//------------------------------// // Chapter 25: Finally Together // Story: Vinyl and Octavia: Ponyville Duet // by generalsnaz //------------------------------// Chapter 25: Finally Together BA-NA-NA-NA NAA NAA!!! DA-NA-NA-DA DAAA!!! BA-NA-NA DAAN DAAN DAAAAAAN!!! The house was shaking from the force of the bass and treble. The flimsy wooden foundations of Vinyl's small home quite nearly collapsed. Thunderous vibrations came from the FiM-9001X as it played its track at the highest possible volume. (It was way past 11!) Vinyl swayed in the living room next to the speakers, rocking her head up and down with the beat, rhythmically tapping her hoof, completely unaffected by the volume. She was so entwined with the music, she didn't notice the banging on her front door (which would have been inaudible to anypony else) and continued unhindered. Only when a very bright flash of light caught her eyes, though through her shades, did Vinyl stop. The peculiar flash came from the window and the DJ immediately glanced that direction. A very grumpy looking Twilight Sparkle banging on the window, her horn still aglow from the signal she sent in, greeted her. Twilight motioned angrily to her ears and mouthed something that she was actually probably shouting, but her voice was completely decimated by the music. Vinyl smirked, but shrugged to Twilight in confusion before the purple unicorn face-hoofed and pointed to the door. Complying, Vinyl opened it for her. Twilight shouted right into Vinyl's face when they were finally in front of each other, yet Twilight couldn't even hear herself. Smirking, Vinyl flicked off the stereo with a quick glow of magic from her horn. "-AND ANOTHER THING, I'VE GOT A HEADACHE! --! Oh, *ahem* well," Twilight cleared her throat as she was now the loudest thing around. Being pesky, Vinyl snickered and in a high-pitched cutesy voice said, "Hello, Twilight Sparkle! Can I help you? ~<3:" "...I was TRYING to tell you to turn your music down. If you didn't realize, it carries all the way to my house. I can hear it up in my bedroom, with the windows shut, plugs in my ears, AND a pillow around my head! NOT TO MENTION I have a headache, and it's making it worse!" "Golly gee! I'm awfully sorry, neighbor! I'll certainly be more careful in the future! It would be just awful if I upset you!" Vinyl continued with the "adorable" act, covering her mouth in shock, showing fake concern. "Cute," Twilight muttered venomously as she frowned, unimpressed and unsatisfied. "...Okay, okay!" Vinyl continued in her normal voice, "Being serious, now. I'll keep it down, Twi. I promise. I just wanted to crank it up to maximum just once!" "That's fine and all, but the rest of us who live around here have to deal with the noise," Twilight explained, relieved a little that Vinyl wasn't playing stupid anymore. "It's a public disturbance." "I bet Spike was enjoying it," Vinyl whistled slyly as she motioned Twilight to come inside. "--! How did-!? ...Okay, maybe he did, but he's got dragon ears," Twilight pointed out as she followed Vinyl into the living room. "They can withstand lava and your music." "Nice!" "For him maybe, but not for everypony else. How in Equestria do you not lose your hearing standing so close to it?" "Huh? Oh, I have this spell that places a little bubble around my ear drums," Vinyl pointed to her ear that she flicked a little to demonstrate. "It protects it without muffling the sound. I can rock out at full volume, filly!" "Really? I've never heard of that spell. Can you show me how you do it?" "Sure. Later, though," Vinyl said dismissively. "Okay, thanks! To be honest, I never thought of you as the type of pony to take precautions," Twilight mentioned. "For these babies I do," Vinyl claimed pointing again to her ears. "They're my most important asset! Aside from my radical personality, of course." Twilight rolled her eyes. "Did you also cast that spell on Octavia? I'm surprised she didn't make you turn it down already..." She looked around at this, looking for the cellist in question. "Octavia's not here. She went back to Canterlot," Vinyl explained casually. "...Oh... I thought for sure she'd be staying longer. Now that she's out, I figured you two would, you know, get together officially." "... ... ... ...I'm... I'm sorry... Just what are you talking about...?" Vinyl asked apprehensively. She was frozen still except for her furrowed brow. Twilight had just dropped a truth cannon ball she was not prepared for. "Hmm? About you and Octavia being fillyfriends. She told me you two were 'madly' in love, as she put it. Did something come between you two? You can't let petty things ruin a good relationship! If you need help-" "Uh-! Wha-! De-! Ma-! Ju-!" Vinyl blubbered incoherently trying to interrupt Twilight. Her head was abuzz with terrifying phrases like, 'How'd she know!? Get her out! Make her leave! Octavia told her!? We'll get caught!' Through the noise, she managed to stutter out, "It- it's