//------------------------------// // I Get By With A Little Help From My Friends. // Story: Legacy // by NFire //------------------------------// “No, and that is final.” “Oh come on Crusader! You give music to Octavia all the time!” Vinyl’s face is aghast that I would refuse her request. “She appreciates the classics, the value of them as they are. Anything she changes is all to the better, unlike yourself.” I am sure she can see I’m not pleased. I don’t like refusing anypony, but this is one thing that will not do. “That’s not true, I take care of music too! I just add my own little things here and there.” She grins at me, her prevalent sunglasses reflecting my face which in retrospect is not looking very nice right now. “You took Beethoven’s Piano Concerto Number Five and turned it into a dance club piece. It was horrifying.” I slide off the bench I was setting on, walking towards Town Hall. She joins right beside me, the smile never leaving her face. She is persistent. “Oh that was nothing, they loved it! It was wild Crusader, it’ll be a big hit for a long time!” She stops when I turn to look at her, backing up slightly. “I will not give you anymore music pieces. Stars only know what you’d do with Tchaikovsky, or Vivaldi or any of the others. Celestia forbid I even show you Handel or Bach!” “Wow... How many do you have?” She’s honestly curious now. “I have currently archived every piece of music from Old Earth history, it is complete up to the day I went into stasis.” I point a hoof at her, “And you are not getting a single one.” “You know that’s not fair!” She’s looking a bit disgusted with me right now. Serves her right. A beautiful composition turned into..into..a thing..argh! “Life is seldom fair Vinyl,” I look at her once more, “And don’t think of asking Athena, she knows I’ve banned you from the music archives.” “It was only the one time!” She stops in front of me, placing a hoof on her chest, “I promise not to mess up anything else you give me! I haven’t even taken any of the ones you’ve given Octavia!” The look on her face is actually pleading, to prove her resolve she’s actually taken off her sunglasses. I’m impressed. Not that impressed though, “That’s because you don’t know the spell and can’t pick the lock on her storage safe. No.” “How did she even kn..I mean no! I wouldn’t do that!” She’s looking shocked at such an accusation. “Vinyl, you’re good at what you do. Ponies like your music, but you’re not getting anymore, why do you want classical pieces anyway?” “Because they make great dance tunes!” She slaps both hooves over her mouth right at the end of that statement. I believe the phrase is ‘Letting your mouth get ahead of your brain.’ “That’s what I thought, no.” “Oh come on!” ------------- Vinyl pled with him for over an hour but he was adamant, she would not be getting anymore music from his archives. This presented a problem, she needed some new stuff for a jam that was coming in a few days. The one song she had debuted at the local club was a huge hit, as well as others she’d sneaked off by peeking at the sheet music Octavia had received form him over the months. DJ’s in Canterlot and around were wondering where she was getting the inspiration for them, she waved them off with an “I’m just that good.” In all honesty, she was getting her inspiration from music Crusader had, things never heard before that were giving her ideas each time she looked at them or heard them. Crusader had invited Octavia onto the Command Deck months ago, wanting to see if she’d be interested in listening to the old masters he had stored within him. Vinyl went along as a lark, giving Octavia a hard time about her music. Truth be told she and Octavia got along just fine, with the occasional argument, but that was smoothed over as their interest in music outweighed anything else. What they had heard astounded them both, musical pieces that drove into the body, resounding through the speakers like the stars themselves were singing. Even Vinyl had stopped her snarking and listened when each piece was brought up. Crusader told them about the music, the way they had been performed, how they were done and who had written them. She had sat there beside Octavia, mouth agape, listening to things she’d never thought could be made much less laid down through speakers. There were chorales that lifted the heart, sad pieces that made her wipe back tears. Things in between that made her want to leap in the air for joy. It had been incredible! Octavia of course had already heard a few from before, but was still loving the sounds. Her experience had been so wonderful, ever since then, she had worked through the days, bringing out new dance music that astounded the club she worked at in Ponyville, it had been a huge hit. She had finally gathered the courage to recently ask Crusader for some sheet music for one of them she had liked, a Beethoven Piano Concerto he called it. She’d turned it into the latest dance craze and when Crusader had found out he’d not been happy, banning her from receiving anymore. But she needed the inspiration, it helped her define new tunes, new ways to produce her own music and now she was completely cut off! Nope, she was going to find a way to get more music! ------------- “But Octy!” “Stop calling me that, you know I don’t like that nickname.” The Earth pony gave the Unicorn a look of disdain, her accented voice very clear and crisp. “Okay, okay, Octavia. Look, I need you to convince Crusader to let me have a few more pieces of music.” Her eyes were pleading as she talked to her friend. “I don’t think that’s a good idea Vinyl, he wasn’t too pleased with what you did with the one he gave you.” She raised an elegant eyebrow and looked at her friend. Vinyl knew that look from many, many times before. “I know, I know! I should have asked, but it was a hit! I just need a few more to finish this set and I won’t ask again!” She would, but that would be much later down the road when she needed more ideas. These would last for a long, long time. What she was making was different, like nothing she’d ever done before. How could she get more music from Crusader, she had to finish this! “Look Octavia, I swear I will do the shopping for a week if you can do this for me, I promise!” She gave her best ‘I promise’ look at her friend. The elegant looking pony sighed, setting down her bow as she leaned her cello in its stand, “If I do this, will you please stop bothering me so I can practice?” “I promise! You can have the house to yourself, I’ll crash at a friends!” Octavia was definitely not pleased about doing this, but Vinyl was a good friend and she never asked for much, “Alright, I’ll go ask, but win or lose you still owe me some quiet time!” “You got it Octy!” “Stop calling me that!” Her voice came through the open door as she walked out to find Crusader. ----------- An hour later Vinyl sat staring at her friend, “Are you serious?” “Yes, he said no, not even for me.” Octavia sat across from her near the hearth. “Wow, he must really be mad.” She was rubbing her chin with a hoof. “He’s very protective about the music Vinyl, it’s a record of a lost history and civilization we know nothing about and he has it all.” She gave her friend a sympathetic look, “Perhaps maybe a gift in apology or something?” “You know, that’s a great idea! What do you think he’d like?” The Unicorn leaned forward in anticipation. Octavia’s eyes got wide, “Me? I haven’t the slightest idea.” She looked thoughtful, “But what do you get a pony who can fight Everfree monsters and win each time, that’s quite a daunting task Vinyl.” As she tapped a hoof on her chin, Vinyl nodded at her friends’ statement, “I’ll find something, I know I can, or my names not DJ Pon-3!” “Your name isn’t DJ Pon-3, it’s Vinyl Scratch.” Octavia deadpanned her reply. “Technicalities! I’ll find something!” She picked herself up off the couch, running out without closing the door. Octavia sighed, “So typical.” Closing the door she returned to her beloved cello and practice. -------------- Vinyl stalked the streets, looking for just the right thing, she had to come up with something. Ponies sold all kinds of stuff! An idea blossomed, Bon Bon’s place! She made great candies and everypony loved them, why not!? -------------- “Are you sure you want a box this big Vinyl? You’ve never bought anything like that before.” Bon Bon was looking curiously at the blue maned Unicorn as she packed chocolates into a large presentation box. “Well, it’s an apology...sort of..” She rubbed her hoof on the back of her neck, looking abashed. “Wow, who’d you make mad?” Bon Bon finished packing the box full, closing the lid. “Crusader.” Lyra’s face popped out from behind a shelf where she’d been restocking, “Crusader!? You made Crusader mad?” She trotted over and propped her front hooves on the counter, leaning on it, “Just walk into the Everfree and let a Hydra get you, it’d be less painful! Haven’t you seen what he can do?” Bon Bon smacked her friend on the shoulder, “He’s not like that Lyra, shush.” Lyra’s face got animated, “He smacked down all those bad things coming out of the forest! I mean he just let ‘em have it!” She was waving her hooves around, making Vinyl look a bit more intimidated by the second. “Lyra please stop that.” The cream Earth pony turned back to Vinyl, “Sorry, she gets excitable about things,” Giving a glare to her mint colored friend for a moment. “Crusader’s not a bad sort, what happened?” So Vinyl told the whole story to them, the music, the remaking of it, Crusader getting miffed. Even Lyra was silent for a moment after she finished. “Well...” Bon Bon was rubbing her chin, “Maybe you might ask his friends about all this too? I mean a gift is nice, but as long as we’ve known Crusader he’s been pretty protective of all that ancient history stuff.” “Yeah that’s