Sea Swirl almost didn’t see the Unicorn that had just walked into her shop. She was too busy trying to stay afloat the mass of ponies swarming around her. It was Hearth’s Warming Eve, and she was fairly certain that half of Canterlot was in her shop right now, and that the other half had either already come, or would pass through before the end of the day.
But Sea Swirl had seen the pony with the wild blue mane walk in, and a sense of panic instantly filled her chest. The blue hues were a rare color for a pony’s mane in Canterlot, and Sea Swirl could only think of one pony that would dare to sport them in the royal city.
She carefully wiggled her way through the crowd until she saw the new customer. The moment she recognized her, a rock dropped into her stomach.
Vinyl Scratch was in her store! Which meant that whatever business had been keeping her away from Canterlot was over, and she was available to play at the New Year party.
And that might mean that Symphony would get passed over to play at the event.
Trying to calm her rising panic, Sea Swirl swallowed and was about to walk the last few paces over to Vinyl, when she noticed the Unicorn shake her head and turn to leave. For a moment, Sea Swirl was relieved, but then she realized that letting Vinyl leave would be a mistake. She had to find out as much as she could about the Unicorn being back in town.
“Hey Vinyl!” she called as she raised her hoof and waved. “Welcome to my store.”
Vinyl turned around and gave her a confused look as she approached. “Um…hey,” the white Unicorn said, tilting her head to the side. “Um…listen. Please don’t take this the wrong way, but, uh…who are you? Have we met?”
Sea Swirl chuckled. She’d heard that Vinyl didn’t exactly blend in with Canterlot’s society, but now she knew it was a fact. “What? No, of course not.”
“Then, uh, how did you—?”
“Are you kidding?” Sea Swirl asked, a smile spreading across her face despite her nervousness. Vinyl was kind of a celebrity, after all. “Who hasn’t heard of the legendary D.J. Pon-three?”
Am I saying that right? Sea Swirl thought to herself as Vinyl stared at her from behind her sunglasses. She had never been sure how to pronounce Vinyl’s stage name.
“Well, uh, thanks.”
Sea Swirl decided she’d start the conversation off naturally, instead of just diving in for information. “So, what brings you here?”
“Oh, I was just leaving, actually.”
A small twinge of embarrassment shot through Sea Swirl as her ears drooped. She took great pride in her work, after all. “Oh. Nothing to your liking then?”
“More like nothing in my price range,” Vinyl replied as her white cheeks flushed with color. “Being a D.J. doesn’t exactly pay well. At least, not this well.”
Sea Swirl blinked her raspberry eyes in surprise a few times and laughed, drawing a few stares from her customers. “Is that all?” she asked. “Tch. I can solve that for you easy.”
“But—”
“What’s the occasion?” she asked, cutting off the Unicorn’s protest. She genuinely wanted to help Vinyl, but she also had another reason for asking. If the mare said it was for the New Year party, the Sea Swirl’s dreams were about to be broken.
“Um, it’s a gift.”
“For?” Sea Swirl asked as she breathed a sigh of relief. So it wasn’t for the party it seemed.
“My marefriend, Octavia.”
“Octavia…” Sea Swirl’s blood ran cold. Vinyl being back in town was bad enough, but now Octavia—the mare Princess Celesita had called the belle Canterlot’s musical world—was back too? This was bad. If Celestia found out about this before Sea Swirl had a chance to talk to Symphony…
Remembering that she was supposed to be helping her customer, Sea Swirl shook her head to clear it. “Classy then.”
“The classiest,” Vinyl said with a glow that Sea Swirl recognized all too well. “I heard this place was all the rage, so—”
“It is!” Sea Swirl said. She puffed her chest out a little, but then she smiled to herself and leaned in to whisper to Vinyl. “If you want to be the talk of Canterlot and show other ponies up. Does Octavia strike you as that type of pony?”
“No,” Vinyl said instantly, with an assurance that Sea Swirl was a little jealous of.
“Exactly. I knew she couldn’t be if she was with you.” Sea Swirl had heard the gossip around Octavia, and how she was dating a mare below her standing, according to a lot of ponies. No doubt the cellist heard it as well, but she chose not to let it get to her. Sea Swirl respected her for that.
“So, uh…are you saying I shouldn’t be in your shop?” Vinyl asked.
“No, not that,” the Unicorn replied. “But I think you’re looking at the wrong stuff. You want your gift to be special, right? Something that is meant for Octavia and Octavia alone, not something for other ponies to gawk at.”
Sea Swirl had been in Canterlot long enough to know when a pony was truly shopping for another pony, and when they were just trying to find a way to show off that involved another pony.
“Yeah!” Vinyl said, drawing a few glares from some customers, but making Sea Swirl smile. “Er, I mean, that sounds perfect.”
“Follow me then,” Sea Swirl said. She began to make her way to the back of her shop, brushing past customers trying to get her attention and politely telling others that they would have to wait for a few minutes. She finally made it to her back counter, and when she made sure that Vinyl had managed to follow her through the crowd, she ducked down and began to search for a box on the floor.
“Here it is,” Sea Swirl whispered as she pulled out the small box. She levitated it up onto the countertop and then popped it open, revealing two small grey pebble earrings resting on a velvet cushion.