fine! Me and Octavia are friends!" "Oh, good! That's a relief! Speaking of, I was wondering if you might let me do a little bit of social research on you and Octavia?" Twilight started, not letting Vinyl say another word. "I know Princess Celestia has made great strides recently to encourage the normalization of homosexual relationships in Equestria, but there are still some holdouts of old thought out there. I was hoping you two might share your experiences with me? It would certainly help my friendship studies. After all-" "No! You don't understand!" Vinyl interrupted finally. "I... I... don't know what you heard... but I'm not gay," she stated, blatantly lying. "Me and Octavia are friends. Octavia's just a friend." "Huh? But, the other night Octavia said..." "You misheard her!" Vinyl shouted angrily. She stomped up to the open door and pointed aggressively out. "Now, I'll keep the noise down, so could you please leave?" "Alright, alright... No need to get so testy," Twilight relented. "I'm back, Vinyl!" Octavia's charming voice abruptly entered the home just as she did. The cellist veritably leaped at Vinyl and clung to her neck, spinning around it like it was a pole. Before she even landed, she planted a long succulent kiss on the surprised unicorn's lips before noticing Twilight and happily saying, "Oh, hi Twilight!" Twilight raised one eyebrow slyly at Vinyl before addressing the cellist, "Hello, Octavia. Back from Canterlot?" "Indeed! It was wonderful to see my old house again, but I feel much more at home here now!" Octavia answered before letting go of her lover and sternly addressing her. "Vinyl, we must discuss the volume at which you play that stereo. I could hear it all the way to the train station!" "O-O-Octavia! Welcome back-!" Vinyl said, stumbling over her words, trying to explain the smooch away. "I see you're practicing the traditional Canterlot greeting kiss! That's how ponies greet each other in Canterlot! You told me!" "I never saw that when I lived there," Twilight mentioned shrewdly. "It's- It's a new tradition! You were just leaving, right Twilight!?" Vinyl grunted at her. "Of course. So long, Vinyl. Nice to see you again, Octavia," Twilight said pleasantly as she left. "...Uh... Goodbye, Twilight!" Octavia said gleefully after a moment of confusion. Vinyl shut the door and rested her head against it. She cast her gaze downward to the floor. Octavia waited for her to turn around and address her, but she never did. Before long, Octavia spoke anyway and asked, "Vinyl, what was that nonsense you were telling Twilight? There's no traditional Canterlot whatever kiss..." Vinyl had her own question, but she didn't ask it casually. There was sternness in her voice. "Octavia, did you tell Twilight about us?" "Us?" "Our relationship! That we're lesbians!" "Oh-! Well... It was sort of an accident," Octavia admitted. "However, I did tell her. But I don't-" Vinyl cringed, still pressing her head against the door. She wanted to punch that door, release the pressure building up in her, but she managed to refrain. Her face was covered in shadow as Octavia crept carefully around to the side to try to get a good look at her. "Don't do that. Please, please, don't do that..." Vinyl said, hurt in her voice. "--! I'm... sorry, Vinyl..." Octavia recoiled, ears down in shame. Vinyl took a heavy breath. "Did you tell anypony else on accident?" "... ...Well, I... told Applejack... but it was on purpose... not an accident," Octavia admitted, becoming more ashamed as the minute went on. "And I'm pretty sure Rarity and Princess Luna know..." At this, Vinyl turned to Octavia, face filled with horror and disbelief. Their secret had been spread around so much without her knowledge. (And to a Princess even!) "And Spike," Octavia added, suddenly remembering. "You- you- what?" Octavia quickly tried to quell the mess she made by explaining, "It was just those five! Nopony else!" Vinyl took her sunglasses off her face so she could properly shove her hoof into it. "I can't- I can't- even! This! This is-!" She spun around to pace aggressively around the room. She started muttering incoherent things as the situation spun out of control. She thought they had an understanding. She thought Octavia was more level-headed than this. Octavia whimpered, "Did I do something wrong? Are... are you angry with me?" Vinyl immediately stopped her pacing and rushed up to Octavia at the accusation. She took her lover's head carefully in her hooves. "NO! It's not that! I'm not mad! I'm not mad at you, at all!" "Then what is it?" Octavia asked softly, taking her hoof to hold one of Vinyl's. It was shaking. "They can't know. Nopony can know about us..." Vinyl said. "Why on earth not?" Octavia asked, like it was nothing. "They were all fine with it. I don't underst-" "It's my business! Not their's!" Vinyl pointed out. "Well, ...I guess its yours now, too, but... please, we need to keep this quiet! I am begging you Octavia... Let's keep this