Prologue: Hard Times
Every now and then times can get tough, and during these times everypony can be affected – regardless of race, age or class. These times can lead to financial insecurity and an endless stream of problems that promise to creep up and strike before they are even recognised as a problem. This situation applied heavily in Honey Blossom’s case and was the reason she was currently sat in the office of the newest local restaurant in Manehatten – Hay’s Burgers.
As an average-sized earth mare, sporting a light-straw coloured coat with vibrant azure hair that comprised her lengthy mane and tail, she had found herself in the middle of some financial troubles. Recently, her last place of employment, a modest flower arranging company, had filed for bankruptcy which meant that with immediate effect all staff were left jobless. And for many, including Honey Blossom, this was the difference between just managing to scrape by and destitution.
The final decision on whether or not to file for bankruptcy had been made in secret and came without warning for the unsuspecting employees. For hours without end, salty tears which stained her face, trickling down from her emerald eyes that blazed with anger as she struggled to contain her sadness. Her job as a flower arranger was her one and only source of income, even though the pittance it was, meaning that with her financial security gone, Honey Blossom didn’t know where her next meal was coming from let alone where she would find the money to pay for her monthly rent.
The slim mare had never felt so scared or hopeless in all her life, during her time in Manehatten she had always lived hoof to mouth, but without money to even buy food to eat she was at a loss for what to do. She had heard stories of ponies being able to take the loss of their job on the nose, search for a job and be back in employment within one to two weeks. However, for the less academically gifted, such as the lowly Honey Blossom, you’d be lucky to get a second interview for a road sweeping job.
To be honest, she had only got the job as a flower arranger due to the fact that she was technically gifted with her hooves which allowed her to create bouquets and flower arrangements worthy of selling. And, it wasn’t as if all potential employment avenues hadn’t been considered, she would never admit it but even ideas of prostitution filled her mind.
“Just to get me by until I can find a job”
At first, that line of reasoning almost seemed appealing to the mare. For sure, she had a nice body with a matching physique – perhaps slightly chubby, but nowhere near fat – that could serve her well and help her to earn the money required to fulfil her lifestyle. In her mind, it would only be for a short while as something had to eventually come up – she may even like it? Alas, the thoughts were soon abandoned. If losing all shreds of her dignity meant that she might be to sustain herself financially then it wasn’t worth it - her body was worth more than a few bits.
As Honey Blossom put it, “My dignity isn’t worth a pittance. Something will come my way, it just has to!”
Sleep was scarce for Honey Blossom on that night and not just because of the gurgling sounds that emanated from her stomach, it was fraught with restlessness as negative thoughts fought to consume her. But, she knew that she had to stay determined to not let it derail her life and hope above all else that she could find paying employment before her final dregs of money ran out.
The morning of the next day came slowly for Honey Blossom who rose from her bed feeling weak and weary caused by the lack of both food and sleep. However, the mare’s determination served her, quickly setting to work in order to find a new job. Literal hours were spent trawling through newspapers and maps, locating valuable establishments who might be looking to take on employees. With nothing but half a bowl of cereal lining her stomach, the petite mare set out to visit as many shops and restaurants she could – CV copies tucked neatly in her well-worn saddle bags – before the end of the day.
A problem is that determination can only get ponies so far and sometimes a little bit of luck is necessary to achieve one’s objective. Truthfully, it seemed that everypony who would entertain the idea of giving work to Honey Blossom were not interested in giving the mare an interview or a trial – some took one look at her CV and flat-out refused. Some of the more decent Manehatten folk took the time to point out that the reluctance to employ the mare was due to the lack of qualifications.
Constant rejection was starting to weigh heavily upon the mare’s usual positive outlook, causing her frustration to peak after spending half a day dragging herself around the city and not managing to secure one single interview. To make matters worse the day she had chosen to go on this escapade also coincided with the hottest March days since equestrian records began meaning that by noon her entire body felt sweaty and grubby while her regularly washed mane and tail began to look very dirty and disheveled.
“I just need someone to give me a chance! To let me prove myself!” The sweaty pony grumbled away to herself as she half-walked, half-dragged her tired hooves down another of Manehatten’s equally tired looking wide city streets.
Unfortunately, even though most building on both sides of the street were tall and provided some shaded shelter from the burning sun, the street was still at the mercy of the sun that continued to fly high in the ocean of blue sky giving little respite to the tiring earth mare. Nevertheless, the working day was waning and even though it meant continued exposure to the scolding rays of sunlight Honey Blossom was going to visit as many establishments as she could before calling it a day.
The first place on her list was Hay’s Burgers, perhaps unlikely to result in an interview from what she had come to expect from restaurants during the day, but it was newly opened which presented a real opportunity. It didn’t take long at all to reach the newest restaurant to open in Manehattan and from the freshly painted metal letters that were positioned at the top of the traditional open-plan restaurant design – HAYS BURGERS – it was clear that she had arrived at her destination.
That outside of the restaurant boasted freshly painted timbers which were finished with a glossy white paint that extended from each end of the building, the colour appropriately matching the huge white rectangular frames that encased two transparent windows that were nestled next to each other – the think frames the only thing to separate them. Positioned to the right of the windows were a set of wooden double doors that proudly guarded the entrance into the building.
To pass through the wooden portal, Honey Blossom had to make her way through the restaurants outside seating area, respectfully cordoned off from the busy streets of Manehattan by a metal and wood fence that formed an L-shape before connecting with the brick of the building. The seating arrangement served a dutiful service of providing an outlet for those who wished to enjoy sunlight or a pleasant wind. However, it was only large enough to fit three pristine oak tables, two positioned flush against the windows with one positioned in the corner point of the fence. The three tables looked almost too neat and tidy with the only disturbance being the parasol that sprouted out the centre of the rectangle wooden structures.
