The air in the club was warm, humid from all the dancing, sweating bodies on the dance-floor. Enough that I was stuck using my normal vision to keep an eye on everything, my thermal vision would be completely useless here. The beat pulsating through the air, and the floor under my clawed feet, synchronized everypony's dancing, their alcohol addled minds free of worry and inhibition. It never ceases to amuse me, watching them strut like they owned the air they breathed, only to fall on their faces and wake up with a hangover. Hilarious really, but I'm getting distracted.
A quick glance at the DJ set told me that my charge was still doing her thing, working her magic over the turntables, messing with the speakers volume seemingly at random during different parts of the current song. Good, nopony's trying their luck with Vinyl. Her electric blue mane was sticking up in random places, her white fur matted with sweat, a triumphant smile on her face as she moved along with her music. Well, at least she's having fun.
I sigh, continuing my watch of the club from the shadow of the bar. While I'm supposed to be hidden when on the job, tonight was a semi-exception. This was the best vantage point in the building save for the ceiling, and it's rather amusing to watch the bartender mare shift under the scrutiny my yellow, reptilian eyes. That, and the reactions I get from random ponies who occasionally catch sight of "A glowing pair of hellish eyes" is another thing that never fails to amuse me. My eyes were the only thing they could see right off the bat. But if they looked hard enough below the eyes, they'd see my scales, camouflaged the same purple as the walls.
Speaking of seeing me, a rainbow maned, pegasus mare was approaching the bar. She was wearing a light blue T-shirt that hugged her slim, cyan frame (with holes for her wings), a pair of track shorts, and- wait, is she coming towards me? I still my breath and hold still, narrowing my eyes to slits as she sat at a stool just across from me. The bartender mare quickly walks over to this new mare,
"What'll it be?" she asks, wiping her sweat laden brow, taking a quick glance at me and suppressing a shudder. Hehe, she's STILL uncomfortable with me?
"I'll have a cider." The new mare says, propping her elbows up on the bar. The bartender nods and goes to retrieve it. Her rose colored eyes wander to the DJ and she gives a happy sigh. She a friend of Vinyl? Then, suddenly, they look over to me, her rose eyes meeting my glowing yellow.
"Neat trick." She comments idly, a smirk playing across her muzzle. Well, if she knows I'm here already....
"Thankss. I take it my eyes gave it away?" I respond. Her own eyes widen as she catches my accent.
"Well, Glowing yellow does kind of stand out against purple. How are you doing that anyway, dude?" she asks, looking around the bar area for any eavesdroppers.
"It's just one of my gifts. Now, did you come here for a reason? Or are you here for the same reasons as everypony else; to get drunk, dance, and wake up in some strangers bed?"
"If that stranger was Vinyl, I wouldn't complain. I came to see her, but Octavia told me about somepony I needed to talk to first. That's you, right?" she responds, making me relax my stance a little, though she couldn't see that. Good, so Octavia sent her.
"Stick around until Vinyl's done, then we can talk face to face. For now, I have to stay relatively hidden." I explain, holding back a smile. Don't want to freak the poor mare out... well, not too much.
"Why not? I can't exactly see ya, but you're pretty cool. I'm Rainbow Dash, fastest flier in equestria!" she says with a puff of pride "What's your name?" she asks, smiling.
"Well, do you want my real name, or the name I go by here that you ponies can actually pronounce?" Pretty sure she'll pick the second one.
"Probably the second one." Called it.
"Vinyl calls me Viri. That's the only part of my name she gets right, so just call me that." I answer. She tilts her head to the side in confusion, then nods.
"You're not a pony, are you?" she asks, then we both go quiet as the bartender comes back with a foaming mug of cider. After she leaves, I answer.
"No. But that's all I can say about it right now." I say, then something catches my eye on the dance-floor. A drunkenly swaying stallion was trying to reach up at Vinyl, his words slurred so heavily even I couldn't understand him. Well, time to earn my keep. "Hold that thought."
