//------------------------------// // 01. The Dog // Story: Taken in Stride // by Recon //------------------------------// Taken in Stride by Recon “What the hell was that!?” Vinyl recoiled at the stabbing remark towards her, after what she thought was a nice performance at the new venue in Canterlot. “W-What?” she asked innocently. “You went completely off the song track! Not to mention finishing off the show twenty damn minutes early and playing none of the songs anypony wanted to hear!” “I-I didn’t know-“ “You think this is about what you want to do? Well you're in for a damned good surprise - IT ISN'T. We are looking to get money in this industry, you know? We aren’t going to get any if you don’t play the songs our sponsors want us to!” He was blatantly, explicity screaming at this point. The tears started to well up under Vinyl’s red contacts she used at performances. She averted her eyes to the ground, the tears rolling off her cheeks. It's not as bad as most nights. ~ "Is that Vinyl Scratch? That one DJ that used to be extremely popular?" "I think it is, I think it is!" "She's so gorgeous! And she's staying here in the Advent hotel?" The moving-truck company employee spoke up. "Looks like you're pretty well-known around here," he said with a smile. Vinyl turned to face him, a forceful smirk on her face. "Why would I be happy to be the gossip center of some housewives?" She laughed. "You should just get back to your work,” she remarked with a snide smirk. I’ve got a bad habit. And it isn’t something I can control. I will put up a bold front, and verbally abuse people for no reason. Why, insecurity? Who knows? My name is Vinyl Scratch. I know not when or why this developed... Sometime after I left Canterlot three years ago, when I quit being a DJ, I think. I have adapted to common life since... This... This is my bad habit. The worker lowered his cap to cover his eyes, embarrassed by Vinyl. Her face turned solemn. "Hey, it's Vinyl!" called a familiar voice. Vinyl’s head struck up, alerted by the sudden call. She spun her head to face the voice she thought she recognized. "Octavia?" The gray mare flipped her jet black mane to the right, glistening softly in the bright spring sun. "Vinyl!" She ran over and gave her a tight hug. "You made it here!" "Long time no see,” she said as she hugged her back. Octavia smiled back and broke the hug, noticing the pile of cardboard boxes that had Vinyl's possessions. “Loathing yourself for your groundless hostility again?” she asked, noticing Vinyl’s humorless expression before she spoke up. Truth be told, Octavia was right. Vinyl had been tearing herself up over mishaps like those. She didn’t want to do it, but… No one said it was easy to break a bad habit. Vinyl scoffed, flicking away her thoughts. “What are you talking about?” "That's all you brought?" Octavia asked, gesturing toward the seven boxes on a metal roller. Vinyl nodded in response. "Why don't we bring those to your room?" Vinyl noticed that Octavia could barely hold in her excitement. As they walked on the concrete path that led to the apartment complex, adorned and surrounded by fresh grass, butterflies, and other animals flitting around without a care in the world. Vinyl recalled her old home in Canterlot; being a nationally-recognized DJ, it was only natural for her to live in a comfortable area. Her memories of playing with the other unicorns as a little filly quickly surfaced – memories she had before she became famous. While she typically kept to herself during her childhood, she managed to make a few good friends she believed would never leave her. What surprised her, though, is that in the end, she was the one who ended up abandoning her friends in some desperate search for fame through music. Yeah, some journey that was. What did it all matter? She could live a comfortable living, with a comfortable house, a comfortable carriage, a comfortable life, but what did it all matter? What’s it all for? Loneliness? False happiness? Ultimately, nothing. The beauty of the landscape around this “elitist hotel” ironically disturbed her, as if her previous life lead her to hate everything with any semblance to wealth. After a few minutes of musing and silence, they reached the foot of the building. Octavia swung open the door for her, as the atmosphere around them finally became serene and quiet, the scent of the hotel’s air wafting through their coat and manes. “Don’t act all worried about me, okay?” Vinyl mentioned. “We were roommates in college. Nothing more.” She knew she was lying, and Octavia