Lone Wolf: A Halfling Side Story

by Dee Pad

Part 3 - Conservative

Guise touched down unceremoniously, letting out a long, exhausted groan as he landed on the small plateau outside his cave. He sauntered inside the confines of his temporary home, carelessly tossing a bag of bits onto the floor with the rest. He let himself drop onto his bed of grass and leaves, relaxing his muscles after a long work day. The spikes of his red mane were barely discernible, flattened out by the sweat that had accumulated over the course of the day. It happened to be a particularly hot summer day, and working in a kitchen with ovens and fryers and leaning over a sink of hot water all day made the day simply unbearable. He was barely able to fly back up the mountain in his condition.

It was times like this that he envied Sweetmint; she got to work in an ice cream parlor, where it was always nice and cool. Guise contemplated heading over there under the pretense of seeing her just to cool off a little, but he was also pretty hungry and wanted to sink his fangs into something first. Though an ice cream dessert was admittedly tempting. Strangely, he'd yet to even taste ice cream, despite the fact that his "girlfriend" made it for a living. Today seemed like an appropriate day to try it.

After catching his breath, Guise sat up, glancing at the several sacks of bits laying on the floor. It had been a few weeks now since he started his life in Canterlot and he already felt like he'd accrued a sizable stash of money from his job. Were anypony to somehow stumble upon his cave, they might think a young dragon had taken up residence and started a small horde. Admittedly, he wasn't really sure if what he had was actually considered "a lot," but he noticed the prices of things in the shops around Canterlot, and comparing that to what he had, maybe he wasn't quite as affluent as he thought. And people had to live off of wages like this. Guise only had as much as he did because he refused to spend any of it if it wasn't necessary. One of his goals was to use this money to pay for a real house so he wouldn't have to live in a cave any longer than he had to—he'd had enough of that over the past two years—but he still wasn't sure how close he was to that.

But he was considering spending a little right now. Sweetmint should be getting off of work soon, and on a hot day like this, he figured he'd try some of her ice cream before she clocked out. But first he wanted to make a brief stop at a waterfall further down the mountain to clean up; he was pretty sure his body odor would permeate his disguise, and as comfortable as he was around Sweetmint, he'd rather not go in smelling like an old gym bag.

Things had actually been going rather smoothly with Sweetmint. Guise had been courting her for about two weeks at this point and hadn't encountered any outstanding issues aside from her touchy temperament, but as long as Guise made sure that he wasn't the one lighting the fuse, then it wasn't a problem for him—he couldn't speak for everypony else, though, not that he cared. It was actually kind of fun for him to watch Sweetmint tear some jackass a new one, even if it only happened once or twice since he'd met her; it made those days a little less dull, and would provide him a chance to further ingratiate himself to her by helping her calm down afterward.

After quickly cleaning himself up and grabbing a sack of bits to take with him, Guise headed toward Canterlot, donning his Crimson Neon appearance and blending into the crowd. He immediately made for the restaurant district, admittedly looking forward to cooling off inside Rocky's Road. However, it appeared that he was a little too late, as once the shop came into view, he could see Tapioca stepping outside with her bags, clearly preparing to head home. Or maybe she was leaving early. From what Guise had learned about her over the past couple of weeks, that wouldn't have surprised him.

But Tapioca wasn't the only one leaving. Both Sweetmint and Frosted Chips were leaving as well, the former locking the door behind her before sauntering down the sidewalk alongside her coworkers. Guise couldn't help but notice the rather disgruntled look on her face. It wasn't uncommon to see her looking weary after a day of work, but he had come to recognize this expression as being a little more than exhaustion. And he could infer that the oblivious grin on Tapioca's face wasn't helping matters.

Sweetmint's sour expression lifted a little once she saw her boyfriend trotting towards them, managing at least a small smile. "Hey, Crimson." She picked up her pace to meet up with him faster, eager to plant a quick kiss on his lips.

"Hey," he greeted back coolly.

"Hi, Crimson."

Guise had to force back a grimace when Tapioca's grating voice scraped his eardrums. She was giving him a somewhat sultry look, which was an unfortunately common occurrence whenever he saw her. Guise just did as he usually did and tried to ignore her, as well as the quiet stallion with them who had slightly knit his brow at him.

"Guess I caught you a little late," Guise said to Sweetmint. "I was hoping to get some ice cream to stave off the heat."

"I'll tell you what: I have some shopping to do, so you help me carry my groceries home, and I'll make you some as thanks." She pointed to the pair of large saddlebags she had on her back along with her satchel.

Guise discreetly sneered at the other two ponies with her. "Are they coming with us?"

Tapioca blanched at the notion. "As if. I wouldn't be caught dead in the places where Minty shops."

"Well, not all of us have as much disposable income as you," Sweetmint retaliated with a resentful scowl. "I have to shop at the cheaper places because I can barely pay my rent with the pay I get."

Tapioca quirked a genuinely puzzled eyebrow. "'Rent'? Oh, right! That's the thing Daddy pays for."

Sweetmint could only stare as though this mare's sheer existence were baffling. "What world do you live in?"

"What? Why doesn't your dad pay for your rent?"

"Because my dad lives in Manehattan, and because I'm a grown-ass adult who pays for things with my own money," Sweetmint informed her, her frustration with the conversation already beginning to hit its apex.

"Just ask Rocky for more money," Tapioca suggested as though it were as simple as that.

"I did! I've been asking for a raise since I started working there three years ago! Not all of us get everything we want handed to them on a silver platter. Some of us have to actually work to get what we want."

"I work," Tapioca scoffed.

Sweetmint rolled her eyes with an annoyed huff, grumbling under her breath, "The only thing you work is your backside..."

"Huh?"

"Nevermind. Anyway, I guess we'll get going. I'll see you tomorrow, Tapioca. You, too, Chips," Sweetmint bid them with a halfhearted wave.

"Later, Minty!" Tapioca sang as she cantered off, Frosted Chips absentmindedly following behind her.

"Chips."

The stallion glanced back, looking confused as though he'd been in a trance the whole time.

