Jack of Hearts, Queen of Diamonds

The pleasant glow of daylight from behind your closed curtains bring you into the waking world. Your head's surprisingly clear this morning; no hangover.

Mind you, while you would often spend the night drinking, last night had far more in the way of talking to a new friend, and romancing. Also, vigorous spanking, tail pulling, and thrusting. A smile curls onto your lips as you recall that.

You turn over. Maud's not there. She's must've gone to the Canterlot Palace like she said she would.

Sitting up in surprise, you pull open your bedside drawer. Boulder's gone too. Of course she wouldn't forget her silent companion. A pang of regret starts in your chest; you wish you'd at least said goodbye to her before she left.

You half-yawn, half-sigh. The scent of fried eggs and toast make for a pleasant surprise to your nostrils as you inhale. Seeing little reason to remain in bed, you pull yourself from the covers to investigate who exactly is cooking breakfast.

On the way, you notice the door to the guest room is part way open. You spy the black, chitinous form of Tarsus curled up in the pillows, snoozing away. Adding two and two together, you reason that his minotaur boyfriend was the one taking command of your kitchen.

You were right. "Morning," Straton gives you an over-the-shoulder nod as he slouches over the donkey-sized stove, tending to a few eggs in a frying pan. "I'll pay you back for the eggs and stuff. I'm just whipping up something for Tarsus. We were a little, uh, thorough last night. Took a lot outta him."

"Do I want to know the details?" you ask.

Straton raises an eyebrow. "Do you?"

Hmm. Perhaps not. No matter how versatile a changeling is, if you're sharing a bed with a minotaur, the word "sore" is gonna crop up at some point in that story. You respectfully decline.

You also reach the conclusion that Tarsus probably won't make it to his afternoon shift at the boutique. It's probably best to fill in for him while you're the better off of the two; he always pays his dues when needed.

*******

Fortifying yourself with the usual cup of tea, you take a seat behind the counter. It may have been just past noon by the time you got to your boutique, but most customers appear in the afternoon anyway, so any losses were minimal. Placing the steaming mug behind one of the many hidden shelves under said counter, you rise to greet your first customer as they enters the shop.

"Hello, and welcome to The Smart Ass, how can I help y-" Wait a minute; that's not any old customer! "You!"

"Yep," the familiar, toothily-grinning form of the Diamond Dog, prosthetic leg and all, looms over you. "Me."

"This is an unexpected surprise," you say, shifting from a customer-serving smile to a less formal one. "How did you like the Cider Bash last night?"

"It was good. Enlightening." He shrugs. "I guess you were partying longer than I was, though."

"You could say that..." the memories of Maud, specifically the bedroom antics you shared, spring to mind. "I was with this stunning mare at the bash. We played some card games, danced a while. Best poker face you've ever seen, and she was a hottie to boot! Totally into yours truly as well. A real traditional mare from..." You decide to stop before going into any more detail. "Well, I'm rambling, aren't I?"

"Yeah," the beastly customer grunts. "You are."

Talk about being blunt, "Oh. What, er, brings you to my humble clothes shop?" you ask.

"Clothes."

Wow, this guy's on a roll.

"Fancy clothes," he adds. "Ones that you'd go to a really nice restaurant in, but not the snooty kind of restaurant."

Wait, did he meet someone at the cider bash? Is that why he left early? Did he actually land a date!?

"Say no more, pal." you chirp, beckoning him toward the fitting rooms. "Follow me, I know a great selection. But uh, this will mostly be tuxedo tops, as it is quite difficult to fit you with tuxedo pants."

"Why? Because I'm missing a leg?" he growls.

"No, because almost none of the ponies here actually wear fancy pants. Not even Fancy Pants."

*******

You're rather proud of what you accomplished here today.

You were able to whip up a perfectly-fitted tuxedo jacket, complete with pockets and stitched from the best materials you had in stock. After giving thanks, the Diamond Dog plopped the perfect amount of Bits on your counter and hobbled away. You hope he impresses his mystery date.

After a few hours of processing orders from the usual Canterlot public, you think about calling it a day. Since you only started working around noon, the day flew by faster than usual. Just as you're clearing the boutique for closing time, you hear the shopkeeper's bell jingle behind you.

Turning around, you're greeted by those two stunning turquoise eyes that make your heart skip. The rest of Maud Pie is a mild silhouette of beauty in the door frame. She's wearing the smart attire she bought yesterday. She’s just as stunning in it as she was the day before.

"Hello," she says, her inscrutable voice as calming as ever. "I'm sorry if I didn't say goodbye to you this morning."

"Oh, don't apologise, Maud," you insist, "I just wish I was up first! I'd have made you breakfast."

"It's alright," she replies. "I woke up earlier than I usually would anyway. I wanted to explore the Canterlot Palace caves as soon as I was allowed. I guess you could say I have a hunger for knowledge."

"Really?" While you have absolutely no interest in most rocks, you know Maud would appreciate it if you asked; "How was it?"

"Strange." Her eyebrows lower just a little bit. "The vast majority of rocks in there are sedimentary, but there are crystals throughout the whole thing. Crystals usually mean igneous rock, or at the very least metamorphic. Stranger still, the mountains seems to have diatomite deposits, which only occur when a large amount of skeletal marine life is in the area. I wonder if Canterlot Mountain used to be underwater."

Half of those words went right over your posh donkey head, but still, it doesn't stop you from showing an interest. You got the last part, at least.

"Perhaps someday soon, you'll find out," you encourage her. "How long are you staying in Canterlot?"

"A month, maybe more. At least until my hunger for knowledge is sated."

"in that case, I hope that's not the only thing you're hungry for right now." Even through you'd gone all the way with Maud just last night, you can't help but feel an uneasiness in your stomach from what you're about to say; "Because I want to make it up to you for the lack of breakfast. Would you like to join me for dinner tonight?"

There, that wasn't so hard. You've asked mares out plenty of times before, why is this time to different?

Maud's expression doesn't change one bit. Instead, she just blinks. "I'm already dressed for the occasion, aren't I?"

Of course! Why would she explore caves in her smart clothes? She must've come prepared to date you right here and now! You knew there was something special about her.

"In that case," you offer her a gentlecoltly hoof, "lead the way."

Maud's eyes - and the corners of her lips - smile. She happily takes up your hoof, and your offer.

"If there's somewhere else you'd rather take me, that's fine," she says as you both walk out of the boutique, "but I've always wanted to try the Tasty Treat. My sister raves about it quite often..."

The shopkeeper's bell jingles behind you as your boutique door shuts for the last time that night.

(Spoiler; you have a fetish now. It's about spanking and occasionally pulling a tail. Or having one pulled. Personally, I think it's great.) - Maud Pie