“What are they?” Vinyl asked with a confused look.
“Touch one,” Sea Swirl replied with a grin, deciding it was better if Vinyl saw what the stones did before Sea Swirl tried to explain them. She unconsciously leaned forward and stared at the stones, waiting to see if they worked the way she expected them to once Vinyl touched them.
“What’s going to happen?” Vinyl asked, a hint of worry in her voice.
Sea Swirl raised her eyes, not sure why the Unicorn sounded so worried. “Touch one and see.”
Vinyl’s white hoof reached out and carefully touched one of the grey stones. For a second, it remained its lifeless color, but then Sea Swirl saw it change. Its grey became purer, closer to the color of ash. She noticed Vinyl take her sunglasses off and then the stone suddenly changed to dark black. Vinyl gasped, and then the stone changed to a rich purple before Vinyl pulled her hoof away.
“Pretty neat, huh?” Sea Swirl said. Without thinking, she reached out and touched one of the stones herself. It changed to a familiar purple color, and then it shifted to a calming yellow hue, one that always filled Sea Swirl’s eyes when she woke up next to—
Sea Swirl pulled her hoof away quickly and cleared her throat. “They’re paired love stones,” she said, hoping to cover her own slipup with the earrings. “Rather hard to come by.”
“I’ve never heard of them,” Vinyl said with a raised eyebrow, but her eyes remained fixed on the two dull pebbles.
“Most ponies don’t know what they are,” Sea Swirl responded. She had found this pair on one of her recent trips to the ocean, and had been saving them for somepony special. She figured the lost Unicorn standing in front of her right now was a good choice. “I bet that, if I showed these to anypony else here, they wouldn’t react the same way. They only work when the pony touching them is thinking about another pony they care about. Otherwise, they just stay this grey color.”
Vinyl’s eyes finally left the stones and she looked around Sea Swirl’s crowded shop for a bit before looking back at Sea Swirl. “Look, I know Canterlot can be a bit stuffy, but surely they can at least feel love.”
Sea Swirl gave a wistful smile. “Love, yes. But how many ponies here right now do you think are only thinking about the pony they care about? How many are thinking about how good they would look in my jewels? Or how much social standing they’d gain if their wife was seen wearing something?” Sea Swirl had learned to read ponies’ body language in Canterlot, and she was positive that no pony else in the store was shopping exclusively for somepony else.
The sigh and sagging shoulders on Vinyl revealed that she had likely come to the same conclusion. She looked at the stones for a few seconds, and then asked, “How much?”
Sea Swirl supposed she could start acting like a Canterlot pony with that question. By the look of resignation on Vinyl’s face, it was clear that the D.J. was expecting to pay out her of her muzzle, and then some. Plus, she was buying these for Octavia, and if Octavia was planning part of her New Year’s outfit around them, then making it so Vinyl couldn’t purchase them would possibly hinder the cellist’s chances of performing.
“How much do you have?” Sea Swirl replied, pushing the cruel thought out of her mind without a moment’s hesitation. She had gotten along just fine in Canterlot being herself up until now. She wasn’t about to change that. She would just have to talk to Celestia soon, which meant that she’d need to get Symphony to play; hopefully tonight, otherwise the Princess might decide to go with Vinyl for the entertainment.
Sea Swirl watched Vinyl struggle for a moment, and then the white Unicorn carefully said, “One hundred bits.”
“Fifty bits then,” Sea Swirl said with a smile. The love stones were worth a lot more than that, but the look of surprise on Vinyl’s face was enough for Sea Swirl to swallow the loss.
“Really?” Vinyl replied, her ears standing straight up. “I mean, are you sure? You said they’re hard to come by and—”
“And so far no pony else is even remotely interested in them,” Sea Swirl countered. While these stones were pricey, they were also kind of hard to sell in a town like Canterlot. And she was positive that giving them to Symphony was a terrible idea at the moment. “Of course, if you’d rather buy one of my fully priced items, I’m certain you can find—”
“No, no!” Vinyl said quickly, instantly yanking at the flap on her saddlebag to get her bits. “I’ll take them. Fifty bits it is.”
“Thanks, Vinyl,” Sea Swirl said as she swept the bits off her counter and into her register. “I’m sure Octavia will love them.” As she said the Earth pony’s name, an idea suddenly sprang into her head. “Oh, before you go, could I ask you a favor?”
“Sure,” Vinyl said as she closed the paired love stone’s case and carefully set it inside her saddlebag.
“Um…I, uh, close in two hours for Hearth’s Warming Eve,” Sea Swirl started, trying to find the right words. What she was about to ask kind of felt like a betrayal of Symphony, but at the same time, she figured Octavia would be the best pony to ask about Symphony’s gift. “Could you, um…stop by then? And bring Octavia?”
If she’s even back in Canterlot, Sea Swirl thought hopefully.
“I don’t know,” Vinyl said after a moment. “It’s Hearth’s Warming Eve. I’m sure Octy will want to be spending time with her family.”
“Oh, okay,” Sea Swirl answered. “I figured it couldn’t hurt to ask.” So Octavia was back in Canterlot. That was bad news for Symphony if Sea Swirl couldn’t get her play soon. Tonight was turning into her best, and last, hope.
