Friendship is Music

by Earl Grey

Part 8

If you had asked Octavia one year ago, “What is the most horrible sound in all of Equestria?” She would have replied, “Modern music.”

If you had asked Octavia one day ago, “What is the most horrible sound in all of Equestria?” She would have replied, “Vinyl Scratch's gloating laugh when I begrudgingly admit that she's right about something.”

If you had asked Octavia right now, “What is the most horrible sound in all of Equestria?” She would reply, “Warm vomit hitting cold porcelain. Especially when I'm barely two feet away and holding the mane of the pony doing it.”

Earlier that morning, Octavia had been rudely awoken by a door crashing open and the stamping of hooves across the living room. Her eyes, still bleary from sleep, barely registered the white blur as it flew past her impromptu bed on the sofa. She had enough time to say “Buh?” and scratch her head before the blur had vanished though the door on the other side of the living room. Octavia took a few seconds to try and piece together what had just happened, but she didn't need long before she heard something that answered for her.

The sound of Vinyl Scratch emptying her stomach into the toilet.

She didn't even need to think about it consciously, her legs just climbed off the sofa by themselves and began a slow walk towards the bathroom. Octavia barely registered this, being preoccupied with shaking the sleep out of her eyes. She reached the bathroom however and Octavia decided she might as well ask how she was doing, “Vinyl?” She knocked quietly, only to be greeted by a retching noise, “Are you alright?”

Silence.

“Vinyl?”

“Does it sound like...” Retch. “...I'm alright!?”

Octavia furrowed her brow, “Vinyl, I'm coming in.” The grey earth pony grasped the door handle with her hooves and pushed it open, she immediately scrunched up her nose from the smell but carried on, spotting the white unicorn slumped over the toilet, electric blue mane everywhere. Octavia trotted over and sat down next to her, grabbing her mane and pulling it back to save it from the threat of splash-back. “Don't want to ruin your lovely mane do we?”

All Vinyl did for the next few moments was breathe heavily, spitting chunks of what looked like eggplant and an undigested slice of mushroom into the bowl. “Don't lie Octavia... you just... wanted an excuse... to run your hooves through my mane.” she panted.

“That's fine Vinyl. I'm sure you'd love to pick chunks of pizza out of your mane all by yourself, I'll just go shall I?”

Vinyl coughed, sending a fresh wave of pizza bits into the toilet bowl, “No, no. I was only joking, sharing a lovely joke with my favourite-est earth pony in all of Equestria.”

Octavia smiled gloatingly, “Only your favourite earth pony?” she said with a simper.

“Okay,” Vinyl pleaded, “I'd happily sell all of my Mumble records if it means you will keep holding my mane back.”

“Octavia is pleased, but er... who's Mumble?”

Vinyl struggled for a brief moment between the utter lethargy in her limbs, the very fact that she didn't want to get vomit all over her and shouting at Octavia for not knowing who Mumble was. Finally she submitted, feeling her body go numb, “Just some musician that I've collaborated with on occasion. It's not like he's one of my favourite artists ever or anything.” Vinyl could feel herself die inside as she said that, she could also feel the bile rising in her throat again.

“Why...” Retch, “...aren't you being sick?”

“I wasn't drinking last night. I don't know about you Vinyl, but I've always found that not drinking leads to less feeling like crap in the morning.”

Vinyl laughed mirthlessly, “I'm more inclined to believe it was the pizza. That thing was foul.”

Octavia chuckled, “I ate some and I'm fine, perhaps you're slightly allergic to something and don't know it. Well, maybe not allergic, but... intolerant?”

“Hey, is someone in there?”

Vinyl retched again, thankfully a dry one, “Go see what she wants.”

Octavia rolled her eyes and stood, walking slowly over to the door and opening it slightly, “Yes, Rainbow Dash?”

The pegasus' polychromatic head appeared in the small opening, “What's going on in there?” She asked, raising an eyebrow suggestively.

Octavia scowled, “Vinyl is feeling sick after yesterdays antics, I'm trying to help her feel better.”

“You tell Dash that I hate her!” Vinyl's shout came from behind them, her voice sounded sore and angry.

Rainbow chuckled, “Hate you to!”

“No, I mean it! It should be you in here after all that crap you ate!”

“Speaking of which, do we have any of that pizza left? I woke up feelin' kinda peckish.” The pegasus had resorted to biting her hoof to stop herself from cracking up.

Octavia decided to step in before things got a little out of hoof, “Do you require the bathroom at all, Rainbow Dash?”

