Chapter 3
“Octavia!”
The cellist turned, hearing her name. She started when she recognized a dark blue mare with an off-white mane she had seen at a charity soiree a few weeks back; something about well-known musicians of the day supporting the youth. Octavia remembered that the mare was a pianist, but what was her name…?
The pony continued. “How are you?”
“Oh, um, just excellent, thanks. Just picking up a few things to make breakfast.”
The unicorn before her seemed skeptical. “That seems like a lot for one pony…”
“Well, I’m making enough for a friend as well.”
This was dangerous territory. While Vinyl and Octavia were not ashamed of their relationship, neither wanted to jeopardize their way of life because of the close-mindedness of other ponies. Family members and close friends had been told after a time, and all, after an initial shock, had seemed to take the news... as well as could be expected. However, the relationship was not officially public, and thus Octavia grew wary of the other pony’s inquiries. Luckily, the blue mare continued without noticing any awkwardness on the cellist’s part.
“Well, that’s nice. I need to get on with my shopping and get back as well; I have work to do. You see-”
Octavia drifted off into a mild reverie centered upon wondering why, if the pony had to finish up and get back, was she still standing here talking. It seemed like the most illogical thing to do. Most upper-class mares didn’t make sense to the slate-grey pony, and she was glad she had found Vinyl. She was so unlike other mares that-
Something made her snap back to attention. “I’m sorry, what was that?”
The pony, who Octavia finally remembered as being Lyrica de Crescendo, looked reproachfully at her. “I said, my new project is just so interesting. My coltfriend Vibrant Beats is going to try to make a mix of my piano with some of the newer music of today, to try to capture the younger crowd. Sort of a classical-meets-hip, thing, I suppose, although, for the life of me, I’m not sure how it will turn out!”
Octavia was startled. Wasn’t that just what Vinyl had suggested last night? “That sounds… interesting.”
Lyrica looked pleased with herself. “Well, you know, it is the first time anypony has tried it. Being a pioneer isn’t easy, but somepony’s got to do it!”
The cellist was getting annoyed with the blue mare’s boasts and continuous chatter. “Well, actually, a friend of mine recently built and wired her own recording studio. She proposed I try very much the same thing with her! I’m afraid your idea simply isn’t as original as you thought.”
The snooty pianist was put off for a moment, but recovered her composure and her haughtiness quickly. “Oh, isn’t that nice! Best of luck to you, of course, but I’m afraid you simply won’t be able to compete with our mixes. Vibrant has all the state-of-the art equipment, and more experience than your friend could ever have. With my talent at the keys, we’ll have an album out in no time. He says piano mixes the best, anyway, so your little cello might not suit the part.”
Octavia ground her teeth silently as she heard the contempt in Lyrica’s voice, first for Vinyl’s talent, and then Tavi’s own instrument. Knowing what was expected of her socially, though, she made herself generate a polite laugh and even forced a smile.
“Oh, I don’t know about that! I think anything is possible.” Thinking of Vinyl, she added with a small (genuine) smile, “Why not try new things?”
Lyrica, unimpressed, forced her own smile. “Well, my dear, the best of luck to you! But not too much!” She tittered, then pushed off, levitating her shopping basket ahead of her with her horn.
Octavia took a moment to recover from the incident she was already coming to remember as horrid, and then shook her head to clear it. Time for that later. For now, Vinyl would be ready to eat the earth pony herself if she didn’t get back in time to make breakfast.
*** *** ***
“Vinyl? I’m back, and I got a few things for breakfast!”
“Hang on, you mean this cello I’m cooking isn’t necessary?”
“Oh, you wouldn’t dare.”
“You’re right. Cellos taste much better raw!”
Octavia smiled as she entered the living room and saw Vinyl sitting on the floor in the middle, fiddling with a few parts to her turntables. The technology-apt pony had once again donned her trademark shades, and she beamed behind them as she saw the grey pony’s slightly annoyed -yet smiling- look.
“So, whadja get?”
“A few things for French toast. Good enough for you?”
Vinyl sighed. “I guess it’ll have to do, but next time-”
The snappy comment was cut short by a freak occurrence of Octavia’s hoof to the side of the head. “Silence. You know full well that it’ll be the best meal you’ve eaten in several days that I haven’t fed you.”