"Other way," Sweetmint reminded him tersely.

He looked around, awkwardly trying to get his bearings before giving a lazy wave and wandering down a different street.

Sweetmint ran a hoof through her thick mane. "Honestly, those two were born to aggravate me..."

"Rough day?" Guise inferred as they started on their own way to the supermarket.

"Well, work wasn't particularly bad or anything today, but I am a little stressed. My landlord has been hounding me about this month's rent, but money is super tight for me right now. He's giving me some leeway, but I've asked for extensions enough in the past that I'm sure his patience with me is running thin."

"Are you not making enough money at your job?"

Sweetmint let out a long sigh. "I make enough to survive, sure, but I got other stuff I wanna spend my money on, too."

"Like your manga?"

"Alright, I know I don't need my manga, but what's the point of being a 'productive member of society' if I can't do the things I want to do. That's the difference between 'living' and 'surviving.' I want to live a little, too."

Guise could certainly relate to that; it was pretty much the whole reason he was even here. If somepony puts in the work, then why shouldn't they deserve to indulge a little? Still, though, he understood that those rewards didn't come easy. He hadn't really had a chance to properly relax since leaving the Changeling Kingdom, just using this time to build up his cash. Apparently, Sweetmint was in the same boat, except in her case she'd been doing it for three years and hadn't really gotten anywhere yet. Guise found that thought admittedly discouraging.

"Is there anything you can do to get more money?" Guise asked, genuinely curious for his own sake as well.

"Nothing that doesn't involve gambling or getting a second job, neither of which I wanna resort to. At this point, my only hope is getting a raise, but I've been trying to convince Rocky to give me one pretty much since I started working there and he's always dismissed the request."

Guise noticed her brow beginning to furrow and her voice getting more irate.

"I mean, my ice cream is that place's whole business. Tapioca and Chips would probably end up setting the place on fire if they tried to make the ice cream from scratch. I think the problem is that Rocky knows I don't have anywhere else to go to get a job, so he's not worried about me quitting on him. And as much as I hate to admit it, I know Tapioca is part of the reason we get as much business as we do. She's hot, there's no denying that. I've definitely noticed that we get fewer customers on days that she's not working. But it's not like I haven't gotten a lot of compliments about my ice cream, so I know people like it—they wouldn't keep coming back if they didn't like it."

Sweetmint looked Guise in the eye, her growing frustration evident. "But is that enough to warrant giving her a raise instead of me? I've been working there for three years and haven't gotten shit! Tapioca got a raise after six months! Is that fair?!"

Guise wasn't entirely sure how to answer. He hadn't been around long enough to comment on the ethics of such an issue, but figured he'd just give her the answer she wanted to hear. "Doesn't sound fair to me. If I was in your position, I'd give Rocky a reason to listen."

"As much as I'd like to, I'm not about to threaten my boss. He might not be worried about me quitting on my own, but I doubt he'd have much issue firing me if I got too disagreeable with him."

Guise didn't say any more. The situation was obviously more complicated than he was capable of comprehending, and any advice he tried to give, Sweetmint would likely have a reason to counter it. Besides, he speculated that if this conversation continued on much longer, she might end up in a rather foul mood—more so than she was already—and that wouldn't be good for anypony.

They eventually arrived at the supermarket, which, for Guise, didn't really stand out from all the other decadent buildings in Canterlot. If it weren't for the signs above the entrances, he imagined even the ponies would have difficulty telling these places apart. But even then, Guise's limited grasp of the written word didn't help much in his case.

It was certainly more distinguishable on the inside, however, and much to Guise's relief, it was actually rather cool inside the building. It was a rather large building with many aisles of shelves lined row by row to display all manner of food and other miscellaneous products. The place was pretty well populated by ponies, whether they be customers doing some shopping as they had come to do, or the uniformed employees stocking the shelves and running the registers.

Sweetmint grabbed a shopping cart near the entrance and started heading for the aisles. Guise could deduce based on her pace that she knew exactly what she wanted and where to get it. He had no desire to memorize the place the way she apparently had; there wasn't really any need considering the only food he was interested in wasn't something that ponies would have stocked, and even if they did, he could easily get it for free without having to spend his hard-earned bits by just going out and doing a bit of hunting.

The first thing that Sweetmint threw into her cart were about a dozen sealed cups of prepackaged noodles. That struck Guise as a little odd. Considering she was strapped for cash, he was surprised to see her shovel so much of it into her cart.

"You like that stuff?" he asked.

She flashed him a grin, an odd mix of glee and shock on her face. "You haven't discovered instant noodles?"

Guise simply shrugged.

"Well, I don't know what silver spoon you're eating from, but this stuff is a literal miracle for people like me. Seriously, a higher power invented this stuff as a gift for the lower-middle class citizen. It's super cheap, super tasty, and only takes a few minutes to prepare. It's perfection."

Guise quirked an eyebrow at her strangely exuberant attitude toward such a simple-looking food item. "I'll, uh... take your word for it, I guess."

Sweetmint scoffed at his response. "Sheesh, broaden your horizons a little, Crimson. Not all of us have discerning palates like you apparently do. Seriously, what kind of stuff do you usually eat that you've never even heard of instant noodles?"

Obviously, Guise wasn't about to answer that truthfully. But he also didn't have a firm idea of what ponies usually ate for meals. He knew they were herbivores, but he suspected just saying "carrots and lettuce" wasn't going to be a sufficient answer.

"What? Is that so hard to believe?" Guise said dismissively. "There's lots of different kinds of food out there. So I haven't tried one thing, don't make a big deal out of it. It's not like I only eat the most expensive and exquisite foods."

Sweetmint gave him a playful and eager nudge. "Then I'm gonna treat you to a nice, 'home-cooked meal' when we get back to my place. You need this stuff in your life, Crimson. You'll be happier for it."

Guise just shrugged in a bid to appease her. "Alright, fine, I'll try it."