private. Just between us, you know?" "I... do not know how I feel about keeping this secret from our friends..." Octavia replied, softly as she could. "I've been lying to myself all this time... I don't want to lie to anypony else." "Please, Octavia! For me...?" "... ... ...I- ...Alright," Octavia relented. "For how long? How long would you make us pretend?" "... ...You're not gonna take 'forever' as an answer, will you?" Vinyl asked sheepishly. "Absolutely not," Octavia answered sternly. "Okay, okay... We'll tell them... later... sometime... eventually..." Vinyl admitted, making the date as vague as possible. "Ugh. That's probably all I'm going to get out of you," Octavia said, ending negotiations. "...Alright... I'll keep it quiet. I am sure Princess Luna is not the type to gossip... and, well, I can talk to the other four... make sure they don't mention it again... If that's what you really want." "It is!" Vinyl seemed to calm at this. "Thank you, Octavia!" Vinyl hugged her friend tightly. Octavia hugged back, but felt something was wrong. It didn't seem at all like Vinyl to want to be private and secluded. This was about something more, she could tell. Her thoughts were cut short, however, when Vinyl asked, "Wait... ...When the hay did you meet Princess Luna?" -~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- Vinyl and Octavia sat, heads leaning against each other as the track finished playing. The volume was much lower now (at like a 3) to respect the neighbors who had probably already gone to bed. The crickets were chirping now, but they didn't disturb the listening abilities of the two musicians. "I think it is much better now!" Octavia said gleefully after the music stopped. "Yeah, it is. But it's still not done," Vinyl pointed out as she tapped on the keyboard thoughtfully. Their song was coming along. The two of them had been working on creating a track together since days prior, when they had time (in between making out, that is.) A joint project between the DJ of Ponyville and a cellist of Canterlot! Surely this was the most important song in existence. "I agree. It is lacking something. Oh, I wish I could provide more help!" Octavia pouted. "It's fine, I told you. It's enough you're giving me ideas and feedback," Vinyl explained. "It's not really our song, though! I am just sitting here while you are doing all the manual work!" (It was true.) "...Okay, well. I might be hitting the keys and twisting the knobs, but we're doing this together! I promise," Vinyl assured. "When I play this at the club, it'll be announced as the newest hit by Vinyl Scratch & Octavia Melody!" Octavia blushed at the concept. She was quite thrilled with the progress they made on the track. "You're going to play this while DJ-ing?" "Sure! I always play the best songs," Vinyl said with a wink. "That's mah job." "Brilliant! ...Speaking of... do you think you might allow me to visit this club next time you are performing?" Octavia asked, nervously. She hadn't had a favorable response to this question in the past... but that was before. "I know you've constantly said no, but..." "Okay," Vinyl said easily. "-! Really?" "Of course," the DJ confirmed. "Oh, most wonderful!" Octavia squealed and hugged Vinyl tight. "I am sooo looking forward to it!" "I won't let you down!" Vinyl said playfully. It was okay to have Octavia come to the club now. She was guaranteed. There was no way Octavia would leave with a stallion now. She probably wouldn't even let them finish chatting her up. Vinyl smiled, beaming with confidence. The room around them was starting to look unfamiliar to Vinyl. It was her house, but now, Octavia had brought so much of her own belongings. However, most of Octavia's items were still unpacked, resting in their brown cardboard shells, waiting to join the mishmash of styles that the interior of Vinyl's home was becoming. Vinyl didn't mind the change. On the contrary: she was embracing it. Every unfamiliar object reminded her of her lover. Octavia. The only pony she would let change her life in this way. Well, there was another pony, before all this, that she might of let do something similar. But, the opportunity had passed her by and the very thought made Vinyl sick. -~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- Vinyl was lying on her bed, casually hanging her head and forelegs off. They dangled as she waited for Octavia. Her body was tired. She and Octavia had been passionately entangled for the greater part of the day. Octavia was unleashed, as far as Vinyl could tell, and she was on the receiving end of so much pent up desire; it was exhausting. But, well, Vinyl enjoyed it immensely, so there was no need to pace themselves. Her heart was elated. Vinyl had been dating Octavia for a little over a week, but she knew in her heart that Octavia wasn't totally committed to it before. She joyously accepted the beautiful cellist's invitation, but always figured the whole concept to be nothing more