On the plus side, Sea Swirl was hoping the famous cellist would go over Symphony’s bow before Sea Swirl gave it to her, just to make sure it was right.
“Well, back to the grind,” Sea Swirl said with a slightly forced smile as she looked at the swarm of ponies in her store. “I know Octavia is going to love those earrings. Thanks for stopping by.” She started to make her way around the counter and back into the sea of flanks, manes, and tails, but Vinyl stopped her.
“But,” the Unicorn said quickly, “I’ll ask her. If she says yes, we’ll be here for sure.”
“Really?” Sea Swirl felt a smile plaster itself across her face. “Oh, thank you so much! I promise it won’t take long. Just like, literally, two minutes of her time. I promise.”
“Got it,” Vinyl said, and with that, Sea Swirl dove headlong back into her busy store. She hadn’t been entirely truthful with Vinyl. She actually closed in an hour and a half, but she still needed to stop by the music shop to pick up Symphony’s bow. The mare there had promised she’d hold it until Sea Swirl stopped by this evening to pick it up, especially after the generous tip Sea Swirl had offered her.
The rest of Sea Swirl’s shift was a blur of demanding ponies all wanting to be served first, but as it came closer to closing time, Sea Swirl finally started to notice the crowd thinning out. She helped the last pony—a rather attractive Pegasus with a golden mane—pick out something to give her stallion three minutes before her store closed. She had already flipped her sign in the window over to closed before the Pegasus was fully out the door.
“Finally,” the Unicorn said as she sank to the floor. It was cold and a little wet from ponies tracking in the snow that had started falling, but she didn’t care. Every part of her hurt, and for a moment she just wanted to stay on the ground and close her eyes, but the thought of Symphony and her present drove the Unicorn to stand again.
Wrapping a scarf around her neck and tucking her head inside a beanie, the pony walked out into the dimming sunlight and locked her shop. The cold air immediately made its presence known as it bit her muzzle, but after a few deep breaths, she pushed the chilliness aside and began to make her way back to Winds and Strings.
The last of the holiday shoppers were still out, trotting from store to store in hopes of finding that last gift, but otherwise the streets of Canterlot were pleasantly empty. It made it much easier for Sea Swirl to get to the store, and while the snowfall was picking up, the weather ponies hadn’t dumped enough for it to be an actual hazard for her yet.
Sea Swirl reached the shop just in time. The shop owner was in the middle of closing down, exstingushing lamps and closing display cases when Sea Swirl walked in.
“I’m sorry, but I’m clo—oh! Miss Sea Swirl, just in time!” the mare said when she saw who had just walked in.
“I got here as fast as I could,” the Unicorn replied. “I hope I’m not too late.”
The mare waved her hoof. “Please. You said you’d be back around this time, so I was expecting you. Would you like to see it?”
“It’s finished then?”
The crimson Unicorn smirked. “Miss Sea Swirl, you insult me. Of course it’s finished. This is Canterlot. Businesses live and die on their reputation and word of mouth.”
Sea Swirl chuckled at the remark. “Fair point.”
The shopkeeper levitated the familiar case that held Symphony’s bow. She floated it in front of Sea Swirl and then popped it open.
“Good as new,” the mare said. “Better, even, if I do say so myself.”
“Nice!” Sea Swirl said. She couldn’t really tell much about the bow by looking at it, but she did notice that all the strings were attached again, and that was what was important.
She also caught the different shades of purple and violet running through the strings. She hoped Symphony would appreciate that.
“It’s all ready to go,” the mare said as she closed the case. Sea Swirl took it with her own magic and carefully placed it in her saddlebag. “I think she’ll like it.”
“I hope so,” Sea Swirl said as she gave the shopkeeper the last part of the payment. “Thanks again. Happy Hearth’s Warming Eve!”
“You too,” the mare replied as Sea Swirl left the shop. The sun had gone down even more, and now the lamps were being lit in the city. Looking at a nearby clock, Sea Swirl realized she had about ten minutes to get back to her shop and hopefully meet Vinyl and Octavia.
After that, it was back home to meet Symphony and…
Sea Swirl’s mind wondered about the last part of the sentence as she began to trudge through the ever-increasing snow.
* * *
Symphony had done her best to put Sea Swirl’s home back in order. While she had spent the past few days helping the Unicorn run her makeshift shop in Canterlot, she had asked Sea Swirl if she could have today off. Thankfully, Sea Swirl had agreed without a second thought—and without any questions—and thus Symphony had spent the vast majority of Hearth’s Warming Eve day running around Canterlot in a frustrated mess.
Sea Swirl had said she had gotten a gift for Symphony, which meant that Symphony had to get a gift for Sea Swirl. But what was she supposed to get her? The Unicorn was clearly not wanting for anything because of her cushy career. And while Symphony’s financial situation had slowly improved ever since she had started working for Sea Swirl, she was not exactly swimming in bits, so anything extremely fancy was out too.
Regrettably, extremely fancy was all Canterlot seemed to sell. Plus, Symphony had spent the whole trip with the gnawing sensation that just picking something fancy—something a normal Canterlot pony would like—would not be enough for Sea Swirl.
