Zargan sat in what he assumed was the main lobby of the vineyard he had been instructed to visit once he had finished putting the barrels he had promised together for Grape Vine a few days back. It was a rather extravagant building to be sure. It made him think of all those fancy noble party venues that he had seen back in his own world. This place was definitely one of the ritziest ones out of all of Canterlot other than the castle itself. So much decadence in every decoration. The wine mistress certainly spared no expense in showing just how much money she had.

Zargan sat in his chair resting his chin on his fist before he heard the sound of hooves on the hard marble flooring which was so clean that one could eat off it. It even cast a perfect reflection if one looked down at it. His gaze fell upon Grape who was wearing a less formal attire but still maintained an ‘I am better than you’ air about her. It took all the dwarf had to not roll his eyes in disdain for her attitude. But he had to play nice, for this was business. And business equaled money.

“Good afternoon to ya, lass. I got the requested items right here. Just tell me where ya want’em.” he said as he patted his bag of holding. The mare blinked a few times as she looked down at the bag at his side “Surely you jest. There is no possible way you could have fit everythin in that tiny thin…” she said as she didn’t believe him for a moment. “But..then again, you did create something that can pull from one object to another. So I really shouldn’t be surprised. Please, follow me then.” she said as she motioned for him to follow her down to her cellar.

“So, before I set up everythin’, grab all your workers who deal with the changin’ out of the barrels n’ such. I will leave behind a set of instructions, but I will be kind enough to show them all how it is done once. I can’t be here the whole day.” he said as he made it very clear that he wasn’t going to stay any longer than he had to. Grape nodded before whispering to one of her bodyguards to go and gather all the vineyard employees who dealt with the cellar. While most of them were already down there, there were a few who had other duties as well.

Once everyone who needed to be down there was, Zargan reached into his bag and pulled out six of his ‘magical barrels’ and placed them down neatly together “Right then, listen and listen good ya lot…” he said as he patted the top of one of the barrels before going on to explain the inner workings of the barrels and even going as far as to set one of them up for them. After that was done, he and Grape headed back up to the main floor.

“Alright, lass. Your duration on those barrels is a good few months. Also, here are the flasks that are connected to those barrels, they are both paired with the numbers on the bottom of the flasks so ya know which barrel goes to which one. In the time I mentioned, they will become just plain ol’ barrels and flasks. After all, this is a trial run. I can’t let ya get away with stealin’ from me.” he said as he placed the small box in her hands before bowing his head and departing “I look forward to hearing the results when I return and hope we can form a proper deal.” he said before making his exit, not even bothering to stay for a glass of the vineyard’s finest wine. Then again, he didn’t want to owe her anything, even the smallest favor could be used against him later down the road.

Zargan walked along the streets of Canterlot as the sound of thunder rang out above him. He looked up as a couple of raindrops hit his face before he let out a sigh of annoyance. “Well, good thin’ I am in the neighborhood of one of my favorite pubs…” he said as he turned down an alleyway and moved as quickly as he could to avoid getting completely soaked. Perhaps he could find himself a good meal and a strong drink to wait out the incoming storm.

Zargan pushed the door open to a little place called ‘The Golden Horseshoe Pub & Inn’. It was a quaint little place, but these types always served the best food and drink, unlike those rich bars that watered down your drinks and gave you lousy propositions with food orders. As an inn, it had an upper floor that had ten rooms that could be rented out nightly. The pub was fairly active at this time, but not to the point where it gets in the evening when it is bustling with customers.

Zargan walked up to his usual spot at the bar before climbing onto his favorite stool and eyeing the old barmaid with a smile “Maggie ya old hag. How ya doin’ today?” he asked with a toothy grin. The old mare turned around to see who called her an old hag, getting ready to absolutely smash the mug she had in her hand against their head. But when she saw it was Zargan, she smiled back and retorted “Zargan, you short stubby bastard! Good to see you again! The usual I presume?” she asked as she made her way to the tap to prepare his favorite beverage.