With that, I dart as fast as I can out of the shadow and into the ever shifting shadows cast by the rave lights, quickly approaching the inebriated pony. Just as I get close enough, I lash out at his leg with my fist, causing him to yelp in pain, then fall on his back, asleep. No, I didn't do that to him, he was just drunk... or drugged, whichever. Before too many ponies start to take notice of my presence, I dart back to my place at the bar, my tail sliding along the ground being the only sound I make.
When I settled back into my spot, Rainbow Dash was looking at me with wide eyes, reflecting disbelief.
"I'm glad I listened to Octavia." she says quietly to herself, whatever that meant. She acts as though she's never seen a Reptilian before.
<><><><><><>
Vinyl waves her hands as the crowd cheers. Her job was done, now all we have to do is collect the payment. While everypony was distracted (excpet for Rainbow Dash, who had taken to following me) I once again dart out of the shadows of the bar, going on all fours this time to save time, and make my way backstage. Vinyl was already talking with the club manager, a blue earth pony stallion wearing a tuxedo and holding a bag of bits.
"Here you are, Miss Scratch. Payment for services rendered." The stallion says simply, unaware of my presence, "If you wish to make more, we can-" he's suddenly cut off by my claws hovering just inches from his eyes.
"And~ gonna have to sstop you there, Casanova." I comment, to which he fearfully nods. Vinyl chuckles at this, and I return my hands to my sides, straightening up and returning my scales to their usual dull bluish-grey color.
"W-well, it has been a pleasure!" He says quickly, running back to his office. Rainbow Dash takes in the sight of me with shock as me and Vinyl bump fists.
"Sup, Dash! Glad you could make it! I should probably introduce you to my buddy here, huh?" Vinyl chuckles, handing me the bulging bag of bits to carry, which I transfer to my tail.
"Good to see ya too, Scratch! Me and him talked before, but I didn't know he was a Dragon!" wait, she thinks I'm a dragon?
"I'm not a dragon. I'm Reptilian." I sigh. Of course, everypony's first thoughts when meeting me is Look, a Dragon! and I'm not.
"Oh, my bad. Anyway, I got the next couple weeks off while the weather team trains another captain!" Rainbow explains excitedly, to which Vinyl smiles.
"Let's take this discussion to the house, if you don't mind." I interject. Vinyl shakes her head with a grin.
"Alright, Viri."
And with that, I fall in next to Vinyl as, followed by Rainbow Dash, we leave the backstage area and step out into the blissfully cool, night air. Now, if I was more like other reptiles, this cold would be hellish for me. But the only thing I need the sun and heat for is to keep myself from going into hibernation, and it has to be really cold for me to do that, but I digress. We walk the dark, empty streets of the Canterlot residential area, the mares hooves clopping against the cobblestone, while my clawed toes would make the occasional *clack* from hitting a rogue stone.
"So, you have a few weeks off of work? Paid vacation?" Vinyl asks Rainbow.
"Yeah! Lucky for me. I really need a vacation. And... I wanted to ask you something, Vinyl." Rainbow explains, to which I raise what would be my eyebrow, if Reptilians could grow hair at all. I switch to my thermal vision and gaze at Rainbow. Her body heat was slowly rising, specifically around her head, upper body, and-oh, it's one of those questions.
"What's up?" Vinyl asks, raising her eyebrows. Switching back to my normal vision, I notice the faint red hue in the cyan mare's cheeks. Yep, I knew it.
"Do... Do you wanna go out with me, sometime? O-on a date?" Okay, from what I've seen of her so far, this seems a little out of character for her, but I keep silent. Slowly, a smile spreads across Vinyl's face.
"Sure, why not! You are pretty cute, Dash." she chuckles. Before Rainbow had a chance to respond, we stopped in front of the mansion Vinyl and Octavia shared, and I open the door for them, a rush of warmth coming from inside the house. I'd describe it's color, but I don't have my night vision active. Vinyl and Rainbow walk in, thanking me, and I follow them in, locking the door behind me, and quickly darting up the stairs to my room.