what Octavia said, I guess I really blew it.” The normally happy mare looked a bit dejected. “Well, maybe it’ll blow over and things can go back to normal?” Lyra chimed in. “I dunno, he’s pretty angry, but maybe another gift or two to say I apologize will help!” A smile crossed the unicorn’s face once more. “Well they are my finest chocolates,” Bon Bon puffed her chest up, looking quite proud at the large box, “I guarantee they’ll be liked!” “And I helped!” Lyra hugged her friend. Grabbing the box in her magic, she lifted it and headed for the door, a new smile on her face now, “Thanks! Thanks for the tips too!” “You’re welcome! Good luck!” Lyra and Bon Bon waved as she left the shop. Their voices reached her as she walked down the lane, making Vinyl chuckle, “Pew! Pew! Pew! He smacked down all those bad things like a Princess!” “Lyra please stop that.” ------------ Bon Bon and Lyra’s words were making Vinyl think, instead of buying a few things willy-nilly, why not go to the ponies that knew him best? Yep, that was a great idea! First stop, Fluttershy. Everypony knew Fluttershy held a special place with Crusader after she got hurt. So she’d be the perfect place to start! Looking around for a second she opened the overstuffed box of chocolates, peeking inside she spotted some Chocolate Coconut Crunch, oh those were great! Popping a few into her mouth she chewed happily as she made her way to Fluttershy’s. ------------ “But..uhm...why ask me Vinyl?” The buttery Pegasus was clearly confused as they sat having tea in her cottage, “I’m not really sure what he likes.” She was still mulling over the reason Vinyl was here. “But you’re close to him right? Can’t you think of anything?” Vinyl was searching for just the right thing, and a few minutes into this conversation she knew it wasn’t going to go well. Well..he doesn’t really care for a lot of gifts or anything, at least I’ve never given him any. He just likes being here is all.” She smiles brightly, “He always enjoys having tea some days, sitting and talking about animals.” “But after you got...” Vinyl hesitated, not wanting to bring up something too bad, “..injured and he fixed you, you’ve always been great friends. Isn’t there anything that comes to mind?” Tilting her head slightly, Fluttershy noticed the hesitation, “Don’t worry about mentioning that, he fixed me right up. He was so worried.” She smiles gently again, “After he did though, he refused anything I wanted to give him, or do for him. He just said that’s what friends do.” Vinyl knew from the stories, even the best spellcasters in Canterlot couldn’t have repaired the damage to the poor Pegasus, but a few weeks after Crusader did, she was fine and in perfect shape. It had astounded everypony. But even after all that, surely there must have been something? “Did he accept anything at all?” She held her hooves out, “I’m just looking for ideas here, anything that can help.” Fluttershy taps a hoof on the table, “Well.. I make sure his Command Deck has fresh flowers when I gather some, it’s really no trouble at all and he likes them.” She was about to say more when Vinyl interrupted. “Great idea, some flowers too! That’s always a good apology thing!” She dropped her teacup, slinging herself out the door and towards town as Fluttershy watched. The Pegasus looked at Angel who was standing next to her, “I was going to say why not just talk to him more about why she wanted them..but.. Oh my she moves fast.” Angel just shrugged, grabbing a cloth to help her clean up the spilled tea. ------------- A great idea! Flowers, everypony loves flowers, they make great snacks too! Vinyl hummed happily to herself as she trotted down the pathway into the town marketplace, zeroing in on the Flower Sisters' stall. They always had the best flowers. The chocolate box kept pace being towed with her magic, but she couldn’t help sneak a piece now and then. Bon Bon really made the most awesome candy. -------------- “Hey Daisy!” “Hi Vinyl whatcha... ooohhh is that chocolate?” She was eyeing the box being held in Vinyl’s spell. “Sure is, Bon Bon’s best, want a few?” Lily’s head popped up from behind the stand with Roseluck’s, “You bet!” As they helped themselves to some of the fresh chocolates, all four stood around chewing happily and making noises about how good they were. “Whmr rings ouuu ere inyl?” Roseluck was trying to work through a caramel chocolate. “Sorry, what Rose?” Vinyl chuckled at her friend chewing mightily. The mare gave a loud gulp and shook her head, “What brings you here to the stand?” “Oh! Right, yeah I need some flowers.” All three now looked at her with increased attention, Vinyl never bought flowers..unless...it was for somepony special! “Ooohhh who for Vinyl? Got a new friend?” Lily gave her a nudge and wink. “Oh nah, they’re for Crusader...” She didn’t get to finish when Daisy broke in. “Ohmygosh! You got a crush on Crusader?” She was holding her hooves together in front of her like a filly thinking about her first love. All three sighed in unison at the thought of it. “What? No, it’s..” She was interrupted again. Roseluck nudged her sister, “He’s seeing Applejack..or wait..did they break up and you’re moving in? You sly Unicorn!” Rose bumped her hoof against Vinyl’s shoulder. Vinyl shook her head trying to keep things straight, “No! No, I just need them for an apology. See..” Daisy grinned, “Oh, you tried to put the moves on him and he said no? Oh that’s so sweet Vinyl! Giving him flowers so he’ll always remember you! Good move mare!” The Unicorn could only stand there for a moment, jaw adrift as she tried to figure out how the conversation got derailed so quick. “No..nonono. I just need some flowers, please?” The three sisters got a bundle ready for her lickety-split, wrapping them with a pretty bow and declining the payment. “Oh no," Roseluck grinned along with Lily and Daisy, “Don’t worry about paying, good luck with that handsome stallion you lucky mare!” “That’s not.." She sighed heavily, "Fine, thanks guys, appreciate it.” She left, shaking her head as she walked away to find another of Crusader’s friends, figuring Rainbow Dash would be a good bet next. Celestia only knew what kind of rumor was going to get spread knowing those three. -------------- Rainbow Dash wasn’t hard to spot, the problem was finding the lazy mare when she didn’t want to be found. Vinyl figured she was snoozing on a cloud somewhere near town, she usually did when knocking off from Weather Patrol. After a few no-go’s she finally spotted the multi-colored tail hanging off a small cloud near the edge of town. “Rainbow!” Vinyl yelled up to the fluffy mattress, “Hey Rainbow!” Yeah, she wasn’t gonna wake up. Looking around, Vinyl caught a big pine cone in her magic and slingshotted it at the cyan backside. Hearing the thump and a loud yell of surprise she nodded, got her attention at least! Bleary eyes peered over the edge of the cloud, looking down at her, “Oh, heya Vinyl.” “Hey, c’mon down for a sec, need to talk at you.” the Unicorn motioned to a nearby bench, setting on it and waiting. A halfhearted flap of wings brought Rainbow down to a seat where she settled in, eyes drooping as she hadn’t got in her required ten hours sleep a day. “What’s up?” She punctuated this with a yawn, eyeing the chocolates and the newly added bunch of flowers being held by Vinyl’s magic. Vinyl made absolutely sure this time to explain the situation, garnering Rainbows attention immediately when she finished. “So, do you know what he likes? Something I can maybe add to the apology with?” Rainbow thought about it seriously for a long moment, realizing, “You know what, I don’t know. He never asks for anything, he just does things for other ponies.” At Vinyl’s look of skepticism she went on, “It’s true, he doesn’t ask for anything or seem like he needs anything. It’s weird.” “Well...” Vinyl was thinking as well, “Maybe he liked something? Or mentioned he liked something?” Rainbow tilted her head, eyes rolling skyward as she thought about that question for a long second, “Well I know we were in Rarity’s shop, he said he liked the way she made her ties.” Rubbing her mane with a hoof she nods, “Yeah, that’s pretty much it, I mean he doesn’t..” She stopped as she realized Vinyl had taken off with a hasty ‘Thanks!’, winging back to her on the breeze. Shrugging, she laid down on the now comfortable bench and closed her eyes, “Maybe you could ask Appl....ja...zzzzz....” ------------ Vinyl was really looking hopeful and feeling it too! Asking friends, great idea, with everything she could get maybe he’d accept it as a great apology and let her have access to a few things. She thought about the jam coming up, a party near the lake and Twilight’s Castle where ponies from all over would be coming to share music and dance. It was one time every three years and she just had to have something special to show off with. Being late in autumn, it was the last blast before winter set in. It was a matter of pride, she HAD to be the best there! ----------- The bell chimed merrily off the door as she entered Rarity’s shop. It was always cool in here, so many things to look at and see. Even though it was a bit pricey most days, Vinyl had bought a few winter items that held up and warmed her even in the deepest cold. Her cerise eyes took in all the latest stuff for autumn, the scarves and hats that were sure to be sellouts. “Be there in just a moment!” Rarity’s voice rang out happily as Vinyl saw her rummaging around in a back room. “That’s okay Rarity, I can wait.” Vinyl saw the perfectly made up mane shake and her head peek out, she was so rarely in here. “Vinyl! What can I do for you, I don’t see you in here very often.” She looks at the Unicorn critically, “Maybe a bodysuit for the party coming up? You’d look fabulous in blue, I have some new fabric I’ve created that