Apple Bloom was all smiles. "An' so ah did it. Ah talked them into givin' us a big raise!"

Applejack whistled with wonder at her little, not so little, sister. "Good job! How much of a raise? Three bits a day?"

Apple Bloom waved that right off, but it was Spitfire that answered first, "Better not be. We were just told they're getting way more than that."

"Which is why it ain't." The young mare grabbed a chalk in her mouth and scratched it against a green board. She drew a big 3, then a big 0. "That much, every single day!"

Applejack exploded into claps, clopping her hooves with a big grin.

Tempest raised a brow. "What's the catch? The brothers don't just give up their bits. That isn't their style."

"No catch." To her at least, but it did occur to her to bring that part up. "Oh! Everypony gets 30, no matter what. No cockamamie incentives or nothin'. 30."

The mares that engaged in those extras, which were most of them, frowned. One could almost hear the calculations ticking in their heads as they struggled to figure out what their actual wages were before and after.

Applejack nodded, seemingly untroubled. "Well good! Don't gotta do no math, just thirty every day. Nice n' simple."

Celestia shook her head softly. "To touch the sun was… not a cheap thing. I do not mean to be…"

"Sister." Announcing Luna perked an ear at Celestia. "I think I understand what is happening."

"Hm?" She looked to the larger of the Lunas. "Please, do share."

"Our payment is being redistributed." Announcer Luna pointed at Apple Bloom. "She made 2, and always 2. She is getting more. Others are getting less. We, the elite, are paying for our lessers to get a worthy salary."

Celestia frowned softly. "I like the idea of everypony getting a reasonable amount…" Her flowing tail gave a lash behind her. "But what is the portion Flim or Flam is giving up?"

Octavia clopped the floor in one sharp sound that drew eyes. "I typically avoid the 'back room' extras, save for special occasions. This has risen the price to secure such a thing. However, it is also rare." She looked at Celestia. "How often are you called to serve?"

Celestia's ears danced atop her head. "Once a moon, on average, it feels? I admit I was not keeping a precise count."

"Precision is not required. That answer aligns with my hypothesis." Octavia strode to the front of the room and turned to address the crowd. "We are confusing the satisfaction of a singular payday. Celestia, if you only get such a customer rarely, then you make two bits a day on most days. Is that not right?"

"Don't bother me." Sunset had a cocky smile and no tension. "Up the base to thirty? Right on."

Fleur allowed a little smirk to appear. "We are not fools. You work for tips. Any increase in the base is going to work for you. Do you even do… the others?"

Sunset frowned at that. "Hey! I do my part. I'm not even super picky, or expensive, like some ponies around here. But, yes." She placed a hoof at her chest. "I do know how to squeeze tips out of ponies. That isn't stopping."

Apple Bloom curled a hoof to the end of her chin. "Maybe ah should get a tip jar…"

Celestia cleared her throat. It wasn't a loud sound, but it was enough to draw quiet from the room. "Miss Melody brought up an excellent point. Even for premium mares, having thirty on off days isn't… a bad thing. Our wages are being leveled. Looking at this more… practically, I think it will be nice having a predictable amount."

The noise returned, ponies chatting their ideas. Octavia took her seat, looking confident that she had said what she wanted to say. Apple Bloom was drawing little lines along the outside of the 30 radiating away from it, as if to make the number shine all the brighter. "Ah did mah part."

Gamer Luna nodded at little Bloom. "You did. You faced the end boss and came back with prizes for us all. Thank you."

Tempest inclined her broken horn, crackling faintly with her power. "Not sure how much I want to keep up the back room if I'm getting nothing extra for it. If they can get any of us at the same rate, that'll end up with too many for some of us that don't…" Her eyes darted to the less picky of the mares. "Some of us offer specific things, or want specific ponies. I'm not even complaining for me, specifically. Open up your eyes, most ponies are not here to be humiliated. Femme domme is a specific taste."

Celestia frowned a moment, but it lifted. "I don't think this will be the case. We can all agree the brothers want their bits." There was a chorus of agreement across the room. "They will not change their prices. If ponies are willing to pay them, which they have proven they are, they will not change. All that is shifting is--"

"Our side," cut in Fleur, even if she blushed immediately after it. "Pardon…"

Celestia nodded towards Fleur. "Exactly my thought."

Gamer Luna waved a hoof a bit excitedly. "I say we try out this new level. It's way more fair to some of us, and it's way easier to plan for all of us."

The conversation tilted more favorably. Apple Bloom was given headpats and words of approval, which seemed to be exactly what she had wanted considering her grand happy smile.

Celestia rose to her considerable height. "Then we are complete. We will meet again if the situation changes. It is my hope that we can remain united, even if this is set aside for now."

Octavia turned an ear back. "I will skip un-vital meetings. Fleur, keep me apprised." With permission half-given, she fled at a stately walk from the room.

The meeting was over.

Fleur examined a small board. It had the names of all the mares, and numbers beside them. Some had multiple columns, those with extra text and more numbers. It was the price sheet. Fleur was, herself on that sheet. She did not have any extra columns.