Possible background music
It was an average sized room, with walls the same color as my scales (when I'm not camouflaged), a queen sized mattress of memory foam on a bronze plated bed-frame, a bathroom, a window, and a dresser. I go into the bathroom off to the left of the door, and start washing my facial scales. Looking into the mirror, my glowing yellow, slitted eyes stared back at me tiredly, my bluish-grey scales, normally of a dull luster, caught the dim lights of the bathroom, giving me an almost alien appearance. My seal and Binding mark sit on opposite side of my chest, their pitch black coloring contrasting with my usual color.
With a sigh, I walk to the naked mattress (it was sheetless by choice) slipping off my only article of clothing, being my mid thigh reaching, enchanted shorts. Before I climb in, I walk to my east facing window and open it, waiting. Sure enough, the sun started to rise as I watched, it's newborn lights painting the streets and buildings, even the castle in beautiful shades of deep red, soft oranges, and even some pink, if you looked at the clouds. The polished windows, rooftops, gates and lampposts caught the new days light, shining and sparkling like stars, or precious gems.
I never go to bed without watching the sunrise (or sunset, depending on the time of day), how could I miss such a beautiful display? But now, I close the window and climb into my soft, worn bed, a sigh of content escaping my lips. For two years now, I have been bound to Vinyl as her friend and guardian, being there for her when she needed me, always lending a hand (or claw) when she needed it. At first, I was pissed being suddenly ripped from my old life and put into this. But it was moments like this, with the new days sun watching over me, Vinyl happy and safe, and Octavia no doubt content, that I'm glad this happened. Glad to have met these ponies...
As I drift off to sleep, I can't help but mentally chuckle as I try to imagine what tonight may bring...ZZzzzzz
Royal Retrieval Part 1: They call her Sonny
"Hey, you awake?"
"Grrr... sssshkl'iyo avkser-*cough* *hack* -er, where the hell am I?! Who the hell are you?!"
"Dude, chill! I'm Vinyl, and you?"
"...My name is-"
<><><><>
I wake with a groan, the light of the afternoon sun shining, of course, directly into my closed eyelids. What time is it? I open my eyes, covering them with my hand to clock out the sunlight, and sit up, rubbing the ridges of my brow. Has it really been so long ago?
"Yo Viri, you awake?" I hear the unmistakeably tomboyish voice of Vinyl call from the other side of the door, "We gotta talk, bro!"
"Egh... I'm awake! Come in!" I call, swinging my legs off the edge of the bed, bringing my tail around to hide my... "Trouser snake" I think the joke was. Two years I've spent here, and some of their jokes still make no sense to me. But then again, I guess I am relatively old compared to these ponies.
The door to my room opens, and in walks Vinyl, garbed in an electric blue bathrobe the same color as her mane, no doubt the one with her cutiemark where her flank was, and surprisingly without her usual DJ shades.
...this is either a very personal question about me, or I'm gonna get a new red paint job for my claws soon. Either way, this should be in-
"So Viri, I got a couple invitations to the gala from aunt Fleur, and I was wondering-"
"No." I cut her off suddenly, the same way I do every time she asks me to go to that damnable gala. I get stuck in a cramped back room with the other familiars and personal servants every time I go, so it sucks for me. Plus, if I can't do what I was brought here to do while I'm there, might as well not go at all. She sighs, looking at me with her crimson puppy eyes.
"Please~?" she asks, making her voice sound small and vulnerable. Well, I'm cold blooded, so I have an excuse to be cold hearted about this, besides the fact that I'm immune to these pony charms.
"No. If those ssstuck up tin ssoldiers won't let me do my job while there, I might as well not go. Besides, that one fleshy familiar your aunt takes with her sstill creeps me out." It was almost like me, minus the tail, scales, claws, and male genitalia. She wasn't bad to look at ,nice and tender even. But something about her just... makes my skin crawl beneath my scales. Every time she stares at me, I feel like I'm shedding early.
"What, the.... human, I think it was called?" she grins at me mischievously, a twinkle in her eyes, "But she's just dying to see you again!"
"Not funny, Vinyl. Not funny." I shake my head, my tail shifting in place.
"Well, other than to tease you- and no, I didn't get tickets," she admits, and I can't help but hiss unhappily as she chuckles, "I got a job for you. An SS job." at this new (and far more endearing) piece of news, my toes and tail shift again in my new mood shift.
