The headquarters for the Stiff Upper Lip Society reeked of old wealth. The walls were some kind of dark red wood, dark, dark red, which was to say they looked brown, but with an almost mirror-like reddish glow. There was brass everywhere. The light switches, the fixtures, the lamps on the wall, all of it was polished to perfection.

Tarnish was in awe. As nice as this place was, it didn’t feel pretentious somehow. It was still somehow quiet, subdued, something about it already felt like home. He liked it here and he was excited about seeing the new apartment, but Tarnish was feeling a little disappointed that the apartment probably wouldn’t see very much use.

Livingstone walked with a slight limp that didn’t slow him down, his right rear hoof dragging a little behind him. Tarnish could see the semicircle of scars along the back of Livingstone’s leg—something had chomped the pegasus, and had chomped him good. His leg was somewhat crooked and deformed. It had been broken, set, and had healed crooked.

Ahead, there was a little sitting area by a window covered in thick, velvet curtains. An earth pony was sprawled on the couch and Tarnish could see right away that something was off. The earth pony only had three legs. The stump for the fourth, one of his hind legs, was covered with bandages. The earth pony was reading a newspaper laid out on the couch cushion in front of him. There was a small brass bell on the decorative wood table beside the couch.

“Ah yes,” Livingstone proclaimed, “Mister Briar, how are you today, Sir?” Livingstone came to a stop, cleared his throat, and then glanced at both Tarnish and Maud as Mister Briar lifted his head. “Dreadful business, poor chap lost his leg in a manticore attack. Killed the monster with his own leg… absolutely dreadful business, all that.”

“Hello, Livingstone,” Mister Briar replied.

“Mister Briar,” Livingstone said as he began to introduce everypony to one another, “this is Maud Pie and Tarnished Teapot, our new members.” The pegasus turned to face Maud and Tarnish. “We have our own in house nurses and doctors. Quite a few of our members receive extensive injuries in the field. They come here to recuperate.”

Manticore attacks—Tarnish knew about those all too well. He had subdued a manticore with something other than his own leg. Tarnish shuddered, but said nothing. The scent of manticore musk had kept him safe during his first forray into the wild.

“How do you do?” Mister Briar’s eyes were glazed over and it was obvious that he was in pain. The earth pony was still oh so very friendly however, and smiled at both Maud and Tarnish. “You’ll have to excuse me if I don’t get up, but the nurse said she would lop off another leg if I moved from this spot.” The somewhat chubby earth pony chuckled and then winced when his body shook too much.

Livingstone, who stood stiff and straight, peered at Tarnish. “Mycologist. Ruddy good one, too.” Livingstone cleared his throat and his mustache quivered on his lip. “Our members are really quite extraordinary. That is what makes them ours. We don’t just take any pony, they have to be exceptional. It isn’t enough to have just discovered a new kind of butterfly, oh no, the Stiff Upper Lip Society has ponies and other members of extraordinary quality. Ponies of almost mythical status. Ponies who survive manticore attacks, ponies that endure levels of hardship thought fatal. We survive maulings, mutilations, attacks by savages, and the occasional exploding volcano. Through it all, we keep a stiff upper lip—”

“Damn right, we most certainly do,” Mister Briar said as he cut in.

“We do what?” an earth pony mare said as she walked into the sitting area and began to have a look at Tarnished Teapot and Maud Pie. The mare was wearing a khaki jacket that was a snug fit on her body and a wide pith helmet. A pair of goggles hung around her neck. Two very battered looking saddlebags hung on her sides.

Tarnish almost choked… it was Octavia Melody. Tarnish restrained his sudden urge to act like a spaz. He stood stock still and tried to imagine that he was Maud, all while stomping around and having fits on the inside.

“Ah, yes, Miss Melody,” Livingstone said as he looked at the grey mare, “a vision of loveliness… how are you, Miss Melody?”

“Missing somepony,” Octavia replied in a weary voice that sounded exhausted. She had a thick, strong accent that wasn’t Equestrian in origin.

“Miss Melody, this is Tarnished Teapot and Maud Pie… our new members.” Livingstone turned and faced Tarnish and Maud. “Miss Melody is a lepidopterist and has discovered hundreds of new species.”

“A butterfly hunter?” Tarnished asked after racking his brain. He looked at Maud beside him and saw her give a faint nod. He felt thankful that he didn’t botch his one chance to get this right. “You’re a world famous musician though.” Tarnish blinked in astonishment.

“Music is my business,” Octavia replied, “hunting butterflies is my passion. When I am out in the field, much of my time is spent waiting and doing nothing, so I write music in my head. Without my field excursions, there would be no music. Also, something about the butterflies inspires me.” The grey mare glanced at Mister Briar and then at Livingstone. “You must excuse me, I am worn out. We shall have to talk later.”

“But of course,” Livingstone replied as he bowed his head.

“It was nice to meet you.” Octavia smiled at Maud and Tarnish.

“Likewise,” Maud replied.

Octavia made her exit, shuffling away, something inside of her saddlebags clunking as she walked. Tarnish watched her go, still holding back his urge to jump up and down while making a scene. Something told him that wouldn’t be very stiff upper lippy, not at all.

“There goes one of the greatest musicians that has ever lived,” Maud said in a flat, disinterested sounding monotone, “and she writes her music in her head out in the field, inspired by butterflies. That has to be one of the most amazing things I’ve ever heard.”

