//------------------------------// // Day 5 // Story: The Royal Ponyville Orchestra // by Distaff Pope //------------------------------// Thank Celestia, I finally had a day that didn’t involve me dealing with crazy party ponies, ditzy mail mares, and the soul crushing knowledge that I was wasting my life on a fool’s errand wasn’t in the forefront of my mind. It was my first good day I had since the whole Ponyville ordeal started. Of course, the day didn’t start well, it started with me leaving my room to avoid overhearing my neighbors as they engaged in… a rather intimate activity, let’s say. After leaving my room, I decided to sleep downstairs as Vinyl had recovered enough from her food poisoning to go to sleep upstairs, allowing me to have the living room to myself. An unknown number of hours later, I awoke to the sound of hoofsteps coming from upstairs. Had I slept in so much that Vinyl of all ponies was able to get up before me? I checked the clock, it was still late morning. “Hello,” I said as Vinyl came down the stairs. “Oh, hey Tavi, what are you doing sleeping down here?” She asked. “Ugh, I- Lyra and Bon Bon were rather loud last night and so I decided to give them their…” I stopped speaking as I noticed Vinyl struggling to suppress a grin. “You knew?” She burst out laughing and nodded. After she was able to regain her composure, she spoke, “Yeah, as a DJ, I have to keep my house pretty well sound proofed, and since I still needed to get you back for poisoning me, I thought I would dispel the soundproofing spell on your room. I am glad to see they came through.” I shoved my head into the sofa cushions, “That’s… that’s not fair. How am I going to be able to look Lyra and Bon Bon in the eyes after overhearing their escapades?” Vinyl shrugged as she sat next to me, “Everyone else in town seems to manage just fine.” “Wait,” I asked peeking up at her, “You mean everyone else in town has heard them get up to… that?” She nodded her head, “Yeah, you remember when Nightmare Moon returned during the Summer Sun Celebration?” “Of course,” I said, “Everypony remembers the day the sun failed to rise.” “Well,” she said, “A lot of ponies thought that the end was imminent, and Lyra and Bon Bon thought that since the world was about to end, they might as well go out with a bang, so the two went off somewhere they thought was secluded, and…” She trailed off, allowing me to fill in the blanks, “Well, needless to say, it wasn’t as secluded as they thought, and the whole town heard them going at it. It’s kind of funny in hindsight, but I wouldn’t go reminding them of it.” I shoved my hooves into my ears, “That is obscene Vinyl, I can’t believe they didn’t leave town after an event like that. How could you go outside knowing that everypony you will meet has heard you having…” I threw up my hooves in disgust, “I don’t think I could go outside after something like that.” Vinyl laughed, “Well they didn’t go outside for a while after that, and believe me, there was a lot of speculation about what they were up to, but they eventually went back to their daily lives, and most ponies were more than happy to not bring up the incident. It was the end of the world after all.” Lyra and Bon Bon’s initial friendliness towards me made more sense now; they had both been humiliated in front of the entire town and had finally found someone who didn’t know about “the incident.” It must have seemed like such a relief to them, and then I went and overheard them anyways. I suppose I would just have to follow the advice of the rest of the town and pretend it never happened. For their sakes, of course. “So, we’re even now?” I asked Vinyl as I finally got out of my makeshift bed. “Sure,” she said, “You poisoned me. I scarred you for life… Seems like a decent balance.” I wouldn’t say I had been scarred for life, although I would certainly never be able to look at Lyra’s obsession with humans the same way again after hearing Bon Bon’s rather… interesting statement. “So, what do you have planned today?” I asked Vinyl as I poured myself a bowl of cereal. “Not much,” she said as she followed me into the kitchen, “Gonna work on the Fusion Project and see if Pinkie needs a DJ any time soon.” I nodded, “I would love to see more about how the Fusion Project works, if you wouldn’t mind.” Vinyl beamed, “I would love to. Come on up to my work room when you are done, I need to do some prep work.” “Alright,” I said, smiling, “It’s a date.” “Oh! Uhh… I don’t mean it is an actual date, just… you know, it is agreed upon that we will meet at the time and location specified,” I could feel more and more blood rushing up to my cheeks as I spoke. “Yeah, okay,” Vinyl said, apparently unconvinced, “I am going to go upstairs and start getting everything turned on and primed. Set up can take a while.” I merely nodded as she trotted upstairs and I enjoyed my breakfast in peace. Cereal wasn’t my favorite breakfast, but it was easy enough for me to make, anything more advanced than an omelet usually required that usage of magic to make properly. Thanks to my rather dexterous hooves, I was able to compensate somewhat, but most of the time I preferred making do with more simplistic meals that didn’t take an excruciating amount of effort to prepare. After I finished my cereal and morning coffee, I washed the dishes, put them back in the cupboard, and headed over to Vinyl’s work room, only to be assaulted by a wave of sound as I opened the door. “How can you make anything this loud?” I yelled, shoving my hooves in my ears. “Oh, hey Tavi,” she said after lowering the volume, “You kind of took a while, so I thought I would put my bass cannon through its paces.” “Your… bass cannon?” I asked as I checked for any signs of hearing loss. “Yeah,” she said, “I designed it myself, it is the most powerful amplifier in Equestria. If this baby goes to max power in Ponyville, the ponies in Canterlot will hear it.” “Why would you ever need something that loud?” She stared at me, her goggles made it impossible to tell if she was blinking or not. “It’s the