Filthy gave his daughter another hug and sent her off on her way, watching her scamper along in such haste to get to school.  He couldn't help but sigh happily and rest back in his seat with a satisfied air about him.  It was little moments like that which made him especially happy to be a father.

"Alright... well, I think I'll head into town for my morning coffee." he spoke up after a moment to nopony in particular.  Two of the maids barely managed to hide a giggle behind their hooves but still caught their employer's attention.  Filthy perked a brow up at their antics.  "Something the matter?"

"No sir." one mare shook her head, though she couldn't hide her smile.  "Just be sure to say hello to Miss Merriweather for us."

Despite his scolding look, that made Filthy Rich falter.  He coughed sharply to clear his throat and hurried on out of the dining room while the maids resumed their good-natured giggling.

--> Filthy Rich exits to the Summer Song Cafe

Enter from the Games' Store

Diamond Tiara took a moment outside of her home to pause and compose herself, before carefully and slowly opening her door like she didn't want to run inside and badger her Daddy until he told her the surprise.  Her barely contained smile and twinkling blue eyes betrayed her inner cheer, however, especially to the servants that knew her oh so well!

There was no other maid in the household that knew Diamond Tiara like her ready companion, Miss Peppermint.  The Pegasus herself just happened to be fluttering along getting things ready for the return of the masters of the house when one came on in herself.

"Oh, welcome back, Lady Diamond." she greeted the filly with a warm smile as she landed down on the well-polished floor beside her.  "You look rather pleased... did you have a good day at school?"

Diamond Tiara gave Miss Peppermint a small nuzzle rather than say anything at first.  Among maids, there were many she could count on but only one who seemed so close to her heart.  After all, Miss Peppermint had been her faithful sidekick in Appleoosa.  Why did they call faithful companions sidekicks anyway?  It seemed like some sort of silly word that adults made up to seem sophisticated.  She supposed, in that brief and eternal thought, that that made Miss Peppermint her loyal ally rather than a sidekick.

"Daddy said he had a surprise for me!" she announced to her most beloved maid with a smile that she might have contained for all the others.

---> Enter from The Carousel Boutique

It had taken Loose Leaf a bit of time to make it to the front door of Filthy Rich's home. She had never been there before and it too a little but of navigation to spot it. But once she did, well, it was rather hard to miss. After all, it was pretty much the largest building in Ponyville. Now, Loose Leaf was standing on his front step, hoof to the bronze knocker, standing on the threashold of her big break. This was it. If Mr. Filthy Rich was pleased (and Loose Leaf was going to make sure he was), then it could be the door she needed to be opened into real gigs. No doubt once the lovely portrit was gracing his fire place all his rich and high society friends would recieve news of the fabulous work the artist Loose Leaf created. It was only a matter of time now.

Doing her best to hold back a girlish squee, Loose Leaf sucked in her nerves an tapped the knocker to the door, making a crisp noise on the other end. Loose Leaf pulled away and took the moments of solitude to let out that girlish glee of excitment, stamping her hooves on the portch and letting out that bent up squee. As soon as anypony opened up the door, she would return to her profesonal deminor.

Diamond Tiara turned her eyes toward the door, suddenly eager.  Miss Peppermint or one of the other maids might have gotten a chance to open the door if she hadn't emulated lightning so properly.  The door was pulled open quickly and Loose Leaf would find herself staring at an eager child, not her rich patron or a servant of him.  Her smile quickly shrank, but didn't vanish.  Taking one step back, she sighed and decided to put her best hoof forward.  Someone who wanted to apply for a job as a maid or whatever this mare wanted to do deserved a good welcome, even if Daddy wasn't here to give it.

"Welcome to..." She paused, a quick look of deep concentration forming on her face. 'How does that Fancy phrase Daddy said he calls the house to his rich friends go...'

Quickly, she grew bored of trying to think of the saying while staring at Loose Leaf, "To the Rich House.  May I ask what you came here for?"

Loose Leaf patter her sachel proudly. "My name is Loose Leaf young lady, and I've been hired to paint a portrit. You must be Dimond Tiara. Your father's told me a little bit about you," she said with a kind smile. Her eyes darted to the exterior of the home that she could see and grinned even brighter. The inside wasn't extravegant, but tasteful and DEFINATLY classy. Probably exprensive too.

Loose Leaf hoped that the little filly would let her in soon so she could take a cloer look around. "Is your father home? Or will you be the hostess for this evening Miss Rich?" she asked with a playful smile.

