//------------------------------// // Epilogue // Story: Equestria Noir Case 12 "The Vinyl Scratch!" // by Jacoboby1 //------------------------------// Case 12 Epilogue Perspective: Octavia I found myself sitting in the apartment that I shared with Vinyl, staring out at the Ponyville countryside. We had been sharing this apartment since I came to Ponyville a year ago, after joining Vinyl Scratch. I didn’t expect to become a permanent residence in the town though. I guess life does tend to throw a monkey wrench into the best laid plans. I got up from the chair I was sitting in. Vinyl was out today, for some reason. After we left Private Eye behind, I thought about returning to Manehattan. Private seems like a gentle stallion though; he wouldn’t turn me in after all that’s happened. Revenge had so consumed my life; I had no idea what to do after it was done. Do I keep my father’s work going? Do I pick up my musical career? Due to Jumper’s imprisonment, suddenly a lot more doors were opening. My eyes wandered to my cello and I picked it up, reverently. Music always calmed me whenever something bad happened, and helped me express my joy at the good. Life has a lot in common with Vinyl it seems, completely and utterly senseless. I put the bow to the strings and began to play that old tune… “Hey, I know that song,” I heard a voice behind me say. I turned and saw Vinyl, smiling at me widely, “That’s the song from that play you like, Le…Le Misreabloles?” “It’s pronounced Les Ponies Misérables,” I replied, with a roll off my eyes. “Where did you go after the arrest?” “I went to find this,” she held up an old tape. “I called in a few favors from the casting agent from the production company. Did a couple of shows for their rock operas so it was easy to have them dig up an old record” “Record of what?” I asked with a smile, as I kept playing. “Some rock band named after a carriage brand?” “Nah,” Vinyl shook her head. “It’s a tape of your mom.” I almost broke a string as I was pulled out of the music, and back into reality. I glared at Vinyl “You had no right to pry into that!” “I found your mom’s audition tape, and you’re saying I did a bad thing?” Vinyl waved her hoof at me dismissively. “I thought you’d like hearing your mom.” I set the cello down and glared at Vinyl. “Why are you doing this? I didn’t ask you to go looking for that tape!” “Just because you didn’t ask doesn’t mean I shouldn’t do it!” Vinyl retorted. “Now, what’s your problem?” I looked down, I was mad for what Vinyl did without asking, yes; but somewhere deep in my heart I knew she did something kind, and I wasn’t helping by yelling at her. “Vinyl, I’m sorry, it’s just been a rough day.” I felt her place a hoof on my shoulder, “Hey, it’s okay, I only wanted to cheer you up after everything that happened.” I nodded, unable meet her concerned eyes. “Once again you're just trying to help and I yell at you for it.” “Hey, it’s no big deal, really,” Vinyl said, with that shrug of hers. “Now, are we going to listen to your mom, or not?” “You still have that old, what's it called… bam box?” “Boom box,” Vinyl corrected, while patting me on the head. “You’ll get it eventually.” She dug through what I called “The Vinyl Scratch Junkyard," which is my pet name for Vinyl’s bedroom. She eventually pulled out an old boom box and plugged it into the wall. Before Vinyl could insert the tape, however, I stopped her. “Vinyl, I’ve never actually heard my mother sing. What if she’s not how I imagined?” Vinyl simply shrugged. “Life doesn't always hand you things in a neat package, Octy. Sometimes, you just get what you get." Typical Vinyl. I stepped away from the boom box, so I wouldn’t be tempted to stop it. Vinyl inserted the tape pressed play. “It used to be on an old record, but I got somepony to salvage it onto a tape for your listening pleasure. I have the entire cast on here but it’s your mom I want you to hear” I smiled as I heard a familiar voice on the other end… Hello, my name is Operetta and I will be auditioning for the role of Éponine. Go ahead, Miss Operetta. On my own… Pretending he’s beside me… And all alone… I walk with him, till morning… But without him…I feel his legs around me… And when I lose my way I close my eyes and he has found me And I love him… And every day I’m learning But all my life I’ve only been pretending But without me, his world will go on turning A world that’s full of happiness that I have never known…. ______________________________________________________________ Perspective: Vinyl Scratch When the music stopped playing, I looked over at Octy and she was crying. I put a hoof on her back and tried to give her a cool smile. “Hey Octy, it’s okay, your mom was awesome!” She wiped tears out of her eyes and smiled at me. “Thank you Vinyl, I should say that far more often.” She shook her head. “Some friend I am, I guess.” “Are you kidding me?” I asked my jaw dropping. “When you came around with that shotgun, you were beyond awesome! You’re a total badass, Octy!” She blushed a little, “Like I always say, one can’t be too careful in today’s society.” “Can you teach me all that stuff you can do?” I asked, eagerly. “We’d be the world’s most badass duo; we could be secret agents or something!” She just laughed, “I doubt you could keep