Two's Company, Three's a Crowd

by Lithe Kamitatsy


Chapter Forty-Three

~Two Weeks Later~

"Are you sure everything is packed?" Octavia asked, making certain that nothing had been forgotten.

"Yes, Octy! That's the fourth time you've asked!" Vinyl said, bringing a hoof to her face.

"I am just making sure, Vinyl. I do not want to leave anything behind," Octavia said.

"Well, I've looked in every room of the apartment, and there is nothing that isn't boxed or bagged," Vinyl said with a sigh.

"Then I believe we are ready to leave. The moving company is not slated to arrive until tomorrow night, and the motel room we rented out will not be ready until later this evening," Octavia said as she took a seat on a small stool that she had set out during the packing. "We have plenty of free time this evening, what would you like to do?" Vinyl looked at Octavia and giggled a bit.

"You know, your baby bump is getting bigger and bigger. It's starting to get obvious," Vinyl pointed out, to which Octavia blushed.

"It is not like I have a choice, Vinyl...and I fully intend to work off whatever weight I gain from this," Octavia said.

"It won't be long before I'm gonna have to start rolling you around," Vinyl said while stifling a laugh.

"...You are so lucky I am not a unicorn..." Octavia growled.

"Why's that?" Vinyl asked.

"If I were, you would be embedded in the ceiling after the comment you just made," Octavia said.

"While that doesn't sound like much fun, I can understand that I'd totally deserve it," Vinyl laughed. "Anywho, as for how we're gonna spend tonight...I'm not really sure," she said, bringing a hoof to her chin. "Hmmm..." An idea then came to Vinyl. "We could go back to that bar- you know, the one where we met."

"Ugh, Fillyfool's, really? You know I hate that place," Octavia groaned.

"C'mon Octy! For old time's sake," Vinyl said, doing her best to persuade her. Vinyl had an idea in mind- as much as she knew Octavia did not like Fillyfool's, she was going to make it memorable. She thought back to the amethyst engagement earring she bought with Bonbon two weeks before with a small smile. Yeah, it may not be super romantic, but it'll definitely be memorable. "What do you say, Octy? For me?" Vinyl said, forcing her lower lip to quiver. Octavia watched for a few seconds, and sighed.

"Fine, we will go to Fillyfool's. Aside from the fact it is where I met you, I fail to see any other reason as to why you would want to go back," Octavia said.

"It'll be fun, you'll see," Vinyl smiled. The two made their way towards the front door, exiting and shutting it behind them. They then began to walk down the streets of Canterlot, taking in what would be their last viewing of the upper-class city until they next visited Vinyl's parents. "I gotta admit, I will miss this place. I had some awesome gigs here," Vinyl said as they walked.

"Agreed. Some of my most memorable concerts were at the Canterlot Opera House. I will never forget the first opera I peformed in. I received an award not too long after for "Best Solo Celloist" during the performance, seeing as it had a section where the actors were completely silent and I had to improvise a solo that fit the mood. I was nervous beyond belief," Octavia said as she reminisced.

"So THAT'S what that trophy was for," Vinyl said. "Nicely done, Octy. At the time I probably wouldn't have wanted to go see it, but now? Maybe," Vinyl winked.

"Vinyl, I remember that opera distinctly- you would not last five minutes," Octavia laughed.

"Pssh, shows what you know, Octy. Before I met you I tried to go to a play once, just to see what all the buzz was about, and I only slept through half of it," Vinyl said proudly.

"Oh, bravo Vinyl, that is truly an accomplishment," Octavia said sarcastically, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, tell me about it-" Vinyl stopped mid-sentence. "Was that really necessary?"

"Take it how you like," Octavia smirked.

After twenty minutes of walking, they arrived at Fillyfool's. "This place hasn't changed a bit!" Vinyl said. "I remember the night I met you the crowd was going nuts! They ate up my music like they hadn't been fed in months," she chuckled. She looked the place over, but missed one crucial poster- the act for the night. Vinyl pushed the door open, and the two made their way past the crowd of ponies that usually cluttered the bar. They found a table, and began to chat when the section of the bar they were in went dark. Suddenly, a very familiar song to Vinyl began to play. She looked up, her eyes wide. "No..."