knew she was lying, but they both pretended to play along anyway, despite their long history as friends; maybe even more than that. “But we’ve been through a lot as roommates,” Octavia recalled, a snide smile on her face. “We got in a fight before, but you sent me an apology letter afterwards. You were surprisingly honest.” “I was not,” she countered, a little too quickly. “I was just practicing writing with my magic,” a hint of what she knew was false pride or confidence in her voice. This was the Advent hotel. An apartment complex where only the most elite were meant to reside. Each resident received his or her own Secret Service agent, committed to protecting their assigned resident. That’s what the public is supposed to think. Vinyl and Octavia walked into the elevator. "So, room four?" Octavia asked. Vinyl nodded, a quick, inaudible sigh escaping her lips. I came here to be alone… She didn't feel like talking, although she sure knew the pony beside her did. The design of the elevator matched that of the rest of the complex - it was very minimalistic and modern in a sense, comprised mostly of sleek, acrylic cased wood and metal highlights. The decorations and plants were reminiscent of Japanese design. The elevator stopped and its brushed metal doors slowly opened. "I'm actually in room three, so feel free to stop by if you need any help," Octavia said, an edge of skepticism in her voice. She probably caught on to Vinyl's mood. "Sure." Vinyl pulled the metal roller towards her room. The windows on each end of the hallway poured beautiful sunlight into the elegant designs of the hallway. Vinyl had broken out of her nocturnal state, after leaving Canterlot along with her responsibility for being Equestria’s number one nightclub DJ... She was okay with it - even though she loved the cool, chilly, mysterious night, she had grown to have affection for the day as well. As she pulled her cart and boxes to the door, she noticed one of the boxes fall. She was about to flare up her magic, when her exhaustion hit her, and she lost her balance slightly. She went to crouch down, gripping the heavy box with her hooves. The box proved to be too heavy. She struggled to get it up. Once again, she tried her magic. No dice. Then, all of a sudden, the box was shrouded with a light blue haze, and levitated back to the cart. Vinyl looked up, ever so slowly. There was a unicorn stallion, wearing an outfit much reminiscent of the Canterlot folk. A normal tuxedo, with his hooves gloved in black. He had a striking bluish-white mane, and an off-white coat, with what looked to be heterochromia in his eyes. The left was yellow, the right was green. He smiled kindly at Vinyl. She snapped back to reality. "Hmph," she snorted, looking away with a cocky smile. "So am I supposed to thank you now?" There. She did it again. She mentally sighed, keeping her outside character in play. How pathetic. "No," he said in a deep, but melodic and harmonious voice. Vinyl was taken aback by the odd response. Was he... He centered himself in front of Vinyl, and kneeled down. He looked up at her. Vinyl noticed a tear forming in the side of one of his eyes. "A-are you crying!?" She yelled quietly, aghast at this odd stallion. "I've been waiting forever to meet you," he said, eyes closed and watery with a huge smile on his face. "My name is Emerald. I am your new Secret Service agent," he continued, attempting to keep his tears in. "W-what? But, I don't want a Secret Service agent. I want to be alone," she said regretfully, not wanting to hurt this fragile pony's feelings. "Are... You saying that you do not need me, Miss Vinyl?" Miss Vinyl, she repeated in her head. That sounds ridiculous, honestly. "T-That's exactly what I'm saying." "Then..." he said, slowly pulling out what looked to be a sword and handing it to Vinyl. She looked over the intricate designs stitched onto the scabbard of the sword. She unsheathed it to admire the sibilant silver. "I implore of you to dispose of me, Miss Vinyl." "What!?" she yelled, throwing the sword off to the right. "D-Dispose of you? But w-why!?" She stuttered. "If my raison d'être is to serve you, what purpose will my life fulfill if you do not require me?" "J-Just go back to whatever the hell you were doing yesterday!" She frantically said, unable to find the words for a proper response. "That life is dead to me now," he said. "My new life must be devoted to serving you, Miss Vinyl." Emerald took Vinyl's hoof in a romantic gesture. "With your permission, I shall be your servant - no. Your dog." 01 The Dog