Diamond Tiara looked at Loose Leaf for a moment, hearing her explanation evenly before smiling just a little bit wider at the 'Miss Rich' comment.  The little  pink earth pony filly is more than happy to step aside and let her in. "I'm sure Da-"

She looked away for a moment. "Mister Rich will be home soon or is already here.  I just got here a minute or two ago...perhaps Miss Peppermint and I could show you around while somepony sees if he's here, Miss Loose Leaf?"

Loose Leaf smiled and bowed her head a little bit. It was like playing she was playing make-believe with her soster again, and she couldn't help but wonder if there was going to be a tea set involved. Of course Loose Leaf had been the filly's age when Pencilla and her had done that. "That sounds wonderful. Lead the way," and Loose Leaf followed after Dimond Tiara as soon as she was escorted in.

Diamond Tiara wasn't the best tour guide.  She was a bit excited and focused more on the idea of seeing how nice her Father's portrait would look than anything else.  There was probably something else there fueling the excitement, but she didn't stop to dwell on such thoughts and the guest probably didn't have time either.

"So, have you painted a lot of portraits before?  Or are you the only one in town who does that?" A pointed question, to be sure, but little ones were so prone to asking them.

Loose Leaf peeled herself away from her sight seeing. She always loved interiro design and although Mr. Rich's taste in decoration was not exactly in her price range, Loose Leaf still admired the skill of the design. Very classy, not too flashy. A lot of deep and handcrafted woods with some oil paintigs and other nice landscapes linning the walls. Here and there were some shinny trinkits about that showed off the family's wealth, and also a couple of simpler, charming trinkets. She was sure she saw some clay peices no doubt made by Dimond Tiara during her earlier years. Loose Leaf couldn't help but smile. The home she had grown up in wasn't anywere thisspacious nor classy, and for 5 ponies, was cramped most of the time. But like Mr. Rich's home, photographs and millicilanious displays from her sister and brother were common. Loose Leaf, not so much in terms of awards or anything, but there was a nice chronological progression of her drawings about. No doubt lil' Cal had filled up the refridgerator by now though.

"Oh yes, I've done them before but nothing so official. I'm going to pull oit all the stops though, ran back home and grabbed my oil paints and portfolio before I ran here. You know, in case your father wants to see some of my other stuff. It's really amazing of him to give me this commisioln. He just saw me drawing in the cafe' and asked my to do a portrit of you and him," she said, stopping to admire a vacation photo of the Riches. She noticed a picture of a lovely mare in an elegant frame on te desk next to it who somwhat resembled Dimond Tiara. Loose Leaf didn't say anything. "As for if I'm tr only painter in Ponyville, I can't say I'm sure."

Diamond Tiara nodded as Loose Leaf's eyes went over the photos.  There were a lot of them, and the faces blended together, even for one who could look over them everyday.  Associates, friends, family, and even maids were in some of the photos put on various desks on tables.  Daddy had had a lot of friends and, really, still did.  She had to wonder about something, though, far away in that particular photo.  Her smile slipped away for a few moments...

She broke the silent stare with a nod and a slightly forced smile. "Well.  Good.  You seem like you're going to do a good job.  Mister Rich deserves to have his portrait done by one of the best."

Loose Leaf found it sort of odd that Dimond Tiara was refering to her father in suh a professional way. Found it sort of funny to be honest, but she didn't say anything. "So, I'll probably start with the base sketch today. Make sure I get the poses and everything just right. This might take two days depending on just how big Mr. Rich wants it. So, I guess I won't be starting for a little while since your dad doesn't seem to be home. Might want to make sure you look just the way you want to inthe portrit." Loose Leaf laughed. "So if you want to freshen up or do your hair in a certain way now would be a good time," Loose Leaf winked.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:29, Wed 02 Jan 2013.

Diamond Tiara could have been hit by a train and had a quicker reaction time.  Truth be told, she'd be reacting in the afterlife, but she'd still be faster.  Loose Leaf said that once before, she remembered now.  That picture must have had her distracted.  Why was it the only picture of its kind there?

"R-right it's a family portrait." She nodded weakly, starting to turn away. "I...I should go fix my mane and wash up so I...excuse me..."

She headed past Miss Peppermint in a hurry and into another room.  She'd just have to get one of the maids to run her a bath quickly, and then she'd need two or three to help her style her mane just right.  What style should she even have it done in?  Should she wear it down?  Up?  Braided on the left or right?  Hopefully, the bath would give her enough time to think.  Everything would have to be absolutely perfect if she was going to have a real portrait done with her daddy!