If the outside of the shop looked neat and tidy, then the inside of the restaurant was heavenly, passing the double doors had been an easy feat as the restaurant guards gave way to the lightest push or pull revealing a cool, clean smelling, air conditioned environment with a sweet scent of delicious food wafting into the dining room from the concealed kitchen. Of course, being half-blinded by the sun’s light meant that for the first moments of this newfound eden she was relying upon her scent and touch.
With her eyes quickly adjusting themselves to the shade, she was greeted with a contemporary decor that used twelve of the same tables she had seen outside, minus the parasols. Each table was set with a neatly white fabric lining the tables and garnished with pristine sets of cutlery that reflected every spec of light that bounced into the diner. Honey Blossom almost felt rude standing in the establishment in her sweaty, unclean state perceiving herself as sullying the cleanliness of the well-made dining room.
Thankfully, the mare’s blushes were saved due to the restaurant being almost empty aside from two ponies nestled closely together at one of the tables closest to the back wall and a pegasus standing behind a counter with two large cash registers sat upon it. Recognised as the left wall when she walked into the dining room, the counter stood afront a silver backdrop of clean kitchen equipment. The pony stood behind the counter could easily be identified as a pegasus, wings tucked tidily into their sides, who was currently fiddling with the register which was eliciting a metallic scraping noise from an area out of view.
The pegasus looked to be a mare, the long blonde locks of hair which formed her mane a bit of a giveaway, who had a deep crimson coat that covered all her body except for a white star that started from between her dark blue eyes to the end of her nose. Honey Blossom had to admit that the mare, if indeed she was a mare, looked stunning in the dulled synthetic lights that helped to relieve the dark shade that the indoors provided. It was also determined that the mare was the one she should ask about a job and within a millisecond she set out to close the distance between her and the counter.
Crossing the diner floor with a reinvigorated step the yellow coated mare appeared to attract the attention of the restaurant’s employee, automatically reaching a hoof around to pop open her saddle bag in anticipation of offering her CV. Before either of the mares could introduce one another Honey Blossom was gifted an unrestricted view of the mare’s once obscured lower-body which presented the same long length blonde tail as her mane, her cutie mark of two cherries held together by the stalk and white socks that began from her hooves and extended to the base of her calves.
“Hello,” the pegasus introduced herself first in a chirpy tone that seemed to possess a southern twang. “would you like to order some food?”
“Er… No thank you.” Honey Blossom replied steadily. After visiting and talking with so many ponies during the day her nervousness continued to dissipate from her conversation allowing the mare to come across as more confident. “I’m actually here to see if you had any vacancies at the restaurant?”
The crimson mare’s eyes gently narrowed at the sound of a more professional conversation, locking her dark-blue eyes onto the emerald eyes. “As it happens, the restaurant is currently looking to fill certain spots – after all we are newly opened.”
The azure maned mare felt like the pegasus’ last words were designed more to encourage her to apply causing her heartbeat to quicken in evident excitement of the potential “spots” that she may gain the ability to fill. ‘Okay, here’s the chance! For the love of Equestria don’t buck it up…’
“Would you mind me asking what the process was to apply for those spots?” Replied the unemployed mare, catching the pegasus’ foreleg moving to grab something that was out of view under the countertop.
“Just ask me, silly!” the crimson mare exclaimed allowing the southern twang to fill out her excited voice. At the same moment the pegasus quickly pulled her right foreleg from beneath the counter to reveal a pristine book that she gently laid upon the top. “From what the manager has been sayin’ it sounds like we’re mainly looking for either servers or part-time porters – they sound good to you?”
Honey Blossom was starting to find comfort in the relaxed and open nature of the mare before her who was starting to find a smile creeping onto her muzzle. However, before snapping the pegasus’ hoof off for the opportunity – like she should have done – there was a sense of doubt finding its way into the mare’s mind. ‘Waitress or cleaner? Are menial jobs all I’m good for?’. To some it may have sounded snobbish, but a part of Honey Blossom wished to better herself in her new job and not side-step into a dead end occupation.
“They sound perfect.” She finally responded, dispelling all doubts from her mind – a job was a job and if it kept her in her apartment then it was good enough for her.
“Great!” the blonde pegasus beamed, quickly pulling a ball-point pen from the shadows of the counter and holding it in her left forehoof whilst her right hastily flicked through the diary for the current date. “I can’t give you the job outright – that’s the management’s decision, but I can set up an interview?”
Honey Blossom almost winced at the mare’s admission that she couldn’t give her the job right then and there, but knew in her mind that she needed to take it on the nose and focus on the task at hoof. After all, it was never going to be that easy – getting the chance to express herself in an interview was the easy part and so far this was the closest to success she had gone.
“Yes,” Honey Blossom responded in a more formal, yet still bubbly, tone struggling to contain her excitement and anticipation. “that sounds fantastic.”
The mare opposite smiled, nodding in acknowledgement, before putting the tip of the pen she held to the paper. “And… your name?”
“Honey Blossom.” She obliged, her round yellow orbs watching intently as the first letter of her name was inscribed onto the paper. “H-O-N-E-Y… Blossom.”
“Honey Blossom, that’s a nice name,” the mare beyond the counter recited kindly, lifting the pen from the book leaving only the fresh ink of her name inscribed on the page. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“You too.” Honey Blossom replied, returning the toothy smile of the crimson mare. “Would you want a copy of my CV?”
“Yes, I think that’ll be very useful.” She responded after a moment of thought – Honey Blossom could only assume that it was about the current recruitment policy. “Would you happen to have one on hoo-“. The blonde maned mare’s question seemed to catch in her throat as she slowly processed the contents of the piece of paper that was now held out in front of her face.
“Here you go!” Honey Blossom beamed in triumph. It had only taken half a day, but her labours looked to be baring fruit at the prospect of an interview. “What time is the interview?”
It took a moment to get a response from the mare opposite who prioritised accepting the document, scrutinising it a little, before setting it down on the table next to the book. “Th-thanks. The only time I have available is at nine-twenty tomorrow morning – is that alright with you?”
