the cloud, starting to sketch away on his pad. His subject remained fairly still, just lying there and soaking up the warm sunlight. He was rather amused by how laid-back this particular pegasus was - obviously he wasn’t worried about falling off his cloud or, as far as Sketchy could tell from down here, anything else for that matter. That was somewhat useful to the artist, as it meant that his subject didn’t bother to move much if at all as his likeness was rendered.

He continued to sketch away at his pad, the image gradually taking shape on the paper before him. Drawing without magic to aid you was no mean feat - most of the better known artists in Equestria were unicorns, a fact that came as a result of their natural talent to wield objects using their magic. For those who lacked such a natural gift, it became a much harder task to even pick up and use a pencil competently - let alone draw something with it. Nevertheless, Sketchy had found an affinity from an early age for creativity; a fact his parents could well relate, having had to discourage the budding young artist from using the papered walls of the family home as his canvas. They soon learned that the boisterous young pony was happiest if he was either making a racket with an improvised instrument or making a mess of the walls with pencils and crayons; therefore it had been of little surprise to their neighbours when a young Sketchy Sounds had found himself in possession of lots of paper to draw on and, as the years went by, a growing number of musical instruments. Even after his parents had separated and he’d struck out on his own, he’d continued to add to said collection.

That was what had made up the bulk of the things that had been in his cart upon his arrival back in Canterlot that fateful night - instruments of assorted shapes, sizes and sounds. His collection now resided safely in his apartment, freely available to him for everyday use. Music was one of the few anchors in his life; something which he could always rely on to help ease his mind in times of distress, and something to which he could go to release his emotions when required.

Drawing was another, and he was rather enjoying rendering the likeness of the care-free black pegasus as the latter rested on the cloud above. His drawing now more or less complete (at least as far as the basic sketch was concerned), he decided it only fair to thank his unwitting model. Thus, he tucked away his assorted equipment in the satchel, slung it back over his shoulders, and wandered over towards the cloud.

“Excuse me!” he called up to the snoozing pegasus. Other than a brief twitch of an ear, this gleaned no response. Hardly surprising - he’d certainly seemed the type to not be woken easily. Again Sketchy called, louder this time. “Hello up there!”

After a brief pause, his gaze was met with a puzzled and slightly timid-looking black-coated face looking back down over the edge of the cloud. A pair of dark brown eyes under a black mane with a tinge of purple running through it regarded him curiously.

“Um... hi?” the owner of said eyes and mane ventured, his voice sounding slightly unsure of himself. He then fell silent, apparently either having nothing more to add, or not knowing how to articulate it. Sketchy began to wonder whether saying hello was such a good idea, but he pressed on regardless.

“Hey! So ah, I just wanted to thank you for something.”

“...are you sure you have the right guy? I... that is... I don’t think I’ve done anything recently to be thanked for...” the black pegasus replied haltingly.

“Well you have. By, uhm, not doing anything for the past hour or so.” Sketchy replied. “See, I come down here to draw stuff sometimes, and it’s difficult to find a life drawing subject willing to sit still for so long. So... well, I wanted to thank you for doing so.”

“Uh... you’re welcome... I guess...?” the pegasus replied, glancing around a bit.

“So... what’s your name, dude?” Sketchy asked. “Mine’s Sketchy, by the way. Sketchy Sounds.”

The black pegasus eyed him carefully for a few moments. “It's... it’s Blacklight...” he replied.

Well, I can kinda see how he got the name... Sketchy thought to himself.

“So, uh... you drew me?” the pegasus asked, a note of curiosity in his voice. He peeked a little further over the edge of the cloud. “Could I... I mean, if it’s not too much bother... maybe...” he said, trailing off.

“...take a look?” Sketchy offered. “Sure!” he grinned, fishing out the sketchpad from his bag. The black pegasus hesitantly fluttered down from his perch as the larger earth pony flicked through the pages. Sketchy hadn’t really paid attention to it before, but Blacklight was, like most ponies, considerably smaller of stature than himself. Of course, that was more or less to be expected of a pegasus anyway as they typically didn’t tend to grow as large as their earthbound relatives. It was probably something to do with mobility that prevented that - a heavy pegasus would have trouble staying aloft, after all. Blacklight also had apparently not been aware of the difference in size, as he looked up at the large earth pony with a slightly intimidated expression. Sketchy in turn tried to look as non-threatening as possible as he showed the page with Blacklight’s likeness on it to him.

