Coconut Punch

by MistyShineStar

Home a-Pone 2: Lost in Manehatten

Author's Note:

As someone who has spent a good amount of time in NYC, mostly Manhatten, in her lifetime, I'm going to draw from my own experiences here. Hope you guys find it entertaining.

"Curse you, drunk me!" Berry muttered under her breath. She really didn't think that far ahead when she was under the influence. She manipulated a cop, but what would she think when she returned to Ponyville? The jig would be up. That was if she even COULD return to Ponyville, considering that she had been so wasted at the time that she forgot to bring any money at all. She might just be stuck here for a while. Now that she thought of it, that's probably a plausible reason as to how she ended up in Ponyville- with her poor memory, it was difficult to remember why she ever moved there in the first place.

Well, at least the scenery in Manehatten was nice. Maybe she could pick up a quick job here so she could make enough bits to have a little fun and go back home. This was the heart of the land of opportunity, after all. If she really needed to make a quick buck, she could use her skills as a con artist- but then again, this was the land of con artists, too, and she wasn't sure if she was ready to play in the big leagues.

Berry trotted around through a sea of ponies, trying to find anywhere to go or anypony that could help her. She was unsure if the calloused nature of the big city folks could be broken with her charm, but she would be damned if she didn't try. She stopped the nicest-looking pony she could- a small unicorn mare with a fluffy pink jacket.

"Hi, Miss," Berry said. "Look, I'm gonna level with you, I lost my saddlebags and I don't have enough bits to get home. Is there any way you could spare some-"

"Welcome to Manehatten, you putz," the unicorn said, walking right past her.

Well, damn, Berry thought. It doesn't look like begging's the answer. Oh, well. It was worth a shot. She guessed that now was the best time to actually start looking for a short gig somewhere.

She continued trotting well into the evening. Every time she tried to approach somepony, they easily sniffed out her lies. At this point, her hooves were tired and she wanted nothing more than a place to sleep- unless she was willing to sleep on a bench for the night in Manehatten, it didn't seem like she'd be getting any. Suddenly, her eye was caught by a small pale yellow mare selling clothes on the street. Her business seemed to be doing fairly well, actually.

"Thank you, come again. Enjoy your mittens," she said in a sweet and trusting voice. Sweet and trusting, Berry thought to herself. Perfect for me.

The pink mare approached her stand with optimism. "Hi, Miss..."

"Pommel," the mare replied. "Coco Pommel. How may I help you today?"

"Well," Berry started, "I really love what you've got going here. How would you feel about me working for you?"

"Wow, really?" Coco replied. "I've never had someone work for me before...well, um, maybe I shouldn't say that. Eheh."

Berry Punch scented her nervousness like a shark scents blood in the water. "So what do you say?"

"Well..." Coco Pommel trailed off, staring at the pink pony's cutie mark. "I need to know your qualifications. I'm not really sure what fruit has to do with fashion or selling things."

Berry Punch felt her confident smile falter a bit. She was foolish to assume that this mare would be so trusting as to hire her on the spot. She thought about Berryshine. What was her weird explanation for her cutie mark being fruits, again? Something to do with reaping the fruits of her labor when her patients helped themselves become better ponies?

"Well, uh, when I first got my cutie mark, it was after designing my very first dress! I was confused as to what it meant at first, too, you see...um, I spent hours racking my brain as to what it could mean, then it hit me...uh...the cutie mark represents the FRUITS of my labor when I put hours of hard, grueling work into my designs and get to see them come to life! Yeah!"

Coco was silent for a minute. Berry Punch suddenly felt very confident that it must be because it was the worst lie she had ever heard and she had no idea how to respond. But suddenly, Coco sniffed.

"That was the..." she choked back tears. "That is so beautiful. I know exactly how you feel, Miss...?"

"The name's Berry Punch," she said. When Coco looked at her questioningly, she realized what a big mistake she had made by not making her name fashion-related. "Um, my parents screwed up when naming me, obviously. Ahahaha."

Pommel joined in the laughter. "Well, Miss Punch..." Coco took her hoof. "I think you just got yourself a job. I'll start you off with 40 bits an hour."

Berry sighed with relief. That was all she needed for bus fare, plus some to spend a little extra money at a play on Broadway and a few other luxuries. It payed even more than her current job- she was actually a tad disappointed that it had to be temporary. All she'd have to do when her work was done was ghost this town and never come back again. She was good at that. Besides, she thought, Coco will get over it eventually.

"Listen, uh, Miss Pommel..." she said. "I don't actually have a place to sleep tonight. I guess you could say that I only recently blew into town with nothing but the fur on my back." It was technically true. Coco didn't need to know the finer details.

"Oh, you poor thing!" Coco exclaimed. "You must be so cold and afraid. Listen, long ago, a good friend taught me the meaning of generosity. I've been meaning to pay it forward someday, so why don't you stay at my place tonight? And let's get you dinner on the way home, I insist. Come on, Berry, follow me."

Berry grinned mischievously as she trotted behind her new boss. She wondered how Coco ever managed to survive in a place like Manehatten.

Comments

[AstroFanMan3]

Lol.