//------------------------------// // Not Quite Chapter 10 // Story: Apple of My Eye // by musicalreader //------------------------------// Chapter: Not Quite Ten Chapters Yet... I'm Actually Pretty Sure This Is Nine... Yeah, It's The Ninth Chapter. Should Have Just Said That... Oh Well. AKA- When It’s Time To Party, We Will Always Party Hard! PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS AN INTERACTIVE CHAPTER! IF YOU SEE THE LITTLE BLUE LETTERS, RIGHT CLICK AND OPEN THE LINK IN A NEW TAB! AND LEAVE THAT TAB OPEN TO LET THE PLAYLIST CONTINUE! ENJOY! V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V Octavia wandered the streets of the urban town of Ponyville, her mind teeming with memories of growing up not far from the library. She had gone to school in the same building that now stood on the outskirts of town and played host to the current generation of young fillies and colts. She remembered once going into the Everfree Forest on a dare, easily traversing the dark path until she heard a twig snap and ran out screaming about Timberwolves. Then there were the bittersweet memories of her later years in the town… The most painful being the day a certain white unicorn and her family had moved in next door. Octavia had immediately been intrigued by the new arrival to the town, but when she tried to make friends with her, Vinyl had practically bitten her head off. For the next couple of months, the white unicorn would actually become a well known bully… It wasn’t until Octavia helped Vinyl run from a group of older colts she’d picked a fight with that she began to make any headway. After that afternoon on the run, they began talking on a regular basis. It was just casual small talk at first, usually as they walked home from their music practice near the record shop… but eventually they began to spend time together in earnest. In fact, Vinyl invited Octavia to her first sleepover… That night, Vinyl finally told her why she was always picking fights, always trying to act tough and brash… She was scared… That had been her first time seeing the vulnerable side of Vinyl Scratch, and it was her first time that she felt protective of her. “Why are you doing this to yourself Octy?” she mumbled to herself, addressing herself in the same stupid pet name her marefr- no, her EX marefriend had always used. “SHE hurt YOU… You are not going to let yourself be suckered in to giving her another chance… You’ve given her too many already…” “Umm… Ma’am? Are you alright?” a nearby cherry vendor asked, scratching his chin with a hoof. “I’m fine… just arguing with myself…” Octavia said earnestly, looking him dead in the eye as if daring him to try and call her crazy. “Uh huh… You know, it’s been my experience that if you’re in the kind of place that you’re talking to yourself, it helps to talk to somepony else.” “Oh please… Like I could talk to ANYpony else about my relationship issues…” “You might wanna start with the other pony involved in that case… Seems as good a place as any to start off.” “Ugh! You’re the second pony today to say that to me! Why the buck does everyone feel like they know what to do in my situation?!” She objected loudly, glaring at the vendor angrily. “If it’s not just one pony saying it, then there may be a good reason… Most folks don’t try and give bad advice on purpose, and if enough folks are saying the same thing, then maybe it’s a good piece of advice.” The cherry salespony said calmly. He may not have been a therapist, but he had been a bartender once, and you got enough experience on the job to learn a few tricks here and there. Octavia, meanwhile, was opening and closing her mouth like a fish out of water, unable to form a counterargument against the simple wisdom the vendor had just shoved in her face. Maybe he was right… Maybe that other stallion had a point, Orion was it? Yes… maybe they both had a point. As much as she argued with herself that giving Vinyl a chance had only come back to bite her in the past, even she had to admit that there had been far more good times with her than bad… Maybe she deserved just one more chance? “Fine…” She finally conceded, going back to talking to herself and walking in the direction of the record store Vinyl was most likely at, “But if there’s even a hint that she’s lying to me, I’m walking away and tossing what’s left of her things onto the street when I get home…” V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V “Alright! Who’s next up to hang out with the one and only DJ Pon3?!” Vinyl called out excitedly, whooping it up for her fans, who were crowding into Spinner’s Records. “Whooo! That’s me!” a blue unicorn hollered, stepping up to the table and rifling through his saddle bag, before remembering that he could use magic, and pulling out one of Vinyl Scratch’s first albums. “Wow dude, I didn’t think that one sold a lot of copies… I’m impressed you have one. First edition?” Vinyl asked, appraising the record placed in front of her. “Yes Ma’am! I’m a huge fan. I love Wub-step and, techno in general, but you’re hands down my favorite artist.” Bass Beat answered excitedly “Well glad to hear it dude…” Vinyl replied absently, signing the record and looking at the line stretching out behind him. She’d been signing things for the last four hours, and it was starting to get to her. Hay, she could even swear that she saw Octavia walking over… oh buck… that was actually Octavia! “Vinyl…” Octavia said, her voice level, “We need to talk.” “Hey! What’s the big idea mule? You can’t wait your turn in line with the rest of us?” a particularly irate light blue pony with a palm tree on her flank, and way too much gel in her mane, called out from the queue. “Who are you calling a mule?!” Vinyl Scratch shouted at the fan, “That’s my marefriend, you bitch!” That seemed to shut up any protesting voices in the line, allowing the quiet Vinyl needed to announce that she was done doing any signings for the day. Bass Beat walked away triumphantly holding what was likely the last bit of signed Pon3 paraphernalia from her visit to Ponyville. Vinyl continued shooting angry looks at various ponies in the group that was now filing out of the record shop, as Octavia and her went to a back room to try and talk things over. As the door shut behind them, Vinyl steeled herself for what would most likely be a very, VERY awkward conversation. “So… I assume you can guess what I want to talk to you about?” Octavia began, her face as composed as ever. “I’m guessing it’s something to do with why you kicked me out of our place last week?” Vinyl guessed. “Err… well… in a way yes… it’s more about what I saw that made me that angry with you…… I want to hear your side of the story.” Octavia said haltingly, her eyes downcast, and her usually stoic face almost looking… guilty? “Are you actually going to listen this time?” Vinyl asked skeptically. “Yes… I need to know the truth though, and I can tell if you’re lying.” Octavia responded, sounding hurt. “And you’re not going to just tune me out, or hear only what you want to, and you won’t take anything out of context, or stop me in the middle of what I’m saying because it sounds bad?” Vinyl continued, having learned over the years that if you weren’t abundantly clear about the expectations of a talk, that it could blow up in your face. “I promise Vinyl… just tell me what happened that night.” She answered, gritting her teeth in frustration at her marefriend’s stalling. “Alright then… If you are actually going to give me a chance, I’d better make sure this is all out in the open in one go…” Vinyl said, muttering to herself and flaring her horn. “Here’s a little trick I picked up from my Neon Lights at the club… he’s useless at taking notes when he’s making a new set, so he figured out a way to transfer his memories onto a flat surface…… like a projection screen… anyway, here’s what happened that night.” And with that, her horn touched a mirror hanging on the wall, the surface rippling as Vinyl Scratch channeled her magic into it and recalled that night at the club. V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V Vinyl had just walked into the club, and already she could tell that it was going to be a crazy night. The lights were being tested for another of Neon’s crazy shows, the bartender was going over his stock like the bottles of liquor were vital supplies in an emergency shelter, and the bouncers were psyching themselves up with a friendly shoving match. Not that the bouncers really need to psych themselves up anyway, they were two of the largest unicorn Vinyl had ever seen, even bigger than some of the lunar or solar guards at the palace. “Heh… males…” She commented to herself, walking over to her set and inspecting the equipment to make sure Neon hadn’t tampered with anything before she showed up. Seriously, once you’re pranked in the middle of a gig, you never forget… “Gonna be a good show tonight Scratch?” Neon asked, poking his head over the railing of the catwalk he patrolled each night. “I got this wicked new show idea, projects a spinning record behind you when you’re doing your thing, and there’s a line that runs across it and responds to the music.” “Mhmm, that’s nice Neon.” Vinyl commented absently, her eyes scanning each knob, switch, and slider on her set, making sure everything was exactly how she wanted it for the night’s performance. “Hey, did you touch my bass tuners?” “Yeah, I had to tweak those things to be a bit quieter. Seriously, you blew one of my lights the other night with that last bass drop.” Neon confessed nonchalantly. “Still don’t know how the hay your marefriend manages to put up with you working on that stuff in your home. You two must go through like, at least a dozen window replacements a year.” “It was only seven broken windows last year!” Vinyl shouted up, agitated that Neon had messed with her set AGAIN! “And besides, you can’t play my music without a kick flank bass drop! It’s just not my work without that vibration in your bones.” “Well whatever, Hey, I hear that the owner’s daughter is dropping by tonight. And she’s a DJ that’s trying to learn the ropes. You might be playing