than a generous gesture from a friend. She couldn't fathom it lasting and would never believe it would change to what it was now. She thought, at best, Octavia would eventually grow tired of her and leave. But Vinyl had never been so happy to be so wrong. She was the tired one now, but for physical reasons, not emotional. The night was growing long and they both agreed to stop for now and get some sleep. Vinyl strained her neck to look up across the room. Octavia's cello sat alone beside the dresser, patiently waiting for its owner who was downstairs freshening up. Vinyl stared at it for moments, trying to remember. She had only seen Octavia play it twice, and both times were when she was upset. With magical levitation, she carefully brought the instrument over for closer inspection. The wood was slick and pristine. Vinyl wasn't familiar with the parts of classical instruments, but admired the expert craftsmanship of it. She plucked one of the four strings, but the sound wasn't very satisfying, so she also levitated the nearby bow. She took a moment to try to line up the tool with the strings in the way she thought might be correct. Just before attempting to draw the bow, it dawned on her how expensive all of it probably was and how Octavia might react if she accidentally broke it. Vinyl decided it'd be best to stop and put the bow down just as Octavia came upstairs. "Oh, how curious," Octavia said softly as she trotted over to the bed. "Are you admiring my cello?" "Mmmhmm," Vinyl hummed in recognition as Octavia crawled onto the bed and, subsequently, onto her back. Octavia giggled as she went in for a passionate kiss on her cheek. The cellist had one hoof wrapped around Vinyl's neck and laid with her body effortless on top of her lover. It would have sent Vinyl into a wild frenzy if she hadn't already experienced the same sensation many times that day already. "It was a gift from my mother," Octavia explained, reaching her free hoof over to her floating cello. "...You should play it more," Vinyl stated. "Maybe I can fall for your performance like you fell for mine." "Oh, stop it!" Octavia giggled as she tickled Vinyl (as best she could with hooves.) "Nooo!" Vinyl cried out, unable to defend herself from her pinned position. "Stop-! Stop-! Hahaha!! Haaahaaa! Wait! Octavia!!!" Octavia eventually released her from the ticklish attack after she was satisfied Vinyl had suffered enough. Laughing from the uncomfortable pain, Vinyl managed to put the cello back before she dropped it. "Hoooooh! Ahah! Ah..." Vinyl contemplated as Octavia laid back on her back and kissed her cheek again, but Vinyl, for once, was focused on the cello. "You don't have much here, do you?" She quietly spoke. "...I have you," Octavia retorted, lustfully. "Hmm," Vinyl huffed. "What I mean is... this is still just my house. You're like a guest..." "I suppose that's still true," Octavia said. Vinyl fidgeted with her hooves for a moment before asking, in a hushed and sincere tone, "...Are you... going back to Canterlot...?" "... ...Whatever do you mean?" Octavia asked, apprehension choking her voice, as she slid off Vinyl to lay beside her on the bed. "I mean, like, when... are you going home? To your home, I mean... " "I-! I... don't..." Octavia hesitated. Her lover was here in Ponyville, but her home, her family, everything she knew from before was in Canterlot. She'd have to eventually go home, right? What were she and Vinyl going to do? Have a long-distance relationship? Octavia didn't want that, but she didn't have an answer either. How could she tell Vinyl that she wanted to... "Stay here in Ponyville." "...What?" Octavia asked, unsure if she heard correctly. "I don't want you to leave. I want you to stay here. I want you to live here," Vinyl explained, her voice strengthened by conviction. With determination in her ruby eyes, she turned to Octavia. "Move in with me, Octavia." It was five words Octavia wasn't expecting, but it hit her hard. She had no idea how badly she wanted to hear them. Gushing with emotion, and without even waiting for her tears to develop, Octavia hugged Vinyl and buried her face into her as tightly as she could. She valiantly tried to contain her fits of sniffling and giggling but failed at both. "O-okay! *sniff* Okay! I- I will!" Vinyl didn't need to respond in words, just the gesture of embracing Octavia back and laughing a little herself was enough. Once she had calmed down, Octavia pulled back and explained, "I will need to go back to Canterlot to get some things. *sniff* In the morning. That will be alright, won't it?" "Of course. I can wait," Vinyl answered with a smile. -~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- "Octaaaaviaaaa! Hurry uuuupp!" Vinyl moaned, tapping her hooves impatiently. She was waiting by the front door, ready to leave for the Summer Harvest Parade. "The longer we wait, the longer the lines for the deep-fried good stuff will be!" "Just a moment longer!" Octavia