The lights over the tape decks were dark, but one pony stood alone in front of it- a unicorn stallion, his back turned to the crowd. As the song slowly began to build, he started to tap his hoof to the beat.

"...You gotta be kidding me..." Vinyl said, a shocked and somewhat dumbfounded expression across her face.

"Something the matter, Vinyl?" Octavia said as she turned her head to look at whatever Vinyl was looking at.

The music continued to build, until eventually the unicorn stallion flipped around as the wall of bass rocked the bar. He had a spiky black mane, black shades, a blue-gray coat, a black shirt with a tie, and three stars for a cutie mark. His horn began to glow, and he began to speak. Octavia was amazed that the bass did not drown out his voice, but she reasoned that he was using his magic to project his voice.

"It's the rise of the vulture!
I'm feeling the panic!
All those who are nervous,
With loss of dynamic!
If your pride's been poisoned,
If your heart is sour,
Hear the sound of the war drums-"

The music stopped for a brief second as the synth lead took over.

"WE'RE TAKIN' THE POWER!"

The dance-floor exploded as lights began to strobe in sync with the heavy bass and the synth lead, another pony working the tape decks. She herself got lost in the music while she worked, her bright orange mane with dark red streaks hiding her face as she rocked back and forth. The MC repeated the line two more times, the crowd dancing their lives away.

"It's the rise of the vulture!
Gonna keep on climbing!
No chance of escape,
No use in hiding!
Into the eye of the storm,
With the silver lining!
To the point where it breaks-"

Another very brief pause hit the bar, the crowd waiting patiently.

"WE'RE GONNA KEEP ON GRINDING!"

The song exploded once more, the MC throwing his hooves in the air, taking in the energy he was receiving from his fans. He took a few moments to survey the crowd, and at the corner of his eye he caught a familiar color: electric-blue. He focused on the sight, and lowered his glasses, his bright yellow eyes peering back at Vinyl. He gave a small grin and a nod of the head, and returned to his work as another build-up reached its crescendo.

"WE'RE TAKIN' THE POWER!"

He continued to pump up the crowd by raising his hooves over and over, grinning like a madcolt the entire time. "C'MON! LET ME HEAR YOU!" He yelled, the crowd roaring their approval in response. The song eventually came to an end, and the crowd stomped their hooves wildly in praise.

"Thank you, thank you! You've been a smashing audience! Let's give a round of applause to my lovely assistant working the decks, POLY RHYTHM!" The crowd yelled their approval as the mare took a few bows and waved to the audience. "This is MC W1SH, SIGNING OFF! GOOD NIGHT!" He yelled, throwing a hoof in the air, to which the crowd responded in kind. The lights went back to normal, and before he left the stage, he took one last look at Vinyl, and smirked. He made his way off-stage.

"That was strange...he looked right at you, Vinyl. Do you know him?" Octavia asked.

"In ways I really don't want to remember..." Vinyl groaned.

"What do you mean?" Octavia asked.

"Octy, I REALLY don't wanna get into this..." Vinyl pleaded.

"Well I do. If it keys me in to a piece of your past, I would like to know about it," Octavia said as she leaned into Vinyl.

"...Do I really have to?" Vinyl asked dejectedly.

"Come now, Vinyl. It cannot be that bad," Octavia said. Vinyl looked at her and sighed.

"Alright, if you really wanna know, then I'll tell you," Vinyl started. She took a moment to gather her thoughts and continued. "His real name is Neon Lights, and he used to be my partner way back in the day. I used to DJ for him, and he would emcee. Things were going great until...well..."

"Until what, Vinyl?" Octavia asked, curious to know more. Vinyl then gave another sigh.

"Until we started going out...he's kind of my ex," Vinyl said sheepishly.