“Oh... hey. That’s not bad, actually...” the pegasus said, peering at the page. His expression lost some of its intimidation, being replaced instead with a look of interest.

“Thanks!” Sketchy replied, pleased to see his art appreciated.

“And... you drew all this? With a pencil in your mouth...?” the pegasus continued, looking up at the artist with an air of respect in his tone. “That’s... that’s pretty cool.”

“Pretty cool, but also pretty difficult. Took years of practice.” Sketchy replied, stowing away the pad once more. “But I’ve been doing it since I was just a little colt, so I’ve gotten pretty good.”

“Yeah, I can see.” nodded Blacklight, before shifting uncomfortably. He looked like something was on his mind, and he really wanted to mention it, but he couldn’t bring himself to say it. “...uhm... do you... no, never mind...” he mumbled. Sketchy cocked his head slightly.

“Do I...?” he repeated.

“Uhm... ah... well...” mumbled Blacklight some more, averting his gaze. He then looked back at the taller earth pony. “Have you, uhm... lived in Canterlot a long time? I know it’s a weird question...” he said.

“Well, most of my life. Why do you ask? You new in town?”

“Uhm. Yes. I’ve only been here a few days or so.”

“Well, Canterlot’s a big place, but don’t let it get to you. It’s easy enough to get around once you get your head round it - specially for a guy with wings.” Sketchy replied with a smile.

“Yeah, that’s true I guess.” Blacklight replied, mirroring the expression.

“So, what brings you to the capital, anyway? If you don’t mind my asking.”

That question caused the black pegasus to freeze up slightly and look around nervously for a moment.

“Can you keep a secret?”

“Well, sure.”

“Well... OK, so uhm... actually I’m, well... looking for somepony. And I think maybe, possibly... I might find them here in Canterlot. Maybe...”

“Oh?” asked Sketchy, intrigued by this tale. “Well... I’d like to say maybe I can help you out, but I can honestly say I could count the number of ponies I know really well around this town on my hooves--well, the ones I’m properly acquainted and friends with, anyway.”

“...oh.” Blacklight said, looking a little crestfallen. “Well... thanks anyway. I guess I’ll just have to keep my eyes open.”

Sketchy nodded at that. “I’m sure you’ll find your friend if you search hard enough. Canterlot’s a big place, but there are only so many ponies... what kinda pony are they anyway?”

“Huh? Oh uhm... it’s another pegasus I’m searching for...”

“Aha? Well that narrows it down a little. There’re only so many places the pegasi tend to hang out, far as I know.”

“Ah? What kinda places?” Blacklight asked hopefully.

“Well, the clouds, obviously... uhm, and there’re also a few residential blocks designed with them in mind. If you take a spin around town you’ll soon pick up on where they’re all hanging out.”

The black pegasus nodded, looking a trifle happier than he had before. “Great! I’ll be sure to do so, then.” he said, spreading his wings. “Where would be a good place to start?”

“Well... probably over the north-west end of town, off the top of my head.”

“Thanks! I’ll go take a look now, then!” the pegasus replied, leaping into the air and hovering a few feet overhead. “Thanks for the tip, Sketchy!” he added, promptly zipping off before the earth pony could add anything more.

“Huh.” Sketchy mused to himself. “He seemed pretty elated about that... I wonder what that was about?” He thought little of it though, as he noticed the day was wearing on toward evening. He would have to head home, and then down to Graze.

---

It was about an hour later, therefore, that he strode into the little sandwich shop. As predicted, the place was practically empty, save for one or two customers at a table here and there. One table towards the back, however, had been cordoned off with a rope stand and a “reserved” notice. A brief glance from that to the unicorn tending the counter, followed by a brief smile and a nod from the latter, confirmed his suspicions that it was himself and the unicorn that the table was reserved for. He happily strode over and made himself comfortable at the table.

A little while later, once the other customers had left, Salad came over and moved the cordon, plonking herself down on the bench seat opposite her friend. She smiled over at him warmly.

“Hey there Sketchy. Nice tuh see ya.” she said in her ordinary relaxed tones.