Honey Blossom nodded eagerly in response, her smile widening into a toothy grin as she inwardly celebrated her achievement. “That’s perfect! Thank you so much, Miss…”
“Cherry Top,” the mare said, obliging to fill in the gap. “Don’t worry about it sweetie, I’m here to help.”
“Thank you anyway, Cherry Top!” the young mare insisted while celebrating the other mare’s actions, her face beaming in an uncontainable happiness. “You don’t realise what this means to me… You’re an angel!”
It would be nearly impossible for other ponies to tell, but Cherry Top felt herself blush at the remark, lowering her gaze to avoid the beaming gaze of the mare opposite. Her cheeks burned, but still she stood up to her designated task, using her left forehoof to wave off the remark. “Don’t be silly, it’s only an interview. Keep that celebratory spirit saved for when you get the job.”
Cherry Top’s words inadvertently made Honey Blossom feel like an idiot, she hadn’t even got the job and already she was celebrating as if she had won a medal. The simple fact of the matter was that she needed to calm herself down and make sure that she didn’t blow her chances of getting the job before the interview itself. With that in mind regaining her composure wasn’t difficult and she tried her best to get her head straight, but underneath everything the mare retained the feeling of victory she had won in getting an interview.
“Sorry, you’re right,” the yellow mare apologised sincerely, dipping her head towards Cherry Top as a sign of respect.
“No need to apologise,” Cherry Top reassured, shaking her head slightly, a warm smile still firmly set into the mare’s muzzle. “Just get that job and then celebrate.”
“Do you really think I’ll get it?” Honey Blossom’s voice filled with hope as the words left her maw encouraged by the confidence the crimson mare was instilling her with. ‘Maybe I do have a chance…’
“Of course!” Cherry Top started to nod her head this time, her smile fading slightly before changing into a more stern knowing look. “The manager isn’t a tough nut to crack - you impress him and the job’s yours.”
“I’ll be sure to do just that!” Exclaimed the excited earth mare who felt and looked reinvigorated with renewed determination to take on anything that life could throw at her. “He won’t know what hit him.”
However, deep down a subconscious part of the Honey Blossom felt that things were too good to be true. Little did she know of the unearthly weight of emotional distress that would follow her over the following days and weeks, nor the collosal strain that the workload would place upon her.
To be continued…
[CH1] - Desperate Measures
Chapter 1: Desperate Measures
So, there Honey Blossom sat, alone, in the Manager’s stuffy office of Hay’s Burgers awaiting for her interview to commence. Windowless and heavily reliant upon a ceiling mounted air conditioning unit that emitted a continuous whirring noise the air inside the room was stale and dry which drew unwanted yawns from the earth pony’s mouth.
The interior décor of the office was lifeless and uninspiring, seemingly designed to be as inoffensive as possible as was the current state of the barren monochrome walls. Painted an off-white colour, the boring nature was reflected in the dimensions of the room which couldn’t pass as a square, but would struggle to qualify as a rectangle. A single door was positioned perfectly in the middle of one of the shorter length walls, set up to allow the door to open into the room as not to impose upon the kitchen that lay just beyond the entrance.
The furniture wasn’t much better either; Honey Blossom was quite surprised at how little there was in the room, a wooden table – not too dissimilar to the ones that filled the dining room – stood proud in the centre of the room accompanied by two matching chairs that sat parallel to each other – the one Honey Blossom sat on forced her to have her back to the doorway with the Manager’s chair on the opposite end of the table. Positioned in the left corner of the back wall was a solitary green filing cabinet that reflected the lights that shone down from the ceiling while a perky indoor palm tree took it’s position in it’s plant pot in the right corner.
The only item left that was worthy of a mention was a white clock hung up on wall to the mare’s right and even that would have blended in with the wall if it weren’t for the black of the clock’s hands. In her sitting position the straw-coloured mare, trying to psych herself up, was relying on the clock to help her determine when her potential employee would come through the door behind her. A quick side glance told her all she needed to know – twenty-four minutes past nine.
“He’s late…” themare mumbled to herself before sighing in frustration at the lack of promptness that her potential boss was showing.
To out it into perspective, Honey Blossom had made it her priority to arrive interview on time, even early, to ensure make sure that she was presenting herself as both keen for the job and having the determination to show up on time of her shifts. She actually ended up walking through the restaurant doors at eleven minutes past nine, a mixture of nervousness and excitement keeping keeping her focussed on achieving her goal of getting the job. Expecting to see the crimson coated Cherry Top that had brought some happiness to her world the previous afternoon she was slightly put off when instead a beige-coloured pegasus was stood in her place.
If the earth mare was expecting to receive the same warmth and friendliness from the mare in front of her then she was sorely mistaken. Dressed in what Honey Blossom could only assume were her job overalls, the words “HAY’S BURGERS” stitched into the red polo-shirt she wore being the giveaway, the pegasus gave Honey Blossom a stern look as the earth mare as she trotted up to the counter.
“We’re not serving until ten.” The mare almost spat, not an ounce of pleasantness present within her words as she rudely talked at the wannabe employee.
The pegasus had brown eyes which blazed with suspicion as the unfamiliar mare failed to comply and exit the restaurant upon first warning, seemingly unaware of who the mare was. Honey Blossom took a moment to take in the mare, noticing a dirty-blonde mane that was tied up into a bun that threatened to spill out from the black hat that placed upon her head.
“Oh, I’m not here to order anything,” The mare with the azure mane said carefully, trying her best to not get on the employee’s bad side - although, it seemed that it had already happened. “I’m here for an interview… Cherry Top set an interview up for me.”
Although a statement, her words ended up coming across more like a question which prompted the pegasus to raise her brow at Honey Blossom, using her brown eyes to size up the mare who stood before her. “I wasn’t aware of any interviews for today, let me have a look. She wrote it in a black book, correct?”