She grinned with confidence at his reluctant acceptance, apparently pretty sure he'd enjoy it. Guise couldn't really imagine he'd be as into it as she was. He hadn't eaten much pony food in his life, and while what he has tried had admittedly been pretty tasty, none of it really compared to the taste and satisfaction he got from a piece of fresh meat.

Guise followed Sweetmint throughout the rest of the supermarket, only observing with mild interest in what she was piling into her cart: a couple of loaves of bread, fixings for sandwiches, some apple and orange juice, and various snacks like potato chips and cookies. She also grabbed some milk, sugar, cream, and everything else she needed to make ice cream at home. Guise didn't even want to think about work once he took his uniform off, but making ice cream was Sweetmint's passion. Even if she didn't really enjoy putting up with the stresses of work, he learned that making ice cream at home was one of the things Sweetmint did to unwind when she got home.

By now, the shopping cart was looking rather full, which got Guise thinking about what kind of budget this mare was actually on. Sweetmint was complaining about how tight money was earlier, but now she had loaded up her cart to the point where it was nearly overflowing. Either he was starting to understand why she didn't have much disposable income, or perhaps all of this stuff was just as cheap as those noodles. Tapioca had suggested that this place wasn't very upscale, so that could be why Sweetmint shopped here to begin with.

The last area of the supermarket they visited was the liquor aisle. The shelves there were lined with oddly labeled, glass bottles, and were kept separate from the store's other beverages. Guise remembered seeing similar bottles of this stuff laying around Sweetmint's apartment, so they must have been something she liked, though he didn't understand what was so special about them that they'd have an aisle of their own.

Sweetmint grabbed a case of a particular brand of beer, but paused as she was about to put it in the cart. She noticed the look Guise was giving her, eyebrow cocked as he sized up the case. "What? Don't look at me like that. This is one of those 'wants' I was talking about."

Guise shifted his expression quickly. She'd apparently misinterpreted his look of confusion as a judgmental glare, which made him think that, whatever reason it was somepony would drink this stuff, it was something worth judging. He held up his hooves defensively in an effort to diffuse her. "Alright, I get it, chill out."

Sweetmint eyed the case of beer she'd just picked up, then gave her boyfriend a curious look. "You drink, Crimson?"

Guise blinked. What kind of question was that? Didn't every creature have to drink to survive? But considering the topic of the conversation was focused on the beverages that she'd just picked up, he inferred she was likely talking about that specifically. Again, he didn't know what the difference was, but with his lack of knowledge regarding it, it may be risky to attempt to bluff his why through this.

So Guise shook his head. "Nah."

"Is that for moral or personal reasons?"

Guise groaned internally. What was it about this stuff that required questions like that? But, again, he shrugged indifferently. "Not really. I just haven't tried it."

Sweetmint stifled a somewhat mocking chuckle. "Wow. Never tried instant noodles, never tried alcohol... It's starting to sound like you lived a pretty sheltered life back in Fillydelphia."

Guise didn't make any further comments. Her guess was pretty accurate, though obviously not for the reasons she was likely assuming. Right now, he just wanted this pointless and confusing conversation to be over so they could be on their way. Honestly, he was starting to regret even leaving his cave today, and he wouldn't have if he hadn't been so bored.

So, after receiving a dismissive shrug from Guise, Sweetmint dropped the topic and headed for the register to check out.

Once the cashier was finished ringing her up, she grinned amicably at Sweetmint. "That'll be forty-three bits total, Miss," she said with a chipper lilt.

Sweetmint inhaled sharply through her teeth. "Yeesh, a little more than I was expecting. Oh, wait!" She began to fish around in her satchel. "I'm pretty sure I have some coupons in here somewhere... Aha!" She produced a few small scraps of paper with a triumphant flourish.

The cashier received them, eyeing them up for a moment before casting an apologetic frown across the counter. "Oh, I'm sorry, these expired yesterday."

"What?" Sweetmint snatched them back to confirm for herself, a loud groan escaping her lungs. "Come on! You've gotta be kidding me. It's just one day, can't you make an exception?"

The cashier continued to frown sympathetically. "Sorry, I could get in trouble if I did that. The date's are there for a reason. You should've done your shopping sooner, I guess."

Sweetmint scowled across the counter as she crumpled up the coupons and stuffed them back into her satchel. "Yeah, thanks for the advice, Captain Hindsight," she snipped, eliciting a slight wince from the cashier at her sudden grouchiness. She started begrudgingly rooting around in her satchel again, grumbling the whole time. "I don't even know if I have forty-three bits in here..."

"You can put something back if you don't have eno—"

"Yeah, no shit, I know how this works," Sweetmint interrupted with a grumpy glower.

The cashier just stood there, looking rather uncomfortable now and afraid to open her mouth anymore.

Guise watched the awkward transaction take place in silence. With everything she's been talking about today, what with her money woes and such, he had a feeling that Sweetmint was starting to go downhill, mood-wise. It would be for everypony's benefit if he could do something to prevent that. Plus, he didn't really have the patience to deal with this right now and wanted to speed things along so he could go about his day.

Guise stepped up next to Sweetmint, holding up his own sack of bits. "Look, if you don't have enough, I can pay for it," he offered, though he wasn't keen on the idea of having to throw away his hard-earned cash on her groceries.

Sweetmint's annoyance quickly dissipated. "What? No, no, I can't let you do that. I mean, a guy paying for a meal on a date is one thing, but you don't have to buy my groceries for me. That's a bit much, and, if I'm honest, a little patronizing."

Guise shrugged. "I'm just trying to help, but if you don't want my charity..."

Sweetmint bit her lip, clearly debating the choice in her head. "Mmm..." She groaned in reluctant defeat. "Alright, fine, but only half. And I'll pay you back when I can, okay?"

Guise flashed her a reassuring grin as she dug up as many bits as she could find in her bag, then pooled it with Guise's money to pay the uncomfortable cashier. Sweetmint even offered the cashier an apology before they made to leave.

The green mare passed along her oversized saddlebags to Guise, then began stuffing them with as many of her purchases as she could. With each item she packed in, Guise felt the weight on both his back and legs growing, grunting as he struggled just to keep his knees from buckling. It was made even worse when she dropped the case of beer on the middle of his back rather recklessly.