The pegasus grinned, “Nope, just came over to snoop, you two are so cute together.” With a final mischievous grin, Rainbow Dash walked back into the living room, presumably to find some leftover pizza.

As she was prone to do, Octavia silently glowered at the jibe. It was as if everypony had collaborated one day and agreed to annoy her with constant taunts. The grey mare turned back to Vinyl, who had risked taking her head from over the bowl.

“I don't think I can throw anything else up, it's feelin' kind of empty down there.”

“Well then,” Octavia announced, helping the unicorn back onto her hooves, “You will need filling up.” It took a strange look from Vinyl for the earth pony to realise what she had said. “Really Vinyl, get your mind out of the gutter and let me make you some breakfast. I can make sure Rainbow Dash eats something better than cold pizza as well.”

Vinyl smiled, but it wasn't her usual smug grin, it was a genuine smile, one that reached right up to her red eyes. For once they looked endearing, even with them being bloodshot, “You know, Tavi. I don't say this very often, but I appreciate what you do for me, thanks.”

==

The three ponies were sat around the breakfast bar, which acted to separate Vinyl's kitchen area from the rest of the living room. Octavia and Rainbow Dash were sat on stools looking into the kitchen, Vinyl was stood at the sink, washing the dishes with her magic.

“I've been thinking Vinyl,” Octavia asked suddenly, “We've pretty much seen all of your apartment, but I've not seen anything here that has space enough for a recording studio.”

“Yeah,” Rainbow interjected, raising an eyebrow, “All I've seen is the spare bedroom, your bedroom, the bathroom and a cupboard full of junk. Unless you've got some kind of hidden doorway in here.”

“Really, Rainbow Dash, why would one even consider having a hidden-” Octavia was interrupted by the sound of plates splashing into dishwater.

“Oh my gosh, that would be so awesome!” Vinyl had apparently abandoned her duties and chose instead to sit opposite Rainbow Dash, the unicorn looked as excited as the pegasus.

“I know right? You'd be all, 'I'm going to the supply closet for a second' then whoosh! Secret mop activated switch!”

“What would I need to hide behind my secret door?”

“Confound you Vinyl Scratch! Focus for a moment will you!” Octavia shouted, cutting off the flow of the conversation before it got too far.

Both Vinyl and Rainbow Dash, looked over at the the earth pony, leaning back slightly to distance themselves from her accusing eyes.

Octavia closed her eyes and took a deep breath, making a gesture with her front hooves as if she was pushing something invisible down towards the floor, “Ahem, now that we're not tittering like school fillies, can we please continue with the conversation that occurred before the interruption. You know, the one about the entire reason we're here in the first place.”

Vinyl's mouth hung open whilst her brain tried its hardest to try and process what just happened. “Er... I'll just show you where the recording studio is, shall I?” The DJ jumped off of her stool and shook her head slightly, perhaps to convince herself that she didn't just imagine that.

Octavia watched her go, but frowned when Vinyl headed for the front door. “Why are you going outside?”

“That's where the studio is, it's in the apartment below this one.”

“Wait a minute,” Octavia hopped off of her stool and walked slowly towards the unicorn, “You own this apartment and the one below it?”

“Well, not technically, the recording company owns the building. The top floor is my apartment, the floor below that is the recording studio and the bottom floor is a bunch of offices.”

Rainbow Dash joined them by the door, staring quizzically at Vinyl, “You pay rent to your label?”

“Technically yes, but they pretty much take it out of my wages before paying me, so I don't have to worry about it.” Vinyl opened the front door and stepped out, staring at the other two, “Now are you coming downstairs or do I have to give myself a tour around the studio?”

Octavia had never paid much attention to the first floor of Vinyl's building in the few times she had been there. It was styled in exactly the same way as the rest of the building and didn't have anything there to differentiate it from any other part of the building, but when Vinyl lead them down there and opened up the door, Octavia found herself getting oddly excited.

Perhaps it was the fact that Octavia had never seen a recording studio before, her work with the ensemble was strictly limited to live performances, so she had never truly heard how she sounded as a player. This was an opportunity to gauge herself as a player of her instrument, rather than listening to the reviews of others.

Vinyl unlocked the door and ushered the other two into the wide open lobby, it was about half the size of Vinyl's living room upstairs, with a few sofas around the edges of the room. Before them was a reception desk, where a pony was sat, looking rather bored whilst flicking through a magazine.