“Aye, and some grab while you are at it. What’s today’s special?” he asked as he clasped his hands on the bartop while waiting for his drink. “Cheddar potato soup with a biscuit on the side. It's an old family recipe,” she said as she placed the large mug of beer in front of him. “One large bowl of that, please. I finally get the chance to try the soup that your daughter has raved about ever since I first came here,” he said as he placed the bits down needed to pay for the food and drink.

‘Maggie’, a name affectionately given to her by Zargan was the owner of this fine establishment with her children and grandchildren running the place. It had been in their family for generations. Magenta Sky being her real name, smiled and took the bits before placing them in the drawer where she kept the daily profits. “How has the family been, Maggie?” he asked before taking a sip of his drink while he waited for his food to arrive.

Magenta leaned forward on the bar top as they spoke “Well, the kiddos are doing their part here. Soon enough though, their own children will be picking up some work around here too. My own daughter is going to be taking over as the barmaid. I am getting way too old for this…” she said as she rubbed her back and sides a bit. Zargan chuckled and shook his head “Bah, ya still got many, many years left ya ol’ bag. Besides, ya can’t retire because of some aches n’ pains.” he said as he waited for her to respond. “I will piss in your food, you short fucker.” she said with a false look of anger on her face.

“It would probably improve what you call ‘food’ here if ya did,” he said with an arched brow. It was quiet between them for a moment before they both laughed “Let me know if you need anything else, hon. I am going to run back into the kitchen and check on things. Keep an eye out for me?” she asked as she started to head back in the back “I gotcha, Maggie.” he said as he lifted his mug slightly. Despite their harsh words to one another, it was all for fun. Neither meant the insults they said to one another, it was just some playful jabs between friends, as Zargan has been coming to this pub ever since he started doing business here in Canterlot. The moment he met Magenta, she reminded him of the feisty grandmother he had back home and it made him feel all warm and nostalgic.

As Zargan sat at the bar, a group of ponies in what appeared to be a form of fancy uniforms. From what the dwarf could gather, they appeared to be from the castle. But he wasn’t quite sure about what they did there. They weren’t guards, as they possessed no armor. However, once they laid eyes upon Zargan, they pointed at him as they whispered among themselves, a couple of the larger stallions giving him a rather disapproving gaze. Zargan simply smiled and raised the mug in greeting to them with a smile. He wasn’t going to let them ruin his afternoon with their sour attitudes.

As he was finishing up his soup which had been wonderfully prepared, the two larger stallions stood up and made their way over to the dwarf who heard them approaching before he turned around on his stool “What can I do for ya, lads?” he asked as he placed his hands on his thighs. The stallions looked between one another before one of them spoke “Are you the damned new blacksmith that is taking all of our customers?” he asked with a low growl in his voice, obviously thinking that size would intimidate the dwarf.

“Aye, that’d be me. And it isn’t my fault that I am making your customers happy with my metalwork. If I got this right, and ya are the castle smithy. Then ya need to up your quality or the things you call ‘weapons’ will shatter in the hands of those who are tryin’ to protect this nation. I am sure ya got all the fundin’ that you need to make better stuff…or are ya boys just taking the extra money for yaselves hmm?” asked the dwarf who arched a brow, wondering if that was really the case.

The stallion that spoke reached out and grabbed Zargan by the collar of his shirt and tried to lift him up, seems the dwarf was heavier than he looked! “Shut the fuck up, you little piece of garbage. No, you listen here, you are gonna stop stealing our business and find a new line of work. Or we will make your life more miserable than you can imagine. Close. Up. Your. Shop.” he growled again. “Hey, if you are gonna cause trouble in my pub, get the fuck out and leave my patrons be!” shouted Magenta as she hold up a rather hefty broomstick that she may or may not have to beat a few troublemakers with.