She had all but given up, sitting down for a cup of tea, when a rather annoying pony had joined her. While the experience had been less than pleasant, the mare had given Symphony an idea of what to give Sea Swirl.
The yellow mare had returned to Sea Swirl place then, using the spare key to gain entrance, and had immediately looked behind the door. Sure enough, her violin case had been resting there, just as she had left it when Sea Swirl had given it to her.
Symphony had realized she’d need to get the bow restrung, but that would only take an hour or so, and there was still plenty of time before Sea Swirl came home. Content that she had finally found a solution to her dilemma, the mare had opened the case—
And immediately gone into panic mode. Her bow had not been in her case. She had spent the last hour trying to find it, going through each room in Sea Swirl’s house. She had returned to the case dozens of times, hoping that the missing piece would somehow magically reappear. She had tossed pillows on the floor, looked under the bed and behind furniture, and had even gone through some of Sea Swirl’s more…private drawers, but she had come up empty hoofed.
When Symphony had finally realized that she could easily just go buy another bow, her frustration had disappeared—only to be renewed a moment later when she had seen the clock. All the shops were no doubt closed now, and Sea Swirl was probably on her way home.
“If only I hadn’t broken the stupid thing!” Symphony hissed to herself as she sat on Sea Swirl’s couch in the growing darkness. When the Unicorn had first presented the violin—Symphony’s violin—to her, Symphony had been furious. A thrift shop? So that stupid yokel pony and her stuck up marefriend had pawned Symphony’s violin for a few bits? That thought, along with all the other painful emotions that had come with seeing her violin again, had made her so upset that she had snapped the strings with her hoof. It hadn’t been hard, and she had made sure that Sea Swirl hadn’t seen her do it.
Now though, the yellow mare was regretting the decision. She felt something run down her cheek as she stared at her lonely violin, and when she touched her face, she was surprised to find a tear.
“Crying?” the mare asked herself, disgust creeping into her voice. “I am crying over this? WHY?” She stood up from the couch, knocking the violin off her lap and onto a cushion. “No. No! I am not crying over this! So what if I can’t get that Unicorn a gift? She doesn’t need anything! Look at this place.” She waved a hoof around the plush living room that she had grown familiar with over the past few weeks. “She might be more well off than my parents! Why should I bother getting her anything at all!”
Symphony stomped around the living room, gritting her teeth and breathing through her nose. Her gaze kept returning to her violin—the same one Sea Swirl had found in a pawn shop after Fiddlesticks and Beauty Bitch or whatever had stolen it—until the sight of the instrument consumed her with rage. Screaming, she ran over to it, yanked it out of the case, and raised it above her head as she stood on her hind legs.
“I HATE YOU!” she yelled, but she couldn’t bring herself to swing the makeshift club down. She told herself she didn’t want to risk damaging something in Sea Swirl’s home, but she knew that wasn’t the real reason for her reluctance.
“Stop crying!” she screamed at herself as she slowly put the instrument down. The room was dark now, save for a small lamp Sea Swirl always left on when Symphony was staying over. “I don’t care about her! I don’t!” She sank onto the couch and closed the case, chanting the words over and over until they were just a mumbled mess of sound in the dark.
She didn’t care about Sea Swirl like that. She wasn’t a fillyfooler. Just because she liked having the Unicorn hold her didn’t mean she was attracted to her. Just because she was willing to sexually pleasure her to keep the arrangement they had didn’t mean anything either.
“It just means that I’m…I’m broken.” Symphony let out a harsh laugh as the word left her mouth. She was broken, wasn’t she? She was willing—she had even suggested it herself—to make Sea Swirl climax just so the Unicorn would keep allowing her to stay and keep holding her.
“What the buck is wrong with me?” the violist asked as tears threatened her eyes once more. “And what if she hadn’t turned me down? What if that fillyfooler had said yes?” Symphony started laughing to herself as tears finally escaped in full force. “I would have done it, too. I would have slipped my hoof right there and done it. And when she covered me in her filth and asked for more, I would have done it again. I would have done it over and over, until my entire leg was covered in her, just so she’d keep bucking HOLDING ME!”
Symphony curled up in a ball and viciously switched between laughing and crying. Eventually, she wore herself out and just stayed still, drowning in the darkness and misery.
A sudden trio of knocks at the door caused all the pain to flee from Symphony’s body. She held her breath, hoping that if she made no movement, the next moment would never come.
The sound of Sea Swirl’s door creaking open flooded the dark room. A moment later, a voice called out in the darkness, “Symphony, I’m home. Are…are you here?”
Symphony suddenly found it hard to breathe. “Relax!” she whispered to herself. She forced herself to sit up on the couch, but even though the room was still dark, she made sure she did not turn to face the Unicorn for fear of what her face looked like.
“Yes,” she said once she was certain her voice would not crack.
“Glad you could make it,” Sea Swirl answered, and Symphony heard the slight uptick in the mare’s voice. Picking it out was second nature to Symphony now.
“I had nowhere else to be,” Symphony replied, her back still to Sea Swirl as the mare lit another lamp in the house to banish the darkness; and Symphony’s defense with it.
“Sorry I’m kind of later. The store was crazy busy and—”
Symphony almost turned around when she heard the sound of rustling and Sea Swirl’s sudden stop, but she beat down the urge and simply asked, “And what?”
