Lost Muse

by David Silver

22 - Date 2, LibelSplash

Libelous cleared her throat, seated across From Color. "So... what made you pick this place?"

It was a simple place, offering basic Equestrian meals. The only thing that stood out to her as being 'Color' was that of the hung up art that quietly framed the walls of the place. Easily ignored, if one wasn't looking for them. It wasn't much more than a well-decorated diner, she decided.

"I wanted a place that wasn't distracting." He was wearing his first suit, the one he had purchased with his own bits. "You look lovely." He gestured over her dress. "Not that you needed help with that."

She waved the compliment away. "Flattery will get you nowhere, Splashy."

"Is it flattery when it's the truth?" He smiled hopefully at her. "Even when we were this high--" He lowered a hoof off the side of his seat. "I thought you were a pretty mare."

"I was a filly when I was that tall."

"I was a colt, that didn't stop me from thinking my friend was kinda pretty." He snorted softly. "I would never have admitted it, at the time, you know... I mean, we were friends, like two colts. If I just told you, hey, you're kinda pretty, you probably woulda punched me."

"And you would have deserved it." She reached a wing for the menu. "You deserved a good hit sometimes, Splashy."

"And you didn't?" He stuck out his tongue a little. "You got into trouble as good as the rest of us, and we had to bail you out sometimes."

Visions of her mother furiously chasing her down flashed in her mind. "Yeah... Things don't really work that way, these days. We're all adults now."

"Adults with lives." He nodded softly, his horn holding up the menu for himself easily. "But, you know... my life has room for a pony in it... That's why we're here."

"To court me?" She hiked a brow at him.

"To be your friend." He reached across and tapped her menu. "Order what you want, my treat. I mean it... If it never goes past that, I'm still a happy stallion. I was... a moron to just let you wander out of my life."

"I didn't give you much choice," she wryly noted as her eyes wandered over the menu.

"You mom didn't give you much choice." He snorted softly before tapping. "Try the deluxe hayburger with the works."

"You know she's still there, right?" She licked over her lips before setting the menu down. "My mother, that is. She hasn't changed much."

"I bet she hasn't. Why would she?" He lifted his shoulders. "She gets her way doing things that way. Why would she change?" He wobbled a hoof. "Exactly why I'm not even going to worry about her. What'll she do, yell at me?"

She smiled a little at that, imagining her mother bellowing at a Color Splash that was ignoring her entirely. It was a delightfully vindictive little thought... "She has influence..."

"And if she knows how to use it, she won't go after her daughter's friends. Now forget her. I'm going to order a big shake and we're going to share it."

She blinked rapidly at the idea. "What, like two foals? Big over-sized straws too?"

"You got it." He started waving for the waitress. "We're going to enjoy it and nopony can tell us not to."

She burst into laughter before leaning in close, a hoof coming up for privacy. "Moron, shakes are... basically sugar water... It'll make things happen."

"Things we can handle." He tilted his head a little. "You can't hide from life. Let's eat and drink and be happy. We can clean up later."

Her eyes half-lidded at him as she pressed her forehooves together. "Are you turned on by that? Do you just... like dirty mares with infantile problems? I will not be your fetish, thank you."

He looked stunned, left blinking and stiff. "W-what? No! I mean... no! Libel... I like you. You." He pointed at her, but dropped the topic as the waitress came closer, her horn bobbing with the rest of her head. "Hello! Can we have an extra large shake for two?"

She smiled brightly. "Sure thing! What flavor?"

He looked to Libel, who jumped in place. "What flavors are there?"

The waitress began counting on her hooves. "Vanilla, chocolate, Fruity-Splosion, my favorite, and Mint-Chip!"

Libelous frowned softly. "I was always partial to Mint-Chip. I presume the chips are chocolate?"

"Of course." The waitress made a quick note with her floating pen. "Have you decided on your main dish or should we start with that?"

Libel waved a wing at her already downed menu. "Let me have a plate of homefries with extra garlic if you don't mind."

"Sure thing, sweets." She winged as her magic snatched up the menu from the table. "And for you?"

Color tapped at the burger on his floating menu. "I'll take a burger with the works."

"You want a monster?" She smiled knowingly.

"I was tempted." He held up his hooves. "But keep it to a single."

"You got it." She snatched his menu in her magic. "I'll bring out the shake first." She trotted away, leaving the two alone.

Color looked across at Libel. "So, do you still like flying?"

"What? I mean..." She tapped her hooves lightly. "Yeah?"

"You would hardly be Libel if you didn't... Learn any new tricks?"

Her brows furrowed a little. "I'm an editor, not a trick flyer."

"That isn't an answer..."

She tapped a hoof on the table. "I might have learned a few..."

"Anything... dangerous?"

She huffed, but a little smile appeared on her snout. "A few my mother would rather I didn't try... What about you? You ever learn a spell big enough to be impressive?"

"I never did that." He waved it away with a hoof. "Being able to pick things up was where I cut it off, usually... I did learn a few that were pretty handy for art though."

She tilted her head a little. "Like what? Something to mix paints?"

"Well, yes, but I didn't mean that." He looked around, then his eyes fell to the tabe. "Describe a scene."