“This is the lobby. Ponies wait in here and it's incredibly boring, as I'm sure Flash here will tell you.” Vinyl stood in the middle of the lobby, pointing towards the reception desk. The pony behind the desk put the magazine down, revealing a yellow pegasus mare with a messy, two-tone cyan and white mane. “'Sup Flash?” Vinyl asked, walking over towards her.

“It's been pretty peaceful today, so I came up here for a sit down. At least that way, no one can actually tell me I'm not doing my job.” The yellow pegasus laughed genially.

Vinyl turned back to Octavia and Rainbow Dash, “Flash here is the building's Odd-Job pony, if it needs doing, chances are she can do it.”

“So who are your friends, Scratch?”

“Oh, these ponies right here?” Vinyl waved them over, “Only two members of the greatest band ever.”

Flash stared at them, as if trying to see if she knew who they were, “These two work with Mumble?”

Vinyl's hoof collided with her face so hard that her sunglasses almost broke, “No, Flash. They're the new members of my band, I was hinting that we are the best band ever.”

“Does your band even have a name?” Flash rolled her eyes as if she's dealt with this before. “Or have you decided to skip making a name and go straight to shouting them out of the recording booth and telling them not to come back?” Flash grinned in a near perfect imitation of Vinyl Scratch herself.

The DJ unicorn however, was glowering in a way that Octavia had never seen before, “I'd rather we not talk about that.”

Flash leaned over her desk and began talking to Octavia and Rainbow Dash, “I like meeting new ponies regardless, even if I might not know you for long. My birth name is Shutterfly, but most ponies call me Flash, I'm a photographer in my spare time you see.”

Dash walked up and shook hooves, giving a polite nod. Octavia smiled, “Octavia. Charmed.” Then she turned to the unicorn, staring fiercely at her, “What's this about 'shouting ponies out of the recording booth and telling them not to come back?' Why don't you want to talk about it?”

Vinyl looked away hesitantly.

“No, Vinyl. We'll talk about this now.” Octavia could feel her assertive glow from earlier coming back. “Tell Rainbow Dash and I the truth. Are we just more ponies in a long line of failed attempts?”

“Fine, whatever. Geez, who put a bee in your bonnet?” Vinyl smirked, but it was forced and Octavia could see through it.

“I would say that I woke up on the wrong side of the bed, but I fell asleep on the sofa foalsitting you and Rainbow Dash.”

“Hey, don't bring me into this.” Dash backed away, leaning on Flash's desk, “I'm just as interested in her answer, but this is your lovers spat.”

Octavia shrugged off Dash's comment in favour of waiting for Vinyl to answer.

“You're right in thinking that you aren't the first ponies that I've 'auditioned' for spots in my band.” Vinyl walked slowly over towards a sofa and sank onto it, taking off her sunglasses and rubbing the bridge of her muzzle with a hoof, “Before, I just used to ask ponies to come over and jam with me for a while, but none of them had the precise talents I wanted, some were just down right wrong. After a while, I started getting angry with them, hence the shouting and ordering. Most ponies in the business think I'm unstable or impossible to work with because of it... Mumble hasn't even asked for so much as a sample from one of my songs for the past six months.”

“When exactly did you start this audition process?” Octavia asked, something Vinyl said had piqued her curiosity.

“About a year and a half ago and let me tell you, I've seen plenty of musicians pass through my doors, but believe me when I say that you two are the real deal. There is no turning back for me, no reconsidering and no more crazy. I'm going to show the whole music world that DJ P0n-3 is a visionary, I'm going to prove all of the critics wrong when they said that I'd lost my touch and most of all, I'm going to show everypony that I am most certainly not in a creative slump.” Vinyl had gotten back to her hooves. Her red eyes were filled with determination, eyes that focused on the grey earth pony, “Reassured yet?”

Octavia turned away, feeling the guilt well up inside of her.

“I am,” Rainbow Dash said, smiling, “You're a great pony to be around and I see no reason to doubt you.”

Vinyl gave her a warm smile before turning to the grey mare, “And what about you, Octavia? I hid that part of my past because I'm not proud of it, I'm not proud of what it says about me. I wanted to show you who I am because... I really respect your opinion and I wanted you to approve of me as an artist.”

“I'm being a closed-minded fool again.” Octavia felt a few tears escape her eyes, but she quickly wiped them away, “I shouldn't have doubted you like that, you... you deserve better than that.”

'Don't let jealousy get the best of you, Octavia.'

