Exit Through Canterlot

by TheBrianJ

3. To Be Real

Vinyl bit her lip, breathing quickly and looking around the room. Tears welled up in her eyes as she struggled to find a way to hold herself together, realizing that she was probably fighting a losing battle. In a last-ditch effort she clamped her hoof down on her mouth, choking back a lump that was forming in her throat, but even that wasn't enough. She finally understood that there was nothing she could do to stop it, and gave up entirely.

She burst out laughing, collapsing onto the ground in a fit of giggles. Octavia wasn't nearly as enthusiastic as her friend. Her face was bright red as she stared wide-eyed at the newspaper clutched in her hooves.

"This is not funny, Vinyl!" she yelled, crumpling the edges of the paper.

"Ahahaha! What are you talking about? This is hysterical!"

Trembling, Octavia glared at her. "Oh, really?" she asked, flipping the paper around. "You really think this is hysterical?"

The front page of the newspaper featured a massive picture of Octavia's hoofwork: Prince Blueblood's distorted face took up a good portion of the page, with a column featuring panicked quotes from Blueblood himself, along with numerous other ponies who had seen her work. Octavia held the newspaper out and pointed at the massive three-word headline that ran along the entire top of the page: "'Flanksy' Strikes Again."

Vinyl only had to see the headline for a split second before the laughter returned harder than ever. She fell back, clutching her sides. Octavia huffed, taking the newspaper and pacing back and forth, reading aloud.

“‘Neighbury Court of the uptown district was vandalized yesterday in what appears to be an attack on Prince Blueblood, with numerous cartoonish pictures of the Prince dotting the premises. While no direct evidence can link this incident to a similar one earlier this week, two events in such a short span implies a single culprit. Based on the name painted along with the pictures, it would appear that the work is done by a pony referring to themselves as “Flanksy,” a nonsense word created and then outlawed by Prince Blueblood. It is currently unknown if this “Flanksy” has a personal grudge against the royal family, but with only two incidents having occurred, everything is up for speculation.’” Octavia stopped reading and looked back at Vinyl, who was now laughing so hard that tears rolled down her cheeks.

"T-that’s what they’re calling you?!" Vinyl spat out between fits of laughter. "They're calling you 'Flanksy!' That is the stupidest name I've ever heard! Dear Celestia, this is awesome."

"It is not ‘awesome,’ Vinyl!" Octavia shouted, slamming the newspaper down on the table. "It was supposed to be making fun of Blueblood for demanding that ponies forget about that stupid word. It’s not some kind of signature!"

"Well it’s too late for that! That name's gonna stick."

Octavia sat down on the couch, burying her head in her hooves. "I cannot believe I did that. This whole thing was a mistake."

"It wasn't a mistake, it was awesome! It was even more awesome than what you did to the statue!"

Octavia sighed. "I know you are trying to make me feel better, but it's just not going to work. What good could possibly have come out of what I did?"

Vinyl picked up the newspaper and sat next to her friend, clearing her throat before picking up where Octavia had left off. “‘Sensing that the local community is not showing ‘proper civility,’ Prince Blueblood has decided to take a vacation in the wake of recent events. ‘Such a traumatic experience has been emotionally draining on our Prince. He will need several days rest in Mareami to recover from such an ordeal,’ said P.R. Gallop, Blueblood’s publicist, in a press conference held shortly after the discovery of the pictures.’”

Vinyl gave a dumb smile. Octavia rolled her eyes and muttered, “So what?”

"You got rid of Blueblood for a few days! If we’re super lucky, he might even be less of a jerk when he gets back from wherever he is. Do you know how awesome that is? Canterlot is Blueblood-free for a while! I bet half of the city would want to shake your hoof for that alone."

Octavia reached over and took the paper from her, re-reading the same section. With the image of a Blueblood-free Canterlot in her head, Octavia chuckled to herself, but quickly hid the smile, turning away and putting the newspaper down.

"It’s not important,” she said. “All that matters is that last night was a test. Now I just want to put spray paint out of my mind forever."

