The usual click and clack of hooves on pavement was accompanied by the repeated splash and splosh of hooves clopping through puddles every few feet. Canterlot didn’t require a lot of rainfall, the whitewashed and gilded buildings looking all the more splendid in glorious sunshine, but even the capital and residence of the princess of the sun needed to water the various gardens and surrounding hills. It just so happened to be on a day that Octavia was forced to walk to the train station rather than take her usual chariot taxi.
It had been a month since she had sent her letter to Ponyville, and the rumour mill had been working at full capacity, churning out all manner of gossip and stories ranging from the mundane to the ridiculous.
The cellist still rolled her eyes at the notion that she had fostered an illegitimate love child with Vinyl. Journalists and critiques had been clambering over themselves as a result, all in the hopes of getting that exclusive interview or that one photograph of her with a baby bump that would prove it all.
However, Octavia had dealt with the paparazzi and their unwanted attention before… well, at least Beauty Brass had—Octavia had only done so via association. Even so, the beleaguered pony had more than enough experience to deal with it.
Cover was the key, and unfortunately being escorted around the city in a chariot that picked her up from her apartment wasn’t exactly subtle. She had had to sneak out the back of her apartment building, dressed in a jet black rain coat, the hood pulled right up over her head and down past her eyes; the coat serving two purposes, of course.
“Blasted newspapers,” she cursed as she stepped off the pavement and into a particularly deep puddle. She lifted her drenched hoof up and gave it a shake before continuing on her way with a grimace, the occasional sound of muttering keeping other pedestrians at bay. Naturally, that suited Octavia just fine.
Her friends had talked her into taking some time off once she had told them of her planned trip to Ponyville. She had only planned on visiting for a few days, but Symphony then suggested a bit of a longer stint. What began as a few days turned into a week… then two, and it was all Octavia could do to stop them pushing for a month. It was true she never used her holiday allowance but that was because she didn’t really feel like she needed it. A month would probably end up killing her through boredom.
The cellist sighed as she contemplated on why her life had gone so horribly wrong. ‘No, not wrong, but different,’ she corrected herself. Despite all the trouble and disruptions that had been caused by her meeting with Vinyl, Lyra and Bon-Bon, she had to admit that she wouldn’t go back and stop herself from inviting herself to breakfast with them.
She wouldn’t even change anything about the night she spent with Vinyl; it had been fun after all. An interesting change to the mundane. Something different. And if her friends would ever agree on anything about Octavia it was that she was a creature of habit. A little change or something different would probably do her some good in the long run. Not that she agreed with that most of the time.
The wind picked up a little as she turned a corner, and the rain now blew against her, clinging to her face and dripping into her coat. The biting coldness of it made her shiver, the encroaching winter easily noticed in the slow but steady drop in temperatures over the past couple of weeks. The pegasi were generating cold fronts all over Equestria and Octavia found herself thankful that she had arranged for her luggage to already be collected from her apartment before she left. She didn’t fancy having to carry it with the weather as it was.
The weather did keep many of the ponies of Canterlot indoors though, and she was thankful for that. Although she was trying to make herself look as inconspicuous as she could, she knew anypony that was actually looking for her would probably be able to pick her out of a crowd. And with a distinct lack of crowds on the streets it was also easy for her to pick out ponies that she really didn’t want to encounter, usually the ones with cameras attached to their necks.
Such a pony was dining in a restaurant that Octavia passed and although he saw her, by the time he had extracted himself from his table and gotten outside, the cellist had already turned several corners and lost herself in the side streets opposite the train station.
The grey earth pony smirked to herself at her oh-so-clever evasion tactics, before the smirk became a scowl as she walked straight by ‘Mare’s Weekly’s head office. And of course, various ponies, paparazzi ponies, were milling about the front office, cashing in their photos for pay cheques and awaiting assignments. And of course, they all saw her. And of course, they all swarmed her like ants.
With an exasperated groan mixed with what could only be described as a snarl, the Canterlot Symphonic Orchestra’s lead cellist broke into a gallop, taking advantage of a gap in her unappreciated entourage to escape. The flash of cameras and the buzz of questions followed her, much to her annoyance and she’d have been very vocal in her disapproval if she wasn’t as close to the train station as she was.
Being the seat of Equestrian government afforded Canterlot with all manner of perks. Tax breaks for government officials, the best of public spending and roads and maintenance, and a very large emergency services budget. Security was very important after all; who knew what might pose as a threat to the Princesses at any moment.
The train station was such a place to benefit from that large budget. As she approached the ticket booth, Octavia smiled to herself, having gained enough of a lead to quickly skid to a halt, reach into her coat and wave her train ticket urgently at the attendant monitoring the entrance gate.
The pony in question was quite taken aback by the sudden arrival but seeing the ticket was very much in order, he waved Octavia through, his horn lighting up to release the turnstiles and then locking them back into place once she had passed. The herd of ponies following her one by one caught up and tried to get through but the turnstiles held and, with a whistle from the attendant, two unicorn guards arrived to begin the process of dispersing them.
With a triumphant laugh, the cellist pointed at the paparazzi, “Not so clever now, are you?” she sneered, watching as they struggled to get through, and failed miserably.