hollered from the bathroom. "I am still applying my makeup." "Make-!? You don't need makeup!" Vinyl protested. "It's a parade and a festival, not some fancy dinner party!" Octavia grimaced in the mirror as she finished applying mascara. "This is our first outing to a public gathering together as an official couple, even if nopony else knows it. I intend to look my best." She inspected herself in the mirror, double-checking everything. Once she was satisfied, she put on her hat and left the restroom. "But I already know you're beautiful, it doesn't matter how you dress yourself up to look- Holy Tartarus, you look amazing!" Vinyl abruptly changed her tune when Octavia emerged, in a flowing pink and white sundress, pink sunhat tantalizingly tilted to one side on her head and white gloves on her hooves. She wasn't wearing her normal bow tie as it would have clashed, but Vinyl was smitten anyway. (There's something about a pretty pony in a pink dress.) "Why, thank you! It was worth the wait then, I take it?" Octavia said, blushing as she walked up to her lover. "Well, I- uh-! You-!" Vinyl beamed, too stunned for more words. As Vinyl looked Octavia over in delight, Octavia looked her over in disappointment. "What is that for? Are you going to ignore me and listen to that all day?" Octavia asked, pointing at the pair of headphones clenched on Vinyl's neck. The neon blue contraption had the potential to play music even without a vinyl record (some technology is beyond comprehension.) Vinyl used to walk around town with them on, listening to her favorite songs. But, that was before she had somepony to walk alongside her. "Nah, they just make me look cool," Vinyl replied, pointing to indicate they were turned off. "Uh-huh," Octavia muttered, unimpressed by the claim. "And why, pray tell, is that necessary?" "Well, uh, I wanted to, you know... look cool for... for you." Vinyl explained, scratching her cheek in embarrassment. Octavia took another look at Vinyl, realizing that Vinyl looked cleaner than usual and her hair wasn't as messy (still ridiculously spiked, though.) "...You fell in love with a stunning and mysterious DJ, so I thought I'd look the part." "Oh, so you fundamentally agree with me about looking proper when going out? Is that what I am hearing?" Octavia nudged, realizing she had won this particular moment. "Sorta! Kinda! ...Okay, fine, you're right," Vinyl begrudgingly admitted. "But at least I didn't need to spend 20 minutes doing my makeup to pull it off!" "Vinyl!" "Kidding! Kidding! Let's go!" After more playful teasing back and forth, the two finally headed out. The Summer Harvest Parade was taking place throughout Ponyville. Traditionally ponies of all ages, though especially the young ones, made floats displaying the fruits and vegetables harvested in summer. Although, nowadays, most ponies just made whatever kind of float they wanted. Aside from the main attraction of the parade, there were carnival style stalls everywhere selling unhealthy delicacies (most of them deep-fried), or rigged games you could play to try to win cheaply-made merchandise. Arriving on time, Vinyl and Octavia waded through the crowds of ponies (and a couple donkeys) just to size up their options. Octavia was startled to see so much commotion in the familiar landscape of the town. It was certainly hectic, but unlike every crowded event she was used to, it was also chaotic. In the sophisticated world of Canterlot, when ponies gathered, it was for a single occasion: a single dinner party, a single opera, a single play, a single royal wedding. This fair was madness. Some portion of the ponies were trying to find a good place to watch the parade, others were trying to find food booths to their tastes, some were unsuccessfully looking for an outhouse, others lost their friends already, but most were just wandering while dragging around whatever nonsense they had bought. And EVERYPONY was talking. Instead of shouting at Vinyl, Octavia leaned over to her ear and tried to speak clearly, "What should we do first?" "Funnel cake!" Vinyl replied, not returning the favor and just shouting her answer. "'Eat funnel cake' is the first, second and last thing you do at a fair!" "Is this not an odd place to eat cake?" Octavia pondered aloud, thinking of the spongy dessert she was accustomed to. (Though, who can resist cake at any occasion?) "Wrong kinda cake. You're in for a surprise," Vinyl teased. And that she was. Once the two of them found the correct stand, waited in line and received the treat, Octavia tasted the funnel cake. A explosion of happiness that dwarfed the liberation she felt coming out surged through her! Much like her first taste of popcorn, Octavia couldn't get enough. "What IS this!?" Octavia squealed in delight in between breaking off pieces of the tasty treat. She licked up the doughy goodness without noticing a dash of powdered sugar stuck to her muzzle. "It's some of that deep-fried good stuff I was talking