babysitter tonight.” He hollered, his mind already switching focus from Vinyl to the arduous task of getting his lights to respond exactly the way he wanted. “As long as she’s old enough to buy her own drinks, and as long as she doesn’t put her hooves on my gear without me knowing, I couldn’t care less.” “Glad to hear it Scratch.” A gruff, masculine voice chimed in from behind Vinyl, the surprise almost causing her to drop a record as she was checking it for scratches. “What’s good Cash Box?” Vinyl greeted, narrowly catching the record in her magic before it smashed into the ground. “Me and Neon were just talking about you.” “So I heard. Anyway, he’s right. My daughter is trying to be a DJ, and I told her I’d let her watch you tonight while you worked. Do me a favor, if you think she can handle it, give her a chance to spin a song or two. I know how important it is in this business to get your name out there, and I’m sure you wouldn’t mind the break.” “Something tells me if I say no, I’m not going to be working here much longer.” Vinyl commented dryly. “Hay no, I wouldn’t fire you over something like this. No, you’re worth way more to me working here. But, I’ll give you an extra fifty bits if you let her take the reins for awhile. And I’ll double it if you manage to show her enough to where the crowd likes her.” Cash said, grinning like a shark. “Sounds good, but where is she?” Vinyl asked, pleased at the thought of an extra hundred bits if she got the new girl to do a good job. She’d never fancied herself a teacher, but how difficult could it be to teach the boss’s kid a trick or two on the set. “She’s in my office, I’ll go get her and send her out, you just keep getting ready. We’re opening up a bit late tonight, so take the extra time and give her the run down.” He said, marching off to his office on the upper level of the club. “I can’t believe THE Vinyl Scratch is going to give lessons to a newbie…” Neon commented, looking at her curiously over the railing. “I can’t believe we’re still talking about it.” Vinyl shot back sarcastically, directing a light to shine right in his eyes with her magic and laughing hysterically as the brightness cut through his thick shades. It was another few minutes of tinkering and tweaking before Vinyl heard a polite cough from behind her. She stood up from where she was fiddling with the wires under her set, and turned to see a young Earth Pony mare with a deep blue coat and a neon orange mane. Vinyl had to admit though, the contrast was eye catching… “So you’re the boss’s kid huh?” she began, holding her hoof out politely, “Name’s Vinyl Scratch, What’s yours?” “I’m Juke Box.” The young mare responded quietly. “Anyway, my dad said you could show me a few things.” “Sure can. In fact, I’m just about finished with getting my set ready, then I show you what does what, and with any luck, we might have some time to find a place in the gig to stick you in on your own. Sound like fun or what?” Vinyl asked, shooting Juke a friendly smile. “By the way, I gotta ask, what’s your special talent? You want to be a DJ, so I’m guessing music… right?” “Well, actually, my talent is rock climbing… but you can’t really make a living off that, so I got into music, and I really liked listening to your stuff, so I started learning how to DJ, and my dad said that if I kept at it for a full year, that he’d introduce me to you.” Juke answered bashfully. “Well, you can’t use magic, so I’ll need to tweak how I teach you a little. Usually, I just manipulate everything I want to with my magic you see. Still, this should be fun.” Vinyl said, the young mare amusing her a bit with how she’d gotten involved in the world of Disc Jockeys. For the next forty minutes or so, Vinyl finished setting up her station, then gave Juke the grand tour of what everything did and how it worked. She even made a deliberate point of showing the young mare how to manipulate the switches and sliders almost as fast as Vinyl’s magic. The last step was showing Juke how to change out the discs without disturbing the song, which she was surprisingly good at... “Jeez kid… you sure you’ve only been at this for a year?” Vinyl commented, impressed by the speed Juke was able to switch from one of Vinyl’s songs all while keeping the notes smooth and uninterrupted. “Well, I practiced a lot, and I studied how you did things when I saw some of your videos.” Juke Box answered, a small blush coming on her face as she was praised by the mare she looked up to. “Well if you’re able to do that in front of a crowd, I just might let you play a few songs tonight.” Vinyl promised, smiling warmly and standing at her post as the first of the evening’s clubbers walked through the doors. “Now get ready, cuz this is gonna get loud!” Vinyl placed her headphones on, giving her an undistorted sense of the music being played, as well as drowning out the sounds of the crowd as the room quickly filled to capacity and the lights started dancing across the sea of ponies. She also made sure to slide a pair of headphones over Juke’s head as Vinyl grabbed the mike. “Alright everypony!” She called out into the mic, her voice washing over the crowd and getting them to start pounding the ground underhoof, “Are ya’ll ready to party?!” The crowd roared back in approval as Vinyl’s magic encompassed the first two records of the night and started them spinning, a wave of charged air washing over her and Juke Box from behind as the wall of speakers hummed to life. “Then let’s get this thing STARTED!” she shouted, the needle dropping the needle and bringing the song to life. It was one that Octavia had helped her with and started out with an electric cello and violin playing a powerful call and response melody as the bass built up slowly, eventually building to the point that anypony in the room could feel it in their chests. The mass eventually hit its peak, sounding like a heartbeat before stopping, the crowd freezing as Vinyl leaned into the mic, taking a deep breath and ordering the crowd… “Drop it!” The crowd went crazy, everypony jumping and twisting their bodies as the brunt of the song slammed into them in a wall of pure sound and the lights went berserk. V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V “Is this all you’re going to show me Vinyl?” Octavia asked angrily, stamping her hoof on the ground. “You’re just playing out your set from that night! I only care about what that mare was doing with you!” “And I’m trying to show you Tavi!” Vinyl bit back, her voice raising in volume and intensity, “And you said you’d let me finish explaining before you interrupted! You always pull this shit Octavia! You never listen to me, you always have to be right!” Octavia almost started screaming back in her face right then, but Vinyl was right… She had agreed not to interrupt, and here she was not ten minutes later doing just that. “Sorry…” She said grudgingly, glaring at the floor, “I won’t interrupt again…” “Thank you!” Vinyl replied, her voice still raised angrily. She turned her attention back to the memory screen spell and refocused the image on a later moment in the set. V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V Vinyl had been on fire up to that point in the night. Every song she touched got the crowd more and more amped. She was beginning to feel a little light headed herself from the energy of the throngs of ponies, and decided that now was as good a time as any to try and mellow things out a bit. She pulled out an old record with some more of Octavia’s handiwork on it, mixed in with a much more subtle bass, and some rather spacey effects thrown in for good measure. “Alright everypony, you fine folks have been busting your flanks all day, you’ve been dancing so hard I think they feel the vibe in Las Pegasus, now let’s all grab that special somepony and mellow out for a bit. If you don’t have a special somepony, grab someone from the bar, that back corner is looking pretty full of singles, just ease on down back to Equestria and let the music take ya…” Vinyl said over the mic, her usually raspy voice managing to take on a smoother quality, the crowd responding by cheering relatively softly, a few of the club’s patrons even called out for Vinyl to join them on the floor. She just chuckled and shook her head, motioning for Juke to get closer and watch as she adjusted the switches and slides for the song to be loud enough for everypony to hear, but low enough for the mood to stay in that intimate range. “You see what I did there?” Vinyl asked, turning to Juke Box, “The key to DJ’ing isn’t necessarily about having the hardest beats, it’s about reading the crowd and making the music fill the void. If everypony that shows up is tired, you amp them up. If they’re too hyped, you mellow them out. If they seem like they’re getting too into a hard track and things start going south, you have to transition the music to something different in the blink of an eye, and you have to do it right… There’s a bit more to it than those videos, huh?” “Yeah… How did you learn to do that though? I thought everypony would get upset when you put on this stuff… How did you know they needed a rest?” Juke asked, looking from the crowd to the equipment in front of her to Vinyl. “Like I said kiddo, it’s all about reading the crowd. For me, when I get light headed, that’s my own system telling me the crowd is giving off too much energy. You let that happen and the crowd moves you, not the other way around. You always want to stay in control. Remember, when you’re dealing with music, the musician is always in charge.” “Cool…” was all Juke could say as she looked out on the crowd, which had changed from a mass of wild manes and gyrating mares to a tighter packed sea of couples… It was so bizarre… she knew which two ponies, or sometimes more, were together, but she could also see everypony staying connected… “Hey Juke, I’m gonna go get a drink from the bar. Tell you what, when this song ends, I’ll let you spin a couple tracks.” “Seriously?! You think I can do this?” Juke asked, feeling a little overwhelmed. Sure, she had been practicing for a year, but she had never actually done anything