Make myself a winner

Plains spread to the horizon. The land was a dirty brownish-green. Squat trees and shrubs dotted the landscape.

Up above, vultures circled in the air, ready for her to drop dead.

Misty licked her dry lips, hefting her leaf water bottle to her lips. Before she had left the forest, she had made two saddlebags out of leaves.

And now she was walking under a blistering sun.

She'd do anything to be back in the forest.

There should've been a train track somewhere, a station, but the train to Kirin Grove only came once a week. And she had no bits to pay for a ride and no idea where it was.

Never mind the fact she was probably WANTED now, dead or alive.

A somehow humid wind blew through the trees, cooling the sweat dripping down her fur.
Something cawed.

She looked up. It wasn't a vulture; it was a seagull with a red beak and feet. It's back was silver, wings tipped with black, and the rest of its feathers were white.

Misty gathered her things, trotting after the seagull.

She stopped once or twice to eat some fruit she had picked while she had been near Kirin Grove, but still, she kept on walking until she saw the shining buildings of a city on the horizon.

Manebourne.

The seagull flew and dipped over the buildings, disappearing in the direction of the beaches.

Misty slumped on the ground, sipping some water out of her bottle until there was nothing.
Her throat still ached and burned, rubbed raw with sand.

In a city, she could disappear.

She galloped toward the city.

Manebourne was loud but differently from Kirin Grove or Ponyville.

She walked down hidden alleyways patterned with graffiti and up and down strange streets packed with cafes.
One shop she passed had a HELP WANTED sign in the window. She walked inside, sitting down at a table.

There was a menu already on the table, but she didn't pick it up.

A red dragon came over to her table. He held his pen in one claw, tapping it against his notepad. "What do ya want?" he asked in a strong Horsetralian accent.

"I want to apply for a job here."

"You look too young. How old are you?"

Misty smiled at him. "I look young for my age." She peered around the restaurant, licking her dry lips again.

The restaurant was very simply laid out, with tables and chairs. It was sort of grubby looking, but there were customers around, which was a good sign.

A red curtain marked off the kitchens. There was also a counter, where a pony sat, filing his hooves.

"Do you have a resume?" the dragon said.

"Not yet, but I can whip one up. Do you have any paper or pencils I can borrow? I'm strapped for bits, and I don't have any for a resume."

"I'll see what I can do." The dragon walked away from the table, leaving Misty alone.

Misty smiled at the customers around her, finally starting to read the menu. They served burgers.

Reading the menu was a mistake. It only made her stomach growl even louder.

She rooted around in her bag. She had one apple left, so she would have to save it.

The dragon returned with a scroll and a quill and gave to them to her. Misty carefully wrote down her resume.
She passed it over to the dragon with a smile when she had finished.

The dragon read it over, looking over the paper at her. "Can you come tomorrow for a job interview at around one?"

"Yes."

The dragon smiled. "It's wonderful to meet you, Misty. I hope it works out. I think we'll have fun working together."

"I do too."

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

Misty couldn't fall asleep. Music two restaurants down thumped and pounded from a bar.

Creatures laughed, two griffons staggering out drunk and swayed down the street.

Ting.

Misty jumped.

A passing pony had dropped some bits in front of her, thinking she was homeless.

"Thanks," Misty said.

She couldn't be choosy. Once she had more bits from a job, she'd rent a flat. Like her Mom.

The pony kept on smiling and trotted down the street.

Misty lit a small flame, holding it close to the bit. She bit down on the coin, checking that it was genuine.

You could never tell...

It was real, however.

Misty snuffed out the fire and nestled deeper into the boxes until she had a nice little cave to keep herself warm.

A bright blob blinked, hovering in the darkness, and in the centre of it was Savarin. "Found you." The background was a motel room, not Savarin's usual bedroom.

"Savarin, I'm so happy to see you. Did you run away?"

Savarin shrugged. "I missed the exams."

"Sorry. Mom found your letters and I had to leave. I'll make it up to you."

"I want a kiss when we reunite."

Misty could feel her face warming. She knew Savarin was attractive. Savarin was the only creature she could be herself around.

She'd planned on waiting until she was a Goddess, and they could be together not only on the holidays before having sex with Savarin. But now, Savarin was practically throwing herself at her.

"Of course, anything," Misty said at last. Her voice was sweet as syrup, alluring. "I would do anything for you. I'd kill for you. I even killed my Mom."

Savarin blinked at her, almost dreamily. "Took you long enough. I thought you'd have killed her years ago."

Misty stifled a yawn, hiding her mouth with a hoof.

"Good night," Savarin said. "May your dreams be filled with the blood of your enemies. Talk soon."

But Misty had already fallen asleep.

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

Misty had never had a job; she didn't have to with how rich her Dad was, but he had taught her some things about business.

She wasn't nervous. Misty didn't get nervous.

The manager was a unicorn.

Misty resisted the urge to wrinkle her nose. The only unicorn she liked was Savarin and perhaps Savarin's family.

Still, she got the job and started the next day. Three weeks on, she had enough money to stay in a small hotel and not sleep on the streets.

Once a week, she managed to even talk to Savarin.

One day, while Misty was mopping the floors with her telekinesis - a customer had spilt their soda-, her coworker, the red dragon who ended up being named Gurgle, talked at her.

"I dropped out of college. I wanted to do construction, but I failed," he said. "Before that, I went to that Friendship School."

"Cool," Misty said.

"I'm having a party tomorrow; you should come. My friends will love you."

"I'll be there."

"Excuuuse me," said a customer.

Gurgle went to deal with the customer at the cash register.

"My take out order is wrong," said the customer, a scowling earth pony with a hard hat. "Do it again."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Don't ma'am me! Where is your manager?!"

Do you need help? Misty mouthed, but Gurgle shook his head, so Misty went back to mopping the floor.