“Why are you going to Ponyville?” One of them suddenly shouted when it was clear they weren’t getting anywhere fast. This was coupled with a few flashes of camera lights and the click of shutters, followed by more questions.
“Are you visiting Vinyl Scratch?”
“Is it true you’re moving to be closer or will you be joining DJ PON3 on her tours?”
“What names have you chosen for your foals and who are the godparents?”
Octavia was stunned. How had they known where she was going? She’d been so careful and planned everything so meticulously. She’d told nopony other than her friends where she was going and she’d only picked up her stalkers from across the street.
Just as it was about to get too much for her, she turned around to board the awaiting train, only to see in large, very clear and ever-so-prominent letters the words ‘Ponyville Express’ printed on the side of the engine. And if that wasn’t enough, she also looked up to the timetable above the platform to see that the only two trains departing for the rest of the day from Canterlot were the Ponyville Express and another much later in the day.
“Horseapples,” Octavia cursed, realising that the pictures that would no doubt be in the next edition of ‘Mare’s Weekly’, would be featuring a very suspicious-looking cellist trying to sneak away unseen and in disguise to continue her illicit love affair with everypony’s favourite DJ. At least, that’s what the magazines would be printing.
Her triumphant mood quickly soured.
She marched herself onto the train, and was marginally pleased to see that her bag had already been brought aboard and had been placed into the overhead railings. Taking a seat at the back of one of the carriages on the opposite side of the windows facing the platform, she placed her chin on a hoof, leaned her head against the window and stewed.
“All this effort and I’m not even getting the illicit love affair at the end of it,” she found herself muttering, before she’d realised where her thoughts had taken her and her face coloured in a blush.
“Behave yourself!” She suddenly shouted at herself, startling the other ponies in her carriage. She gave them all a bashful smile when she noticed but that didn’t do anything to alleviate their fears.
She sighed. “Well, I guess I don’t have to worry about sharing my booth.”
--
“Lyra~”
The unicorn rolled her eyes, more to herself than for anypony else’s benefit. It had only been five minutes since Bon-Bon had last shouted up to her.
“I’m coming,” she finally grunted in reply as she gave the wardrobe door one final push, only to have it swing back open and the box of hats on the top shelf come tumbling out, showering her in head wear. Sufficed to say, Lyra was not happy.
Bon-Bon called again, wondering what was taking her marefriend so long to get ready. The response she got was a flash of golden light, followed by a slam and finally, a rather grumpy-looking Lyra descending the stairs. “Finally,” the candy maker smiled mischievously, pretending to ignore the obvious frustration in Lyra’s eyes. “What took you so long?”
The unicorn simply stared back at her with an unamused expression, before opening the front door with her magic and herding the other pony out. “When we have the time, we’re getting rid of some of those hats of yours,” she finally said, much to Bon-Bon’s surprise.
“What?!” She exclaimed, followed by a series of splutters and ramblings before finally getting out, “Why?”
“Because what took me so long was having to stuff all your hats back into the wardrobe. It’s amazing how many can fit in there—do you even wear them all?” The memory of a beret from Prance, dangling off her horn before she lost her temper and magically sealed the wardrobe shut, came to mind.
“Of course I do, but the hat has to suit the occasion; I can’t just choose one at random everyday… even if I wanted to.”
Lyra simply sighed, urging the other pony out of the garden and on the path to the train station. The unicorn knew full well she’d lose any argument when it came to clothing, especially since it was her fault in the first place that there wasn’t that much room to begin with.
Although she was extremely happy with her living arrangements, she and Bon-Bon had both had separate houses before they moved in together. And it was only at the insistence of Lyra that the earth pony moved into the unicorn’s house, using some of the money from the sale of Bon-Bon’s place towards the setup of her confectionary shop.
But practicality was starting to win the battle over fancy and the ideal little world she’d built with Bon-Bon was starting to be infringed upon by… stuff. Boxes of it. She hadn’t expected just how many knick-knacks and trinkets her marefriend had owned and it was only because of Lyra’s own minimalistic lifestyle that it was able to all fit under one roof. Well, almost fit. Some of it had spilled into storage in the basement… what used to be Lyra’s music room.
‘Maybe a bigger place would fix it,’ she mused absent-mindedly as Bon-Bon continued to fight her case for her hats, explaining the various protocols and intricate nuances of which hat was right for which occasion. ‘But not yet, still have things to get right before we do any of that.’
The sound of the clock tower broke the unicorn’s train of thought, just as they were passing Vinyl’s house. The dark windows and unkempt garden was evidence enough that the DJ still hadn’t returned from her tour. But Lyra soon found herself thinking that, even if she had returned, the garden would still be in the same sorry state. And it had only just struck two in the afternoon: the windows would probably be just as dark with a snoozing unicorn on a sofa.
“Come on, Dolly Daydream,” Bon-Bon teased, tugging on a green foreleg, urging the unicorn to resume walking. “Octavia’s train will be here soon and we don’t want her having to wait for long at the station. Especially if she’s being followed. The poor dear.”