"Whaaaaat?” Vinyl gasped. “You can't just forget it, you're on a roll here! Look at what you've done in only two days: you’re on the front page for the second time, and now all of Canterlot is talking. You can't just stop now!"

"Yes, I can. This is not me, Vinyl. It was merely an experiment. It was just a way to get everything out of my system so that I can move on with my life."

Octavia trotted towards her room, only for Vinyl to jump in front of her and shout, "Move on with your life? I’m telling you, you shouldn't be ashamed of this. You're doing something that nopony has ever seen before!"

"Nopony has ever thrown a banana at Princess Celestia either, but that doesn't mean it's right," Octavia said, lightly brushing past Vinyl. "I want to be done with this."

"Done with this? You gotta be kidding me! I mean, how many ponies out there can say they did something that changed Canterlot?"

For a few brief moments, time froze for Octavia. She stared at nothing in particular as Vinyl's words rang in her head. Her gaze wandered over to the side of the room where the coat hung next to the front door. A can of spray paint stuck out of the pocket of the coat, emptied of its contents by her own hoof. She opened and closed her mouth a few times, unable to put a full sentence together in her head. Finally tearing her sight away, she forced herself to look back at Vinyl, but was only able to sputter out a few words.

"I changed... Canterlot?"

Vinyl nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! You got rid of Blueblood for a while, but way more importantly you got everypony talking. When's the last time you saw ponies in Canterlot all laughing like that? You single-hoofedly made Canterlot a little more colorful! Isn't that something to be proud of?"

Octavia didn't move, but her eyes wandered back to the coat and can. She remembered rushing from wall to wall and painting on anything she could find. After a pause, she let out a reluctant sigh and shook her head. "It is simply not worth it. I never want to do this again, Vinyl. Now if you will excuse me, I'd like to return to playing to my cello."

"Oh come on! When's the last time your cello playing actually changed anything?"

Octavia spun around sharply, glaring daggers at Vinyl.

Vinyl scratched the back of her neck. "Wow, that sounded way less rude in my head. Look, I didn't mean—"

She didn't get a chance to finish as Octavia shoved by her in a huff, throwing the coat over herself and marching out of the apartment.

Octavia didn't have a destination in mind, nor did she plan on finding one. She wandered aimlessly through Canterlot, her mind yet again descending into a swirling mess as she went from street to street. Vinyl's words about her cello rang through her head repeatedly, and Octavia's pace became quicker and more erratic as she muttered under her breath. Finally forcing herself to stop, she leaned against a wall, staring into the sky and sighing.

"She didn't mean it," she said to herself. "Vinyl's mouth always acts long before her brain does. No need to hold it against..." Her words trailed off as she spotted a street sign out of the corner of her eye: Neighburry Court. Her breathing quickened and she felt her heart nervously pound as she turned around, only to find herself face-to-face with the distorted picture of Prince Blueblood. Her pounding heart returned to normal as she looked it over, and she couldn't help but chuckle at her own work. Taking a long breath, she turned back around and saw all the ponies who had gathered in the area to admire the many pictures of Blueblood. They were the usual mix of Canterlot ponies—tailored suits, styled mane cuts, noses turned up ever so slightly—but something else was standing out about them: they were smiling.

Normally, smiles on the faces of Canterlotians were accompanied by an asterisk, as they usually were the result of a pony putting down another or celebrating the release of some new fashion line. But there was something different about the smiles today: they looked genuine. Ponies were chuckling and discussing the pictures, genuinely enjoying them. Octavia hadn't seen anything like it in Canterlot before, and as she stared at them, more of Vinyl’s words crept into her head: "How many ponies out there can say they did something that changed Canterlot?"

Octavia shook her head lightly, trotting out of Neighburry Court. After a few steps she froze, seeing the statue of Princess Celestia off in the distance. Even from afar, Octavia marveled at at the craftsmanship that had gone into the project.

However, what was a bit more notable to her was the fact that it was still green.

Trying her best not to break into a gallop, Octavia cautiously approached the statue. Not only was it still green, but nothing had been changed: "ignorance” was still written on its flank, and both eyes remained black. Without the massive crowd that had been there days before, Octavia took time to slowly circle the statue. A smile crept back onto her face as she reached out and touched a green leg, then looked up at the face of the ruler of all Equestria.