The earth mare nodded in response awaiting eagerly for her story to be corroborated by the memo book that contained both her name and CV. Thankfully, she didn’t have to wait long for the pegasus to pull the book in question from behind the counter – which drew a disparaging comment from the rude equine on where Cherry Top should have stored the book – quickly flicking through the well inked pages until she found the latest entry. Upon opening the page that contained the precious information, her CV copy slid from the book onto the counter which allowed the beige mare to see that she was telling the truth.
“You would think that somepony would have at least told the Senior-Manager about an interview…” The pegasus mumbled through her teeth as she quickly scammed through both the book for my name and my CV just to make sure that I wasn’t going to be wasting anypony’s time. “I’ll be having words with that Cherry Top.”
A wave of nervousness washed over Honey Blossom as the brown eyes of the pegasus switched her gaze back to her own. The earth mare had to admit, her emerald orbs watching carefully as the beige equine closed the book that had saved her interview before laying her CV atop the leather binding, that it was off-putting having the restaurant’s Assistant-Manager stood behind the counter who vocalised a ‘hmph’ sound as she took a step back from the counter that divided the two of them.
“You better come through, then.” The yellow coated mare’s hopes were met when the pegasus said this filling her with elation, but also a new wave of nervousness as this meant there was no going back now. “I’ll just let you through…”
After finishing her sentence, the Assistant-Manager proceed to walk to the right before disappearing past the dry wall that seperated the noise of the kitchen and staff from the casual nature of the dining room, but not before Honey Blossom got to see the rest of the mare’s attire – black linen trousers that covered the top of her flanks and the length of her back legs. The pegasus wasn’t gone for long, a faint metallic clicking sounded from out of sight, followed moments later by a light thud against the door that, the earth mare assumed, lead to the kitchen and the all-important office.
The noise persisted until, at last, the door handle turned before opening inwards into the kitchen revealing the pegasus who popped her head through the doorway with an impatient glare. “Come on! I haven’t got all day.”
The beige pony was curt – some might deem her words as rude - in her words, but Honey Blossom was understanding, under the premise that it was probably not wise to get on the wrong side of her, as she turned her body and began into a slow trot towards the open door. Arriving at the open doorway the earth mare was hit by the warmth of the kitchen causing her to turn her head away from the heat. Honey Blossom could only voice her surprise in her mind, ‘Wow… that’s warm…’
The pegasus seemed to have noticed the mare’s reaction as an audible ‘tut’ found it’s way past the beige pony’s lips, “Come on now, I’ll show you to the office.”
“Thank you,” Honey Blossom responded gratefully, choosing to brave the heat and stepping through the doorway and stopping just past the pegasus. “I never quite caught your name?”
“I never said.” The mare replied matter of factly, letting go of the door handle which allowed the door to merge with the door frame, eliciting an audible click when the door filled it’s frame to become one. “The name’s Miss Thunder Prance, Honey Blossom.”
“It’s nice to meet you…” Honey Blossom paused momentarily as the pegasus passed her walking, encouraging the mare to follow as she was lead past a hallway with a firedoor at the end, she wasn’t sure if the use of the pronoun was required or not – especially when talking to a potential senior. “Miss Thunder Prance…”
The earth mare could have sworn she saw a sly smile find its way onto Thunder Prance’s muzzle, but it must have lasted for mere moments before her facial features reset into the same stern one that had greeted her at the counter. She didn’t even have the chance to think about it before the mare stopped once again, this time positioned right outside of a windowless door that must have lead into the manager’s office – or so Honey Blossom thought.
“Right, the Manager is running a little late today – I am sorry about that…” Thunder Prance said dryly while grasping for the door handle, using a little force to push it open, but even though she ‘apologised’ for the her senior’s absence the pegasus didn’t look or even sound like she was sorry. “but, if you want to go in there and take a seat I’ll be sure to send him right in when he arrives.”
Honey Blossom could only nod at the pegasus’ words, thanking the mare for her help before walking into the office…
“…anks… Is she in here?”
Voices brought Honey Blossom’s mind back to the present, her body automatically shifting in posture to make her sit up in her chair, this was the moment where she would either leave the restaurant as an employee or with nothing. To say the mare was nervous was an understatement, for all her work at trying to psyche herself up the big moment had brought down all her mental barriers in a single, startling, gust.
“Cheers, Thunder.” The voice sounded again, closer this time and with more clarity than before. It was unmistakably a masculine voice, low in tone with a slight gruffness that most feminine voices struggle to vocalise naturally.
Honey Blossom turned her head to face the door, she didn’t think it right that the first thing a potential employer saw of her was the back of her head, instead she would meet his gaze with confidence – even if it is was an act. Abruptly the door handle was turned quickly and with an audible thud, the door swung open, revealing her the restaurant manager for the first time. From first impressions he looked to be an earth stallion, the lack of wings or a horn making the mare’s mind up for her, who sported a light-grey coat that stretched across his entire body accompanied by a light-blue mane and tail finished off with bright sky-blue eyes.
He was well-built and at average height, a foot taller than herself, and exuded a powerful confidence as his large gate quickly made up the distance between the door and the table. From up close, the mare could recognise that he was wearing a shirt and tie that fit him so well it must have been professionally tailored, but nothing covered his flanks or back legs meaning that his cutie mark – a golden key – was on full display.
Two brown leather saddle bags found there place at the sides of the equine, the right one opened slightly with the same leather bound book that she had become familiar with at the counter peeking out of the top. It looked like it had been quickly stuffed in quickly to help save time, perhaps by a manager who was running behind and late for an interview? Honey Blossom certainly thought so.
“I am really sorry I’m late,” The stallion said as he passed the table, ignoring the door which had quickly swung to a closed position with a blunt thud. “I had to see a supplier about a potential promotional deal.”
“It’s fine…” Honey Blossom replied meekly, her confidence already waning in the present of such a powerful stallion. She wanted to say more, to truly assert herself, but she didn’t dare offend the one person who might be able to give her a job.
“How are you doing today?” The light-grey stallion asked as he reached the other side of the table with his head facing the wall between the filing cabinet and the lonely palm tree.