loudest amp in Equestria.” I facehoofed, “Yes, I understand that it is the loudest, my question though is what practical purpose it could serve. It seems more like a weapon system than a proper speaker.” “Oh yeah,” she said laughing, “I have been forbidden to play it anywhere that wasn’t protected by a sound proofing or sound dampening spell. The mayor said it was a public safety concern.” “Right, so why build something you can’t even use properly?” I asked again, trying to understand her motives. Again there was a pause, “It is the loudest in Equestria.” I let out an exasperated sigh, “This conversation is becoming rather circuitous, what did you want to show me?” “Oh right,” she said, “Well, you’ve already heard the bass cannon, so there is really no need to show it to you again.” My ears cheered at the news, “So I guess I will show you the sound mixing booth.” At that, she levitated two albums towards the central turntable while she adjusted some knobs. I have no idea what DJ equipment is called, so you will have to pardon my ignorance when it comes to describing the technical terminology of what she did. Vinyl placed the latest Sapphire Shores album and Maestro’s Symphony No. 9 on the turntable, and used her telekinesis to adjust the levers and knobs on the turntable. “I don’t like using my hooves for the mixing work, it is a bit of a delicate operation, so I let my magic do the fine adjustment stuff. “Right, because no pony could ever do something that involves delicate and precise movements with her hooves,” I said, relishing the chance to not be the pony committing the faux pas for once. My roommate just laughed it off, “What can I say Tavi, you are a freak amongst ponies, and I mean that in the best way possible. I don’t think I could play the cello as good as you do even if I had years of practice.” The compliment was nice, although I would have preferred if it didn’t involve me being called a freak. Still, considering the praise that came with it, I wasn’t that upset. “So, what exactly do you do now?” I asked as Vinyl finished making her adjustments. “Well,” she said, hitting what I can only assume was the play button, “I have been thinking these two pieces would play off of each other rather nicely, so…” She was interrupted by what sounded like three timberwolves fighting over dinner, Vinyl immediately started fiddling with her knobs, and within a few seconds the sounds began to complement each other. The baroque music gave Miss Shores’ standard bubblegum pop a weight it normally lacked, and the combination managed to draw out the best aspects of both songs (Although I would argue that the symphony’s best was already easily on display. Still, it might make classical music more accessible to ponies). “There,” Vinyl said as she finished her adjustments, “What do you think?” “It’s… it’s actually quite good. In fact, this might be the only time I have heard a pop song and enjoyed it.” Vinyl laughed as she flipped a few more switches, “High praise coming from you, now I just need to record it and press it onto another record. Makes things easier if I ever want to play it at a party.” “So is this what you do?” I asked, “Mix songs and play them for ponies?” “Kind of,” she said, “While I do occasionally play one of my mixed songs at a party, most of the time I just play regular songs.” “Wait, the only thing you do at parties is change records then?” “Yes and no, the main thing I do is keep an eye on the party’s atmosphere, and pick a song to keep things going. If ponies start getting exhausted, I play a slower song to let them rest a bit, and if the energy starts lacking I play a really high energy song. Basically, I keep everypony happy by giving them what they need before they need it. Although yes, that mostly involves me just changing records. The way she described it, she made her role seem vital in keeping the party going, she didn’t just change records; she was a vital part of the party infrastructure. Even if she just changed records. “So then, how many records do you have?” I asked, “You must have quite the collection.” Vinyl grinned excitedly, “It’s funny you should ask that Tavi,” she said as she moved towards one of the larger cabinets in the room, “Because I have all of them.” She wasn’t lying, the cabinet was absolutely stuffed with records, and Vinyl had to use her telekinesis to keep quite a few of them from falling, “Sorry about that,” she said, “I might have more records than I do space in my cabinet.” I nodded, “It doesn’t help that you seem to just be shoving them in with no particular attention paid to organizing them or keeping them neat.” Honestly, I would be surprised if all of those records were still functional considering how tightly packed in they were. “Well, ya know,” she said, shrugging as she shoved the escaped records back into the cabinet, “There used to be a system, but I acquired so many albums they kind of buried it. Still, I know where everything is,” she looked back at the cabinet which bulged under the strain of so many albums, “Mostly” “You know,” I said, "I'm pretty good at keeping things neat, maybe I could help you organize your collection sometime?” It wasn’t my greatest idea, and I would more than likely be forced to spend several days sorting through albums, making sure they were placed in the proper sleeve and creating a… more efficient storage system, but Vinyl had been more than accommodating, and I felt I should offer to help her out in some way. She rubbed her chin in thought, “I don’t know. You won’t throw any albums away will you?” “Of course not, I will just organize them and make it easier to find what you are looking for,” and also prevent your cabinet from becoming so dense it manages to collapse into itself. “Alright,” she said, “Just let me know when you are doing it, and I will help you out.” Wonderful. “Then is there anything else you want to show me?” I asked. She shook her head, “Nope, not really. In fact, I am about to start recording, and I kind of need things quiet for that.” I smiled and nodded, taking her