"Sso, what're the details?" I ask, whipping my tail towards the floor, grabbing my pants in the swift motion. It's not like she hasn't seen me naked before (Snakeskin, we live together after all.) but despite being so... "Anal" I think the term was, Octavia was horrible at knocking when at home, and I'd rather her not see me like that.
"There's a petition being signed by aunts business rivals about having her sent back to Prance, and I want it gone. We don't spend a lot of time together, and it's unlikely it'll be passed, but you can't take chances with those nobles." she explains, going into business mode. Judging by how hard she's trying to hide her disgust, I think I'm gonna enjoy what she says next. "Prince Blueblood has it."
I slip my shorts on, a wicked smile breaking out across my face. Despite being her familiar for so long, she still shudders at the sight of my teeth. They were small and sharp, with two fangs where a pony's incisors would be. Kinda like what these ponies call a "Cobra", though nowadays I can't tell if her shudders are in fear or something I'm not familiar with.
"So I'll be sneaking into the royal castle?" I ask, standing up, my tail shifting around, returning to my backside. I flex my claws, and the "special" scales on my hands. After a silence, she nods. "When can I start?"
"Whenever you're ready to go. Just be careful, okay? I don't want to bail ya out just 'cuz you got caught."
"Oh, don't worry..." I flex my jaws, my fangs flicking outward, then popping into place, "When has anypony caught me?"
<><><><><><>
It was a couple hours later, and clouds were gathering in the sky as if it was gonna rain. This was the perfect opportunity to leave (and it was supposed to be a clear day today, lucky break) and I took it. I change my scales from their usual, lack-luster color to cobblestone grey, and take off down an alley to the side of the house on all fours. It wasn't any darker than the street, but there wasn't as high a chance I would be seen by anypony important... well, anypony important anyway.
After about thirty minutes of this fast pace, I jump onto the wall of the nearest building, hanging there while my scales blend in with it. Not that anypony was coming by, but I wanted to asses the defenses of the castle without somepony just walking by and catching sight of me. So, patrols of three make constant rounds throughout the grounds, each armed with either a sword, spear, or both. I could probably get in if I time it just right, then climb in through an open window or something. Looking up, I see quite a number of open windows to choose from... but which one is closer to the prince's room?
Ah fuck it, I'll just get in and crawl around on the ceilings until I find it. Alright, three....two...one... GO!!!
With that, I spring off the wall and swing onto the roof, going to all fours and charging as fast as I could, leaping from roof to roof, jumping over the walls and continuing my sprint. With the wall fast approaching, I put on an extra burst of speed...One, two three- JUMP!!!
I spring into the air, my claws outstretched and palms open, slamming hard against the wall and staying there, my scales already taking on the castle's clean white color. I just hang there on the wall, catching my breath, when the next patrol comes around the bend. The white coated stallions, shining in their clinking, golden armor were casually chatting, thinking themselves out of view the public no doubt.
"Prince Blueblood has been acting strangely, don't you think?"
"Yeah. Since when has that high and mighty plothole cared about our drills and training? I feel like he'd throw something at us from his balcony when Lightwing got off-step!"
"I still don't see..." they continued chatting even as they turned the bend. Well, that clears SOMETHING up, at least. His room must be the one overlooking the drill field... wherever that was. Well, better get crawling.
<><><><><><><><>
Looking back at it, I should've known my luck would run out sooner or later. Perfect weather for sneaking, convenient opening in the patrol routes, and overhearing the guards, I should've really seen this coming. Why, you ask?
A familiar was currently staring unblinkingly at the spot I stood at the wall, camouflaged. She can't exactly see me, but she apparently knows I'm here. How, I don't know, and I'd rather not find out. She was a biped, and looked very similar to Fleur's familiar, but had brown hair and glowing, dark purple runes covering her from head to toe. Her light purple eyes shone with an unnatural magic, one I've never seen before. As I stared into them, I could hear indiscernible whispering ...
... after staring at me for what felt like an eternity, she grins knowingly.
"Come and play, little gecko... CoMe AnD pLaY wItH mE!!!"
