//------------------------------// // Endings in Canterlot (Epilogue) // Story: First Meeting // by Terrasora //------------------------------// “Are they back yet?” “Not yet, dear.” “Oh.” A pause. “How ‘bout now?” Gramma Phone chuckled. “Not yet either. Maybe in a few more minutes.” Vinyl Scratch stared at the door, then at the clock, then back at the door. “How many more minutes?” “Not too long, dear.” “Did they get lost?” Another grandmotherly laugh from Gramma Phone. “They’re big ponies, I’m sure that they can find their way.” Vinyl let out a groan of boredom, flopping onto the floor. “Then what’s taking them so long?!” “It’s only been ten minutes.” “But it feels like forever.” Vinyl rolled on the floor for a few moments, conveying her boredom through movement. “Vinyl,” scolded Octavia from her seat, “don’t do that, that’s dirty!” Vinyl grunted, but didn’t move. “Vinyl,” warned Octavia. The other filly raised her head, lifting the glasses that were still far too big for her face. Her red eyes stared straight into Octavia’s eyes. “Make me.” Octavia gripped a pillow, thought better of it, and glanced at her Nana. Gramma Phone chuckled. A pillow flew across the room, landing squarely in Vinyl’s face. She let out a shriek, the end of it gurgling into laughter. Vinyl turned towards Octavia, their grins mirrored. The filly’s magic sparked, the pillow lifting an inch off the ground before it fell back towards the floor. Another pillow smacked into Vinyl’s face. By then, Vinyl was on her hooves, a pillow hanging from her mouth, glaring up at Octavia, but betrayed by her grin. “You better run,” said Vinyl, the words surprisingly clear around the pillow. Octavia let out a shriek, jumping off the couch and trying to get as much distance as possible between her and the other filly’s murderous pillow. For a good half hour, giggles, playful growls, the soft thump of a pillow making contact, and the occasional grandmotherly chuckle were the only sounds in the house. “Stop!” shouted Vinyl between laughs. “Stop it!” Octavia stood above her, repeatedly dropping a pillow onto Vinyl, a spray of feathers firing upwards every time it made contact. “Never!” said Octavia, bringing down the pillow once more. Vinyl’s magic flared, briefly grabbing the pillow and tearing it to the side. It was a weak tug, but enough to knock Octavia onto her side and give Vinyl command over the pillow. Octavia flung her hooves upwards, blocking the worst of the fluffy assault. The fillies laughed all the while, high-pitched giggles floating through the house. “What’s going on over there?” called Vinyl Record from the next room. “Nothing!” replied the fillies in perfect unison. They looked at each other, laughing once again. The pillow stopped moving. “Tavi?” asked Vinyl, still standing over Octavia. “Mmmm?” “Can… can I kiss you?” Octavia gave a little start, her eyes widening. She glanced at the door, then back at Vinyl. Then she nodded. “Okay.” Vinyl grinned and leaned forward, aiming for Octavia’s cheek. Her glasses slipped off, hitting Octavia right in the forehead. “Ouch,” said Octavia. She rubbed at her forehead. “Ohmygosh! Tavi, are you okay?” Vinyl leaned in closer, looking for a bruise. “Did it hurt? Are you hurt? Please don’t be hurt!” “I’m okay.” “Are you sure?” Octavia poked at her forehead. “Yes, I’m sure.” “Are you sure you’re sure?” Vinyl’s eyes were wide, shining with worry. Octavia smiled and gave one, quick nod. “Mmmmhmm.” Vinyl let out a sigh of relief, then paused. “Can—Can I still kiss you?” The other filly blushed a bit deeper. She nodded. Vinyl leaned forward, her lips brushing against Octavia’s forehead in a single, soft kiss. The fillies pulled away, both of them flushed and giggling. “Well, that’s adorable,” said a voice from the doorway. Octavia and Vinyl’s heads snapped up, their eyes locking onto the grinning colt, his two-toned red mane disheveled and out of place. “LP!” Vinyl carefully stepped off of Octavia and ran towards her brother, leaping and pulling him into a hug. “You’re back!” Long Play chuckled, tousling Vinyl’s mane. “Hey kid. Taking care of those glasses?” “Yeah! I always have them on!” Vinyl touched a hoof to her face, expecting plastic, but feeling nothing but fur. A tinge of panic crept into her eyes as her head darted back and forth, looking for the tell-tale purple lenses. “Vinyl,” said Long Play with the slightest bit of worry, “where are the glasses?” Octavia trotted forward, the shades carefully balanced on the top of her head. “Here you go, Vinyl.” Vinyl quickly scooped the glasses up, shoving them over her eyes.  “I guess they slipped off,” she said, even as the shades slipped an inch down her muzzle. Long Play’s muzzle scrunched slightly. “You’re lucky your fillyfriend was here to save you.” Vinyl grinned sheepishly. “F-Fillyfriend?” asked Octavia. “Well, yeah!” said Vinyl in surprise. “How else are we gonna get married if you’re not my fillyfriend?” Octavia blushed for the umpteenth time that day. Long Play laughed. “You’re still on that, Vinyl?” “Yeah!” Vinyl puffed out her chest, staring challengingly up at Long Play. “I’m still gonna marry Tavi!” “I believe you.” “Before you marry Harmonia!” Harmonia poked her head into the room. “Who’s marrying me?” “I am, apparently,” said Long Play. “Are the fillies still talking about that?” asked Harmonia with a roll of her eyes. “Well, aren’t you gonna get married?” asked Vinyl. “With him? Hardly.” Long Play ran a hoof through his mane. “You’d be lucky to get somepony like me.” Harmonia laughed. “Don’t laugh!” protested Long Play. “I’m being serious!” “I’m sure.” “You’re the one who went out of your way to pick me up.” Harmonia’s muzzle scrunched slightly. “That was just common courtesy.” “You waited out there for, like, an hour!” “Only forty-five minutes.” “You even counted!” “Because you kept me waiting!” Long Play and Harmonia bickered, going back and forth and back and forth. “Tavi?” asked Vinyl in a whisper. “Are they in love?” Octavia considered the two of them for a few moments. “Yes. Definitely.” *** “So long story short,” said Long Play, jabbing a fork in Vinyl’s direction. “Don’t ever be a DJ. I don’t even want you near a nightclub until you’re thirty.” “Why not?” “I’ll tell you when you’re thirty.” Laughter rippled through the table. For a brief moment, the only sound was that of forks scraping against plates. “Have you told them yet, Harmonia?” asked Gramma Phone. Harmonia looked up, hurriedly swallowing a mouthful of salad. “Told them what?” Gramma Phone cocked an eyebrow. “Ah, yes.” Harmonia cleared her throat. “Well, uh, I’m going to be a teacher?” She glanced at her grandmother. Gramma Phone nodded. “A teacher?” asked Vinyl Record. Harmonia nodded. “Well, a teacher’s assistant for now, as I’m finishing up my studies.Then I’m apply for a position at the Canterlot Conservatory.” “That’s where I want to go!” said Octavia excitedly. “A teacher?” asked Long Play. “Wouldn’t have expected it.” Harmonia glanced at him. “I choose not to take offense at that.” “Won’t that be a lot of work?” asked Vinyl Record. “Quite a lot. I probably won’t even have a proper position in the Conservatory until Octavia gets there. Assuming that I’m actually hired in the first place.” “Which she will be,” said Gramma Phone confidently. “We don’t know that, Nana,” said Harmonia. “There’s still a lot of time until then.” Gramma Phone waved a dismissive hoof. “Oh, ponyfeathers. They’d be a fool not to hire you and even more foolish not to accept Octavia when she’s old enough.” Octavia turned towards her friend. “Vinyl, do you wanna go to the Conservatory too?” “If Tavi’s gonna be there, then I’m gonna be there too.” A pause. “LP, what’s a Conservatory?” “It’s a really big music school,” answered Long Play with a smile. “Oh.” Vinyl’s face lit up, the purple shades sliding down her muzzle. “Yeah! That sounds cool! I wanna go to a music school!” Vinyl Record clicked her tongue. “Isn’t that all the way out in Canterlot? That’s a bit far.” "You didn't mind sending me off to Canterlot,” said Long Play. “Double standards, dear.” “Anyway,” cut in Harmonia, “there’s still quite a bit of time before any of us have to make that decision.” Gramma Phone sipped at her drink, smiling a knowing smile. “Oh, you whippersnappers. That day’ll be here far sooner than you think.” 