Octavia had never really spent much time looking up at the night sky. It was rare that she ever had the opportunity; work would usually last straight until it was time to go inside for the night, and being late was not an option. Of course, it was also rare that they finished their work early, which was the case tonight. She wouldn't have gotten the opportunity to see it tonight, either, if Aquarina had her way. She'd told Octavia to follow her inside so they could get ready for sleep early, but just before she'd entered the house, a tap on her shoulder made her hesitate. The next thing she knew, she and Pinkamena were lying in the dirt, staring up at the sky.
"I don't think I understand," Octavia said, watching her sister's pink hoof wave in the air.
"Well, you have to look kinda closely, I guess," Pinkamena responded. "You see how those stars look like a handle?" Octavia stared up at the stars indicated by the hoof. Her head tilted involuntarily as she tried to see what her sister was seeing. A sideways glance at Octavia's confused look was all Pinkamena needed to realize that her sister wasn't getting it.
"Come on, Octavia," she said. "Look at those stars there, next to the ones I was just talking about. Doesn't it look like the end of a spoon?" Octavia squinted.
"But they're not a spoon," Octavia finally said after some observation. "They're just stars."
"Well, yeah," Pinkamena had to concede. "But it's just the way that they're positioned. You have to use your imagination." Octavia opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by a call from inside the house.
"Pinkamena! Octavia!" Aquarina bellowed, loud enough that the two ponies stood no chance of believably pretending not to hear. "Get in here! It's bedtime!" Octavia, not wanting to disobey, quickly rolled to her hooves. Pinkamena sighed lightly and followed suit, her pace a bit more leisurely than that of her little sister.
Three sets of eyes gazed upon the two fillies as they entered their parents' room. The two met the eyes of their parents first. Stern gazes, capable of saying so many words while simultaneously uttering none. Pickerton and Goodie Pie were surprisingly expressive for such solemn ponies, and in cases like this, looks were all that were needed from them. The sisters both briefly considered words of apology for their tardiness, but ultimately decided against them. There was no need to waste any more time. They looked, together, to the eyes of the oldest triplet. They carried the same air of self-importance that they always did upon successfully calling the others out on something they'd done wrong. The two could tell that she had tattled on them for wasting time outside, but said nothing to her either. Calling her out on it would only make them look worse and give Aquarina more ammo against them. Instead, they simply took their places next to her. They were already about a minute late on their nightly ritual.
Aquarina began her part of the song first. It was hard to believe that the pony whose shrill voice had called out for Pinkamena and Octavia moments earlier was capable of producing the sweet soprano that she now displayed. Pickerton's grim stare softened nearly instantly, and Goodie closed her eyes contently. Aquarina continued the gentle lullaby alone until Pinkamena's cue, at which point she joined in with a soft alto harmony. The two sisters, who clashed with each other at every other opportunity, interlaced their voices into a beautiful duet, using this rare bit of cooperation almost as a weapon against their parents' fatigue. They were soon joined by Octavia, doing her best to add her contralto to the mix. She struggled, as she did each night, and garnered the same annoyed side-glances from Aquarina that she always did. As usual, though, her parents seemed completely unbothered, smiling contently at the three sisters. Goodie was asleep by the end of the song, as usual, and Pickerton was on the verge of slumber, keeping himself awake long enough to thank the girls and give them each a kiss before sending them to bed.
"You messed it up again!" Aquarina hissed as the three climbed into bed. "Why do you mess it up every time? Pinkamena and I are always on-key!" Octavia didn't respond, too ashamed to do so. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Aquarina was right. The notes were just too low for her to hit properly. She started to bury her face in her pillow, but felt a hoof patting her gently on the back.
"It's okay, Octavia," Pinkamena said softly. "Maybe if you're having trouble with the notes, you could find another way to do it."
"What do you mean, another way?" Aquarina asked, a bit of venom in her tone. "It's a three-part song. SONG. That means singing, and that's what she's supposed to do, just like we do!" Pinkamena just shook her head and hugged Octavia.
"Sometimes the way you're expected to do something isn't the only way to do it," the pink filly said calmly. Octavia looked at Pinkamena with confusion, a stark contrast to the angry glare Aquarina gave her.
"You're supposed to listen to me!" Aquarina growled, trying her best to keep quiet despite her anger since waking her parents up was a strict no-no. "I'm the oldest! Now...go to bed!" Octavia began to protest, but was met with a gentle tap from Pinkamena's hoof.
"Just let her have this one," Pinkamena whispered. She then turned to Aquarina. "You're right, Aquarina. We'll go to bed now." The blue filly blinked and watched the two lay down, surprised that they actually listened to her, before doing the same herself.
