//------------------------------//
// Jailbird 
// Story: More in Common 
// by Batgirl639 
//------------------------------//


Jailbird


“Yes,” Octavia said.
“I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. May I ask why you girls aren’t performing at the party?” the stallion asked.
“They said we weren’t lady-like,” Vinyl said.
“Have we met?” Octavia asked.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Fancypants. No, we haven’t met, but I saw you perform at the Canterlot Garden Party last year. You were smashing!” the stallion said.
“Thank you,” Octavia said with a smile.
“Hey, Fancypants,” Vinyl said. “I was wondering if you could maybe make the band let us in.”
“Sure, of course I can. Follow me girls,” Fancypants said.
Octavia and Vinyl exchanged excited glances. The ponies walked back to the little stage were the fancy band was practicing for the party.
“Hello,” Fancypants said.
“Oh....uh...Hi, Mr.Fancypants. What can I do for you?” a stallion in the band asked as they stopped playing.
“I was wondering if you could let these charming ponies perform with you. Would that be a problem?” Fancypants asked.
“No,” the stallion groaned. “Actually, could we talk?” the stallion asked before leading Fancypants a few feet away. They thought Octavia and Vinyl couldn’t hear them, but they could.
“I think you’re making a mistake. Those ponies don’t belong at the party,” the stallion said in a hushed voice..
“Poppycock, I know those ponies will do a smashing  job.” Fancypants said.
After a few minutes of arguing, the Fancypants convinced the stallion and everypony else to let Octavia and Vinyl play. Octavia grabbed her cello and bow, Vinyl went to her turntable, and the ponies started practicing.
First, a pony started playing a tuba. Then, Octavia joined in with her cello. After a few seconds everypony started playing. Vinyl began making some kind of funky beat. Everypony stared at her as they stopped playing. Octavia played her cello. It was fun. Nopony was playing by using sheet music or playing real songs. They just played by figuring out what pitches would sound good with the other pony’s instruments. Octavia and Vinyl smiled at eachother as they made music together.
Fancypants watched. The stallion who insisted Octavia and Vinyl didn’t play, was hoping Fancypants would disapprove of the fast, catchy music the mares played. Fancypants smiled.
“Perfect! This is the exact change the party needs. Very nice,” he said.

***********

When the day of the Canterlot Garden Party came, Octavia was so excited that she leapt out of the bed in the dirty hotel she was staying at, and began jumping on it.
“Oh! The party’s today! The party’s today!” She sang. She could hardly wait. Tonight she could get her paycheck so she could buy a house. After tonight, her music career will reach new levels.
“Hey, aren’t you the pony who played at the gala and the garden party twice?” Octavia said in a high pitched voice. “Oh, why yes! Yes I am!” she said in her normal voice. “It’s so exciting! So amazing! Tonight, all my dreams come true!” Octavia continued jumping happily for several more minutes.
After a while, she got bored and went to take a shower. When she got out of the shower, she looked at her mane in the mirror. It wasn’t so bad.  It was actually kind of... cute.
Octavia ran into the breakfast room where she had a blueberry muffin and orange juice. Octavia hopped into the lobby and out the door of the hotel when she finished eating. She looked at the clock on a tower across the street. It was 7:18 AM.
“Great,” Octavia muttered as she slumped. The Canterlot Garden Party stared at 9:00 PM. That gave her about eighteen hours to kill. She couldn’t wait eighteen hours.
“What to do... What to do....” she said as she considered what she should do today. “Vinyl is probably still sleeping because she stays up until 2:00 AM watching TV. I already had breakfast at the hotel... I’ll go see what there is to see in Canterlot,” Octavia decided.
Octavia went to a mall, road a rollercoaster, watched street performers be chased by owners of insane asylums, and went to a pool. Nothing that wasn’t in Manehattan. Octavia stopped at a tourist center where she got a pamphlet containing information about going on tours of the castle. That sounded interesting.
Octavia trotted back to the hotel where she saw Vinyl in the arcade. Octavia waved and said hello, but Vinyl didn’t hear her over the loud music of the game she was playing.
“HEY! VINYL!!!” Octavia yelled at her. Vinyl turned around.
“‘Sup, Octavia. What do you want to do today?” she asked.
“I was thinking we could go to the castle today. Maybe take a tour and see if we can see Princess Celestia,” Octavia explained as she held up the pamphlet.
“What time is it?” Octavia looked at the clock. “Noon. We still have nine hours before the Canterlot Garden Party. I’m so excited!” Octavia said.
“Game Over!”  the game Vinyl was playing said.
“Yea, I can’t wait to go to the castle...but... I want to try this a few more times,” Vinyl said as she put another coin into the arcade machine and started a new game before Octavia had a chance to protest.
“That’s fine,” Octavia said as she perched herself on the end of an air hockey table.
“Game Over!”  the game said again.
“Dang it! One more try I promise this will be last time,” Vinyl said as she inserted another coin into the arcade machine. Vinyl tried six more times.
“Game Over!”
“Hey, Octavia, I’m out of bits. You don’t happen to have any I can borrow, do you?” Vinyl asked.
“Nope, sorry. I don’t have any money you can borrow,” an impatient Octavia said. The truth was she had about 60 bits in the saddlebags she had on.
“Shoot,” Vinyl said sadly. “We can go to the castle tour thing now.”