hint, “As you wish, I have to unpack my possessions anyways, so if you need me, I will be in my room.” “Yeah, sure,” she said as her attention shifted towards her work. She waved at me dismissively, “Have fun.” I actually did have fun unpacking, most ponies don’t, but I found it soothing to look through my possessions and find a proper place for them. My collection of pink bowties and collars went into the dresser, the folders containing my collection of sheet music were reordered before being sent to rest on my bookshelf, as were my texts on musical theory and scrapbooks, and my quills and parchment were placed on my desk. After unpacking everything else, I found my Miss Minor doll sitting at the bottom of the second box staring up at me. Before I could think, I found myself scooping her up and wrapping my forelegs around her. “Oh, I am so glad I have you back Miss Minor, I thought I had lost you forever. Promise you will forgive me?” Yes, I talked to my doll, but in my defense, she was given to me by my grandmother shortly after I received my cutie mark and had been my only roommate ever since I moved out of my parent’s house. A lady needs someone to talk to while she is practicing the cello. Smiling happily, I placed her in the position of honor on my desk. While her mane was now ragged, and her coat a bit thin at spots, she was still my favorite (and only) doll and inanimate companion. “It’s so good to see you again, Miss Minor, do you want to hear me practice on the cello?” She didn’t respond (Obviously). “Well, if you are so certain, then I will begin,” I said as I drew my bow across the strings and began practicing for my concert tomorrow. The experience was relaxing as usual, and provided a sort of meditative calmness. All of my problems faded away and I became one with my instrument. Apparently, whatever had caused my slip ups a few days ago had faded away, and I could now perform adequately. I opened my eyes to find that several hours had gone by, and the sun was now low in the sky. Part of me wanted to keep playing, but I had to read a few books if I ever planned on facing Twilight or Lyra again. I carried two books to my desk, and I debated on whether I should start A Brief History of the Unicorn Kingdoms or Humans and You: Equestria’s Secret History First. While part of me wanted to slight unicorns everywhere by opting to read Humans and You first, I decided to stick with the reputable scholarly publication as opposed to somepony’s deranged rantings. Several minutes later, I had made the discovery that A Brief History of the Unicorn Kingdoms was incredibly dull. For a kingdom that was notorious for intrigue, succession crises, and civil war, the text had endeavored to make it as dull as possible. Of course, I am not a mare who needs her books to be packed with excitement, but I do appreciate it when works at least try to be accessible. Still, the book had gained some popularity recently, and I hoped that if I just stuck with it, the text would become more interesting. It did not. “I don’t understand the appeal of this book,” I said to Miss Minor as I forced myself to read through another chapter, “The actual events are intriguing, but the prose is stiff and dry, and it feels more like I am reading a meticulously detailed journal than an actual text, listen to this: “On the 83rd day of the 57th year of Galaxxi the Mad’s Reign, Prince Obsidian awoke at approximately 8:37 in the morning. He proceeded to spend between fifteen to twenty-three minutes in bed, depending upon the sources, but all accounts agree that he had arisen by 9:00. He had his usual breakfast of blueberry pancakes and orange juice after getting out of bed, however it should be noted that due to war shortages he was forced to eat his pancakes without butter. “And then it jumps to another character and starts describing their morning. Who could possibly care so much about the minutiae of somepony’s daily life?” I flipped to the front of the book and found that it was written by somepony named Night Light. I didn’t recognize the name. The about the author page was also uninformative, describing him as a professor of early Equestrian history, and mentioning that he had recently been appointed the Royal Historian by Princess Celestia. There was another paragraph that talked about his family, but other than revealing he had a wife and children, it was generally uninformative. I sighed and pushed the book away. Perhaps I would have better luck with Humans and You. At least the cover looked interesting, it was filled with strange bipedal beings, apparently the artist’s rendering of humans, descending from the heavens as a crowd of ponies looked heavenwards. This text and A Brief History made for an interesting contrast, while one was dry and filled with footnotes and citations, the other was written in a sensationalist style while offering up nothing but speculation. As much as I hate to admit it, I found myself engrossed in Humans and You, and I found the sun had set when I finally pulled myself away from it. That was odd, I thought as I stood up, I was almost positive that Vinyl would have interrupted me at some point during the day. I shrugged and decided to fix something to eat. As I headed downstairs, I heard some faint noises coming from Vinyl’s DJtorium, and decided she must have gotten wrapped up in her work. I smiled as I headed downstairs; it was good to know that I wasn’t the only pony who could get so caught up in her work that she lost all track of time. I fixed up a daisy sandwich and hot tea for dinner, before deciding to leave another sandwich out for Vinyl so she would have something to eat when she finally tore herself away from her work, and sat at the table to eat (This is beginning to read like an excerpt from A Brief History). The meal was rather tasty and after drinking my tea I felt ready to write my journal entry for the day and go to bed. It is nice to have an uneventful day that can be accurately summarized in under ten pages. Hopefully it is a harbinger for normal days to come.