The earth mare watched for a moment as the large stallion leaned forward, as if he were a cow trying to graze, his head nearly touching the scratchy surface of the carpet. It confused Honey Blossom slightly, but it was quickly explained as the lofty saddle bags slowly slipped down the stallions arched back, passing over his head and his thick cut short mane, before depositing them both onto the floor. “I’m good… I suppose a little nervous to-“
“Nervous?” The stallion inquired with his back still turned, unapologetic at the fact that he had interrupted the mare sat opposite him, taking his time to fish through the open bag for the easily accessible book that contained the copy of her CV. “There’s no need to be nervous here. I trust that Thunder Prance looked after you in my stead?”
“She was… efficient.” The mare responded slowly, taking the diplomatic route in order to not offend the stallion stood before her, even if the pegasus had been rude and somewhat cold.
“Efficient?” The stallion recited to himself, chuckling slightly as he turned around to face the sitting mare, placing the book he had taken from his bag lightly on the tabletop. “That’s a new one, most of the time she’s a complete battleaxe.”
He ended his sentence with a wam and genuine smile, pulling the unoccupied chair from beneath the table before setting his toned flanks down upon it. Honey Blossom found the stallion’s smile to be infectious and within mere seconds she too had a toothy grin plastered on her muzzle.
“That’s a beautiful smile,” the light-grey equine said unexpectedly with a straight face while leaning forward in his chair slightly, making him look more imposing than he already was.
Although prefaced as a compliment – at least Honey Blossom hoped it was, it was something which caught the mare off guard slightly who watched the stallion’s gaze grow into one that she couldn’t quite place, it was almost mischievous looking. “Thanks,” she responded quietly, trying not to meet the stallion’s gaze. It wasn’t the compliment that had disgruntled the mare, it was the manner and setting that it was used in was inappropriate for such comments. ‘He knows I’m here to be employed, not to be his girlfriend, right?’
The stallion must have sensed her unease after the comment had been given time to be processed, promptly shifting the conversation by opening the book to the page where her CV was neatly placed. “Shall we get on with the interview?”
‘Please do.’ She thought to herself, nodding at the stallion who slid the CV onto the table. Honey Blossom was still wary of him, but was prepared to keep her concern quiet if it meant that the manager would actually conduct the interview.
Eventually, the manager did continue; and over time the mare began to feel more relaxed as the light-grey stallion introduced himself as Admin Stud, smoothly moving into the common-place questions – “Why do you want the job?”, “Where do you see yourself in five years time?” – which she answered honestly, gaining in confidence as she spoke. For Honey Blossom things were looking up, she was even starting to warm up to the stallion after the shaky start, at one stage the manager even said as a joke, “Your hired”. Things couldn’t have been better, she might actually get the job.
That was until he read through the mare’s qualifications and previous work-experience. At that point the smiles and the jokes stopped, replaced by an intense scrutiny upon her high-school grades and her past employment, and not a word was exchanged for nearly a minute.
At last the stallion held up hoof up to his lips and audibly cleared his throat, “So, it says here that you recently worked as a flower arranger at Prunella Petals – what would you say you learned there that you can transfer to a position here?”
The stallion’s silence during the scrutiny of her CV had allowed another wave of nervousness to crash into her, not so confident now that Admin had not looked pleased at her qualifications. “W-well, while I was there I had to work in a team… with ponies and make sure that things were made to order and- within a set time.”
“What about pony-skills?” Admin Stud asked in a low voice, his eyes quickly rising from the CV and quickly latching onto the emerald corneas of her own eyes. “You see, I’m currently looking for a waitress, but I need them to be comfortable talking and conversing with anypony and everpony who works through those doors.”
“I-uh…” Honey Blossom stumbled, mentally scolding herself for not feeling comfortable enough to answer first time, feeling more and more pressure being placed upon her. “I occasionally worked the tills at that store… I answered the phones and had to make sure ponies knew what they were buying… and I think I got really good at it.”
Her words sounded like she was defending herself from Admin’s scrutiny rather than expressing her skills, she had come into this interview knowing that she was lacking in some areas and it appeared that they were an issue for the manager in front of her. Honey Blossom didn’t know what the stallion was thinking, his gaze showed concern, but he must have been as equally disappointed as what was on the CV.
“It says here you got an ‘E’ in Mathematics…” Admin Stud breathed out an audible sigh, signalling that the qualification simply wasn’t good enough. What scared the mare was that he went silent for a couple of seconds, almost as if he wasn’t interested in her now that she lacked the requirements for the job. “We have a strict employment rule and it is an essential that employees have at least a ‘C’ in that subject.”
After all her hard work visiting every store, restaurant and hotel in search of a job, it was scary to Honey Blossom that she was literally seconds away from rejection. Of course, he hadn’t said it yet, but it was clear in his own words that she didn’t meet the requirements, that was the first major telling sign. The second most telling sign, and the one that confirmed it for the mare, was the manager’s body language – eyes uninterested, slightly shaking his head as he sat back in his wooden chair.
‘Nononono-NO! ’ Honey Blossom felt herself shaking, was this really where her hopes ended for Hay’s Burgers? She was nearly screaming inside her head, slowly losing control of both her emotions and her body. “W-where d-does that leave me?”
“I’m afraid, it means that,” Admin started slowly, the chair’s back support creaking as more of his weight was transferred upon it while meeting the tearful gaze of the once-prospective employee. “I can’t offer you the job”.
The yellow mare almost felt dizzy at the stallion’s words, it was simply too much for her to handle as her hopes were snapped like twigs. Hopelessness, frustration and anger were just some of the emotions that were coursing through her body, she silently wished that the stallion was playing a cruel joke on her - she could more than handle that - but as the stallion continued to be sat back in his chair it dawned on her that she was being rejected.
“I’m very sorry about this,” the stallion spoke again sincerely, to Honey Blossom he looked genuinely disappointed, his face grim as he moved to stand on all-fours. “It’s a real shame, I think that you would have been a great fit, but company policy is company policy.”