"A scene?" Libel cocked a brow. "Mother getting a pie to the face."

"Good taste." His horn glowed and a crude image appeared on the table as if he had very quickly painted it, showing her mother catching a pie with her face, splattering. "It's not nearly as good as taking the time to do it properly, but for a quick picture..."

Libel burst into merry laughter. "That looks amazing! I doubt they want me to take the tablecloth though. You should put that away."

"Oh no." The waitress had returned, setting the shake right between them, two huge straws poking free of it towards either of them. "We love it when ponies draw on the tables." Her head tilted to see it from the right angle. "Nice one. Food's on the way! Enjoy!"

Color smiled gently. "I had a feeling they would be fun here." His horn took hold of his straw, pulling it closer to his snout. "Shall we?"

She rolled her eyes even as she leaned in. With both of their lips affixed to their respective straw, they took soft pulls of the sweet mint-chip concoction. The shake was thick, but not too thick. It flowed easily with their draws, slurped by the two friends.

Libel drew back, licking her lips. "They make a good mint-chip. We shouldn't spoil out appetite though."

"It is nice." He licked his lips before noticing something. "You got something..." His glowing horn snatched a tiny morsel that had strayed onto her chin. "There we are."

"They give us napkins, Splashy." She grabbed one with her wing, dabbing the spot it had come from.

"Why have napkins when you have friends?" He stuck out his tongue a little. "So, about that trick... You get much chance to practice it?"

"Usually... just after I finish a big project." She blushed faintly as she settled. "Cheering and hoofpumps only go so far. The sky understands my victories, and I take flight."

He let out a little sigh. "That sound fun... You know, I always was just a little jealous."

She hiked a brow. "You're a unicorn."

"And?"

"You have magic." She made quotes with her wings. "You can do almost anything your little mind desires, and you're jealous of wings?"

He rolled a hoof at that. "Easy to say, but my horn doesn't do that. I can't fly. If I want to get around, I have to work, just like any other pony that isn't a pegasus."

"You can use one of the advanced-grade typewriters!" she exclaimed with a huff. "You have no idea how much I'd pay for that..."

"Uh... What is that?"

"You don't know?" She reached a hoof into her dress and pulled out a magazine. "Look, here." She flipped it open with deft wing. "Here, that's a normal typewriter." It had two big buttons for hooves to sit on. "Two hooves, two buttons, simple right?"

He tilted his head a little. "I never used one myself, but sure, I get the idea. What's an 'advanced' one?"

She flipped ahead and slapped the magazine with a wing. "This, here! I'd love one! I mean, if I could use it."

It was a marvel of engineering, entirely unsuited to pony use. It had so many buttons that Color's eyes widened the longer he looked at it and its boggling array of little keys. Each one was too small for a hoof, and so many of them. It was easy to see what they did at least, with each one having a letter stamped on each one. "Oh wow... I... would like one of those too."

She snorted softly. "And you could use one. Unicorns only, this pretty little thing." She sighed softly over the magazine. "I hear some pegasi manage it with their wings, but these babies aren't quite... that dextrous..." She peeked left and right at her wings that sagged as if feeling bad for being called out.

He squinted at her left and right wings. "Nonsense. You're great with your wings. You could do it if you wanted to."

She colored softly. "You're being a flatterer. My wings are great, yes." She spread them out proudly. "But they're specialized in catching the breeze, not typing. I can do whatever trick I feel like doing, but doing more than grabbing things would... be different."

"That's just because you're thinking of it the wrong way." He put a hoof on his chest. "You are an amazing mare. You can do what you want, and I know that's true. If you want to practice your wings on one of these funny typewriters, you can do it, and you'd be just fi--"

His words cut off as a plate slid in front of him, heavy with a burger. "Oh, thank you!"

Another slid in front of Libel, laden with steaming hay fries piled high. "Enjoy you two. You give a call if you need anything at all!" The waitress made herself scarce without further prompting.

She snagged a fork in her wing and got a snout of salted treat. "Mmm, a simple but tasty little treat..."

He pointed at the wing holding the fork. "Look, right there. You're already doing it! Don't give me that. You keep selling yourself short, and I blame your mom."

"My... mom?" She hiked a brow at Color.

"Yes, her. She keeps telling you what you can do, and what you can't do, and doing what she says you can't do just... feels wrong. I bet you told her you wanted that." He slapped a hoof down on the magazine.

"I... did." She tilted her head, thinking back to when she was younger, eagerly rushing up to her mother with the advert for the typewriter. "She thought it was... beneath the Words..." She frowned softly a moment. "Don't let your burger get cold."

Author's Note:

Color finds a chink in Libel's psychic armor. Was it effective? Or was this a typo of a move?

Comments

[Adeire]

I feel bad because the first thing I thought about was "what kind of setup would a pony keyboard have? would it be a QWERTY?"
Here is to hope she doesn't leave in middle of the date to buy the typewriter.

[Scintor]

A kink in your armor is an armor fetish. A chink in your armor is a small weakness. You get a kink (knot) in your tail when something upsets you.

[Born-From-Black-Lightnin]

Color is right her mom is responsible for her lack of confidence and self esteem. I hope he can help her with that.