Lyra couldn’t have dawdled any more even if she wanted to; she was always surprised just how strong earth ponies could be. She had to admit Bon-Bon was right though. Although she didn’t keep track of gossip as much as her two-tone-mane companion did, she couldn’t help but pick up on some of the rumours that were circulating in the magazines that had been haphazardly left around the house for her to clean up.
Most revolved around Octavia and had plenty of pictures to back up the stories. Most of them looked innocent enough, but when coupled with the accusations that went with them, they took on whole new meanings. It surprised her that the press could get away with some of the wilder ones, until she saw the disclaimers at the bottom of each article deeming everything conjecture and speculation of the respective authors.
But everypony loved a good rumour and Lyra doubted any of the more… fanatical ponies would care if they were true or not. ‘Usually Bon-Bon would fall into such a category but it does help to know the pony who the articles were about,’ she supposed.
The clock on the station was showing five past two as the couple approached and the musical screech of a whistle announced the train’s arrival. It didn’t come as that much of a surprise to find the platform relatively empty. Most of the time, Ponyville was a quiet town—not much business came and went—and most of the families were tight-knit and didn’t travel too far to neighbouring towns. It had only been in recent times that Ponyville had begun to get a greater influx of tourism. Or its own express line, for that matter.
Lyra couldn’t agree on whether the tourism was a good thing of not, considering it was mostly due to the various calamities that had befallen the town ever since the Princess’ student had taken up residence. But then again, tourism did mean Bon-Bon earned more money at her shop, which, in turn, helped to pay the bills. All Lyra needed to do was find the right tourist with the right musical connections, and she was sure she’d be a lot more grateful for the strange ponies roaming the streets and taking pictures of the ‘quaint little abodes’.
“Everypony off for Ponyville,” the shout of the conductor came from the front of the train, “Next stop, Dodge Junction!”
A smattering of passengers disembarked from the various cars linked to the engine. Some of them Lyra and Bon-Bon recognised but none of them were Octavia. It was several minutes until they eventually spotted the flowing black tail of their friend, walking backwards from the train and dragging her case in her mouth.
She doesn’t look best pleased, Lyra thought as Bon-Bon immediately rushed over to help. The unicorn dawdled for a moment before joining the two earth ponies, one being crushed by the other in what seemed more like a death grip than a hug.
“We’ve been worried sick about you,” Bon-Bon mumbled into Octavia’s mane, the latter desperately trying to pry the former off, if only so she could breathe. “Those gossiping nobles and the dreaded paparazzi! Why can’t they just leave you alone?” She continued, oblivious to her captive’s attempts.
Eventually, after what seemed like enough time had passed for Octavia to pass out, Lyra pried her marefriend off her and gave a hug of her own—a gentler one that didn’t leave the grey mare gasping for breath.
“Glad to see you made it ok enough,” she commented, grasping the handle of the suitcase with her magic and giving it a tug to get it upright. “You shouldn’t have too much to worry about now that you’re here; we only have one newspaper and that’s the school newspaper, and nopony really reads it anymore after… an incident we had with it.”
The cellist gave a visible sigh of relief at that and seemed to brighten a little. Lyra simply chuckled and motioned for them to leave the platform, floating the suitcase gently behind them as they went. “You don’t pack light, do you?” She commented, not really struggling with the luggage but still feeling it was rather heavy. And even then, it was nothing compared to Bon-Bon’s shopping bags.
The grey mare smiled sheepishly, having forgotten to send a follow-up letter once her plans had changed. “Ah, yes, about that,” she began, “It turns out that I may be staying a little longer than I originally intended… but don’t worry about me overstaying my welcome. I’ll be sure to check into an inn or find other suitable arrangements once I know what’s on offer.”
Lyra snickered. Octavia was about to ask why, and then Bon-Bon exploded.
“Absolutely not!” The cry startled the cellist, whilst the lyrist politely whistled in ignorance. “You’ll be staying with us for however long it turns out to be. I won’t have any friend of mine staying at some second rate hostel whilst I have a roof over my head. Especially after everything you’ve been through!” Lyra debated on mentioning that it was technically her roof, but thought better of it; she didn’t fancy having to share the pull out sofa.
“Al-alright,” was all that Octavia could reply with, definitely not expecting such a strong opinion from such an otherwise polite mare. They walked in silence for a few moments, before she regained enough composure to continue. “Thank you, it means a lot to me actually. I know you offered to have me over before all this… business with Vinyl but I never expected more than a couple of days. My other friends back home suggested it be longer.”
“You’ve got good friends then,” Lyra chipped in, “It’ll do you some good to get out of the city for a while, let everything die down over there for a bit.”
“I don’t think that’s going to happen for quite some time…”
“Why not?” Bon-Bon asked with a worried expression.
“Because ‘Mare’s Weekly’, practically waved me off on the platform. They know exactly where I am, and of course, they assume it’s to see Vinyl.”
Silence prevailed once more, the humble streets of Ponyville actually providing Octavia with a pleasant sense of calm after her most recent days. Ponies went about their business, smiling politely as they strolled past. And there wasn't a camera or notebook to be seen. The weather had even improved she realised, as a cool late autumn breeze blew gently through her mane.