about," Vinyl pointed out. (Funnel cake has nothing to do with the summer harvest, by the way.) "Hey, let me have some!" she pouted as Octavia had wolfed down more than half of it "Oh, of course!" Octavia answered, resisting her selfish desire to keep it all to herself and relinquishing the rest of it for Vinyl. They walked around as Vinyl levitated the paper plate with the funnel cake on it beside them. She occasionally popped off a piece for herself, showing more restraint for the morsels than Octavia. "Wanna play a game or something?" Vinyl asked after they had seen most of the sights without stopping. "Sure! Which booth should we attend... Um... Oh, my Celestia! Vinyl, Vinyl! Look!" Octavia squealed as she pointed to one of the booths. There was a long and colorful wooden counter, but it was worn, old and dirty like it had traveled to many a fair in its day. There was a scruffy-looking stallion behind it, taking bits from a little filly and giving her a small ball. Behind him, on the back side of the booth, were several stacks of tin cans, with their labels not totally torn off and slight dents in them. The ponies at the front were tossing balls at the cans, missing terribly. But Octavia wasn't pointing to any of that. Hanging above all of them, but below the purple tent, were a plethora of stuffed animals and figures dangling from the ceiling. The one in particular the cellist was focused on was a large stuffed plushy of, the one, the only, Princess Luna. "What? What is it?" Vinyl asked, unsure to what Octavia was picking out in the mess in front of them. Without answering, Octavia rushed up to the stall and demanded, "Excuse me sir, I would like to purchase that Princess Luna doll," to the stallion behind the counter. Her tail was wagging like an excited dog. The stallion gave her a grumpy stare and crudely stated, "Not for sale. You want it? You have to play." "Excuse me?" Octavia asked. This was no time for games! Not with a Luna doll on the line. "It's a prize! You gotta toss the ball and knock over the cans," Vinyl explained once she caught up. "Oh, what an odd arrangement. I would like to play, then." "Two Bits," the stallion stated plainly. After paying, Octavia took one of the three balls she was given. Three balls. Three shots. Zero actual chances of winning. Octavia carefully aimed with the ball in her mouth before reeling back and launching. A miss! She steadied her posture and reassured herself in her head before trying again. No success. "This is more difficult that I anticipated," Octavia commented, disappointed. "Hey, lemme try," Vinyl offered. She levitated the last ball and, with one eye closed and her tongue out in a goofy manner, lined it up with the cans. With a succinct push of magic, the ball flew in a straight line at the cans, without deviating at all. Hitting the middle of the cans, the stack completely collapsed. "YES!" Vinyl exclaimed. "HEY HEY HEY!" the stallion shouted from the other end of the counter. "Can't you read!? No magic!" He pointed angrily to a poster with a red cross over a icon of a unicorn levitating a ball. "What!? Oh, come on!" Vinyl exclaimed. "Why not!?" "It's unfair to the other customers," the scruffy stallion said, with a surprisingly genteel voice, as he motioned to a young earth pony filly who tried to toss a ball that fell to the ground comically a few inches in front of her. Vinyl rolled her eyes in disgust at this. "That's alright, Vinyl. Thanks for trying," Octavia encouraged with a nudge. "We'll win the old-fashioned way, then!" Vinyl said, pulling out a few bits from nowhere and slamming them on the counter. "Gimmie another round!" Octavia paid as well, as both ponies got three more balls for their second attempt. Vinyl carefully tried to aim with her mouth, but was horribly uncomfortable tossing something without her magic. So she missed terribly, of course. Angrily, she tried again, but this time she used her hoof. Balancing the ball, she took aim and tried a miserable toss. Furious, she took the last one in her gritted teeth and threw it haphazardly and aggressively. The ball flew past the cans and ricocheted off the back wall and into the head of the pegasus Derpy, who was walking by, unassumingly. Vinyl gasped in horror at hitting her friend, and rushed over to check on the collateral damage. Meanwhile, Octavia tried twice to no avail. But on her third, her ball of destiny flew true and collided with the tower of cans, knocking them all over. "YES! I DID IT!" Octavia squeaked. "Congrats. Pick your prize," the stallion said as he came over. "I would like that Luna doll," Octavia said with bravado and self-righteousness as she pointed up at the plush. "That's for first place, only. You got third. You can have any one of these," the stallion pointed to the small little toys and key-chains that were available for third place losers winners. "But, how do I win the Luna doll!?" Octavia pouted. "How do I achieve first place?" "Knock over three