"You really do look better in green," she muttered. As she drew her hoof away slowly, a sudden yell from the other side of the statue caused her to jerk her hoof away.

"Just what am I supposed to do about this?”

Taking a few steps back, Octavia carefully peered around the side of the statue. Standing on the other side were two unicorns. One was just a few steps away from the statue, her eyes narrowed in worry as she held a notebook in her hoof. The other, taller mare was dressed in a tight white jumpsuit with trim made out of pink gems, a perfectly styled white mane, and a pair of reading glasses perched on her nose. She paced back and forth, her face contorting in anger as she ranted.

"Why in Equestria's name hasn't this debauchery been cleaned up yet?” the taller mare yelled. “My show to debut my new winter fashions is tomorrow, and this is the absolute last thing I need! Take a note, Amethyst. The next time I have a show, it will be indoors, in a controlled environment.”

The other unicorn, a smaller pony with a light magenta coat, quickly scrawled something on the notepad, then looked back up. "But Chic, don't you think—"

"How many times must I tell you?" the taller pony snapped. "When you are interning for me, you are to refer to me as ‘Miss Trend.’"

Chic paced away, ogling the statue as Amethyst mumbled, "I don't ask you to call me Miss Star…"  

Chic continued to circle the statue without looking where she was going and stumbled into Octavia.

"Sorry…" Octavia stammered, only to be met with a death glare from Chic Trend.

"Watch where you're walking! I am trying to resolve a crisis here," Chic hissed, reaching out and shoving Octavia completely out of the way and into the statue before continuing on. Scoffing, Octavia carefully followed her as Chic approached her assistant again. "Take a note, Amethyst. From now on, if I am in the midst of a crisis, I want you to walk in front of me and alert ponies not to get in my way."

Rolling her eyes, Amethyst scribbled something on the notepad as Chic continued to speak. "I have been planning this reveal for months, Amethyst. I even worked with Miss Chisel so I could have the reveal right in front of this statue, and now this," she yelled, gesturing at the statue in dismay. "What are ponies going to think if I'm debuting my new line of cloaks in front of this monstrosity? In fact, why would ponies even show up in front of this garish thing? Ugh, I wish I could throttle the neck of the pony who did this…"

Octavia exhaled in frustration, looking back and forth between the statue and Chic Trend. As she turned to leave, the voice of Trend's assistant rang out.

"I dunno, I think it's kinda cool," Amethyst chirped, looking up at the statue with a tilt to her head.

Octavia came to a halt, her ears perking straight up in the air. She backed up, crouching behind the statue and peeking around the corner. Chic Trend's jaw was nearly on the ground as Amethyst smiled.

"I mean, like Fancy Pants said,” Amethyst continued, “it's different. It's interesting. Plus, Miss Trend, you've seen how many ponies have stopped by to look at it. I bet there could actually be a great turnout! You can call it 'Controversial Fashion' or something like that." Amethyst looked up at Chic, whose brow was furrowed in frustration. She gave a nervous chuckle. "Erm, that’s just my opinion anyway."

There was a long pause as Chic eyed Amethyst, but eventually she turned back to the statue. "Take a note, Amethyst," she said. The intern smiled and held the notepad out in front of herself as Chic continued. "I want you to stop having opinions around me. They are invariably awful." As Amethyst sighed and scrawled something on the notebook, Chic turned away. "I'm going to take a power trot, Amethyst; I'll be back in three minutes. When I get back, I'll have some ideas for how to salvage this," she said. With one final glare at the statue, she turned around and stormed off in a huff.

Amethyst folded the notebook into her saddle bag and scuffed at the ground. Octavia remained hidden beneath the base of the statue, her eyes following Chic as she disappeared into the distance. Her teeth were grinding, but for the first time in days, she didn't feel the urge to calm herself down.

"Monstrosity? Debauchery?" she grunted, looking up and down the statue again before turning over to the assistant, who was also muttering. Octavia approached her. "Don't pay any attention to her. She's too short-sighted to see anything but fashion."

