"Where are they?" Vinyl asked, pacing back and forth.
Her and Octavia were currently at the train station. They were going to be taking a train to Ponyville, which was where Vinyl's family lived.
"Why are Lyra and Bon Bon coming?" Octavia asked, watching her marefriend panic.
"Uh, moral support? Your friends came when I met your parents so mine should come when you are meeting my family," Vinyl explained.
"We're here!" Bon Bon called, as her and Lyra walked up to the two other mares.
"What took you guys so long?" Vinyl asked, almost demanding.
"Oh sorry, did you forget that YOU LOCKED US IN THE OFFICE?!" Lyra shouted.
"Vinyl did what?!" Octavia asked, walking up next to Vinyl.
"Oh yeahhhhhh," Vinyl remembered, nodding her head.
"How do you forget something like that, Vinyl?!" Octavia asked.
Vinyl shrugged in response, causing Octavia to groan.
"How did you guys get out anyway?" Vinyl asked, turning back to her two friends.
"Beauty kind of panicked and threw a chair at the window," Bon Bon replied, slightly nervous at the response she may get.
"It was awesome!" Lyra said, ecstatically.
"Wait.... YOU LOCKED BEAUTY BRASS TOO?!" Octavia shouted, now angry.
"I locked Beaut in there?" Vinyl asked, tilting her head.
"All aboard!" The train conductor yelled, causing the group of ponies to turn towards him.
"We'll talk more about this once we're on the train," Octavia said, to which the other ponies nodded in agreement.
And with that, the group of mare made their way onto the train.
~•~•~•~•~
Vinyl looked outside the train and watched the leaves fall, attempting to ease her fear.
Octavia was sitting next to Vinyl. She was asleep with her head on Vinyl's shoulder.
In front of Vinyl and was Lyra and next to Lyra was Bon Bon.
"What do you think will happen?" Vinyl asked, her voice almost too quiet to be heard.
Lyra just shrugged while Bon Bon actually gave a response, "I bet that if you explain everything to them, they will understand,"
Vinyl forced out a laugh, "I doubt it. You know what happened. Pretty ironic in some ways."
"Is your brother going to be there?" Lyra asked.
"Yeah. He may understand, but I don't know," Vinyl replied.
Vinyl then turned to the sleeping cellist and moved the mare's mane in order to see her face.
Tavi looks so peaceful while sleeping, Vinyl thought with a small smile.
"I'm guessing the marriage counseling didn't go well," Lyra commented.
Vinyl shrugged, "She didn't tell me much. But whatever happened in there, caused Octy to think that she is stupid."
Once that was said, the train became silent. Vinyl continued to watch Octavia sleep, while Lyra and Bon Bon looked out the window.
"What will happen if everything goes badly?" Vinyl asked, her voice as quiet as before.
Vinyl's eyes finally moved off her marefriend when she felt a hoof touch her other shoulder. Vinyl looked up to see Bon Bon giving her a reassuring smile, and Lyra a determined one.
"If everything goes bad, we'll find a way to fix it," Bon Bon answered, causing the DJ to smile back at her friends.
The unicorn then looked back at Octavia, her smile still there.
Don't worry Tavi, I'll make sure you get the happiness you deserve.
~•~•~•~•~
Octavia woke up from the feeling of somepony poking her side. However, she refused to open her eyes as she was too comfortable. The poking however continued, much to the cellist's dismay. Octavia let out a groan before moving just enough that her side was covered.
There was just one problem, now her other side was exposed.
Once Octavia felt her other side get poked, she let out a sigh of defeat before opening to her eyes to view the culprit. What she found was her marefriend, looking down at the cellist with her signature grin.
"I know I'm comfy, but you'll have to wait til we're alone in order to continue cuddling me," Vinyl said.
Octavia glared slightly at the mare, before lightly hitting the hoof that kept poking her. "Hello Vinyl."
"Damn, I was hoping Octavia would hit Vinyl once she finally woke up," Lyra commented with her own grin.