your mouth shut long enough to be sneaky at anything.” I crossed my legs in mock offense. “I can be civilized when I want to be. I just choose to be awesome instead!” She rolled her eyes, and walked to eject the tape from the boom box. “I should put this in a safe place. Thanks for digging it up for me.” “No problem, Octy” I replied, with a smile. “Anything for you.” She stopped in her tracks, and looked back at me with her violet eyes, “Listen Vinyl, about what I said back at the foundry...” “The whole, you’d do the Vinyl Scratch a million times for me?” I asked smiling. “Did you really mean that?” “I did,” she answered, setting the tape down on our small table. “At first I thought you were simply an attention wanting maniac.” “I prefer the term, excitable individual,” I said, imitating her accent. She giggled a little; I've never seen Octavia giggle at all. Something’s got her in a good mood “Then you come around and do something sweet like the tape. I don’t think I’ll ever truly understand you, Vinyl.” I shrugged. “What can I say? I’m mysterious like that” “Vinyl,” she said as she got closer to me. I felt a faint blush come to my cheeks as she moved in. “I want to thank you for letting me on the Vinyl Scratch, and for being the first true friend I’ve ever had.” Okay, Octy is in a very good mood. Should I take advantage of this? I mean she just admitted we were friends. Do I tell her I want more? For once in my life, I was speechless, so I just blurted out, “Uh, no problem, Octy. Like I said anything for you.” “Are you all right?” Octavia asked, concerned. “I’ve never known you to act like this.” “It’s just,” I said, looking away from her, “we’ve known each other for a long time now and I'm just learning all of this stuff about you. How you’re this badass mob boss, and can fight like one of those action heroes.” I blushed as I admitted, “What mare wouldn’t fall for that?” “What you said back there,” Octavia asked blushing even redder than me, “you were serious?” “Of course I am!” I said opening my arms “I know it’s weird; but when I really start thinking about it, I can’t imagine my life without you!” “Vinyl...” “I just realized it when I saw what you were doing all those times you would leave in the middle of the night, or go away on long weekends" I confessed to her. "Octavia Val Jean, I’m head over hooves in love with you!” Octavia’s face was bright red as she looked at me. She was going to tell me she’s straight, or has a coltfriend, or something. I knew it. Then Octavia did something I never expected her to do, she wrapped her hooves around me and kissed me. It was only a quick kiss on my lips but it felt like all the most awesome flavors of ice cream rolled into one. I looked at Octavia tenderly, “Octy…” She looked at me, still blushing. “I can’t imagine my life without you either…” “Octy…” We went back to kissing right then and there. Life really does throw a monkey wrench into everything doesn’t it? ___________________________________________________________ Perspective: Private Eye “For the last time,” Tailspin said to Pipsqueak for the fourth time, “I won the game so you gotta do it!” “That’s not fair!” the colt retorted. “You cheated somehow!” “Somepony is a sore loser,” Tailspin said crossing his hooves. “Now go and do it to her.” My little brother pointed to Dinky, who was sitting on the couch reading her book. “Fine!” Pip huffed, as he walked past Tailspin to where Dinky was sitting. Dinky was so engrossed in her book she didn't notice him coming up beside her. Pip’s face turned bright red as he looked at the periwinkle unicorn. He prepared to pucker his lips when… I walked in, and conked my brother on the head. “Tailspin, you causing trouble a-“ Tailspin put a hoof over my mouth and gestured for us to head into the kitchen. When we got there I crossed my hooves, “What did you get Pip to agree to?” Tailspin smiled innocently, “Well, we had a bet that the loser of our game would have to kiss Dinky on the cheek.” “You make it sound like a punishment.” I raised an eyebrow. “It’s not!” He defended. “He’s got a huge crush on her, but he’s too nervous to do anything about it. I made him lose, so he could finally get the chance to act on it.” I shook my head bemused, “Let’s see if he had the courage then.” We peeked out from behind the kitchen doorway and saw that Dinky took notice of Pip when he planted his lips on her cheek. Dinky blushed bright red and looked over at Pip, “Pipsqueak! What’d you do that for?” “I’m sorry!” The pinto cried, blushing even redder then Dinky. “I lost a bet to Tailspin and he said I had to do it!” Dinky touched her blushing cheeks and looked at Pipsqueak, “You kissed me because you lost a bet?” “Well yes, but,” Pip looked down, his brown mane covering his eyes “I've been wanting to do it for a while…” Dinky smiled, hopped down from the couch, and planted a kiss on Pip’s cheek, “Thank you, Pip, you’re very nice for saying that.” Pip blushed furiously, and I turned back to Tailspin. “I guess getting involved in romantic affairs must run in the family.” “What can I say?” Tailspin asked, with a shrug. “I’m an Eye through and through.” “Just warn me before you start hooking up everypony in Ponyville,” I said, shaking my head. “Next thing you know, you’d be hooking