Sounds Good, Pony

by ZKPony

Just a normal day

Sounds Good, Pony

A ZKPony fanfic

I sat in my sound booth and waited for lunch. It had to be close. I mean, I’d been here for hours, trying to drone out Vinyl and Octavia’s arguments. I should have gotten a new book while it was still on my mind yesterday, but no. I got too wrapped up in other things and now I was bored out of my skull. I checked the clock.

9:57

Ok. So maybe lunch wasn’t close, but it wasn’t far away, right? Only a little more than an hour-and-a-half of this nonsense, and then I’d be home free for a whole hour! On a whim, I put my headphones on.

‘-rypony knows that classical is lame! There is no style, no individuality, just BORING!

Well, if some ponies would take the time to actually listen to my music, they would see that each piece has a definitive beauty that separates it from other pieces. To anyone of a trained ear, Beethooven sounds radically different from Buck, to use more famous examples. Although, with the kind of music you listen to, I’m surprised you have any hearing at all left. One can hardly hear ones’ self think with all the racket techno and this ‘Dubstep’ make.

I can hear just fine, Ms. Prissy Pony! The best techno uses subdued patterns, and cautious rhythms. There’s no need to be all loud and in-your-face all the time! But there isn’t anything wrong with that either! And Dubstep is about the energy of music! Haven’t you ever just wanted to cut loose and dance! That’s what it’s all about!

And if this were the Pony Pokey, I would agree with you, Ms. Scratch, but it isn’t. Music is serious busine-‘

I took off my phones. Only day one and I couldn’t stand them. Maybe they’ll get it out of their systems and be best buddies later?

…

I placed my head in my hooves and begged whatever Goddess was listening to please save me from this nightmare. Suddenly, a pony popped into my head quite uninvited. She had a purplish-pink coat, and a purple mane styled to look like a grape bunch.

‘I was having a panic attack and now I’m thinking about Berry Punch…’

**()^b^()**

Eleven-Thirty didn’t come quick enough. I hurriedly set the disks to play autopilot, then dashed out of the building. They were on their own for lunch. As I wandered through town looking for a suitable place to eat, I happened to cross Berry’s shop. And then I heard them.

“COOOOOOOUUUUUUUUZZZZZ!!!”

“Mr. Accoustic!!”

Panicked, I did what any sane pony would do. I hid. Into the wine shop I delved, praying that my pursuers wouldn’t think to look in here.

“Hello! Welcome to- Accoustic? Is that you?” Berry. Of course.

“Shhh! One second.” I had my ear to the door and realized that I must look a sorry sight. She trotted over and ran her hoof through my mane.

“Orange this time, huh? So what are you running from? A couple of mares?”

Just as I looked back to her with horror plastered on my face, Vinyl and Octavia ran down the street.

“He must’ve went to get something to eat!”

“Check the café he took me to yesterday! A villain always returns to the scene of his crime!”

Berry’s face was amazing. Stranded somewhere between disbelief and ‘I-can’t-believe-I-was-right’, with a hint of annoyance thrown in. I grinned up at her, pleading.

“Into the back room. Now.” I mouthed ‘thank you’ before bolting into the storage room behind the counter. I could hear her opening the door, then shutting it. Then she came into the wine storage room.

“Mind explaining what that was all about?”

“Haha. Berry, you’ll never believe it. That was Vinyl Scratch, my coworker, and our new co-host, Octavia. It was just somewhat of a misunderstanding, see, as I’d forgotten to pick up their lunches, and left without telling them they were off the air. It’s a radio thing, you wouldn’t understand. Thanks for saving me, though. I’ll just be going now…” I started walking out when a hoof blocked my path.

“We have to talk.” The way she said it with that sorrow in her voice really made me dread this conversation. For Celestia’s sake, we aren’t even going out and we’re already having ‘talks’…

“A-a-about what, Berry?”

“Last night.” I gulped quite audibly.

“I know you took me home. I was drunk in the streets, and you brought me home and even fed Pinchy. I needed to thank you. And I... need to apologize. Pinchy told me what you talked about.”

