//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: Beans // Story: Symphonic Fusion // by Duelist925 //------------------------------// Octavia gave a contented sigh as she lazily stretched out next to Vinyl. Still slick with the sweat of their most recent exertions, the earth pony smiled as she nuzzled the unicorn in the little spot behind her ear that she’d discovered, and the delightful noises it elicited, after their most recent date. Her smile stretched into a grin as she was rewarded with a squeak from the white coated mare, who then swatted at her with a pillow. “You ain’t allowed to be all prim and proper in public if that’s how you’re gonna act here!” Vinyl protested, though she couldn’t help but grin at the grey mare. Octavia chuckled, sitting up with a slight groan of protest and tilting her head to one side, neck cracking loudly. “As if you’re one to speak of proper behavior in the bedroom, Vinyl.” She said with an impish little grin. She seized the pillow in her teeth and smushed it against Vinyls shoulder playfully. She could hardly believe it—how casual she was with this mare after only two weeks of knowing her. Hells, this was the third time she’d gotten…intimate with her, if she included their initial meeting. Vinyl smirked and pounced on her with another pillow levitated high, raining blows down on a helplessly giggling Octavia. Two weeks and five dates—not counting the drunken revelry that’d started it all—had the pair closer than either would’ve thought possible. The flurry of soft strikes came to an end with a panting Octavia beneath a grinning, triumphant Vinyl. “Give up yet?” She said with a lazy little smirk. Octavia stuck her tongue out before dramatically sweeping a hoof to her brow. “I do yield, oh stalwart foe! You have bested me, and I am at thy mercy! I can only hope you will not take advantage of such a poor maiden as mys-“ She was cut off by Vinyl squashing the pillow against her face with a laugh. Vinyls comeback, whatever it may have been, was in turn cut off before it began by the bedroom door crashing open. “’Ey Vinyl! Figured I’d pop in and get some revenge fer last week--” A voice familiar to both the ponies presently in Vinyls bed stopped short as its owner took in the little tableau before her. “…Octavia?” said Brough Strings incredulously. “Strings?!” Octavia squeaked, shoving the pillow aside as she felt her face start to heat up. “Wha—you’re the mare Vinyl’s been so friggin tightlipped about?!” Strings stared. “Hells, this why I ain’t seen ya the last couple weeks?! “ “I can explain! It’s only the second time!” Octavia said, and promptly cursed her tongue for running ahead of her brain like that. Strings looked like she didn’t know whether to laugh or look annoyed, which resulted in the most interesting facial expression. “Second time? Wha?” Vinyl chose this moment to chime in. “Hey, wouldn’t this be the third? I mean, like, we got pretty snuggly at the movies the other day.” She said in a rather chipper tone. “VINYL! You are not helping!” Octavia barked as her face burned. She rubbed at the bridge of her nose with one hoof, breathing out in one long, relaxing exhalation. Shifting to one side, she shoved Vinyl over to flop onto the bed and smiled at Strings. “I…never did tell you how the blind date turned out, did I?” she said apologetically. Strings had finally settled on an emotion, and was giving Octavia the kind of grin that the refined mare remembered had always promised troubled back in their university days. “Nah, ye didn’t.” she said with a vaguely ominous chuckle. “But yeh are.” She pointed at the door. “Right, you two—get cleaned up, cuz yer buying me dinner and spilling the beans, both of ye.” -|- Twenty minutes, two hasty showers, and a short distance later, the three were tucked into a booth at Mareos Pizza. Octavia couldn’t suppress a sigh as Strings fixed her with a look. The server had taken their orders, and until the pizza arrived there was nothing she could use to put off the inevitable horror. “So…how the hells you twos wind up together?” Strings asked eagerly. Octavia rubbed a hoof against her temple. "Strings, do you have to talk like that?" Octavia groaned. "I know you're perfectly capable of proper diction and grammar!” Strings snorted. "Wha? Want me talking high and falootin like youse? " She smirked. "Darling, while I can comport myself as a mare of class and elegance with the best of them..." She trailed off for a moment. "...thes's how me ma and da talked, and it's good enough fer me." Octavia stared. "Strings, your parents are a mare from Trottingham and a stallion from Gloucestishire." She said flatly. "You have an accent that swings between at least ten different regional dialects from all the corners of Equestria and parts of the Gryphon Kingdoms, and you didn't start using it until that one girl broke up with you for not being pureblooded nobility.” Strings opened her mouth to retort, but Octavia held up a hoof to forestall her. “Darling. I am not asking you to speak as an aristocrat. I simply want you to drop that annoying faux-accent down to more acceptable levels, yes?” She said, her voice as sweet as honey. Behind the sweetness was just the barest hint of bitter though, and Strings let out a sigh. “Roi—right, yeah, fine.” She rolled her eyes, before leaning over the table and grinning at the two of them. “But you two ain’t off the hook yet. Spill! How in the nine hells did you guys wind up bangin?!” Octavia suppressed another groan, and thought about how best to explain the situation between Vinyl and herself. “Well…honestly, the date was a disaster to start with. Just…awkward.” The mare shrugged. “I thought Vinyl was just one of your uncouth, overly boisterous and barbaric friends.” Vinyl grinned. “Awww, that’s sweet. “ “…That wasn’t a—you know what, never mind.” Octavia said, rolling her eyes. “And she thought I was some prissy mare with my cello bow wedged as far into my colon as possible and Vinyl Scratch if you even start making some terrible innuendo, you will be wearing your drink as a horn cover.” She finished, glaring at Vinyl. The unicorn mare closed her mouth with a sheepish grin as Strings snickered. “I guess I can see it. I did just ask ya to take her out so I could get laid.” She said idly. Vinyl blinked, quirking an