Much to Octavia's surprise, Amethyst responded with a smile. "Oh, I know! I'm just working for her to get some experience in the industry; I don't actually listen to anything she says," she said, then nodded at Octavia. "Oooh, love your coat!"

Amethyst turned back to the statue. Octavia blinked at her for a few seconds, then turned back, glancing at her own coat. “Wait, when did I...?” she said under her breath, tugging at the sleeves.

"I think the statue is pretty cool,” said Amethyst. “I'm not the only one. Buncha ponies have been talking about it. Even when Celestia stopped by, they kept talking."

Chills shot across Octavia's face, and before she could stop herself, she spoke. "Celestia saw it? What did she say?" she asked, holding her breath.

"Eh, not much. Just something about how she doesn't expect to be able to please everypony all the time."

Octavia exhaled in relief. She looked over the statue for a few moments before pausing as a thought crept to the front of her mind. "Wait, is that it? She didn't want to know what she could have done wrong?"

Amethyst shrugged. "Guess not. She only stopped by for a bit, but she did talk with Fancy Pants for a minute. Did you know he's been, like, really vocal about keeping the statue the way it is?"

Octavia stared at Amethyst, her jaw hanging in shock. "He has?"

"Oh yeah, any time somepony comes by and tries to clean it up, he usually isn't far behind to stop them. I know I’ve said this a lot, but I think it’s really cool; you don't see stuff like this in Canterlot. Usually it's just boring paintings or stuffy music, but this is so… so…" she stared at the statue, scrunching her face to find the right word, and after a few moments, her eyes sparkled.

"So real, y’know?"

Amethyst may have said more, or she may have not. Octavia couldn't hear anything regardless: her mind was spinning. Her eyes clung to the statue, and like days before, the world melted away, leaving just her and it alone. Even the piercing voice of Chic Trend wasn't enough to tear her away from that blissful state of mind.

"Take a note, Amethyst,” the fashionista said as she returned. “When we get back to my studio, I want you to sew together a new rug design I thought up. Perhaps I can salvage this yet. Come along, Amethyst."

With a roll of her eyes, Amethyst trotted after Chic Trend, leaving Octavia dumbstruck and alone with the statue.

As the world slowly came back into focus, she shook her head, muttering quietly under her breath. "You are a musician, Octavia. This is not worth it. This is not worth it. This… is..."

Her words gently disappeared into the air as her eyes wandered up and down the statue. Slowly turning around, Octavia began her walk back home. As she trotted, her head never moved a degree in one direction or another, hazily staring straight ahead as she mumbled a single word:

"Real…"

Octavia nudged open the door to the apartment and stepped inside, letting the coat drop to the floor. Vinyl looked up from the couch, turning her head away guiltily, but Octavia ignored her. She trotted straight to her room and picked up her cello’s bow. Drawing it against the strings, she stared blankly out her bedroom window. After she had run through a few songs, Vinyl pushed the door open and leaned against it.

"About earlier today,” Vinyl said, pausing to paw at the ground. “I'm really, really  sorry for what I said. I didn't mean it, it came out totally—"

"It's alright," Octavia said, still staring ahead. "I know you didn't mean it."

Vinyl cocked her head. "So you're not mad at me or anything?"

"I just told you that I'm not."

"Then what's got you so upset?

Octavia didn’t look at her friend. "Nothing. I’m fine."

"No, there's something pulling at your tail. I can tell by your music."

"Not to be rude, Vinyl, but I would hardly call you an expert on classical music."

"True, but I know enough to hear when somepony has been playing the same note for three minutes straight."

Octavia turned and locked eyes with Vinyl, and she stopped playing, filling the room with an awkward silence. It was broken when she hung her head and let out a laden sigh, laying the bow down on the ground and leaning the cello against the wall.

"I don't understand it," she said, walking past Vinyl into the den. "What I did went against everything I believe in. Why can't I stop thinking about it, Vinyl? Why did I go back and do it again? And why did I—" She paused, then shook her head and sat down on the couch. "Why am I so satisfied with what I did?"

