1:00 pm, the place: out side The Symphony's Ballad store
"So this is where she works?" Vinyl said out loud.
"That is correct. You know this is the place where I got my cello."
"So wait you mean to say it's not one-of-a-kind?"
"Vinyl, it's one-of-a-kind to me because my granddad got it for me."
"Octavia, just how many family members do you have that I don't know about?"
"My granddad passed away seven years ago."
"Oh,"
"Lets just go inside," Octavia said after a short awkward pause. The two headed into the store, the place was lined with gold trim. There were all sorts of instruments, guitars, drums from all over the land, trumpets, saxophones, if there was an instrument you wanted, they had it; it was a band's paradise. They walked around, Octavia had to slap Vinyl's hoof away to keep her from touching things. "Vinyl, we aren't here to bye anything, so don't touch,"
"Sorry, it's just I've never seen so many instruments before and in such mint condition."
"That's because their from the newest shipment we got." said a rather rude voice from behind them. The two turned around.
"Mom?" Octavia asked, "What are you doing here? I thought you were taking care of the party."
"I work here and I was stopping here to check on things and make sure things were going smoothly. I did not however expect you to be here. Explain."
"Vinyl, this is my mother, mom this is Vinyl Scratch my room mate. Mom I was giving here a tour of the town and we stopped here. Vinyl knows her history on instruments."
Viola stepped forward and extended her hoof to shake Vinyl's. Vinyl returned the favor and gave a firm shake. If it was anypony else she would have given them a hard shake. "So your Vinyl Scratch,"
"And your Miss Symphony."
"It's Viola, if you don't mind." The two gave each other a long, cold stare. This made Octavia uncomfortable. "So you know instruments well?"
"Yes," Vinyl gulped.
"Care to put that to a test."
"What did you have in mind?"
"I show you an instrument and you tell me the year, material, and type."
"When?"
"Tonight at dinner."
"Ok then." The two put there hoofs down, leaving a dead silence to fill the air.
"Be there by five you two. No later," Viola turned and started leaving. She was almost to the door when she spoke to herself quietly, "What are you hiding Octavia?"
Vinyl felt cold, she had never met such a pony before who was so heartless, so cold, so dark. "Octavia," she said.
"Yes Vinyl?"
"All of a sudden I want to leave and go back to the hotel."
"Your that freaked out?" Vinyl nodded her head quickly. "Ok, then. The tour is over."
"I only met her for a moment and I made eye contact." Vinyl was pail all over.
"Vinyl, your shaking, get on my back, you don't look like you can walk." Vinyl did so and the two headed back for the hotel.
**************
They got back to the Hotel, Vinyl hopped off Octavia's back and fell on the bed.
"Still all shook up?" asked Octavia.
"A little, I'm starting to feel a little better." Vinyl responded, "Do we have to go to dinner? I mean I met your parents can't we just go home?"
"That would make since, but only if she wasn't willing to come down to Ponyville. When you two met, I could tell she has her suspicion about you."
"Now I have to play her little game later and guess the type of instrument."
"Well maybe that will give you a chance to impress her at least."
"Impress her? I'm too afraid now."
"Vinyl you aren't afraid of anything. Now you did pack some fancy clothes with you didn't you?"
"This is Canterlot is it not?"
"Ok, we have three hours before we have to go to dinner. So what should we do?"
"I'm not sure." Vinyl spoke. There was a knock at the door. Octavia went to answer it.
"Who is it?" she asked.
"Candy gram,"
"Dad stop fooling around." She said as she opened the door.
"I could never fool you Octavia. I was at the front desk and Bronze Mane told me you came back early."
"He did?"
"Yes, he said you were carrying Vinyl on your back. What happened?"
"Mom is what happened. We decided to look around the music store and she showed up. Now she wants Vinyl to play her little guessing game."
"The one with the interments?"
"Yes, how do you know?"
"One, she is my wife, and two, she did the same thing to me when I asked her out on our first date. I'm glad she chose a trumpet for me."
"And despite your name, you play the piano." joked Octavia, "Anyway after she left Vinyl was shaking so I took her back here and now we have two and a half hours of nothing to do."
"Is that all? Well if you don't want to go back out, I just so happen to have a deck of cards on me, anypony want to play?"
"Aren't you supposed to be working?" Vinyl called from inside.
"If I can manage this hotel in my sleep, then I can manage it while playing a little poker."
"Ok, I'll play," Vinyl called back.
"Bring it Vinyl." Bazantar boasted.
"Are you sure that is a good idea Dad?"
"Octavia, I never louse and I don't plan on starting now.
****************
Two hours later...
"I can't believe I lost seven times in a row!" shouted Bazantar.
"Perhaps I should have told you Vinyl is a good poker player." Giggled Octavia.
"Just because I'm a mare doesn't mean I don't know the rules." Vinyl bragged
"I never said that but anyway, you girls should get ready, dinner is in half an hour." Bazantar pointed out. "Once your all set I'll walk you two over."
The other two nodded in agreement. Bazantar left the room and waited out side, leaving the two to get ready. They both through on a fancy school mare's out fit.
"Well it isn't formal but she will tolerate it." said Octavia, "Ready Vinyl?"
"My Aunt would freak,"
"Don't be so uptight Vinyl remember this is just for tonight. Tomorrow we get to put on our dresses."
"Good point. Lets go." The two met up with Bazantar and headed to Octavia's old home. Once there, the place was two stories tall, and very big. Bazantar showed them in. The interior was even bigger. There was a lot of cherry red on the walls and several painting of famous composers. Some Vinyl didn't recognized others she did. She stood in front of one that had Beehoofen on it. Octavia sat down on what appeared to be a red velvet couch, Bazantar headed down the hall and Vinyl admired the painting.