When Diamond Tiara ran off to get ready, Loose Leaf couldn't help but giggle. Kids and their abundance of adorableness always brightened her day. Now she was alone... well maybe not entirely. One of the maids was keeping a good eye on her and the two shared a nod and a smile. Idly, Loose Leaf ventured into the den and plopped down on one of the chairs that looked the most comfortable.

"Ooooooh baby... I need one of you..." she cooed, rubbing the arm rest fondly as her body sank into it. She hoped that Filthy Rich wasn't going to RUSH over. After all, the young lady was still getting ready and she was more than enjoying basking in the home's warmth in the peace and quiet. Soon, with the money that Filthy Rich had paid her in advance, Loose Leaf would be able to furnish her little shack a bit more. Granted, she only had a room to furnish, but still. She had a couple of design plans in the making that would help utilize the small space. Shouldn't be too expensive, she figured. After all, designing her little home had become her guilty pleasure. There was nothing like having a place of one's own, even if it was small.

Loose Leaf pulled the check out of her bag and gave it another fond look. Hmmmmm... how was she going to split this? Rent, food, furnishing, art supplies, THE FUND? Now that she thought about it... she was going to have to work on calculating just the right amount when she got home.

<-- Filthy Rich enters from the Summer Song Cafe

Miss Peppermint had been ready to go get the door herself when it was knocked upon, so she was left as rather surprised when Diamond Tiara scampered off to get it.  She never answered the door for anypony!  Not even when she was expecting Silver Spoon!  Whatever the surprise her father had apparently cooked up for her must have really gotten her excited for the possibility.  Peppermint and a few other maids listened in as Diamond Tiara gave Loose Leaf a very brief walk around, eavesdropping and figuring out what was going on from it.  By the time the filly parted ways to go get herself prepared, the maids were already in full swing.  Several were in her bedroom already laying out different outfits for her to select from while she scampered off to one of the grand bathrooms the mansion held.

When she arrived, she'd find Miss Peppermint already there working on drawing a scented bath for her.  The maid smiled warmly and gestured for the filly to come on over to be helped on into the tall, sculpted tub basin.  "A commissioned portrait?  That is quite the surprise... are you excited, Lady Diamond?" she asked sweetly as she went about selecting various fine mane and coat brushes to use on her charge.

--

Meanwhile, back in the luxury of the den that Loose Leaf was busy relaxing in, she was able to appreciate the warmth of the grand home.  Despite its size and high class, it had a different feel than other ritzy places she may have seen in the past.  A lot of upper-crust homes tended to feel empty and cold... but this one?  No, it felt full.  There was warmth and life there.  The pictures on the walls showed a loving father and his happy daughter.  She could hear the bustle of servant Ponies going about their business in the halls and it didn't sound rushed or worried; just busy.  They chattered and laughed freely, and a few hummed while they worked.  The smell of some delectable meal being prepared for dinner wafted along through the air as well.  Some sort of yummy smelling roasting vegetables... garlic...

...black tea?

An attractively aromatic scent would catch Loose Leaf's nose as it was much stronger and nearer than the distant smells from the kitchen.  It would no doubt be a surprise that she'd find herself in the company of a tall, immaculately groomed white Unicorn in a sharp butler's uniform at her side.  When had he gotten there?!  The elegant Butler simply lingered at the side of her chair with a tray balanced neatly on his upturned hoof, offering her a fine china cup of steaming tea along with a little dish of cookies, some sugar cubes, and a bowl of milk to season her drink with as she liked.

Meanwhile, Filthy Rich soon returned home as well and had the door opened for him on his approach.  A maid had been watching from the window and hurried to welcome him in with a polite nod of her head.  "Thanks, Peach Blossom.  Has Diamond Tiara gotten home yet?"  he asked in a hushed tone in case she was around.

"Yes sir, and so has the artist you hired.  Lady Diamond is already getting herself prepared for the portrait.  Miss Loose Leaf is waiting in the den."  the maid said with a grin, though it faltered when her employer frowned.

"Horseapples... I wanted to be the one to spring it on her.  Ah well." he was a little put off that he didn't get to do any build up to the surprise or see the look on his daughter's face when he revealed it, but that was life.  He still had the actual evening itself to look forward to.  He knew how much his little girl favored the finer things in life and hoped she'd enjoy a well-done painting over the mantle.  Goodness knew Filthy Rich wasn't going to refuse having as many reminders of his daughter's younger days around as she was growing up so fast before his eyes...

The stallion trotted down the hall to the den where Loose Leaf was being served refreshments and poked his head on inside with a smile.  "Ah, here you are.  I didn't think you'd make it here before I did.  I hope you haven't been waiting too long."
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:58, Thu 03 Jan 2013.

