//------------------------------// // Chapter 6: Symphonic Echoes // Story: Moonlight Sonata // by Lynked //------------------------------// It was late. They were late. The night had come swiftly, the dark outside only fluctuated by the shimmering of the ghostly moon. The pale light glistened in through any windows it hit. The clock was approaching seven, and they were supposed to be at the captain's table five minutes ago. As Vinyl and Octavia charged down the hall and into the foyer, they exchanged glances. Vinyl's was that of false concern, while Octavia's was of utter annoyance. After the flower had worn off around midday or so, her clinginess had given way to something less adorable: a migraine. Coupled with the fact that it was Vinyl who had kept them waiting, it was an easy assumption to make that the cellist was a bad mood. "What a great way to start the night..." Vinyl muttered under her breath, careful as to not let her marefriend hear. They trotted calmly through the foyer and into the piano lounge; anything faster and they would appear uncouth. Celestia forbid Octavia seeming uncouth. So they stuck to a canter, making their way down the carpeted aisle, and into the elevator lobby. Vinyl, taking the lead, trotted right past the steel elevators, and up the stairs. "Oh Vinyl," Tav called from behind her, "unless you plan on turning into a pegasus, I suggest you get on the elevator." The DJ glanced back just in time to see her sneering mate enter an empty elevator. Quickly she joined Tav, rushing in and pushing the proper button. The doors meshed close, and within seconds, they were shooting up a floor. No words were exchanged as the two mares exited the car - the pressure of the situation alone was enough to silence them. Out they ran, into a room that was a perfect copy of the lower lobby, excluding the stairs. To their left was a similar archway, crowded by a few straggling ponies such as themselves. With quickened haste, both mares raced into the archway, and out of the little cache it fed into. They now found themselves in the lofts of the dining hall - the perfect overlook of Lyra's stage, empty and soundless though it was. The harpist was not playing tonight; that job was taken over by a pianist who had set up in the corner of the loft, next to the captain's table. The table itself was on the other side of the room, an easily locatable target, as the huge piano, illustrious captain, and vibrant mares all made it stand out. Vinyl led the way, hurrying around the corner of the open loft, and down an aisle of blue carpet. Octavia was quick behind her, and soon, the pair approached the table. It was laid out for a feast. The long, rectangular slab sat with a blue tablecloth depicting a moon draped over it. At the head was the captain, sitting next to the piano. To his left were the well dressed Lyra and Bonbon, both giving expectant eyes to the DJ and the cellist, and to his right were two open seats painted of gold. Vinyl and Octavia curtly took hold of them, exchanging many apologies, excuses, and one or two blames. "Well, well," the captain started, suave as ever, "four very pretty mares at my table. I'm a rather lucky stallion." His hat lay next to his bread plate, his tux was neat and ironed, and his wings were properly tucked by his sides - he had come more than prepared. "Oh my," Octavia giggled. She was just getting settled into her chair, her pink gown giving her more trouble than it's worth. "I'm flattered-" "But we're all taken," Vinyl said, cutting her marefriend off. She herself was having a fit trying to get adjusted; her scarlet gown too was annoying. Even still, she gave a polite smile to show no hard feelings. The stallion whipped his dark blue bangs from his face, giving a genuine smile back. "Ah, yes, of course you are! I envy you mares, you know; love's a hard thing to come by in this day and age, and yet here you all are, happy and together!" Vinyl cringed at the statement. Giving a look to Lyra for some support, and only getting a soft smile in concern, she attempted to withdraw from the conversation. Her gaze slipped away, turning to the small candle in the center of the table. Doing her best to appear preoccupied, she stared intently at the little flickering flame. This did not work. "So then," the captain began again, "you must be Octavia the Cellist. Lyra here has told me of your magnificence with a bow." The grey mare, now the center of attention, blushed and looked away with the playful wave of a hoof. "And if that is true, then this lovely lady must be none other than Vinyl Scratch." The DJ choked at the mention of her name. "I, uh, yeah, t-that's me," she stammered, trying to refocus her attention to the captain. She failed though, landing her eyes upon Lyra and Bonbon instead, both of whom were giving her nervous smiles. Tonight meant a lot to them both