"If you don't know who that is, it says Beehoofen on the bottom." It was Viola stepping out from the hall.
"Oh, I knew that, it's just I never seen an actual painting of him," Vinyl said nervously and turned to her.
"Mom, you don't have to be rude to Vinyl, she was just admiring the painting." Octavia defended.
Viola rolled her eyes, "Octavia go to the dining room, I must talk to Vinyl alone," Vinyl gulped. Octavia did as she was told. "So, Vinyl is it? Is it true that Octavia had a colt friend but broke up?"
"Yes Viola, that is true,"
"What was his name because she gave a name in her letters."
"That's easy it was Blue Brass,"
"That's is correct, so your just her room mate?"
"Yes, I became one when she offered me a place to stay."
"Ok, now for my little instrument test, Vinyl come with me." She led her down a hall to a display case. She opened it and pulled out what was inside. "This is my personal Violin and bow, you remember what I wanted you too do?"
"Yea, just let me have a closer look." Using her magic she levitated it and gave it a close inspection. "Lets see, it's made from chary oak, it's for leading and it appears to be from the classical era. As for the bow made from chary oak as well and the string is made from your own tail." She gave it back to Viola who was stunned.
"Everything you just said was right. How did you do that?"
"I work at a dinner and show, I see these things a lot when it comes to booking gigs." (This is partly true)
"Impressive," Viola wasn't sounding as cold, "Why don't we get some dinner. Dinning room is down the hall." Vinyl walked down to the dinning room leaving Viola to think. "The night's not over Vinyl, I find out what you two are hiding."
***************
The Dinning room was large enough to hold a large family. Viola set the table, each time she set a plate she would rotate it three times clockwise and once counterclockwise, her O.C.D. was acting up and her husband was getting annoyed by it. Vinyl and Octavia sat across from each other, same as Viola and Bazantar who each sat next to one of them. It was about an hour of silence and light appetizers, that Vinyl didn't seem to mind. Though Octavia would remind her that she didn't have to eat it if she didn't want to. Then Bazantar came out with a large vegetable pot roast. This would be the dinner. As he served each of them Viola was eyeing Vinyl to see how she would eat. Vinyl waited for the rest of them to be served before eating. Next Viola watched to see if she had good table edicate. Vinyl was starting to realize this so she decided to say something.
"Pardon me Viola," she started, "But this whole time, ever since I met you you have been observing me as if is was a criminal. It's making me feel uncomfortable, I'm not a bad pony; I'm just here on your daughters behalf, she's like the sister I never had."
"Octavia is this true," said Viola,
"Yes mom."
"Ok, I didn't know, I thought you and my daughter were filly-foolers. It seems I'm wrong." Bazantar was shocked to hear his wife say this. He knew something was wrong. The rest of the dinner was ate in silence and lasted about another hour. It was already 7:30. "Octavia, it appears to be raining out so why don't you and Vinyl stay the night, you will have to share a room. If that's ok with you Miss. Scratch,"
Vinyl nodded, "It's ok with me, it wouldn't be the first time."
"When was that?"
"A tree fell through my part of the house so I had to sleep with her."
Octavia quickly nodded to confirm it.
"Ok, Octavia show Vinyl to your room."
"Yes Mom," The two headed up stairs leaving the husband and wife.
"That Vinyl is certainly somepony," Bazantar said.
"Yes she certainly is, there's something that they are hiding. Something that they told you."
"Hey what do I have to do with this?"
"Is our daughter a filly-fooler?"
"What she can't be," he lied, "Vinyl told me the same thing she told you and you know I have never lied to you before,"
"And that's how we got married, Baz we have been together for 21 years and you say you have never lied to me."
"Why would you lie to you, your too gorgeous to lie too."
"Stop trying to butter me up, and I know you are for the filly-fooling and colt-kissing, so that's why I don't believe you."
********************
Octavia had brought Vinyl to her room. It was small, had a large gray bed, a desk and a cello stand with old music sheets scattered around it.
"Just like I left it," Octavia said, "My parents never came into my room unless I asked them."
"So this is your room... I expected bigger but there's room." Vinyl smiled.
"Oh Vinyl," Octavia said as she sat on her bed. "Could you close the door?"
Vinyl closed the door and sat down next to Octavia, "We left our dresses back at the Inn,"
"I'll have my dad get them tomorrow. Vinyl I'm glad you managed to say something to mom, lets just hope she believed you."
"I hope the same, I couldn't thing of having a life with out you."
"Vinyl, come here and kiss me," Vinyl did just that. But what they didn't know was out side the room, looking through the key hole was Viola.
She backed away from the door, "I knew it, but this isn't time to call her out on it. Perhaps they didn't tell Baz because they knew I would find out if they said anything to him. Octavia, you aren't going back to Ponyville because I have just the colt for you. No pony lies to Viola Symphony, I always get what I want. Granted if Vinyl was a colt I would have approved. She is impressive," She then looked at the clock and headed down the hall, "Octavia, Bazantar, I'm going to bed now, remember lights off a 9:30," she called.
"Ok mom!" Octavia called back.
"I'll be up in a few honey," called Bazantar.
"Good, tomorrow I will expose her. I knew I saw somepony that looked like her in Manehattan." Viola headed to her room and went to bed. Bazantar was soon to follow. Octavia and Vinyl fell asleep around Nine. All waiting for the following day to come.