Vinyl chuckled and sat down next to her. "You're satisfied because you finally got a chance to let out some steam in a really cool way! Stop saying it goes against whatever you believe in, because what you’re doing is totally worth more than that. Not just to you, but to all of Canterlot! I will admit, I didn't expect you to go all out with that Blueblood thing.”

"It was just supposed to be an experiment! I only went out to see if I could recreate the feeling I got when I first painted the statue. But when I did, I suddenly couldn't help myself. I had to chase the feeling more, and I just went around to any wall I could find, and—"

"Feeling?” Vinyl interrupted. “Wait, what kind of feeling?"

"It’s… nothing," Octavia quickly stammered, looking away.

"Oh no, no, no, no," Vinyl said, reaching out and turning her back around. "There is no way I'm going to let that one slide. What feeling, Tavi?"

Octavia let out another long sigh before turning her head away again. "Vinyl, the night that I first read that article about the Gala, I was distraught; I don't think I had ever been so angry in my life. But the moment I found that can in my pocket, when I first pressed down the nozzle, something happened to me. It just felt… right. I felt at peace for the first time in a long time, Vinyl. Then I just wanted to capture that feeling again, so I tried making that Blueblood picture in an alley. But it was this exhilaration that I had never felt before, not even when I was on stage at the Gala. I couldn't stop myself, and before I knew it, I was spraying it on every wall in sight. I just…"

When Octavia turned back to Vinyl, the words disappeared from her throat. Vinyl's eyes were as wide as saucers, her mouth agape. Octavia felt the color drain from her face as Vinyl leaned closer to her.

"Tavi, that's… wow," Vinyl muttered. "Just wow. I mean, this is way more than just expressing yourself. You must've had a serious revelation, huh?"

Octavia looked away, taking a second to think. "I… I don't know, Vinyl. So much has happened so quickly, I just can't figure anything out right now. It's too much for me to handle."

Silence overtook the room again as Octavia took long, labored breaths. Vinyl stared at her before standing up and walking off to Octavia's room. After a few moments of rustling, Vinyl came back out carrying a newspaper under her foreleg.

"I want you to do something for me,” Vinyl quietly said. “This is important."

Vinyl sat back down next to her friend and unfolded the paper, setting it down on the coffee table. The headline read "Statue of Celestia Defaced," and a large picture of the green statue took up half the front page.

"I don't want you to think,” Vinyl said. “I don't want you to clam up, I don't want you to get all awkward. Just say the first thing that comes to your mind when I ask you: why did you enjoy doing this?”

Octavia pushed the newspaper away, shaking her head. "I don't get why—"

"Because I think you know why you did it,” Vinyl interrupted, “but you keep overthinking everything and denying yourself. So I want you to not think, just answer: why?"

Octavia stared down at the newspaper. "Vinyl, I… I don't know. It was the lowest point of my life, and—"

Vinyl again interrupted. "No, Tavi. I said don't think, just answer. Why did you like it?"

"I can't explain it," Octavia sputtered out, her teeth grinding together the more she stared at the picture, realizing she was reaching her limit. "I can't…"

"Dammit, Tavi, stop thinking and just answer! Why did you enjoy—"

"Because it was real!"

Vinyl immediately went quiet as Octavia rocked back and forth, breathing heavily. She closed her mouth, but Vinyl reached over and pushed her shoulder.

"Don't stop, Tavi. Just keep talking, say whatever is on your mind."

"It was real. It was enticing. It was more real than anything I've ever done in my life," Octavia said, her eyes glimmering with an intensity that caught Vinyl by surprise. "I love music, Vinyl, I love it more than anything in the world. But music is something fleeting. When you stop listening, it can become lost to the mind. As wonderful as it is, you can only reach so far with music."