Loose Leaf turned to Filthy Rich with a cookie already filling one of her cheeks and another one in tote in a hoof. "Murfer Furrfy Witch!"

Oh right, good impressions.

Loose Leaf quickly gulped down the lump in her mouth and washed it down with an elegant sip of her tea. Good, good, excellent, prefect. "Heh, uh, pardon me. Really... good cookies," Loose Leaf laughed a bit awkwardly. She passed a glance at the butler and begged for him with a look not to diverge into any hits of how many she had already eaten. She placed the only one she hadn't back onto the tray he had set down for her on the end table. "And don't worry, I've only been here long enough to enjoy the company of your cookies, I mean your daughter, and... and eat the cookies."

Wow that could have come out badly.

"So how was your day? You just come from Summersong? Sorry I'm not up and at-uhm setting up yet, but I wasn't sure how long Diamond Tiara would take to get ready. Do you need some time too?"

"It's not what I expected at all!" Diamond Tiara cried with a mixture of excitement and dread.  It was clear, even before she explained that she was more than a little excited (and quite surprised, again).  She flew through the motions, far more interested in getting clean than enjoying the bath.  She had to think.  The purple outfit would go best with her general style, but the red one was far more bold and would probably mesh better with her father's outfit.  Then again, the green one said 'I don't care what I look like, I'm happy to be next to my daddy!'

She had to get her hair done first, and that was the hard part.  She decided for a relatively 'simple' look involving ringlets.  The style was just extravagant enough, and her maids would be able to work that out fairly quickly after drying her hair.  It'd take a little longer than just wearing her hair down, but she'd be far more worthy of appearing next to her father.  Then, she got dressed in that fancy green dress.

Once it was all done, she would descend the stairs and see if her father was home to take part in the portrait...perhaps unprepared for what she would find...

Filthy Rich raised a brow over the state Loose Leaf had herself in with the cookies, but made no comment other than an idle smile.  He was far more easy going than other Ponies in his wage bracket and certainly had no reason to turn his nose up.  He knew just how good the kitchen staff was with cookies, after all.  "Yes, I'm just coming back in.  One of the perks of my job is that I can do it just about anywhere.  Go ahead and relax a while longer.  I need to tidy up a bit myself before we can start." he said with a smile.  The stallion looked to his butler briefly.  "I assume you'll be joining us for dinner?  Pennyworth, see that she has a place set at the table, please."

The butler didn't respond at all beyond giving a simple nod.  With that, Filthy Rich excused himself to the company of his maids as he headed along to get ready for the evening as well.  He could hear the sounds of his daughter washing up down the hall and chuckled a bit.  In due time, he would return with his mane freshly slicked and in a proper dress coat rather than his usual business lapels, though his trademarked tie was still firmly in place.  His arrival coincided along with that of his daughter's and he smiled broadly to see her hustling down the stairs in that darling green dress of hers.

"Well, you look just lovely, princess!" he greeted her fondly.  As always, Miss Peppermint followed close behind to be of assistance where she could.

"Thank you, daddy." Diamond Tiara fought to use the most formal and dignified tone she had, rather than just shouting it out like she was as proud and excited as she really was, deep down inside.  It was a losing battle, but at least the smile on her face didn't split it clean in half.  Her cute-ceañera couldn't have had her half this excited, and that was probably the second or third best day of her life...until recently.  "That coat looks very nice on you."

She gave a light curtsey to the guest, as if she hadn't greeted her once before. "Thank you for coming, Miss Loose Leaf."

By the tome the Riches made it back down stairs, now fresh and in their best, Loose Leaf had finished setting up. She sipped at a fresh cup of tea, a dish with a hot kettle and the cup's saucer on the table next to the easel.  Her set up was facing the most lovely of the couches, so that the two of them could be as comfortable as possible. Apparently, Filthy Rich had already sent word for the size of the painting he wanted, and a canvus had been seet out for her. It was rather large, but Loose Leaf was sure she had brought enough paints. In fact, they looked rather fresh. Un used even.

The artist set down her tea cup and smiled at the two of them. "Well don't you two look nice. Go ahead and have a seat. I figured it would be much more comfortable than any old chair. That and you two can be nice and close," Loose Leaf said, motioning towards the sofa. "So how much do you want me to get? Face? Shoulders? Mid height? Full? It really just depends on how much emphasis you want on the face. I'd suggest shoulders or mid height personally, but it's your call."