The DJ pony grinned bashfully. “Alright, alright. I suppose I do appreciate my live-in chef.”
Octavia, already on her way to the kitchen, tossed her mane over her shoulder. “You’d better, or you might find something… unpleasant in your breakfast.”
*** *** ***
20 minutes, 8 slices of toast and some syrup later, breakfast was ready. The two ponies sat down on Vinyl’s couch to enjoy Octavia’s supreme cooking. As always, the grey pony ate calmly and elegantly, while the white horned pony shoved her snout into the plate and devoured the sugary goodness she found there. The cellist, doing her best to not comment on the disturbing lack of manners, realized that this was as good a time as any to inform Vinyl that her idea was not totally original.
“So, I met an… acquaintance of mine who plays the piano at the market today…”
Vinyl was still buried in her breakfast. From somewhere in the depths of her chewing Octavia heard an “Mhm.”
“And, well, it seems she and her coltfriend have come up with a new project…”
“Mmmmm.”
“And it’s attempting to combine classical and modern music… Somewhat like us…”
The DJ pony immediately stopped chewing. She looked up slowly, the gears turning in her head. When she spoke, it was through a mouthful of crumbs that Octavia winced at.
“WHAT? Are you serious? They’re doing the same thing as us? What? When did this happen? Did they steal it from us? Did you tell them about it? Are they any good? Nevermindthatonewe’rebetter! But what about-”
Vinyl went on and on. The earth pony had known she’d get a response much like the one before her now, but it was still hard to get a word in edgewise.
“Vinyl-”
“-And if they even try to use the same mixes as me I’ll buckin’ mess them up, and then I’ll- I’ll-”
“Vinyl-”
“And then, if the doctor manages to remove it, we’ll stick it right back up-”
“VINYL!!”
“…What, Tavi? What?”
Octavia took a deep breath. “First of all. I didn’t tell them about it, they came up with it on their own. Second, they’re using a keyboard/piano for their classical side. Besides, what are we even going to do with it?”
“I don’t know! Be first! That’s important! And maybe if- No! When! When it’s good, we can maybe try to run it by some record companies.”
“Hmm... Fair enough. Anyway. Third, I have every confidence in you.”
She smiled confidently at the unsure DJ in front of her, then set aside her plate, seeing Vinyl had already finished. She moved slowly over to her fillyfriend’s side of the couch, seating herself closer. She reached out with a hoof and removed Vinyl’s sunglasses, revealing her beautiful scarlet eyes. She gazed into them, and with the most determination as she could muster, said, “Calm down.”
Vinyl still looked tense. Octavia decided on a more direct approach, and a sly note crept into her voice.
“Or... are you telling me that the great DJ P0n-3 is afraid someone could actually beat her at something?”
The taunt did the trick. Vinyl’s eyes flashed, her horn glowed, and her shades were restored to their rightful place.
“C’mon, let’s give it a shot.”
*** *** ***
“Okay, so you know what you’re doing?”
“Vinyl, I’ve recorded enough times to know HOW TO PLAY IN FRONT OF A MIC.”
“Alright, alright. Let’s run it.”
Octavia began to play, her cello bow sliding easily over the strings. The music began; a slow piece that sped up quickly at the point where Vinyl’s part would eventually come in. Octavia wondered yet again how it would end up. It sounded good in theory, but… nopony knew yet.
From within her came a calming peace, a blissful feeling that came over her whenever she was playing. It was what enabled her to play so flawlessly at recitals and concerts, how she was able to tune out all other distractions. She closed her eyes to focus more and played harder, in sync with the music now, feeling the swells and falls of the notes. It was at times like this when she felt she could forget about everything and almost everypony else in all of Equestria…
Vinyl stood in the recording booth, gazing at the cellist before her with the dark grey mane and closed eyes, her brow furrowing slightly as she concentrated. She felt her heart go out to Octavia’s, feeling the flow of the music with her as the earth pony played. She smiled. It always felt amazingly good to watch the pony she cared about play, and today the feeling was heightened by the knowledge that this time they would be combining their music into something formerly unheard-of.