Ohnnononono. I get drugged into revealing my feelings, and then that filly just spreads them around? Oh, she is so going to get it!

“Berry, I-”

“I’ve decided to quit drinking. Altogether. No alcohol at all.”

“That’s wonderful Berry, but you have to understand-”

“Pinchy told me that you.. you…” She started crying. Why do mares always have to cry?!

“Berry… I do like you, a lot. I want you to stop drinking but it has to be for you and Ruby, not for me.”

“Wh- what? Accoustic… You… like me?”

“Well, yeah, isn’t that what Ruby said?” Wait.. Oh no.

“Ruby didn’t say anything about that, did she?” Berry’s face lit up and she smiled the happiest smile I’d ever seen on her. She looked like a younger mare.

“No, she told me about you trying to help her with school and carrying me back. She didn’t say anything about- How long have you liked me?”

“Berry… I… but… Argh! Come to my place for dinner. Six. We will talk about this then. And bring Ruby! I have words for that filly!” I stomped out in what I hoped what was an indignant form. But then I heard the giggling, and as I left the shop:

“He likes me…”

**()^b^()**

So I left the shop, my chest aflutter, and my stomach growling. I needed food. But they were looking for me. In places that served food. So I was really in quite the jam. Or pickle. Or… Food. Food first, then Scratch and Octavia. Looking around, I could only see one real restaurant, so that’s where I headed.

“Welcome to Daisy’s! Where the sun shines! How can I help you, Mr.…”

“Ah! Accoustic, mam. I would like a... secluded table, if you don’t mind.”

“Hiding from the mares, then? We’ll see what we have. Follow me.” And she winked. And then I realized, all the mares in this town are CRAZY! But she led me to a table out of the way in a corner, hard to see from the front of the store, so I couldn’t complain. I sat down and she hoofed me a menu. Our hooves touched briefly.

“Be right back, can I get you a drink?”

“Vodka and cranberry, and ice water, if you please.”

“Wow, and so early in the day. Didn’t have you pegged as a drinker…” As she trotted off, I could only stare with my mouth open.

“If only you knew, mare. If only you knew.”

The food was good, the prices were decent, and my waitress (who I assumed correctly to be Daisy) was friendly. She stopped acting interested in me after about four drinks. I paid my bill and trotted on towards the studio. It was a beautiful day, almost a shame that I had to stay inside for most of it, but boy was it hot! I noticed a small dragon walking by, the one that lived in the library, and for some reason, decided to have a friendly chat.

“Hello, little dragon.”

“Uhhh, hello mister. My name is Spike.” He held out a claw. I put my hoof in it and we shook.

“Haven’t had a chance to say hello, but I’ve been meaning to. See you around all the time, and well, it was rude of me not to say hi. I mean, you’ve been here for months, haven’t you?”

The little dragon looked slightly nervous as he wrung his hands.

“Yes, I live in the library with Twilight Sparkle. I’m her assistant.”

“I’m Accoustic, and I run the radio station, K-Colt. Well, I’ll let you get back to-“

“Wait, you run K-Colt? I love that station! Twilight lets me listen while I do my chores! Man, I just love DJ-P0N3! You’re so lucky!” A devilish idea took hold of my brain.

“Would you like to meet her? In person, err, pony?” You should have seen his eyes. They were already dinner plate sized, but now… turkey serving dish size.

“Oh man! Yes! Thank you! I’m so stoked, this’ll be the best thing ever! What should I wear, what does she look like, what-“

“Easy, little guy. How about this? You ask Twilight if you can have tomorrow off-“

“That’ll never work. She never lets me leave chores…”

“Then tell her it’s a learning opportunity. Librarian can’t pass that up, right?”

The dragon let out this sound that can only be described as a ‘Squee’. It was so cute I had a mini-heart attack right there. He gave me a high-hoof.

“Meet me at the station tomorrow at five, right before the sun comes up. It’ll be great!”