Then Vinyl did something that Octavia wasn't expecting, she walked over and lay a foreleg around her shoulder in a hug, “We both have things to apologise for, let's just call it even and keep going, shall we?” When she broke away, she was wearing her trademark Vinyl Scratch grin, sunglasses magically back on her face. “Now, I sure you're anxious to see where your Double Bass is, I got Flash here to carry it into the recording booth in preparation for today.”

“It was not easy, let me tell you that for free.” Flash rolled her eyes, sitting back down in her chair and flicking her mane out her eyes, “Why can't you play the violin or the fiddle or something?”

“I am actually quite proficient with both of those instruments, I merely prefer the Double Bass.”

“Yeah, tell that to my back, which I almost threw out carrying that monstrosity.”

“It is not a monstrosity!” Octavia flared, riding the assertive high she had been on all day, “It is a finely crafted work of art.”

Vinyl chuckled, “Yeah, er... we should get going Flash, lot's to see you know. See you later!” Vinyl pushed her friends hurriedly from the lobby and through a door labelled 'studio' before Octavia started saying things she might regret.

“This, as you can see, is the studio.” Vinyl announced, pointing at the various stations which helped record things and mix it when you're done. To their immediate right was a soundproofed room, which was made to look like a completely white, empty space with instruments and microphones seemingly floating in the void. Octavia found that image rather calming. The only way to see into the room was through a large window above a massive recording station, with dials and sliders and buttons as far as the eye could see. Octavia wondered how anypony could grasp exactly what each of them did.

“That, as you can probably tell, is the recording booth,” Vinyl pointed through the window, “That's where the music is all recorded on this massive thing. The various dials can isolate certain parts of the music and play them separately, it can lower the volume, make it louder, add effects, all kinds of things.”

Vinyl walked over to the other side of the small room, towards more huge machines, “Once it's done being recorded, the song gets sent over here where it's mixed and cleaned up ready for distribution.”

“So how do we get into the recording booth? I didn't see a door.” Octavia asked.

“Oh, there's a door just at the back of the room,” Vinyl angled her head towards the back corner of the room, “It leads onto a little corridor, then the booth is just behind that. Come on, I'll show you.”

Vinyl lead the way into the recording booth, holding the doors open for Octavia and Rainbow Dash as they got into position. Vinyl was stood behind a large machine that looked half keyboard half record player, she was already using her magic to mess around with the various knobs and dials. Octavia had rushed over to her Double bass, giving it a tender stroke along the body and making sure the bow was nice and taut. Rainbow Dash hovered slightly, wondering what she should do.

She could hear the sound of Vinyl and Octavia testing their instruments and making sure they sounded good and it made her feel rather self-conscious. “Er... should I be doing anything, Vinyl?” The pegasus asked, looking around the seemingly empty room.

Both Vinyl and Octavia looked up, immediately stopping what they were doing. “Oh, sorry about that Dash, just making sure I had the right settings on this thing. Why don't you try singing something you know, Octavia and I will try and follow with an appropriate backing track.” Vinyl nodded towards Octavia who returned the nod with a determination that said, 'I've done this before.'

“Okay, I suppose I know a few songs,” Rainbow replied nervously, “It's nothing special, but this is one that my dad used to sing to me when I was filly in Cloudsdale.” She cleared her throat and after a few practice notes, began singing.

One day soon I just know you'll see
Raise your head and smile for me
Laugh about your history
Learn just what you're meant to be

Vinyl and Octavia almost forgot what they were supposed to be doing, but with a quick incredulous look at each other, they smiled and Octavia began to play a soothing melody whilst Vinyl had somehow managed to create an atmospheric backing of blustery winds and rumbles of thunder. Slowly she began to fade it out in favour of a lighter melody to compliment Octavia's bass.

You sigh and always try to play it cool
But deep inside, you still feel like a fool
The world's so big, and you, you feel so small
Wondering if you should try at all

Octavia kept up her melody, playing where it felt the song should go, her mind working in the background whilst her creativity took full control of her hooves. Vinyl faded her melody and began messing around with a light drum beat, cutting it and looping it to play in the background whilst she picked up the melody again.

Well, Tomorrow's not til today is gone
Live the moment, don't take long
Smile for impending dawn
Forget the troubles you think on

Is it time to break the mold?
Are you doing what you're told?
Go ahead, you can be bold.
Live for living, don't be cold!
When your final days have come
Smile at the mile's you've run
Come on, have a little fun
Spread your wings your time has come!

Vinyl could feel the tone of Rainbow Dash's voice quickening, becoming more powerful, she began singing with a fierce passion that Vinyl matched with her drum beat. Octavia quickened her pace to keep up, her eyes closed in heavy concentration.