…Well, almost unheard of. That dirty, lowdown- Vinyl’s teeth ground at the thought of Lyrica and her coltfriend. Octavia had since told her the full contents of that morning’s conversation, and hearing her favorite mare be… bullied like that had infuriated the DJ. She hated nothing more than coming in second, and the fact that these ponies had the guts to insult her and Tavi like that… She mentally swore for the eighth time that day to come out on top of the other musicians. And, should they ever meet, she’d have a few choice words to add. And gestures. And injuries.
Octavia finished the last note and held it, before letting her bow drop gracefully and bowing elegantly in the direction of the booth.
“Well? How was that?”
“Perfect, Tavi!” The unicorn came out from the little space behind the console and kissed the cellist on the cheek.
“Why thank you, Miss Scratch!”
Vinyl giggled and pretended to throw a rose toward the stage musician in front of her. Octavia delicately ‘caught’ it in her teeth, then struck a pose with her cello that could only be described as... ‘provocative’.
The white pony, predictably, fell over onto her side laughing.
“Oh… Tavi… (heh) Please… do that next time you’re on stage…”
The idea of such a thing made Octavia, herself laughing now, fail to hold the facial expression she’d made with the stance. She placed her cello to the side before flopping down, giggling, next to Vinyl, who was still in hysterics.
Eventually, the laughs subsided, and they lay there for a comfortable while, both happy with what had been done and ready for a break. Composing the music would be the hardest part, and it had taken most of the day to decide on the overall tone and write the beginning. The two eventually figured out somewhat what they wanted their piece to sound like, and Octavia had rehearsed the opening a few times.
Once the cellist’s fairly complicated piece was mostly ready, it would be Vinyl’s turn. She would go back through and add in different beats and melodies from her records and mix them for her own special touch. What Octavia had just finished recording was the first part of her side of the piece. Both ponies felt that they were well on track.
A minute slipped by, then another. Both ponies were comfortable in their own thoughts and each other’s company. Eventually, Vinyl rolled onto her hooves and stretched, then spoke.
“It’s getting kinda late. Dinner here, and more music afterwards?”
Octavia got up as well, then smiled. “Oh, I would love to, but I have to go to work tomorrow. My ensemble is rehearsing for a new show, and I need to be there.”
Vinyl, visibly disappointed, lowered her head. “Aw, dang. Here I thought we’d be able to work on our …harmonizing later.” The wink was audible.
“Vinyl, there’s more to life...”
The unicorn laughed roguishly. “I know, I know. It’s just fun ta mess with ya.”
Octavia grinned and reached out to whisper slyly in the other mare’s ear.
“…In more ways than one, hmm?”
Vinyl flashed a look of satisfaction over her shades and smirked. “You know it!”
The grey earth pony hugged her paramour tightly.When at last the two drew apart, it was with longing, but understanding.
Vinyl spoke first. “So, I’ll see you tomorrow night? I have a gig in the afternoon.”
“Of course.”
The two began walking to the door, Octavia pausing to make sure she had all of her music and equipment in her cello case. They stopped in the entryway for one more embrace before Octavia pushed out into the cold winter night, thinking only of her lover and of her music.
*** *** ***
***Author’s Note:
[See, here I am, being good by EQD’s standards. Not posting notes at the beginning of the chapter. xD ]
I feel like I should apologize for the cliffhanger at the end of Chapter 2; that was probably mean. Whoops. ^_^ I just wanted people to be hooked, and, if you’re reading this, hopefully it worked! Now you know who Lyrica is (though you haven’t yet met Vibrant. ;)
Anyway, I know this is only the third chapter, but as this is my first ‘hardcore’ (as ‘twere) fanfiction, I would like to quickly thank all the people that have read, followed, and enjoyed it so far. I’m writing it for you guys, for everyone who’s willing to peruse and appreciate it. Legere est bonum!
Expect the next chapter a week or so from now!***
They're so adorable! I love that they, as a couple, are both doing what they love, and then combining it together. Just love it!
443609 Thanks. Great story by the way.
Cute so far. Why would you apologize for a cliffhanger?
UNSOLICITED ADVICE :
(I've been writing for years myself and yes it's still an amazing feeling to create something out of nothing)
It's a good premise but I do feel like I've read this version of Vinyl and Octavia a million times before.
You just need to make the characters your own more, need even a few little different details.
You don't want people to claim you're just piggybacking off VST and Allegrezza.