and, as unfortunate as it was, Vinyl knew she was the only one who could mess it up. "Well it's a pleasure to meet you Miss Scratch," the captain politely said. In a rather rapid topic change, he continued speaking with: "Just before you and the stunning Miss Octavia here arrived, I believe you, Lyra, were going to enlighten me with the workings of a harp." "Ah yes," the mint unicorn said in a tone most formal. "It's rather hard to play, considering..." Soon she was lost in her ranting on the workings of the instrument, providing plenty of hoof motions and elaborate faces. Vinyl watched with a pretended interest and an uneasy smile; situations like these were the worst. Nowhere else could she feel so out of place than at a fancy occasion, already at the chagrin of three other mares. To buy some time - and hopefully kill off the churning in her gut - she began glancing around the room. The pianist behind captain Starlight was playing away at a piece the DJ easily recognized as - no doubt the cause of Octavia's singular taste of music - Clair De Luna. A calming peace...if she was drowning in her own pity, that is. No, she was simply uneasy. The soft piano did absolutely nothing for that. "Fascinating," Starlight noted as Lyra finished. "I never would have imagined it to be so complicated. I say, the only instrument I can play is a ship's horn." Octavia and Lyra both got a good chortle from this. Bonbon too let loose a little giggle, covering her mouth with a hoof. Laughter seemed to be abundant. As for the DJ unicorn, however, she was smiling the best smile she could muster. Fake, obviously enough, but it was all she had. Soon two waitresses came out in black dresses with bread baskets and menus balanced on their backs. One split off to Vinyl and Octavia, whilst the other attended to the opposite side of the table. They rested two baskets down, one for each party, and then distributed the menus. They then began taking drink orders, beginning with Starlight. The captain was a more chivalrous colt than Vinyl had presumed. Extending a hoof to Lyra, then sweeping it across his front, he said, "Please, ladies first. I can wait." Both nodded, and turned to face their assigned parties. As Lyra and her marefriend began their orders, so did Vinyl and Octavia. "Hmm," the cellist began, placing a socked hoof under her chin. "Tonight's a rather special night I suppose...I think I'll have a small glass of your finest Woodford Reserve Bourbon please. Oh, um, the Distiller's Select." Vinyl was. In. Awe. Did her anti-alcohol marefriend just order a glass of whiskey? When the waitress came to take her order, the DJ was too dumbstruck to speak. It took a firm nudge from Octavia to set her back into motion. "I, uh, yeah drinks... I'll take the, uh..." Reasoning kicked in here; if Tav could order hard liquor, then she sure as hay could. "Yeah, I'll take a full glass of vodka or something. Just make it hard and full," she said with an edge of excitement. A grin was plastered to her face as she watched the waitress scribble her order down. "Um, excuse me?" Octavia sneered, giving Vinyl an evil eye. To the waitress, she said, "She'll have no hard liquor, thank you very much." "I'll have a glass of vodka," Vinyl seethed, her tone choppy and filled with annoyance - her life, her rules. "Vinyl..." "Thank you," the DJ said. She gave the waitress a smile, dismissing her from the table. The orange mare nodded and took her leave, orders scribbled down in her little flip-book. "Just what do you think you are doing?" Octavia was shaking, her hooves curved and her eyes darted. She spoke to Vinyl in her hushed, rushed, angry tone that she normally would when she scolded the unicorn in public. "What are you doing? Getting whiskey," the white mare scoffed. Her head tilted up in a display of disdain. "Do you wish to know why I can get whiskey, Scratches?" Vinyl winced at the use of her nickname - a name only used when things were blithe between them - for scolding purposes. "I can get whiskey because I'm no drunken deviant. Look at yourself; you can guzzle a flagon of whiskey in an hour! Uncouthness is stuck in your fur." Her tone getting slightly louder than a whisper, Vinyl retorted, "Or maybe stuck-upness is stuck in your fur! Why can't you let me run my own life, huh?" "Um, girls?" Lyra asked with a nervous chime. Her face was that of angst; so much so, in fact, she seemed to be having a hard time just sitting still. "The, um, captain here was about to tell us about tomorrow..." Starlight never ceased to be jubilant, rushing to the aid of the night with a smile and a wink. "Ah yes, tomorrow! That's a big night, you know, as it marks the halfway point of our trip!" "Truly? Will there be any events to mark said occasion?" Octavia inquired. With her attention shifted - forcefully no doubt - from Vinyl, she leaned in to hear what