would just shine under the lights!” Her magic fired up, getting out a measuring tape. Vinyl knew where this was going and she didn’t have the time right now, “May..maybe later Rarity?” She stuttered as she dodged the measuring tape. “Well I suppose so, I’m all caught up on winter wear for this month, what can I help you with?” She sat down on a plush cushion, motioning to another nearby where Vinyl settled in. “Well, it’s like this...” She outlined the story, what had happened and the apology she was going to make. “Would you have any ideas? Rainbow Dash said he liked the ties you made.” “Well, that was passing conversation darling, I don’t think I’ve really ever made anything for him except a bow tie once, and that was a special occasion. He never asks.” Her magic fired up, bringing out the ubiquitous tea set, pouring a cup for each of them. She pointed a manicured hoof at the chocolates and flowers, “But you seem to have a good start on an apology.” Vinyl chuckled, “Yeah, I’m working on it.” She rubbed her mane with a hoof. Rarity looked at her over the tea cup before setting it down, “You’re serious about this aren’t you?” “Well..yeah! I mean, I didn’t know it would be such a big deal and I didn’t think to ask beforehoof.” She shrugged, letting the items down to the floor while she talked, “I mean, I know Octavia’s pretty serious about music, and she told me he’s really protective of it, being old history and all.” “It’s more than that darling. Music can be a history unto itself, it captures everything through time and puts it into a song.” She gestured around herself, “How many times have we done songs that meant something, that ponies still sing today?” Vinyl nodded, she remembered music class, the old songs from long ago that were still taught. “That’s why I need to apologize, I really hurt him I think.” The look on her face told Rarity what she needed to know. “Well I can help with that I believe.” Her horn lit, bringing over a beautifully made scarf in earthy tones, covered in a light dusting of gems it sparkled and caught the eye. It looked so warm and comfortable as she wrapped it in a box, tying it off with a bow. “Ah..” She held a hoof up before Vinyl could protest, “My gift to you for the apology.” “Rarity, I can’t take that.” She was thinking her bit balance was not near enough for what that thing must cost. “Oh yes you can.” She winked at the fellow Unicorn, “In times of need we all must give a little right?” She set the box down in front of Vinyl who was still too stunned at the magnificent item. A hoof patted her shoulder, “And you come back in so we can get you properly made up for the party, you can’t go out there representing Ponyville like you are, I have some wonderful ideas that will just make you shine!” “Rarity, I really can’t aff..” She was stopped by the same upraised hoof. “Stop that, I’ve never turned away a customer nor shall I start. You come in for winter clothes too, tell your friend Octavia to do so as well. Can’t have ponies getting cold at night, that just won’t do.” She primped her mane with a hoof, “It’s just not proper that a town like ours has ponies not wearing enough to keep the chill off.” Vinyl could see what made her so liked in town, the very nature of her giving was such you really couldn’t refuse. “I’ll tell Octy..er.. Octavia. She’ll probably put it off until it’s too late.” Vinyl chuckled, “She’s so intense with her music.” “Well that’s all to the better now isn’t it?” She got up, ushering Vinyl to the door, “I’m sorry, but I do have to return to finishing a few items, good luck on the apology and remember to come back!” I..I’ll do that Rarity, thanks!” She stepped off the porch as the door shut, realizing she hadn’t got any more ideas from Rarity other than the gift. Ponyfeathers! Wait...Pinkie, everypony likes Pinkie and she’d definitely have some ideas. -------------- Vinyl never could understand how Pinkie did what she did. Running around and keeping such a high energy level was tiring when she did her shows, but Pinkie did it every hour of every day. So she stood just inside the bakery door and watched the pink blur serving tables and customers with a grin. “Vinyl!” She was immediately covered in flour from a hug, “Hi! Here for the usual?” “Hey Pinkie! Nah, no I need your...help?” She was stopped by Pinkie rushing off to serve another customer, so she waited until the rush died down even though time was getting a bit short. Sitting at an outside table waiting for Pinkie, she saw another blur and a plate with her favorite slice of cake was setting there, along with a chocolate shake. She didn’t even get a chance to say thanks before Pinkie was gone. Stomach rumbling, she realized she’d been running around all day without anything to eat so dug right in. She was about finished when the chair across from her was filled with a smiling pretty pink pony. “So...you need my help?” The blue eyes blinked at her. “How did..wha..” Vinyl shook her head realizing that’s just Pinkie. It was always best not to wonder. “Yeah, I need your help.” She showed her the gifts, explaining the whys and wherefores to Pinkie as she finished her cake. Pinkie tapped a hoof on her chin for a moment while Vinyl slurped on the thick milkshake. “Wellll.... He’s never asked me for anything really.” The Unicorn threw her hooves up, “Everypony says that! There’s got to be something!” Pinkie shrugged, “Well he makes a lot of stuff for the hospital to help hurt ponies. He’s always willing to do things for others, and he keeps the bad things in the Everfree away from town. But he doesn’t ask, he never does, not even for a cupcake.” The Unicorn slapped her hooves on the table, making the plate and cup jump, “There’s got to be something, everypony wants something special don’t they?” Pinkie eyed the DJ for a moment, “Hold on.” She zipped into the bakery, coming out with a stack of paper from somewhere, “Let’s see..Crusader...Crusader..” She opened a file, letting the sides flap in the breeze as nothing came out, “I got nothing.” Vinyl sat there with mouth open, Pinkie not having anything on somepony? She knew everything about everypony! How could she throws parties that were so successful without that? “Nothing?” “Nope, not a thing.” The fluffy mane wobbled as she shook her head, “He never wants anything. Doesn’t have a birthday really, no anniversary dates he’s ever told me, nothing.” Pinkie looked flummoxed. The Unicorn tapped a hoof on the table, “Well, wouldn’t the day he woke up be counted as that? I mean he was asleep all those years from what I heard. Couldn’t you count that as a birthday at least?” Blue eyes stared at her from across the table as silence reigned. Vinyl thought she’d said something wrong as Pinkie took a huge inhalation of air, “That’s IT! That’s IT!” Her voice got louder as she almost jumped out of the seat to hug Vinyl, “That’s it! That’s his birthday! Why didn’t I think of that?” The DJ shrugged, “Well you’ve been kinda busy fighting all the monsters and stuff...” “But I never missed a birthday before! Oh no! Nonono! I can’t miss the next one, there’s planning to do!” She whipped off, leaving Vinyl sitting alone at the table. Tapping a hoof on the table while leaning against the other one, propping her head up, she wondered what to do next. She didn’t want to bother Applejack yet as she was as close to Crusader as could be, she kind of wanted to keep this behind the scenes until she could apologize face to face. Her reverie was interrupted by a box landing on the table, and Pinkie’s grinning face leaning over it, “Here’s something to help, a Triple Layer Chocolate Caramel Marshmallow Surprise cake! It’s kinda like my party cannon except it fires candy everywhere when you cut into it. Hope the apology goes okay!” She waved and was off once more. Vinyl tried to thank her, but wasn’t fast enough, until a voice whispered in her ear, Pinkie again, “Go see Twilight, Athena’s with her now, they’d have ideas!” And a breeze left her mane flapping in the now quiet air as the party pony took off to do some planning. “Stars she’s fast...must be all the sugar.” The Unicorn chuckled to herself and lifted all the gifts in her magic, trotting off to the Castle. ------------- Vinyl kept an eye on that cake the whole way, treating it very carefully as she knew some of Pinkie’s creations could get a bit wild. Knocking on the door, a small Dragon answered it, peeking out, “Hey Vinyl! What’s up?” “Nothing much my dragon buddy, is Twilight here?” She liked Spike, he was all right in her book. They both loved reading a good comic now and then at the local shop and discussing the finer points of Super Powered Ponies. “Sure! She’s in the library playing a game with Athena,” He rubbed his chin, “Something called Life?” He looked puzzled and shrugged, “Whatever it is, they’re sure getting loud.” As they walked down the hallway to the library, Vinyl perked her ears, hearing what Spike had referred to. “Wait, I don’t want another foal! Why do I have to take this? The stupid cart’s already full of them ugh!” Twilight’s voice was frustrated. “Because that’s how the roll went, you spun that number.” Athena’s voice was a bit more merrier. “These are such lousy numbers! I keep hitting the wrong spaces!” “Well Twilight, that’s Life.” “That’s just dumb, and that stupid pun was too!” Vinyl could hear them both laughing. Peeking her head around the corner, she saw the Alicorn laying on a large cushion, a Pegasus across from her on another with a game board in between, colored brightly with a spinner in the middle. “Hey guys!” Twilight looked up, “Vinyl! Hey! You never come by, what’s the special occasion?” She tilted her head curiously, Athena looking the same. No one ever saw Vinyl hanging around the castle much less visiting, she was always busy. Trotting in, she was motioned to a pillow near them