in front of an audience. “I’m telling you Juke, no better time to learn than the present. Besides, I’ll give you an intro and hype the crowd up. If anything starts to go south, I’ll step in. No harm done.” Vinyl reassured her. “Now, just wait here and I’ll be back in a second with some water, you figure out what tracks you’re gonna layer and how.” Vinyl walked over to the bar and managed to navigate the sea of bodies, some of which tried to get a bit too close for comfort, and got the bottles of water for herself and Juke. She had to admit, she’d done a good job of mellowing the crowd out, there were only a couple ponies that tried to hit on her as she made her way back to the set. One was a Pegasus mare with a white coat and yellow mane. The other was a purple unicorn stallion that looked like he was just barely legal. All in all, not a bad night. When she got back to the set, Juke Box was standing near the set with a couple records held gently between her teeth, smiling at Vinyl Scratch. “You ready for this then?” Vinyl asked, gesturing at the crowd, which had started to become a bit more active as the song started to wind down. “Mhmm… I think I can do this…” Juke said around the records. “Well then, let’s get you set up!” Vinyl said excitedly, grabbing the mike and lowering the music so nopony in the audience would notice as she swapped the records on the deck out for the ones Juke Box had. “Okay everypony, how you all doing out there?!” Vinyl called out over the crowd, a resounding cheer answering her, “I got a special treat for you tonight. She’s a promising young mare, here to play for you fine folks for her first time ever! Stomp your hooves for my girl, DJ Sp1nn3r!” The crowd erupted in applause for the new DJ as Vinyl Scratch stepped away from the mic and let Juke Box do her thing. To her credit, she only hesitated for a moment, before grabbing the mic in hoof and starting to work the crowd. “Alright everypony! Who’s ready to rock out!?” Juke asked, smiling and surveying the crowd, receiving hollers, cheers, and more applause in response. “Alright then! Let’s spin this shit!” The needle dropped and a heavy ‘THUD’ erupted from the speakers, the force blasting Vinyl’s and Juke’s hair forward as a concussive wave flew over the crowd and started rippling across the audience as the beat picked up, each beat of the bass doubling in speed with each succession until it was a wall of force. The sound suddenly stopped for a second, everypony drawing in breath, and a howl echoed from the record as the bass kicked back in, higher pitched and alternating between fast and slow rhythms. The rest of the song followed, with a chanting chorus in the background contrasting with an electric guitar riff that tore through any rests the bass took. It was like something out of a rock opera mixed in with Vinyl Scratch’s own Wub-step… and it worked! The crowd had exploded into a frenzy of dancing, jumping, and spinning. It was a miracle that everypony could fit on the dance floor, and even the wall flowers had decided to get in on the action. Vinyl smiled over at Juke proudly as she watched her tweak the switches at just the right times to prevent overlapping sounds. She even stopped the music for a second, getting the entire crowd to freeze in place before spinning it forward and causing another wave of excitement and energy blasted across the room. Vinyl nudged her with a hoof causing her to turn just in time for Vinyl to give her an encouraging nuzzle. “You’re gonna get along just fine kid.” Vinyl said, “Seriously, if my first song went over like that, I’d be retired by now with a fortune!” “You really think so?!” Juke replied, blushing at having gotten such high praise from her own personal idol. “Definitely... In fact, I think I’m gonna take a bit of a break and let you take the next few tracks.” Vinyl said, smiling and ruffling Juke’s hair with a hoof. “Awesome! Thanks Vinyl!” Juke exclaimed, this time nuzzling Vinyl before turning her attention back to the set, making sure everything was perfect as she swapped out the record with the bass track on it for a different record. Vinyl meanwhile, walked off the stage and went to her boss’s office to tell him the news that his kid just might be the next big star in music. V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V\ As the spell melted, the magic having stopped being channeled, Octavia found herself staring at the floor, utter disgust in her eyes… How had she let her anger and insecurity get hold of her like that… She’d seen Vinyl doing something completely innocent, and immediately assumed that she was going behind her back. “Vinyl, I-” Octavia started to say, getting cut off by Vinyl’s hoof in her face. “Octy, I don’t wanna hear it… I can understand that what you saw and what actually happened could be seen as two different things. I can even see where you might get an idea like that and freak out. But do you know what hurts me the most? It’s that you didn’t give me the benefit of the doubt. We’ve been together for years now, and you apparently didn’t think enough of me to even hear me out until now. Hay, you honestly think that after everything we’ve been through, that I’d cheat? I’m sorry Tavi, I understand that you felt hurt, but right now, I’m the one that’s hurt…” Vinyl said, a tear streaking its way down her cheek and dropping to the floor. “Vinyl… I don’t know what to say other than… I was wrong. I was completely and totally wrong… I hurt you by freaking out, I hurt you by believing that you would do something like that, and I hurt you by not listening… Sweetheart, I’m so sorry… I know I don’t deserve this, but please… please let me try and make this right…” Octavia said, her usual mask of aloofness shattering as tears of self loathing and regret streamed down her face freely. Her voice cracked and she tried to move closer to the white unicorn she’d wronged. Vinyl backed away from Octavia’s advances, her tears stopping. “I cried over you, you know? When you kicked me out… I broke down, right there in the street… How could you just blindly think that I’d do something like that? And here you are asking me to just forgive and forget?! I’m sorry Octy… I love you, you know I do… I wouldn’t still be here if I didn’t… but I need time…” Vinyl said, sitting down across from Octavia, just out of reach. Octavia tried to get her tears to stop, but they just couldn’t… Here was the love of her life saying they’d been hurt by her actions… and there wasn’t a thing she could do to make it right. The pain of being so close, and yet so far away was too much to bear… She sniffled and nodded her head, trying to compose herself again… It was selfish to cry over something she’d done, rather than try and fix it like she should. “What can I do?” she asked, her eyes still red and puffy from crying as she looked at the white mare sitting across from her. “I need to know what I can do to make this up to you Vinyl… I need you back… and I know that I was the one to push you away, and it’s so selfish of me, but I need you Vinyl….” “The only thing you can do now Octavia, is wait… I said I needed time, and that’s it…” Vinyl replied coolly, her face a perfectly stoic mask as she watched the grey earth pony collapse onto the ground sobbing. A minute passed, the only noise being the sound of Octavia’s hitched breathing as she cried into her hooves, prostrate on the ground with sorrow. Another minute passed… And another… And another… Finally, after five minutes of silence, Vinyl stood up, walked over to lay down beside her marefriend, and slung a foreleg over Octavia’s withers. “Okay…” Vinyl said, smiling softly at the grey mare as their eyes met. “Huh?” Octavia asked, confusion plastered across her face as she wiped away a few more tears, her eyes finally seeming to have stopped the waterworks temporarily. “I said okay… it’s been time.” “I… I don’t understand…” “I said I needed time, and time has passed.” Vinyl answered, grinning and nuzzling Octavia. “You mean… that was it? That was all you needed?” Octavia asked, her face still a thick mask of confusion, but this time there was hope in her eyes. “Yeah…… I can’t stay mad at you Octy…Especially when you’re crying like that… I’m still hurt that you assumed the worst of me… but I think you learned your lesson.” She said softly, smiling as Octavia’s face changed from one of sorrow, to one of joy. Granted, the tears started again, but this time they were tears that Vinyl liked seeing. “Now, are you going to hug me, or am I just laying on the ground for nothing?” Octavia’s only response was to tackle the white unicorn and pressing their lips together fiercely as relief washed over them both. Author’s Note: For the purposes of length and the rating of the story, I will quickly sum up the next several hours of Vinyl Scratch and Octavia’s life for you… They bucked like rabbits in heat. And it was messy and beautiful and amazing. Seriously, when they walked out of that back room, there were puddles of love juices everywhere on that floor. In fact, the new guy working at the shop got a small commemorative pin after cleaning it up, and he was forever after known as “The Mop Colt Ponyville Deserves, Not The One It Needs”… which was a fairly long title, and was later shortened to simply “Moppy”… After leaving the store, they wandered around town before Pinkie Pie showed up out of a pickle barrel and reminded them that they were both performing at the party starting in an hour, and that they had better get going to set up. They then headed over to the town hall and set up their stuff, Octavia on one side of the room, and Vinyl Scratch on the other. Octavia had brought along an electric cello that was hooked up to a wall of speakers behind her, and Vinyl’s set had been transported in full from the club she usually worked at, and was likewise hooked up to a wall of speakers. As ponies began filling up the room as the party started, both musicians kept shooting each other furtive looks, waiting for the cue from Pinkie Pie to begin playing. After a while of standing around awkwardly, with supposedly everypony in attendance, the performers were