the captain had to say. Bonbon gave a soft glance to the DJ that was worth thousands of words and more. Among them: be polite, be considerate, and don't fight. Vinyl squinted and shot a look hard as the ship's hull back. It read simply: screw off. If she truly had no allies, if nopony would stand by her, then by Celestia she would take the charge! Her life! She could do what she damn well pleased, and nopony had any right to treat her condescendingly for doing so. "Indeed there will be! But, before I begin on one of my ramblings, I'm afraid I must attend to the crowd. If you'll all please excuse me," the captain said. He stood, and strode over to the vaults edge. The pianist - and the crowd - hushed. Captain Starlight began chatting away, talking of some weather and sailing, and a bit more stuff of the sort. Vinyl paid no heed; she was angrily grinding her teeth and whipping her tail. The blue tablecloth was the bunt of her disgruntlement. She found pleasure in squeezing it between her hooves like a stress ball. Most of the 'stress' had not come directly from the situation, but more of an exasperation of the situation. Vinyl's mind was cooking, ready to boil over - a situation even she did not want to occur, given the luxurious spread. Across from her, the mint harpist and cream pony were staring at her from the corner of her eyes - a fact that only turned the cooking fire up. Watched over like a filly, stared at like a convict, treated like an imbecile... "So, ladies and gentlecolts, please enjoy your dinner," the captain said, bowing his head. As the pianist resumed playing, the well built Starlight then fell from the railing, and promptly returned to his illustrious seat. "Terribly sorry about that," he chuckled, shifting around. He tore a chunk from a bread loaf and rested it on his plate swiftly, as to not keep his guests waiting any longer. "Now, about tomorrow night: as I said, it is the middle of the voyage, and that calls for celebration!" "Um, may I ask why?" Bonbon asked, attempting not to lock eyes with Vinyl again. "Why?" the captain mocked with good natured sarcasm, "Because we've hit no icebergs of course!" Lyra threw in a soft chuckle to try and lighten the darkening mood. Next to Vinyl, the arrogant cellist also gave a small chortle. Then Bonbon, and soon, once again, the DJ was the only one to show no lighthearted emotion. Instead she continued to fiddle with the tablecloth, her ruby eyes lost in the fire again. "So, in celebration, we always hold a mid-cruise ball! In the foyer, we gather and dance and drink and talk the night away. And, of course, eventually wake up on the bathroom floor," he chuckled. All four ponies chuckled now - Vinyl especially, as it seemed to link up with her own plans for tonight. *** After the explanation, there was mild chattering amongst the table. Vinyl found it in her to cool down, and soon, she joined in as well. There was a bit of room for a good, short conversation of ever flowing topics; however, the waitresses soon returned with full hooves. They dispersed the drinks: water for the distracted cream pony, wine for the chatting harpist, fine bourbon for the angry cellist, and a tall, thin glass of vodka for the liverless DJ. Vinyl found all eyes, with the exception being the captain's, on her drink. Lyra and Bonbon's held wary, nervous looks, as if they could plead her out of drinking, while her own marefriend's eyes held a look of pure, unrefined homicide. The unicorn didn't care; with her magic, she brought the drink up and took a stout sip. She gave a triumphant 'humph' to all of them, guzzling down about half of her drink. This came with repercussions, of course; she began hacking away as she slammed her drink back down. The stuff had to be at least one-twenty proof! Hoof clutched to her chest, she coughed till it burned. Neither Octavia nor her friends lent so much as even a helping hoof. "My, my Miss Scratch, you sure can drink," the captain joked, clapping his hooves with a genuine, painted smile. "Indeed she can," Tav spat, looking down into her own drink with a grimace. Vinyl snorted, and took another sip, despite her screaming throat. It was mostly in defiance - but even with the accompaniment of strong emotion, it burned to Tartarus and back. Not stopping for a breath, she guzzled down a bit more, until there was barely any left. That was going to hit her fast and hard. The cellist beside her sneered, looking away with a repulsed face. "So, um, captain; may I ask about this 'ball'? Say...what sort of festivities will it include?" "I heard there would be something with lanterns," Lyra piped. "Indeed there shall be!" Starlight said, his face alight. "During the night - tonight, that is - the staff and crew will go around hanging lanterns from the railings, decks, and anywhere else they can reach. The whole ship will be aflame!" He