Sitting, hoping for the wings you've earned
Silent as the fire in you burned

Brush away the dust and ash
On your shoulders from the past
Smile at the things that last
Feel the beat, your dice are cast
Stroke of luck, or fate, rejoice
Now you finally have a choice
So prove them wrong, that much is true
Just wait another day

When Rainbow Dash had finished, Octavia and Vinyl took their cues and began fading out their melody. They looked around at each other, a new found respect in their eyes.

“That was fantastic you three. Perhaps I was too hasty in saying I won't know you for long.”

The voice came from an intercom by the side of the window. Staring at them through said window, was Flash, the yellow pegasus wearing a pair of large headphones that had apparently let her hear what was going on in the booth.

“You were listening in on us?” Vinyl asked, slightly incensed.

“I was doing better than that, I was recording you guys. I bet you're glad I decided to see what you were up to aren't you?”

“Without my permission!? Wait until I get my hooves on you!” Vinyl charged out of the recording booth, Flash could be seen untangling herself from the headphones and running swiftly away.

In the booth, a faint “You'd better run!” could be heard through the intercom.

Vinyl appeared at the window and put the headphones on, Octavia and Rainbow Dash hadn't moved since the unicorn had charged out of the room. “Sorry about that, I suppose I can be wound rather tight in the studio.” She laughed nervously, “So anyway... seeing as Flash recorded us, should we give it a listen? We might as well, right?”

Rainbow Dash shrugged indifference and Octavia nodded, “We'll be right out Vinyl!” She shouted.

Vinyl winced on the other side of the window, tearing the headphones off of her head, “You don't have to shout Tavi. The microphone is right there.”

Octavia looked up at the thing hanging from the ceiling, before blushing madly, “Sorry.”

As Octavia made to walk out of the room, Vinyl's voice blared from the intercom again, “Hey, Octavia!”

The grey earth pony turned to look at Vinyl, who looked oddly smug.

“I just noticed, you aren't wearing your bow-tie.”

Octavia reached a hoof up to her neck, but felt nothing, “I suppose you're right, what does it matter anyway?”

Vinyl tittered, “You look naked.”

Octavia brought a hoof to her face and sighed.

* * *

A few quick notes.

Yes. That is a reference to General Mumble, one of my favourite pony musicians (and with his album In General, one of favourite non-pony as well)

Yes. The lyrics towards the end are from the song The Wings You Earned by Tarby. Another one of my favourite pony musicians.

Also, Shutterfly/Flash does actually appear in the show (In Green Isn't Your Colour) and those are the two names given to her on the MLP Wiki. A picture of Flash. If you count all of her appearances in that episode, she's probably had about as much screentime as Vinyl herself... so yeah. I've become oddly attached to her character, she's fun.

Bonus, completely unrelated, one-panel comic! - The camera on my phone is pretty much the only way I can get this stuff onto my computer, so it isn't as good quality as it could be.

Comments

[Apocalypse Pony]

Very nice

[Adam Crocker]

29767

I'm glad my borderline-autistic ramblings provided some encouragement. Before second year law school started I was actually reading a book called Ocean of Sound by David Toop, which expresses a similar sentiment while looking at how people's approach to music fundamentally changed in the twentieth century, starting from Debussy seeing Indonesia gamelan orchestras for the first time and going into rave music.

And just to elaborate on an earlier comment I made, one of the earliest forms of electronic music, Musique concrète, essentially involved taking pre-recorded tape sounds and splicing them and manipulating them to get new effects. Early on it often involved recording conventional classical performances and then messing the results. The first example I know of these techniques passing into the realm of popular musical forms? When BBC Radiophonic workshop employee worked out an arrangement for a theme composed by Ron Grainer, which involved here speeding up, slowing down, cutting, and splicing a tape that had a recording of plucked string on it, and then adding additional effects through various audio generators. The result was that on 23 November 1965, at approximately 5:16 pm, the people of Great Britain who were sitting down to watch the tele had their minds blown by the following sound...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75V4ClJZME4

(Sorry for that digression, but I couldn't help but share, particularly given the seeming overlap between these two areas of geekdom.)

[Adam Crocker]

Also...I only got up to the second chapter, but Dash...as a singer? And she was singing a song by Wings? That's BRILLIANT.

[Fernin]

I am really enjoying the pacing of this story. Things are developing nicely, and at just the right rate. Well done.

[themanesix]

way to kill the moment RD