both, she settled in quickly and dropped the gifts behind her. Athena was eyeing them and looking the bundles over. Twilight smiled, “So..what’s with all the presents?” Vinyl rubbed the back of her neck, “I have this problem.” She outlined everything so far, and all the ideas she had, including everything so there could be no misunderstanding. She told them about the gifts, getting a couple of smiles in return for such thoughtfulness. Athena nodded, “Yeah, he told me you were to have no access to the music anymore, he was pretty upset.” The Unicorn sighed, “I know, I should have told him what I was going to do. But I was so excited, I’d never heard anything like this stuff, it gave me so many ideas!” She waved a hoof in the air. Twilight took it all in, asking a few more questions before she hit the subject right on the head, “Why do you want more music so badly? This isn’t just about an apology is it?” Cerise eyes looked at Twilight, the Alicorn was sharp, no matter what anypony said, “I just..” Vinyl sighed, “I’ve got a jam coming up, the big party by the lake near the castle here?” She watched them both nod, it’d been advertised for days now, ponies already arriving from all around “When he let Octavia and I listen to a lot of that music it gave me so many ideas, it really made my work better. I’ve got to come up with a few more tunes for my set, just a few and I’ll win that contest!” The sable Pegasus nodded again, “Did you tell him this reason?” Her lavender eyes were warm, Vinyl had heard how she was not even real, but by looking at Athena she couldn’t tell the difference. “No, I guess I stuck my hoof in my mouth and botched it.” She gave a pleading look to both of the mares, “Could you please give me any ideas to help with this, I really need that music.” Twilight thumped the floor with a hoof in thought, “Have you talked to Applejack? She knows about him, he tells her everything.” “Well, was kind of saving her for last, trying to get all the info I could for a good apology.” Vinyl smiled, “I figured the more I knew the better chance I had.” The Princess grinned, “That’s a good plan Vinyl, really good, but I think you definitely want to talk to Applejack. If you do happen to run into Crusader, just tell him what you told us.” “I dunno, he wasn’t in the mood to listen.” Vinyl scuffed the floor with a hoof. Athena laughed, “He’s old-fashioned Vinyl, always has been. Change comes hard to someone like him. He was this way when we served in the Regiment, he’s solid and dependable like nothing else, but he is just as hard to convince about some things.” The Pegasus giggled, “Ask him about Punk sometime.” The blue mane wobbled as Vinyl nodded, “I know, he’s a good pony though.” She leaned forward slightly, emphasizing her words, “But what I’ve got is different you know? It’s something nopony’s ever done and I really think it could be big.” The Pegasus laid a hoof on Vinyl’s for reassurance, “I promise, I’ll talk with him right now while you’re seeing Applejack. I don’t know if I can convince him, but I will do my best.” Twilight laid her hoof on theirs, “I will too Vinyl if it’s that important..”, she watched the nodding head, “Then we’ll both do our best, I’m sure we can whittle him down.” She laughed merrily, giving Vinyl a wink, “Get Applejack on your side and there’s nothing Crusader won’t do for her.” Vinyl heaved a sigh of relief, maybe this would go better if she had his sister and Twilight rooting for her, “Thanks guys, I really appreciate this. If there’s anything..” She was stopped by Twilight’s look. “You don’t need to repay anything Vinyl, okay?” “Well, still... It’s a lot to ask and I know you’re really busy sometimes.” Vinyl gave them a sheepish look. Twilight laughed again, “Not really, I’m kinda losing at this game, stupid thing won’t let me land on the right spaces.” She glared at the board and spinner. The voices followed Vinyl as she left the castle with a happy farewell to them both, feeling lighthearted now that she’d talked to everypony she could and getting good advice. Maybe this will work! She just needed to convince Applejack it was a good cause. She took Athena’s words to heart along with Twilight’s, be honest about the whole thing, just tell it all. “Wait a second, you can’t use magic to spin that!” “Who said? It’s not in the rules.” “Oh you cheater!” “Princesses don’t cheat!” “Oh really?” ------------- Gifts in tow, Vinyl headed for the Apple farm. She loved getting fresh fruit from them when Applejack opened the stand in town. Plus the pies were really to die for, Octavia stuffed herself silly when they got a couple. She chuckled to herself remembering the last time they’d bought a few pies and fritters. Octavia had pigged out and really had a bellyache the next day, but was unrepentant about it. Strange how somepony could be so elegant and then lose it when it came to apple pies. Of course Vinyl couldn’t say much either, she had done the same and they both had lain around the house the next day complaining about stomach problems. But then the next day went and got some more before they ran out. Friends, what can you do about them ya know? ------------- She’d interrupted Applejack while she was loading hay in the barn with Big Mac, she’d said Crusader was out in the fields digging some new planting holes so they’d have time to talk. So in a place off to the side near the big barn, Vinyl told her everything, leaving nothing out as this was the Element of Honesty, everypony knew you couldn’t get away with a lie. “...And that’s the whole story.” Vinyl was leaning on a hay bale while Applejack listened to every word. “I just really really need the help and that music, it’s that important to me.” She sat back and watched, and hoped, as Applejack thought about it. “That dunderhead.” She shook her head with a grin, “Always doin’ something that makes me wonder sometimes.” She smiled at Vinyl, “O’ course I’ll help you, don’t seem like there’s any problem. I mean we all like music, me bein’ a country and western gal myself, but I like some of the things you do Vinyl.” “So you’ll help me apologize?” Vinyl’s face was hopeful. “Nope,” She laughed as the Unicorn’s face fell in dismay, “I’ll slap him upside the ear and tell him he’s bein’ stupid! That’s what ah’m gonna do.” Her eyes must have been wide as Applejack laughed again, “Don’t go thinkin’ cause he’s done some wild things he can’t be treated like any other pony that gets out of hoof.” She winked at Vinyl, “When he does somethin’ like this I usually knock him back into place with a word or two.” Vinyl really was shocked, she was talking about Crusader right? The one who launched a full scale war against the thing over the Everfree that fateful night? Using weapons that tore through the sky, ripping it asunder like he was battling the heavens themselves? Vinyl remembered being in the cargo bay, watching it on the..what was that.. screen?..., the power that cracked the night like no magic she’d ever seen before. This was who she was talking about right? Her thoughts must have been apparent as Applejack doubled over in laughter, wiping her eye clear of a tear, “Vinyl, ya got to understand, he’s a pony. He don’t throw his weight around, he doesn’t want to do anything but just live quietly.” She tapped the silent Unicorn on the shoulder, “He’s a big softie, and yeah he can be stubborn about things, but he knows I can outdo him on that any day of the week.” She leaned over, pushing against Vinyl’s shoulder once more, “You alright there? Seem a bit quiet.” The Unicorn shook her head, “Yeah? Yeah! I’m fine, just..it’s kinda hard to...” “Believe that he’s a pushover?” Applejack grinned, “Yeah alot of folks don’t know that. But trust me, he’s a good pony, and if he doesn’t listen to reason I’m gonna bop him upside the head ‘till he does.” Vinyl laughed, “Well that’s what the others said, and I’ve seen it too, I just..just..” She sighed, “I just want to make a really good apology ya know? I blew it once, I don’t want to blow it again.” The DJ continued, looking at the floor as she went on, “I know he loves that music a lot, but I’ve got something that’s just gonna knock the horseshoes off everypony. He let Octavia and I listen to some stuff that just..I mean it was different you know? It made me want to make something that wasn’t just noise and a beat, but ..I dunno... deeper, something worthy of songs that came from so far in the past.” She felt as if she were repeating the same old boring story, after so many times now today, but she had to make Applejack understand, even though she could see she already did. “I love music, it’s my life. Even Octavia and I do sessions together, we both..we.. live it ya know? It’s part of us.” She waved her hoof in the air, “When we hear something ..special.. we both try to do our own thing with it, sometimes it takes both of us together, other times we both come up with something completely different. But it’s the music Applejack, it’s about the music.” She sighed, stamping a hoof on the hay bale, “I know I let my mouth run ahead of me, but it really is about..the..” She saw Applejack sitting silently, looking just over her shoulder. “Oh Celestia, he’s behind me isn’t he?” She let her face fall as the orange Earth pony nodded slightly. Gathering her courage, she whipped around, horn lighting up to present the gifts and apologize like she’d never apologized before. She needed to do this, HAD to do...this... He was setting quietly with an upraised hoof, stopping her before she ever got a single syllable out of her mouth. “I know Vinyl, I listened while you explained to Applejack.” “Yeah but..I mean I got you a few things to really apologize. I am SO sorry...” “Stop, please. I know Vinyl, I have heard about it all day today.” The commlinks were a closely held secret that still remained such, but he had heard