18. Seeya Las Pegasus
Dolly and I stumbled out of the casino and onto the strip. We’d been playing Crabapples again just to get free drinks. My winnings had been put away and at that point we were just gambling with the little bit of money Dolly had given me. She was up, too. I guess that is why they called her Dice.
“Where to now, filly?” Dolly asked, one ear flopped down and the other cocked up.
“I dunno. We could shee a show.”
“Oh, yeah. Like that one we saw last night?”
My cheeks burned and I lightly pushed her. “I don’t shink we’ll ever shee a show like that again.”
Dolly snorted and giggled. “They were so flexible…”
“Yesh!”
We wandered down the strip together slowly. It was kind of hard to walk in a straight line. We’d gotten a lot of free drinks. A lot a lot.
“Hey, beautiful…” Dolly said before turning away from me and trotting after a mare.
Good for her. I should totally diddle Diddle when we got back. It had been too long. Oh, I could diddle Soarin, too. There would have to be a lot of diddling.
“Excuse me, miss, you look young and adventurous. If you have a minute, I’d love to talk to you about our new cosmetic procedure!” a pony said to me from the door of a shop. He was brown or orange. Maybe brorange.
“What kinda prosheedure?” I asked.
“We call it the second cutie mark! You pick out some sort of symbol that is meaningful to you and we permanently apply it to your coat. A lot of the younger ponies are getting into it these days.”
A second cutie mark? “Can you really do that?” I asked before leaning against the storefront. “Will I get another talent?”
“Oh, no. It is cosmetic only. I want to be very clear about that.”
“Okay. Well I like stars. I’mmabe a royal guard, maybe I should put a star on my chest.”
“We can absolutely do that! Do you want to come in and look at the options? You don’t have any obligation.”
Stars were pretty. Hearts, too… but I liked stars better. “Lesh do it!”
“Great, come on in.”
He pushed the door open and I wandered inside. There were several chairs along one wall with ponies sitting in them while other ponies cleaned specific spots on their coats. There were was also a big stove right in the middle.
“The designs are on the wall there. See if anything strikes your fancy,” he said.
There were lots of things that struck my fancy! Pretty stars, pretty hearts, and some pretty hot mares in provocative poses. “Wow… that would look good on my chesh.” I set my hoof over the one of a mare with her rump facing out while looking over her shoulder.
“Oh, that one is very popular, but you came in for a star…”
“I can’t change my mind?”
“Oh you can… but this is permanent. Just like your cutie mark. Are you sure?”
I bobbed my head in a nod. “Yes! Hot mare on mah chesh now, please.”
He looked uncertain. “If you’re sure… why don’t you sleep on it?”
“Leaving tomorrow!” I trotted over to one of the chairs and scrambled up into it. “Ready!”
He shrugged. “Alright. Hey Minx, pretty mare on three wants a hot mare on her chest.”
“Coming right up!” A sugary voice called from somewhere.
I laid back and looked up at the ceiling. It was blue with little clouds. A light brown face popped into view over mine with gorgeous green eyes and a cute button nose. “Hi, I’m Minx. You want a hot mare on your chest?”
I wanted what? “How about a cute one?” I wiggled my eyebrows.
Minx giggled and shook her head. “Nooo, I mean for your second cutie mark. I have to confirm with you before we do it.”
“Hot mare, please.”
“Okie dokie.” She set her hoof on my chest and started brushing my coat down. It felt wonderful. “Going to get the spot clean and then numb you up just a little.”
I was pretty numb already from the alcohol and the soothing touch. “Wait… numb?”
“Well, yeah, silly! I can’t put this thing on while you can feel. That would be cruel!”
My ears flicked. “How do you put it on?”
She explained it. Rather, her pretty lips moved but I didn’t pay attention to the words. She was super cute. She should be on my chest. “Okie.”
Minx nodded and set a cool cloth to my chest. “Okay, this will dull the nerves.”
“Okie.”