"You gonna be okay carrying all that yourself?" she asked with a hint of concern upon seeing the clear strain on his face.

"Y-Yep... No problem," he hissed through clenched teeth.

Sweetmint rolled her eyes with a smirk at his obvious lie. "Right, sure you are. You don't have to act all macho to try and impress me, you know?" She hoisted the beer off his back again, placing it upon her own. She passed him a grateful smile. "You've already helped a lot. Thanks, Crimson." She gave him an appreciative peck on the cheek as the two of them made their way back to Sweetmint's apartment building.

Once they made it back to The Ivory Horseshoe, Guise noticed a bit of trepidation on Sweetmint's face, cautiously, yet hurriedly trotting up the steps to her apartment while glancing around as though she were paranoid about something. She let out a sigh of relief once they actually got inside.

"You got a stalker or something?" Guise asked as he placed the stuffed saddlebags on the dining room table.

"In a sense," she answered as she started putting her groceries away. "Like I said earlier, Mr. Hide, my landlord, has been on my ass about the rent for awhile, so I'm trying my best to avoid him and draw this out as long as I can. But, whatever." She grinned more cheerily at Guise. "I promised you some ice cream as thanks for helping with the groceries, so lemme get started on that." She set out the ingredients she had just bought. "Any particular flavors you prefer?"

Considering Guise had never tried ice cream before, he obviously had no answer for that. So, he responded with an indifferent shrug. "Surprise me."

As she set to work on that, Guise wandered over to the couch to lay down and rest after lugging those heavy saddlebags around. However, his efforts were stymied by an orange tabby cat sprawled out on the sofa. Persimmon wasn't asleep, just lounging, but was staring up at Guise, the changeling casting a stern glower down at the feline. He wasn't taking up the whole couch on his own, of course, but appeared to be purposely taking up as much space as possible while staring mockingly at his owner's boyfriend.

"Persy, don't be greedy," Sweetmint told the cat from the kitchen.

Persimmon reluctantly rose to his paws, taking his time stretching before hopping off the couch and heading for his food dish in the kitchen, allowing Guise to take a seat and relax.

Guise heard the sound of digital beeps, casting a puzzled look toward the kitchen. While Sweetmint was busy with all of her ice cream stuff, she'd apparently put something in the microwave. He couldn't imagine that the microwave was required to make ice cream. "What're you doing?"

"Ice cream is dessert," Sweetmint stated matter-of-factly. "So I'm making us some supper first. You said you'd try some noodles, right?"

Guise discreetly rolled his eyes. She was making an awfully big deal out of these noodles, so much so that he found it highly unlikely that they would live up to the hype. There was no way something like that could compare to the taste of fresh meat and raw flesh.

After a few minutes, the microwave beeped and Sweetmint promptly delivered a cup of piping hot noodles and a fork to her boyfriend. Holding the cup with his neon green magic, Guise eyed up the noodles with scrutiny. Mixed in with the curly noodles were small pieces of various diced vegetables, and while it didn't look particularly appetizing to him, he had to admit that the smell was at least a little tantalizing.

"Stop staring at it like it's gonna bite you," Sweetmint goaded him as she returned to making ice cream, taking occasionally mouthfuls of her own cup of noodles. "You'd think they killed your family or something. Just eat it."

With just a touch of trepidation, Guise scooped a forkful of noodles into his mouth. He paused the moment the flavor hit his tongue. He could see the smug smirk on Sweetmint's face from the corner of his eye.

"Well? That's pretty good, right?" she said.

In truth, Guise was astonished. How could something so simple and so cheap taste so good? It defied all logic. But as much as he wanted to shovel more of it into his mouth, he also didn't want to give Sweetmint the satisfaction of being right. "It's alright," he answered, trying to remain detached.

Sweetmint had to stifle an amused snort. "Yeah, nice try. I saw that look on your face. You're hooked already, I can tell."

Guise simply shrugged as he nonchalantly took another bite. "Okay, it's pretty good, what do you want from me?"

"Alright, whatever you say, tough guy. Seriously, though, what do you normally eat? Your budget can't be much better than mine."

"I didn't say it was. I've just never tried instant noodles. Is that so hard to believe? Maybe I'm just a little more frugal."

A sigh escaped Sweetmint's lips. "Or maybe you have more self-control. I know I shouldn't keep on buying stuff I don't need when money's this tight, but I guess I just keep hoping something's gonna happen to turn things around for me. It certainly doesn't help that I had to pay a fine for that vending machine a couple weeks back, so even my anger issues are having an effect on my finances. And that's not even counting the stuff I do to help deal with my emotional problems."

Guise sat quietly as he finished his noodles. Even if money wasn't the biggest issue for him, Sweetmint's money woes could have a possible effect on his plans to woo her. If she was too focused on just making sure she had a place to live, their relationship was likely going to become secondary, thus slowing things down for Guise. Helping her figure something out might be his best course of action, but he wasn't sure how to do that without just giving her all of his own money, and he didn't exactly want to do that.

After finishing their noodles, Sweetmint walked over to the couch to join Guise, carrying with her two bowls of ice cream and passing one to him. Guise eyed it up for a moment. It was green, which was already odd, but was speckled with bits of chocolate. It sort of reminded him of the one who made it.

He looked at Sweetmint, who was absentmindedly eating hers already, looking somewhat lost in thought. She was pretty eager to make him some of her ice cream earlier, but now she didn't even seem to be thinking about it. It seemed the change of topic had caused her mood to shift rather quickly. So, as a "good boyfriend," Guise saw it as his duty to perk her up.

"What kind of ice cream is this?" he asked, mostly in an effort to lift her from her funk, but also because he was actually rather curious.

"Hm? Oh, it's mint cookie dough. Kind of a specialty of mine."

"Do you make it at work?"

"Yeah, of course. It's actually one of our more popular flavors," she told him with a hint of pride, finally smiling again.