“Soooo… you’re not here to see Vinyl then?”
And just like that, all the calm went away.
“Bonnie!” Lyra admonished, shaking her head in disapproval.
“I was only asking…” the cream mare quietly replied, a twinkle in her eye betraying the sliver of hope it contained. “The letter was a little confusing is all… made it seem as if you wanted to see Vinyl just as much as you wanted to see us.”
“Of course she wants to see Vinyl,” Lyra shouted once again, ignoring the increasingly irate look Bon-Bon was developing, “She obviously wants to sort things out, to speak to each other and get their stories straight.”
“Well excuse me for asking!”
Octavia rolled her eyes, not really expecting anything else. “Yes, I’d like to see Vinyl, yes I’d like to sort things out, and yes… the letter was confusing because…” she paused, wondering on whether or not to divulge the next thought. She finally relented, thinking it better to get it out in the open sooner rather than later. “The letter was confusing because I’m confused… and I was hoping you two could help me with that… with Vinyl.”
Lyra sighed. “If you mean what I think you mean and this is going where I think it’s going then you’ve just made Bon-Bon’s day…”
“So the rumours are true!” Bon-Bon squealed, proving Lyra’s point.
“No!” came the very urgent reply, “They’re absolutely not true, none of them are… but I do find myself… day dreaming… from time to time.”
“So you have a crush then,” were the next words out of Bon-Bon’s mouth and the cellist immediately began to feel hot around the collar.
“M-maybe a small one…” she replied, before continuing, feeling more embarrassed by the second, “… a tiny little… maybe… possibly… one…”
“That’s good enough for me,” the sweet maker chirped, and then proceeded to quite happily trot along in silence.
“You’ve no idea what you’ve just done, do you?” Octavia’s attention was pulled away from the now giggling mare to a serious looking unicorn. “Do you remember what I said at Vinyl’s DJ gig in Canterlot? About those two farmers, Applejack and Carrot Top?”
She vaguely recalled it, two farmers that Bon-Bon was trying to get together. Octavia watched as Lyra nodded in a direction and when she turned to look she saw two ponies at a market stall, one side selling apples, the other carrots.
The two seemed quite happy to be stood together: happy enough for the one that was obviously Carrot Top to be leaning against the one donned in a Stetson that must have been Applejack. It was at that moment that Octavia realised she may have made a mistake letting Bon-Bon in on her little secret.
‘Or not… depending on whether or not I’m in a day dreaming mood,’ Octavia finally thought.
--
Opel and Vinyl were sat in silence in the ‘Grand Stable’s foyer. The hotel was the last hotel Vinyl planned to stay in for quite some time. Her tour, having finally come to an end in Vanhoover, had exhausted her thoroughly, and although the hotels she stayed in were always of the highest of quality, thanks to Opel Jubilee’s fussy tastes, nothing felt more right to her than her own bed back in Ponyville.
She had already decided that the first thing that she’d do was collapse for a nap as soon as she got home. She couldn’t even remember what state she’d left it in but that wouldn’t stop her. After that, she toyed with the idea of going to ‘Sugar Cube Corner’, or possibly even ‘The Hay Burger’. Even something as simple as Bon-Bon’s home cooked meals were calling out to her. And she oh-so-enjoyed her baked goods, made all the sweeter thanks to Lyra’s complaints that she always seemed to get bigger helpings.
“Don’t forget that you’re still on your diet when you get back home, Vinyl.” The distraction brought the DJ back out of her daydreams of food to the harsh reality of salads and jogging, much to her disappointment.
“What do you mean I’m still on my diet?” she complained, wiping her mouth with her hoof and removing the drool that had given her away to her agent. “We agreed we’re on my time as soon as we get home; I’ve worked hard and I deserve my break.” She scowled at Opel, her eyes glaring daggers at her. Of course, the effect was lost somewhat thanks to her ever-present glasses.
“Yes, well, with all the secret snacking you’ve been doing when you thought I wasn’t looking you have to make up for it somewhere.” As if on cue, the concierge appeared at that moment to hand Opel their hotel bill. She scanned it for a few moments before looking up at Vinyl, who was now looking at absolutely anything but her. “I see someone raided the mini bar last night...”
The white unicorn chose to ignore her agent, leaning against the arm of the chair she was sat on and going back to her fanciful dreams of home. It annoyed her, truthfully, that Opel put such stock into her diet and fitness. She probably wouldn’t be that tempted to snack if she was just left to her own devices. After all, before she’d struck it big, she used to eat whatever she wanted, and although she hadn’t strictly speaking been a slim mare, she hadn’t been carrying too much weight either.
Now she just yo-yoed up and down on the scales, never ballooning, but never constantly what Opel ‘thought’ she should be. She had thought of herself as rather voluptuous, even if she did say so herself. She even liked that in other mares too: ‘something to hold on to,’ was what she’d always said. Meaning cuddly, of course, but most thought she meant other more… raunchy things. The press didn’t help with that misconception.
