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>>130402Iron's lets out a shaky sigh, still a bit cold from the weather before gently closing the door, gauging the two new ponies looking about the mostly zebra-oriented restaurant.
>>130403From a door in the back, a very large stallion walks in. He has a shorter cut mohawk, and a stripe that is especially wide over his shoulders. He’s Iron’s size, if a bit less muscular
He says to her, “Little Blackie?”
“Daddy!”
She runs up to him, and places a foreleg around him. He looks back to Iron and the others, and starts to speak more softly to Black Cauldron
>>130404And there is no furniture
>>130405Iron widens his eyes at the stallion's entrance, quickly standing at attention out of instinct from his presence and gaze as a sign of respect.
>>130405Amber sighs and looks around her desolate apartment.
"How am I supposed to live all alone like this? I can't even save for furniture with this debt," she whines. She closes her eyes and taps a hoof against her forehead.
"Get a hold of yourself. I'm a grown mare, I can get through this. It's nothing compared to what my parents have gone through."She walks into her bathroom. What is in there?
>>130406He says into her ear
“I told you not to bring any stallions from that thing you do in here”
She responds,
“I know daddy... he is a friend. We brought you a potential cook. I am going to try to make the potion shop happen.”
“You’ve been saying that for a while now.”
“Yeah, I know. Anyways, it’s the Kirin here.”
He breaks away from the hug, and looks out to the creatures.
“Who are you?”
>>130407A toilet and a shower, at least
>>130408Iron blinks a couple of times, slowly realizing he actually asked something. "Oh, I am Iron," he answers, somewhat loosening by a bit at the relatively relaxed atmosphere before, with the aid of a foreleg pointed at the kirin "she is Khoi" and the unicorn "and White Sands."
>>130408So basically this, with the sink not visible.
>tfw you actually live like this>shower curtain wasn't even included >>130409Black Cauldron says to Iron,
“This is my father. Oke Osimiri.”
He nods, and looks at iron distrustingly
“Hello, ‘Iron.’”
Black Cauldron says to Oke
“This is Khoi Lua. She is the potential cook.”
She bows to him, and he says to her
“Hmmm. Do you know Igbronc cuisine?”
“No...”
Oke says to Cauldron,
“She isn’t a zebra”
Cauldron responds
“No, but she will be in the back, cooking. Away from the ”
He is silent for a moment
“Can you train her?
“I think so...”
>>130410I was seriously wondering whether there would be shower curtains
>>130412Please use different text colors for different characters in the same post because if someone's slogging through a whole thread the conversation tends to run together. That's not me currently but I've been there before. You can use Ctrl+o/p/g to do so quickly.>shower curtainsIn a cheapskate apartment I wouldn't expect it, but it's your discretion.
At least irl I got a complementary bed+mattress (no pillows or blankets though), wardrobe, bookcase, desk, chair, refrigerator, and AC, so I'm not exactly slumming it. I don't know how Amber's apartment compares which is why I'm eager for descriptions. >>130412Iron nods at Cauldron, attempting to remain composed as a single trickle of sweat starts to appear on his forehead before lightly bowing at Oke in respect, not daring to utter another word.
He remains patient, waiting to see what would come out Osimiri's mouth as his heart thudded the slightest bit faster.
>>130331Silver for a moment gives him a look of pity for him mentioning the lack of burial for his loved ones.
"You do not need to come along if you do not want to."
>>130417He runs up, a bit closer to Silver’s side, and for a moment even touches him.
“No, I want to come along” he answers
>>130418Silver nods at him.
"I am sorry to hear they did not get proper burial."
>>130419His ears briefly come down, then back up, and he moves his head to look forward
“It’s not just that...”
But he looks back to Silver
“I will do it though”
>>130420"Oh? Would you mind explaining?"
>>130421Mala twists his ears and looks around for a moment. Evidently he trusts that he can confide his thoughts to Silver, but some things may not be spoken aloud. He comes closer to Silver, and whispers in his ear:
"It just doesn't make sense to me to bury dead bodies when they have so much meat that can be eaten, and there is so little meat to come by. And why give so much attention to the dead? The living are forgotten and no one thinks about them. >>130422He is very well aware of that part of him. He speaks back in a normal tone.
"I think ancient Earth Ponies first came up with practice. They believed Earth Ponies were first born from earth itself, so being buried after death was like returning to it. Now, it is way to give dead peace and let their ghosts rest easy. And it is place for loved ones to return to meet with them after they passed."
>>130414"You know we only have so much money after all expenses. And you are such a good cook. I do not think anyone could replace you""I know daddy, I just someone to fill in for me.""And that is another thing, that thing you do. I know what you bring in but... I would rather you not do it.""This isn't isn't about that. It's about my potion making""But can she really replace you. You know our culture and our cooking. You have a talent for mixing spices and stews. You have been doing this for years, since you were a little filly. You are still my little filly."He rubs her around the ears with his hoof, and he smiles
"Not everyzebra has so much knowledge, daddy. They all have to start somewhere. Even the other Igbroncs in this city either cost too much to hire as cooks, or know as much as her.""And that is why it will be such a risk to lose you."She stares over at him for a moment
"What if we put her here on a trial basis? Put her on training wheels, and give her time to learn?""Rent is still high. It will be another cost I am not sure I can afford.""What if I were to cover her salary? At least for the time that she is still an apprentice?""Where would you get such money?"He stares at her for a moment
"Don't tell me. I think I know"He is silent again for a moment
"Very well. You may try. I love you, little filly."He rubs around her ears again
>>130423"Ghosts?" He tilts his head, but then returns it to normal
"Oh, okay. I need to learn pony customs if I am ever going to have any chance of fitting in with them."