Guise scooped a spoonful of it into his mouth, Sweetmint observing with interest. The mixture of the minty flavor and the chocolate-y sweetness combined with the thickness and texture of the cookie dough ice cream may have been the most bizarre, yet delightful thing Guise had ever put in his mouth. It also helped that the coldness was especially refreshing on such a hot day. He wore a smile so genuine that it surprised even himself.

"You like it?" Sweetmint asked hopefully.

"It's delicious. I guess I can see why you don't bother being modest about this when you're talking about work."

Sweetmint gave him a light jab in the shoulder, but couldn't keep the tinge of red off her cheeks at the compliment. "Shut up." She leaned against him as they continued to eat their desserts.

Not wanting to be outshined, Persimmon wandered over again and hopped up onto the back of the couch, laying down behind Sweetmint and snuggling against her mane.

"I know I've said this before, Crimson, but having you around has made things a lot easier for me emotionally. It kind of feels weird to say that considering we haven't actually known each other that long, but I guess that's what makes you special."

"I like to consider myself a good listener. It's a useful skill for helping people with their problems," Guise said in response. Obviously, his "listening skills" were more akin to reconnaissance, but she didn't need to know that.

"You've been doing a pretty good job so far," she said gratefully as she nestled into his neck.

Guise noticed she went quiet for a moment, glancing down at her. She had a rather contemplative look on her face. "Something on your mind?" he decided to inquire.

"Um, well..." Sweetmint sat up, looking Guise in the eye with a little reluctance, yet some hopefulness. "I just thought of an idea. What if you moved in with me?"

Guise had to forcefully keep himself from smirking. Yet another welcome advancement toward his goal. Sharing a residence would go a long way to speeding this along. But he figured he'd play this one cool. "Yeah? I mean, not that I'm against the idea, but what brought this on?"

"Everything we've been talking about. It's just been great having you around, and I guess I just want more of that. Plus—and I know this is gonna sound a little more selfish—if we share the apartment, it'll probably cost less for both of us."

Guise gave her an agreeable smile. "Then, sure, why not?"

Sweetmint grinned cutely, clearly quite relieved. "Then I'll mention it to Mr. Hide next time I see him."

At that very moment, there was a knock on the door. The sudden noise startled Persimmon, who hopped off the couch and hid behind it. Guise and Sweetmint shared curious and pensive glances, respectively.

"Expecting somepony?" Guise asked.

Sweetmint groaned quietly. "There are only two people who ever bother knocking on my door, and only one of them really has a reason to right now. Guess his ears must've been burning..." She climbed off the couch and reluctantly went to answer the door.

When she opened it, Guise caught sight of an elderly unicorn stallion with a dull purple coat and pink mane, though the latter had greyed thoroughly over the years. But his most distinguishing feature was the cantankerous expression on his face. Guise already didn't like this guy, but he also heard Persimmon let out a low growl from behind the couch.

"Mr. Hide, hi," Sweetmint greeted, though with a noticeable lack of enthusiasm. "Can I help you with something?"

"You know full well why I'm here, young lady," he answered in his grumpy and gravelly voice.

Sweetmint rolled her eyes. "Look, I told you I won't have enough until next payday. I just need a little more time."

"Well, unfortunately, you don't have 'a little more time.' Due to..."

Both Sweetmint and Guise noticed the pause. There was a brief look of worry on the landlord's face, but he quickly put on his stern glower once more.

"...unforeseen circumstances, I can't give you anymore extensions on your rent. I'm gonna need the money by the end of the week."

"What?! But I don't get payed again until next week! I can't make that deadline!"

Mr. Hide shrugged inconsiderately. "Not my problem. But I would be willing to take some stuff off your hooves to resell it, if that's what it takes to pay it off."

Sweetmint quirked an eyebrow. "You'd rather take my stuff than kick me out?"

"I said I'm 'willing,'" he corrected grouchily. "Honestly, considering how unreliable you've been with paying off your rent, I'd be happy to give you the boot, but I'm not in a position right now to be kicking out tenants."

Sweetmint's curiosity and suspicion only grew at that statement. "Not that I'm complaining, but what exactly is going on?"

Mr. Hide seemed caught off guard by the question, responding rather defensively. "None o' your business is what it is. Just be ready to pay up by the end of the week, no 'ifs,' 'ands,' or 'buts' this time, got it?"

He was about to turn and leave, but Sweetmint reached out to him again. "Whoa, wait, hold up a second!"

"What? I'm very busy, you know?" he spat in annoyance.

Sweetmint stepped aside and gestured to the red stallion sitting on her couch. "This is my boyfriend, Crimson Neon."

Mr. Hide stared at Guise for a moment, then back to Sweetmint. "Am I supposed to care?"

"Well, we were just discussing the possibility of him moving in with me. Would that be something we can work out?"

The landlord narrowed his eyes at her. "I just made it clear that I'd rather not have you here at all, and now you just want to invite your boy toy to stay with you?"

Sweetmint glared adamantly, clearly becoming increasingly frustrated by this whole exchange. "But if we were sharing the place, we could pay the rent easier."

"Tell me something: how many beds are in these apartments?"

"Huh?"

"Just the one, right? Which means it's only one tenant per room. We ain't prepared to accommodate more than one person in each apartment, so nothin' doin'."

"Come on, you're just being unreasonable now!" Sweetmint argued.

Mr. Hide pointed a stubborn hoof at her. "Have the money ready by Friday." And with that, he stomped off before Sweetmint could get in another word in.

Sweetmint slammed the door shut with an aggravated groan. "The hell is that old fart's problem?! He wants me to pay the rent on time, but when I give him a suggestion to help with it, he shoots me down! Can you believe that shit?!"

Guise had to admit, this was an unfavorable turn of events. It seemed there were going to be more obstacles in his way than he'd anticipated.

Sweetmint dropped unceremoniously back onto the couch, digging into her ice cream the same way that Guise would tear into a freshly killed rabbit. Persimmon came out of hiding, hopping up onto the arm of the couch next to her and purring comfortingly, though it didn't seem to be helping.

"So, what now?" Guise asked.