beginning to get antsy. Finally, the double doors opened, and Rainbow Dash flew in, pushing a rather disgruntled looking grey pegasus in a white vest in front of her. Pinkie Pie then loudly announced that the guest of honor had arrived, and to get the party started. Author’s Note again: And now, for something completely different… Orion was not happy… And it may have had something to do with the fact that he’d been forcibly shoved all the way from the reservoir to the town hall by a certain cerulean mare, or it may have been that the same mare decided that he wouldn’t notice the fact that she was occasionally groping his flank as she pushed him, or it may have been the fact that after arriving at the party, she finally relented long enough for him to get on his own four hooves, and the first thing she does is zoom past him, whipping his flank AGAIN with her tail and winking before disappearing into the crowd… In any case, anypony looking at him would have no issues with describing him as absolutely pitiful looking. Still, they say it’s easy to approach someone when they look down, and the citizen of Ponyville seemed to be no exception. As the MUSIC kicked in, he was surrounded by a sea of technicolor manes and coats, various names that sounded for the most part like poorly hidden puns bounced around inside his head, and his vision began to spin until a familiar orange hoof landed on his shoulder and helped pull him out of the crowd. “Looked like ya needed a breath of fresh air there sugar cube.” Applejack said, laughing. “Yeah… either that or something to drink…” Orion replied, giving the element of honesty a grateful smile. “Well, there’s some punch Pinkie Pie made over on the table.” Applejack offered, pointing at a far wall past the sea of ponies. “Is there anything stronger than punch?” “Well, if yer wantin’ something to kick ya in the teeth, Ah brought some barrels of cider, and Berry Punch brought some of her stash… All depends on whatcha wanna taste really.” She suggested, “Ya like apples or grapes more?” “At the moment, just anything to help me relax…” He responded, looking around nervously. “Between pissing off half of the entertainment and getting groped by Rainbow Dash, I’m not exactly feeling at ease here…” Applejack frowned when Orion mentioned Rainbow Dash, hiding her disapproval quickly and making a mental note to give that mare a piece of her mind later once Orion was feeling a bit more comfortable. “Hmmm… Well, Granny always said that the best thing fer wandering hooves is a good strong drink, and as much as I hate to admit it, Berry Punch makes a stronger drink than the family cider… How about we go get ya a glass?” Applejack offered, steering Orion through the crowd. “That sounds like a good idea to me…” Orion agreed, his wings fluttering nervously for a second as they passed through the crowd. When they finally got to the refreshment table, he was amazed to see an enormous spread. There were two giant bowls of pink and purple punch, several crates of what looked like red and white wine, and a small pyramid of cider barrels... not to mention the treats laid out on the table around the drinks. “Son of a… Where the hay did she get all this food?” he asked, his jaw hanging down loosely. “Well, Ah sort of helped her in the kitchen a bit this afternoon, and the rest of it’s stuff donated by the Cakes. Ah think they went a bit overboard cuz of the fact that yer not just a new pony, yer a new employee.” Applejack answered, chuckling at the goofy expression on his face. “Now come on flyboy… let’s get ya somethin’ strong and a seat. If what I hear about Berry Punch is right, she likes to make that stuff so strong ya have trouble standing after a couple glasses…” “She sounds like somepony who knows their craft.” Orion commented. “Oh she knows about alcohol alright… Do yerself a favor; don’t ever get in a drinking contest with her.” “Duly noted. Now let’s get some social lubrication in my system…” he said, reaching for the nearest bottle of red wine and a plastic cup. He poured the drink in until it was at about the three quarters mark, then stopped because Applejack swatted him in the back of the head with a hoof. “Ya don’t need that much ya moron.” She said laughing, “Now come on, Ah think Twilight’s got a table near one of the musicians.” “Great… loud music and crowds… just what I need to unwind.” He said snarkily, Applejack ignoring his complaints as she led him to the table off to the side of Vinyl Scratch’s setup. “There you two are.” Twilight said, a bubble of magic keeping most of the sound away from the table. “We were beginning to wonder if you’d been swallowed up by the crowd Orion.” “No such luck I’m afraid.” Orion responded, smiling weakly and taking a long draught from his cup, draining almost half of it at once. “… Damn! That is some good wine!” “Ugh… Ah told ya ta take it easy…” Applejack lamented, face hoofing and trying not to laugh at the glazed look his eyes had suddenly taken on. “Ah swear, one of these days Ah’m gonna find out what the hay she does ta that stuff ta get it so strong…” “It’s probably just a difference in fermentation time Applejack… I’d guess that if you let the cider barrels sit for a bit longer, that they’d develop a stronger alcohol level.” Twilight interjected, taking a sip from a mug of the very cider being mentioned. “Though personally, I like the fact that your family’s cider is weaker… it’s a nice drink for social gatherings if you want to keep your faculties.” “Not gonna lie here Twi… you really need to lower the vocab a bit when you’re at a party… I love reading, and I can understand you… but it’s like…… Why would you say stuff like that outside of a lecture?” Orion slurred, his cup now completely empty and his eyes rapidly losing focus. His wings hung limply to the ground beneath his seat, and he was wobbling just enough to warrant Applejack keeping an eye on him. “Easy there sugarcube… You better start taking it a bit slower. Don’t need ya passed out at yer own party…” She cautioned, nudging him back to the middle of his seat. “I’m fine AJ… just, weird… I haven’t had anything to drink drink since I came to Equestria….. s’different… Stronger or something… Or I’ve got a weaker system now. Hard to tell…” “I assure you Orion, it is simply that the drink is stronger in Equestria.” A soft voice said from behind him, prompting all three ponies seated to turn and see a smaller version of Princess Luna standing and watching them with a touch of amusement across her face. “Hey Luna!” Orion greeted happily, hugging the princess with a wing and nuzzling her as Twilight’s jaw hit the table and Applejack watched the lunar diarch and grey pegasus curiously. “Hey Luna… Ain’t you a bit er…. smaller than the last time we met?” Applejack asked, taking note of Luna’s missing wings and diminished stature. “You are correct honest Applejack… I heard a rather… interesting thing from my sister regarding how Orion was being received in Ponyville. And I decided to come visit.” Luna explained, somehow managing to push the rather cuddly grey stallion off of her and sitting down at the table. “As it turns out, I arrived in time for one of Pinkie Pie’s parties. And not wishing to disrupt the celebration as I did on my first Nightmare Night, I decided that a change in appearance would not go amiss. What you see now is simply a minor disguise spell.” “So yer here in secret?” Applejack summed up, “And what did ya hear about Orion that woulda brought ya down here in the first place?” “Well, as Tia heard from Twilight, I believe you found our friend in a rather compromising position with your own brother?” Luna said, looking admonishingly at Twilight and Applejack, both of whom blushed and suddenly found the musical performances rather interesting. “Wait… who heard what about me?” Orion asked, his confusion only fueled by the drink he’d just drained. “No, you know what, I’m going to get another drink, I’ll be back in a bit and I’m gonna want to hear this…” “Ah don’t think that’s a good idea sugarcube.” Applejack said, trying to stop him, but Luna held up a hoof to stop her, and shooed Orion away to go get more refreshments. “I believe that learning one was ‘outed’ by accident is allowance enough for a bit more alcohol.” Luna noted diplomatically, but seeing the worry on Applejack’s face, she comforted her, “And should the drinks prove too much for him, I know my share of cures for inebriation.” “So… I’m guessing Princess Celestia told you about the letter I sent?” Twilight guessed, trying to break the uneasy atmosphere at the table. “Yes… Your letter was interesting to say the least. I must admit Twilight, I am rather surprised that you would be pressured into using your magic for the purposes of spying.” Luna replied, smiling wryly at the purple unicorn. “But while I confess to being surprised by the letter, I would very much like to hear what happened from you all in person… But I believe that calls for the other four to be present, doesn’t it?” “Yes, but how will you-” Twilight began to ask, when Luna’s horn lit up a deep blue, and a moment later, the other four of her friends were teleported to empty seats around the table with understandably confused looks on their faces. “What the buck?!” Rainbow Dash swore, “I was about to beat the flank off of Carrot Top at hoof wrestling!” “I must say Twilight, teleporting us with no warning was rather rude…” Rarity agreed, albeit it with much less cussing. “Uhh… Girls?” Fluttershy said, trying to get the attention of Rarity, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie (who was still carrying on a conversation about the economic impact of cupcake icing being used in donut shops instead of the traditional glaze). “What is it Flutters?” Dash asked, still grumbling and glaring at Twilight, who was resisting the urge to laugh along with Applejack. “I don’t think Twilight was the one that teleported us… I think it was Princess Luna…” the yellow pegasus said, pointing with a hoof at the lunar princess who was watching the four new additions to the table with a mixture of interest and amusement. “WHAT?!” Rarity practically screeched, her