eyebrow at Octavia, who shrugged again. “Evidently you kept interrupting her alone time with Bass.” She said lightly. Vinyl just rolled her eyes at that. “You coulda just told me to beat it.” She said to Strings, voice dry. The Mohawk wearing pony had the grace to look embarrassed. “Yeah, yeah, enough about me though—if the date was going so bad, how’d you two wind up in bed?” She asked eagerly. Octavia opened her mouth and paused. Oh, there had to be a way to save some face here…a way to work her way through this without revealing her little slip up! A way to— “Tavi’s a horny drunk is all.” Vinyl said nonchalantly, drawing a horrified look from Octavia. “We got plastered at the bar, and wound up dancing between the sheets all night.” Octavia heard Strings laughing, and continuing to laugh even as she fell out of her chair. She couldn’t see it, mostly due to the table she was glaring down at. Vinyl seemed to find it all amusing as hell though. "Oh yeah, she's positively frisky after a few shots." The unicorn continued. "Freaky even. Heck, you shoulda heard her! About round three, she started making all kinds of weird noises!" She snickered as Strings just kept giggling on the floor. "Mare, she got downright naughty! I remember when she brought out the--" “Vinyl. Can you not share the particulars of that night in such a crass way?” Octavia interrupted through gritted teeth, struggling to contain herself. She could practically feel the smirk the unicorn was no doubt sending her way. Schooling her expression carefully, the earth pony looked up to find that Strings had pulled herself back into her chair, and she forced back a blush at the snickers and looks being thrown her way from the pair. “Hell, wish’n I’d known about that little weakness in college.” The punk pony couldn't stop a giggle escaping, though she managed to make a passable attempt at bedroom eyes aimed at Tavi. Octavia rubbed at a temple with her hoof, sighing. “Yes, yes, get it out why don’t you. Anyway, that’s….well, that’s really it. I had a horrid over reaction the morning after our tryst, and took Vinyl out for lunch to apologize. It just…kind of led to another thing after that. And another. We’ve been on four or five dates I believe?” Vinyl shrugged and made a vaguely affirmative noise as their pizza arrived, a thick string of gooey cheese already stretching from her mouth to the steaming hot slice. She swallowed, smacking her lips with a grin before nodding. “Something like that, yeah.” Octavia looked at her mushroom topped slice and poked at it idly with a fork. At least the worst was over. Strings knew. She tried to put the embarrassment and shame Vinyl’s casual reveal had kindled in her out of mind, but it festered. The sounds of pizza being eaten filled the air for a few minutes, but even when the two less than classical ponies at the table had finished she didn’t join in on the conversation, seemingly content with picking idly at the slice until it was a shredded mess. The atmosphere grew a bit more tense as time went by, and she continued her silence, responding only in monosyllables or the odd noise or two, when she responded at all. Strings excused herself after a few more minutes of awkward silence, and still Octavia refused to respond to Vinyl, even as they all paid and left. String went one way, casting a few worried looks over her shoulder, while Vinyl and Octavia went the other. It took nearly a block of stoic silence before Vinyl cracked. “What in the hell is your problem?!” Octavia looked over at her, and Vinyl paused. She felt a chill creep up her spine as she recognized the look on Octavia's face--it was frighteningly similar to the calm, cool, poisonous look she'd had the morning after their first night. "My problem? I have no problem, Vinyl. No problem at all. I am perfectly in the habit of revealing my bedroom habits and lack of control while intoxicated to dear friends and loved ones." She said calmly, before turning and simply continuing on her way. Vinyl stared after her for a moment, seeming surprised, before she stepped in front of her and shoved a hoof into her chest. “What, your pissed at me for telling Strings what happened? Hell, what’d you want me to do, lie to her? Tell her the date went bucking perfect or some crap like that?” She said incredulousy. Octavia gave her a frosty glare. “Of course I didn’t want you to lie to her! I just wished you’d shown some tiny modicum of tact, and not gone into every detail! Or at least phrased it differently!” Vinyl snorted. “Oh, miss high and mighty doesn’t want her friend to know she got trashed and wound up in bed with someone. Real friggan surprise there.” She rolled her eyes, starting to turn away. “Oh, as if you truly care.” Octavia sneered. “Well, Miz. Scratch, loathe as I am to disturb the precious bubble of grime you surround yourself with, but civilized ponies tend to care at least somewhat about the opinions of others! No, I do not wish anyone to know of the mistakes I made that night!” She snapped. Vinyl stopped dead and glared at her. “A mistake, huh?” she huffed. “Well hell, guess that means you made the same mistake what, five times? Six counting the pizza?” she stepped forward, and prodded Octavia in the chest. “Or did you just mean hopping into bed with me?” She growled. She shook her head and turned. “You know what, you’re right, it was a mistake. Mistake ever thinking a mare like you could unwedge her head from her own flank and act like a pony instead of some spoiled brat!” Octavia recoiled before stomping a hoof against the stone. "Well, if that’s how you fee--" She paused, staring after Vinyls retreating back, a horrible mishmash of emotions whirling within her. "I—You infuriating--Vinyl!" A note of plaintiveness gradually worked its way into her voice as she was reduced to stammering after the retreating pony. She stood there for a few minutes longer, staring after the unicorn with a hesitant expression. Vinyl turned a corner, and Octavia seemed to un-knot from her tension the slightest bit. She heaved a sigh, and turned to start making her own way home. She needed some practice anyway. A night alone with her cello would help calm her nerves. She could talk to Vinyl tomorrow, if the mare was even up to a civil discussion after such a disagreement. She’d be fine.