alright. “My sister and Twilight have been most persistent in their pleas for you, as well as everypony that you talked to. I was afraid the Cutie Mark Crusaders would start to make it their own effort if they heard about it.” Vinyl rubbed the back of her neck, chuckling, “Yeah, I kinda talked to everypony..” “You did, and it was an effort that I applaud. You are very single-minded when you wish to be.” He actually cracked a smile, making her release the breath she’d been holding. “Though there was a very odd conversation with the Flower Sisters...” Vinyl couldn’t help but grin and nod, “Yeah..it was weird.” “Do you truly enjoy music that much?” He waited like still waters for her reply. “Yes! I do, and...and I know it wasn’t right to change that piece, I just got ahead of myself without telling you. I’m really sorry. But it’s everything, it’s my life.” She held out both front hooves, “I know you love your music too, but..I try to make things better. I know my style is really different, but it’s what I do and how I do it, like Octavia.” He nodded thoughtfully, “I understand about the celebration in two days, and you have quite a lot of work ahead of you. Come with me and I’ll let you select what you need from my archives.” “You...wait...what?” It couldn’t be this simple could it? “You need music to complete what you’re doing for the competition correct?” She nodded, “Then come with me and we’ll find something you want.” Vinyl was gobsmacked, it was so simple? But then again, Crusader wasn’t a normal pony by any means, “But..I mean..” She stuttered as he watched her, “I brought some gifts to say I’m sorry as well.” She moved them in between her and Applejack with her magic. He smiled wider, “I think the greatest gift would be to not hear Twilight and Athena pestering me about letting you have some music.” The comnet had been jammed all day since Vinyl started her quest. “Even Fluttershy contacted me about it.” Applejack chuckled, “Those two won’t let up Vinyl, you really opened a can of worms going to them.” She peered at the boxes, “Whatcha got there anyways?..Well..besides the flowers, that’s pretty obvious huh?” Crusader sighed, “I figured I had to do something when Twilight threatened to contact Princess Celestia and Luna.” Vinyl and Applejack stopped looking at the boxes, staring at Crusader who showed no sign he was joking. Applejack laughed, “Knowin’ them two they’d have shown up and started ordering ponies around for laughs.” “That’s what I was afraid of.” Vinyl opened the box from the Carousel Boutique, showing off the scarf to Applejack, “Rarity gave me this to help.” Even Crusader was impressed by the item, looking at it from all sides as it was given to him. He accepted it graciously and promised to wear it. The flowers would go in the house to brighten it up of course, they were always welcome. The box of chocolates on the other hoof, proved to be half-full, with Vinyl looking a bit sheepish, “Well, Bon Bon’s chocolates are really good.” They shared a laugh, Crusader telling Vinyl to take them home, surely Octavia would enjoy some. The box with Pinkie’s cake however, was looked at like an unexploded nuclear weapon when Vinyl explained what was in it. Nopony wanted to touch it, much less cut a piece out of it. “I can have a bomb disposal spider out here in a few minutes, that would take care of it.” Vinyl and Applejack laughed until they realized he was serious. The Earth pony got a mischievous grin on her face, “I think Athena and Twilight would like it, don’t you?” Vinyl slapped a hoof over her mouth to stop the giggles as Crusader agreed. He would deliver it later as he and the Unicorn went to his Command Deck for the musical pieces she needed. Applejack nudged Vinyl on the shoulder, “Problem solved then Vinyl? Did ya need somethin’ else?” “No..no this is great, thank you!” She hugged the farm pony and Crusader before they both set off to deliver one special cake and retrieve the needed items. -------------- Vinyl got the needed music quickly, she didn’t have a whole lot of time so she headed back to the house as fast as she could gallop. Octavia knew this was important to her, so did not hold her to her promise today of all days. She sat down and started writing, her magic flaring deep into the night as she only stopped when Rarity insisted she be let in. Taking measurements for a costume that she could wear to ‘Represent Ponyville in quite the style.’ Through the whole process Vinyl’s mind was consumed by the music, it was everything right now and it was driving her to put down things she’d never thought of, never dreamed could be brought out of her. Now she knew what Octavia felt when she closed her eyes while she played. She felt the beats in herself, feeling how they should be and writing it down, laying the tracks on her board. She was very careful to record everything in case of disaster, making backups on her system, triples even. She was not going to be stopped by a malfunction at this late point in the process. Crusader had given her a recorder, all she had to do was play things and it would be permanently stored for her use. He even made sure it could work with her own board, feeding through it and recording everything. It was a temporary loan, but it made her job that much easier. It was an amazing piece of technology, but she had no time to wonder how it worked, she just used it to the fullest. She felt as if her Cutie Mark was driving her to things she’d never considered possible, letting it take control to give her what she needed. Crusader had made simple turntable records, layered with the music that helped her as well as the sheet music with all the annotations. This gave her a head start as all she had to do was piece together everything. It was all coming so fast! She could see Octavia’s worried face out of the corner of her eyes sometimes, laying food down on the table or board for her. Her friend had never seen her in such a state before. Vinyl knew Octavia would make sure she ate if she didn’t take time, so instead of stopping, she ate as she worked, furiously scribbling down notations and removing them just as fast when they didn’t feel right. Into the next day she kept working, never moving herself from the recording area as the hours flew by. Octavia slept on the couch as Vinyl sighed in relief that evening. She was done, finally! All recorded, all the notes she needed stacked neatly beside her. This wasn’t just a contest of music, it was also how active the DJ was, not just nodding a head but driving the crowd to dance along with them. Vinyl was so tired though, she figured a few winks and she’d be ready to get moving. She looked around and realized she’d burned the day, the moon was up and it was getting later than she thought. Octavia was crashed on the couch, having taken care of her while she was blazing with the need to finish all this. Grabbing a piece of cold pizza, she chewed on it while making sure Octavia was covered with a warm blanket from the chill outside. The worn Unicorn banked the fire in the hearth before laying down on a large pillow in front of the fireplace, covering herself and drifting to sleep with the music ringing in her ears. ------------ A soft voice roused her out of a daze, “Vinyl..Vinyl? You awake?” “Mrph..mmmph...lemme ‘lone..” She snuggled deeper into the warm pillow. She could feel the fireplace’s warmth against her and didn’t want to move. “Vinyl, you have to get up, it’s almost four.” The hoof pushed against her gently, rocking her body. “Dun care..lemme ‘lone.” She pulled the thick comforter over her head. “Vinyl it’s the day of the concert, you have to get up!” The accented voice was insistent now, something ticked in her mind when she heard that. Her eyes popped open as she lifted her head so fast the blanket flew off it, “Wait... what? What time is it?” Octavia was standing near her, “It’s almost four in the afternoon Vinyl, the concert starts in an hour.” She was looking a tad worried at the bleary Unicorn. Ohmygosh, I slept the day away! I slept it all away! She scrambled out of the blanket, tripping and hitting her head against Octavia who stood firm, Earth ponies having quite the strength. She was grabbed by strong hooves, “Vinyl, be careful, are you all right?” “I’m..I’m fine, I was so tired..” She felt like she’d been hit with a ton of bricks. “You worked through the night and all the yesterday, including last night, it’s a wonder you didn’t fall over.” Vinyl blinked sleep out of her eyes, rubbing them fiercely, “Octy, I’ve got to get going, we’ve got to be there before the show starts or they won’t let me enter!” She got to her hooves, gathering papers and gear, throwing them in a pile in the floor, “I’ve got to get ready! There’s so much to do” Octavia smiled, not minding the nickname for the moment, holding her friend still with a steady hoof, “Stop panicking, a couple of friends dropped by to help.” “What?” She looked around seeing nothing but Octavia, “What are you talking about? I’ve got to get everything packed and to the stage!” She struggled against the single hoof holding her in place. “Vinyl, stop being stubborn and look.” She pointed outside the window where Vinyl could see an odd cart sitting there, Athena and Twilight peeking in and waving. “We’ll get you there on time, stop worrying. Rarity will meet us with your outfit and get you situated backstage. Calm down, it’s going to be fine.” Octavia’s smile could charm a manticore. Her heartbeat slowed slightly as she caught her breath. It’s fine, it’s going to be fine. I’ll get there in time, it’s going to be fine. But part of her mind was just going off the rails, what if she didn’t? Oh no she couldn’t miss this! That hoof held her in place as Octavia’s accented voice kept talking, “Get your gear, take it outside and put it in the cart, it’ll be fine. Go