I trotted away and heard youthful exclamations of wonder. This was going to make up for what my coworkers had done. Arguing over nothing! Music was music, and if they couldn’t see that, then they deserved what was coming to them.

**()^b^()**

When I got back to the studio, though, I got what was coming to me.

I tip-hoofed my way into the studio, being extremely careful not to let the door slam. It closed with a barely audible ~click~. Looking around, I could see no sign of my coworkers. Maybe they had decided to get lunch while they were already out?

The recording room was deserted. Tables were not on fire, equipment had not been smashed, and there were no holes in the walls. I peeked into my booth. Everything was just as I had left it. No… The disk automations were off. There was no music on the air right now. Then I realized what Scratch and Miss Prissy had done. They had left me in silence. Ohhhh, how I hate silence. Investigating under my desk, I discovered that all of the plugs had been pulled on my equipment. Knowing my long-time friend, I assumed that none of the equipment had been turned off before-hoof, so I went about pushing the power buttons on everything affected. Then I plugged them all into my power strip, and that went into the wa-

BJGINSHRRRRRGHWFJUUUUUUU My hooves were stuffed into my ears as I fought between getting this under control and protecting my hearing.

*unplug!* My ears were ringing like I’d been struck.

“Ow.” I was running out of princesses to swear by, but Vinyl was not going to live this down. This was, like…. The worst possible thing you could do to a sound technician pony.

I set about exacting my revenge. Vinyl would be in for a surprise when she got back.

**()^b^()**

1:57

They weren’t back yet. I could have gone out to find them, it would have been the responsible thing to do. Instead, I opted to stay in the studio until closing time. I may have loosened the lid clasps of Octavia’s cello while I waited. Oh, and removed all of the screws in Vinyl’s chair. But really. What was a little mischief compared to an assault on my ears?

…..

2:45

They still weren’t back. This day had been a total bust. I shut everything off and started home, grateful for a relatively uneventful day at work.

The bakery, Sugarcube Corner, was busy like always. High-pitched yelling punctuated my walk home, but it was nice. I saw Lyra sitting outside, in her unusual way, but I just waved a hoof and kept going. I was almost to the door when I heard galloping hooves.

“Mr. Accoustic!” I hadn’t even turned around when I was slammed to the ground in a blue-and-pink flurry. When my head stopped spinning, I saw Lotus, the spa pony, lolling her head as if she couldn’t decide whether or not to faint. Her pink mane was still smartly slicked back, which was a marvel after the tumble we had taken. I did a quick check and found myself unhurt, and saw the blue blur take a dive into the ground.

Mares.

**()^b^()**

Lotus was sleeping in my bed. Getting her there wasn’t hard, as she was quite light, but something felt wrong. She fainted way too easily. This whole day had been weird. Thinking back on it, mares had been acting crazy all day. First Vinyl and Octavia, which was nothing really special. But then Berry, and that restaurant mare, Daisy, and now Lotus… No. Something was definitely wrong. Lotus stirred a bit. I went into the kitchen and got a-

Berry. We were supposed to have dinner tonight. Oh, crap. I hurriedly looked around in my pantry and decided that yes, I did have enough to make a decent dinner. I had to start now though. Lotus would be fine in my bed, until she woke up, but that would be later. A good dinner takes time.

…

4:23

The food was coming along well. Hay fries, pasta, and a homemade lemon cake: almost done. I was hoping Berry would bring wine, cause… you know… wine shop? But I did have juice and milk. I checked in on Lotus: still sleeping. Shaking her gently did nothing but let out a small groan. Great. I still had time until Berry arrived, but what was I going to do? I couldn’t just leave her here. I had to stay with the food, so nothing would burn.

There was a rustling coming from my bedroom. It grew slightly louder until culminating in a very feminine:

“Ahhhh! W-Where am I?!” Said female burst out of my room, bed linens half covering her, hair scandalously messy, and makeup smeared all over.

“A-Acoustic? Why am I in your house?” I couldn’t resist.

“Well, good morning, sunshine. Sleep good?” The smile on my face was immense. Not as much as her blush, though.