While yes it was cute (thanks for the diabetes) I felt that it was possibly all style and flashy quips and not enough substance.
You have enough potential for a good plot but you just need to make something in your characters that your readers can latch onto.
Don't be afraid to challenge the fanon depictions and go your own way.
You need to be adding to the fanon not just reusing past fanon. You can build off it yes but the reason to write fanfic is to add to the community, that you feel something is missing that you think needs to be there. So you accepted what has gone before you but then you throw in fresh ingredients.
We cannot just have the old 'look how cute they are when they bicker' version of them. The plot of the music rivals seems very interesting and what could make this really interesting is in the dynamic the characters have with each other. Not just random quips but like you see around you, people (well ponies in this case) are complicated and have many layers. I think this could be a great read if you elevate the characters from fanon stereotypes to full characters that we can really connect with.
"You may not be a Picasso or Mozart but you don’t have to be. Just create to create. Create to remind yourself you’re still alive. Make stuff to inspire others to make something too. Create to learn a bit more about yourself"
You have the ability to do this, to breathe life into these characters so don't be afraid to put the characters in tight situations instead of just cute ones,
readers love to find out exactly what characters are made of and how they handle problems.
But of course have fun. Writing is one of the best things I think a person can spend their time doing.
451128
Wow, that was a lot of advice. Thanks!
I have to respond to a few of those comments. 1st of all, yes, I have read Allegrezza and VST, and I loved them both. And yes, I am taking the majority of Vinyl + Tavi's personalities and description from the fanon. I'm also taking (somewhat) their relationship from the fanon. See, I didn't want to make up a different Vinyl or a different Tavi. I love the fanon descriptions of them! I really didn't (and still don't) want to change them in any major ways. I'm sorry if you've seen these iterations before; I personally love them and want more of them. That's why I'm writing in that style. However, you are correct in that we need to see more than just them sparring verbally, and I hope to get more into that in later chapters. They do have normal conversations. Don't get confused, though; this is a comedic story, so much of it does have to have some laughs.
What I wanted to accomplish with this story was taking the two pre-established characters and their pre-established relationship (with a little history thrown in) and put them into a storyline of my own making with characters of my own making. They're not stereotypes exactly, they're more like.... like (and I am nerding SO HARD right now ) playing D&D with one character. You make your character, and then you can reuse him/her for various campaigns and storylines. Same character, same traits, different surroundings, different story.
(By the way, I'm not planning to have them get married or anything like that at the end, because, even though it would be sweet, that particular storyline has been done to death.) So yes, I am taking some things from the fanon straight, but ONLY the characters and their relationship. The difference is that I'm going to fit them into writing of my own. I don't consider that copying, and I'm sorry if you do...
And hey, don't knock me on the plot yet. I've only posted up to chapter 3 at this point, and there are a LOT more to go. I'm thinking around 10 at the moment, but it could be more or less. Believe me when I say that the music rivalry is going to be the main conflict, and that, even though Vinyl and Tavi will have their own moments outside of it, the main conflict is going to take up most of the story. Like I said earlier, I may be using pre-existing characters, but the plot and OC's are going to be all mine.
Finally, thanks for the compliment! And I really appreciate the feedback. I rarely hear any of it, and you were both polite and informative. Extremely helpful! :D
(Oh, and I love writing. You're right, it is a good way to spend time. )
What does VST stand for?
This made me laugh, because I work as a pharmacy tech, and "Lyrica" is the name of a medication for depression. But in all seriousness, this story is cool so far.
I hope Vibrant Beats is better then his girlfriend...
452072 I love your way of thinking! =D
I do sometimes like it when authors write their own takes of certain characters, but sometimes it's done for no real reason. Vinyl and Octavia is my favourite pair of ponies, both together and on their own, and I absolutely love the general fanon of them as established in Alegrezza and VST, and when I go looking for more stories with them, I really just want (as you said) the same characters put in different situations. So what you are doing with this story is just perfect! ^^ It's VinylTavia, but not a carbon copy of what's already been done.
(Vinyl and Octavia: University Days is another story that does kind of the same thing if anyone is interested! One of my favs ^^)
Anyway, going to continue on with the story now! Looking great so far!
And thus Trance music was born?