Sweetmint lifted her head suddenly, a hopeful look in her eyes. "Shot in the dark, but maybe I could move in with you instead. I certainly wouldn't mind not having to deal with that curmudgeon anymore."

Guise tensed up a little. Obviously, that option wasn't on the table, but he had to fabricate a reason why. "My place is even worse than this honestly. I can ask the landlord, but I'm pretty sure they have similar policies over there."

Sweetmint sighed in defeat. "Then it's either sell some of my ice cream makers, or move out of this place before the end of the week. But then there's the issue of finding a new place to live." She ran a hoof through her mane in exasperation. "Everything's just going to shit right now... I dunno what I'm gonna do..."

Guise pondered his own options for a moment. As ideal as Sweetmint originally seemed as a target due to being much more tolerable to spend time with in comparison to other Canterlot citizens, it was becoming more and more evident that her own situation was less than ideal. This mare had just as many hurdles to overcome as he did, if not more. At this point, his options were either to abandon Sweetmint and seek out a new target, or find a way to help resolve her issues. Considering he'd already put in a fair amount of work for this relationship—not to mention money—he'd prefer the latter. He had introduced himself as somewhat of a problem solver with his false persona, so maybe he could figure something out. At the very least, he figured he'd do the same as the landlord and give her until the end of the week to see what happened. Maybe something would come up in that time.

***** ***** *****

Guise traipsed his way through Canterlot on his way to Sweetmint's apartment, letting out a long yawn as he did so. Sweetmint had been in a rather despondent mood when he'd left her place the previous day. While it wasn't uncommon to see her get frustrated or angry when something wasn't going her way, seeing her look so defeated didn't bode well for his own future. If she wasn't happy, and there wasn't really anything he could do to help, then acquiring the love he sought was going to be particularly difficult. And it was going to be even more unfortunate if Sweetmint ended up having to move out of her apartment. In such a case, it was unlikely that she'd be able to continue trying to balance her own life and a romantic relationship at the same time, and that wasn't ideal for Guise.

The odd thing was, it wasn't just himself he was thinking of now. Guise pitied her. In the relatively short time he'd known her, Sweetmint was really the only person he'd met who was at least tolerable to spend time with. When he'd arrived in Canterlot and formulated his plan, his intention was to simply find a love bug and only really engage in conversation when he needed to, keeping to himself so he could relax and enjoy the love he received. But the more he got to know her, the more he realized how much the two of them had in common—namely, their intolerance to the insipid people around them. He even enjoyed the occasional back and forth, exchanging quips and playful insults with her. It even turned out she knew all of the best tasting pony food around, and could even make some of it herself, so that was definitely a plus.

In the end, Sweetmint really was the ideal choice for this endeavor, which made it all the more pertinent to aid her in her time of need. The problem was, he didn't know how to do that. Guise hadn't gotten much sleep the previous night because he'd been too preoccupied trying to figure something out. The only solution he could think of was simply to give her all of the money he'd earned since moving there, but that would really only be a temporary solution and wouldn't fix her current living situation, which would ultimately just put him back at square one. Guise was going to have to face facts: if they couldn't figure something out, he may have to ditch Sweetmint and Canterlot entirely and start over somewhere else.

By now, The Ivory Horseshoe was just ahead. He wasn't exactly looking forward to spending the day with his depressed girlfriend, but there was always a chance she'd come up with something of her own to fix things.

But as Guise approached, he caught sight of a familiar stallion exiting a smaller, nearby building that Sweetmint had told him was the main office for the apartments. So it made sense that it was the landlord, Mr. Hide, that was stepping outside. However, he wasn't alone. With him was a rather burly, blue earth pony stallion wearing a pair of sunglasses and a suave, black suit that looked practically ready to burst at the seams from the guy's raw musculature. Mr. Hide lead the unfamiliar stallion around to the back of the office building, which struck Guise as a little odd. Surely any business transaction would be handled inside. But, considering that this old fogy was the reason Sweetmint was in her current situation, Guise figured it'd behoove him to learn a little more about him. Eavesdropping on this presumably unorthodox meeting may be a good way to start.

Guise quickly glanced around to make sure there was nopony around, or peeking through their windows, then shed his current disguise in favor of another. He now wore the appearance of a random, blue pegasus stallion he'd seen in his travels, using his fabricated wings to flutter up to the roof of the office. He stealthily crawled over to the edge to spy on the pair of stallions having their "secret" meeting.

"I just need a little more time, Strongarm. I promise I'm good for it," said Mr. Hide, his voice practically quivering.

"Tanner, come on, we've given you plenty of time already," said the burly earth pony—apparently named Strongarm—his tone a lot more nonchalant than the landlord's. "The boss isn't gonna wait around much longer."

"I can make the payment once I have everypony's rent money, I swear. There're just a few lollygaggers that are holding out, that's all."

"Listen, Tanner, my friend." Strongarm placed a hoof on the elderly stallion's shoulder. The gesture and his tone seemed sympathetic, but it was also strangely threatening. "I understand the situation you're in, so surely you can understand that I'm just doing my job. You can't blow as much cashola as you did on the slots and not expect to have to pay off your debt in a timely manner. I mean, unless you want this little venture of yours to find itself under new management," he said, gesturing to the apartment building.

"Please, just a little more time, I beg you," Mr. Hide pleaded desperately.

Strongarm sighed, scratching his neck. "Look, I like you, Tanner, but I don't exactly want to have to make the trip out here again—a flight to Canterlot from Las Pegasus ain't cheap, ya know? We gave you a heads up so you could get everything in order to make the payment. But, I guess I'm a softy at heart. So, because you seem like a good guy, and I don't wanna have to force you to give up everything you've poured your heart and soul into, I'll try 'n' convince the boss to give you a little more time. But I can't promise anything more than a couple of months, got it?"

Mr. Hide breathed a deep sigh of relief, giving Strongarm a grateful smile as he vigorously shook the burly stallion's hoof. "Oh, thank you. I promise I'll have the money by the next time you visit."