“What?! But I don’t-We never-I was running to- oh, dear! The Rose bud oil rub! That’s what I came to tell you about! Do you remember the last time you came in for your appointment?”

I ran a hoof through my electric orange mane.

“Yeah, I do. Why?”

“We… I made a mistake. I thought I had rubbed you down with a rose oil extract, but it was actually a potion my sister had ordered from a friend. I’m so sorry! This is all my fault!”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Calm down. Just… just explain it all slowly.”

“Okay. It was a liquid form of the ‘Want-it-need-it’ spell. Do you remember that mess we were in when Twilight Sparkle enchanted that old doll? That was the spell. This potion was supposed to make everyone like you, but only for a while, and not nearly as potent. It was supposed to be applied in small doses, but… I accidentally used the whole bottle on you. Listen, the effect is passed on with contact, so anypony who has touched you will start to… well, love you.”

My mouth dropped open. How many ponies had I touched today? Then something in my head ~clicked~, and I understood. I knew why all the mares around me had been acting funny. I always messed with Vinyl’s mane in the morning, and had kissed Octavia’s hoof this morning just to make her blush. Berry ran her hoof through my mane, and I touched Daisy when she handed me the menu. And now… Lotus had run into me, knocking me to the ground. I had then carried her to my bed. No wonder things were so crazy!

“I… What do I do?” To her credit, Lotus did blush.

“I.. have never had a stallion who had to ask that of me.” To my credit, I did not stutter, but my face heated up like a furnace. ‘She’s under the influence of that potion-thing. She doesn’t mean it…’

“Lotus. F-focus. How do I get rid of this… Effect?”

“We have to go to Zecora’s. She made it, so she should know how to get it off. Or.. I get help you get off?” The blue mare in my house looked sultry. She smelled wonderful. She wiggled her rump a bit. I breathed in deeply.

“Lotus. You have to go home. I have a… friend coming over, so I can go see Zecora after that, but you are obviously fine, so please, leave before I make a big mistake.” I pointed a hoof at the door, afraid to physically force her. I was about to call the police when she turned and walked right out.

“Fine, just come see me soon, okay? I have other special treatments that customers don’t get.”

And with a wink, she was gone.

I smelled burnt cake.

**()^b^()**

The cake was not burned too badly. Berry and Ruby arrived right on time, six o’clock. She did bring the wine, as well as soft cider. When she brushed past me as she entered, I noticed Berry seemed… different.

“Berry, you look great. Hey Ruby.”

“Thanks, Couz. I’ll just put this in your fridge to chill out.” She nickered at her own joke, which I have to admit was pretty funny, and walked out the room. Ruby gave me a blank stare.

“You know everypony calls me ‘Pinchy’, right?”

“Yes, you told me that yesterday.”

“Okay, just checking to see if you remembered.” She trotted off to the kitchen too. I stood at the door, thinking about how I was going to get through the night.

Then the noise came. It was quiet. Coming from my kitchen.

Blasphemous.

It was the sound of two conspiratorial females whispering.

About me.

“I hope you two are behaving in there. I’m coming in.”

Giggles.

‘Oh, Celestia, Luna, Goddesses and rulers…’

Comments

[Kyi195]

First O.o can it be... anyways, loved the chapter. Its like Couz got hit with a double edged sword kinda situation. Cant wait to see what he finds in the kitchen. And I was thinking Lotus was still going to bd in his room when Berry got there, causing a really awkward situation for him... Keep up the great work bro

[Octavio the Umbreon]

Vunderful. Vhy, i shall ve lookings for ze more magiks!

[ZKPony]

578783
I had originally planned it that way, but decided it wouldn't work well, considering Berry and Couz's relationship.
That and it seemed... cliche.

[Kyi195]

581146 Not hating on your choice. I really like how it played out. Just saying thats what I expected. Maybe I expected that because it was cliche and it was always what happened. I dunno. I dont keep track of things like that

[Ghost8909]

I like this, and where it is going. Consider it one of my favorite stories.