“You too, Sally.” he replied with a similar smile. “How’s your day been, lass?”

“Ah, fairly ord’nary. Nothin’ too special goin’ on, just the same ol’ same ol’. You?”

“Fairly quiet, just as I like it. I spent the afternoon down in the park drawing. I saw this black pegasus up on a cloud down there and sketched him out. Seemed like a nice guy, though a bit shy and retiring from what I saw.”

“Mmhmm?” his friend replied with a nod of her head. He noticed her glance toward the door briefly, and then the clock, but said nothing of it. “Sounds like yuh had a fairly ord’nary day, at that. ‘s always nice tuh meet new folks though.” she said. “Oh! Can Ah get yuh somethin’ tuh eat?” she added, remembering her manners.

“Sure thing, Sal... were you planning on throwing together some kinda full meal for us? I don’t wanna spoil my appetite if you are.”

“Ah was, hon. Just a light bite fer now, then?” she smiled, rising from the bench and heading toward the kitchen.

“Yeah. Nothing fancy. Just enough to take the edge off... uhm, but, when were you planning to start on it anyway? Are you expecting any more guests for dinner?”

Salad paused briefly en route to the kitchen, and looked back round at her friend with a coy smile. “Maybe Ah am, hon, maybe Ah am. Why don’tcha just sit tight an’ wait? Ah’m fairly sure ma other guest oughta be here soon.” she grinned.

Sketchy cocked his head slightly in bemusement at his friend’s behaviour, but shrugged it off with a smile. “Well alright, Sally. Any friend of yours is a friend of mine, it’ll be nice to meet a new face.”

“Perfect! Yuh can show her to the table when she arrives then, Ah’ll be right back.” she replied, as she disappeared into the kitchen.

Sketchy sat for a while at the table, idly listening to the clatter of Salad moving about and sorting out dishes. Presently, however, he heard the soft tinkle of the shop door’s bell. He took a breath, got up from the bench seat, and trotted out from the table.

“Hi!” he began. “You must be Sally’s... friend...” he trailed off, his eyes going wide and his jaw hanging open as he laid eyes upon who it was who had just walked in to the shop.

Stood in the doorway, looking right back at him with searching violet eyes, was Canterlot’s premier strings player and well-known composer, Octavia. There was no mistaking it was her - her long ebony mane hung straight and perfect around her features, her tail mirroring its well-groomed state. The stone grey hue of her coat was interrupted only by the pinkish colour of the treble clef mark adorning her flank. She arched an eyebrow slightly at him.

“Ah... yes. I suppose you could say that.” she replied. “...and, you would be Salad’s friend also, I assume?”

“...yes! Right! Yes! That’s me!” he replied, battling to regain his composure. He shook his head slightly and cleared his throat. “I’m, uhm... Sketchy. Sketchy Sounds.” he added in what he hoped didn’t sound too much like the tones of someone who couldn’t quite believe what was transpiring.

“Octavia.” replied the musician, still holding his gaze. “Although, I imagine you knew that already.” she added, a small smile playing around her mouth. Sketchy’s own expression slowly formed into a grin.

“What gave it away?” he asked a little sheepishly. Octavia’s smile broadened at that, and he could swear he heard what sounded like a brief giggle emanating from her. Thankfully, Salad chose this moment to return, her manner all smiles as she emerged from behind the counter.

“Ah, Octavia!” she said, her practiced formal tones returning to the fore. “How lovely to see you. Come, I’ve a table set aside for us all over here.” she said, leading over towards said table. Both the earth ponies followed her, thankful for the interruption. Sketchy set himself back down on the same bench he had occupied before, the two mares occupying the other across from him.

“Can I get you something as an appetiser?” Salad asked of her musician guest. “I’ve already made something for Sketchy.”

“I would appreciate that, thank you.” Octavia replied politely, her manner as professional as ever - although, Sketchy noted, there was nevertheless a warm undertone to it. That, at least, made him feel a bit more at-ease. He’d always considered the classical musician to be somewhat aloof, and likely somewhat reserved. However, sitting down with her like this, he began to think that perhaps he may have been hasty in his assumptions. For one thing, she hadn’t simply turned and walked straight back out when he’d made an embarrassing spectacle of himself a few moments ago, and for another—

“Pardon me... Sketchy?” Octavia’s smooth tones cut through his internal musings with ease. “Are you alright? You seem to be a million miles away.”