Octavia stood up and paced around the room, her voice raising in inflection with every word. "But this... this is real. This is tangible: I can see it, I can reach out and touch it. It's a feeling I've never gotten before with music, because music simply can't create that sort of feeling. When I went out to test if I could recreate the feeling, it was a bigger thrill than any symphony I have ever performed in! And to not only be able to grasp that feeling, but to bring joy to ponies in the way a musician can’t? To be able to rub it in the face of the elite in this city who deserve to be embarrassed? It's a feeling that music just can't…"

Her pacing stopped as she glanced across the hallway and into her bedroom where her cello leaned against the wall. The glint in her eye disappeared as she stood unmoving for several seconds, before slowly stepping backwards on trembling hooves. Vinyl stood up as Octavia collapsed back on the couch. With quivering eyelids, Octavia stared at the cello from afar before surrendering her pained gaze to the seat cushion.

"Dear Celestia, what is wrong with me…?"

Vinyl slowly sat back down and reached out, patting Octavia on her back several times. Octavia looked up at her, and was met with a smile.

"Nothing's wrong, Octavia,” Vinyl quietly said. “It's an epiphany."

"W-what?"

"You're realizing that you want more. I think you're not satisfied with the way things are in Canterlot," she said, scooting closer to Octavia and pulling her back up to a sitting position. “You shouldn't be asking what's wrong with yourself, Tavi. You should be asking what's wrong with Canterlot, and how you can change it."

"But how could I say such awful things about music…"

One of Vinyl's eyebrows raised. "I didn't hear you say anything awful about music. You know what I heard? A pony who loves music, and who knows how wonderful it is, but who is ready to reach the ponies of Canterlot in an entirely new way. A pony who wants to compose a whole new kind of symphony."

Vinyl backed up a bit, straightening out her body. "Listen to me, Octavia. This is your choice. It's always going to be your choice. But I want you to realize one thing: you are on the cusp of something amazing, something that Canterlot has never seen before. This is something that can change the most important city in Equestria. I'm not trying to freak you out here, but look at the impact you've created just by letting off some steam. Imagine what you could do if you really put your mind to it."

In an effort to calm herself, Octavia closed her eyes and leaned against the couch. Sensing her friend’s nervousness, Vinyl went quiet, giving Octavia some time to collect herself. Octavia took one last deep breath and opened her eyes, and Vinyl spotted a glint in them the likes of which she hadn’t seen from Octavia before: one not of anger, but of purpose.

"Vinyl," she began, her voice low and quiet. "Do you really believe I can change Canterlot?"

"I believe you already have changed Canterlot. Now it's just a matter of how much change you want. You said you felt real? How would you like all of Canterlot to share that feeling with you?"

Octavia pondered the question for a few moments. She finally stood up and picked up the coat she had grown attached to over the past several days, carefully draping it over herself as she opened the front door of the apartment.

Vinyl stood up as well. "Tavi, where are you—"

"I'll be back soon," she replied, stepping out the front door. "I have to do a little thinking."

The relative hustle and bustle of Canterlot never seemed to affect the plaza in the center of Clopperstone Road; despite the presence of several of Canterlot's more prominent shops, the area was never overcrowded. The past week had briefly turned the street into an epicenter of activity, with ponies coming to see the defaced statue, but things had started to calm down, and Clopperstone reverted back to the quiet corner of Canterlot it had always been.

As the sun dipped behind the rooftops, the plaza became even more mute, with ponies either returning to their homes or heading off to places where the Canterlot night life was more exciting. But as the area cleared out, a single pony was left. She sat in front of the green statue of Celestia, her body as still as the object of her attention.

Octavia had completely lost track of the world around her. Her eyes remained locked on the statue as she unscrambled the cacophony of thoughts that had been running through her head for the past several days.

"Goodness, I hope whoever styled your hair was refunded her tuition from beauty school!"

Octavia finally tore her eyes away from the statue and looked to the right, finding herself facing a large sign draped over a shop front. Bedazzled with gems, the sign was advertising that the next day would be the debut of a new fashion line by Chic Trend. The sign, partially covering a patch of rose bushes in front of the store, proclaimed the line to be "the greatest thing to hit Canterlot in ages!" Octavia stared at it, her eyes tracking back and forth across the sign.

"I want you to stop having opinions around me. They are invariably awful."