eyes darting around the room before settling on Luna. “Oh my goodness… And here I am without having put any effort into my appearance… Oh please don’t look at me your highness, I know a few beauty spells, and I’ll be presentable in just a moment…” “Relax Rarity.” Twilight said, her horn lighting up and forcing Rarity to look at her, “The Princess is here incognito, and she came to enjoy the party, not meet with her subjects about matters of court… Now, we talked about this, so please just relax.” “That’s rich… Twilight telling Rarity to relax around royalty…” Dash noted, smirking and bumping hooves with Applejack. “Anyway.” Luna continued, trying to bring the group back to a semblance of focus, “Before Orion manages to lurch his way back here, I want to know why you all seem to think that he’s into stallions.” “I actually don’t think he’s into stallions…” Rainbow Dash said, drawing everypony’s eyes to her except for Twilight, “He told me the other day that his wings beat both ways. And then he spent last night with Fluttershy.” Fluttershy went beet red and sunk under the table. “Rainbow! I don’t think that he even knows what that phrase means.” Twilight pointed out, “And come on, Fluttershy probably wouldn’t do something like THAT with anypony she’d just met.” “Who doesn’t know what what means?” Orion said groggily, wobbling where he stood, “And either that third cup of wine did a LOT more to me than I thought, or there’s more of you now…” “Orion, glad you could join us…” Luna said, making space between her and Applejack for him to sit. “And what do you mean third cup? You went back for seconds didn’t you?” “Well yeah… but while I was over there, I got talking to Lyra and Bon Bon, real sweet couple by the way, and they invited me to go to this club with them sometime, and we got talking, and I kind of drank my wine while I was there… and then I got another cup, and I was on my way back over here, and I got talking with Cheerilee, and I think she was hitting on me, and then I finished my drink AGAIN before I got back… so this is my fourth cup.” He explained, rambling and making wild motions with his hooves and wings, which was doing nothing but distracting Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. Applejack was simply shaking her head at the silly, goofy pony Orion had turned into after a few drinks. “Uh huh… Well, Orion, we were just talking about you.” Twilight said matter-of-factly, “In fact, there’s something I believe the girls and I should admit to. Right girls?” she said, looking around the table. “Alrighty then Twilight!” Pinkie Pie said giddily, “I’ll go first! Orion, I’m very sorry, but I saw you and Big Macintosh getting your freak on back at the farm house.” “I did too…” Fluttershy added quietly, her eyes looking everywhere but Orion as another blush crept across her face. “Me too.” Rainbow Dash said, not even bothering to feign an attempt at regret. “I happened to see as well darling, and I’m very sorry for viewing such an intimate moment between you two.” Rarity said, fanning herself with a hoof as the memory caused a wave of heat to roll over her. “And Ah’m sorry too… though I don’t see why, ya’ll were rutting mah brother after all…” Applejack said finally, glaring at the table. “Wait… what?” Orion asked, the confusion seeming to sober him up enough to not seem so groggy and unbalanced. “What did you guys see? What do you mean rutting your brother Applejack?” “We uh… well, that day we were all at the farm house, and you had just gotten your gift from Luna… well, when you and Big Macintosh went up to his room, we heard some loud thumping noises, and well… we took a peek with my magic, and we saw you bent over with Big Macintosh on top of you and kind of assumed that you two were being, well… intimate…” Twilight explained, Orion’s eyes growing wider and wider with each new piece of information. “So wait… you all think… you saw…” he said, his jaw hanging loosely as he looked around the table. Suddenly, he burst out laughing, holding his sides as he fell off his seat and hit the ground, Luna’s magic grabbing him and righting him soon after as his laughter died down. “Oh gods… you guys… that wasn’t me and Mac being ‘intimate’…” he tried to explain, unable to keep a straight face. “Hell, I don’t even know where you all got the idea that I was into other dudes, but I’m not… not that I know of anyway… Big Mac was showing me some self defense moves.” “……WHAT?!” the group said, leaning into him from their seats around the table. “If you’re not gay, then what the hay was all that stretching around town for?! And why are you so cool about putting on and taking your clothes off around us?!” Rainbow demanded, “Hay, I can buy that you play for both teams, you told me that much at least… But there’s not a single straight stallion I know of that puts out the signals you do.” “Uhmmm… Actually, Rainbow Dash…” Fluttershy said, sitting up a bit taller at the table, “I spent most of last night getting Orion up to speed on pegasi body language… he honestly didn’t know he was giving out signals… straight or otherwise…” By this point, the rest of the table’s reactions should be noted. Rarity had put a hoof to her mouth to cover the look of shock, and her fur was swiftly turning a lovely shade of pink at the realization that while Orion might not be part of her male on male fantasies, she now had a shot at making him part of HER reality… Rainbow Dash was somewhere between livid at being wrong, and ecstatic about the fact that either way, he was fair game. Twilight just looked embarrassed, and slightly uncomfortable. Pinkie Pie had been grinning and giggling the entire time regardless of what was said… this had not changed in the slightest. Luna was watching everything with a bit of a distanced appreciation that one might see on a patron at an art museum. Then again, she was well versed at hiding her true reactions to various situations anyway… so who knew? Orion was looking around with his head cocked in confusion, a small smirk on his lips, and a quirked eyebrow as he looked around and tried to figure out how all six mares managed to get the wrong impression of him. And of course Applejack was rolling on the floor laughing her head off with humor and relief… humor because of the look on Rainbow Dash’s face, and relief that she didn’t have to rough up Orion in defense of her brother’s honor. That’s quite the difference in reactions, no? Now… back to the party. “Well… how do we know for sure huh?” Rainbow asked, grasping at straws. There were only a few things that bugged Dash, and being wrong was one of them, even if it happened rather frequently. “I can think of one way!” Pinkie said, bouncing around the table to stand behind Orion and Applejack. “Pinkie, what in tarnation are y-” Applejack started to ask, cut off as Pinkie grabbed her by the back of the head and forced AJ’s and Orion’s lips together. Everypony’s jaw at the table dropped with an audible THUD, and while Orion knew in the back of his foggy headed tipsy state that this was probably a very, horribly bad idea… it wasn’t that bad… Applejack tasted like cinnamon and smelled like fresh cut grass. He began to lose himself in the forced intimacy and his eyelids began to droop as his whole body began to relax… he didn’t even realize that Pinkie’s hoof had left the back of his head a good ten seconds ago. Applejack was experiencing something rather similar. Because, while she’d never have admitted it to herself, let alone anypony else, she was strangely attracted to the strange grey stallion. Her mind began to wander and tried to figure out why she hadn’t already forced them apart when she realized that he was enjoying this as much, if not more, than she was… Just what the HAY was going on here?! “See?” Pinkie said, popping between the two ponies, breaking the kiss and shoving Orion into a sitting position on the ground. She pointed to a rather… prominent protrusion, and smiled with glee and victory as she looked around at the others around the table. All of whom, Luna included, were staring wide eyed at Orion’s not so little problem. “I told you all I knew how to check! At least now we know he likes Applejack. Who’s next?” “Uhhh… I’ll go if nopony else wants to…” Fluttershy said, her hoof raising as her eyes stayed glued on Orion, who was still trying to figure out where Applejack’s lips had vanished off to. “NOPE!” Applejack said, her eyes looking around the table and finally resting on Orion on the ground. She pulled her hat off and tossed it on top of the growing issue in a single smooth motion before turning to glare daggers at Pinkie. “Now dagnabit Pinkie Pie! You know better than to do something like that! That was inappropriate and immature, and you are a grown mare that should know about respecting other ponies boundaries! We talked about this after you tried playing matchmaker with Big Mac and Caramel!” Applejack ranted, her explosion of precisely pronounced pronunciations and the hat now covering Orion’s shame drawing the attention of all seated to her. The pink party pony seemed rather saddened by her friends reaction, and fearing another repeat of the time they’d tried to throw her a surprise party, Applejack quickly cut off her tirade and put a foreleg around Pinkie. “Look sugar cube, Ah know ya meant well, but you’ve gotta quit tryin’ ta push ponies inta doin’ things they don’t wanna do… Now if Orion had tried kissin’ me on his own, and I felt comfortable with it, that’d be one thing… but ya went and done it on account of a silly idea ya had to see if he liked mares…. Now, Ah think ya should apologize ta him, me, and everypony else at the table…” the orange apple farmer said, giving her friend a soft smile to know that she wasn’t mad at her anymore. Pinkie sniffed, and then sat on the ground next to Orion, who had finally managed to notice his… unique predicament, and was holding the hat to his crotch for dear life. “I’m sorry Orion… I shouldn’t have made you and Applejack kiss like that… And I’m sorry if I embarrassed you by pushing you to the ground and showing everypony your thingie…” Pinkie said, sniffling as she tried not