Minx went about rubbing my chest again but it didn’t register. “Are you feeling that?”
“No… sucks…”
“Oh, you are the charmer. Looks like you’re set. Here we go!”
My head fell back against the chair and I replied, “Okie.”
Then just like that, somepony grabbed my hoof and pulled me off the chair. “No! No, no no!” Dolly said. “Nope! Nooo. Nope! Not on my filly.”
“Aww, I just wanted a hot mare on my chest!”
Dolly covered my mouth with a hoof. “No, sweetie. I mean… yes… but no. This isn’t like that.” She set some bits down. “Sorry for the trouble! See you later!” The she drug me out into the street and back towards our hotel.
I pouted. “She was going to get on my chest.”
Dolly laughed. “No… she was going to brand your chest for life.”
“Wha?” The world spun as I whipped my head to look at her.
“They brand you! Like burn an image into your coat. You’re lucky my tail twitched.”
“Huh?”
“Oh, nevermind. Come on, let’s get back to the room.”
☼
My eyes slowly fluttered open. There was a moment of confusion before I realized I was staring at the ceiling of the swank suite Dolly had lined up. There was also a weight on my chest.
An adorable brown pegasus mare was snuggled up under my chin. What had I been up to last night? I looped my hooves around her and hugged. Who cares. I hope whatever we did she’d be up for a second round before checking out!
I nuzzled between her ears and she let out the sweetest little yawn before looking up and opening her eyes. Big, beautiful, green eyes. I grinned and said, “Hi.”
Her cheeks flushed. “Hi.”
Now for the awkward part before the fun. “So, I was really drunk last night. Did I even give you my name?”
She giggled and nuzzled my chest. “No, but your friend Dolly gave it to me. You’re Sunny. Do you remember who I am?”
I didn’t. I’d never seen her before in my life. I’d remember a cute little mare like her! In fact, I’d keep her around. “Uh…”
She smiled brightly and giggled more. Then she rubbed my chest with a hoof, sending tingles all over my body.
I blinked. “Minx?”
“Yup, you said you wanted a mare on your chest. So…”
I felt my cheeks flush before I started laughing. “Oh, goodness. Wait… didn’t Dolly pull me out of there?”
“She did, but I chased you two down.”
“Why?”
“To apologize! I didn’t know you were her filly and needed her permission to do that sort of thing.”
I snorted. “I don’t need her permission… but I was kind of drunk so I’m glad she stopped me. So… did we?”
Minx giggled. “No, you were really drunk. We cuddled after you and Dolly worked together to sweet talk me up here.”
“Yeah? We did good?”
“Oh yeah, very good! You went on and on about my eyes—”
“You do have really beautiful eyes.”
“Thank you. You were really insistent about the cute mare on your chest, though, and who am I to crush the dreams of a drunk mare?”
I laughed and ducked my head in shame. “Wow… you’re like, the nicest pony ever.”
She pet my chest a bit more and shrugged. “I wouldn’t say that but I was super flattered. It is a shame you’re leaving today.”
“Yeah, it is. Although checkout isn’t until noon.”
Minx laughed and slowly sat up. “Sorry, but regardless of how pretty and slick you are, I only cuddle on the first date. You’ll just have to think about coming back.”
Darn! Well, more for Diddle, I guess. “Now I’m motivated to. Can I get you breakfast at least?”
“You can! I’d like to get to know you and Dolly better. Is she your mom?”
“Kinda, yeah. Mom-slash-friend-slash-failed-attempt-at-a-date. She’s looked out for me for years. This trip was her idea.”
“Oh, fun! Well, let’s go wake her up and get something to eat.”
“Sounds good. So… do you really brand ponies for a living?”
“I do! Somepony has to do it, it might as well be me. I’m pretty good with the irons. If you like, next time you come out, I can show you some of my art.”
Art? “Sure. That would be neat.” And easy to commit to since I didn’t know when I’d be back in Las Pegasus again. Unless I was stationed here! Wouldn’t that be amazing?