He blinked and shook his head, re-focusing his attention properly back on Octavia. He’d apparently drifted off into thought whilst she’d been letting Salad know what she’d like. His unicorn friend was nowhere to be seen, but more clattering from the kitchen gave away where she was.

“Ah! Sorry!” he apologised quickly. “Uhm, I’m fine, sorry. Just lost in thought.”

“I know that feeling.” Octavia replied, nodding slightly. A smile spread across her face. “Too often I find myself caught up in my own thoughts – especially of late.”

“Ah?”

Octavia nodded, sighing in a slightly exhausted fashion. “Yes. I have a very big concert coming up soon. A very big and important concert... Of late, it seems to be the only thing occupying my mind.”

“Sounds pretty rough.” Sketchy replied, his tone showing a hint of concern. Despite being a tad star-struck by meeting this one musician whom it was no secret he’d idolised and certainly had a crush on, he could still see and hear the stress in her manner. He smiled, making an attempt at reassuring her.

“I’m sure everything will be fine though – pardon me if I sound like a typical fan, but you’re an excellent musician.”

Her smile broadened a little at that as she looked back at him contemplatively. “Not wanting to sound like an egotist, but yes, I am aware of my own ability. In truth, it is not my performance I am worried about – although that is not entirely true; seeing as a lot of the work to be performed is of my own composition, then in essence that is still my performance, so to speak.”

“Right, I see.” Sketchy nodded. “You’re worried that it’ll be let down by one of the other performers.”

“A little... but, that is something somewhat beyond my control.”

At that point Salad returned, floating a tray in front of her with two side plates on it. Both plates had rolls on them with an assortment of fillings.

“Here y’are, folks!” she announced happily. Perhaps it was because the shop was empty save for themselves, and that she was around her closest friend, but she had shifted to her more relaxed mode of speech. The look of surprise on Octavia’s face, Sketchy had to admit, was quite priceless.

“My dear... whatever happened to your voice?” she questioned, her tone a mix of surprise and delight.

“Ma voice? Ah—oh, er, right. Uh, this here’s how Ah usually talk, Octavia. Well uh, when Ah’m not behind the counter runnin’ the shop that is.” Salad replied, a slight blush turning her cheeks a deeper rosy hue. “Ah’m sorry.”

“Goodness me dear, do not apologise!” Octavia proclaimed, a large grin crossing her face. “Your accent is simply delightful. It gets somewhat tiresome hearing those around you talking down their noses all the time. Your manner of speech is a refreshing change.”

Salad smiled back in return at that, her eyes lighting up with pride. “Well then!” she replied, “Ah’ll keep that in mind, hon. Now then, Ah’ve gotten dinner under way back there, so Ah’ve got a little time to witter on with the two of yuh. Whut were you on about just before Ah came on back through?”

“Octavia has a big concert coming up.” Sketchy stated simply.

“Yes, and I am somewhat... worried about it.” the musician nodded. “I expect a lot of it is just pre-concert jitters, though. There is always a degree of tension and worry before any big performance.” It is just that this event was last celebrated roughly a thousand years or so ago. she mentally added.

“Well, Ah’m glad you found yerself some time to come down here and have dinner with us anyways.” Salad replied happily as she sat back down on the bench. The stone grey pony nodded at that, a lighter tone returning to her voice.

“I am glad too.” she agreed. “It is a relief to be able to take some time out from the worries... oh but listen to me going on about it even now. I came here to take my mind off of that, and I am still focusing on it. I am sorry.” she said, giving her two hosts an apologetic look.

“Let’s talk about something else, then.” Sketchy said simply, a cheerful expression adorning his face. “Sally and I both know each other pretty well, but neither of us know much about you besides what we’ve had second-hoof. And same goes for us in regards to yourself. What’d you like to know?”

Octavia smiled at that, a thankful look in her eyes. She glanced at the unicorn beside her. “Well first of all... madam, no offence is meant, but where did you get that delightful accent of yours? You certainly cannot have picked it up from around here, that much is certain.”

