The pair experienced a harsh awakening as Pinkie barged into their room.
"Gooooood MORNING, EVERYPONY!" She yelled. "It's time to get up! You gotta come downstairs and eat breakfast before I give you the tour of Ponyville! Rise and shine! Wakey wakey eggs and...whatever else you eat with them!" She said, opening the blinds, accidentally blinding both Vinyl and Octavia.
"Wha-what is going on!?" Octavia asked, bewildered and confused.
"PINKIE! CALM DOWN!" Vinyl yelled, trying to gain her bearings and silence the pink pony from further assaulting their ears.
"Ooh! Are we playing a new yelling game? I WANNA PLAY TOO!" Pinkie yelled back. "NOW IT'S YOUR TURN, SCRATCHIE!"
"Pinkie, stop yelling! You're hurting our ears! We JUST woke up!" Vinyl said. As much as she valued her friendship with Pinkie, at that particular moment, she valued sleep a significant amount more.
Pinkie stopped for a moment, and giggled. "Sorry Scratchie, I'm just REEEEALLY excited for the party we're having today for your baby! It's gonna be the BIGGEST BESTEST PARTY Ponyville's ever seen! I'm putting out all the stops on this one! It's going to be the PERFECT PINKIE PARTY!" She said, vibrating with excitement.
"Ugh...any chance I had of going back to sleep is now completely gone." Vinyl grumbled.
"My ears are still ringing..." Octavia murmured, rubbing her aching head with a hoof.
The pair got out of bed, and took a few minutes to straighten up. Once they made their way downstairs, Pinkie was waiting for them with two heaping plates of flapjacks.
"I made them myself! They've got our super-special apple syrup! I made sure to get some fresh from Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack wasn't too happy about me taking it, but I'll pay her back later." Pinkie said cheerily, as if what she did was no big deal.
"So...you stole the syrup?" Vinyl said, raising an eyebrow.
"Silly filly, I borrowed it! I just did it when Applejack wasn't looking, or at least I THOUGHT she wasn't..." Pinkie said, suddenly becoming lost in thought.
Vinyl and Octavia looked at one another, and decided not to question it. They already had a large enough headache between the two of them after their rude awakening. They each took a bite, and they felt the smooth, bright flavor of the apple syrup come to life in their mouthes. The syrup was some of the best they had ever had.
"This...this is so good I could cry..." Vinyl said, shoveling her flapjacks into her mouth as fast as she could to keep the flavor coming.
"I have never had apple syrup...I do not think I want any other type anymore..." Octavia said, savoring each and every bite slowly.
"I'm really, really glad you like it! I'm sure Applejack will be happy to hear it too, seeing as nopony's ever tried it before-"
Suddenly, the door to Sugarcube Corner burst open, a particularly angry orange mare in the doorway.
"PINKIEEEE! If y'all don't return mah syrup right this INSTANT, Ah'll corral ya an' make ya work off EVERY DROP IN THOSE BOTTLES!" She yelled.
Octavia leaned over to Vinyl. "...Three guesses says she is this "Applejack" Pinkie mentioned..."
"What was your first clue, Octy?" Vinyl said. "No need to yell, she's right-" Vinyl turned to point at Pinkie, but she was nowhere to be seen, even though she had been there only a moment before.
Vinyl sat in stunned silence for all of a second before Applejack rounded on them.
"So YOU two're the ones eatin' mah syrup!" She said angrily. Suddenly, to both Vinyl and Octavia's surprise, her expression turned hopeful.
"Well? How is it? Too sweet? Too thick? How's the flavor?" Applejack questioned.
Vinyl and Octavia looked at one another, Vinyl taking the initiative to speak up first.
"It's delicious...some of the best syrup we've ever had." She said honestly.
"Pheeyew! What a relief! Ah was gettin' all worked up fer nothin' by the looks of it. Heh, looks like Big Mac owes me twenty bits." The farmpony chuckled to herself, rubbing her hooves together at the prospect of earning a bit of extra cash.
"Sorry about all the commotion, the name's Applejack, the proud manager of Sweet Apple Acres." She said, taking a quick bow. Octavia wasn't sure what to make of her, but Vinyl seemed interested enough.
"Cool hat." Vinyl said. "Mind if I take a look at it?"
"No can do, sugarcube. This here hat's mah pappy's, and on mah head is where it's stayin'." Applejack responded. "Ah reckon Ah've never seen y'all round these parts. Y'all new in town?" She asked.
"We're actually just passing through. We're on our way to Hoofington to tell Octy's parents we're having a foal." Vinyl said, Octavia face-hoofing.
"Are you just going to blurt that out to just anypony!? Not everyone is accepting of two mares dating, you know!" Octavia said forcefully.
"Relax, Octy. I'm sure she doesn't mind, right?" She said. The response she got wasn't quite what she expected. If anything, Applejack was puzzled.