on now Vinyl, I’ll help.” Together they gathered the bits and pieces of what Vinyl needed. The stage was the same for everypony, DJ’s were allowed to add their own enhancements, but that was it. What you had was what you used. The speakers and board were the same, giving everypony an equal shot. She’d been working on a mobile DJ booth but it wasn’t ready yet, she couldn’t go fast enough! She scrambled through the house, making sure everything she needed was got, and everything she didn’t need wasn’t. Vinyl was almost in a panic as Octavia watched, a smirk on her pretty face, “Vinyl, everything is in the vehicle.” “What? Vehicle?” She looked confused. “That’s what that cart out there is called, everything’s in it, stop worrying.” The Unicorn checked the time by the clock on the wall, “But we’ve only got forty-five minutes to get there and sign up, Octavia we’re not going to make it!” She knew how slow carts were, even weird ones like outside, they didn’t have enough time! A voice from the door disagreed, “You leave that to us, we’ll get there in plenty of time.” Athena was standing there with Twilight beside her, giving each other a knowing look and giggling at some joke. Thirty seconds later she realized what they were talking about as Athena ripped out from the house in the Scout Vehicle. The wind blew through their manes as she tore across country in a straight line, heading for the castle and the lights she could see in the distance. Octavia even lost her composure, lifting her front hooves up in the air and squealing like a filly on a roller coaster. Vinyl couldn’t help it and joined in as they drove across the green fields. Almost two minutes to the second Athena skidded to a stop behind the massive stage being prepared for the show, showering dirt and gravel everywhere as a group of ponies stood by. A ready made road crew was already grabbing things from the vehicle. Fluttershy was there, Pinkie already helping her get the gear out of the back as Rarity ran up in a huff. Rainbow was lifting things out and tossing them to Applejack as they got the stuff in place for when Vinyl was to go on. Twilight and Athena were discussing plans for something before taking off to put some new items in place for her show. Vinyl was simply quiet as she was ready to do all this herself, and sat in the seat of the vehicle looking at all the fuss. “Oh goodness! You’re a mess, come with me, we’ve got to get you ready!” She yanked Vinyl out of the seat and took her to a small tent set up for them by the others. Inside was a full makeup set and a costume that made her eyes bug out when she saw it. The Unicorn sat her down on a comfortable chair and began fussing with her mane, “I know you like a certain style Vinyl, but trust me, this will look perfect!” Her magic was bright as curlers and brushes zipped around the dressing tent. Vinyl just sat and endured it, watching in the mirror as she was transformed by Rarity’s eye into something else, something wonderful. She was making it into a wave, accenting Vinyl’s own style, almost like Princess Luna’s, but instead of stars she was placing pins here and there, small musical notes made of crystals and gems that flashed whenever she turned her head. She had darkened the blue colors in Vinyl’s mane, letting the notes shine out from every angle. Each and every pin placed reminded her of..wait a second.. Rarity was making a song by the notes in her mane! By placing them just right and looking head on, you could see the opening to a song in musical notes, it was awesome! Vinyl just sat and stared as Rarity chattered happily, enjoying her work on the quiescent Unicorn before pronouncing the mane ‘Done!’ She quickly moved on to the tail, doing the same thing making sure they matched perfectly, only it was the rest of the song continuing on her tail. Twilight poked her head in, “Vinyl, you’re all signed up, we made sure you perform at midnight like Octavia said you wanted!” Pinkie popped in right beside her, “Having a Princess tell them a certain time didn’t hurt either!” “Pinkie! You’re not supposed to tell!” “Sorrrry!” A giggle carried on the air as Pinkie zoomed off. Twilight gave them both a bothered look and huffed as she disappeared from the tent entrance. Vinyl didn’t say much, she hadn’t been prepared to find everypony here and helping out, always planning to do the work herself in setting up things. But now she could relax, Rarity was finishing the placement of a few pins with a critical eye as she closed her eyes for a moment, only opening them when the Unicorn’s voice came through, “I’m sure you need rest dear, but you can relax after we’ve fitted you.” “Sure Rarity.” She stepped off the chair and watched as the designer unwrapped the full outfit for her. She’d only caught a glimpse, but it was so very nice, now it shone in all it’s glory. Rarity’s magic placed it on a ponyquin as a tape measure started it’s work around Vinyl’s body. “Hmmm yes, just right, all the measurements are still on, and we’ve just got..” She leaned down, using a needle to add a few stitches, “And all done, would you like to try it on?” She smiled at Vinyl. Athena’s head popped through the closed flaps, “Hey! Crusader didn’t want to barge in in case you got nervous, but he wanted me to wish you a good contest, and good luck!” “Really?” “Yes really. Don’t be so surprised Vinyl. Get out there and knock em dead!” She waved and took off for parts unknown. She couldn’t stand it anymore, “What are they all doing here? I mean..” She waved a hoof, “Out there, what’s going on?” Her face turned up to meet Rarity’s eyes as she let an exasperated huff. “What do you mean darling? The setting up and our helping?” “Well..yeah! All of it!” She looked at the absolutely awesome costume for the show and sighed, “I didn’t ask..I mean I can’t afford..” She was stopped by a tender hoof on her shoulder. “Everypony you went to knew how much this meant to you Vinyl. So they got together and formed a plan to help. It is the last one for the next few years right? Something special?” She fussed with a stitch on the outfit while she talked. “You don’t know how special Rarity, only the top five DJ’s in Equestria get to perform and I got chosen as one of them!” She grinned into the mirror, remembering the award and her yelling for the whole day until Octavia threatened to silence her with bodily harm. “So there you have it, you’re representing Ponyville and we can’t have you looking like you’re just going clubbing, what would the others think?” She gave a winning grin as she tightened a seam. “Besides, do you realize how many ponies are out there?” She grinned, “It must be in the thousands, and where else to show off moi’s talents in design!” She laid a humble hoof on her chest. Vinyl laughed, “You’re all right in my book Rarity.” “Well I’d hope so, this wasn’t just done in an hour!” She pulled it off the ponyquin and held it in her magic, “Let’s get it on you and see how you like it. Vinyl didn’t have to try it on to know it was going to be something else, and she was right. It fit like a second skin, a deep blue that highlighted her coat and mane as it was styled, covered in more gems formed into musical notes. They flashed and glimmered like stars, she looked like a glorious new Princess Luna with music instead of a night sky. The bodysuit was slashed in certain places, letting her have a grip on turntables and what she needed to do with her hooves. Rarity never designed anything without a purpose and it worked to a tee. She stretched each leg, feeling the fabric mold itself around her, letting her do dance moves that would get the crowd jumping. “It’s perfect!” A manicured hoof wiped a furrowed brow, “Thank Celestia, I was worried something would go wrong.” “Oh Rarity, thank you!” She hugged the other Unicorn tight, her outfit flashing in the low light. “Oh don’t thank just me, they’re setting up some more surprises for your turn out there. When it’s time you’re going to outshine anypony Vinyl.” Rarity pushed her out of the tent, opening the flaps to let her out. Everything was ready to roll out on stage, the group was just finishing plugging in her gear onto a portable cart they’d roll onstage for her set. You couldn’t add to the board there, but you could have a certain amount of extras. “This is awesome guys!” She stood at the tent opening as Rarity came out. “And everypony, Miss Vinyl Scratch is ready to go!” Faces turned, breaths stolen as Vinyl stood there gleaming like the night sky itself made out of musical notes. Spike raised a clawed fist, “You look awesome Vinyl!” “Thanks little dragon buddy.” She bumped his fist with a hoof. Heads turned as the introductions were made and the first DJ firing up, making Vinyl worried as she heard the music erupt out of the speakers, it was good, so very good, you could tell immediately this was no piker. “So this is what you look like all cleaned up eh?” The accented voice made her turn, seeing Octavia standing beside her. “Well..It..uh..yeah I guess so.” She chuckled to herself, a blush rising in her cheeks. “I think it looks wonderful, you’re going to really take it over Vinyl.” “You..you think so? Octy..Octavia I’m really nervous about this, I mean these are the top of the top out there.” She tried to keep a smile on her face, but the tapping hooves were what tipped everypony off. “You are one of them Vinyl, they chose you and invited you here, you will do your best.” Octavia gave her friend another hug. “Yeah!” Pinkie popped up beside her as well, “Win or lose, you’re gonna knock em out, cause we’ve got some serious lights set up and everything!” She pointed all around, the scaffolding was set up for spotlights and such, but there were some odd looking items added to the beams. “What are..” She motioned towards the blocky items hanging on the scaffolds. “Those are portable