“Hm? Oh, uh... have yuh ever met that Applejack gal? She and I hail from the same place, though uh, not from the same neighbourhood by a long stretch.” Salad replied. “A’ course, mah folks came here tuh Canterlot when Ah was just a little filly, still. So that’s why it is I ain’t got a problem goin’ back an’ forth between soundin’ like a city gal or a reg’lar ol’ country pony.” she explained.

“Applejack...?” Octavia replied thoughtfully. The name seemed to ring a faint bell. “...of the Apple family, perchance? Oh! Wait...” her mind went back a bit, to the events of the Grand Galloping Gala, and the fiasco that had ensued. She shuddered internally at the unpleasant recollection of a hyperactive pink pony toppling her and her prized instrument over. “Yes, I know of her. And her friends...” she said, hoping that the unpleasant memory wasn’t too evident in her tone. She managed a smile once more though, as she continued. “That is lovely though. I am sure your family do quite well here. Certainly it seems to be the case, if this establishment is any indication – and I will say once more, your accent is a delight, madam.”

Salad grinned at that. “Thank yuh kindly, Octavia.”

“You are most welcome.” she replied, turning her attention to the larger earth pony opposite her. Sketchy felt his heart skip a beat as he found her violet eyes meeting the gaze of his own ocean green ones. “I am interested to know what it is you do.” she said. “Salad tells me you are a musician also. What would you say is your forte?”

Sketchy relaxed a bit at that, as that was certainly an easy enough thing to talk about. “Well, just about anything. Whatever I can get my hooves on. Strings, wind, brass; you name it and I can probably play something from it. I... well, I just love making music, it’s as simple as that.” he smiled. “I couldn’t really name a favourite instrument, though... that’d be like asking me to name a favourite limb.” he chuckled.

A knowing smile and a nod from Octavia indicated she knew the feeling. “That, I can certainly understand.” she replied, her tone sounding more at-ease. “Granted, the cello is what I was raised with, but I find myself drawn to instruments of all kinds.”

Sketchy grinned. “I know, right? It’s like taking a foal into a candy shop and saying they can only have one kind. Why try out only one flavour? Same goes for music.”

His fellow musician nodded her head in agreement. “Exactly... also, if you will pardon my saying, I could not help but notice your mark, when I came in. The tenor clef—or is it an alto for you? Anyway—that part I understand. I take it though that the other part signifies some other skill?”

“Right. I don’t just play instruments, I also dabble in the other arts as well. Uh, well, some of them. Art and literature primarily. I draw more than I write though.”

“Enough for it to be shown on your flank.” Octavia replied with a smile. She glanced over at Salad. “Is he a good artist?”

“Yer askin’ me?” the unicorn giggled. “Gosh hon, I ain’t no critic or nothin’, but Ah’d say he does a good job of what he does.” she replied, only to be interrupted as the alarm bell of a ringing timer sounded from the kitchen. “Oops! Ah’d better hustle back in there, ‘fore somethin’ boils or burns!” she exclaimed, hastily getting up from the bench and clattering off in the direction of the noise.

Sketchy took the opportunity to take a bite of his roll, and then upon realising how hungry he actually was, proceeded to devour the rest of it. Upon noticing him doing so, Octavia picked up her own snack and started chomping on it, although with a higher degree of restraint than Sketchy had displayed.

She’s very prim and proper. Sketchy mused to himself. Just as I’d thought.

With that said, he was glad to see that in spite of her fame, the cellist was nonetheless quite down-to-earth. She had no objection to sitting here chatting away with him and Salad, even going so far as to express a delight in his friend’s rustic manner. That thought made him rather happy - it made her less of a mysterious and refined, distant pony, and more of a reality in his mind. Not that she wasn’t a reality anyway - after all, here she was sitting at the table and enjoying a snack with him.

She finished her appetiser and glanced up at him with a brief, questioning smile. He became consciously aware of the fact he’d just sat there and watched her eat, without any explanation.

“Uh... uhm.” he said. “Sorry, didn’t want to talk when you had your mouth full.”

“Ah.” she nodded. She glanced briefly towards the kitchen, and then back at the earth pony opposite her. “Do you know what is for dinner?” she questioned.

“Can’t say that I do. Sally usually just makes whatever she feels like, and I usually eat it.” he grinned. That elicited a small giggle from Octavia, who then nodded slightly.