11 years later… Octavia let out a sigh, stretching slightly to get the soreness of Moving Day out of her hooves. She’d thought that the upperclassponies’ complaints had been nothing short of ramblings, meant to scare incoming freshman. This was not the case. Moving Day had been every bit the worrying, cumbersome process that the older students had warned her about. It certainly didn’t help that Octavia had somehow managed to shove her entire room into her luggage. Or that the Conservatory had chosen to place her in the highest floor of the dorm. Or that the elevator was broken. It was, all in all, not a very good first impression. Octavia straightened, swiping a water bottle from the top of a desk and walking over to an open window. All of Canterlot seemed to stretch out before her: the tall buildings of campus, the specks of students running around, the very tops of the houses beyond campus, and far, far in the distance, Canterlot Castle itself. This makes everything a bit better. Octavia sipped at her water, surveying Canterlot for a few more moments. I wonder where she is right now. “Admiring the view?” asked a voice from the doorway. Octavia turned, feeling the slightest sense of déjà vu. A purple colt with a blue mane and a permanently fixed cheeky grin stood just inside the room. “Harpo,” said Octavia, “this is the girls’ dorm.” Harpo Parish Nadermane went a few steps deeper into the room, flopping onto an unmade bed. “I’m quite aware of that, Octavia.” “You’re not allowed in here.” “Not officially, no. But it’s much more comfortable here.” Harpo sniffed the air a few times. “The boys’ dorm smells like… Well, honestly, I don’t know how to describe the smell.” Octavia’s muzzle scrunched slightly. “Charming.” “Not even a little.” Harpo leaned back, laying down fully on the bed. “Do you know your roommate yet?” “Beauty Brass. Do you know her?” Harpo shook his head. “I’d guess that she’s a beauty and that she plays some kind of brass instrument.” “How intuitive,” deadpanned Octavia. “And who’s your roommate?” “I don’t have one. I managed to get a single, since it makes things easier if I ever manage to get a coltfriend.” Octavia nodded. “Sensible.” A pause. “I suppose.” Silence fell within the dorm room. Octavia surveyed her luggage, hoping that Beauty Brass had more foresight than she did. “Wanna walk around campus?” asked Harpo. Octavia threw one last glance around the room, taking in the unpacked boxes, the sheer amount of clutter that would probably keep her roommate from taking more than a few steps inside. “Let’s go,” she said. The two stepped out of the room and began heading down the hallway. “There’s a very nice café not too far from here,” said Harpo. “If you’re hungry, I mean.” On the other end of the hallway, a set of hooves froze, then began making their way towards the pair. “That sounds rather nice,” said Octavia. “Moving Day tired me out.” The hooves picked up their pace, breaking into a full on run. The pair of students turned, seeing little more than a white and blue blur before it barreled into Octavia. “TAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAVIIIIIIIII!” shouted Vinyl, now straddling the mare. “Tavi, it’s you! I found you! Hi Tavi!” She waved. Octavia tried to catch her breath. “V-Vinyl?” “Uh-huh!” Vinyl nodded. “I… Y-you’re… Why are you here?” “I go here!” “But you’re younger than I am.” “I skipped a few grades.” Vinyl grinned, quickly lowering her head and planting a peck of a kiss on Octavia’s cheek. “C’mon, don’t act like you’re not excited.” Harpo cleared his throat. “A… friend of yours, Octavia?” Vinyl looked up. “Marefriend.” Harpo blinked a few times. “You… you have a marefriend?” “No… Well, yes,” said Octavia, “but…” she sighed. “Harpo, this is Vinyl Scratch. Vinyl, this is Harpo Parish Nadermane.” Harpo reached out a hoof. “That’s a long name,” said Vinyl, wildly shaking the proffered hoof. “Just Harpo’s fine.” The colt grit his teeth against the pain. “Octavia, you still haven’t explained yourself.” Octavia rubbed a hoof between her eyes. “It’s a long story.” A grey mare, her mane neatly bobbed, poked her head into the hallway. “Mister Nadermane, Miss Philharmonica, and Miss Scratch, I would very much appreciate if you did not make such a racket in the hallway.” “Harmonia!” said Vinyl excitedly. “You’re here too?” Harmonia smiled slightly, though she tried to cover. “Miss Scratch, I will ask you to refer to me as Professor Philharmonica while on campus.” Vinyl ignored her, turning towards Octavia. “Tavi, it’s just like old times! Isn’t this gonna be fun!” Octavia shook her head.