lasers, tuned to certain frequencies to make your costume glow like nothing they’ve seen.” Athena was handing her a new pair of sunglasses, “Just in case, these glasses will protect your eyes, plus you will see very very well in light or dark.” Vinyl stared at the new glasses, “But isn’t that cheating..I don’t..” She put them on, they fit snugly and she could see everything like a clear day, it was amazing! Twilight piped in, “No, we cleared every bit of it with the judges, they’ve okayed it all. The others got to add lights and we did too. The glasses count as added gear,” She riffled through the thick sheaf of rules, pointing to a small paragraph, “Right here, says so. We’ve got everything covered.” Fluttershy giggled, “Twilight brought up things about the rules even the judges didn’t know.” “She got you cleared on everythin’ Vinyl, you’re gonna really knock ‘em out!” Applejacks soft voice carried through the group. “I don’t know how I can ever re..” Vinyl was stopped before she even started. “Vinyl, ah’m makin’ a killing out there off cider sales and cold apple juice, you ain’t gotta repay nothin’!” The farm mare laughed, shaking her head. “This is one of the biggest parties around and you’re representing Ponyville, ain’t nothin’ at all.” Applejack pointed to Rarity, “She’s gettin’ exposure for her design on your costume. Fluttershy just wanted to help, she’s got Harry out there guarding the backstage entrance.” Fluttershy smiled, “He’s a really polite bear!” They laughed, imagining the huge Ursine holding a paw up denying entrance to ponies without a pass. Her hoof moved to point at a cyan Pegasus flitting from light to light, “Rainbow there was showing off with her stunts for the pre-show. Pointing at the Alicorn, “Twilight kept everypony honest by double checking everything, trust me, it needed it, we found some road crews fooling with things.” "Pinkie’s out there selling everything and then some to ponies that are hungry from all that dancing and that’s even before the show!” She tapped Athena’s shoulder, “And Athena here made up the extra stuff so we could add more to your time on stage.” Rainbow Dash flew in, sweating from the rising heat even in the chill night air, “All the lights are set and on! You’re really gonna rock this place Vinyl!” Pinkie bounced around, making everyone wonder how she got hats made with Vinyl’s face on them so fast as she was wearing one, “And boy have we got a party planned for ya afterwards! We got the music already here and food after you’re done! We don’t care if you win or lose Vinyl, just go out there and do your best!” Octavia laid a hoof on her bodysuited shoulder, “It doesn’t matter about winning or being nervous. Go out there and do what you do, have fun. I’ve seen you Vinyl, you live for music.” “Yeah. Yeah I do.” She nodded her head, “I’m gonna do this, no matter what, I’m going to do this!” She looked at the smiling faces. Rarity grabbed her, setting her down in a chair, “Now, you relax, take a nap, there’s time before you go on and we want you rested.” Applejack leaned in, “Oh, and on the stage, we got Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo ready with water and juice for ya, we know it’s only an hour for your performance, but you’re gonna need it.” Rarity hmphed, “Well I’m glad the suit will wick away that sweat, can’t have her looking disheveled now can we?” Vinyl nodded, it was going to get hot and sweaty up there. The lights combined with all the moving and music, added up to one tired pony. An hour didn’t seem much, but when you’re using all your energy, you run out quick. The rules stated, keep moving or forfeit, so you couldn’t be lazy. “Thanks.” She spread her front hooves, “That’s all I can say, thank you so much.” She was immediately the recipient of many warm hugs, before being led off to relax in the tent after Rarity took the costume off, still fretting about it. She made sure the mane styling stayed in place while Vinyl relaxed. An hour passed and she got more and more nervous. She tried to relax but couldn’t until Twilight hit her with a spell, seeing her fidgeting on the cot. “She’ll be well-rested for her performance, it’ll only last a while.” She nodded to everypony. They all went out in front to enjoy the music for a while, Harry came and plopped down in front of the tent at Fluttershy's request. Twilight still had a lot to learn about dancing, but nopony really noticed. ------------- Vinyl found herself awake and rested after realizing she’d fallen asleep. She didn’t feel tired but bursting with energy. She almost lost it when she peeked out of the tent and came face to face with a smiling bear. Those fangs were HUGE! Rarity was fussing with the outfit once more before finally clearing her for duty. She was led out to waiting smiles, everypony hoof bumped her as she walked by and onto the stage. Setting in the wings, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo waved with Spike, sitting by a big tub of ice filled with cold drinks for her just waiting for the signal to bring one. She grinned and waved back, tapping a hoof nervously on the wood planking. “You can do this Vinyl, you can do this. Win or lose you’re going to knock the horseshoes off them.” She was whispering to herself as the last DJ was finishing up to loud applause and screams. Octavia was standing near, giving her a friendly nudge and smile, “You’ll do fine Vinyl, you always do.” The Unicorn smiled back nervously, “Yeah, but that’s a really huge crowd out there.” “Just think of the club, you always perform excellently. Give them your finest effort, that’s all you can do.” “Got it. I got it, I can do this Octavia.” “I know you can.” ------ Athena was sitting in the scaffolding, all her tactical cores were tied in right now, running hot as she was to direct the light show. Crusader was in TSDS lending his as well for this performance. Spotlights, colored lights, lasers were running green and mean. “All set Crusader.” “All up here, all cores linked. Frequencies cleared for light only, no damage.” “She’s going to be great.” “I think she will Athena, I think she will.” With that he clicked off, leaving her to do her job. Huh, even old dogs learn new tricks. Athena laughed to herself as she waited. -------- Vinyl almost missed her cue as Octavia nudged her, hearing the Master of Ceremonies. “And now it’s midnight! Here we have the best, the greatest DJ from Ponyville, DJ PON-3!! Give her a round of applause!” He turned and motioned to her. Vinyl trotted out on stage, her gear already set up as the crowd screamed in recognition, seeing her new look and stamping their hooves so loudly that they had to wait a full minute for the clamor to die down. The Unicorn almost lost it, looking out and seeing literally thousands of ponies out there looking at her under the colored spotlight. But she recovered and waved to her fans who stamped once again in approval. Her outfit shone like a fireworks display as she stomped onto the stage to the board. “All yours Miss Scratch, knock ‘em dead!” The Master of Ceremonies saluted and trotted off the stage, leaving Vinyl to turn the board on, looking outwards to the waiting faces. “Are we ready to ROCK?” Her voice echoed through the area, hooves pounded even louder. She gave the high sign to Athena who knew the light cues by heart, having gone over her notes in detail, the spotlight dimmed as her intro came up. It was a chorus, a chorus of voices indistinct in words but heavenly if it could be said, it brought a solemnness to what she was doing for a moment. Soft lights played around the stage as the music soared into the night, stunning the crowd into silence as they listened, really listened to what was playing. The music snuck up behind it, bringing in woodwinds, swelling it to the sky as high as it could go before the stage went dark with the lasting sound of a single flute that pierced the night air, fading slowly. The silence stretched for long seconds, just enough to make you wonder when she dropped the beat on the waiting crowd like a ten ton hammer to their skulls. The music thundered over the green hills, echoing and rebounding as lasers blasted through the air to backdrop her at the board. Athena’s tactical programs had pinpointed each and every musical note in gems on her outfit, each one was targeted by a different color so as she moved she reflected rays of light like a sunburst in a new sky. A micro tracker had been emplaced behind each one so she could lock them on and leave them to auto-track Vinyl as she danced. She almost lost her concentration because she was dancing to the music as well. The music roared out of the tall speakers, splitting the midnight air like it was nothing. The beats pounding against a body and making..no demanding.. you dance to it! The crowd went absolutely insane. It wasn’t just electronic music, it was orchestration such as never been heard before. Woodwinds, brasses, drums rolling out of the speakers at her direction as she pounded her own hooves on the stage, dancing with all she had to the beat. There were stringed instruments, flutes and pipes, everything that Vinyl could fit in she had added, to great effect. It was music of the stars, chorales snuck in behind the music brought it sweeping through the skies, slinging you along with it like a rollercoaster ride. It pounded you, it brought you to feelings you’d never had, you danced until your hooves were sore and wanted more! Vinyl felt a tap on her leg, Sweetie Belle was offering a cold drink of water in a sweating glass for her, had it already been minutes? She felt like it was only seconds since she started. Gulping it quickly, she gave her thanks with a hoofbump and returned to pumping out tunes. Her whole body was lost in the music, dancing on the stage like she’d never moved before behind a board. She looked over the