Octavia's head snapped to the other seat facing her. She blushed when she found that Lyra and Bon Bon had been watching the whole display.
How did I forget that they were here?!
Octavia quickly jumped off the DJ, causing Lyra and Vinyl to laugh.
"Leave her alone you two," Bon Bon said, Rolling her eyes with a smile.
"We have arrived at Ponyville station!" The loudspeaker announced.
"Well," Lyra said, getting up from her seat, "Let's start going before we get trapped in a line,"
And so, the mares made their way off the train.
"Hey Octavia, didn't you say Lucky Streak lives in Ponyville?" Bon Bon asked as the ponies walked through the town.
"Yes I did. Maybe we can stop by and say hello to him at some point," Octavia replied with a smile.
"Uh oh. It seems that Vinyl is going to start having some competition," Lyra teased, bumping the DJ.
"Psh, yeah right. Octy is completely seduced by me," Vinyl replied, puffing out her chest, "Right Octy?"
Vinyl turned forward to where her marefriend was walking when the cellist hadn't responded.
"Octy?" Vinyl asked, slightly panicked.
Although Vinyl couldn't see her marefriend's face, Bon Bon could. Bon Bon had to stop herself from giggling as she saw the grin on Octavia's face. Bon Bon knew that Octavia was teasing Vinyl, and it was both adorable and hilarious to view.
"Taviiiii," Vinyl called as she trotted up to the cellist. This caused Octavia to wash away her grin and try to successfully ignore the DJ.
Bon Bon stopped walking for a moment, until Lyra had caught up to where she was. Once that happened, Bon Bon started walking next to her marefriend.
"I never thought Octavia would be the one who would tease Vinyl," Bon Bon commented.
"I know right? It's amazing. I should give her some tips about how to annoy Vinyl more," Lyra replied with a evil grin.
"Octy?" Vinyl asked, nudging the cellist.
Then, Vinyl saw something. The hint of a smile.
"OH WAIT I GET IT!" Vinyl shouted, causing everypony to start laughing. Vinyl just glared at them.
"You're mean Tavi." Vinyl grumbled.
Octavia stopped laughing but she kept smiling. She then grabbed the DJ and kissed her on the cheek, causing the unicorn's ears to perk up and her eyes to go wide.
Octavia then winked at the DJ before continuing to walk. This caused Vinyl to completely stop, stunned.
Once Lyra and Bon Bon caught up to the mare, they looked at one another.
"Uh, Vinyl?" Lyra asked, trying her best to not burst out laughing at her friend's state.
After a moment, Vinyl bolted after her marefriend, causing the two other mares to start laughing before continuing to walk.
Once Vinyl caught up to her marefriend, she found that Octavia was standing and staring at something. Vinyl followed her marefriend's eyes to find that she was looking at her house. The house looked like every other house in Ponyville, it was almost impossible to tell them apart.
"Is this your home Vinyl?" Octavia asked.
"Yep, that's it." Vinyl replied, before stepping towards the home.
Lyra let out a nostalgic sigh once she reached the house, "This place brings back old memories, don't it Bonnie?"
Bon Bon nodded her head before laying on her marefriend's shoulder, "It sure does,"
Octavia smiled at the display of affection before turning back to the house, where Vinyl was standing at the door, too afraid to knock.
"Are you alright Vinyl?" Octavia asked as she walked up next to the mare.
"Y-yeah. Just.... nervous," Vinyl replied, her voice shaky.
The DJ jumped slightly as she felt Octavia touch her shoulder.
"It will be alright. Even if they don't accept us, they will still love you," Octavia reassured.
Vinyl smiled at Octavia before turning back to the door with a determined smile, "I'm ready."
Octavia nodded and she turned to the door as well.
And with that, Vinyl knocked on the door.
~•~•~•~•~
"What? Are you crazy?"
"No, it's the last pony I needed to contact."
"I doubt that will get you anyway. How will it help in anyway?"
"It will make it harder from them to accept the relationship if they are reminded of what happened."
"Listen, I want Octavia back, but this is a little bit too far."
