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Post by Red Charge on Feb 10, 2012 7:09:33 GMT -5
Starling sighed, resting back in his seat. He really didn't have the energy to invest in convincing people he wasn't famous. He needed some grub, he could feel the familiar stinging in his muscles that meant his limbs were going numb. Yes, food was necessary. The meal he had at Ranger's the other night would not suffice him. He needed more food.
He slumped miserably over on the table, and hoped the waitress would come back soon. At least his stomach wasn't grumbling, though he sure was hungry either way. He glanced over at Ivory again "So have you always been selling ice cream? I don't remember seeing you last time I was in Ponyville." He asked politely, though he could only really think of filling the void in his stomach.
Yes, definitely need food. Food was of top importance.
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Post by ivoryflash on Feb 14, 2012 12:01:06 GMT -5
Shaking her head softly, Ivory found it was easier to keep her nerves from flying out of control, so long as she wasn't looking directly at Starling. Her hooves gently tapped against the table as she spoke, ears flattened back against her head, eyes focused on the glass table in front of her.
"N-No, not long.." Ivory Flash replied, "I've only been in Ponyville for about a month, and for the first week I was just trying to get settled in.." Ivory briefly glanced up at him, blinked, and sharply looked away once again, "Back in Manehattan, we lived right across from an Ice-Cream Shop, and I helped out often, so I figured.. Nnh?" She shrugged softly.
"I return!" L'cure announced Shappily, trotting back with an array of plates floating above the Unicorn's head, "Avocado Sunflower Sandvicche, un' 'Juice of ze Orange'.." she stated, lowering a plate and glass down before Starling, "Un' Pomegranate Lemonade." She then set down Ivory's glass before her, earning herself a shy smile from the Albino pony.
"Th-Thank you!" Ivory stammered, hooves pulling her glass closer to herself as L'cure offered the pair a careful bow, and trot away to serve the other tables, "I'm--I'm sure, though, it's nothing in comparison to what you do.."
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Post by Red Charge on Feb 14, 2012 12:13:11 GMT -5
"I just do what I'm told. I get to choose how I do it, but as long as it gets done, it's all good." The stallion said, lifting his sandwich and taking a large bite out of it. His eyes seemed to brighten up considerably as he munched on it, the brown in them emphasized. "This is so good." He muttered between gulps, as he scarfed down the food.
Already he seemed much livelier, his paleness subsided, his features brightened and he seemed in a much better mood. Finally downing the last bit of the sandwich hungrily, he tried to signal the waitress for more.
"You're from Manehattan then? Been there a couple of times, not too many." Starling stated, "No offense but it was just too... snobby for my tastes. Not as bad as Canterlot, but still. I like it where people look at you as an equal, rather than judge you." He then turned to his orange juice, drinking it almost as quickly as he ate. "I grew up in the Northern Barrens though, so I guess that's a part of it."
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Post by ivoryflash on Feb 17, 2012 0:13:10 GMT -5
Though still quite nervous, Ivory Flash clearly wasn't terrified as she watched him eat his meager meal. A small smile even appeared, eyes flickering from him, to the table, to him, and back to the table, never staying in one spot for more than a couple of seconds, for fear of being caught staring.
"Yes," she replied softly, "That's exactly why I left. But.. --It.. It's m-more complicated than that, for me. But.. Well, I ha-have to agree. I like it here, because.. Even if I scare people, most of them learn to tolerate me." Ivory spoke slowly, and bashfully, burying her nose between her hooves, scrunched in close to the table.
"It's nice.. I'm sure if I stay here for a few years, they may even like me." She glanced up, then, noting how.. gone, his sandwich was.
"..Have as many as you like. Eat until you can't eat any more, o-okay? Just save room for ice-cream!"
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Post by Red Charge on Feb 17, 2012 0:19:22 GMT -5
"Scare them?" Starling asked, "Why's that?" Ordering another sandwich, and starting to devour it in turn. "You remind me of a friend I had growing up. She was also white. Well, a lot of the ponies up there have either a white coat or a white mane. Not AS white mind you, but definitely along the same tones." He said casually, "Anyway, what's so scary about you? You a part time clown?"
A substantial difference came over his coat, mane and his eyes. He visibly brightened up and seemed to become fuller, more rejuvenated. The food was definitely doing good for him. Suddenly he seemed much more like the powerful Field Marshal he was usually depicted as. His voice had also gained a much livelier quality, even so much that Ivory could tell he was joking about the clown part by the tone of his voice (which was somewhat monotonic until that point.)