Sea Swirl mumbled something and Symphony heard the Unicorn smack her forehead.
“Is something the matter?” Symphony asked. She started to turn around—out of curiosity and not concern, she told herself—but thought better of it before she completely faced the Unicorn. She was willing to bet her face was a mess, and the last thing she wanted was Sea Swirl worrying over her.
“Er, well, it’s…it’s about your present.”
Symphony’s blood boiled and froze at the same time. “Forget it.”
“What?” The hurt in Sea Swirl’s voice bothered Symphony more than she cared to admit.
“I said to forget it. Give it to somepony else.”
“But it’s for you.” Again, the pain in the Unicorn’s voice tore at Symphony in ways she didn’t want to acknowledge.
“Well I don’t want it!” Symphony shouted, louder than she meant to. She hung her head and waited for Sea Swirl to…do something to make the situation better. She always did.
“Um…Symphony? Is…something bothering you?” the Unicorn asked. It sounded like she was standing right behind Symphony now, but the Earth pony refused to turn around and face her.
“This whole stupid holiday is bothering me,” Symphony said, her voice threatening to crack. Why was Sea Swirl always so nice to her, even when Symphony was treating her so poorly? Didn’t this mare get it? Symphony wasn’t worth being nice to, much less getting a present for.
“Um…why is that?” Sea Swirl asked. Symphony saw her sit down, carefully, on the far end of the couch. Even now, she knew Sea Swirl was trying to give her space because she had told the Unicorn repeatedly that she was not interested mares, and that she had better not try anything with Symphony.
“I just don’t like this whole gift-giving idea,” Symphony answered. Because I couldn’t find you anything! And when I finally did think of something, it blew up in my face! And you’re not going to care one bit! You’re still going to be happy that I’m just here! Even though I told you you’ll NEVER get what you want from me. Not that you’d take it, because even when I offered it to you, you turned me down!
Stop caring about me! I don’t care about you!
“Well, if it makes you feel any better, I completely forgot to wrap yours.”
Sea Swirl’s casual comment was like a bolt of light through Symphony’s growing storm of dark thoughts. It cut through all of them with such force that Symphony’s rage only built from the shock.
“I told you I don’t want it!” Symphony yelled as she turned to face the Unicorn. A small part of her felt sorry for her actions as Sea Swirl jumped, but the darkness in her mind relished the look of surprise and unlocked all the emotional baggage that the violist had been struggling to hold in.
“You…you…you can just go out and, and…and buy me whatever you want! Symphony tried to scream the words, but she couldn’t. Tears attacked her once again, and her accusation came out more as a choked confession. “You think it’s not a big deal,” she spat, but it was more from fighting back tears than actual venom. “What’s a gift to a pony who can afford everything, right?”
“You stop right there!” If Sea Swirl’s casual remark about wrapping Symphony’s gift had been a bolt of light, her sudden shout was akin to Princess Celestia unleashing the full fury of the sun on Symphony. It was the Earth pony’s turn to jump, and she couldn’t help but force herself back a little into the couch.
That’s it! she thought after she regained herself. Hate me! I’ve crossed a line now, haven’t I? Kick me out. Get rid of me, just like the useless trash I am! Stop caring about me so I don’t care about you!
“You think I just went out and bought you something willy-nilly?” Sea Swirl asked, her tone sucking out all the bile in Symphony’s defiant mind. “You think I didn’t put any thought into what to get you? After all the time we’ve spent together, do you really believe I think so little of you? ‘Oh, this is expensive, so I’m sure she’ll love it.’“
Symphony couldn’t stand to look at Sea Swirl’s pulsing reddish eyes anymore. She hung her head and whispered, “No.” Of course Sea Swirl wasn’t like that. It was why Symphony could tolerate being around her. It was why Symphony liked being around her.
“Do you think so little of me?”
A primal fear took over Symphony when she heard the pain in Sea Swirl’s voice. Her head whipped up and she looked right at the Unicorn when she said, “No!” Then, she regained her composure and lowered her head again as the fight drained out of her. “It’s just…I didn’t get you anything.”
“Is that why you’re upset?” Sea Swirl asked. “Symphony, I don’t need anything. I’m—”
Annoyance bubbled up again in Symphony’s mind. “If you are about to feed me some cliché about my being here being the only gift you want, I will get up and leave right this second.”
“Uh…right,” Sea Swirl said quickly, and Symphony allowed herself a small smile when she saw the mare snap her mouth shut.
“I…I tried, Sea Swirl,” Symphony said. She paused to collect thoughts and keep the uncomfortable sensation in her throat in check before she continued. “I really did. I spent all day trying to think of what to get you. I even shared a drink with some stranger who gave me advice.”
“Oh.” Something about the way Sea Swirl responded caused a small stir in Symphony’s chest.
“And then I came up with something. It…I was excited. It wouldn’t cost anything, but it was still going to be special. And…and then…”
“What happened?”
Fearing that the Unicorn was about to reach out and touch her, Symphony reached for her violin case. She flipped it open and had to take several deep breaths as she stared at the empty space beside the instrument.
“It’s gone,” she finally whispered. Unable to stand the sight any longer, she closed the case and allowed it to rest on her lap.