>>130424>>130414With an expression nearest boredom, and with half lidded eyes, White Sands asks Oke
"Can I smoke in here?"Oke leans in to talk into Black Cauldron's ear
"Who is that? His marefriend?Black Cauldron responds,
"I don't know."He asks
"Is she with your thing?""No. Definitely not. He is a friend and the Kirin is an immigrant we pulled away from Griffin Mafia."This answer seems to please Oke, and he relaxes, smiling for a moment. He answers White Sands, who continues staring his direction:
"What sort of establishment do you think this is? Of course you can smoke here.""Thanks"There is a "chnk" sound, and White Sands lights a cigarette
>>130424Iron remains steadfast, wiping his forehead as the talk goes on as one of his ears flicker sporadically.
(W-woah. This stallion is the real deal,) he thinks to himself, as he can't help but have the ghost of a smile on his face at Oke's parental concern towards his daughter yet nervous at his own position towards him (n-nothing a little more work cannot fix).
Only when the deal is sealed the native broke out into a big smile for a second, glancing at Khoi to gauge her own reaction at the good news.
>>130424He smiles at him.
"You do not have to follow them, but it is good idea to understand them."
Now he whispers to him.
"But either way, do not eat any of these corpses. Many have been there for hundreds of years, and I have no idea what would happen to one who would ingest formerly undead tissue." >>130425Iron couldn't help but let out an exhale he held for a while at finally seeing Cauldron's father fully relax, now free to has his big, goofy smile on his face as Sands lights a cigarette, yet remains silent in the offchance he managed to step over unknown social boundaries.
>>130426She looks nervous, and tries to listen intently. Her teeth are clenched together as she listens. Then, at the end of it, she closes her eyes and gives a small nod.
When it is done, Oke looks to Khoi, then to Iron, inspecting each of them
>>130427He nods
"Thank you for your understanding..."
>>130429Iron's demeanor is obviously still reserved towards Oke, sporadically looking to the sides before refocusing on him, still wearing his goofy, excited smile.
After a moment, however, he decides to turn to Khoi, patting her on the shoulder gently with his hooves. "Congratulations," he happily offers to the mare.
>>130430Her shoulders are furry and fleshy, with her scales just beyond. She looks to him, smiles for a moment, and then returns to a more neutral expression
Black Cauldron comes back
"Ready to begin training?""Yes" She answers
>>130431Iron removes his foreleg as he looks at Cauldron for a splitsecond in thought before blinking it off and waving at Cauldron. "You two knock it outta the canopy," he calls out with an excited tone, before glancing at the seemingly safe yet judging Oke and turning to Sands. "So, do you want to grab a bite here or should we go do other urban stuff?" his tone, albeit quite happy, has a creeping sense of fear over staying here any longer.
>>130429"And thank you for your own understanding, Mala."
He continues to lead them to the quarry.
>>130432Cauldron giggles at the display of emotion from the normally suppressed Iron.
Sands answers him, "Either is fine"
>>130433Silver walks down further West into the northern part of town, with rowhouses giving way to small plots of single family homes, and the occasional empty lot. Silver arrives, after some time, at the Silver Lake Development Project. But when he gets there, he can see ponies moving around at the site
>>130434"Must be other volunteers. Come on, let us go down there."
>>130434Iron couldn't help but blush the slighest bit at the giggling as he hums softly. "If that is the case, we should get some food," he concludes "since I have not seen you eat since you woke up."
Having said that, he quickly looks at potential tables for two.
>>130436She looks around, and says nothing. An ear twitches
"Zebra food?" She asks
>>130435Mala follows Silver, as the two pass through the fence that surrounds the lot, and towards the quarry.
>>130437"Yes," Iron confirms with a nod "perhaps we may even see what Khoi can cook up if we are lucky."
>>130437Silver looks around for any sign of Father Maren, or somepony from the Cathedral.
>>130439Iron prompty sits on the seat in front of her, lightly clip clopping the ground. "Oh, I am excited to get a taste of what Khoi can do," he mutters with a smile on his face and a blush on his cheeks "j-just do not forget to eat too."
>>130440As Silver walks up, he sees not Father Maren, nor any pony in religious attire, but a tent, a set up table, and a green cloth or plastic spread out over the ground. Two unicorns are visible. One, over the cloth, has a sea green coat and short blue mane. Another, looking over the table in front of the tent, is grey with a white mane, looks a little older, and is wearing a brown jacket
>>130441She takes another draw.
"I think it will be a while before her first batch is done, but you can wait."
>>130442Iron nods excitedly before abruptly stopping while looking at Sands with mild worry. "Um, if it is alright with you, of course."
>>130443She leans back. "Alright."
A zebra walks up to the two. Her stripes are thinner and further apart with more white. Iron can recognize her as Blanche
"Can I get you two something?"
>>130444Iron turns to Blanche with a now more relaxed smile, poking the table softly with a hoof. "I want to be the first to taste what the new one can do," he explains.
>>130445"Oh... Very well. Any particular request?"
>>130446"Uh," he pauses as he pokes his chin in thought before looking back at her after a second "...surprise me?"
>>130447"Uh, alright. Do you want anything to drink?"
>>130442Silver steps up to the tent, looking at the two ponies inside.
"Excuse me? I am looking for who is in charge here."
>>130448"Huh?" Iron asks, slightly taken aback at the surprise question "g-go with what I picked on the last question."
>>130449The grey stallion looks up towards Silver, makes eye contact, and answers
"I am. Peer Review, Professor of History at Misty Tonic University, Stableside. To whom am I speaking?"
>>130450"Uh... Alright"
White Sands answers
"Anything with alcohol"
>>130451Iron turns his head towards Sands, ear flickering at the choice in drink. "Should you be drinking that?" he asks her in a mild worried tone, one of his ears drooping.