Perspective: Octavia
The events of March 24th 2009 remain a real tragedy in the eyes of many, especially those who were either directly involved in the collision or had lost loved ones as a consequence. But I like to think that, as irrefutably disastrous as it might have been, the Horse Junction accident was but a miracle in disguise, for had I not been on the Bridleway Limited that night, heaven knows whether Vinyl and I would ever have crossed paths again. Instead, the dying embers of our past relationship gradually regained their old glow and began to evolve into a strong and steady flame.
But even miracles can have downsides. In my case, the loss of my cello and the physical and emotional trauma I had incurred meant that I was unable to attend the opening of “Legend of the Night”, which in turn led to the performance being suspended until my group and I had fully recuperated; but they also deprived me of my primary coping strategy, and I will confess that there were times when my composure simply collapsed without warning. Vinyl was a great source of support during that time. Whenever she and I were in each other's company (which was quite frequent), at the slightest hint of sorrow or distress on my part, she would either draw me into a meaningful embrace or play one of the more soothing or romantic records from her vast collection – not necessarily classical, but still of the right atmosphere to soothe away my hurt feelings and bring the light back into my cavern.
As she and I became reacquainted with one another, so I learned of and became accustomed to the eccentricities she had developed during her time in Ponyville. For example, there are some who describe her as being inventive with her music, and after seeing how she “washes” her dishes with bass beats (or “wubs” as she terms them), I can't disagree with that sentiment; noisy though it may be, it actually works surprisingly well at, to use Vinyl's words, “cleaning the dishes on a microscopic level”. Neither, for that matter, can I even begin to emphasise how touching it was to discover that she has amassed an entire catalogue of records under my name, and often plays them when thinking back to our teenage years.
My vacation in Ponyville ultimately spanned over three months, with Vinyl offering to accommodate me after my hotel booking had expired. But all good things must come to an end, and in mid-July, by which time my physical wounds had all but healed, I received a letter from Bridleway to inform me that they were premiering “The Legend of the Night” on the 25th of that month. Vinyl and I were sad to have to part company again, but I promised her that I would one day return to her, and that in the meantime, no matter where our lives took us, I would remain in contact with her. That was when she showed her dedication to our relationship in perhaps the most touching manner possible – by presenting me with a beautiful new Harmonic Strings 2009 cello. “You were the music that kept my record playing all my life,” she told me, “and I want to be the one who helps you make that music for as long as we live.” I've never forgotten those words.
“The Legend of the Night” proved to be a major success story for Bridleway, enjoying a well patronised tour of Equestria for two months after its premiere. Our final port of call was in my old home of Canterlot, where Princess Luna herself attended the final performance; but none of the accolade we received that evening could compare with the gratitude I felt for seeing Vinyl seated in the front row, watching me with a warm smile. That was when I came to the most important decision of my entire life – though my profession lay among the ranks of the most distinguished musicians of Equestria, my future lay with the one whom I used to know as Linsey Woolsey. Thus, six weeks after the tour came to an end, I too bid Canterlot a solemn farewell before following her hoofsteps towards a new life in Ponyville.
Vinyl and I have never looked back since then. As the years passed, so the flower of our love continued to blossom until, eight months ago at the time of writing, she finally built up the courage to ask me the question I had been hoping to hear for so long. After all we had come to mean to each other, after the emotional monsoon that had swept across the plains of my existence for ten long years, after the joy I had felt from returning to her embrace once the rains had passed, the answer had to be – yes. This in turn provided me with the inspiration I required to finish off my own gesture of dedication to my foalhood sweetheart, that most special of all of my compositions that had remained unfinished ever since her departure from Canterlot. To the ballad of a lonely heart came a fitting final movement, a serenade that told of two lovers reunited and gradually brought closer and closer, until, seven years on, they were inextricably bound together in a merry matrimony.
Where our lives will take us from here, nopony knows. We've already been considering adding some fresh new lives into our own, and I'm still hoping to join the ranks of the Royal Canterlot Symphony one day. But one thing is for certain – my life has never been anywhere near as complete as it has with Vinyl Scratch.
Perspective: Locomotion
Thus ends the story of the Horse Junction Rail Disaster – how a signalling error led to the loss of nine passengers' lives, how a further twenty survived thanks to the efforts of an eight-year-old colt about to turn nine, and how one of them ended up reunited with the love of her life despite almost losing hope of ever seeing her again. But for Octavia Melody Philharmonica and Vinyl “DJ PON-3” Scratch, this was just the beginning; after that fateful night, their relationship continued to flourish, and now, seven years since, they have finally gotten married. While I'm still not much of a music aficionado nowadays, I still maintain a good friendship with both of them, and sometimes I actually go and visit them just to kinda hang out and catch up with what's going on in their lives, etc. They've been considering starting a family lately, and even asked if I wanted to be the foal's godfather.
The accident did little to blemish the reputation of the Bridleway Limited, thankfully, and it still sees service from Canterlot to Manehattan and back via Ponyville. And as for me? Well, I'm still part of Equestrian National Railways to this day, and have been working as a driver for just under three years. It's been a heck of a journey to get this far, and I've still a long way to go before I get to take charge of express turns alongside Uncle Steamer, but I'm still doing him and Max Pressure proud, which is saying a lot for a sixteen-year-old stallion.
It's amazing to think – youngest employee on ENR at the age of eight, later their youngest firepony at eleven, then their youngest driver at fifteen, and now I'm on the road to becoming the youngest top-link driver in history. I owe Max and Uncle Steamer so much for helping me get this far in life at such a young age. I also owe a lot to my new fillyfriend, whose idea it was for me to share my story of the accident with the whole world. She has been helping me through a rough spell of depression following a near-death experience of my own, one that has already gone down in the history books as a major turning point in Equestria's international relations.
Thank you so much for being there for me, Hornette. I will always love you.
Perspective: Vinyl
So that just about wraps it up, everypony. Me and Tavi are now back together, we've been living under the same roof for seven years, and now we're gonna be spending the rest of our lives together. Sure, we're also spending a fair bit of time away from each other when gigging in other towns and cities, but hey – at least I don't have to worry about losing her anymore.
Only thing bugging me now is what happens when Tavi finally gets her place in the Royal Canterlot Symphony. Does that mean we have to move back to Canterlot? I'm not really sure I wanna leave Ponyville after how much I've come to love it, and neither do I really want anything to do with my parents ever again, after what they've done to me. That said, Tavi tells me that Dash and Soarin live a long way from Cloudsdale and are still part of the Wonderbolts, so maybe she could work something out for her and the orchestra. Still, only time will tell.
Of more importance right now is Tavi's wish for a foal. We've already got the same spell what Lyra and Bonbon used to conceive Tootsie Flute, but there's still a heck of a lot of planning needs doing before we're ready to start a family. But hey, that's all in the future. Nothing more I can do right now than enjoy what I have.
That's all, folks!