“Um…not a music pony, Symphony,” Sea Swirl said, trying to lighten the mood with her humor. “So, uh, you’re going to have to explain. I saw a violin.”
“My bow is missing!” Symphony shouted, louder than she meant to. For some reason, after Sea Swirl had snapped at her moments ago, she was now terrified of crossing a line and having the Unicorn be angry with her.
Or worse, kick her out for the night.
“How am I supposed to play for you if I don’t have my bow?” she asked, trying to calm herself a little. “And…I can’t afford to go out and buy a new one.”
The Unicorn said nothing as she stood up from the couch. Terrified that Sea Swirl was about to throw her out, Symphony held her breath and refused to follow the pony as she walked behind the couch and toward the front. She waited for the sound of the front door opening, but it never came. Instead, she was surprised, but happy, when Sea Swirl sat back down next to her and placed a long case on top of her violin’s case.
“Open it,” the Unicorn said.
“Sea Swirl, I won’t accept a gift if I don’t have something for you,” Symphony warned. She refused to be a charity case, no matter how hard things were. She had already swallowed enough of her pride taking the job Sea Swirl had offered.
And eating her food.
And using her shower.
And sleeping in her bed.
And offering to pleasure her.
It is not as if I enjoy all of it! I don’t! I don’t care about any of it! I don’t care about her! Not…in that way!
“Just open it, Symphony.” The Earth pony was about to protest again, but then Sea Swirl whispered, “Please,” and her resolve crumbled at the soft tone.
Struggling to stay afloat in the torrent of emotions in her chest, Symphony slowly opened the case. When she saw what was inside, she gasped and turned to Sea Swirl. “It…it was you?”
“Yeah,” Sea Swirl answered. Symphony just barely caught the hint of blush in the darkness. “Sorry about that. I borrowed it. Figured I’d get it fixed up as your gift.”
Symphony stared at the violin’s companion. She couldn’t help but feel a growing sensation of completion. Ever since her violin had been returned to her, she’d been fighting the urge to pick it up again. As much as she hated to admit it, it felt like a part of her was missing, and now that she had both the violin and her bow again, she felt…whole.
And Sea Swirl, a Unicorn, had made it happen. Without any thought of reward, she had helped Symphony piece a part of her life back together, whether she knew it or not.
“What’s this?” Symphony asked as she pulled out a small piece of paper behind the bow.
“Oh, that’s just a little something from, uh…Octavia.”
Symphony’s blood ran cold. How did Sea Swirl know Octavia? Had she ever mentioned the cellist around the Unicorn? No, so then how—?
My paren—them! Symphony scowled as she remembered her father and mother mocking her dreams in front of Sea Swirl the other day.
Not fully realizing what she was doing, Symphony opened the piece of paper and read the impeccable writing out loud.
“’Symphony. Do not give up. Do not stop playing. There is a place for you here.’”
She…honestly thinks I can do it? Even after…?
“You okay?” Sea Swirl asked, snapping Symphony out of her thoughts.
“Yes,” Symphony answered, although she wasn’t entirely sure if she was being truthful. She wasn’t sure what she feeling. All she knew was that she suddenly needed to play her violin, if only to wash away the guilt of not having any gift to give the Unicorn sitting next to her.
Symphony rose, taking the bow and violin with her. She assumed the stance that was second nature to her, and was surprised when tears came to her eyes. She placed the violin under her chin to hide the burst of emotion, and then, after a heartbeat, she pulled her bow across the strings.
Symphony’s body quivered and she closed her eyes to hold back the sudden flood in her crystal blue eyes. She wanted to take off immediately, to play until her muscles cramped and her hooves bled, but as she played a few more chords, she noticed something different in the sound. It was nothing ruinous for her, but it was enough to stop her from completely losing herself like she wanted.
The Earth pony pulled the bow across the strings a few more times before she said, “It sounds…different.”
“Uh, that might be because we had to restring it a little.”
Symphony remembered how she had snapped the strings before. She set her violin against her hind leg and lifted the bow up to eye level. She turned it a few times in the dim light, noticing that the light was reflecting oddly off the strings. “What did you use to restring it?”
“Well, uh…” Sea Swirl lowered her head and looked up at Symphony like a filly who had just been caught in the cookie jar. “The owner said I should, um…”
A cold dread washed over Symphony as she looked closer at the bow. “Did they tell you to use hair from your own tail?” she asked slowly.
“Um…yes,” Sea Swirl answered. “I thought it sounded kind of sweet, so…”
The panic that had been building in Symphony, and had threatened to explode in a fit of…something at Sea Swirl’s answer, ebbed quickly as her brain registered what the Unicorn was saying. “You did it because you thought it was sweet? Nothing else?”
“No. Why? Did I do something wrong?”
“No, it is fine,” Symphony said as she felt color come to her cheeks. “Thank you, Sea Swirl.” Part of her was disappointed that Sea Swirl had only done such a thing because she thought it was cute. If she knew what her gesture really meant to a musician, what would Symphony had done?
I would have turned her down flat, of course! Symphony shouted in her head, but a second later a strange pain twisted in her chest and she wasn’t so sure of her thought.
“So…is everything okay now?” Sea Swirl whispered.