Loose Leaf took another sip of her tea and waited for the two to get situated in the positions they wanted, coaching them to move a foreleg here or there, move a bit closer, angle a but differently, to make the piece a bit more dynamic. She set her drink aside again and started to pull tubes out of the pack.

Loose Leaf gave the lighting and the two's coloration a look over before starting to squeeze out pea-sized globs of color onto her palette. Surprisingly, the pallet was just a bug slab of paint stained wood, shaped to accommodate holding it with her hoof.  Some ponies prefered to hold the brush in their mouths, and Loose Leaf even did so some time. However, she rarely did, preferring to have the freedom of using either her whole body or just her hood for stroke movements. Of course, first she used a light pencil before the paint even got involved.

Once the two were settled, Loose Leaf started to slightly sweep her pencil across the canvas; strokes do light that the outline could hardly be seen. She was trained to, however, used to her light marks, and soon she had a rough outline of the two on the canvas.

"Now, oil painting takes a very long time, so just let me know if you two want to take a break. Trust me, I had to model for several hours out of the week back during my studies and I know how tiring it can be to just sit or stand there." Loose Leaf slid her mixing brush into the paints and started to separate some of the color peas to mix into other colored smushed peas. "Once I get far enough, I can always come back tomorrow and finish it. Some of the famous oil paintings the master did of the royal families took several days to complete. This is a much smaller scale though, so I wouldn't worry too much."

With that, Loose Leaf started to paint.

Diamond Tiara did her best to take an appropriate position and to look regal as Loose Leaf got time to start up.  Filthy Rich would know the details of how tall, how high, and whatever else should be done, since he was paying for this.  Before all of these experiences, though, she might have been willing to demand a certain configuration...but she was just happy enough to be involved, now...

"That coat looks very nice on you." Diamond Tiara had said, to which Filthy Rich chuckled and straightened his tie.  "Doesn't it though?"

While he and his daughter got settled in and everything was organized for the evening, Pennyworth remained nearby to assist in any way he could.  Part of it was keeping an attentive hoof at the Victrola and switching out records every now and then; having some music helped to stave off any unnecessary boredom that might have otherwise come up from sitting in place for a long while.  "There's no need to worry about me.  When you attend as many business meetings as I do, you learn how to hold still patiently for long periods of time.  That, and sleep with your eyes open."

For the painting, he asked for a mid-length portrait; more for the sake of making sure as much of Diamond Tiara and her pretty dress got into the image as possible.  He smiled fondly down on the filly as she held herself with such a prim bearing befitting a Pony of their standing.  Loose Leaf could easily see the fatherly pride in Filthy Rich's expression as she drafted it to the canvas.  "We'll take a break whenever you need to, okay princess?"  he gave the control of that particular decision to Diamond Tiara since he was sure she'd grow restless before he would.

Diamond Tiara nodded, but she didn't want to be the one to flinch.  This was, as far as she concerned, a gift to her father as much as it had been a pleasant surprise for her.  She would be glad to keep her smile on and herself as still as possible for as long as possible.  Sure, she'd have to give into boredom eventually and ask for a pause, but she'd be cursed to never see the sun again before she'd surrender to that urge to call for a break so quickly...

A couple of hours past smoothly in the Manor. Loose Leaf made sure to let the two take a break whenever they wanted, enjoying the refreshments of tea and cookies. She asked the butler to put on some relaxing music by choice of Filthy Rich and Diamond Tiara. She usually flip-flopped between what sort of music to listen to when she was working, as it usually affected WHAT she was working on. However, the soft easy listening made the more classical painting of the two ponies pleasant and relaxed. She wanted to capture the two's bond as father and daughter, their facial expressions naturally beaming with pride at each other's presence. It showed in the paint.

Now that the day's work was done, Loose Leaf was scrapping the access paint into an air tight bag as to not waist it, and started to clean her brushes. Through the hours she had painted, cleaned a brush with the cloth hanging over her shoulder, dipped it in a new color, than repeated the process. She was very fond of how the work was going so far, the rosy color of the room and light adding a warm atmosphere to the painting. It also helped brighten up each's faces. Still, she needed to let the first layer dry for at least a day before she got back on it, making the colors a bit more vibrant, else everything would become a big wet mess of brown.

And that was the very last thing she wanted.

"Sorry that took so long, but it could be worse. The masters sometimes took up to two years to finish a single piece!" Loose Leaf said, setting her brushes out to air dry. She started to pack everything else up and finally stood up to stretch, flexing her wings as she did. She could smell the food in the kitchen and wondered if Filthy's offer for dinner was still on the table, even if she had been in taking a steady flow of cookies.