Honey Blossom was becoming distraught, irrational too. In her mind, the stallion wasn’t understanding that she needed the job more than anything and that his rejection could put her out on the streets. If only he knew that not employing her would destroy her life, if only he knew that she would do anything not to see that become a reality.
“Hire me!” She blurted out in desperation, trying to catch the stallion’s gaze who had moved to lean on forward with his flank resting on the edge of the chair, she needed to make him understand. “Please, I need this job… more than anything.”
Begging was a long shot, something that she hadn’t thought through extensively beforehoof, but what did the mare have to lose by this point? Besides, it seemed to have caught the stallion’s attention who followed the mare closely with his eyes, almost slyly, certainly interested in what the mare had to say.
“I can’t, it would set a bad example,” Admin Stud explained slowly, carefully studying the mare, trying his best to calm the situation down. “I have rejected many ponies on the basis of their qualifications - I won’t show leniency based upon your desperation”
The mare was panicking by this point, tears freely flowing down her cheeks as, struggling to contain her cries. “Bu-but, I-”
“No, that is final.” The stallion replied sternly, this time tensing up his hind legs as he moved to settle his forehooves on the ground. “I wish you well on finding employment, but it won’t be he-”
“PLEASE!” the mare cried slamming her own forehooves harshly on the wooden table, anguished at her current predicament. Her actions were extreme causing the stallion to tense up defensively in anticipation of an attack from the mare. “I’m begging you… I’ll do anything for this job - I could be homeless with a few days and I need this to keep my home…”
The stallion looked sympathetic as the mare was honest with him, going into the full details of what her financial situation was like and the danger she was in of being kicked out of her apartment by her landlord. He listened to every word that the mare spoke and was quick to try and console her by moving around the table in order to place a calming hoof upon Honey Blossom's shaking hooves.
"I can only imagine the stress you must be under currently," the stallion began tenderly, his voice low as he leaned his body into the mare which she took as him trying to sooth and console her. "But, I can't offer you a job - I wish I could help you..."
Honey Blossom wouldn't have said it to the stallion's face, but even though he sounded genuine there was something about the manager that gave her a bad feeling - she just couldn't put her hoof on it. The way he pressed his body into her was her first cause for concern, she appreciated Admin's original gesture of moving around the table to console her, but the touchy-feely approach was off-putting.
The mare didn't respond to the equine's words, more concerned by the stallion's behaviour which had resorted to resting his chin on the top of her head. Too unsettled to push the stallion any further for a job, slowly contemplating what she would do now, she decided that it was the best course of action to leave - more out of the want to escape the presence of the overly touchy stallion draped upon her side. "I should go..."
Her words were meek, barely penetrating the heavy air of the office, the only way for anypony to hear it would have required them to be standing right next to the mare. Luckily enough though, a certain intrusive stallion was on hoof to pick up on her words.
"I could give you a trial period," the intrusive stallion announced slowly, his breathing laboured as he rested himself while perched upon the mare's head. "It would only be temporary, pending a work evaluation, would you like that?"
Honey Blossom's spirit was immediately raised from the depths of despair, a "temporary trial period" wasn't what she had wanted originally but she couldn't say no to a wage. However, she was hesitant in accepting the offer, she wasn't sure of the specifics of the job and she was damned if she didn't know, up front, which job she would be working in "How would that work? What role would I be employed to perform?"
"It's simple," he started, softening his voice as he took in the scent of the mare, fully enjoying the close contact they shared. He was calm, collected and ready to answer the mare's question. "You'd take up the position of waitress, sometimes you would be needed in the back washing dishes, but waitress would be your role."
It sounded perfect to the mare, it was a role that she believed she could fill without any prior training, it was also low skilled - and however demeaning that sounded - which meant that she would pass the "evaluation" with flying colours. It also sounded to good to be true. How could a stallion that had flat out refused to take her on, mere minutes ago, do a full u-turn? Honey Blossom had to admit that the situation was getting sketchy.
"However, I would like something in return." Admin stated in a sly voice, pulling his body away from the mare and placing his hooves on the ground. Honey Blossom was careful to watch the movements of the stallion, this behaviour wasn't normal and it sounded as if the stallion was trying to extort her. "You said that you'd 'do anything' for the job' - does that still stand?"
She was slow to answer the question, extremely vigilant to not sell her soul to the powerful equine stood next to her, so she spoke slowly and carefully."Y-yeah... within r-reason though."
As the stallion presented his length to Honey Blossom, the mare inwardly labelling the cock as “fairly average”, she felt her stomach become uneasy at the prospect of trading in sexual favours for the job. The earth mare hated the irony of the situation, her own words of preserving her dignity mockingly ringing in her ears, as the stallion placed his flanks upon the table’s smooth wooden surface. Where was her dignity now?
The yellow mare watched, scared out of her mind, as the her boss kept re-positioning his flanks in order to be as comfortable as possible, using his long hind legs to support his body in its unorthodox position. It was clear that he wanted the blowjob to go ahead, his erect cock standing – literally – as testament to his enjoyment, but even Honey Blossom could tell that he wanted to be careful. Every so often the stallion swept a quick glance over to the door, the only thing that preserved there privacy, his ears swivelling constantly trying to pick out any indications of movement.
“I feel sick…” Honey blossom mumbled to herself absently as she continued to stand against the same wall as the doorway, reaching out her right hoof to steady herself, struggling to suppress the urge to bolt out of that door and far away from this wicked place.
Every fibre of her being told her that this was wrong, that she should leave immediately, but leaving would probably leave her homeless. There was no guarantee that she could find a job before she was kicked out of her apartment, this was the only way to secure her financial situation and put food on her table, failing that would force her to move back in with her mother – a fate worse than homelessness in Honey Blossom’s eyes.
“Hurry up!” Admin Stud hissed at the mare, his eyelids forming slits around his blue eyes, impatiently awaiting her to fulfill her new job description. “You do want this job right?”