Strongarm gave the old man a rather patronizing pat on the cheek. "I'm sure you will. Cuz you know what's gonna happen if you don't." And with that, he turned and left, disappearing around the corner of the building.

Mr. Hide took a moment to collect himself before heading back around front and reentering the office.

Guise sat up on the roof of the building for a few minutes to contemplate this information. At least now he knew why the landlord was giving Sweetmint such a strict deadline to pay her rent. It turned out he was in a very similar situation and had a debt of his own to pay off. But that didn't exactly simplify anything; in fact, it only complicated things further. Now, not only did Sweetmint have to worry about her own financial issues, but even her landlord was in a spot of trouble. If either one of them weren't able to make their respective payments, then Sweetmint could very well be out of a home.

But maybe there was something Guise could do to help both of them. After all, he had a particular ability at his disposable that he could use to deceive and influence people. And maybe, if he played his cards right, he could bring about the necessary changes to fix these problems.

So, with that in mind, Guise fluttered back down to the ground, once more replacing his disguise with another. But, instead of his usual alter ego, he took the form of Strongarm, complete with suit and sunglasses. And instead of heading for Sweetmint's apartment like he'd originally come here to do, he instead made for the office.

Guise peeked through the window of the door, noting that Mr. Hide was nowhere in sight within the reception area. In fact there wasn't anypony present. Guise wasn't even sure if the place had a receptionist or not. Mr. Hide was the only employee here that he'd met, and even then he only saw him for the first time yesterday. Guise decided to just waltz straight in. From what he gathered from that brief interaction, Strongarm seemed like a confident individual, so he wasn't going to let things like manners be a hindrance here.

Guise casually sauntered past the reception desk and down a hallway off to the side. He noticed of the two doors in the hall, one was open and had a name plate reading "Tanner Hide," so he headed straight for it. Inside was Mr. Hide, busily scrounging around in a filing cabinet. He hadn't seemed to have heard anypony come in behind him. Guise politely, yet still a little loudly, knocked on the open door to get the landlord's attention.

Mr. Hide practically jumped out of his skin at the unexpected interruption, and seeing Strongarm standing at the door probably wasn't doing him any favors. "S-Strongarm? I-Is something wrong? You didn't change your mind, did you?"

Guise waved off his worry with a dismissive flick of his hoof. "Do I look like somepony who'd go back on his word? I promised you an extension and you'll get it."

Mr. Hide still gulped nervously. "Then... is there something else I can help you with?"

Guise smirked. "Actually, it's the opposite. Considering it would benefit everypony involved if you could make your payments in a timely manner, I figured I'd donate a few extra minutes of my time to help you brainstorm some ideas to not only get your money sooner, but maybe even make more."

The old codger raised a suspicious eyebrow. Guise wasn't sure exactly how well these two knew each other, so it was difficult to tell if the look he was receiving was because he was acting out of character. Regardless, Guise was going to press onward with this train of thought.

"You'd be willing to help me?" Mr. Hide repeated to make sure he understood correctly.

Guise held a hoof to his chest. "Like I said, I'm a bit of a softy deep down. So..." Guise walked around behind the desk, just casually taking a seat on Mr. Hide's office chair. "Any issues around here that maybe need addressing that could help things along?"

The elderly stallion simply groaned quietly. "Well, like I mentioned, some of my tenants like to procrastinate on their payments. I've been trying to be accommodating, but given my situation, I can't exactly afford to be too lenient."

"A man after my own heart. You and me got a lot in common, Tanner," Guise said. Despite his claim that he was here to brainstorm, Guise had only one suggestion he wanted to make. "So, would bringing in more tenants be the most effective solution here, or no?"

"We're already at full occupancy. Have been for the better part of two years," Mr. Hide told him. "I had considered raising the cost of rent a smidge, but I'm afraid that'll just make 'em want to move out and find a cheaper place."

"What if you just accept more occupants anyway?"

Mr. Hide quirked an eyebrow. "How's that? You think I can afford to expand the place with this debt hanging over my head?"

Guise shrugged, swiveling back and forth in his chair. "Of course not, and I know those apartments are designed for one tenant, but who's to say that that has to be a rule just because there's only one bed? I'm sure there are plenty of people staying here that'd love to share the place with their special someponies."

Mr. Hide tapped his chin in thought. "Now that you mention it, one young lady asked me yesterday if her boyfriend could move in with her."

Guise leaned forward, clomping his hooves on the desk firmly and with mock surprise. "And you said no? What, so you're just gonna turn down extra cash?"

"It ain't as simple as that."

"What's so complicated about it?" Guise argued. "It seems to me that this is the best solution. Clearly some of your tenants are having difficulty paying their rent on time, so if they have somepony to split the burden with, you can charge each of them a lower rate, but still make a greater sum total. I mean, how much extra work is it gonna be to accommodate one more person per room?"

Mr. Hide hummed, his eyes looking to be glinting with interest. "I suppose not much. We really just offer the space and basic furnishing. They might end up using more hot water, but that's about it. Hmm... You know, that's not a bad idea, Strongarm. And in retrospect, I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner."

Guise hopped up from the chair with an enthusiastic grin, walking over to the landlord and giving him a firm pat on the shoulder. "Atta boy! See? If we all work together, we can streamline this process, no problem. It's win-win-win, right? Your tenants don't have to pay as much, you still get more money, and we don't have to hound you for your payments."

Mr. Hide smiled rather genuinely and excitedly. "Then I'll get right on this. Thanks again for your help, Strongarm. I must say, I never expected a tough like you to be so kind."

Guise flicked a hoof with false bashfulness. "Aw shucks, Tanner, you're making me blush. Anyway, I'll let you get to it. I got a flight I need to catch."

After a quick hoofshake, Guise took his leave, a rather self-satisfied smirk on his face. That went swimmingly. He almost couldn't believe how easy it was to convince the old man to go with it. Ponies really were so easy to manipulate.

