A Scratch at Romance

by Midnight Ice Cream

Mornings are Only as Good as Breakfast

Rarely is waking up as much of a treat as it is this morning. It is truly wonderful to be woken up, not by a clock or at any specific time, but by the natural rising of the sun. Vinyl and I sit huddled up next to the last remaining embers of the fire. I’m far too comfortable to try to escape the tangled mess that our bodies have become, and it would seem as if that’s also true with Vinyl, who lies there asleep with a great big smile on those chops. I smile too, there’s nothing I’d rather do than be here, right now, with Vinyl. I must have moved a little too quickly though, because Vinyl seems to be awakening, “Hey,” She says, blinking, “Tavi.”

“Hey,” I respond with a smile. We sit there in silence for quite a while. There is no need to really talk under such circumstances, words would probably ruin the moment.

Vinyl is the first to break the silence by informing me of how comfortable I am.

“So are you,” I say.

“Thanks,” Vinyl slides out from under me and stands up, “But as comfy as you are, I’m hungry.”

Bugger.

We forgot didn’t we?

Bugger. I may have had a few snacks lying about, but nothing big enough to constitute a meal, “I’m not sure we have anything.”

“Ah shit.”

“Check the bag.”

Inside, Vinyl finds a single chocolate bar and looks towards me. I nod, gesturing that she could have the whole thing. I then stand up and walk towards the water, taking a moment to stare down into the crystal reflection. I take a look back at Vinyl, who seems to be picking out a record to play, before sitting down, and making the most of the morning sun. Sweet classical melodies fill the air as I splash water all over my face, the cold jolts me into alertness. I take a few moments to stretch before sliding into the water. The cold is incredibly relaxing as I doggy paddle my way around the pool, letting the water to do most of the work, and allowing myself to take in the rising sun passing through the trees.

“You know, you almost make that water look appealing.”

“That’s because it is, my dear Vinyl.”

Vinyl stares down at me from her perch on the riverbank, “Well...”

“Well what? Hop in.”

“Urm... I know this is a bad idea.”

“Yes it’s cold, but come on!” I wave a hoof at her, gesturing for her to jump in. "Don't wuss out."

“I guess.”

Vinyl jumps in and almost as quickly jumps out. I sigh, and make my way out of the water, placing myself behind her shivering body, “Well, I suppose you’ll have to learn to get used to it.”

“Why would anypony like that?!”

“Oh, poor Vinyl. Don’t worry though, you’ll warm up.”

“If you say so.”

Vinyl and I lounge in the sun for a short while, listening to classical music. For once I see the advantage of those dodgy shades, for as the sun makes her way up, it’s me that gets blinded by it, not. I suppose that’s nature’s way of punishing me for enjoying the water.

About an hour and a half later, my hunger gets to me, “Vinyl?”

“Yea?” Vinyl is just basking in the sun, only moving to put on another record.

“Do you think it’s about time to head off? I’m bloody starving.”

She puts a hoof in the air, gesturing for me to wait for a movement in the music to pass before responding with her token, “Sure.”

Within ten minutes, everything is packed and we’re on our way home, “I never saw you as such a classical fan, Vinyl.”

“Yea, well your stuff has it’s moments. I’ll admit I’m not very familiar with the genera, though. It’s something new to try, and so far I’m loving it.”

“Excellent. I’m glad you’re finding it so agreeable.”

“Oh yea! It’s awesome. Great call with this trip, Tavi.”

“Oh, my pleasure, Vinyl. My pleasure.”

“I just really thought the whole thing was gorgeous, you know?”

“Well, I am your host. I’ve got to give Canterlot as good an impression as possible, haven’t I?”

“You never fail to impress me, Tavi.”

“Thanks, Vinyl, the same goes for you.”

“Gee, thanks. I guess I’ve just never been anywhere, so,” She takes a moment to think of the word, “Tranquil, so calm and still. I mean, Manehattan has a beauty to it, but not this kind of beauty. And I really love it.”

I smile and we continue to walk, “Did you have any equivalent in Manehattan?”

“Well, when I felt down I’d go to the docks or stare out at the sea, but that’s it. Sometimes if I got lucky I’d look at the skyline. Relaxing, but not this. This is a whole new world, and the classical really fits it.”

“I suppose that makes sense. I imagine that’s why you’re getting into it now, it’s because the music fits, am I right?”

“Yea, electronic stuff fit with Manehattan a lot better than classical, and that’s why I liked it there. That’s probably why I like classical here.”

“Excellent, you’re starting to see sense, Vinyl.”

“Hey! I’m the one listening to new stuff. Maybe you should listen to some of my music. I still like electronic you know?”

“Alright, fair enough." I concede "I may as well get myself a legitimate reason to be biased.”

“Hey!” Vinyl shouts in mock annoyance.

“I suppose you have the moral high ground on this one, Vinyl.”

“Aww yea!”