She wasn’t really that bothered what most ponies thought of her, but she couldn’t help but look back on that morning she’d read the article about her and Octavia. She snickered a little, imagining the many freak outs the high class Cellist would be having, before feeling somewhat guilty at doing so. She had to admit, it was hardly fair for Octavia to get caught up in all that, in the whirlwind that was DJ PON3—not fair at all. Which was why she had sent Flitter Flash away the morning after their night together.
There were tears at that, but it was for the best, even if she felt horrible at making the young mare believe it was a one night stand. Flitter was a nice pony, one that Vinyl didn’t want to be dragged through the mud by the press. Her father’s photo frame shop probably could do without the bad publicity that came with it too.
Before long, it was time for the two to depart. It had gotten late in the afternoon and almost time for their train to leave. Vinyl wasn’t looking forwards to sharing the ride home, but she was thankful that Opel was getting off in Canterlot, meaning she was free to do whatever she wanted in Ponyville until her agent returned to find her and whisk her away to her next function, event and or public appearance.
She’d begun to make lists in her head of plans and errands that she wanted to take care of after that first initial nap. Visiting Lyra and Bon-Bon was of course one of her top priorities. But she also wanted to go to the library and see if there were any more new comics to read. It wasn’t that she didn’t like real books, but with her hectic schedule, the comics were just easier… plus, they had pictures and she was a very visual mare, or so she often explained when interviewers asked about the abundance of lasers and increasing amounts of pyrotechnics in her shows.
She reluctantly added chores to her list, knowing full well that although she couldn’t remember what state her house was in, it probably wasn’t a good one. Laundry would likely need to be done, and gardening, though she could probably pay someone to do that for her.
A few ponies took her picture as she walked with Opel and one of her burliest security ponies, the large equine keeping any of the photographers from getting much closer. Vinyl barely noticed, however, more than used to the attention. In fact, it didn’t even register to her. She’d become accustomed to being followed, stalked and screamed at, as long as the ponies doing such things didn’t get too close.
Being so lost in her own thoughts, the DJ was surprised to find that they had already reached the station, noticing busy ponies going back and forth along the platform, most minding their own business. There wasn’t even much of a gathering of news ponies or fans waiting for her, much to her relief. Her concert the night before had gone on quite late and as the end of every tour had to have an after party, she didn’t actually manage to get her head down until Celestia’s sun was up. She was too tired to do much dodging.
Thankfully, it seemed Opel was of the same opinion, and rather than make Vinyl stand around for a few minutes for photos or to sign a few autographs, she hustled the white unicorn along, practically pushing and shoving her on board the train with her one pony security detail keeping others at bay.
“Thank buck for that,” Vinyl sighed happily as she walked down the carriage way to where Opel was directing her.
“The tour is over,” Opel began to explain, motioning to a private booth in the carriage they entered next. “Although all publicity is good, I don’t think we’d get much from such a small gathering of news folk.”
Vinyl wasn’t really listening. She’d already taken up residence on one of the plush couches that inhabited her first class carriage coach and was lounging on her back, staring at the ceiling. “The tour is over,” she said to herself as the train’s whistle blew.
The conductor’s voice shouted out over the platform. “All aboard! Next stop, Canterlot!”
Vinyl grinned. She couldn’t wait to get home.
5206891 So... it wasn't my clever use of bookshelves? ;)
Waited 1.5 yrs for this
Haven't read it yet. About to.
Saw it was updated and put everything else I was doing on the back-burner.
I'm still not over it...
CHANGES UPDATED!
AIP§
Yay glad your back. Been waiting for a year for this, one of the great octy and scratch novels
Did a little happy dance (as much of a happy dance as you can do while sitting down that is) when I got the update email. After I finished picking my jaw up off the floor of course.
This is the best VinylTavia fic and I'm so glad that it's not dead.
I'm impressed how seamlessly you seem to have picked this up again, especially since you haven't done any writing at all in the past two years.
I completely forgot this was a thing its just been so long (no offense)
Glad its not dead so yay.
also good chapter and all that jazz mate.
~Reggie
Oh how I've missed reading this story. Truthfully, I haven't really been reading fanfiction what with school and work and life in general (the road to becoming a linguist programmer astrophysicist is truly one to not be desired). So I am pleased to say that this update is the first thing I've read here in a very long time. While I didn't revisit previous chapters for a refresher, this one was easy to pick up even if I was a little lost on a few things (don't blame yourself for that one, it's entirely my fault. Too many TaviScratch fics that haven't updated in a while jumbled in my head. I swear I merge this one with From Scratch the most often).
As for your writing, it flows pretty smoothly for a two year break. But I can tell this wasn't proofread as thoroughly as it could have been, but alas, that's just the grammar pedant in me
Overall, I'm glad you're back and this story will always be one of the few that make want to drop everything to read.
Since you asked, I'll have you know I'm compiling a list of errors in the chapter.
I'll send it to you through PM once I'm done.
AIP§
5208384
That was wildly inappropriate.
...
It was also side-splittingly hilarious.
Because that's a pretty accurate description of everyone's feelings on the matter.