chuckled again. It seemed as though he enjoyed tormenting his passengers with disaster jokes. "Ah, but honestly, I've been told that for many ponies, it sets a...romantic tone, hmm?" Lyra and Bonbon locked eyes, cheeks burning with heat. They exchanged cute little giggles and one or two winks. Opposite them, in every way, Vinyl and her marefriend did not so much as look each other over; they were content to stare angrily into their alcohol glasses, a pair of soon-to-be drunk statues. "W-Well that sounds lovely," the harpist stammered. She had noticed the stone faces of the rocky couple, and was fearful that the captain was taking it the wrong way. Yet the suave pegasus was surprisingly cunning; he seemed to understand where that relationship stood in comparison to Lyra's own, and respected the silent ponies mulling. "It is," he said with a grin, tilting his head to the mint unicorn in a cheeky fashion. "You and Miss Bonbon shall have a wonderful time, I have no doubt." "Ooh, I hope so," Bonbon snickered, nudging her flush marefriend. "And perhaps for you both as well," captain Starlight said. He gave a tiny wink to the pouting cellist, who raised her head to offer a smile. "Indeed...perhaps." *** Minutes of idle talking passed. Nothing of importance was exchanged but time; the fleeting resource was gone faster than anypony could've imagined. The waitresses had returned some time ago, taking down orders for more ravioli, dumplings, pasta and such, and were to be back very soon. The cellist beside Vinyl had rejoined conversation, though she herself had not. Instead she silently stared at the fire, not necessarily angry but by no means calm. But she was listening to the nonsensical chatting that intruded her ears - it wasn't as if she had something better to do. Captain Starlight was blabbing away of some adventure at sea he had once headed when Tav picked up her drink for the first time. This caught the silent DJ's eyes immediately; her gaze shot to the glass of smooth amber liquid as it came up to her marefriend's soft lips. The rim of the glass pressed down on her lips gently, and the glass tilted up. Vinyl was fixed intently on this motion, her eyes tracing the glass, her mind geared and ready. The bourbon crept towards Octavia's ready tongue slowly, steadily, anxiously. It flowed in graciously, filling Octavia's eloquent lips with its flavor. A sudden pain riveted Vinyl's body; it was as though a knife had been plunged into her gut. It was late, the music was loud, and the stack was tall. Those deep ruby eyes shot wide, sweat just beginning to form on her brow. "Fifteen!" She felt sick. "A challenge? Ha!" Vinyl gagged hard and thankfully, nothing expulsed. She slammed her hoof down on the table, trying to keep her on her chair as her head thrust forward in another gagging motion. The glass was still in Octavia's hooves as she backed away with a repulsed face. Yet the grey musician rested a reassuring hoof on Vinyl's back, rubbing up and down her extended spine. "Vinyl dear, if you're going to be sick, you may want to find a bathroom or something of the sort," she suggested. Sick...sick...sick... the word echoed in the DJ's mind. "I feel a bit sick..." It was impulsive; Vinyl have couldn't have stopped it even if she had tried. Her horn lit ablaze with her magic, gripping Octavia's glass and shattering it into thousands of pieces. Glass flew in every direction, laced with drops of fiery bourbon. Luckily, no shards impaled anypony, but the scene was still enough shock to silence the pianist. With that new, dead silence, anypony who could get even a glimpse of the captain's table craned their neck to see the disaster. And here came the vodka, hitting strong. Everything spun, slightly at first, but furiously building. Vinyl could hardly force herself back into an upright position, much less make out the ranting of her marefriend. It sounded like plenty of harsh scolding, and one or two less...pleasant words. As her splitting head finally stabilized, her eyes refocused not to Octavia - who was still busy roaring on of how angry she was to have her dress ruined - but to Lyra. The mint harpist had cracked under the heat of anxiety, and tears were swelling in her glossy amber eyes. This was her big move, a solid shot to move up, and Vinyl still understood this regardless of her blood alcohol content. Her mint-green body was quivering, tiny droplets of bourbon trickling down her stained fur. Bonbon was swift to act, grappling Lyra's neck with her forearms and pulling her in. The cream mare shot a look of confusion and complete angst to Vinyl. Not that she could comprehend it, however. It was just another look. "What in the name of Celestia do you think you're doing Vinyl?" Octavia berated in her ear. The DJ snapped her head left to face the fuming mare. "Do you have any idea-" "Ah, dinner!" Starlight said. His