//------------------------------// // The Other Face // Story: Lady Octavia // by Cyber Clash //------------------------------// “Well, my friends, I have a surprise for you tonight. Many of you are gathered here, not just to get shit-faced and get laid, but also to enjoy the music! You’re here to make this night yours; to dance until your hooves get sore. Am I right!?” yelled a stallion on the stage of the club, raising his hoof in the air, basking in the enthusiastic screams of the audience. “That’s what I thought! Well, tonight, we have an amazing guest. Surely, some of you thought this pony was long gone, never to play another song. But….she is here with us now. Give it up for DJ Pon-3!” The crowd stood silent in disbelief for a while before Vinyl jumped onstage, causing the crowd to holler louder than before. The DJ grinned, “Aww, you guys missed me? How sweet. But enough with the mushy stuff. Are you guys ready to have the time of your lives!?” The ponies stomped their hooves in excitement, their cheers making Vinyl’s ears ring. “Then let’s kick this shit!” And with that, a track began to fade in, the stage lights above synchronising with the music. The ponies below began to dance and jump around in time with the beat. At that moment, Vinyl felt something she had not felt since the last time she was on stage; a sort of exciting energy that made everything else fade into a blur, as if nothing existed except for the musical euphoria that flooded into her ears. The feeling lasted for about an hour before she waved goodbye to the crowd, receiving loud cheers in response. “Thank you all so much!” The DJ made her way backstage and threw herself on one of the chairs, lifting her shades to wipe the perspiration from her face. “Here, you need this,” said a voice. Vinyl looked up to find the manager of the club holding a can of beer in his hoof. “Thanks, Mister Gold Dust!” She grinned, snatching the can and popping it open with her magic before downing half of the cold drink in one gulp. Vinyl wasn’t even sure why she always felt so exhausted after only playing a few songs. She had not even danced on stage, yet her coat was drenched in sweat and her breathing was quick and desperate. Perhaps it was the nerves of playing music in front of a crowd, or the heat from the other ponies. It was a phenomenon the mare would probably never figure out. The manager chuckled, “Just Gold is fine.” He continued, “You have no idea how amazing it is to have the real DJ Pon-3 here in my club! I was a huge fan of your work back then and your disappearance hit me pretty hard. Hell, I would have gone looking for you if I didn’t have this place to look after.” Vinyl Scratch nodded, “I like what you’re doing with the club, by the way. It’s pretty awesome.” “If you don’t mind me asking,” Gold Dust leaned in closer, running a hoof through his pale yellow mane and clearing his throat in embarrassment, “What happened when you disappeared?” “It was just a little drug scandal, but it’s all dealt with now, so I’m back and here to stay!” Vinyl grinned. The stallion nodded, “Well then, it’s good to have you back. Your style hasn’t changed one bit. I want to know one more thing: What made you want to start over?” “I don’t know. I’d wanted to start DJing again for so long, but I never had the motivation I needed.” The DJ explained. “Then one day, my marefriend gives me all the equipment I needed and I…I guess I wanted to impress her? It’s a stupid reason, but I really think that’s it.” “Well, anypony who can appreciate your music enough to get you back on the rails is a friend of mine. She sounds like a great mare,” Gold Dust commented with a wide grin. Vinyl Scratch smiled back, “She is.” --------------------------------------------- Octavia set her book down on the couch when she heard the front door open. A smile found its way onto her face at the sight of her marefriend, “Welcome home, darling.” “Tavi, I told you to quit it with the endearments!” Vinyl scolded in a light-hearted tone, cantering over to the cellist. “They make me feel like we're an old couple.” “Oh don’t be so dramatic,” Octavia chuckled before placing a light peck on the unicorn’s lips. “So, how did your first night go?” “You know, I actually enjoyed it.” Vinyl smiled before lifting her shades, revealing a furrowed brow in thought, “Hold up. Didn’t I tell you not to wait up for me? Seriously, Octavia, it’s, like, three in the morning!” “It was your first time playing for a crowd in a long time. Since I couldn’t watch you at the club, I wanted to wait so that you would tell me all about it.” Octavia explained. Vinyl Scratch sighed. “But you have work tomorrow. You won’t be able to wake up early enough in the morning now.” “That’s a small price to pay,” Octavia nuzzled her lover’s cheek, “Now tell me more about the night. Were you nervous?” “No, not at all,” Vinyl dismissed with an uncomfortable chuckle. Octavia gingerly ran her hoof through the DJ’s royal blue and cyan locks. “A wise mare once told me ‘everyone gets nervous sometimes. Those who admit they’re afraid, though, are stronger than those who deny it.’” Vinyl’s eyes started to water and she threw her forelegs around Octavia’s neck, “I love you, Tavi. I’m gonna miss you so much…” “Please don’t mention that. We are together right now, and that is all that matters,” Octavia whispered. Vinyl only sniffled in response. “Come on, you must be