//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 // Story: Melodies of Friendship // by TalkingToMyself //------------------------------// The weeks passed and when winter was wrapped up into spring again, Octavia, Lyra and Crystal Note met at least once a week to play together. For Octavia, these meetings made for a nice change of pace from her usual rehearsals and strict performance schedule, as well as a chance to experiment with songs that would never run in a traditional Canterlot orchestra. For Crystal Note, each of those meetings was a chance to challenge herself, not only as a violinist, but as a performer as well. As the weather got better, Octavia and Lyra set their sessions more often to public places like the park of Ponyville. As Lyra had predicted, Crystal Note had less trouble facing an audience in a group. Over the weeks, she even developed some stage awareness as well. She would notice ponies around her while she was playing and smiled whenever she received a donation from her audience. This newfound confidence helped her outside of her music as well. Following Bon Bon’s suggestion, she had finally talked with Princess Twilight Sparkle and her friends. The Princess had been a little disappointed when Crystal Note told her she wasn’t interested in exploring her magic any further than the basics, but she seemed more frustrated that Crystal Note had needed weeks of gathering courage to speak up on it. They reassured her that they weren’t angry or mad at her, just because she had different interests then them didn’t mean they couldn’t stay friends. The most changes and longest talks Crystal Note had with Applejack. While the Apple family reassured her that she was always welcome at Sweet Apple Acres and that the room she used would always be hers, they all had to acknowledge the fact that Crystal Note simply wasn’t a farm pony. When spring was in full bloom, Crystal Note still helped with the work at the farm occasionally, but most of the time she’d spend working on her music. Whenever she was at Sweet Apple Acres, there was a tune filling the air and her newly adopted family encouraged her to follow this passion. However, Crystal Note spent much of her time with Lyra and Bon Bon, their guest room soon became hers to use permanently. At some times, Crystal Note couldn’t believe how lucky she was to have so many wonderful ponies as her friends. All that honest acceptance and encouragement did wonders to her on more than one level. The first thing she noticed was that her nightmares grew less and less. She slept peacefully through the nights and faced her days with newfound energy. She also became less shy around ponies. While she never would be as bold as Lyra or even Rainbow Dash, she certainly didn’t turn into nervous jitters anymore when she had to talk to somepony new. Another thing that changed was her finding more and more occasions to share her music with others. On Rarity’s suggestion, she had started playing in the local spa to entertain the costumers, something Aloe and Lotus, the two earth ponies running the spa, greatly appreciated. What came after where requests from other ponies who approached her. A little gig at a birthday here, a small performance for a gathering there, or simply a request when ponies found her playing in town. Just a few little things Crystal Note could do to make ponies smile and which she greatly cherished. As a nice side effect, she also managed to earn some bits, at least enough to contribute to the Apple family and Bon Bon for giving her a room in their homes. The only thing that didn’t change was that she still kept her horn a secret. She kept wearing her bandana whenever she was in town and only told a few selected ponies about it, once she was sure they’d understand. Octavia Melody was one of those ponies. On a sunny day that felt more like summer than spring, Lyra and Crystal Note walked home after a session in the park. They were in good mood and chuckled at Lyra’s jokes when Octavia ran towards them with a beaming smile on her face “I have great news!” Crystal Note tilted her head curiously and Lyra grinned widely “Well, don’t keep us on the edge. Spill it!” Octavia easily matched Lyra’s grin this time “We are playing at the Grand Galloping Gala!” “What?” Octavia grinned satisfied but Lyra and Crystal Note just looked confused at each other “Um, Tavi, not to spoil it for you, but isn’t the Gala like the biggest event of the year? They probably have ponies lined for years for a chance to perform there. And we’re not even professionals.” Octavia’s grin wouldn’t fade the least “All true, but here’s the thing: We won’t be playing in the ball room during the dance or anything. You know that everypony always has to stand in line for hours to be greeted by the princesses, right?” “Yeah, so?” “So, somepony decided that the waiting would be less taxing if the ponies had a little bit of entertainment. That is where we come in.” She turned to Crystal Note who had remained silent so far “We will be there before the actual Gala starts and play in the entrance hall. Granted, it is nothing too exciting, merely a bit of atmosphere, but nevertheless, we will be at the Grand Galloping Gala.” Octavia watched pleased as Crystal Note’s smile grew wider and her coat started to glitter a bit more in the sunlight. She knew her friend