to cry, hoping that Orion would accept her apology. “Uhhh… it’s… it’s okay Pinkie Pie… It wasn’t that bad actually. Just took me by surprise is all…” he said, having sobered up exceptionally fast, “And I wouldn’t worry about the pushing me to the ground part…I mean, it’s not like we wear clothes much anyway right? So I guess privacy is kind of relaxed in that regard.” “Technically, Pinkie, that was sexual harassment.” Luna noted, winking at the pink mare, “But since nopony seems to be the worse for wear, I wouldn’t worry about any serious implications.” “And I wouldn’t call that a thingie either…” Rainbow Dash piped up, “It looked like he could brain a manticore with what he’s packing!” “Rainbow Dash!” Rarity said, fanning her face, a blush glowing under her coat that pretty much matched the rest of the group, “True though that may be, you still shouldn’t talk like that!” The next few moments were filled with the group breaking into pairs and debating what animals Orion could and could not injure or kill with his pride, while Orion tried his best to sink into the ground. For the purposes of the rating (again) and word count (again, real sense of déjà vu…), the conversation are excluded from this story, and may be posted later for blackmail/reasons of humoring the world. Luckily, all the awkwardness had done wonders at hiding the offending instrument, and as such, Applejack was able to once again don her trademark Stetson, though, there was a moment of awkwardness where she and him made eye contact and both broke out into furious blushes. By this point in the evening, both the musicians had reached a point in their respective sets that they were both able to step away from their stands and enjoy the party for themselves. Let’s check in on them shall we? “Tavi! You have to meet these two! They know this awesome bar in town we should check out while we’re here! They have a special thing on Thursdays for couples.” Vinyl said, shouting a bit over the music that she’d put on autoplay when they went on break. “For the last time Vinyl, I don’t want to go to a fillyfooler bar.” Octavia objected, rolling her eyes and trying not to laugh at her marefriend’s childish reaction to making new friends. “The last time I did, it was on accident, and I left with you, remember?” “So? This time, we might end up leaving with a third!” Vinyl retorted, the joke grating against Octavia’s nerves… She may have been a bit… possessive… of Vinyl, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have fantasies like any other healthy pony, and Vinyl knew this… As long as she didn’t bring up the rest of the things they brought out when they got intimate, she wouldn’t have to kill the white unicorn. “I think you’re just scared that I’ll end up tied up again, and you won’t know what to do with the crop and bit.” Vinyl said seductively, whispering into Tavi’s ear and making her blush as a result. “Oh shut up you little minx…” Octavia growled, shouldering her way past Vinyl to get to the open bar for a nice refreshing glass of wine and a cupcake. They two musicians sat and ate their refreshments quietly, before Vinyl noticed something off in the distance. It was a table right next to her set that she hadn’t realized was there before… And there was a grey pegasus at the same table as Pinkie Pie… Now that she looked closer, that was the same stallion the party was for! “Tavi! Tavi!” Vinyl said, shaking her roughly with a hoof, “Isn’t that the guy you bitched out earlier today?!” Octavia looked at where Vinyl was pointing, and saw that it was indeed Orion. Though she still felt guilty about being so rude to him earlier, she didn’t feel that the phrase bitched out quite fit either. “Yes, that’s him… Why do you ask Vinyl?” she replied, as proper as ever, even at a wild party like this one. “I think you should go apologize.” Vinyl said seriously, lowering her shades to allow Octavia to see her red irises. “You told me that he was only trying to help you out earlier, and you blew him off for giving you some real advice… That calls for at least an apology in my book. Hay, if you did it to me, I’d want an apology and some sexy times, but he’s not me, so the apology is all he’s getting.” “I see your point Vinyl, but wouldn’t that be awkward? I mean, I was rather rude to him, and he may not want to talk to me.” Octavia said, being uncharacteristically avoidant of the proper behavior. “That’s foal’s logic and you know it. Besides, he’s sitting at the same table as Pinkie Pie, so we’ve got a buffer if things go sour.” Vinyl said, dragging Octavia up with her magic, and grabbing their drinks for good measure. As they crossed the hall, Octavia was amazed that everypony had managed to fit in… honestly, despite the lack of young fillies and colts, there was still a sizeable amount of ponies in the room, and yet it didn’t feel cramped… it felt almost like wearing a warm blanket. She’d been in concert halls with better space, but they usually felt cold and stoic. This town’s populace was warm, active, alive… No wonder so many ponies would travel to this little town at least once in their lives… They finally made it to the table at the tail end of a conversation involving the density of an object needed to brain an Ursa Minor and where one would strike the creature with said dense blunt object, when a dark blue unicorn noticed their approach. “AH-HA! More ponies joining our little circle! Come here my little ponies, come here. Sit!” the dark mare invited, making room between herself and Pinkie Pie. Octavia politely refused, waving a hoof in dismissal and shaking her head while smiling politely. “Actually,” she began, making eye contact with Orion, who was looking at her like she’d just saved his life from a burning building, “I just came here to apologize to you… Orion, I’m sorry for how I acted earlier… you were just trying to help another pony, and I treated you like you were… well, something you’re not…” “And actually dude, I wanted to thank you… If you hadn’t talked to her when you did, she might not have heard my side of the story from our little fight… but she finally gave me a chance to explain, and we’re fine now.” Vinyl said, piping in and shooting Orion a smile, “So yeah, thanks for that. And I hope you’ll accept her apology too.” “Uhhh… I don’t see why I wouldn’t… I mean, I was kind of butting in when we talked, and I was more worried I might have made things worse between you two. I’m glad to hear it all worked out.” Orion said, smiling warmly, “Why don’t you two grab a seat. Seriously, I think the group could use a distraction.” “Don’t mind if I do!” “Oh we wouldn’t want to impose…” The two mare stopped, locked eyes, and chuckled awkwardly as they both tried to reach an agreement on whether or not to stay. Finally, Vinyl seemed to win the argument, and they both sat down at the now rather crowded table. “I believe that our little circle of friends might have outgrown the table…” The blue unicorn said, her horn lighting up. “Allow me to make everypony more comfortable…” With that, her horn lit up, and everypony was levitated upwards and backwards as the table expanded and more chairs popped into existence. At last, the table was large enough to fit 20 ponies with plenty of elbow room… All in all, rather impressive spell work if you didn’t account for the fact that Luna knew the kind of magic for trans-species metamorphosis… As the evening wore on, the conversation grew louder, the atmosphere grew friendlier, and Orion began to feel more at ease, if also a bit more sober, which was just as well really… Eventually, other ponies around the area began to realize that there was suddenly a very large table with open seating, and the seats were soon occupied by Lyra and Bon Bon, Cheerilee (Who’d had a bit to drink and was giggling to Luna that she wished there were a way to scare a couple of her students into not being such little monsters), both of the cakes (who were taking a break from moving trays of fresh treats to the buffet table), Ditzy Doo and her colt friend Whooves, and even one of Applejack’s cousins who had helped supply the party with some extra cider barrels. True to form, he bore a name that was also the title of the fruit the family was known to grow, and so Cameo Apple joined the table of lively, slightly tipsy mares and stallions. As the night grew longer, and the moon reached its zenith in the heavens above, Luna suggested a game to help everypony have a bit more fun. Pinkie soon seconded the motion, and enough of the ponies seated at the table were willing to go along with it for it to be a reality. “Now, before we begin, I think we’ll need a couple more ponies to help close the gap in the sexes, and we’ll need drinks. Rainbow Dash, could you please go get Spike and Big Macintosh from the library? I believe you will find Spike and Big Macintosh in the basement. I will go and get some drinks from the refreshment table.” Luna instructed, trotting off to the drink table as Rainbow took off at breakneck speed through one of the skylights. “Anyone know what she’s going to have up play?” Orion asked, looking at Applejack quizzically. “No clue sugarcube… Ah just hope she doesn’t have us playin’ seven minutes in heaven or spin the bottle…” Applejack answered. “What’s the matter AJ?” Vinyl asked, leaning over the table a bit and wriggling her eyebrows suggestively, “You scared of getting matched up with a real mare? Or are you scared of finding out just how much of a Stallion your new friend is?” “Enough Vinyl.” Octavia said, swatting her upside the back of her head with a hoof. “I’ve told you multiple times to not tease other ponies.” “Ow! That hurt Octy!” Vinyl complained. “Oh please… You’ve had worse when you got into that bar fight in Manehattan.” Octavia said unrepentantly, Bon Bon and Lyra chuckling at the display. “You two are just such a cute couple, you know?” Lyra said, Bon Bon nodding enthusiastically behind her. “And Orion, you shouldn’t worry about her joke. I know a few stallions that would probably be really glad to meet you if you still want to come with me and Bon to that place we told you about earlier! Not sure how