Symphony studied the bow in the light for a bit longer. Would she have really turned Sea Swirl down? Using her own hair was a sign of deep affection in the musical world—a gesture that Symphony had never thought she would receive—and it had been given to Symphony by another mare. She should have been repulsed by even the thought of it, but for some reason, she could not bring herself to feel even mild annoyance.
I don’t care about her! It was just…she was being nice! She doesn’t know what it means!
Wanting to drive the thought of Sea Swirl from her mind, Symphony placed the bow back on her violin and began to play. Her muscles remembered all the steps instantly, and before long she was swaying and twirling on her hind legs, raising and lowering her head with the music that poured out of her core. The slight vibrations running through her forelegs felt like a massage that was years overdue. The shifting weight of her mane caressed her neck and back with each subtle swing. Her ears rang with a sound that they had almost forgotten. Every part of her felt right for the first time in a long time.
As she spun once more, she opened one of her eyes no more than a sliver. Sea Swirl had dimmed the lights and was sitting on her hind legs like a puppy. The look on her face was awe, and her beautiful raspberry eyes seemed to be looking into Symphony’s body, even as they followed her every step and move. The pure rapture coming from her only served to swell Symphony’s own joy. That look. That was the look she lived for. The look that had made her want to start playing in the first place. The look of a pony so completely hypnotized, so utterly enveloped in music, that they let everything else fall away.
In that moment, Symphony saw Sea Swirl not as a Unicorn, or even as a mare. She just saw a pony who was enjoying her music beyond anything else, and it made the violinist’s heart soar.
Symphony finished in a flurry of twists, twirls, and chords, stamping one of her back hooves as she struck the last chord. Without thinking, she tucked her violin under her right foreleg and bowed, her heart thumping against her chest.
For a second, the only sound in the room was Symphony’s own heavy breathing, but then she heard a slow clap of hooves that quickly grew to a rapid pace. Smiling to herself, she raised her head and saw Sea Swirl almost falling off of her couch as she applauded.
“Symphony, that was…!” Sea Swirl started. She finally tumbled off the couch and practically dashed up to the Earth pony. She reached out of give her a hug, stopped for a moment, but then did so anyway, wrapping her forelegs around Symphony’s neck.
Symphony tensed immediately, but she quickly remembered that Sea Swirl was holding her like this on a pretty much a nightly basis, so she relaxed a little. “You…liked it?”
“That was amazing!” the Unicorn said as she pulled out of the hug. She kept her forelegs gently draped around Symphony’s neck though. “I’ve never heard a pony play that well! It was stunning!”
Symphony stared at the Unicorn who was less than a hoof’s distance from her muzzle. “Stunning?” she asked, staring at the eyes filled with wonder.
“Beautiful!” Sea Swirl said, leaning in closer without thinking. “It was beautiful!”
“Beautiful?” Symphony repeated, now staring at the lips that were so close she could lick them if she leaned in. “Which…part?”
“Which part?” Sea Swirl asked, throwing her head back for just a moment and then leaning in once again. “All of it! The way you played. The way you moved. The way you danced! It was all beati…ful…” Something seemed to click in Sea Swirl as she spoke, and she slowly leaned in even closer. “Um…you. You were beautiful…”
“Thanks…” Symphony found that she was leaning toward Sea Swirl too. Their eyes were locked, and Symphony found herself wanting to swim in the red pools staring back at her. “You’re…beau…”
Stop it! I’m not a fillyfooler! I’m NOT!
Symphony blinked as the thought shredded her mind and she recoiled. The moment shattered, and the red pools that had been inviting her seemed to shift back into pupils.
“Oh,” Sea Swirl said, stiffening instantly and pulling her forelegs off of Symphony so fast that she fell backward onto her couch. “Uh…yeah. Sorry about that! Got a little too close there, heh heh.”
Symphony slowly lowered herself back down onto all fours.
I don’t care about her! I don’t, I don’t, I DON’T!
“Whew, it’s probably pretty late.” Sea Swirl made an exaggerated effort to look around for her clock, but then she realized that the living room was too dark to see. “Probably time for bed.”
“Yes,” Symphony answered, still staring at the Unicorn. Why was she upset that the Unicorn had recoiled so fast? And why was she upset with herself for ruining the moment from before?
“Well, um…let’s head to bed then, huh?” Sea Swirl said. She stood up and scratched the back of her neck and then started to walk down the dark hallway to the bedroom.
Symphony followed, watching the Unicorn’s tail flick back and forth with each step.
Stop staring at it! Stop staring at her! I’m not like that!
“Am I…?” Sea Swirl asked as the ponies climbed into the bed together.
“Yes,” Symphony answered. She slid in next to Sea Swirl, her back pressing firmly against the Unicorn’s underside, and a moment later the familiar comfort of Sea Swirl’s legs wrapped around her.
“Sea Swirl?” Symphony asked.
“Yeah?”
“Thank you for my gift.”
I do not like her! I do not care about her! She is…okay, yes, she is a friend! I have a Unicorn friend. But that is it! She is just a friend! She is—
“You’re welcome,” Sea Swirl whispered. For some reason, the Unicorn’s voice made Symphony tense in ways and places she did not mean to. She didn’t know if the Unicorn was laying extra close, or if the air flow was just right to cut through her mane, or if it was just the fact that she was still coming down from her musical high, but she was suddenly keenly aware of where she was pressing against Sea Swirl.