"Now wait just an apple-buckin' minute. This here mare's yer marefriend, right?" She said, pointing to Octavia.
"Yep." Vinyl responded.
"Y'all just said she's havin' a foal, right?" She continued.
"Yep." Vinyl responded in the exact same way.
"Ah'm pretty sure that that's not quite how-" She then noticed the horn on Vinyl's head, and it somehow made sense. "Oh, Ah get it now. Ah'm not exactly versed in magicky stuff, but Ah guess it makes sense when a unicorn's involved somehow."
"Yeah, well, we're not entirely sure how it happened either." Vinyl stated. "That's why we're gonna go see Celestia's student to go see if she's got an idea."
"Ya'll mean Twi, right? Makes sense y'all would go to her. Mare spends more time readin' than what Ah'm sure's healthy, but she is the librarian after all, so she'll prolly be able to get y'all yer info." Applejack said. "Only problem, she rises later in the mornin', so Ah'm willin' to bet she ain't up yet. Ah can show y'all round Ponyville in the meantime, if'n y'all don't mind." She offered.
"That is very kind of you, Applejack. We would love to." Octavia said, getting out of her chair and trotting over to her. "Well? What are you waiting for, Vinyl? An engraved invitation?"
"Oh, right." She quickly got up and followed the other two out, shutting the door to Sugarcube Corner behind them.
They walked through town, watching as it slowly came to life in the light of Celestia's sun. For some reason, the two of them felt so comfortable in this peaceful little hamlet. They couldn't explain it, but they definitely liked it. The first place they came to was a elaborately designed home, a sign on the front reading "Carousel Boutique." Applejack pushed the door open, and the three entered, a bell above the door ringing as the door pushed it.
"Cooomiiiing~" A voice said from down the hall. A few moments later, a unicorn with a snow white coat, blue eyes, a royal purple mane as well as three diamonds for a cutie mark appeared. "Applejack, what have we spoken about you tracking dirt into the boutique?!" She chastised.
Applejack looked down, and sure enough, her hooves were covered in dirt from the early morning's work. "Heheh, sorry Rarity. Ah didn't mean to." She blushed, embarrassed.
Rarity then turned to the two standing next to Applejack, to which she reacted explosively upon seeing Octavia.
"Y-Y-Y-YOU'RE-You're Octavia Philharmonica! HERE! In MY boutique! I absolutely ADORE your music, dear! Oh, what a privilege! An act of providence, one might say! Oh, I feel faint~" She swooned, using her magic to conjure a chair for her to collapse on.
"Uh...Rares, it's not that big a' deal." Applejack said, raising an eyebrow at her theatrics.
"Not that big a DEAL!? This is MOST CERTAINLY a big deal! I have someone who plays for the PRINCESS in MY BOUTIQUE!" Rarity yelled, bothered by the fact that Applejack had no idea who Octavia was.
"Woah, nelly! You've played for the Princess? Ah reckon it ain't easy." Applejack said. "Ah know Ah wouldn't be able to play much a' anythin' for the Princess. Ah'm sure country western ain't the Princess' flavor a' apples."
Octavia was blushing wildly at all the praise. "It can get tough performing for the Princess, yes...but I do so love to play music." She said, Applejack nodding in understanding.
She then turned to Rarity. "Rarity...it really is not that big a deal. If anything, it is I who am privileged to meet you. I have seen a multitude of your dresses in Canterlot shops, and your newest winter collection is all the buzz...I am what you would call a fan of your style, and have been following your work for some time now." She said rather shyly.
Rarity fainted. The praise from one of Canterlot's finest was too much for her to handle.
Vinyl was laughing her life away. "I-I think she likes you, Octy." She continued laughing, falling over while clutching her stomach.
"Oh, shut up..." Octavia growled.
"...Well, uh...why don't we all just leave Rarity here and go see Fluttershy? She's the nicest pony in Ponyville, and Ah'm sure she'll be excited ta hear y'all are havin' a foal. She takes care of animals, it's her callin' in life, and Ah'm sure she's helped birth tons of the animals we have in town." Applejack explained.
"Intriguing...maybe she would make a good midwife...what do you think, Vinyl?" Octavia asked.
"I just wanna see the animals." She shrugged.
"Of course you do..." Octavia sighed, unable to comprehend just how she fell in love with somepony so simple-minded.
"Well, lead the way Applejack. I am very much interested in meeting Fluttershy, given how you speak so highly of her." Octavia said.
"Fluttershy's sweeter than anything y'all can buy at Sugarcube Corner. She's a little on the shy side-" Applejack stopped. "-Actually, the poor filly's terrified of her own shadow, but Ah still think she's the nicest, kindest, most soft-spoken pony Ah've ever met in my life." Applejack said.
The trio left the boutique after leaving Rarity on the chair she had brought out, and made their way towards Fluttershy's cottage.