Once outside, Guise quickly ducked behind the office building again, making sure nopony was watching, and switched back to his usual disguise of a red unicorn. He then made for Sweetmint's apartment, ascending the stairs and entering without even bothering to knock. Only Persimmon was visible within the immediate area, laying on the back of the sofa and casting a rather judgmental glare at Guise, as per usual. Guise heard the sound of running water, indicating that Sweetmint was likely in the bathroom. That assumption was confirmed when she walked out into the living room with a towel on her head.

"Oh, morning, Crimson," she greeted, though her tone was lacking enthusiasm. "I was kinda worried it was Mr. Hide. Want some breakfast?"

Guise shook his head. "Nah, I already ate," he responded, still enjoying the aftertaste of freshly-killed duck.

"Alright. Hey, can you pop a couple of slices of bread in the toaster for me? Oh, and turn on the coffee maker, too," she requested as she went back to the bathroom to finish up.

Guise did as she asked before taking a seat at the kitchen table. After a few minutes, Sweetmint returned with a still slightly damp mane just in time to catch her toast as it popped out.

"So, what's on the docket for today?" Guise asked her.

Sweetmint cast a look over her shoulder as she buttered her toast. Guise was grinning rather smugly, his hoof draped over the back of his chair nonchalantly. "Uh, nothing yet. Why? Something in mind?"

Guise simply shrugged. "Not really. I was just curious if you had anything planned."

"You seem to be in an awfully chipper mood this morning," Sweetmint noted. She plated her buttered toast and poured up two cups of coffee, passing one to Guise as she joined him at the table. She let out a weary sigh. "I wish I could have that sort of optimism right now."

Guise tried not to grin knowingly. "Something bothering you?"

She replied with a bemused stare. "You know what's bothering me. It's Mr. Hide and this whole rent situation. I could barely get any sleep last night because it was constantly on my mind." She took a listless bite of her toast, looking apologetically at Guise. "If something doesn't change before the end of the week, I might end up having to move back to Manehattan."

Guise surprised her with a dismissive flick of his hoof. "You're a smart cookie, Mint, you'll figure something out."

Sweetmint cocked an eyebrow. "I think you're giving me a little too much credit. Seriously, how can you be in such high spirits? I'm stressing out over here, and you're acting like it's no big deal," she scolded, her worry now compounded by rising frustration with her boyfriend's annoyingly positive attitude.

Before Guise could goad her further, there was a knock at the door. Sweetmint got up with a groan, already having a feeling she knew who it was.

Just as she suspected, it was Mr. Hide. However, instead of his usual grumpy disposition, he met Sweetmint with an apologetic frown.

"Please don't tell me you need the money today," Sweetmint said with exasperation.

"No, of course not," he corrected, his voice sounding significantly more empathetic than last they spoke. "Actually, I want to discuss the request you made yesterday."

Sweetmint looked shocked to hear that, a glint of hopeful optimism in her eyes. She didn't notice Guise smirking discreetly. "Wait, really?"

"Yes. After giving it some consideration, it doesn't seem like such a bad idea."

Sweetmint still held her breath. "Will I still have to pay the same amount?"

Mr. Hide shook his head. "I'll lower the rent for anypony sharing a room. I still have to figure out the exact numbers to make this work, but I think it'll be more manageable for you from now on."

Sweetmint finally let out a relieved breath. "Thank Celestia. You have no idea how glad I am to hear that."

Mr. Hide turned his attention to Guise. "I'll need you to deal with the paperwork once I get everything in order."

Guise didn't say anything, only nodding in affirmation. Paperwork wasn't exactly his strong suit, but maybe he could get Sweetmint to handle it for him.

The landlord turned to Sweetmint again. "And I'm willing to give you a little more time to pay this month's rent, but!" His expression and tone shifted back to their usual crotchetiness. "I expect you to make future payments on time. You don't have an excuse to put it off anymore."

Sweetmint looked a little doubtful of that, but still smiled gratefully. "I'll do my best, Mr. Hide."

He let a out a gruff, "Hmph," as he turned to leave. "See that you do. He can move in whenever he's ready. I'll let you know when I have the paperwork ready. Well, have good day, you two." Mr. Hide gave a halfhearted wave goodbye before being on his way.

Sweetmint shut the door, immediately turning to tackle Guise with an excited hug. Guise practically spilled his coffee as his girlfriend held him in her happy death grip. She pulled back, grinning with elation. "Holy crap! I can't believe this!"

"Well, that was certainly a lucky break, huh?" Guise commented, trying to fight back his self-satisfaction. "See? Everything has a way of working out in the end, right?"

She gave him a snide smirk. "Weren't you supposed to be a problem solver? Where were you on this one, smart guy?"

Obviously, Guise didn't take offense to her ragging. Little did she know that he was the reason this was happening. It would be nice if he could tell her so that he could bask in her praise and respect, but alas. "Well, maybe I should just leave then so you can date your 'guardian angel' instead," he retorted mockingly.

"Maybe if I ever meet them, I will. But for now, I'll just have to settle for you." She punctuated her playfulness with a quick kiss on Guise's crimson lips. "So, you wanna get started moving your stuff over here?"

"I don't really have anything to move," Guise said with a shrug. "I don't buy anything I don't need, so I just have to grab my cash and I'm all set."

She leaned forward, a sultry look in her eyes. "Great. Then that means you can move in tonight." She gave Guise another kiss, longer and deeper this time.

The satisfaction that Guise felt at this moment rivaled the time he'd duped Shade's girlfriend two years ago. He was quite confident that he'd finally gotten back into a similar position. But he noticed something odd. That satisfaction he felt only seemed to swell as he stared at Sweetmint's smiling face. While he certainly enjoyed patting himself on the back for his ingenious solutions to these ponies' problems, everything he did also happened to benefit her as well. Of course, that was the plan; he needed her for his own ends, so the happier she was, the better it was for him. But something about the genuine, happy smile on her face was strange to him...

Guise shook the thought from his mind. His plans had practically reached fruition already. It was just a matter of time until he was in a position where he could simply forget about any of his former worries, and if Sweetmint ended up in the same boat, then he was okay with that.

Comments

[Emotion Nexus]

Guise is starting to get attached.

I like this. A lot.