“I see. That sounds like a fairly steady agreement.” she said with a slight twinkle in her eye.

“You won’t hear me complaining!” Sketchy agreed with a big grin. The apprehension was definitely fading the more he spoke with her. As for Octavia herself...

You see? This is not so bad. her mind told her. This is fun. Relaxing. What normal ponies do. She smiled to herself. And these two are both friendly enough. Her internal musings were cut through by Salad’s arrival back at the table, this time floating plates, cutlery and a large pot in front of her. She deposited all of these objects on the table. The pot smelled of something delightful.

“My dear, what have you cooked up for us?” Octavia asked of the unicorn. “It smells wonderful!”

“Well hon, Ah wasn’t sure whut y’all’d like, so I figured Ah’d just go fer mah good ol’ salad stew. There’s all sortsa good stuff in there - oh, and seein’ as yer our guest t’night, lemme serve yuh first!” she said cheerfully, carefully ladling out a helping of the vegetable-laden goodness onto her plate. “That enough fer yuh?” she smiled. Octavia nodded politely.

“I think that should be fine, for now.” she replied with a smile. Most certainly a far cry from some of the higher class establishments. she mused to herself. The sorts of restaurants she was used to would be far more likely to simply give you maybe just enough to take the edge off your appetite and call it a full meal - and charge that much for it too.

“Okey-dokey, hon!” Salad smiled, putting a good-sized portion onto Sketchy’s plate. “Just say if yuh want seconds, Ah made a good big load of it!” she told the black maned cellist. She then saw to serving herself a portion and sat down at the table.

---

The conversation that ensued was kept fairly light; partially due to all three of them focusing mostly on eating, but also due to no-one wanting to ask anything too deep at this point - or rather, not so much not wanting to, as not feeling quite comfortable enough to yet. That went for all three of them: neither Sketchy nor Salad felt quite brave enough to risk touching any subject that could be too sensitive for Octavia, and Octavia in turn found herself not quite prepared to risk offending either of her hosts. Still, come the end of the evening...

“I believe I shall have to be on my way, regrettably.” she informed the two of them as she glanced at the clock. It was well past 10pm by this point, and the night sky outside was a sea of sparkling diamond points of light. Sketchy nodded, rising from his seat.

“I’ll probably have to be on my way, too.” he said. “It’s getting late, and I don’t wanna keep Sally up too long.” His unicorn friend smiled at that.

“Gosh hon, ya know I don’t mind. But yuh got a point, it’s gettin’ a mite late and I bet yuh got plans tomorrow.”

Sketchy chuckled a little at that. “Well to be honest, no, I don’t really. But I don’t wanna keep you, or your folks, up much longer.”

“Well, I ain’t about tuh argue hon.” she smiled. “Off yuh go then, both of yuh. Oh, uh, Octavia, Ah hope yuh ain’t gotta go too far?”

“No further than I have had to walk before.” the cellist replied with a small smile. “And besides, I rather enjoy walks in the moonlight. The night has become somewhat more... special, since Princess Luna resumed her duties.”

“True, it has.” Sketchy agreed. “I don’t think Princess Celestia ever quite managed to make as artful a work of it as her sister.” he said as he moved towards the door. He instinctively pulled it open and held it for Octavia, who glanced up at him with a smile and a brief “Thank you, sir.”

Salad had followed the two as they made their way outside, and she now stood in the doorway looking at them. “Well it’s been fun, you two. Ah’ll haveta organise somethin’ like this again sometime.“ she smiled. “You both have a safe journey now, ya hear?” she added, retreating back into the shop.

“We will, Sally.” Sketchy smiled, watching the door as it slowly closed. Inside, the unicorn could be seen heading back toward the table, horn already aglow for the task of cleaning up. He turned away from the window to start on his way up the street, but a light clearing of Octavia’s throat stopped him in his tracks. He turned his head to look back at her.

“Pardon the impropriety, but I heard you say you have no plans tomorrow, correct?” she asked.

“That’s right.” Sketchy nodded, now wondering where she was going with this.

“I... shall have some free time tomorrow, before I must rehearse.” the smaller pony said, looking at her hooves for a moment before raising her violet eyes to look into his own. “...so... would you perhaps like to meet up? I should like to hear you play a little, if that would be alright with you.”