The mare’s legs tensed up, confidently awaiting the brain’s orders to propel her at the wooden entrance, one word of assurance was all it would take. Honey Blossom knew it was her last chance to back out, she knew it was better for both her dignity and emotions, but running away wasn’t going to bring her the economic stability that she so wished for. “Yes, I want the job.”
“Then get over here!” Admin snapped aggressively although this time it was in a hushed tone as to not draw any more attention to the office than was necessary. Anger clear in his voice showing that he was not prepared to wait for the mare to think things through. “I’m not getting caught doing this.”
Honey Blossom felt her knees start to tremble, her hind legs bowing little by little, as she desperately tried to pluck up the courage to go and fellate the angry looking stallion. She didn’t want to go through with it, but she had to and to pass up a job with her lack of qualifications would be a very foolish thing to do – in her mind this could be her only chance. That was the only strand of reasoning that fueled her conviction as she settled down onto all fours, tensing her leg muscles again, but this time in order to keep her standing as she walked to the centre of the room.
‘What’s the big deal, anyway? It’s a one-time thing – you’ll get the job and it’ll all be over in an instant!’ A voice from inside her head came forward, trying to inspire her like some form of religious preacher, perhaps it was the mare’s subconscious purposefully lying to her to give her courage to go through with the act – Honey Blossom knew for sure that the voice was being willfully ignorant to her situation.
However, the silent preaching did appear to help take her first tentative step towards the stallion, then another, then another. Scared senseless, but determined, she quickly cut the distance to the table that the stallion was sat on and maneuvered herself to the stallion’s right. Immediately the scent of the horny stallion filled his nostrils, musty and powerful, ever present and intoxicating. Honey Blossom blushed involuntary and looked to her right, trying in vain to hide the effects the hormones were doing to her mind.
If Admin Stud had noticed her reaction, which was rather unmissable for the fact that he was positioned right next to her, he either didn’t care or simply wasn’t bothered enough to make a derogatory comment. The mare was relieved that the stallion’s momentary silence was prolonged allowing her to regain her composure and traverse past the stallion’s outstretched hind leg, shifting her gaze to the ground as she finally knelt her lower hind legs upon the uncomfortable carpet.
Honey Blossom winced as the scratchy surface irritated and itched her legs, squirming in place as she tried to make herself more comfortable. However, the carpet was unrelenting though and before long she was voicing groans of anger and frustration which caught the attention
“If I had known this was happening then I might have brought you some kneepads.” Admin laughed at the mare, mildly containing though as he looked down upon the mare with a lustful glint in his eye.
Out of anger towards the manager, Honey Blossom quickly matched the gaze of the stallion flashing a look of defiance, striving to prove that she still had some fight left over. She was making a statement that she wouldn’t be degraded by the stallion, demanding that he show her some respect for putting her own body on the line for the job. Although, it didn’t look like the stallion was particularly bothered as he strained his torso around to pick something off of the desk, his left forehoof sliding something to the edge he was sat on.
“Here, use this then.” Admin said flatly as he slid the piece of paper of the table, letting it unceremoniously float to the floor. “That’s about all it’s useful for.”
The mare found the words of the stallion cryptic at first, but as the stallion raised his eyebrows in a challenge she realised that it had to do with the paper that had fallen on the floor. From a first glance, whatever it was had fallen facedown so a closer inspection was required from the mare who leaned over and used her hooves to pick it up. From what the stallion was insinuating, she was to use the paper to kneel on, but as she turned the piece over she was greeted with an unbelievably cruel site.
‘How cruel…’, she thought to herself as she took it in, the stallion had only gone and given the mare her own CV to kneel on. She felt her lip start to quiver and her eyes filling with tears as she pondered the cruel insult. She felt humiliated at the insinuation that her entire live’s achievements weren’t worth the ink they were printed with, that the only thing they were good for was for making the mare comfortable as she traded sex and sexual favours for the things she wanted in life. ‘What have I done to deserve this?’
It really was a low-blow, but the thought that encouraged the first tear to stain her yellow cheak was that it was all true, she was little more than a common prostitute. She struggled to contain her sobs, her head looking to the floor while the salty tears stained her cheeks before falling to the wretched floor that had prompted all this. She wanted nothing more to crawl under a rock, but as she moved her precious CV towards the floor to position it beneath her knees, the sight of the stallion’s hind legs reminded her of what she needed to do. With tear filled eyes she looked up at the towering stallion.
As their eyes met, she saw that the stallion’s eyes were nothing more than cold, merciless blue orbs while his face was like stone. In his eyes he had won, successfully degrading the whorse knelt between his legs who was about to let him unload his seed into her mouth.
With that fresh in his mind he brought his hooves up to his thick stallionhood, momentarily massaging his length before pointing his dick towards the mare. “Now, you best be getting to work – employee evaluations are coming up.”
To be continued…
Chapter 2: Foul Play
There seemed no way back for the Honey Blossom, arching her back as she moved head up to stallion’s crotch. Admin had his fellow equine right where he wanted her, watching intently as the mare opened her mouth in anticipation of receiving the male’s length moments before placing her lips upon the tip of the stallion’s shaft. The instant that their flesh met fresh tears began to form in the yellow mare’s tear ducts, her neck muscles tensing up as she fought the urge to rip away from the contect.
The initial taste was unpleasant as the pre-cum that had built up spilled onto her tongue, causing her to gag. She had no problem with sucking a stallion’s dick, provided that they weren’t trying to extort her for their own sexual gratification, but the taste of semen had always left a foul taste in her mouth. Literally.
Honey Blossom felt nothing but shame as she started to bob her head along the stallion’s shaft, taking in a substantial part of his length before pulling back up to the flared tip of his cock. Her ministrations made the manager of the restaurant groan and tremble excitedly as he rested upon the wooden table, using her tongue to flick and tease the most sensitive parts of his dick.
It was no secret that she was despising every second Admin’s penis rested upon her tongue, coming to a silent conclusion that if she couldn’t escape the abuse she might as well make it as short as she possibly could. With that in mind, every time his flared tip reached the edges of her lips she sucked on it as hard as she could, doing all she could to make him cum quickly and leave her in peace. Thankfully, it appeared to be working.