up Diamond Tiara with Chrysalis, or something.” I left the three trouble makers to their play and went to my room. I opened the closet door; all this time thinking about the play has gotten me in the mood to listen to it. I opened a box, pulled out a tape, and put it inside my tape player. I remember this conversation well… _________________________________________________________ Fifteen years ago… “Irenius, must you record it?” My mother asked, as she sat on the couch blushing a little in embarrassment. “I mean, I haven’t sung it in a while.” My father looked up from his place on the couch. “I know, but it’s our anniversary, and I want something special to commemorate it.” “So, you’re having me record singing a song I haven’t sung since we met?” She said with a sly look in her grey eyes. “You are an odd romantic.” “What can I say?” My father asked with a shrug. “I’m an Eye through and through.” My mother was about to sing when she noticed I was standing in the doorway. She smiled and whispered to dad, “Don’t look now but we’ve got a spy.” My father smiled slyly. “Well, you know what we do to spies, don’t you Sparrow?” I was about to run off when Mom zoomed off of the couch and scooped me up in her forelegs. I struggled a little as we landed on the couch, “No! I don’t want to be tortured!” I said, while trying not to laugh. “We have you now, spy,” my father said, grinning at me. “Now you must suffer the punishment” His horn glowed a soft grey and I felt his magic tickling me. “Dad-hahaha-stop! Dad that tickles!” I shrieked, laughing and squirming. “Let me have at this cursed spy!” My mother said in mock zealotry. “This foul spy must suffer the punishment, my lady!” My dad declared, holding me down with one hoof. “I shall do so, my lord!” My mother saluted then blew raspberries on my belly, causing me to giggle all the more. “Mom!” I cried, laughing “Cut it out, I surrender!” I wiggled as she kept blowing raspberries on my belly, my father laughing the whole time. My mother stopped and I sat up on my rump. “Alright, Preventus,” She said with a smile “we accept your surrender.” “So, what were you guys doing?” I asked. “Well,” my father explained, “it’s our anniversary, son. I was hoping your mother would sing the song she sang the day we met.” “How did you guys meet anyway?” I asked, looking from mom to dad. “Well, I was in a play called Les Ponies Misreables,” my mother explained. “I was playing this pony called Filltine, who was having a hard life. I was having a hard time as well, with work being hard to find for a Pegasus. My family was suffering greatly, trying to make ends meet, because we were a large family.” “I came to see the show when I was only fifteen” my dad reminisced, a faraway look in his eyes. “Your grandfather spent the whole play criticizing this or that about it. When we got to the part where your mother came to the stage, I saw just how desperate she was, and how cruel everypony was to her. I sympathized with her, and then she sang…” He gave a look to my mother and then she began to sing: I dreamed a dream in time gone by… When hope was high and life worth living… I dreamed that love would, never die I dreamed that Celestia would be forgiving She looked right at Dad and smiled wide as she sang the next part. But still I dream he’ll come to me… That we would live the years together, But there are dreams that cannot be… And there are storms we cannot weather… I had a dream my life would be… So different from this hell I’m living So different now from what it seems, Now life has killed the dream…I dream… I just stared at my mother with wide eyed wonder, “You’re amazing mom! Those jerks shouldn’t have been so mean to you.” My mother smiled and nuzzled the top of my head. “That’s what your father said to me, though, he may have used more colorful language.” She looked at my dad and winked. He rubbed the back of his head “I just couldn’t stand how nopony was willing to help you. You were poor and destitute, I was like Neigh Val Jean and I came to rescue you.” “Only you didn’t have to worry about a filly that I had from an old lover,” my mother said with a smile. “You were so sweet after the play, bringing me flowers and saying how moved you were by my performance.” My father’s ears flattened in embarrassment, “I was only being a gentle stallion” “Well, I’m glad I married a gentle stallion like you,” my mother said, kissing my dad on the cheek. I gagged at the sight of my parents getting all lovey dovey. “Gross…” My dad chuckled “Just wait until you’re older, Preventus. You’ll find that the fairer gender has quite a few wonderful things to offer.” Mom smiled at him, “Such a charmer, Irenius, just like the day we met.” I hopped off the couch. “Happy anniversary you two,” I said, smiling at both of them. “I hope you guys are always this happy.” Dad walked to me and put a hoof on my shoulder. “Just keep this in mind, son. Love isn’t just admiring somepony. It’s about action, what you are willing to do for that special somepony. Remember that, Preventus.” I will dad… _________________________________________________________ I did Dad. I hope one day I can tell you that. I will treasure the happy times. The days when we were a family. The days when Mom was with us… Until then, One day more…