"Trust me. This will work."
"Alright fine. But you better not think of having me take the blame."
"I won't. This guy is actually a pretty cool dude so I doubt anything will harm Octavia. I will meet him at the train station, alright?"
"Alright..."
~•~•~•~•~
Once Vinyl had finished knocking, the outside of the house was engulfed into silence. Then, the group of ponies heard the sound of hooves walking in the house, as well as some murmuring. After a few more minutes, the door opened.
"Hey Vinyl," A white stallion unicorn greeted with a smile.
"Hey Long Play," Vinyl replied, sticking her hoof out to bump her brother's.
Octavia examined the stallion. He looked almost exactly like Vinyl, except his mane was red instead of blue, he wore red glasses, and he had a yellow loop earring on one ear.
"I can see you brought your luggage with you," Long Play commented as his eyes found Lyra and Bon Bon.
"I think she takes better care of her luggage than us," Lyra replied with a grin.
"Hello Long Play," Bon Bon greeted, nodding her head.
Long Play's eyes then fell onto Octavia. This caused his smile to fall slightly.
"So, are you the one my mom's been freaking out about?" Long Play asked.
Octavia cringed slightly before she let out a sigh. Octavia then stook her hoof out to shake. "Greetings Long Play, my name is Octavia. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Long Play's eyes darted from Octavia's face to Octavia's hoof for a few minutes before he bumped the hoof. "Sup."
Although Vinyl kept her composure, Octavia could see the relief wash over her.
"Come on in guys, mom's starting dinner," Long Play offered as he moved out of the way so the group could walk in.
The first thing Octavia noticed as she walked into the house was how messy the place was, causing the cellist to cringe.
Vinyl, noticing this cringe, started grinning. "You're going to have to excuse Tavi over here, she's a bit of a germaphobe."
Octavia's eyes snapped to Vinyl and she started glaring. "I am not a germaphobe."
Vinyl's grin only grew, making Octavia sigh in frustration.
Long Play chuckled. "Are they always like this?" Long Play asked Lyra and Bon Bon.
"You get used to it after awhile," Bon Bon replied.
"WHO'S AT THE DOOR LONG PLAY?" A voice shouted from the kitchen.
"VINYL AND HER FRIENDS, MOM!" Long Play yelled back.
Vinyl then started panicking once again, "Long Play. WHY?!" She hissed.
"Vinyl's here?" Vinyl's mother asked, poking her head from out of the kitchen.
Everypony, except Long Play, froze at the sight of Vinyl's mother. She was a white unicorn with a dark blue mane and tail.
"Hey mom," Vinyl greeted, slightly nervous, "Please don't hit me again."
"That depends on your explanation, young lady," Vinyl's mother replied sternly.
Vinyl gulped.
"Sooooo," Lyra started after a few minutes of awkward silence, "What now?"
Vinyl's mother opened her mouth, but Bon Bon beat her to it. "How about we split up and spent an hour with each pony. Vinyl and Lyra can spend an hour with Vinyl's mom, and Octavia and I can spend an hour with Long Play. Then, we will switch."
Everypony blinked at Bon Bon. Nopony said anything until Long Play shrugged. "Sure, that sounds good."
Vinyl's mother let out a sigh of defeat, "Alright, but at dinner I expect to speak with all of you,"
The group of mares nodded in response before they went off into separate groups.
~•~•~•~•~
"Long Play... why is there a DJ set up in your room?" Bon Bon asked as she examined the room.
Long Play shrugged, "You never know when there's a party."
Octavia giggled, causing Long Play to turn for the cellist, "You really are a lot like Vinyl."
Long Play grinned, "Yeah. Except my music is actually good."
"Hm, we will have to see that," Octavia replied.
Long Play smiled but said nothing.
"So... what exactly are we doing here?" Octavia asked after a moment of silence.
"Well, I need to finish setting up the wires inside the speakers," Long Play replied before opening the speaker and starting to move wires around.
"Wait. Did you agree to my plan so you could work on your DJ set?!" Bon Bon asked.