Approve.
first the final chapter to Stages now update to this, what a morning im having
Well, I am thrilled to finally see this updated. Honestly, this was the first Vinyl/Octavia fic I ever read and it is still the best! Over all your writing is still top notch. It's sad things couldn't end well with Flitter, but we all knew what that was. Not sure what else to say, just that I love this fic, this chapter was great and I really hope to see more soon
5206773 That's good, you get to keep your soul.
5206905
Just in case you didn't look at your PM's, I'm re-notifying you that I sent you my edit of the chapter.
I just woke up and went straight to my feed, only to find that a story I had previously thought to be the deadest of deads was, in fact, still screaming, kicking and flailing it's metaphorical arms around.
Only ten minutes into the day and its already been made.
That has to be a new record, surely.
worth the wait for this story
Well... To be completely honest, I have waited longer for other stories to arise from the dead.
But still, nice to see this isn't a dead fic... For now at least.
I'll read this chapter once I have the time available... Or when I am not being an insane idiot on the Fallout Equestria forums here.
Oh sweet, Changes updated. What a wonderfully exciting Halloween this is shaping up to be.
2 long years, thankfully i reread the whole story just 2 weeks ago (this being my favorite vinyl/tavi story ever) i am so glad that you have decided to continue the story and i really am looking forward to future chapters, as far as critique goes this chapter seems somewhat different than the others although how it is different i can't really say.
5208699
And I have incorporated those edits, much appreciated
2 years later, still excited to read, although i did need a little refresher.
and off to the races! nice to see this one wasn't abandoned, and nice to see your style hasn't degraded too much, any issues I felt with the piece is more than explained by a 2 year hiatus so, welcome back and thanks!
Let this be a lesson to never delete dead stories from your favourites
it was surprising how quickly it all came back, nic ework.
It lives! I was so excited to see one of my favorite OctaScratch fics update after 2 years, and on top of that it provides the first inkling of budding romantic feelings.
5209995
I figured it was about time I started to touch on that subject, otherwise I'd be in danger of making this faaaaar too long...
5210005
80k words seems about right, lol
5210027
I wrote a story that reached just under 200,000 words... and I never did finish it!
I don't want that to happen again...
I suggest using Italics for thought. It makes it much easier to distinguish which is which.
And here you have italics. Please remember to use this all the time, for every time a character thinks something.
5210290
5210241
Aaaaand, done. I'd put the italics in afterwards, guess I missed that one. Cheers.
Well, time to re-read this entire thing.
Okay, so Bon-Bon's theme song is now this:
[youtube=8Tc7MH5ZXbg]
So just out of curiosity, what kind of minor changes are we talking about here?
Presumably some edits will probably in order eventually, be them for the better or worse.
5210513
Well... I'm pretty sure I had Lyra's magic a light green colour in a previous chapter, but I couldn't find it anywhere. And as you can see from Chapter 15, her magic is now golden which I believe is the correct colour. So, yeah, little things like that.
I suppose I should go back and change Vinyl's eye colour too...
Commence read.
Has been sometime since the last installment into the series.
5210532 If that is the case, then I would suggest you scrap the story entirely and start over from scratch.
I suggest you give your fans a heads up when doing this however. It is going to piss a few people off.
But hey, that is life.
FYI, Octavia now has the surname of Melody now.
Bon Bon is now known as Sweetie Drops.
Might also want to scarp the cover art too.
5211253
Nah, there's no need to go scrapping anything. It would only ever be minor insignificant details, and I'm not entirely convinced there's that many other than the two I mentioned earlier to do with colours.
Luckliy I haven't mentioned Octavia's surname, as far as I can recall, so adding Melody to it would be pretty easy should I need to use it. And I believe Bon Bon and Sweetie Drops are both valid names, I prefer the former though, of course.
And I can't scrap my cover art! I love it too much
5211283
Too bad. That's just how things go around here.
You have three options. Delete your story/completely rewrite it to conform to current show canon.
Abandon the story and get to work on something else, while slapping an AU tag for good measure.
Or you can just simply continue the story as it is.
I highly advise a rewrite of the whole story to conform with the current show canon.
This may be a fanfiction site, but that does not give you the excuse to go about half assing everything.
You either do this change whole or not at all.
Not to mention, most of the newcomers that have come since this story "died" will either not tolerate the "liberties" your story has taken, or will be in the dark due to a lack of context.
Sorry, but that is just how things are around here. Deal with it or go home.
As for the cover art, you might not need to scrap it. Just alter the eye color of Vinyl Scratch.
Bon Bon's name needs to be changed. There is no official mention of a "Bon Bon". Only Sweetie Drops.
I may be harsh on this stance, but this is just for your own good. You don't want to know the consequences of what happens if you don't.
Canon continuity is very important sir. While I respect your ability to create a good story, it does not matter if you do not get the major details right. Update it and you'll be in the clear. Simple as that.
5211338
Well, as I said, I don't really think there are that many differences between the canon established facts and the ones I've outlined in Changes so far. Chronologically the story is set between season 2 and 3 so any major canon plot points like Twilights coronation can be dealt with in the story if it serves a purpose. I'm not proposing changing any of that. Hmm, I suppose I could put a comment in the story description to explain the time line it's set in.