stacks in a row," the stallion said plainly. "Very well-" Octavia started before Vinyl jumped her from behind. Finishing for her, Vinyl said, "challenge accepted!" The two took a meaningful nod at each other, as if to say 'let's do this!', and paid for another attempt. They both continued to try to win that prize. They tossed and threw and flung and hurled and launched and other words! But they continued to fail. Occasionally hitting a stack or two, the combined powers of the two ponies could not topple the impossible task of hitting an immobile stack of cans three times in a row. Exhausted and frustrated, they collapsed. "We're so close!" Vinyl pouted. "Oh, forget it, Vinyl. Let's just go elsewhere," Octavia said, disappointed. "Come on, don't give up!" Vinyl tried to encourage, but Octavia was too crestfallen. Determined, Vinyl jumped up and crept over to the stallion. Checking around to make sure there was nopony listening, she whispered, "Pssst! Hey buddy! Come 'ere!" The grumpy stallion complied. "What?" "What would it take for you to give up that doll she wants? Hmmmm? You know... Under the table," Vinyl stated slyly. "Not for sale. You have to play," the stallion repeated. "Oh, come on buddy! Everything has a price," Vinyl prodded with a suspicious eyebrow raising. The stallion rolled his eyes before looking around slowly. There was nopony else besides these two at his stand at the moment. He leaned in and whispered, "Okay, okay. One hundred bits." "ONE HUNDRED!!! That's highway robbery! That's crazy talk! I was thinking of like, six! Ten, tops!" "That's the price for me to break the rules," the stallion stated, leaning back and resting one foreleg on the counter. "I don't have a hundred bits..." Vinyl blurted. "...I do..." Octavia said sneakily as she appeared beside Vinyl, leaning in to the conversation. "Octavia, don't waste your money on this-!" Vinyl tried to convince, but it was too late: Octavia plopped a plump brown bag of bits on the counter. "Holy Celestia," Vinyl muttered, dumbfounded at the heavy sack of cash. The stallion stared at the bag for a brief moment, opened it slightly to see the piles of yellow coinage and plainly spoke, "Woah. You're serious." "That I am," Octavia mused. "Look," the stallion said, as he pushed the bag back to Octavia, rejecting the offer, "I don't want your money. I ain't no crook. ...Eh... You two played enough, you can have the doll." As he turned to pick up a rod with a hook that was leaning up near him, Octavia and Vinyl exchanged glances. "Uh, you sure?" Vinyl asked. "I didn't think you'd just give it to us." "Well, I didn't think you'd actually have a hundred bits!" the stallion said as he lowered the Luna doll, which swung gracefully on the hook. "Congrats on winning first prize." "Oh, thank you, sir!" Octavia grabbed the plushy with delight. "I very much appreciate it!" "Yeah, sure. Go on and enjoy the rest of the fair," the stallion waved them off. As they turned to leave, Octavia squeezed the doll and exclaimed giddily, "It's softer than I thought!" "Wow... you, uh... You were gonna pay a hundred bits." Vinyl stated, a little in shock still. "If there is something your heart desires, you must brave the difficult path to obtain it, no matter the losses! I have learned this from being with you, Vinyl," Octavia explained, blushing a little. "Really? I've learned a different lesson from you," Vinyl replied. "Oh, what is that?" "You can do anything when you have money, holy Celestia..." -~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- Octavia held on to the Luna plushy as Vinyl and her stood watching the parade. The floats that went by were large and were being driven by some mechanical ingenuity that neither pony understood. About half the floats were done by school fillies and colts, and it showed in the quality of the construction and shabby paint jobs. The floats made by adults were much better. Octavia was delighted in seeing the floats and bands marching along joyfully. The ponies watching were cheering and waving flags or holding balloons. It summed up the energetic and happy vibes she got from Ponyville in one event. "Hey, don't let it fall in the dirt," Vinyl said as she levitated the Luna plushy that had slipped slightly in Octavia's distracted grip. "Oh! Thanks!" Octavia said, squeezing tighter to secure it. "I feel conflicted about getting this, though," the good Octavia admitted. "'Cause of what it could have cost?" Vinyl asked, a distant and hollow look in her poverty accustomed eyes. "No, because we did not successfully win through the proper method." "...Eh, well. It's not like we cheated. We just... tried an alternative way of getting it. We didn't hurt nopony and everypony's happy." "...Maybe. But I feel so... naughty." "Well that's a new feeling for you!" Vinyl pointed out. "It's not so bad, once in a while." A large Golden Apple float passed them by, being driven by some dark orange filly they'd never seen before. "Hmmm..." Octavia