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Post by ivoryflash on Feb 17, 2012 0:27:12 GMT -5
"Well-- Because.." Ivory paused, and once again began to stammer softly, "B-Because.." Her eyes fell to the glass table, a curtain of white bangs falling to hide her eyes as they began to water some, "..They call me a 'Ghost'. Nopony's seen many ponies suffering from Albinism before, and I d-don't blame them. If I didn't have a special potion, I couldn't even be out in the daylight like this. The sun normally burns me."
Hearing it like that, it DID sound like a demonic ailment. Burning in the daylight? Ghostly white? Well, among a community rich in folklore, it was no wonder people had a hard time getting used to her. She hadn't mentioned her blank flank, of course, and likely wouldn't have to--or want to--unless the topic came up unexpectedly. The longer they avoided that, the better.
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Post by Red Charge on Feb 17, 2012 0:36:34 GMT -5
"I'm really sorry to hear that." Said Starling, "Personally I think your white gives you a kind of uniqueness no other pony I know has. When everypony else is so colorful and varied, you are completely devoid of color. That's about the most unique I've ever seen on a pony, and I like it." The stallion concluded slowly, giving the mare an encouraging smile,
"You're lucky to have that potion, keeping a pretty mare like you indoors would be a crime against the pony kind." The Field Marshal flirted shamelessly, hoping to get a good reaction out of the mare. He wasn't usually so playful, but he thought he'd make an early attempt for once.
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Post by ivoryflash on Feb 17, 2012 0:57:33 GMT -5
The bad thing about being Albino - When you blushed, EVERYONE knew it. The blood rushing to Ivory's face turned her entire face red, despite how little she had actually been blushing.. Which only caused her to blush more as she saw her reflection in the glass of the table.
With a quiet squeak, Ivory Flash stood from her seat, floating a hoof-full of bits from her bag, onto the table abruptly.
"I-I-I'm sorry, I n-need to get back to my stand--" She stated sharply, "It was very nice meeting you- Drop by for your ice cream when you finish eating, if you like."
Eager to get as far away from the flirting as she could, Ivory trot off, briskly, without another word, keeping her eyes shut the entire way.
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Post by Red Charge on Feb 17, 2012 4:09:55 GMT -5
"Oh wow, I thought my flirting skills would be lousy, but I didn't think it would be THAT bad." Starling stated, a frown appearing on his face as he went over the scenario again in his head. The stallion made a split second decision and threw some his own bits on the table, more than enough to pay for the two sandwiches and went after her. "Pardon," He said as he caught up to her, "I'm sorry if I offended, I didn't mean to. It's just been a while sine I was around other ponies, my mannerisms aren't exactly top notch at the moment."
In the back of his mind he wondered if chasing her was a good idea. He did give her a minute or two head start, mind, and he was about to meet her anyway at the stand. He just wanted to make sure he didn't say or do anything that went beyond any social boundaries. She was nice to him, and he was interested, he didn't mean anything bad by him. After all, wasn't she the one who took him out to lunch?
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Post by ivoryflash on Feb 17, 2012 16:55:27 GMT -5
By the time Starling reached the Ice Cream stand, Ivory was just going to step inside. She had just pulled off her skirt, and if Starling had good eyesight, he might have been able to catch a split-second glimpse of a pure white back. She was quick to get inside, however, slamming the door down on the back, sliding the door up at the front as she hopped up onto the pillow, shuddering while the gathered cold inside the booth wafted out into the afternoon air.
She was startled to see him, soon after reprimanding herself-- She had told him to come by and get his ice cream when he finished eating, didn't she?
"N-No, your ma-m-mannerisms were very nice!" Make no mistake, the cold was aiding her stuttering now, "I had t-to get back to my s-s-stand, like I s-said! I hope you didn't stop eating b-because of me.."
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Post by Red Charge on Feb 17, 2012 17:07:12 GMT -5
"Well you kind of freaked me out back there, what going tomato and running away and all. Thought I had embarrassed you in some manner." Starling explained, walking up to the front of her stand, looking quite strained from the effort of catching up to her. He was still in the middle stage, didn't have a lot of power while in it. He'd need to eat more to regain his strength.
"I would, though, hope that I could take you out sometime maybe, to a walk in the woods?" The green and brown colt asked, referring of course, to White Tail Woods. He asked rather timidly, but kept his eyes on hers. It was a pretty much yes or no question, and he'd have a definite answer back. At least he'd be able to deal with it afterwards rather than stay in this... insecure situation.
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Post by ivoryflash on Feb 17, 2012 17:22:39 GMT -5
The blush had returned, and to a tomato-like state she returned. Of course this merited her burying her face into the large cushioned pillow, her reply somewhat muffled.