She didn't have specific requirements. She didn't offer specific services. She was, on that term, mid level. An easy to approach mare with a fine smile, and rump. Her price wasn't the lowest. No, that went to Gamer Luna.

This was, perhaps, understandable. Gamer Luna didn't do… that… The younger mare was available for petting and praising and generally admiring like the foal she was only slightly out of age range for being. Some ponies rather liked that, but she couldn't command the price of a pony offering… The full package, as it were.

"Hm." Fleur turned away from the plaque to come face to face with a pony that had been standing there.

"Yo." Vinyl Scratch flashed a bright grin at Fleur. "You work here, right?"

"Oui. Can I help you?" She stepped out of the way, in case Vinyl wanted a look at it.

"Love that accent." Vinyl seemed to have no interest in the price sheet, closing right back in with Fleur. "Prench, right?"

"Oui. I mean, yes." Fleur bobbed her head lightly at the potential customer. "It is--" She stopped as Vinyl thumped a hoof on the wall just beside her head. "You are dans mon espace. Please, a step away."

Perhaps surprisingly given the tension of the moment, Vinyl did back up a step. "Hey, sorry. I'm just a huge fan. You ever hear Prench electronics? They take it in a whole new direction." Her head bobbed with some unhead of beat, perhaps playing in her great headphones. "It's great."

Fleur felt her tension ebb away in a quick flow. "Oh, yes! I mean, non. I…" She took a breath, recalibrating herself. "Do you have an example?" She pointed at Vinyl's headphones.

"Always happy to share some music." Her horn glowed as her headphones floated free of her head and dropped right into place on Fleur.

Fleur could suddenly not hear Vinyl, or much anything else. Electronic music thumped loudly in her ear, the beat dropped with such force that she squeaked in surprised. "I see!"

"Nah, not yet." Her hoof tapped slowly. "Getting there."

The music was ramping up slowly towards… something. "It got quieter. Something is happening?" But there it was, the beat thumped down, the music exploding forward. "Oh!"

"I love it." Vinyl clopped her hooves excitedly. "That expression, priceless. Yeah, I want you." She plucked her headphones back with her magic. "Be ready." And off she trotted, likely to find the Flim Flam brothers and secure Fleur's company.

Fleur rubbed at her right ear as she recovered from the shock of it. "Well…" She was not reserved yet. Her curiosity was abated and she left the sign where it was to emerge into the casino proper.

But Vinyl wasn't done. She saw another pony she had an interest in and veered right over to where ponies were seated in a music pit. "Hey!" A few looked up at her. Most were ignoring her. This was a normal reaction for music-playing ponies, Vinyl had long ago discovered. "Octi!"

Octavia quirked an ear up at the call. Her eyes widened a brief instant. "Miss Scratch."

Vinyl inclined her head. "Miss Scratch? Did I do something wrong? You only bust that out when I do something wrong. What are you doing here? I left you at home!" She casually vaulted over the barrier that separated the casino from the music pit. "You didn't mention this gig. Shoulda told me! I'd totally want to get in on this."

Celestia stepped in from the side as if she had always been there, cutting off Vinyl's approach quite abruptly. "Ma'am, guests are not allowed here."

Vinyl tried to get around Celestia, but the large pony kept getting right in the way with disturbingly little effort. "Not cool. Octi's my friend! I'm just saying hi to a friend. They're not performing right now."

Octavia's thrust out a hoof, her leg barring Celestia's way. It wasn't as if she could really stop Celestia, but it was enough to make her not want to proceed. "It's alright. I can speak with her." Celestia dipped her head and backed away, still clearly in sight. "Vinyl, I am preparing for work."

"I know how that is." Vinyl approached in a spirited trot. "Seriously though, when did you get here?"

"I am not the Octavia you are thinking of." Octavia frowned faintly, but that faded quickly. "An imitation."

Vinyl inclined her head left and right in sharp little jerks. "A really good one!"

"I mean the one you're thinking of, not me." She rolled her eyes at the idea. "As if I were a duplicate."

"Uh…" Vinyl rubbed at her chin softly. "I knew the other Octi for a long time… Pretty sure she isn't a copy…" Her eyes suddenly widened, barely visible behind her goggles. "Oh shit."

Octavia's ears danced. "Language, Miss Scratch." That was not a term most ponies used, like, ever. "Wherever did you pick up such filthy vocabulary?"

"N-No, you're right, my bad." She started wandering away. "Good luck with the show." Just as easily as she came, she left, hopping over the divider and returning to the crowd of the casino.

Octavia shook her head. "Finally. Celestia, thank you for running interference like that. Commendable. You can return to your own rounds."

Celestia rose to her full height. "You have but to whisper my name and I'll be back, should any other unwanted guests stop by."

"I feel confident you would arrive before I finished the word," assured Octavia with a faint smile. "You are ever so good at your job."

"Your words are as kind as your music is rich. Good luck in your performance, not that you require it." Celestia made herself scarce, to bother the musicians no further.

Author's Note

That could have gone worse! What did Vinyl see? Was it a typo? Tell me, Vinyl!

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