Again, I was fairly certain Lyra's Magic colour and Vinyl's eye colours were the only deviations that came to mind. The names of the characters involved are still accurate. All I asked was for people to point them out if they noticed any that I over looked. I don't think I've taken any liberties, but I'll gladly take a look at them if you can find me some examples.
I think a total rewrite would be a little over kill for such minor details and scrapping it completely is definitely not an option.
5211405 How is it overkill if you don't mind me asking?
As far as I know, every fan community I have been in has stressed canon in being among the most important elements of a story to get right. Even minor canon outranks most any fanon elements unless that said element is very superior in quality, which is rare even with good writers.
My concern is that this story will be buried to the wayside if it does not fully commit to being true to canon. I have seen quite a few decent stories go the route of maintaining their current quo, only to end in the scrap heap after months of being either ignored, or worse. Liberties of any kind must be expunged with extreme prejudice with no exception. (AU may prove to be that one exception, but still.)
This is an elitist stance of mine, but I find it banefully pointless in delaying the inevitable. To clarify, you would be doing both yourself and your readers (Both current and future.) a huge favor by gutting your story and revamping it to familiarize yourself with current canon characters. Surely you could use a pony like Ms. Harshwhinny to replace your current antagonist. Not only are more fans familiar with her, but I bet even she would make a decent, if not better replacement to Opel as an antagonist in some way.
Or perhaps Suri if you can find it in yourself to be creative enough.
It may take much time to renovate your story, which I suppose I could be done after your initial draft of the story is done, but I assure you it will be well worth the effort. Effort which will reward in dividends Fresh Blood.
If I didn't care for this story, then I would have either left a snide short comment or not at all.
I can see your abilities far outstrip the average on here, which is one of the reasons why I am rather vexed and concerned that you are taking such a route without implementing any and all canon currently possible. If you must delay the implementation of other canon material, fine, I can deal with that for now. But I rather not have you waste your abilities on trite if I can help it. Not to say your work is crude, quite the contrary. But working with this current plot without adapting it to conform to the status quo will ultimately work against you in the end. I am of the opinion that it is better to take a grueling journey to the gut at the start, rather than delay it for it only to be more painful and labor intensive of a repair job at the end.
5211521
I suggest it to be overkill because nothing in the story so far hinders or outright contradicts the established canon, as far as I'm aware. I do see some similarities between Ms Harshwhiney and Opel Jubilee, I was thinking that yesterday, in fact, but I feel the latter's character to be different enough, and I ask for your trust in me to prove as such as the story continues.
Suri wouldn't work unless I completely change the premise of the story. A pony interested in monopolising the fashion industry probably wouldn't have that much of an interest in the music business.
I appreciate the time you've taken to discuss such matters, but I feel that I must stress that fanfiction does require some creative license with the information that's already available, and that most by definition eventually become alternate universes simply because their subject matter would not be replicated in show canon (though I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the trading cards had established Lyra and Bon-Bon as roommates.)
I do take great care in ensuring that I don't punch glaring holes in canon that readers will pick up on and instantly reject. I only play around with the vague, unproven, or exploitable aspects of Equestria.
I do not want you to think that I am choosing to ignore your warnings and constructive criticism, but I feel that at this point we must agree to disagree on how to proceed and hope that you are happy with the results once I have finished through to the epilogue. I assure you, nothing I have planned will deviate from what exists other than the relationships involved, which aren't, and will not be, explored in the show, due to the nature of said relationships.
Has it really been 2 years? I'm shocked I didn't have to go back and re-read the last couple chapters to remember where things left off.
5211521
It seems to me that every story exists within a different section of canon. Were this story to be based on the Mane 6, it would be wildly out of date and in need of sprucing up, but because Vinyl, Octavia, Lyra, and Bon Bon are all characters with personalities and lives almost entirely fan-made, there doesn't need to be extensive rewrites. Telling the author that he's half-assing the story just because he doesn't want to do a full rewrite on a story that mostly complies with canon is ridiculously elitist for someone not only reading fanfiction but reading a fanfic which hasn't been updated in literally years.
5211665
I definitely agree that a full rewrite would be overkill. You're the author, the guy complaining speaks as if he has some particular standing in the community to make judgement calls on the popularity of your resurgent story, which is ridiculous. It's great to have this story back, and instead of wasting your time going through old chapters, focus on the new ones.
re-read; Awesome.
I've been waiting a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG time for this
5213050
5211665
Thus why I established that my stance was elitist in the first place.
Though I will admit that I was being rather aggressive in pushing my own opinions in regards to expunging anything that doesn't conform with the current canon quo. I suppose it in some small way is a defensive mechanism to help avoid disappointment in the future. Selfish? I wouldn't doubt it. But I am resigned to see that even good fanon will eventually be displaced by canon at some point, be it in the near future, or sometime after the story is completed. Most writers on this site seem to update their stories, characters, and what not to comply with canon in some way or another sooner or later.
I.E: Octavia's surname, Vinyl's eye color, or the more major elements such as Twilight now an Alicorn princess.