tired. Let’s go to sleep and we can spend some time together tomorrow.” -------------------------------------------- Vinyl was working on a new song. Or at least, she was trying. For some reason, none of her snare drums seemed to be doing the trick. She wanted something that sounded powerful, but didn’t make her ears feel like they were getting kicked in the hearing crotch with a metal boot. The DJ tried everything she could with the effects rack to make it sound decent enough, but nothing seemed to work. Sighing in defeat, she closed the laptop and took the headphones off of her ears. She looked at the clock on the wall of the music room. Octavia would still be rehearsing for a while. But maybe I could take a walk before the time comes. Walking by herself was not the most appealing of ideas, but it seemed like a dream compared to waiting around in the house. Vinyl had finished all of her chores for the day anyway. Octavia had told her that they should start sharing the amount of work, but Vinyl still did most of it when the other wasn’t looking. Figuring that she had no other choice, the mare walked down stairs and let herself out of the house, grabbing her shades and a pouch of bits on her way out. Vinyl placed her shades over her eyes and walked north from the house. Even after a few steps she was already feeling reminiscent of her days on the streets. To think that only a few months ago, Vinyl would have to settle for any leftovers from the Drycker customers. Although she was glad that she had fallen in love with Octavia, Vinyl had to admit that she would have much rather not have met her at all than to watch as the mare fell into the arms of some wretched stallion who doesn’t care for her. Fine Bit, the unicorn thought with a snort, I don’t know why I haven’t killed him and thrown him over a bridge already! And as fate would have it, Vinyl saw the stallion, trotting away from something with an angered expression. She may not have been fond of the stallion’s personality, but something about his expression drew her to him, her concern—No. Curiosity—grew even more when she saw streaks of his fur matted down near his eyes. Vinyl walked over to the curmudgeon and greeted him with, “Hey, Bits. What’s with the waterworks?” Fine Bit jolted and wiped his eyes before turning towards her with a deadly glare, “I am not crying, you asinine wench. It isn’t any of your concern anyway…” The usual bitterness in his words was missing. “Honestly, it’s like your favourite line is, ‘It isn’t any of your concern,’” Vinyl commented, imitating his deep voice and snobby lilt. Switching back to her normal tone, she continued, “I already know that you’re going to propose to Tavi sooner than originally planned so there’s nothing left to hide.” “Do you really think that is all there is to it, you idiot?” He seethed. “Are you so ignorant to assume that Octavia is the only one who is against this damn arranged wedding!?” Fresh tears flowed from the stallion’s eyes. “Easy there, big guy,” she said, patting him gently on the back. She looked around and saw that a few ponies had stopped to stare at them. “Follow me into this alley.” “You can’t just tell me what to—“ “Shut up and get over here before some shitty media ponies catch onto us,” she cut him off. Fine Bit sighed and followed her, scrunching his nose at the scent of garbage in the small alley. “Yeah, you get used to the smell. Now, what are you going on about?” “It is none of your concern,” he said weakly. “I swear to Celestia, Fine Bit! If you say that one more time, I am going to kick you so hard in the face, that no one will be able to recognise you!” Wincing slightly at the threat, the aristocrat sighed in defeat. “As I said before, Octavia is not the only one against this marriage.” “Yeah, so am I, and her dad, and a few other ponies,” Vinyl shrugged. “And I am also against it.” Fine Bit added. Vinyl chuckled humourlessly. “Bullshit. I know you’re in it for the money.” “I was at first…until I found out that Pearl Posh was simply playing my family and me,” he spat. “Oh boo-hoo. You won’t get double the shit load of money you already have now! Is that really why you’re crying? You really don’t know true sadness, do you?” Vinyl mocked, grinning when the stallion growled at her. “Idiot!” He yelled. “If Octavia and I marry, Light Eye will be dismissed from his position as my butler!” The unicorn rolled her eyes, “Whatever. It’s not as if you liked him. You’ll just get a new butler and everything will be peachy.” Fine Bit shoved the mare against the wall, “Don’t ever speak of Light Eye and me as if we were nothing but master and slave! He was...” the aristocrat choked and looked away as more tears rolled down his face. He sobbed and let Vinyl go. “Never mind.” Vinyl dusted herself off and looked at the poor stallion, “You care about Light Eye, don’t you, Bit?” The stallion only nodded, but refused to face her. “So why don’t you bail on this marriage thing?” “That is what I was trying to accomplish just a moment ago. Unfortunately, my parents have already given Pearl Posh all she needs to buy our company. Consumed by their own greed, they refuse to listen to my warnings.” “Come on, there’s gotta be something up your sleeve, right?” Vinyl asked anxiously. “I…don’t know what to do anymore.” “I guess there’s nothing left then, is there?” Vinyl seethed, tears welling up in her own eyes. There was never