~~~~~~~~~~
Octavia stared up at the ceiling.from her bed. Or rather, from the thing that was meant to be her bed. Pinkie had insisted on Octavia staying in her room with her, but ran across the problem of not actually having a second bed in the room. This meant very little to Pinkie, however, who quickly "solved" the problem with a large pile of pillows. It was a little lumpy at times, but overall it functioned just fine. The gray pony thought about how Aquarina would disapprove greatly of such a concept. She could practically hear her voice ringing in her ears, telling her that what Pinkie put together for her wasn't a real bed and the like, and informing her that she knew better than Pinkie when it came to beds, as well as everything else. She put this thought out of her head, not wanting to get needlessly upset. She'd been on enough of an emotional rollercoaster already.
Octavia stared at her sleeping sister. To say that her first meeting in years with her sister hadn't gone quite as she'd expected was a tremendous understatement. For years, she had been playing the scenario out in her head, anticipating that Pinkie wouldn't care about the fact that she'd left her family. Aquarina always said whenever Pinkie was brought up that she probably didn't care at all about her family or how they were doing, and the more she said it, the more Octavia believed it. Octavia fully expected this meeting, whenever it did happen, to devolve into anger and sadness, but seeing Pinkie react to seeing her with such joy was a tremendous relief, albeit a confusing one that was in direct contrast with everything she'd thought she knew She quietly hummed Pinkie's part of the song they used to always sing for their parents as she watched the sleeping pink pony. A little part of her really wanted to wake her up right then and there and ask her to sing it. She always envied her sisters' voices, but she knew that it would be very selfish of her to wake her up only to...
"Are you awake, Tavi?" Pinkie suddenly asked, nearly causing Octavia to fall off of her "bed" in surprise. "Also is it okay if I call you Tavi? It's a lot shorter!" Octavia pulled herself back up onto the cushions, raising a brow.
"Um...yeah, sure," Octavia said, fixing her mane. "And yes, I'm awake." Pinkie rolled over to face Octavia, beaming.
"I'm not really tired enough to sleep yet," Pinkie said, bouncing a bit on her mattress. "Let's do something!" Octavia looked at the clock. It was midnight. She would normally be asleep by 10:00 at the latest, and would likely be asleep right now if she hadn't had so much on her mind. She opened her mouth to object, but hesitated when she saw Pinkie's excitement. She sighed lightly, then smiled.
"Well..." the musician began. "I kind of did have a little request..." Pinkie stared at her with anticipation as she took a moment to gather her thoughts. "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind singing your part of our song for our parents." Pinkie gave her sister a warm smile.
"I'd like to," Pinkie said, "But even though I'm not tired, my voice kinda is! I did a loooot of singing tonight. But how about you play your cello instead?" Octavia tilted her head, not sure whether Pinkie's voice was really tired or if this was a stalling technique to hide the fact that she didn't remember the song. She wasn't really sure what to believe anymore. However, the idea of playing the cello and showing off how good she'd become was very tempting.
"Oh...uh...of course," Octavia said quietly. She slipped out of "bed" and made her way to her cello case. Pinkie nodded happily as Octavia opened the case and unpacked the instrument. Her mind raced for a moment, trying to figure out what piece to play for her sister. After a moment, she settled upon a decision so simple that she wondered how she could have had any difficulty coming to it. She got off to a quiet start, then crescendoed a bit, playing the part of their song for their parents that she was never quite able to sing properly. Unlike her attempts at singing it, every note as on key, resonating perfectly. She'd had years of practice, after all. Before long, a second sound joined her playing, and Octavia's smile grew as she listened to Pinkie's tired voice hum, in the beautiful alto that she wouldn't allow herself to admit missing for all those years. Octavia had to breathe deep to not tear up; she had remembered her part after all. The sisters continued their duet to the end of the song, their smiles radiating at each other. Pinkie was the first to break the silence.
"You play really beautifully," Pinkie said, a lot calmer than her usual cadence.
"Thanks," Octavia said meekly. The next words spilled out, practically of their own volition. "It's because of you that I could."
"What do you mean?" Pinkie asked, genuinely confused.
"I could never sing my part correctly," Octavia said, laying her cello down in its case. "I thought I was useless and a disappointment. You taught me that just because I can't do something in the expected way doesn't mean that I can't find another way to accomplish it." She bit her lip, looking up into her sister's eyes. "I looked up to you, Pinkamena." Pinkie took this in with mixed emotions. Her proud smile eventually gave way to a frown.
"I'm nopony to look up to, Octavia," Pinkie said meekly. "I abandoned you and the rest of the family. You said it yourself." Octavia winced, the words hitting her like a truck.
"I...didn't mean that, Pinkie," Octavia said, hanging her head. "I said it out of anger, and I apologize." She walked over and sat next to Pinkie. "Besides, it was best for you that you left the farm. A place like that is no place for a free spirit like yours." There was a moment of silence before the sisters embraced in a tight hug, so tight that it seemed almost like it was trying to make up for years of missed ones.
"Goodnight, Pinkie," Octavia said once the hug had ended, heading back to her "bed."
"Goodnight, Octavia," Pinkie responded in kind, rolling onto her mattress. Then, in unison;
"I love you."