"Yep," Long Play replied nonchalantly "But also for you guys to help."
Bon Bon let out an annoyed sigh, before walking to another one of the speakers.
"You really are like Vinyl," Octavia commented, shaking her head.
Octavia walked over to Long Play and watched the stallion work. After a few moments however, she got bored. Octavia started looking around before her eyes landed on a framed photo. The photos had Long Play, Vinyl's mother, and a red stallion unicorn with a red, white, and a blue mustache, mane, and tail.
"I'm guessing you want to know who that guy is, huh?" Long Play asked, causing Octavia to jump.
"I... I assume it's your father," Octavia replied, to which Long Play nodded.
"Yep. Did Vinyl tell you about him?" Long Play asked. Octavia shook her head in response. Long Play let out a sigh before he stopped speaking. His face became one of concentration and thought.
After a few minutes, he looked back up at Octavia.
"Our father cheated on our mom,"
Octavia was taken aback by this.
What?
Long Play forced a laugh, "Yeah I know. That's one reason why my mom is freaking out so much. I am guessing she sees herself in that stallion that you married."
Octavia was stunned, she didn't know what to say. She eyes flicked over to Bon Bon. The mare was watching them, with a concerned look.
"I'm.... I'm sorry," Octavia apologized, looking at the ground.
"Vinyl never met him," Long Play explained, "But I did. I saw the pain my mom went through when she found out. And the worst part is that it wasn't even like a one night thing, they were a whole couple."
Octavia didn't respond, how could she? What could she say?
"There was one question I always wanted to ask my dad but never got the chance to," Long Play continued, "I would like to ask you that question."
"Alright," Octavia replied, looking back up at the stallion.
"Why not wait? Why start dating somepony before the divorce?" Long Play asked.
"Were your parents getting a divorce?" Octavia asked.
"Answer the question," Long Play snapped, "Please."
Octavia looked over to Bon Bon. Her heart fell when she saw Bon Bon mouth the words 'No'.
Octavia looked back down at the ground as she tried to think of a way to answer.
After a few moments, Octavia let out a sigh. "I think the reason I started dating Vinyl before my divorce... is because I missed feeling love. I think it's because I felt attraction for somepony and that pony felt the same so I just... latched onto it."
Octavia looked back up to the brother, tears forming in her eyes, "Vinyl really is an amazing mare and I am so glad to have found her. I know what we are doing is stupid and dangerous but.... we're happy. I am happy. She is happy. I know you may be thinking about Caramel but... Our case is a little different. I have been married to Caramel for fifteen years but I have not been happy for most of of that time. I have tried to get a divorce with Caramel for the longest time but he keeps forcing me to stay with him. I wish him well but if he really loved me, he would let me go off on my own."
The room then went into silence. Octavia had tears running down her face, Long Play just seemed to be thinking, and Bon Bon just watched the two.
After a few moments, Bon Bon walked over to Octavia and put her hoof around the mare in a side hug. But the room continued in silence.
"Ok," Long Play said after a long period of time, "I may never know why my father did what he did, but I know that he was more in the wrong. Your case is so similar to him yet so different. I would like to know more about your relationship with Vinyl and the stallion during dinner but as for now.... Ok."
Octavia and Bon Bon both smiled at the stallion, and he returned the gesture.
And with that, the two made their way out of the room. However, before the left. Octavia heard Long Play say one last thing.
"Please take care of my sister."
~•~•~•~•~
"Well isn't this great," Lyra commented, "You got the two mares who have no idea how to cook to help you cook."
"Vinyl knows how to cook," Vinyl's mother stated, causing Lyra to give Vinyl a 'WAIT WHAT?!' look. "If you don't know how to cook Lyra, then you can sit in the living room or something,"
"Actually there was something I wanted to check on," Lyra replied, before exiting the kitchen. After a few moments, the two mares heard the sound of the front door closing.
"LYRA NO! WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME?!" Vinyl shouted at the window as Lyra passed. Lyra stuck her tongue out in response.