any chance of me stopping this in the first place, was there? I… No, I can’t give up! There needs to be something I can do! There has got to be something I’m overlooking! I don’t want Octavia’s life ruined! “I’m…I apologise for…for all of this,” Fine Bit said. “I know Octavia means much to you. That is…how I feel about Light Eye. He is the only pony that is willing to stay by my side.” “Yeah, I see why he would be the only one,” Vinyl chuckled, earning a glare from the aristocrat. “Sorry, bad joke. Why won’t Posh let you keep Light Eye in your employment?” “She says that she wants me to stay ‘as clean as possible’ since I must have children with Octavia,” he spoke in an acidic tone. Vinyl made a noise of disgust, “Ugh, don’t remind me.” After a few moments of silence she said, “I wanted to stop this somehow, but I’m starting to think that there really is no easy way out.” Fine Bit chuckled, “The easiest way would be if one of us died, though, I would rather that be a last resort. I don't want to kill anyone.” Vinyl sighed, “Well, I guess I should get going now.” She looked at Fine Bit one last time and gave him a sincere smile, “Take care of Light Eye while you still have him, yeah?” The stallion nodded, “And you must do the same for Octavia. I promise I will take care of her once we are…betrothed.” “Thanks, Fine Bit,” she spoke sincerely. “And uh, thanks for giving my shades back.” “That was Light Eye’s idea. I would have burned the wretched things if not for him.” Vinyl chuckled, “Then tell him I said thanks.” Fine Bit simply stood looking at the ground, having nothing more to say. The DJ swallowed a lump in her throat and left the alley, never looking back at Fine Bit. Seeing this different side of him made her think a little more. Maybe Octavia wouldn’t forget about her, but would see her in Fine Bit. They were both very stubborn and crumbled into a mess when they couldn’t win. The sad thought of Octavia moving on was strangely cathartic to her. Somehow, the tears on her face didn’t sting her eyes, but felt rather refreshing in a way. --------------------------------------------- “Bye, everyone! I will see you all tomorrow,” Octavia grinned to her co-workers before turning to Vinyl. “How was your day?” The unicorn grabbed the cello with her magic, letting it float beside her. “It was alright. I got a little bored at home, so I went for a walk, and I...I ran into Fine Bit.” Octavia stopped walking and joked, “Oh no, there isn’t a crime scene, is there?” “No, no,” Vinyl giggled for a moment before putting on a more serious face, “No, we talked for a while, actually. Did you know he is actually losing everything to this marriage?” “What do you mean?” the cellist furrowed her brow. “He’s gaining money.” Vinyl shook her head, “No, that’s what his family thinks. Pearl Posh is cheating them. He’s losing his money, Light Eye—everything.” “Well, he deserves it for being such a greedy, arrogant bastard,” Octavia shrugged. “I wouldn’t say that,” Vinyl smirked a little when she saw Octavia’s confused face. “I saw this different side of him. I mean, yeah, he is greedy and arrogant, but he actually has a heart. I saw him crying today!” “That’s quite hard to believe. If he isn’t getting anything out of this, then why go on with the marriage?” “Like I said, his family still believes they’re getting the money. So he’s still taking one for the team, but the team doesn’t understand that they’re aiming for the wrong goal,” she analogised. Octavia began walking again, “Oh dear… It looks like none of us are getting out of it, then. Right?” “…Yeah, you’re right.” “Vinyl,” the cellist looked at her lover with worry, “This is the part where you swear that you will get me out of it.” Vinyl gave her a broken smile, “That was when I still had hope.” Octavia’s expression dropped to one of alarm, “No, don’t be that way. You said yourself there is a way out of this!” “And you said there isn’t, so did Fine Bit. The only pony who suggested something was Salt Rim, but we can’t risk your career.” Vinyl sighed emptily, as if exhaling her soul out of her body. “Vinyl!” Octavia snatched the other mare’s shades with a quick movement of her hooves, revealing tear stained cheeks and reddened eyes. “There is a way out of this! We just haven’t found it yet.” “Tavi, stop. Even if there is, it might be too late by the time we find it.” “No, don’t say that! Please stop saying this…” A single tear fell from her eyes and made its way towards her chin. “Hey,” Vinyl kissed the tear off of Octavia’s face and nuzzled her cheek for a moment before looking into her violet eyes. “It’s okay. I’ll still love you, and I’ve made sure that Fine Bit treats you well.” “But Fine Bit isn’t you!” Octavia sobbed. “I know…but it’s for the best. It’s so you can keep your dream job, remember?” Vinyl gave her a small peck on the lips. Octavia responded by pulling the other mare into a longer, more passionate kiss. When she pulled away, she said, “Giving you up is going to be so awful.” “Watching you do it is going to be a nightmare.” “I really don’t want to,” the cellist sobbed softly. “It’ll just be a few months of suffering, and then you’ll be able to enjoy playing again. And you’ll be happy,” Vinyl smiled. Octavia looked at her with desperate eyes, “What makes you think it will only take a few months to forget you?” Vinyl shrugged, “I don’t, but it’s easier to say that it’ll be quick.”