much you remember about the invite though, you were pretty tipsy at the time.” “I’m fine Lyra. Right now I’m just worried about what kinds of games we all signed up for…” Orion responded politely, choosing to ignore the fact that Lyra just offered to set him up with one of her guy friends. “I’m back!” Luna said triumphantly, no less than ten bottles of wine and two barrels of hard cider floating in her grasp. “I forgot the cups, but no matter, I can just conjure up a set of goblets, and everything should be set. Has Rainbow Dash returned yet with the last two members of our little group?” “Got ‘em right here!” Dash called out, her and Spike gliding in form the skylight carrying a rather irate looking Big Macintosh. “I told ya’ll that I didn’t wanna come here!” he groused as the flying duo set him down on the ground. “I might run into HER if I’m out in public!” “If you’re talking about one Miss Roseluck, I wouldn’t worry Big Macintosh.” Luna said absently, her horn flaring to life as 20 silver goblets appeared on the table in front of each seat. “I have taken the liberty of placing a cloaking spell on you, so the chances of Miss Rose finding you are nonexistent.” “Well… I still wasn’t through with the book I was reading…” Big Mac said, continuing to grumble, but taking a seat at the large table regardless. “And it will be there when you get back. Now, let us begin the game!” the dark regent said, grinning wildly as she looked around the table. “The name of the game is Truth or Dare. I will erect a truth ward around us so that there will be no cheating, however, whatever your dare is, it must be something they can do while either standing on or around the table, and should you wish to pass, you may, but you must drink from your cup as a penalty. You will drink for one second for each pass. If you pass four times, you drink for four seconds. Does everypony understand?” Luna instructed, scanning the faces of everypony in attendance. When everyone had nodded their approval and filled their cups, Luna grinned like a maniac and looked to Twilight. “Twilight Sparkle, truth or dare?” “I choose truth.” The violet librarian answered quickly. She wasn’t going to be the first to do something ridiculous. “Do you have a crush on Princess Celestia?” Luna asked. Twilight’s mouth opened and closed much like a fish before scowling and taking a one second gulp from her cup of cider. “It is now your turn Doctor.” Luna said, nodding at the brown stallion around the other side of the table. “Who?” Pinkie asked, looking around like an owl. “Whooves actually, I changed my name when I moved here.” The stallion said cheerfully before pointing at Pinkie Pie. “Pinkie Pie, truth or dare?” “Dare of course!” she responded happily. “I dare you to get up on the table and do a one pony rendition of your Smile song.” He said, smirking with pride at having given the baker a challenge in her native tongue, broken-4th-wall-ese. FOR FUCKS SAKE! CAN I NOT HAVE A CHAPTER WHERE NOPONY BREAKS THAT DAMN THING?! IT’S NOT EXACTLY CHEAP TO REPAIR YOU KNOW! “Sorry about that mate, but I just HAVE to see this…” Whooves said, confusing not only Ditzy Doo, but also Lyra, who was seated next to him. “Uhh… Who are you talking to?” Lyra asked. “Just the author. They’re a human, so it’s the only way to talk to one in this universe.” He said nonchalantly. WHY THE BLUEBERRY FUCK DID YOU JUST TALK ABOUT HUMANS WITH LYRA?!?!?! “What are humans? Are you alright?” Lyra asked, concerned about the mental health of the stallion next to her, while Ditzy Doo simply shook her head. Huh…… Okay… so I guess this isn’t one of THOSE stories after all… alright then… Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie had managed to finish her song and dance routine. Complete with a full brass band worked by herself while marching and singing the chorus and backup…… It was one of those things where you just had to see it for yourself to believe it… “Alright then Dr.” Luna said, “Pick who goes next.” “How about you?” Whooves said, pointing at the dull red stallion next to Big Macintosh. “Cameo was it?” “Okay… How about you, Spike, truth or dare?” he said, his voice carrying neither the usual twang of the Ponyville Apples, nor the drawl of an Appleoosan. “I’ll take truth.” Spike answered. “Who was your first kiss?” Cameo asked, grinning maliciously. “Twilight.” Spike replied quickly, a look of horror growing on his face as he realized that once he started talking, that he couldn’t stop. “I had just read a book on pony dating stuff, and I asked her to help me practice… Shedidn’twanttobutIthreatenedtotelleveryponyaboutthestoriesshewroteaboutApplejackandRainbowDashinhersparetimeandigottastartrunningnowOHBUCK!” The young drake took off like a shot as purple blur chased after him through the crowd. Both runners apparently forgetting that they could use magic or fly, but nopony was about to tell them that as everyone was in stitches except for Rainbow Dash and Applejack, who just grimaced and slugged their drinks back in an attempt to forget what they had just learned. “Damn Cameo… I didn’t think we’d see stuff like that until at least the third pass through the group…” Orion said appreciatively, taking a draught of his drink out of boredom and remembering instantly how strong the wine was… “Well, since you liked it so much there Orion, why don’t you go next?” Cameo offered. “Nah, I’m good… besides, I think it’s only fair that one of the girls go next. It’s been a guy the last couple of times.” “Fair enough. How about you Miss Rarity?” “Oh very well darling… Bon Bon, truth or dare?” “I’ll take truth thanks” Bon Bon replied. “You and Lyra have been together for ages now, and I have to know if it’s true that the spark fades a bit after a good amount of time. So tell the group, when was the last time you got royally bucked until you couldn’t walk straight?” “Rarity!” Octavia gasped, as Vinyl hit the ground laughing (again), Bon Bon turned a lovely shade of red, and Lyra did a rather excellent silent imitation of a famous Earth painting called The Scream. “Ah ah ah, she is perfectly within her right to take a drink instead of answering, and a lady does not have to pull punches when involved in a game… Even if it is a drinking game…” “Oh no! I’m a light weight, and I’m putting off the drinking as long as I can. Lyra sweetie, sorry, but I’m telling them.” “NOOOO!” Lyra cried, grabbing her wife, the silent scream finally becoming audible. “Last night. We were fooling around or at least four hours, and afterwards, I had to get her to use her magic to help me to the bathroom because I couldn’t work my legs right.” Bon Bon said seriously. “Well… That’s certainly something to congratulate you both on… Four hours straight, really?” “Yep… both with toys and not.” Well there goes the fucking rating! “Well then… moving on I suppose…” Rarity said, choosing the next pony to lead the downhill charge that the game had suddenly taken on. “Octavia, darling, why don’t you choose the next person…” “Well alright, I suppose… Luna, truth or dare?” “I shall choose dare. I’ve never declined a challenge.” Luna answered smugly. “Alright then… Since Vinyl and myself have been playing for everypony tonight, why don’t you join us… I dare you to sing a song for everypony on top of the table.” Luna gulped and muttered to herself, trying to figure out a song to sing for everypony, before clambering up onto the table top and belting out an ancient Equestrian drinking song. At one point, she drew enough attention to the group that Berry Punch climbed up and started singing along! The tune went something along the lines of this… “I bang on the door but you won't let me in, 'cause you're sick and tired of me reeking of gin. Locked all the doors from the front to the back, And left me a note telling me I should pack. I walk in the bar and the stallions all cheer, They order me up a whiskey and beer. You ask me why I'm writing this poem, Some call it a tavern but I call it home. Buck you, I'm drunk, Buck you, I'm drunk, Pour my wine down the sink I've got more in the trunk. Buck you, I'm drunk, Buck you, I'm drunk, And I'm going to be drunk till the next time I'm drunk! You've given me an option, you say I must choose, 'tween you and the liqour, then I'll take the booze! Jumpin' on Western down to the south side, Where I'll sit down and exercise my Equush pride. Buck you, I'm drunk, Buck you, I'm drunk, Pour my wine down the sink I've got more in the trunk. Buck you, I'm drunk, Buck you, I'm drunk, And I'm going to be drunk till the next time I'm drunk!” After a rousing applause from the other party goers, Luna climbed back down off the table and slugged back a full two cups of wine. Suddenly feeling much more flexible, and showing this to everypony by lolling her head about on her neck, Luna chose Applejack to continue the game. “Well alrighty then… Lyra, truth or dare?” “I’ll take truth. There’s no way in Tartarus I’m risking a dare after that little show… Nice lungs by the way Luna.” “Thank you sweetie, now please stop moving around so much, you’re making me dizzy…” “…I’m sitting still, but whatever…” “Okay Lyra… How many other ponies have ya been with before settling down with Bon Bon?” Applejack asked, the truth ward around the table causing her to blurt out the first question that popped into her head. “Well, I’ve never really been with another pony before Bon Bon… I mean, I dated yeah, but I didn’t really feel that kind of closeness until Bon showed me that it was alright…” Lyra answered, blushing as most of the table had a ‘dawww’ moment. “I was with like, seven ponies at least, before I met Lyra…” Bon Bon said, the truth spilling from her lips unbidden. “In fact, she’s not really the best I’ve ever had… but I love her more than I ever did anypony else.” Now, it has to be said, that for anyone reading this that has heard their partner’s number, there is a certain feeling of possessiveness, of jealousy and anger that flares up inside of you. And at that moment, Lyra showed that emotion by crying, grabbing Bon Bon with her magic, and pulling her into a hug so intense that it was actually starting to crush her ribs a