Zargan held a hand up to keep his friend from getting involved, but the other stallion said something he shouldn’t have said: “Quiet, you old bitch, this is business and it needs to be handled.”. Zargan’s eye twitched in anger as he lifted a hand into the stallion’s face who was holding onto his shirt. The palm of his gauntlet glowed brightly before sending back a powerful wave of energy knocking both him and his buddy back into a couple of tables. They flop across the floor like a couple of ragdolls and groan in pain before Zargan stands over them with his hand still aimed at them as the light pulses audibly.

“Now then…the only one who gets to call ehr old anythin’ is me, you fuckin’ ill-mannered gobshites. Now go the fuck back to ya badger holes. And if ya want your customers back, make better quality stuff, not the shite that you are makin’ that ya spread butter on toast with. And take your friends with ya too.” she said as he tilted to the other stallions who were already on their way out. The stallions slowly make their way to their hooves and begin limping on their way out “This…isn’t over..not by a longshot…” he grunted in pain.

“Ya are more than welcome to come and attack my shop directly, boys. But I don’t think ya will enjoy what would be there waitin’ for ya. Ya might end up leaving with a few missin’ limbs or worse.” he said as he lowered his hand down once they had all cleared out. Once they had left, Zargan sighed before helping Magenta fix up the chairs and tables that had been thrown about the pub, putting things back the way they were. He owed her that much since they were there for him.

“Sorry for the trouble, Maggie. Seems that the competition at the castle isn’t happy about me takin’ all the profit for myself. Ain’t my fault though.” he said as he handed her the broom back he used to sweep up a bit of broken glass before tossing it into the trash can. Magenta shook her head before returning behind the bar “It's alright, hon. I appreciate you sticking up for me nonetheless. And you got them to leave before too much damage occurred.” she said as she poured him another one of his favorite drinks for thanks.

Zargan took his place at the bar before smiling wickedly “Like I said, I am the only one who gets to call ya old.”. She lifts the drink towards her muzzle and pretends to spit in it before handing the drink off to him “Keep talking, see what happens.” she retorted before smiling and going back to cleaning the unused mugs. He smiled back before beginning to sip on his drink, letting the rainy afternoon roll by until it had stopped.

As soon as the rain had stopped, he had begun to make his way back to his shop. Even in his tipsy state, the dwarf was alert and knew he was being followed by someone. He pretended to be more drunk than he was as he stumbled around to really sell the performance. He made his way down an alleyway, the cloaked figure following behind him before they came into an opening between alleys. The dwarf stopped and turned to face the figure before offering a knowing grin “Did ya come here on the behalf of those shite smithies then?” he asked as he readied himself for a fight.

The figure quickly put their hands up in front of them before shaking their head vigorously “N-NO! I am not here to cause you trouble, please!” they said as they lowered their hood slowly, revealing the face of what appeared to be a griffon. Now that Zargan had gotten a good look, it was a female griffon with black feathers with deep purple fading accent coloring and a long feathered hairstyle that fell down her back. She dropped to her knees and lowered herself down, pressing her forehead to her hands “Please…I merely seek an apprenticeship from you, Master Zargan…I beg you, take me under your wing!” she said with an earnest tone in her voice.

Zargan blinked a few times at the display. Who exactly was this griffon? And how did she know of his craft? He had come to learn through books and word of mouth that griffons were normally a very proud race in this world, but to see one bowing so low to him right now was what he’d never expected. “Just..who in the world are ya, lass?” he asked lowering his guard just a bit at the sudden display.

She lifted her head from the ground, but continued to remain kneeled before him “O-Oh, my name is Laelah! And I am the daughter of a smithy from Griffonstone! And I heard so many wonderful things from friends of mine about your work, and I wish to learn! Please!” she said as she lowered hermhead once more.

Author's Note

Aaand the shortboi is baaaack. Hope you all enjoy this chapter.

May the darkness grant you peace.