It took Sketchy a great deal of restraint to not simply cry out loudly that heck yes, he would love to meet up with her again that soon. He silently hoped that his elation didn’t shine through too much as he spoke.

“I would be delighted! When and where?”

“There is a large park near the royal quarter, with a band-stand therein that I have a tendency to frequent.” she replied. “I tend to visit late in the morning, when there are fewer distractions. To be fair though, it is secluded enough that most avoid it unless there is a concert planned. Would you be able to make it there for, let me see... around half past ten tomorrow morning?”

For the chance to jam with you? Goodness me, I’d make it there for any hour you asked! he thought to himself. “Sounds good, I’ll be there!” he smiled.

Octavia’s features creased into a smile also. “Wonderful! I shall see you tomorrow, then.” she said, her tone light and happy.

“See you then!” Sketchy grinned.

Octavia nodded. “Until tomorrow. Good night.” she said, before turning and walking off down the street. Sketchy turned and started walking up, in the direction of his home.

I can’t believe this all just happened! he thought to himself as he walked. This has been the most awesome day ever... and tomorrow looks set to top it! His mind continued to whirl with excitement all the way home.

By comparison, Octavia’s mind was once more a storm of stress and worry over the irrepressibly advancing deadline making its slow and steady advance toward her. And yet, in spite of that...

Tonight... has been fun. she thought to herself, a smile still adorning her face as she headed inside her own house. It was quite the cosy home, her occupation and reputation having afforded her a pleasant cottage slightly removed from the bustle of the capital city. While it still fell within Canterlot’s boundaries, it was nevertheless somewhat out of the way and hence made for a pleasant, peaceful environment.

She made her way through to her bedroom, stopping en route to clean her teeth and fuss over her mane a little before flopping onto the large bed. It did not take her so long, after curling up under the covers, to drift off into a contented sleep as it had the previous night. She lazily thought to herself, as she felt her consciousness fade, that perhaps the pleasant social activity she’d had tonight was responsible.

Across town, another earth pony with a music-related cutie mark was also curling up to sleep. He, however, was having a little more difficulty settling down to rest. Eventually, however, he drifted off, the excitement of what tomorrow would bring still singing in his mind.

Comments

[Cyclone12]

Just a really damn enjoyable story to read. My one complaint is that you lay Salad's accent on really thick, to the point it makes me cringe slightly to read at times.

[Sketchy Sounds]

16944

Thanks! Apologies if you find her accent a bit difficult at times - it's difficult as someone who lives in the UK to find a decent source to compare it to for phonetics.

[Sketchy Sounds]

Just a brief update here to let you guys know that after a brief bout of writer's block, Symphony is once again trundling along at a steady pace. I should have more of it up soon.

[statoose]

As Cyclone said, just simply a really enjoyable story to read. :)

[Orange Afterglow]

I know this was posted a long time ago but I have only just started reading this yesterday and it is going to take me some time to catch up so I shall leave a little review here.

This story is so sweet! I was so intrigued by the 1st chapter you read at at "Story Time" at BUCK so I came looking. This is also the first piece of MLP fanfiction I have ever read and I am really enjoying it! I really like how you are branching out the story to follow portions of the lives of so many different characters! I thought it was going to be simply Salad and Sketchy the whole way through but I am pleasantly surprised. I really like Freeze Pop and I hope Blacklight appears again soon.

Now to read more!

[Jet Cannon]

You know, considering what you'd been saying about Shetland and the like, I thought Sally was possibly speaking with a Scottish accent, but apparently I was wrong!
Liking this a lot so far, good slice of life is always fun.

[Borg]

You see? This is not so bad. her mind told her. This is fun. Relaxing. What normal ponies do. She smiled to herself. And these two are both friendly enough.

Well, they need to lure you into a false sense of security somehow. Otherwise you wouldn't eat the drugged food they feed you, and then how would they kidnap you and drag you off to the cult headquarters to be a sacrifice to Discord in an unspeakable ritual without you making a ruckus and alerting the Guard?

I should like to hear you play a little, if that would be alright with you.

. . . It occurs to me that I can't remember the last time I heard the phrase "I should like" from anybody but myself. It's not a very common phrase these days, is it.