Minx and I got out of bed and headed into the living room. Dolly, it seemed, didn’t need a wakeup call. She was already up and eating breakfast at our table. There were all kinds of fruits and breads.
“Morning, fillies,” she said.
“Morning!” Minx said cheerfully before sitting down.
“What’s all this?” I asked.
“Complimentary breakfast from the casino manager to Dolly Dice for all of her business. Sit, eat, and enjoy. We have to check out and hop a train back to real life today. Did you two have fun?”
“We did! Sunny cuddles really well,” Minx replied before laying thinly sliced watermelon onto a bagel.
My magic caught hold of an orange, some grapes, and a muffin before bringing them to my plate. “I am known far and wide as the Drunken Cuddle Queen.”
Dolly’s head tilted. “Is that so?”
“It is now,” I replied.
Minx just giggled. “You two are silly. I’m glad I chased you down. You really should come visit more. I don’t know a lot of ponies here. I moved from Cloudsdale a year ago. Branding isn’t really catching on there.”
“Well… no offense, sweetie, but I don’t want you burning my flank. Although I don’t begrudge a pony that does,” Dolly said.
“None taken! I know it isn’t for everypony.”
While we sat there, it dawned on me that Minx didn’t have any additional cutie marks. “Hey, Minx, can you not do your own?”
“No, not really. Maybe little stuff, but I wouldn’t try. Besides, I’ve never settled on what I want so I just help other ponies.”
My ears wiggled. “Well, maybe next time I’ll get something.”
“Nope!” Dolly said.
“I’m an adult!”
Dolly shook her head. “Nope!”
“And who gave you a vote?”
“Common sense. You’d lose interest in it in a week and have regrets. You have to be committed for that sort of thing, right, Minx?”
The pegasus shifted uncomfortably before replying, “Well… you should really be sure before you do it. They can be removed, but it is really hard and you have to find the right unicorn.”
“Well… I never!” I replied before stuffing the whole muffin into my mouth.
Dolly winked at Minx. “Don’t mind her. She’s just finding her place in the world still.”
Minx laughed and shook her head. “No problem! Also, thank you for breakfast. I don’t normally go home with strange mares, sleep in their beds, and eat their food.”
“Well, if you’re going to do that, this is a city for it! Plus, you were so concerned, I didn’t want you to worry. Maybe you and Sunny could write a few letters. Right, Sunny?”
I was still trying to fight through the muffin. It was not moist. It was not moist at all! Who makes dry muffins? What was this? I just nodded as best I could.
“Great! Well… I should go and let you too pack. Look me up if you’re in town. See ya!”
Dolly waited until Minx was gone before looking at me. “So how was that?”
I stuck my tongue out. “She was a proper mare. We just cuddled. Maybe next time.”
“Shame, she was cute. Well, finish up and get packed. We’ll need to settle up and get your bits changed.”
“Changed into what?”
Dolly’s head tilted. “Larger value coins. Unless you want to carry a ton of hundred-bit pieces in your saddlebags.”
“I don’t particularly want to do that, no. What’s bigger than a hundred-bit piece?”
Dolly shook her head and sighed. “I don’t know why I keep assuming you know these things.”
I got up to start packing and huffed at her. “Well, if you must know, until you set down all of those hundred-bit pieces on the table, I’d never seen those, either.”
“Alright, alright. I forget sometimes that until recently the best job you’ve ever had was sodajerk. You can have them changed to five-hundred-bit pieces or even thousand-bit pieces.”
“Thousand-bit pieces! What am I going to do with those when we get to Canterlot?”
Dolly rolled her eyes. “I don’t know… put them in a bank? Exchange them back at the bank?”
“Oh, well, alright. Let’s go change my bits then!”
“Pack first.”
The process of packing didn’t take long. We hadn’t brought much. A few cute shirts for me, and some toiletries. The hotel had provided most everything else, including more bits than I’d ever dreamed of having in my life. I guess putting them in a bank made the most sense. Although really what made the most sense was that they weren’t really mine.