was almost as excited as herself. Only Lyra didn’t seem convinced yet “I don’t know, Tavi. You know how I feel about those long, drawn out performances for stuck-up noble ponies in Canterlot.” “That’s the beautiful thing about it, Love. They will barely even notice us most likely, since that kind of ponies only have eyes for Princess Celestia anyways. We can play some of our own songs if we like. And once everypony is inside, we are allowed to have some fun at the actual festivities as well. Doesn’t that sound great?” “Yeah. Great.” Lyra couldn’t get excited as it seemed, even as Crystal Note looked at her with wide open eyes “You don’t want to play at the Gala?” “Not really. No offence Tavi, but all those ponies are just there to catch a glimpse at the princesses from close up and to gossip. They don’t care for the music at all, they only care for themselves.” Octavia bit her lip, she knew Lyra was partially right of course. Crystal Note let out a small sigh “I didn’t know you felt like that. It’s a shame. Rarity told me about the Gala before… I wondered what it would be like. But I guess we won’t be performing if you don’t want to.” Lyra’s ears flopped down when she heard the disappointment in Crystal Note’s voice. Her friend had become much more confident over the weeks and it would be a huge step in the right direction if she played for a crowd this big. Plus, she really sounded like she wanted to play With a sigh of her own, she turned back to Octavia “One condition.” The earth pony smiled and held up a golden ticket “Here’s an extra ticket for Bon Bon.” “I hate it that you know me so well.” Lyra deadpanned and glared with no force at Octavia, while Crystal Note just smiled “Does that mean you’re coming?” “Yes Crissy. But only because I want to see you and Bon Bon have a blast.” “Oh, simply wonderful, Darling!” All three ponies turned towards the new voice that chimed in and found Rarity standing close enough to listen in. Ignoring the fact she’d been caught eavesdropping, the white unicorn squealed excited “We’ve got just enough time to get your dresses done for the Gala, so I need to you grab Bon Bon and head over to Carousel Boutique right away!” “Um, Rarity, I don’t think we need…” “Not another word, Darling! This is the Grand Galloping Gala we’re talking about! You can just go there au naturel!” “Huh?” Crystal Note giggled and leaned in to whisper “She means everypony will be dressed up for it.” “Oh. Then we didn’t she say so?” Both Octavia and Rarity rolled their eyes in near perfect unison “I swear, there are times I believe you are Rainbow Dash in disguise.” “Hey! I don’t brag nearly as much as she does.” That finally broke the tension and everypony chuckled a little “Very well, I’ll expect all four of you at the boutique, say in an hour?” Lyra sighed defeated and nodded “Fine, we’ll be there. But nothing too fancy.” “I’m sure we will find something that matches your likings, Lyra Heartstrings.” A couple of hours later, Lyra groaned annoyed from her spot on the podium, covered in silk and fabric “How long do we have to stay like that?” “Lyra Heartstrings! Miss Rarity here sacrificed her free night to make us all dresses last minute for the Gala. If you can’t be grateful, at least stop complaining like a foal!” “I am grateful! I just don’t like fancy dress-ups.” Octavia and Crystal Note chuckled on the podiums next to her as Rarity put some needles in the fabric to set its length to the perfect level. The fashion designer had chosen a style that would fit each mare but was similar enough to mark them as a group, only the colours were slightly different to match each mare’s coat and mane. Bon Bon’s dress was already done and only needed some finishing touches, she would be wearing more of an actual gown in colours that matched Lyra’s, much to their satisfaction. Lyra looked over herself and sighed again “I think I’d look better in a tux than in a dress.” Rarity froze for a moment and turned at Lyra with a taxing glance “Hm. I’m inclined to agree, Darling. However, since this will be a group performance, I think you’ll do better with matching outfits for your little ensemble.” Crystal Note tilted her head “Ensemble?” “Of course, Darling. Isn’t that what you are?” Lyra, Octavia and Crystal Note exchanged a glance and slowly, all three started to smile “I like it.” “It does have a nice ring to it, I agree.” “Ensemble.” Crystal Note rolled the word and chuckled in her melodious way “Ponyville Music Ensemble. That sounds great.” The three musicians smiled and Bon Bon was quick to join in “If the Gala works out, you could do more performances together.” “Whoa whoa whoa, easy Bonnie. I’m not too thrilled to go professional all of a sudden.” “Nopony said you have to.” Octavia rolled her eyes with a friendly chuckle as the couple went on and focused on Crystal Note instead. The crystal mare looked at herself in the mirror with a serene smile on her face, turning her body left and right a little to see all the tiny details Rarity had managed to add despite the short time. With the gentle sparkling that still coloured her silvery-white coat, it was not hard to see her on a big Canterlot stage. Rarity walked another circle around the mare with that critical look on her face before she sighed with a frown “I guess it can’t be helped. Such a shame.” Octavia couldn’t quite