The former details are so trivial that one has to wonder if the people who even debate such things are among the insane, while the latter has proven to be somewhat of a base breaker in the beginning. I myself seem to be... Well, in the more irrational camp sometimes unfortunately. Thus my aggressive stance on such matters. If a fan author will simply redirect themselves to correct any deviances, then I see little point in delaying it. Even taking into account that all fanfiction is essentially AU, the conflict between fanon and canon makes taking a neutral stance near impossible, even in a passive sense.
To me, it helps to get things over with and conform whatever elements there may be to canon to not only avoid disappointment for myself later on, but perhaps even avoid alienating new readers in the first place. If it means erasing one's fanon/head canon work built over the years to satisfy the inklings of the masses, then so be it. So what if this is pessimistic/cynical of me? Am I not at least partially justified and/or correct in assuming that most writers will converge their material to be one with that of canon? Why waste time in delaying the inevitable?
That being said, I fully admit that my stance has been very aggressive, if not outright condescending, immature and arrogant.
I simply do not see any other way for this to turn out. Be it the guilty pleasures of which I adore that makes each fanfiction unique eventually become irrelevant to the point where it must change to suit the masses and official material, taking such original stances seem ultimately trite and pointless. If this is supposed to be fanfiction, then why does there seem to be this contradicting dichotomy where one has to somehow both abide by canon while at the same time preserving elements (Such as fanon, headcanon and the like.) of their own original story?
Thus my passionate and radical stance on the matter. Antagonists such as Opel appear to be obsolete to me in the face of what the show has to offer, and will inevitably be better off in offing such a character to make way for a more suitable canon antagonist. (Or at least, downgrade to being a second lieutenant to a major canon villain.) Why bother creating original fanon/head canon material when you merely need to update your own story to always suit that of canon in one form or another?
What was the point in having Vinyl's eyes being made red in the original Allegrezza when the show has updated to make that moot? Was the symbolism in that all for naught? Or what about the Philharmonica last name for Octavia? Or what about the ascension stories for Twilight Sparkle? The lore and history for how Equestria came to be? All for naught and ultimately pointless. My stance and attitude aims to both prevent such original deviances from appearing, and to curb any existing ones until their usage ultimately becomes non-existent. Bitter as I am about this, I expect this story to follow suit sooner or later. While expecting the story to be outright remade to suit that of canon is absurd, I do expect somewhere down the line that the author will eventually go in and rewrite the story suit so that all elements conform to that of canon.
5218316
Honestly, it feels like you're really invested in this for some reason. I hate it when people say 'If you don't like it, don't read it', but for you, it may be the correct answer. If you don't like AU's, you have to accept that older stories become AU's by the nature of a continuously updated canon. I personally joined the fandom at the same time that Twilight became an alicorn, so I dislike stories in which she is a unicorn, even stories that were written and finished years before she ascended. Sometimes I choose not to read them solely on that fact. If an OctaScratch fic annoys you for being outdated, then clearly ignore it, because the entire point would be a focus on the romance and their lives, and if those few canon irregularities pop up, then whatever.
I suppose it all depends on how you look at fanfiction. Some people use it as wish-fulfillment, whether that be through self-inserts or through changing aspects of the story to make it more in line with their headcanon. Other people look at the universe created by the canon and wish to explore it. At it's heart, OctaScratch is exactly that. It is a fandom made pairing, with fandom made tropes and styles. You mention Octavia's last name and Vinyl's eyes being red. Those have been changed by canon, yes, but that does not make their significance disappear. Plenty of fics can still use Vinyl's red eyes, because they make for a unique character. Plenty of fics still call her Octavia Philharmonica. If those very very minor changes to canon bother you, then I don't think this offshoot of the fandom is for you. None of the changes you suggest are, if you will, Tier One Expressed-In-The-Show canon, they're from supplementary sources.
As for one final aspect, Twilight's alicorn ascendance, although obviously a major canon aspect, can and has been gotten around by numerous fics by having them take place before Magical Mystery Cure. If I remember correctly, although my memory of this fic is rather dated, it could easily take place before Magical Mystery Cure.
Also, sure, there are other canon characters who could conceivably replace Opel, but we have little to no knowledge of the organization of the canon music industry. Vinyl's hard-ass manager is almost as common in OctaScratch as Tavi's ensemble and the Royal Canterlot Orchestra. It does not lessen the fic to have a semi-unique character to act as an antagonist, because that antagonist is only seen in how she impacts on the lives of Vinyl and Tavi.
Your stance that original deviations should never appear is ridiculous. There is literally no point in writing fanfiction without original deviations. It is a way for us to think differently about different parts of the show, and yes, some are made outdated by the continuously expanding canon, but others remain entirely solid, and in some cases, canon would have been far better off in following fanon than ending up derailing it. Sometimes, fanfiction is the better story. Some stories have been retold a thousand times in a thousand different ways. Just because one of those stories is regarded as more official doesn't make the others less impactful. They can still be literary feats, they can still have meaning, even if they are no longer considered valid within the greater universe of writing.
Still great and worth the wait.
IT LIVES! To be honest when I saw this had updated I was like "wtf is this fic though", and had to reread chapter 14 to remember.
I'm also happy because it was very well written and I can't wait for the rest :3
Changes: "I'm not dead yet!"