"I'm sorry, I can't help it. No c-color means.. Nothing to m-mute the red, like n-normal ponies. I d-don't like being out in p-public like that, a-and for that reason, it m-might be best if we d-didn't. Besides, I'm not-- I.." She trailed off, glancing off to her side in a squirrel y manner.
How could she say this without it being offensive? Oh, thanks for the offer, but I'm not qualified. Let me go take 'how to be the girlfriend of a field marshal 101' class for a few years and get back to you! Yeah, that would go over well.. Nothing about this seemed or felt right. What was wrong with this pony, taking interest in someone like Ivory?
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Post by Red Charge on Feb 17, 2012 17:42:22 GMT -5
Starling frowned, "That's why I offered Whitetail Woods, not a lot of ponies hang around there, won't be overly public. We could make a small picnic. I can tell you're flattered, I just hope you'll give it a shot before you rule it out. Who knows, I might make a better date than a soldier?" At saying those words the stallions brow furrowed even further. He sincerely hope his stature had nothing to do with how she was acting.
Ugh, it was like this with every pony, at least that part he could remember. He dedicated his life for Equestria, but it's always biting him in the back. How can he be sure who wants to be with him because of who he is, rather than well, who he is. He's not a Field Marshal all day, just when he works. Didn't he deserve a chance at a normal relationship too?
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Post by ivoryflash on Feb 25, 2012 2:55:39 GMT -5
Rubbing her hooves back and forth against the cushion she rest on, she chewed her lip nervously and began to turn red as a beet once again. It didn't help, of course, when a pair of colts came by with bits in their mouths, asking for ice creams.
"Caramel-Fudge-Creme, please!" The first one asked as he tossed his bits up on top of the counter.
"Vanilla, please! And can I have mine shaped like a dragon? Pretty please?" The second one asked, standing up on his hind hooves to gently place his bits down.
"Oh, yeah! Me too! --But a.. a uh..." The first pony pondered, peering over at Starling. He gasped, and then grinned, looking back to Ivory as he pointed at Starling, "--Shaped like him!" He then stated, scuffing his hooves against the ground anxiously.
A bit startled, Ivory nodded hastily and rose from her cushion, moving about the inside of her Ice-Cream stall as she grabbed two cones, and dished up two hefty scoops or so into each cone. One to fill the cone, and the other for the art on top.
The first to receive their cone was the colt who'd asked for Vanilla, in which she paused to sculpt it right before their eyes, using a spoon and a couple of toothpicks to get the details in. Once done, she presented the roaring-dragon vanilla ice cream cone to the colt, and.. Well.
As she began to work on the Caramel-Fudge-Creme cone, her ears flattened as she glanced back and forth between Starling and the cone, trying her best to take in the details that she could see. Not.. that it helped much - He looked more like a rodeo clown than the mighty Field Marshal Starling, simply because she couldn't concentrate! Her tools were wobbling, she had to re-sculpt his face, and, well.. She decided to sculpt in a tiny sword so the cold would know it was supposed to be Starling, before handing it over before she had a chance to ruin it further.
"Here you go! Haha.. ha.." She laughed nervously, passing the cone over the counter, "And-- And come again! Tomorrow, I'm having a special on cherries!" She waved, sheepishly, sulking a bit as the colt scrunched up his nose at the shakily-made sculpture in the ice cream, but nevertheless scarfed it down anyway. And thus suffered a brain-freeze a few seconds later. "Augh!"
Swallowing thickly, she looked back to Starling, while climbing back up into her cushion. "I'm--" She stuttered softly, "J.. Just a walk, okay? A-And it can't be too long-- I get to be v-very b-busy around here, as you c-can see.. I-Is that a-a-alright?" She waited, closing her eyes for the relief of a 'no thanks, offer's not on the table anymore' or a dreaded 'sure thing! See you tomorrow.'
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Post by Red Charge on Feb 29, 2012 19:07:45 GMT -5
"No problem," Starling beamed brightly at her, raising a hoof to his chest, "Now about that ice cream..." He tapped his chin, looking over the range of tastes again, sniffing at the stand curiously. "Which ones did you say were the best ones again?" The stallion asked, frowning.
A walk, that's something, right? Maybe without so many pony admirers around he could finally get her to open up a bit. Maybe forget he was famous, and just be herself. Right? Well it's not like he didn't know how to talk to mares. He has had his share of special someponies in his life. But it's been so long since he's even seen a live mare, let alone wooed one. Though he didn't know her well enough to actually woo her. It was the very beginning of their acquaintanceship. At worst, making a new friend was never a bad thing.
Yep, he was getting back on track.
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