“Hey, Dolly?”
She poked her head into my bedroom. “Yes?”
“I’ve had a really fun time here. Thank you for that. I was thinking that maybe you should keep the bits. After all, I won them with the bits you gave me.”
She snorted. “Nope! I gave you those bits as a gift. That is your money.”
“Oh… well, can I just give them to you to take care of?”
“You need to learn about money, Sunny. How to take care of it, how to use it, and how to grow it,” she replied, leaning against the doorframe.
I closed the flap of my bag and levitated it onto my back. “I know… but I’ve been pretty good. I’m good with my little money. I don’t know what you do with money like this and I’m going to really need to focus on my new career. Maybe this time it would be better for you to handle it and then you can teach me later?”
“I suppose that is fair. You really trust me with thousands of your bits?”
My eye roll probably could have been seen from the moon. “If I can’t trust you then I may as well not trust any pony ever. Do you even have to ask?”
“No, but it is nice to hear. Alright, I’ll manage the bits for you. Come on, let's head for home.”
“Okie dokie!”
☼
Dolly and I arrived in Canterlot very late. Ever since moving out of Diddle’s place, I’d used Dolly’s address as my permanent residence. It was convenient to not have a place of my own. No rent was nice! Plus, I’d be moving very soon. I was just waiting for my orders to arrive.
I hadn’t picked a specialty or a preferred station other than Canterlot. I’d left it almost all up to chance! Wherever the Royal Guard sent me, I was going. Whatever they wanted me to do, I was doing! It was kind of like Las Pegasus, actually. Gambling.
When we were halfway across the city, Dolly yawned. “When we get home I’m going straight to bed and sleeping for a week.”
“Mm, I’m going to use your big tub and then I’m going to bed.”
“Don’t fall asleep in the water,” she half-mumbled.
“Yeah, I’ll be careful.”
Canterlot is interesting at night. There was a nightlife in the center of town, but everywhere else was pretty much dead and silent compared to what I’d seen in Las Pegasus and Baltimare. High-class ponies went to bed I suppose.
It did make it slightly eerie for the two of us to be tromping home between all the buildings and their dark windows. Usually by this time I was in bed, too, and asleep an hour after!
When we finally got home, Dolly’s horn lit, turned the lock, and pushed the door open. She walked across a large pile of mail that had been pushed through the chute, dropped her bags right in the middle of the living room, and said, “See you tomorrow.”
“Night.”
Once Dolly was in her room, I flopped onto the floor in front of all of the mail. There was a lot of it. My horn lit and I encircled the various letters with my magic. “Let’s see what we’ve got here. Bill, bill, bill, Mares Monthly, advertisement, coupons, more coupons, even more coupons…” Dolly got a lot of coupons.
Finally, I came across it: a large rigid envelope addressed to me from the Royal Guard. This was it! Without a moments hesitation I tore it open and read it.
Lieutenant Sunny Day— that was me! I was a lieutenant! That was completely unbelievable. Lieutenant Sunny Day is hereby ordered to report to the Baltimare— “Dang it!” —City Guard, headquarters battalion, G9. “G9? What is G9?”
My officers’ manual was on the coffee table, so I grabbed it in my magic and brought it over. G9… G9… Military-Civilian Affairs. Oh, that could be interesting! I’d be a liaison between the Royal Guard and the ponies we served. Yeah! I can do that.
I dropped the manual and orders on the table and went off to jump in Dolly’s tub for a nice, long soak. The water slowly filled up around me and I contemplated the concept that come Monday, I was supposed to be a responsible, military pony. I didn’t feel like one.
In fact, I still felt like the same pony I had been before! Of course, I’d learned a lot at the academy and I had graduated. Barely, but I’d done it! I suppose it was time to step up and do what I’d hoped to do: make a difference.
Yes… Monday would be different. Monday would be a whole new thing.
Oh Sunny! What did you almost do ;D Thank the alicorns for Dolly!