“Damn, you’re good.” The grey male groaned aloud as the mare silently went about her task of getting him off, enjoying the euphoric sensations of Honey Blossom’s tongue as it wrapped itself around his cock.“Where’d you learn to do this?”
Of course, he didn’t receive an answer - partly to do with the cock stuffed in the yellow mare’s mouth, but mainly for the fact that she was trying her best to ignore Admin and the fact that he existed.
The stallion soon became an excited trembling mess, bucking his hips randomly, his tip leaking copious amounts of bitter pre-cum, signalling that he was close. Honey, who was no amateur at sucking off a stallion, was wise to these telling signs and immediately pushed her head down as far as she could go, his tip just narrowly avoiding her uvula as she tried to take as much as she could and get him as close as possible before she finished him off with one hard suck on his tip.
Sliding her tongue around the thick mast in her mouth, her tried to edge him as far as she could, preparing for the finale. She believed she had him, it was going so well – almost too well. Honey could feel his cock tense up, ready for release – she knew he was about to cum. At the realisation, she pulled her head up, gliding incredibly smoothly over the saliva drenched cock before resting the blood-engorged dick-tip on her flat tongue, taking a single moment to prepare herself for the flood of his bitter-tasting ejaculate. Another moment passed by and she was ready, pursing her lips over his flare and sucked hard.
“Ooooooh, Celestia!” Admin wailed in pleasure as his cock became painfully hard ready to unload all he had into his employees mouth. He knew it was a matter of seconds before his first load hit the back of the mare’s throat - he could feel it. “I’m cumming!”
As if on cue Admin’s cock began to unload into her warm mouth, groaning loudly and bucking his hips wildly as spurt after spurt of thick, creamy, bitter tasting cum was released. The manager enjoyed every millisecond he spent filling the mare’s maw with cum, gleefully pumping his spurting cock in and out of the warm and wet orifice to milk himself of all that he had. To save having to explain why she had cum-matted fur, the mare clamped her mouth around the erupting spigot that was the stallions cock, gagging slightly at the sheer volume of foul tasting baby-batter, swallowing as much of his semen as she could.
Honey Blossom had failed to count how many times the equine’s cock spasmed as it rested between her tightly sealed lips, she had lost count after the fourth wave of boiling hot semen had forced her to swallow the contents of her mouth before her cheeks overflowed.
“That’s it,” the stallion said breathlessly as the mare went about cleaning him, his voice shaky as he bathed in the afterglow of his orgasm, watching intently as the mare continued licking up all the excess cum that he had to offer. “clean me the best you can – Celestia that was good…”
The equine’s moans were uncontrollable, continuously slipping through the stallion's throat as he watched the tearful earth mare evil eyes. His thoughts were full of cruel or mischievous things things he could do to the mare in her vulnerable position, consciously filtered through them to find the best one. Seeing the mare moving to the tip of his softening, yet still enlarged cock, sent the immediate idea to thrust wildly into her mouth and smash his tip deep into the earth mare’s defenseless throat.
Tensing his hind-leg’s thigh muscles and his hips, Admin lurched his entire body forward, momentarily standing upon his hind-legs as his lower stomach thumped into the mare’s snout. The initial blow to her snout left Honey Blossom reeling in pain, but she was left a coughing, spluttering mess as stallion’s dick found it’s target in the back of her throat. In the moments after the cock was removed from her throat, the stallion ungracefully landing his flanks back upon the wooden table, the mare was left upon her back due to how much power she had put into ripping back from the the limb that had caused so much pain and discomfort.
"You tell no one one about this - you hear me?" Admin asked sternly, disregarding the coughs of mare. He took no pleasure at causing the mare pain, in his mind it was done out of necessity to keep the mare from talking about what he had made her do. "One word about this and you're gone."
Honey Blossom answered, her voice raspy and quiet as she struggled to deal with the pain that radiated throughout her throat. "Yea..."
The stallion studied the state of his cock as it fell limp onto his large ballsack, slightly damp, but significantly more clean than what it had been. To be honest, Admin was quite impressed with the earth mare - she was gifted at sucking dick and wasn’t bad at cleaning up either, swallowing everything he gave to her without a complaint. Satisfied, he raised himself from his seated position and made to stand on all fours for the first time in ages, stretching his back to avoid pulling a muscle.
"Great!” Amin Stud’s demeanor seemed to change in an instant, seemingly removing all that had transpired in the office within the last ten minutes. The domineering aggression that he had showed during the blowjob seemed to disappear too, replaced with the formal professional tone he had held when introducing himself. "Welcome aboard, Honey Blossom."
Curling her hind-legs whilst still on her side, Honey Blossom refused to meet his gaze or to answer the stallion as she rubbed her sore throat. He had taken what he wanted from her, so it angered the mare as he hung around like the bad taste that lingered in her mouth. Why couldn’t he just disappear and leave her alone?
"Not even a thank you... How ungrateful." The stallion said playfully, looking more to provoke a reaction out of the mare rather than for an ingenuine thanks. When it became clear that the mare was in no mood to even acknowledge the stallion, he made towards the office door, after all he was a businesspony and time was money. "I'll go and grab you your uniform - what's your size?"
Near inaudible murmurs of the mare’s clothes sizes filled her maw, but the stallion managed to catch the information, nodding to himself as his hoof found the door handle. "I'll tell Thunder Prance that you're on a trial period - she'll sort your shifts out."
With that said, the stallion opened the door and promptly exited the room, letting the door close upon its own accord, clicking audibly as the latch filled the strike plate. Thus, Honey Blossom was left alone. Newly employed, yes, but highly undignified, dirtied and emotionally ready to crawl into a corner and never emerge again. Even by this point Honey Blossom was at a loss for whether or not this had all been worth it, she had been given employment which would save her from homelessness, but she felt used and abused.
To be continued…