“Woah,” Sea Swirl whispered. “I, uh…hit a sweet spot there or something?” The mare relaxed her embrace instantly, and even started to pull away a little.
No!
The thought was so sharp that Symphony didn’t realize she was holding on to Sea Swirl’s forelegs, trying to pull her back, until the Unicorn spoke again.
“Okay, I’m here. I just thought that maybe we were getting a little too close to that line, so…”
Symphony wanted to scream. She wanted to rip her mind from her body and stomp it to a bloody mess. If only she had a way to prove to it, to herself, once and for all, that she didn’t like Sea Swirl, then maybe she could—
An idea jumped into Symphony’s mind. Yes, that was it. She could do that! That would prove, beyond a doubt, that she was not a fillyfooler, and that she was not attracted to Sea Swirl.
Sea Swirl had said that they were getting close to crossing a line. But what if Symphony crossed it willingly? If she didn’t feel anything when she did, then that would settle the argument.
“Yes…” Symphony whispered to herself. Her whole body tingled, and she couldn’t help but smile in the dark of the Unicorn’s room. Yes, this would prove it! This would prove she was straight beyond any doubt!
“Uh, Symphony?” Sea Swirl asked from behind her. “You okay? Your heart’s beating a lot faster than normal. Like…wow-level here.”
Symphony rolled over so that she was facing the Unicorn in the dark. She bit her lip as doubt set in. Was she really going to do this?
I have to. It’s the only way to prove it.
“Symphony?” Sea Swirl tried to pull away, but Symphony wrapped her hind legs around the Unicorn’s and her forelegs around her neck. She pulled her back in close until their muzzles were touching. “Line, Symphony! Danger close!”
Do it. Prove you’re not a fillyfooler!
Sea Swirl struggled in Symphony’s embrace, but the Earth pony refused to budge. “Symphony? Hello? I’m, uh…getting a little worried here!”
“Shut up.” With that, Symphony opened her mouth and pressed it against Sea Swirl’s. The kiss only lasted for a millisecond, but she felt Sea Swirl go completely rigid.
“What the hay are you—”
Not enough! Symphony thought as she kissed the Unicorn again. It has to be longer! I have to know that I feel nothing!
This time Sea Swirl managed to wiggle one of her hooves free. She pressed back against Symphony’s cheek, forcing her out of the kiss. “Symphony, seriously, I don’t—”
“It’s still not enough!” Symphony growled, silencing Sea Swirl. She stared at the Unicorn; at the soft lips that Symphony had just kissed—twice—and wanted to kiss again to be sure; at the red eyes, which were now wide open with a mix of terror and delight; at the shaking hoof as it tried to hold Symphony back; at the long, slender neck that—
“Sea Swirl likes to be chocked when you kiss her. Remember that.”
The griffon’s words sprang to life in Symphony’s mind and she rolled Sea Swirl onto her back and then straddled the Unicorn. She sat on top of her and instantly became aware of the heat coming off her lower region.
The Unicorn tried to move, tried to sit up, but Symphony pushed her back down, planting her front hooves firmly on the Unicorn’s chest.
“Uh…not going to lie, I’ve dreamed about this a few times, but…” Sea Swirl said as she looked up at Symphony.
I don’t care about her! And I’m going to prove it!
“Is it true?” Symphony asked, putting as much ice into her voice as she could. She had to find out. She had to get these feelings in her head sorted, or risk going mad.
“Is what true?”
“Choking.”
Sea Swirl’s eyes went so wide that Symphony was afraid she was crushing the pony, but then she felt the mare squirm under her and watched as the Unicorn licked her lower lip and then bit it. “Um…”
“Tell me.”
“Symphony, you do that, and I’m not sure I’m going to be able to hold—”
Symphony pressed down on Sea Swirl’s throat and the mare gasped. “Do you want me to choke you? Nod or shake.”
Sea Swirl curled her lower lip. She wiggled under Symphony again and again, pressing her body—which Symphony could already tell was getting moist—against Symphony’s with each motion. It wasn’t long before Symphony realized she was doing it on purpose.
I have to prove it!
Symphony waited until Sea Swirl pressed against her again, and then she flexed her thighs and pressed down just a bit harder on the Unicorn’s throat.
Sea Swirl swore and tensed beneath Symphony. She shook violently for a moment, and then relaxed. She took several deep breaths before she locked eyes with Symphony. “Are you…are you sure? Because…if you…if you do this…I’m going…I’m going to buck you. Like…really buck you.”
“Yes,” Symphony said, the excitement she felt threatening to drown out the constant thoughts of proving herself.
“Then do it,” Sea Swirl said, lifting her head a little so that Symphony’s hoof pressed down even more. “Choke me. Choke your little Unicorn.”
Symphony pressed down as hard as she dared and Sea Swirl’s body clenched beneath her. The Unicorn’s forelegs whipped up and planted themselves firmly on Symphony’s hips. Symphony leaned down and pressed her mouth as hard as she could against Sea Swirl’s.
I’ll prove it. When I don’t feel anything, then I’ll know I’m right!