little bit. Luckily, after hearing that Bon Bon loved her, despite not being the best pony to share a bed with, Lyra relented slightly and allowed her to keep breathing. But inside her head, Lyra had already formulated a plan to get revenge on her spouse. Not the best? Well, she couldn’t wait to see what Bon Bon thought after the whipped cream, rope, zucchini, and Super Sticky Tape were brought out… By this point in the game, Spike was apparently through being chased by Twilight, as he walked over, carrying her over while she pouted, and sat down at the table once again. Applejack chose to ignore their approach, as she wanted the game to keep going. After all, it was just getting good! “Your turn Pinkie.” She said, pointing at her fellow Earth Pony. “Oooh! Spike, truth or dare?!” Pinkie asked excitedly, bobbing up and down in her seat like she was sitting on a chair made out of Super Balls. “Dare!” Spike responded quickly, “The last time I took a truth, I ended up getting chased by my own sister!” “Well then you’re gonna HATE this!” Pinkie responded, laughing (well, more like cackling like an evil scientist, but whatever…) “I dare you to SHOW everypony at the table how you and Twi made out!” Spike took a moment to process the dare… Then promptly grabbed not hit cup, but the nearest barrel of cider, uncorked it, and took a good three second drink of the contents. He then slammed the small barrel down and belched out a fireball roughly the size of Big Macintosh. His eyes unfocused, and a small curl of steam escaping one of his nostrils, he looked at Pinkie smugly and simply said “Pass…” Pinkie Pie just shrugged, then pointed at Orion and said “Your turn cutie.” Orion blushed, “Truth or dare?” he asked, shaking his head and making eye contact with Big Macintosh. “Dare.” Big Mac responded simply. Orion thought for a moment… what would be a good dare? All of a sudden, inspiration struck. Almost every Brony’s dream was about to be realized…. Orion had just been given the chance to ‘ship two of the characters! “I dare you to kiss Fluttershy, seriously, for at least ten seconds…” he said, grinning in a way that wasn’t too different from Pinkie Pie… Big Mac reached for his cup and was about to drink when a blur of yellow jumped up on the table and snatched the cup from him. Fluttershy downed the drink in one gulp, then pounced on the red farmer. …………It was messy…………… About a minute later, after enough of the ponies around the table had convinced Fluttershy that it had been well over the ten second limit, everypony returned to their seats. Granted, this time Big Macintosh was a deeper shade of red, and Fluttershy was sporting a rather goofy grin and smiling at Orion like a child might look at Santa Clause… “Uhhh… okay… Rainbow Dash… your turn…” Orion said, petrified, and wondering if he had just unleashed some kind of monster on one of his few guy friends. “Uh huh… Rarity, truth or dare?” the polychromatic pegasus asked, looking at her unicorn friend, who was still staring at Fluttershy like they’d never met before. “Hmm? Oh yes, I’ll take truth dear…” She answered absent mindedly. “Ok, was there ever a time that you weren’t all prissy and neat freakish?” Rainbow asked pointedly, trying to snap Rarity out of her trance. “Well, if you all must know.” Rarity said, turning back to face the table at large, most of which was taking sips of their drinks freely. “I used to rather enjoy playing hoofball with my father… I was rather good too. Anyway, I had no qualms about getting a little roughed up or dirty then… until one day we went outside to play after a rainstorm. Our yard had a rather large hole my father had recently put in to start a garden, and it had filled with water and just looked like an ordinary patch of shallow, wet dirt to me.” She explained, drawing out her story like only a truly talented attention fiend can, tears were even starting to gather at the corner of her eyes. “Anyway, he threw the ball to me, and I went long to catch it… and the next thing I knew, I was up to my neck in loose mud and sinking! By the time he’d gotten to the hole and fished me out, I’d been completely covered and terrified! And ever since, I can’t even stand to think about being touched by mud for fear it will swallow me whole!” “What about that time you swapped out with me at the Sisterhooves Social?” Applejack asked, leaning over the table, “Ya’ll didn’t seem ta mind the mud pit when you were hidin’ out there for a little while…” “That’s because I had a small shield around me allowing me to breathe and stay clean. I dropped it at the last minute, and I still spent the rest of that race just trying not to think about it…” Rarity answered, shivering. “Well, I gotta admit Rarity, that’s at least a pretty good reason. Now, who’s next? I know, how about you Ditzy?” “Okay. Doctor, truth or dare?” Ditzy asked, turning to her companion. “I want to try truth. I always do daring things… might be nice to try something else you know?” “Yeah yeah, Okay then… Tell everypony what your favorite adventure was.” Ditzy said, cutting him off, knowing full well that once he started, that he would NEVER stop… “Hmmm… tough call… could be that time I destroyed the Daleks… the other time I destroyed the Daleks… that night in Cairo with a certain Queen of the Nile named Cleo… No, maybe the time I stopped that batch of nanites from transforming the whole of London… No, that’s not it. What about the time I healed all those sick folks at that hospital in New New York? OOH! I know what it is!” he mused out loud, babbling off a list of things that would only make sense to another time and space traveler, the Author, or anypony who was familiar with a television show from Earth. “The time when the Weeping Angels invaded Man- I mean… Manehattan. That was a HELL of an adventure. Happened about 1200 years from now actually, so no worries for this group.” Whooves said, beaming around at everypony, who just kind of looked at him like he’d grown another head on his flank… Well, everypony but Luna and Ditzy looked at him like that… Ditzy just smiled and shook her head. Luna was looking at him like he’d just personally insulted her. “Now Doctor, if there were going to be an invasion of sorts, and I know about it, then it’s a non issue. Especially since you’ve told me when and where it will happen.” Luna chided, frowning. “Yeah well, you’d think so… funny thing history. Not always set in stone, but you do what you can.” he responded nonchalantly before pointing at Ditzy, “Now it’s your turn to choose someone Derpy!” “Right. How about you Luna?” Ditzy/Derpy said, smiling kindly at the dark blue unicorn. “Very well then… Orion, truth or dare?” “Uhhh… Dare?” Orion answered, unsure of what exactly to expect. It couldn’t be too bad, right?” “I dare you to get up on the table, and recite a poem for everypony to hear.” “Uhhh…. I don’t know any poems off the top of my head…” he answered lamely, “Can you think of another dare? I really don’t think I can handle much more alcohol right now…” “Hmm… I could dare you to take your vest off and do a little flexing on top of the table… Twilight’s letter was quite clear that you didn’t seem to have any issues with those simple tasks…” Luna responded, smirking maliciously. The rest of the ponies spread around the table were wearing various faces of desire, lust, and indifference. Oddly enough, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Bon Bon were looking at Orion with lust. Lyra, Vinyl, Applejack and Cameo simply looked interested, but not exactly lusting after the strip show. And the rest of the ponies around the table simply looked like they couldn’t care less. Nevertheless, it was the ponies looking at him with lust in their eyes that persuaded Orion to opt out for the poetry recital. He stood up on top of the table and cleared his throat, drawing a complete blank until he recalled a short poem he’d read once in college… “Come slowly, Eden,” he recited, his voice taking on a honey tone as he tried to impart the emotion of the poem into every word. “Come Slowly Eden, Lips unused to thee. Bashful, sip thy jasmines as the fainting bee, reaching late his flower, round her chamber hums, counts his nectars-alights, and is lost in balms... And so, my sweet jasmine flower, won't you grant this bee a pleasant hour?” As he got down from the table, those who had looked at him with mere interest had for the most part, joined the ranks of those looking at him with lust, and those who had looked at him with lust now seemed to be on the verge of tears. Even the indifferent seemed to be intrigued by the grey pegasus. “Damn…” Rainbow Dash said, flying over to his side, “That was so cool Orion! I’m not usually into poetry… but the way you were talking up there… I got chills!” “Uhhh… thanks Rainbow… but I’m not really a good public speaker.” Orion said, sitting down and draining another cup of wine to steady his heart rate. “Ah gotta call you out on that one sugarcube…” Applejack said, pressing into the side not currently being hogged by Rainbow Dash. “Ah ain’t ever heard a fella talk like that, and it was somethin’ else entirely… Hay, if a stallion were ta talk ta me like that, I’d probably let him rut me right then and there…” “Whoa there sis!” Macintosh called out across the table, “You give the fella his space now. Nopony’s in their right minds at the moment to be saying things like that and you know it…” “Ah was just tellin’ him the truth!” Applejack retorted, wrapping her arms around Orion’s neck protectively, “Ah ain’t botherin’ ya, am I sugarcube?” she asked, whispering softly into his ear. Orion couldn’t seem to get his mouth to work, between Applejack whispering in his ear and Rainbow playing with his wings in a drunken haze, he didn’t think he could get his body to listen to anything if he tried. “Uhhh… I think I need another drink…” he said, grabbing the cup of wine in front of Luna. “Orion! no!” Luna shouted, reaching for the cup as he drained her drink in a single gulp. A moment later, everything seemed to slow down, and then there was blackness all around him…………… V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V^V