Vinyl turned back to her mother who had her eyebrow raised. Vinyl giggled nervously before moving over to help her mother cook.
"So Vinyl," Vinyl's mom started after a few seconds, "Tell me more about this Octavia."
"Well," Vinyl started, "She is a cellist. She is kind of a stick in the mud. She is really hot... like, really hot. She has a really sexy accent. And she gets angered easily."
"I meant tell me about your relationship with her. And her relationship with that stallion who came here."
Vinyl's ears folded, "Oh.... right. Well we have been dating for a while-"
"DID YOU SLEEP WITH HER?" Vinyl's mother demanded, causing Vinyl to jump.
"Uh, what does that have to do with the affair problem?" Vinyl asked.
Vinyl's mother opened her mouth to respond but closed it as she couldn't think of anything.
Vinyl grinned as she saw her mother's struggle, "Anyway. She has been married to Caramel for fifteen years now but has been unhappy for most of that time. As for Caramel, he is a big asshole who likes to ruin ponies' lives, just to get what he wants, and he also is a really ugly dude, like, really ug-"
"You do know that said ugly stallion used to be attractive to your marefriend, right? The one who also finds you attractive," Vinyl's mother commented.
Vinyl opened her mouth, but closed it as she couldn't think of a response.
Vinyl's mother let out a sigh, "You do understand why this bothers me so much, don't you?"
Vinyl sighed as well, “Yeah...."
"So can't you see why this is so wrong Vinyl?" Vinyl's mother asked, looking at her daughter almost pleadingly.
"Yeah. But this is different! Caramel is treating Octavia like garbage! He-he won't let her be happy! He won't let her be free!"
"But can't you see how this affair is as bad as what he is doing?"
Vinyl opened and closed her mouth a few times, but nothing came out.
"Vinyl, this would be a much easier problem to solve if Caramel was physically abusing Octavia but he is not. Caramel is probably just as lonely as Octavia seems to be, except he found a happiness. However the happiness is betraying him and becoming darkness."
"But like you said, that's like Octavia!" Vinyl exclaimed, "I am that happiness for Octavia, except I am not becoming darkness. And isn't emotionally abusing somepony just as bad as physically abusing them? I mean, some ponies have mental scars because of the emotional abuse they receive. They start to think of themselves as wrong, and broken, and bad, and-"
"Like you?" Vinyl's mother asked.
"Wha-what?" Vinyl stammered.
In response, Vinyl's mother took off her daughter's glasses so her eyes were fully revealed, "Didn't Neon insult your eyes and make you think that there was something wrong with you all because of your eyes?"
"Yea-yeah, I guess. But he didn't manipulate me like Caramel. Caramel tries to make Octavia seem like a monster for trying to leave him. But Octavia's strong and she doesn't let his words get to her. Unlike me."
Vinyl's mom opened her mouth to respond but Vinyl continued to speak.
"And maybe that's another reason I like her, because she is strong. Because she doesn't let these things get to her, and she keeps trying to be happy."
Vinyl's mother smiled. "She sounds like an amazing mare."
Vinyl nodded, "She is."
Vinyl's mother opened her mouth to say something, but she was interrupted by the doorbell.
Her and Vinyl looked at one another before they walked towards the door. They looked up to see Octavia and Bon Bon were coming down the stairs in order to switch.
They all turned to the door.
"It's probably Lyra," Vinyl said, her mother nodded in response.
Vinyl's mother opened the door.
"Sup," Neon greeted.
"Neon," Vinyl growled.
"Are you alright Mrs. Scratch?" Octavia asked as she walked up next to Vinyl's mom, who was now frozen.
There was a stallion standing behind Neon. Vinyl examined him, however she did not recognize him, even though he seemed familiar. Somehow, Octavia seemed to recognize him as her mouth was agape.
Bon Bon walked up next to Vinyl, sharing the confusion.
"Y-YOU," Vinyl's mother shouted, her face full of rage.
"H-hi honey," Vinyl's father stammered.