suave smile had broken, faltered, and was now replaced with a chiseled and fractured grin. Though his words held true - the waitresses were approaching, dinner trays balanced on their sturdy backs. Vinyl, attention shifted to the steaming plates of food, found that it would be more logical to carry them as such if they weren't on the ceiling. Lifting her head off the table, she returned to the scowling cellist. "Ya know what?" she asked with a sarcastic smile. Her speech was not yet slurred, but chugging a half a glass of pure alcohol would get it there soon enough. "I do have an idea, thank you very much." "Vinyl, please, don't-" "Yeah, an' screw you too," the DJ hissed, cutting Bonbon off. Her ruby eyes darted at the cream mare a look of death. "In fact, the only pony I don't want to screw over righ' now is the captain. Mister Starlight, good job." Hoof extended to the uneasy captain, Vinyl gave a disoriented bow. "Vinyl Scratch, you stop this instant. You are completely ruining the night! I haven't a clue as to what's gotten into you, but you stop this now!" The plates of food were set down, and the waitresses scurried away. The whole scene was falling apart, and they did not want to be part of the final relapse. "Well, um, thank you Miss Scratch," Starlight gulped. The situation was falling from his hooves quickly, and he was running out of options; the worry was flickering in his pupils like a dying fire. He scanned the scene: the crying harpist, comforting mare, drunken DJ, and seething cellist. "I...It's over," he sighed, looking down to his plate of linguini. That crushed Lyra. Though the captain's tone made it apparent he was speaking of dinner, a distraught mind can dilute anything. Her forelegs squeezed Bonbon tighter, knocking most of the air from the cream mare's lungs. Bonbon gripped Lyra tighter still, a look of swollen emotions in her eyes as they darted to Octavia, the captain, and then Vinyl. "Just look...look what you've done," the cellist sneered in a soft, disappointed tone, aiming a hoof at her marefriend. She stood up, shoving her dinner and her chair away. "I'm heading back to the suite. And so help me Vinyl...just...ugh, it's hopeless." With a sigh of defeat, she left, trying to restrain any words from escaping her desperate lips. Vinyl snorted, turning from her uptight marefriend to face the adjacent couple. Lyra was still tucked into Bonbon, her face strained and red. The cream pony looked over to the captain, who gave them a small smile of reassurance. "Well, all right...c'mon Lyra, let's get going, you could probably use some sleep," Bonbon cooed. Lyra sniffled and nodded, and with that, the two stood and quietly left the scene. As they made their way about the loft, Vinyl could barely make out soft coddles. With only a sigh, the DJ stood and fumbled away from the table, leaving the captain to dine alone. *** She was almost to the suite. Just a few more steps down the crimson carpet and she could finally have her soft bed back beneath her. The thought of her plump, silken pillow cushioning her pounding head was just enough to keep her from collapsing. The motivations was good, too; she had accidentally gone the wrong way, winding up at the other end of the ship. This, unfortunately, was the cause of walking by Lyra and Bonbon's suite door. When she arrived at their door, the sounds from within drew her near. Carefully, and with the little guilt that a drunkard could muster up, the unicorn pressed her ear to the door for a listen. What she heard cracked her heart. "I don't care!" Lyra shouted. Her voice was muffled; probably by a pillow, or perhaps Bonbon's shoulder. "It's going to be alright, I promise," the sweet voice cooed. Vinyl could only assume they were lying down, as there was a shifting sound of sheets. "T-This was it. This was my shot! W-With high r-remarks from the captain, I-I could get jobs like this anytime...but..." "Please, honey, calm down. Why don't we just talk to the captain tomorrow? We can explain it all then," Bonbon suggested. Her cool, collected voice seemed to have a soothing effect on Lyra. "Then, we can talk it over with Octavia and Vinyl-" "No!" the distraught voice cried. "I'm so sick of this! I'm so sick of them..." Lyra sniffled, letting a small squeak slip through her throat. "It's their fault." "Now now, that's not entirely true," Bonbon said. The harpist sniffled again, and made a few more shifting sounds. "Y-You're right. It's not their fault...It's Vinyl's fault. Why...why did we even invite her?" Vinyl tore her ear from the door, too shocked for even the smallest grunt to slip. Her fault, her fault? The words were a boot back to sobriety, a harsh kick back to the real world. Eyes wide, mouth agape; she just couldn't move. Her fault. "Don't beat yourself up. It's not your fault." That ticking was back, now stronger than ever.