If you are enjoying this story, please consider taking a look at Crystal and my's website QuillnBlade.com for extra content such as mini stories, an Ask Us form to submit questions, responses to said questions, and special rewards for the awesome folks who support our Patreon.
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Wasn't Baltimare where her other friend was going?
With Sunny coming up, all I can say is Good Morning, Baltimore!
Hey! maybe she will see her friend from training there! and its a good thing she had dolly there. Everyone needs a friend like dolly. especially in a place like Las Pegasus. And its good to see Sunny learning and making new cuddle buddies everywhere she goes. This was a great chapter. I cant wait for the next one.
The idea of cosmetic branding is hilarious.
Also, the fact that they would let an obviously drunk individual commit to it really says a lot about the type of establishment being run here.
And she's off to Baltimare. I figured something would happen to get Sunny in the palace sooner rather than later, but it looks like she's gonna have to work for it.
Whoa dodged a very trampy tattoo there Sunny! and that cute pegasus was a nice catch, good luck in Baltimare I'm gonna bet Soarin will be there too somehow. navy and all.
I am curious for Sunny's Monday now :)
noticed this little typo, I think you meant to say "nice to hear."
And you are staying in Las Pegasus still, Minx?
Baltimare, huh? Well, I have a distinct feeling that we know somepony there...
7057509 I thought that that's where they trained, not where they ended up assigned.
Anyway, drunk, impulsive Sunny is certainly not the sort of Sunny that should be hanging around in Las Pegasus
I'm glad Dolly, albeit narrowly, managed to save Sunny from getting a tattoo. That would... not help her in the Royal Guard.
Also, Dolly is now the best supporting character
So, a drunken
tattoobrand. Maybe it'll be small and easily concealable?Man, thank goodness for Dolly. And very interesting reveal with that twitchy tail comment. I suppose that explains "Dice Dolly" and possibly even some of her success in business (not that you need weird, Pinkie-esque abilities to succeed at business, but it probably couldn't hurt).
Hah!
That does not strike me as a title to widely bandy about.
That seems like a pretty reasonable first posting for Sunny, and nicely matches up with both her previous unaffiliated work with the guard and with the evaluation of her strengths.
Great chapter! And now, of to Baltimare! Let the adventures begin!
Awwww... And there went Las Pegasus. There's just never enough time!
7059725
But wait... which day is Monday again?
7060499
It's the day before Tuesdsy, so odds are everything will actually go off without s hitch. Probably!
Praise Lovey.
7062338
What I meant was whether Sunday was the day they returned home, so Sunny is deciding to be lazy (sleepy) now and responsible later late in the day on the day before Monday.
So somehow I missed my comment reply roundup here! I'm so sorry >_< Let's get to it!
7057509 Blackberry? She'd requested being sent to the West.
7057572 You might say she'll bring a lot of sunshine with her?
7057608 I think Blackberry is probably going to end up in her choice assignment for being number one. Although knowing ponies around is important!
7057686 Yeah, that was a joke Lise made in Discord and I ran with it. Seemed like a lot of fun. And yup, back to Baltimare.
7057776 Trampy? Trampy! Hot mare on mah chest ;D
7057923 Monday has been released!
7058921 Maybe the city hasn't turned her yet ;)
7058993 Or... or... she is EXACTLY the right Sunny for Las Pegasus ;D
7059257 Agreed! Yes, I LOVE Dolly. She's one of my favorites to write.
7059725
Your response to this was priceless.
Honestly the twitch + gambling was not something I intended but this is a very valid point. Might have to think that one over for how her "mothering sense" applies :D Plus it is kind of interesting! Fun to explore Dolly ^_^
So the 6000 t-shirts she had made with it on there should be shelved? Dang it!
7060450 Yes! Her adventure as an officer starts :D This took a bit longer to get here than anticipated too!
7060499 Monday is the day after Sunday but before Tuesday. It is usually referred to as the worst day of the week.