The two mares walked to the castle where they stood in line and waited and waited and waited and waited under the boiling heat of the sun. Finally, they could purchase their tickets.
“How many are in your group?” the ticket pony asked.
“Two,” Vinyl said.
“Okay, that will be forty bits,” the mare said.
“Ouch! Really? Isn’t there a military discount?” Vinyl asked.
“Oh, are you military?” the mare asked.
“Well...no. Isn’t there some sort of discount?” Vinyl asked.
“Sorry, ma’am, only military discounts. It’s still 40 bits.” the mare said.
“Here ya’ go,” Octavia said as she handed the pony 40 bits.
“Hey, I thought you said you didn’t have any money!” Vinyl said to Octavia once they got their tickets and walked into the castle’s garden.
“No, I said I didn’t have any money you could borrow. If I lent you money, we’d be there another hour!” Octavia said.
“What-ever! Let’ just have fun. Oh, look! The tour is starting!” Vinyl said. The two ponies trotted to a small group of ponies who were ready to leave on the tour.
“Hold it! Where are your tickets?!” A guard asked.
“Right here,” Octavia and Vinyl said as they held up their tickets.
“Hmm... Looks fake! Did you know counterfeit is illegal?” the guard asked.
“They’re not  fake!” Vinyl said.
“Don’t raise your voice at me! I could have you in the dungeon in ten seconds. You! Don’t give me that look!” the guard yelled at the mares. By now, everypony was watching.
“They aren’t fake! SEE!” Vinyl said as she used her magic to lift the tickets up and put them over the guard's eyes.
“That’s the last straw!” the guard said. “Hey, what are you hiding in your saddlebags?”
“Nothing,” Octavia said.
“Don’t lie to me!” the guard yelled as he grabbed Octavia’s saddlebags and emptied their contents on the ground. The guard carefully looked at the twenty bits, manebrush, and tissues that fell on the ground.
“Where did you get this money?” he asked.
“Home,” Octavia replied flatly.
“Don’t be smart with me! You’re under arrest!” the guard yelled. He whistled signaling other guards to come. About twenty did, and they all looked angry.
“Hey, whaddaya think you’re doing!” Vinyl yelled. The guards grabbed Octavia and Vinyl and dragged them into the castle. The guards were saying things like “They’ll get what’s coming for them!” or “This will teach ‘em!”
The two ponies were dragged through the castle which made everypony stare at them. They then were thrown into a mini jail inside the castle. The angry guards locked them in and left.
“It can’t get any worse,” Octavia sighed. Vinyl jumped on Octavia as she tried to stop Octavia from saying the jinx.
“Don’t say that!” Vinyl screamed. She was silent for a moment. Vinyl looked around the jail as if it she was expecting it to explode. Octavia couldn’t say anything because Vinyl’s hoof was covering her mouth.
Vinyl sighed a sigh of relief. “Maybe fate didn’t hear you,” she said.
“What’s that?” Octavia asked when she removed Vinyl’s hoof from her mouth. There was a deep rumbling sound as hundreds of guards who were holding swords in their mouths came running down the stairs leading to the jail. Once they got to the bottom of the stairs, they stood still as they watched the mare’s every move. That meant the ponies couldn’t try to escape.
“No, it heard me. It definitely  heard me,” Octavia said.