understand Rarity’s sudden frustration or why Crystal Note started blushing at her words “What seems to be the problem, Miss Rarity?” “Oh, nothing important. It’s just a shame, her mane would complement the dress perfectly with a few touches here and there. But, I guess we need to be looking into a matching hat now.” Octavia looked at the mirror in front of Crystal Note and sighed along with Rarity. She had seen Crystal Note without her bandana enough to be used to the sight of her horn, but of course the crystal unicorn was still very conscious about that. She had heard some half-mumbled explanations about it and Crystal Note once confessed that she was, in fact, the only crystal unicorn in the whole Crystal Empire. But, instead of embracing her uniqueness like Lyra would, Crystal Note acted like she was ashamed of being different. "Couldn't you hide her horn if you styled her mane differently?" Rarity nodded, still with that same critical look "I'm pretty sure I might. If I had a chance to try, that is.” Crystal Note’s ears dropped down, along with her head “What if there’s a gust of wind or something and my mane gets dishevelled? Somepony could see my horn and freak out.” “Would they really?” Bon Bon had been listening for a while and now entered the conversation “Crystal Note, I think you’re afraid over nothing. So what if you have a horn? I’m pretty sure many ponies wouldn’t even notice it.” Lyra nodded along “Besides, who actually knows what that horn of yours really means? Think about it, a few months ago nopony even remembered the Crystal Empire at all. Nopony would suspect anything is wrong with you being a crystal unicorn.” Crystal Note shivered and shook her head as her coat lost most of its shine “You knew something was wrong right away, Lyra.” “Yeah, but that’s me. How many other mares do you know who study mythical creatures like I do?” “Um, Princess Twilight?” “Darling, that’s not a valid point. Twilight simply studies everything she can get her hooves on. Besides, she already knows about your little secret, so there would be nothing to be afraid of.” “Yeah, and those noble ponies in Canterlot probably are too busy fawning over the Princesses to notice much else. Crissy, I’m sure you’d be just fine.” Octavia had remained silent as the three friends tried to convince Crystal Note to let go of her baseless fears. Their success seemed very limited however. Octavia had only recently learned about Crystal Note’s true nature, but she had not felt appalled at all by it, she was merely surprised. That, so she suspected, was going to be the reaction of most ponies if they found out about Crystal Note’s horn. They’d be surprised for a moment, then simply shrug it off. But how could she get that point through to Crystal Note? Her eyes fell on Rarity’s large wall calendar in which she kept track of her appointments. One day had a circle around it and it was marked as ‘Spa day’. Octavia smiled as an idea quickly grew into a plan and she addressed the hesitant mare “Crystal Note, you’re going to play at the spa again tomorrow, right Love?” “Um, yes. Why do you ask?” “How about you give this matter a try in a controlled environment? A test run, so to speak.” All four mares looked at Octavia now, Lyra grinning widely as usual and Bon Bon with an approving nod. Crystal Note only stared confused and muttered “A test run for what?” “On how ponies will react, of course. Tomorrow, when you play at the spa, simply take off your bandana. There won’t be many ponies who would see you and you could see their reactions.” “That’s a fabulous idea! Fluttershy and I will be at the spa tomorrow as well, so even if things would go south, which they won’t, you would have the two of us as emotional backup.” “We can be there too if you want. It’s been ages since I could convince Lyra for a spa day, so she owes me anyways.” “Hey!” Octavia ignored Lyra’s antics and kept her eyes on Crystal Note. The poor dear seemed almost overwhelmed by so much encouragement from all sides. A few weeks ago, Octavia was sure that Crystal Note had run off by now and claimed she wouldn’t deserve this kind of support. But today, she looked like she might almost give in “Take heart, Love. We will all go together and nothing bad will happen, you’ll see.” Crystal Note took a deep breath and finally nodded shyly “You promise you’ll all be there?” “Of course!” Crystal Note couldn't help but smile as all her friends called out simultaneously. Immediately, her coat and mane shimmered once again and even if she said nothing, Octavia and the others knew very well how much it meant to her. Rarity, sensible to her friends' feelings as ever, knew that Crystal Note didn't enjoy being at the centre of attention too long. So, she turned to Octavia and started fussing about her evening gown, pulling Lyra and Bon Bon into a lively discussion on colour and style. Crystal Note climbed down from her pedastal and carefully took of her finished dress while the others were busy, so she didn't noticed them throwing glances at her direction. Of course they noticed how Crystal Note's smile quickly faded away and turned into a worried expression. The four friends shared a glance and nodded to each other in a silent promise. Tomorrow, they would make sure Crystal Note went through with her plan and be at her side, no matter what would happen.