turntables, seeing not a single pony not moving with the music, it was a riot of colors, Pegasi dancing in mid air as ponies lost themselves to what she was playing. Unicorns were firing off spells of fireworks, adding to the colors already bursting from her outfit from the lasers Athena was targeting. It was a tumbling, rioting mass of bodies that were dancing to what SHE had done, HER music! Fans of light swept the crowd, colors and bursts made it seem like a phantasmagoria of images on the mind. They swept and strobed along the scaffolding, covering the crowds with images of hearts and musical notes, designs made out of pure light that even spells would have a hard time reproducing. On the backdrop of the stage was suddenly a huge representation of Vinyl’s head in light, outlined and moving with her as she rode the board like a runaway train. A mirrored ball had been placed center mass and was now reflecting every color of the rainbow as the lasers hit it with everything in the spectrum. The spotlights went dancing along the crowds, only encouraging them to more effort. Vinyl was lost, she felt herself lifting, her body moving like it never had. Her soul was bursting with this, it flamed high inside her as she poured it all into her creation. It was everything she was put into this, all she’d worked for and ever done and it was something new, different, that brought her to places she’d never dreamed! Her grin wasn’t forced as she screamed over the microphone, encouraging the audience to dance their tails off! They responded in kind, flowers were thrown on stage, ponies yelling in delight as they danced to the roaring music. Pegasi were swooping through the air, dancing on the clouds as the music even reached that high. She looked up to see more clouds had been moved in to accommodate the growing crowds of winged ponies and Unicorns using cloud walking spells. Another tap on her leg, this time Apple Bloom holding up a big mug of cider. Oh yes! That super cold refreshing foamy liquid hit the spot as she hoof bumped the little filly. Locking the music on auto for a moment, she moved out to the edge of the stage, waving her hoof and rocking out as ponies reached for her, wanting a hoofbump or just to scream in delight seeing their favorite DJ. Bouncers had moved in as ponies were actually rushing the stage! Forcing her to go back to the board and look busy to get them dancing and away from the edge. She almost lost her concentration laughing, seeing Harry the bear between the stage and the ponies, looking as mean as he could to get them back. Even the bouncers stayed away. She kept the music pumping, ponies kept wandering into the area and got caught up with the excitement which was fine with her, more ears to hear! Vinyl worked the turntables, her gear adding effects that only made the crowd soar into heights of dancing. She could even see the stagehooves whipping around to the music as she poured her heart into this. One more tap on her leg, Scootaloo offering crisp chilled apple juice that went down like a tide of fresh water to a pony dying of thirst. She smacked her lips and lifted up the little filly, telling her to dance on the side of the setup. Apple Bloom, Spike and Sweetie Belle came pounding out, dancing around Vinyl as she put everything she had left into these last few minutes. She’d planned this to the second having only an hour, gently the music went down, slower and slower the beats got. Letting you calm, leaving you to rest, lending you a soft moment that gave you a chance to catch your breath before you ended the night. And then, it was over, the light dying out with the last chorale, the ponies stopping their movements as the stage went dark with once again, a single lingering note. It was silent for a moment as she caught her breath, leaning on the board and getting hugged by the four with her who were yelling with delight at all the fun. She heard noises start up in the crowd, the chant reaching her. “VINYL! VINYL! VINYL!” A spotlight went on, she could see Athena grinning as she waved at her off the stage. Vinyl walked to the edge and gave a polite bow as the crowd went nuts. Screams and the stamping of hooves rebounded as they cried for more. “ENCORE ENCORE!” Vinyl just stood there, eyes wide as she didn’t quite know what to do. Usually these contests ended and a winner was chosen. She’d never heard about crowds wanting more from a single DJ. This was a bit unprecedented. The Master of Ceremonies walked out on the stage to goodhearted boos as the crowd wanted more music. He took it all in stride with a smile, holding the microphone in his magic. “Well it seems we have a problem, the crowd wants more music and we’ve yet to decide a winner.” Another round of boos and yelling. “But there seems to be something quite unusual, the other contestants have withdrawn from the contest, hoofing it to Miss Vinyl Scratch here unanimously. Without a judges decision.” Everything went silent. The crowd stopped yelling and were looking at each other as Vinyl could only stare. She saw the other DJ’s in the wings smiling at her as they trotted out on the stage, one taking up the mic to cheers as he was a well known music artist himself. “Ponies, I mean really. We’ve got our pride, and our egos, but when something like this comes along, even the other three agree with me. This is nothing, we mean nothing, like we have ever heard before. She really deserves the win.” He pointed to Vinyl who was still standing there shocked by the turn of events. DJ’s were notorious for their wanting to be the best, she just couldn’t believe this was happening. The MoC was talking, “..And the judges are looking now to see if the rules..” He was interrupted. “I got this!” Twilight came to a slamming landing on the stage as ponies blinked and bowed. She turned to see the crowd as the mike caught her words, echoing over the area, “Ugh, stop bowing, yeesh!” She held up a stack of parchment, “Rule Four, Paragraph Two, Subsection Eight, Clause Four, “Should any/some or most contestants leave the contest by calamity or by their own decision, the winner will be the one remaining in the contest.” Yeah the rules were pretty ruthless, but it was a contest for big stakes. The panel of judges riffled through papers quickly, reading and then looking up with a unanimous nod. “And there you have it folks, Miss Vinyl Scratch, DJ Pon-3 is the WINNER!” Two Unicorns brought out the trophy, almost as tall as Vinyl was and presented it to her as she really couldn’t find the words. It was beautiful as it glowed in the spotlight, silvery metal of a DJ pounding the turntables and grinning like she had been minutes ago. Her heart leapt in her chest as the MoC motioned for her to say a few words. She could see Fluttershy leaping in the air yelling loud enough for ponies to hear, “WOOHOO VINYL!” Then putting her hooves over her mouth quickly trying to fade back into the crowd. “I..I’d really like to say..” She was stopped by fans screaming. “You’re the best Vinyl!” The Unicorn grinned, “I am the best!” She waved to yelling ponies, “But..I couldn’t be here at all without my friends. It’s more than just me, it’s all of them too.” “I couldn’t have done this without them, and all the help they gave me.” She turned to Octavia and Twilight, and all the others, standing on the side with a smile, “And of course all of YOU out there too!” The crowd went wild, folks said you could hear the cheering in Canterlot that night. The MoC took the mike once more, “And now, the final two hours of music are all yours Miss Scratch, take it away!” He turned to leave, accompanied by the other DJ’s as Vinyl called for them to stop. “Wait! Wait..let’s do this together, what say?” The other four artists grinned and rushed to get their stuff set up, the last two hours of the festival were nothing but pure fun and music. One stayed behind for a moment, grinning. “But don’t think you’ll get off easy next time, there’s gonna be a fight!” He held up a hoof. She returned the bump, “Bring it on!” ------------ Vinyl took a break for a few minutes, letting the other four take most of the spotlight as she grinned, she couldn’t stop grinning and would never stop grinning at the trophy that sat next to her chair by the tent. The whole group was congratulating her on the contest, she was getting requests by folks for autographs until Twilight shooed them away, letting the small group have a little time alone. Fluttershy made sure Harry was nearby. He was such a nice bear actually, he didn’t like acting mean, just his size was enough to keep folks away for now. Crusader sat near her, she leaned over and started to say something but was halted by his look, a small smile on his face. “No Vinyl, it’s I who should have apologized. I’m set in my ways, but I’ve come to understand I shouldn’t make others do the same. You taught me that Vinyl. It takes a while for things to sink in, but you have my apologies.” He gave a slight bow with his head, “It’s never too late to learn things, even for me.” “So, we’re friends again?” She held out a hoof that was bumped. “Yes Vinyl we are, feel free to make music your way.” He smiled as Applejack nudged him. “Yes Applejack, she can have access to the archives freely.” “Good, wouldn’t want to have to hit ya upside the ear again.” She chuckled while giving him a polite kiss on the cheek. Vinyl grinned, she got a mischievous look that Octavia knew immediately and tried to say something, but was beat to it by Vinyl. She winked at everypony before asking Crusader, “Sooo..tell me about Punk.” You never saw a more disgusted look appear on a face as did Crusaders, she saw Athena slap a hoof over her mouth as her eyes got wide. “Absolutely not!” “Oh come on!” “No.” “Pretty please?” “I refuse.” Everyone there swore they’d never laughed so hard in all their days.