//------------------------------// // Ring of Fire // Story: The Man in Black // by Eagle //------------------------------// “You look wonderful, dear. Please stop worrying,” Rarity assured the musician. Thanks to Rarity and her boutique, Johnny was rather well dressed for his first performance. Not too classy, but classy enough for a performance; all in black, of course. He’d even gotten a fine haircut, which alone did wonders for his looks. “It ain’t that, it’s that I’m worried about the reception I’ll get,” he explained. “Octavia was right about what she said. If the masses don’t like the sound, then I guess its game over.” “Well, she also told you not to worry,” Rarity retorted. “Now please, just relax. You’ve done everything you can, haven’t you?” “The only thing I need is for her to bring me the new set strings, and I’m not even sure if that’ll work.” “Octavia is great with stringed instruments, Johnny,” Twilight said. “And you let her study yours long enough for her to memorize how to make them, if anypony can make them, she can.” “Yea, so just stop worrying,” Rainbow said. “There isn’t anything else you can do, right? All you’re doing is hurting yourself.” Johnny thought about it for a minute and decided she was right, though he didn’t really need to think that much to know it, just to realize it. He had practiced, prepared, and picked out the songs he thought would work out best. The only thing that would come from fretting over things now would be more problems. “Thanks, Rainbow.” “No problem,” she replied. “Alright, I guess I’d better get goin’ or I’ll be late,” he said. “Wish me luck!” “Hey, aren’t you going to invite us to your first performance?” Pinkie asked, popping up in front of him and blocking his exit. “Ya’ll really wanna come see me play?” “Sure we do, sugarcube,” Applejack said. “You might be an alien, but you’re still our friend. I-I mean-we wouldn’t miss your first show for the world!” “Well, that’s very kind of ya’ll. I feel better knowin’ ya’ll will be watchin’ me.” “You didn’t really think we wouldn’t come, did you?” Twilight asked, leading the way out the door into the night. “What kind of friends would we be if we didn’t support you?” Johnny and the group moved through town, which was rather quiet since it was nighttime. During the walk, he couldn’t help but notice that Applejack was walking a bit closer than usual. He decided it was just his paranoia getting to him again and continued to focus on the walking, which wasn’t all that long. The club Vinyl had got for him wasn’t really a club; to him it resembled a bar-grill restaurant, or just a bar in general. He figured it was fine; hearing about the kind of clubs Vinyl performed in, he didn’t think it was the best place for him anyways. This kind of playing suited him well for a starting gig. And, he always did enjoy playing at local joints, like back at his home in a small town outside Nashville, Tennessee. With a name like ‘Ponyville Pub’, it didn’t take much to guess that this was as local as it got. The inside seemed quite nice; a little darkened with for the performance, but not too much. It seemed quite clean, with everything being well organized and kept. All in all, for a first job, it was pretty nice. “Mr. Cash!” Looking around, he spotted Octavia, seated at a table with a colt he hadn’t met before. “Hey, how are you doin’?” “I’m good, thank you,” she said. “Allow me to introduce my coltfriend, Smooth Sailing.” Johnny didn’t have a hard time guessing his job. “Nice to meet you,” he said, in the same accent as Octavia’s. “You too, sir,” John replied. “Vinyl didn’t come?” “She was busy tonight, but she wanted me to tell you good luck,” Octavia explained. “Well, do thank her again for me.” “Of course. Before I forget, here are those strings for your…guitar, correct?” “Yes, thank you so much!” “It’s no trouble at all,” she assured him. “You’ve got plenty of time before your performance, so take your time changing them out.” While the six went and found a table for themselves, Johnny found an open area where he could focus on re-stringing his acoustic. To his amazement, the strings were near-perfect; especially for one who hadn’t even seen a guitar until asked to make them. It took a while, but when he was done, it sounded much smoother and fresher. Having played guitar for so long, tuning was no problem, being able to do it by ear. When he was done, he sat and relaxed. The ponies inside had all looked and stared at him at one point or another, but he didn’t really blame them. The stunned look on their faces seemed rather funny to him. “How you feelin’?” Applejack asked, taking a seat next to him. “Much better now, just a little tired,” he answered. “You want me to get you somethin’? Maybe some coffee or a pill or-” “N-no!” he jumped, gaining the attention of a few guests for a little bit before they went back about their business. “I mean…no thank you.” “There somethin’ wrong?” she asked. “Was it somethin’ I said?” “Yea, actually,” he said. “Back home, I…kinda had a drug addiction…to pills, specifically.” “Oh,” Applejack replied, her eyes widening. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean anything by it!” “It’s fine AJ,” he assured her. “You didn’t know; I guess I shoulda told ya’ll when I got here.” Johnny’s use of her nickname caught her by surprise; he had known about it for a while, but never bothered to use it until now. “So, are you still...on it?” “No, not anymore, thank God.” “How’d you stop?” “A lot of things, but the biggest was my wife June,” he explained. “She must’ve been real sweet.” “She was amazin’. I’d threaten her so much when she’d get rid of my stashes, but she kept doin’ it all the same, all for me,” Johnny explained, a sad look on his face. “Was she…um…still around when you passed on?” “No, she died before me. I was hopin’ to meet her when I died, but I guess I got some more work to do before I see her again.” “I’m sorry, sugar.” “It’s fine. I think she’s watchin’ me right now.” “Really?” “I hope so; I’ll need all the help I can get tonight.” “Well, I think it’s ‘bout time for you to get started,” Applejack suggested. “Yea, thanks for the talk, AJ.” “Anytime, darlin’,” she said, going back to her table. Johnny could’ve sworn she’d been acting weird lately, but decided to save it for another day and focus on the present. The manager announced Johnny, who didn’t really listen. Getting up, he made his way across the room to the stage, which was really just part of the room that had been cleared for him. He could feel the eyes on him as he walked across. The prospect of an alien musician performing an unknown music had packed the little building with ponies from all over, so it wasn’t quite as local as usual. Taking a standing spot, he adjusted the microphone to where it could reach him, which was at its full length, and said his hello. “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash,” he announced. “It’s nice so many of ya’ll wanted to stop by and take a listen to my music.” There was a small round of respectful claps. “So, I decided to get a few songs together, I hope ya’ll enjoy.” Gripping his guitar, he prepared to play. He thought the first song would go well, but he wondered if it would sound strange with just him playing and singing; he’d only been able to get a few trumpet players for his second one. He remembered singing this same song with June all those years ago. “June, if you are watchin’, please help me here, darlin’.” The crowd seemed to react well to the first song. There was another respectful round of claps. The biggest reaction came from Pinkie and the others at their table, cheering for him. “Woo! Go Johnny!” she yelled. “Nice work, partner!” Applejack added. Johnny thought he heard a light ‘yay’ from the direction of the table, but it was hard to tell over the others. “Thanks, thank you,” he said, motioning for the trumpet players to join him. “This next song was one of my bigger ones, and it’s got a bit more energy to it. Hope you enjoy the Ring of Fire.” This song got an even greater reaction. The first time the crowd had been getting used to the sound, this time, they were enjoying it. This time, the claps were joined by cheers and whistles, lasting for some time. “Alright, I can tell ya’ll enjoyed that one.” He was interrupted by another applause of approval. “Ok, well I got one more to play for ya’ll tonight.” The final one had been much slower, but it fit well. It was enough to get another massive applause from the crowd. Most stood up and cheered for some time when it was over. “Well, I’d like to thank you for the warm reception,” he said, his speaking causing the ponies to quiet. “I hope I’ll get to perform some more for ya’ll one day-” “More!” one in the crowd asked. “The last one was too short!” “Well, if I feel like my song is sung, I don’t care if it’s short,” Johnny chuckled. “One more!” the crowd chanted. “One more! One more! One more!” “Oh, alright. I’ll give ya’ll a little encore for bein’ so kind.” The last song was the slowest of them all, but it’s reception was just as good as the others. A final, long applause followed for a couple minutes. All in all, it was a pretty good night. “Alright, I got to get goin’,” Cash said. “Thank ya’ll! Good night!” He pushed his way passed a few ponies, wanting to talk with Octavia first. “I think we can call that a success, huh?” he asked. “That was much more than a success! With that kind of reception, I think you’ve got a very bright future here, Mr. Cash,” she replied. “So, you think you can get me booked again?” Octavia sat there and thought for a minute, thinking deeply. “How would you like to go on a tour, Mr. Cash?”