Turning away, her eyes wandered until she noticed a plaque embedded in the grass in front of the statue. It was a dedication for the statue, with Princess Celestia's signature engraved at the bottom. Below the plaque was a second, smaller one that appeared to have been hastily dug into the ground, and her eyes narrowed as she noted the signature of Prince Blueblood scrawled on it.

"I deserve nothing but the finest treatment and the utmost respect of all my subjects in Canterlot, in all Equestria!

Octavia looked up at the statue, taking it in. She looked at the garish color that had gotten so many ponies talking over the past several days.

"How many ponies out there can say they did something that changed Canterlot?"

She stared at the blackened orbs that had replaced Celestia's eyes.

"Look at the impact you've created just by letting off some steam. Imagine what you could do if you really put your mind to it."

She looked down at the word "ignorance," standing out in jagged black on the green flank of the statue.

"This is so real, y’know?"

Octavia closed her eyes and took in a long breath of the crisp Canterlot air. As she did, the anxiety, the self-doubt, the panic that she had been feeling for days over what she had done surrounded her. For a few moments, she shivered at the thought of everything that had happened: the Gala, Celestia's statue, Blueblood, Chic Trend, and all the anger, anxiety, and fear that had come with them…

And in that moment, she let it all go.

She slowly stood up and turned around, trekking back towards her home. After a few steps, she came to a halt and turned her head, sparing Celestia's statue one final glance.

"A part of me wants to thank you for being the catalyst for all of this," she muttered, before turning her head and walking away. "But quite frankly, another part of me thinks you don’t deserve to be thanked."

As soon as Octavia opened the door to the apartment, she was grabbed and dragged in by Vinyl, who eagerly sat her down on the couch. "Welcome back! So what’d ya think about? Tell me!"

Octavia remained calm and collected. She took a few breaths, not making eye contact. "Vinyl… I am a musician, and I always will be one. Playing the cello will always be the most important thing in my life, and music will always come first for me."

Vinyl sighed, sitting down next to her. "I understand, Tavi. I kinda dumped a whole lot of stuff on you earlier, it was an awful lot to—"

"I am a musician, Vinyl," Octavia said, finally turning and looking directly into Vinyl's eyes. "But I can't change Canterlot with music."

Vinyl choked on her own words, her eyes widening as if that was the last thing she had expected to hear. "Wait, really?!"

"I wish I could deny this, but I don't think I want to. A part of me still believes that what I have done in the past few days is wrong, but frankly I don't care. You said that I've already changed Canterlot. Well, I want to go further. I don't want to stop. Canterlot has no shortage of snobbish, backward ponies who need to understand there’s more to life, and I can't simply ignore this opportunity to do it. I can’t ignore an opportunity to...” Octavia trailed off and took a determined breath, savoring the words. “To be real.”

Vinyl couldn't contain her grin and reached forward, hugging Octavia. "Tavi, this is gonna sound totally sappy, but you have no idea how happy it makes me to hear you say this stuff. I'll help you out with this in any way I can."

"Actually, about that… You wouldn't happen to have any spray paint left, would you?"

No sooner had the question left her mouth than Vinyl jumped to her hooves and galloped off to her room. After only a few seconds she happily trotted back out with a bag in her mouth bulging with numerous cans of spray paint. She dropped the bag down on the table, sending cans clattering everywhere, as Octavia leaned forward, examining the variety.

"Goodness, I had no idea you had such a stockpile of these."

"Nah, I bought all of this earlier today."

It took a few moments for Octavia to put two and two together, and she turned to Vinyl, sighing. "You are impossible sometimes."

"What can I say?" Vinyl said, blushing. "I got kinda excited about this, so I went a little overboard, just in case you decided to go down this route. Besides, now you can get started right away, right 'Flanksy?'"

Octavia gave her a look. "Please don't call me that."

"Sorry, Tavi, but you better get used to it. I just got a feeling that name is going to stick. It’s kinda catchy," Vinyl responded, then settled down on the couch and excitedly leaned in. "So, what are you gonna do next?"

Octavia reached down and picked up a can of black paint. She lightly bounced it in her right hoof several times before slowly smiling.

"Tell me, Vinyl, have you ever heard of Chic Trend?"