pondered aloud. A devilish grin appeared on her face as she murmured, "I have another naughty idea." She grabbed Vinyl's foreleg and pulled her back through the crowd of parade watchers. "Follow me, Vinyl!" "Whoa! What's the rush?" Vinyl asked as she was dragged along. Octavia brought the two of them back to the street of concession and game booths. Spotting a space between too tents, Octavia slipped between them. Arriving on the vacant back alley of stalls, Vinyl asked, "What're we doing? There's nothing back here." Octavia rested the Luna down on a nearby crate. Taking her hat off, she placed it on the doll, which was far too small to wear it properly. "We're here for... this!" As Octavia said the words, she turned to Vinyl and kissed her. Vinyl was startled by the aggressive embrace. As Octavia pressed in, she instinctively returned the passion. Lips smacked against lips for moments before Octavia pulled back ever so slightly and moaned, "Oh... Vinyl..." "...Octavia..." Vinyl moaned the same and Octavia pushed up against her as they leaned against the backside of a tent. Vinyl was pinned against the cloth and wood, inches from the ponies on the inside. 'This feels like a dream...' Vinyl thought as her lover's body leaned on her. 'I've wanted this for so long... and now... Octavia and me get to do this all the time...' Vinyl wanted to smile, but her mouth was busy pushing against Octavia's moist lips. Vinyl felt Octavia relinquish some force before she landed down hard against Vinyl. Their bodies made a thud! against the wood stall. Luckily the ponies on the other side did not hear it, they were too busy observing the commotion near the parade as a float ran off a hill in the distance. The noise, however, did snap Vinyl out of her lust. 'Wait... This isn't a dream...! BUCK! If anypony saw-! Buck, buck, buck!' After cursing in her head, she managed to command her mouth to stop kissing for a moment and say, "Octavia! Stop! We have to stop!" "What? What is it!?" the dumbfounded Octavia asked. Never had she seen Vinyl refuse making out. Vinyl pushed her away with startling force. "We can't do this! Not here!" Vinyl said, exasperated. "-! Whatever's the matter? It's vacant back here. Nopony will find us." "They might! They might come around the corner, see us, tell everypony in town, then Be- ...then..." Vinyl couldn't quite finish that sentence. She never could. It would hurt too much. "You know, you didn't act like this when we were in the middle of the park the other day," Octavia pointed out. "That-! That was-!" "AND, when Frederick was knocking at your door, you didn't care at all if he looked in and saw us," Octavia pressed. "MISTAKES," Vinyl blurted. "I messed up being so haphat- haphas- hap...?" "Haphazard." "Right! Haphazard with us. Look, Octavia. You make me go wild... I do things I shouldn't when we're together." "You... shouldn't have kissed me...?" Octavia asked, sunken. "No, no, no! I mean, we shouldn't have done it where we could be seen!" Vinyl explained. "It should just be between us. Privacy, right?" Octavia waited a moment, biting her lip in thought. "This isn't just about privacy, is it?" "...Yeah, it is," Vinyl tried to fib. "You can't fool me with that anymore, Vinyl," Octavia confidently stated. "I know you too well, you are not one to keep private. You are the epitome of 'center of attention.' You will explain to me why you insist that we stay secret. And you will explain to me right now! Is that clear?" "Come on, Octavia, I-" Vinyl was about to start a whole defensive argument, but Octavia's stern look stopped her. But it wasn't just the look, it was the pony doing the looking. Vinyl couldn't lie to that face anymore. "I... I... aw... Aw, buck it... I guess I can't lie to you... Okay, okay. It's not because of me being private... But... but I can't tell you the real reason, either. I can't," Vinyl admitted. "We are not going to keep secrets between us anymore, Vinyl!" "... ..." "Vinyl, I need an explanation!" Vinyl bit her lip and turned away. The memories were already flooding her head at this point. Octavia was pressing on something that Vinyl just couldn't tell her right now. Her desperation to answer Octavia but keep the secret were too much. Tears ran down her white cheeks behind her sunglasses, though she was trying her hardest to hold them back. She hung her head before whispering, "... ... ...Octavia, I'm scared..." "-! Of what?" Octavia asked, startled by this. She had never seen Vinyl afraid of anything, aside from that army of Pinkie Pie clones. But that was life-threatening. This wasn't. So what was the problem? "...I don't want them to hate me..." Vinyl whispered. "They're not going to hate you," Octavia offered. "Why would you think that?" "...I. Can't. Tell. You," Vinyl stated as sternly as she could through tears. Unable to coax out an explanation, Octavia wrapped her hooves around her trembling lover and hugged her. It was all she could think to do.