“Quite,” Livingstone agreed, sounding very polite and proper. “Well, I should show you two to your apartment… come on, you’re almost home.”

As the door opened, Tarnish wasn’t sure what to expect. Maud went in first and he followed. He froze just on the other side of the doorway, rooted to the spot, unable to move, and his mouth fell open.

“Ah, I shall take my leave,” Livingstone said as he backed away. “Spend some time getting settled in. All of this is yours.” The pegasus shut the door behind Tarnish and was gone.

The ceiling was blue, not sky blue, but a shade of midnight. Stars twinkled overhead. Actual twinkles. Tarnish stared upwards in astonishment, his eyes wide. The walls were papered in dark blue and dark, dusky purple stripes, with dark wood wainscotting. A line of brass separated the wainscotting and the wallpaper. The living room was large enough to be comfortable, but not too large. There was furniture, a few chairs, a sofa, some tables, a bookshelf, and a knick knack curio cabinet with glass doors. In the corner, there was a large wind up gramophone to play records and it had a huge brass amplifier.

The living room didn’t scream ‘wealth’ so much as it suggested old world charm. Everything was sturdy and solidly built. There was nothing delicate or fragile looking. Everything was practical. The wood on the furniture wasn’t too ornate or decorative. Nothing was too fancy.

Maud stood blinking, taking it all in, with Tarnish right beside her. She glanced at her husband, and then started ahead to explore the rest of the apartment. She went through a door and into a small kitchen. It was well appointed, but Maud knew that it wouldn’t see much use, unless Tarnish took up cooking at home as well as out on the road.

There was a small round table in the corner of the kitchen with four chairs. A tea set was laid out on the table. There was a hutch full of plates, cups, saucers, and bowls. There was a walk in pantry along the back wall.

Coming out of the kitchen, Maud almost bumped into Tarnish, who was coming down the hallway. Together, they stopped, looked at one another, and then Tarnish opened the door, revealing a bedroom.

The room was decorated in the same style as the living room, with a dark blue ceiling covered in twinkling stars. There was a large bed against the back wall, a narrow window that ran from ceiling to floor, and a closet door against the side wall.

Tarnish, after going into the room, dumped his saddlebags and his gear upon the floor near the closet door. He then began looking around. There were two brass lamps with stained glass covers on each side of the bed, each perched atop a small wooden table.

Maud, being a practical pony, checked out the bathroom. The walls and the floor were tiles, all of which were different shades of blue, some dark, some light, and all of them placed randomly. The bathroom wasn’t very big, but the shower was enormous. It was big enough for two ponies and had a bench inside of it. Maud, all by herself in the bathroom, narrowed her eyes as she examined the shower. That bench could and would be useful, but not just for sitting. As she peered into the shower, the corners of her mouth twitched upwards for just a brief second. The shower had nozzles in all of the right places, all of the helpful angles that would ensure that a standing pony got clean.

“I’m in the mood for a shower,” Tarnish said as he shoved Maud aside so he could fit into the bathroom.

Of course, to get clean, one had to get dirty first. Maud could feel her heart beginning to race inside of her barrel as she eyed the shower and the bench. The bench was just about at the right height for backrubs… massage… belly rubs... and other fun activities in the shower.

“We haven’t seen the second bedroom yet.” Maud gave Tarnish a sidelong glance and she felt her pulse quicken when she looked at the tall, handsome colt beside her. He was becoming a stallion, of that there could be no doubt, but Maud found those moments when his voice broke endearing. She would see him enter his prime.

“The second bedroom requires more ponies to fill it.” Tarnish reached out and touched the glass shower door and then looked at Maud. “We could practice making more ponies. Practice makes perfect, after all.”

“What are you proposing?” Maud asked.

Tarnish let out a coltish giggle and then made his reply, “Seeing that bench gives me ideas…”

“What sort of ideas?” Maud, a smart pony indeed, thought it was wise to play dumb.

“Well… if one us was to lay on the bench…”

“Yes?” Maud blinked three times, batting her eyelashes at Tarnish, knowing it would distract him.

“And by one of us, I mean you…”

“You could wash my belly?” Maud deadpanned.

“Um, yes, yes I could, and after that we could, well—”

“You could wash my back,” Maud suggested.

“Well, uh, yeah, I could do that,” Tarnish replied, nodding his head. “After that—”

“You could wash my mane and give me a scalp massage.” Maud’s ears perked forwards.

“Well, yes, yes I could do that.” Tarnish eyed the shower and let out a wistful sigh.

“And after all of that, when your work is done, we could try that new position where I lay on my side and I control your rate of entry by squeezing my hind legs together to generate friction.” Maud heard a faint squeak from beside her as Tarnish inhaled. “I’m gonna make you work for it.”

Maud felt herself grabbed by invisible forces, a second later, her smock was draped over the bathroom sink counter where it had been tossed, and her belt was laying on the floor. Before she even had time to blink, she found herself in the shower and Tarnish was crowded in there with her. She looked up at him, loving him, loving his eagerness, for feeling desirable was a powerful aphrodisiac.

“Before I lay down on the bench and you rub my belly… from the inside, you and I need to work that dud out of your system.” As Maud spoke, Tarnish turned on the water, which was cold for a moment, invigourating, and then turned hot. “Lay down on the bench, Tarnish…”

Author's Notes:

Next chapter... we'll see Maud do something special