Our jolly chatter continues as we make our way up towards the direction of the ominous towers of Canterlot. Vinyl, a typical foreigner to the city, starts complaining about the slope up there, which frankly just causes me to laugh and take the piss out of her.

Finally we come to the point where we are standing outside my house, “You’re welcome to come in for a cup of tea, Vinyl.”

“Eh, thanks but no. I’d rather not piss off your parents.”

“Oh nonsense, you’re welcome in my house.”

“Ehhhh, it doesn’t really seem that way. Anyway, I think I need some me time,” Vinyl kicks the dirt under her hooves and stands rather awkwardly, “This was great and all, but I need a shower and just some time to chill. You know?”

“Of course. Well, I’ll see you?”

“Very soon, Tavi!” Vinyl gives me a wink, “You’ll see me soon.”

I watch for a moment as Vinyl begins to walk away, but just as I am about to turn, she turns around first, “Oh, and Tavi?”

“Yes Vinyl?”

“Urm… I just wanted to say…” She pauses, and looks rather agitated, “I just wanted to say… I… Thanks.”

“Oh, Vinyl please. You do flatter me, there really is no need.”

“Yea…” She trailed off, “So, bye. I guess.”

“Goodbye Vinyl,” I give her a wave, which she returns with a half smile. It’s odd, though. As I watch her walk away, she seems rather frustrated. Did I make a mistake or something? It all seemed to be going well. Did my comment about her cause offense? Oh, I really hope not. If she buggers off, I don’t know what I’ll do. It really is amazing how attached one can get to a pony in so little time. I hope she’s not just being my friend out of guilt or something. No, that’s not the case, is it? Surely snuggling up to somepony isn’t something one does out of guilt? No, no, Tavi. Innocent until proven otherwise. I’m sure Vinyl is a great friend. No, I know she is a great friend!

Author's Note:

And now I believe my editor has something to day

ForgottenExistence’s note:
" So, we learned a few things in this chapter. 1: I need more coffee if I’m going to keep trying to read this in an English accent. 2: Vinyl has never heard of the expression “Nothing ventured, nothing gained”. And 3: I haven’t gotten my shrubbery yet. Octavia’s inner monologue is also very funny to picture while listening to Darude - Sandstorm, but that’s just me. Vinyl is definitely not Canadian if she can’t swim in a river, and Octavia has earned a sliver of my respect because she could handle it. Actually, now that I think about it, Octavia might actually be Canadian. I mean, she was the one who suggested putting the beer in the river to cool it off, and that’s essentially what we do (But with snow, not water. But snow is just frozen water, so that’s beside the point)... Octavia is a British North American, confirmed, 10/10 would snow again. Anyways, my nonsense aside, enjoy this chapter ladies and gentlemen!"

Well FE you don't have to read it in an English accent. If you really want her to be Canadian she can be Canadian. Although that would just be projecting your illusions into the story. Just as long as you make no edits that support that I'm fine. She's English to me, and I'm the writer godammit. The Canadian Tavi is the Tavi on your profile picture.

Well you may say that about Vinyl, but c'mon. She's a city girl. I imagine there are plenty of things that Vinyl would have done that may have been daring over in Manehattan, that Tavi wouldn't even dream of. Tavi just likes the slow beauty that is Canterlot.

Well I did send the shrubbery, I cannot be held accountable if you don't get it I'm afraid. You know I can't be held accountable for bad mailing.

Really, Darude Sandstorm? I'm surprised that the editing is so good considering that. With a song like that in the background I can expect "Song name?" to be plastered whenever a record is played, and various misspellings of Darude Sandstorm to be placed everywhere. Or that you'd start calling Octavia XxX_420c£ll0s1ayr69_XxX, and Vinyl something similar. And naturally Shrek would appear out of nowhere and question them as to what they were doing in his swamp. I must give you praise for not bastardizing my work if you had that in your head. In fact I feel pretty

about the whole thing.

Bloody Canadians and your snow. The story is set in the middle of summer! That's how we cool beer in Britain. We put it in the river, not the bloody snow, because frankly when we get snow it'll melt too quick for it to really cool our beer. But on the bright side, we more than compensate with it in rain!

Anyway viewers, I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I did writing. And I hope you enjoy this little AN, there's probably a fair bit more where that came from.

Comments

[Midnight Ice Cream]

5668029

The end result is money regardless of how you look at it. That is assuming you actually get people to look at those shrubberies. But if you believe that shrubberies are better than cash, who am I to judge?

[Midnight Ice Cream]

5721740
Well that's quite disappointing isn't it? One would have thought that an open gay wouldn't be homophobic.

I won't normally offer a political opinion on this site, but I'll say that sexuality shouldn't be an issue anymore.

[Midnight Ice Cream]

5723055

Well I can't very well give out spoilers can I? But I'd have thought that the answer to that particular dilemma is already in the story.

[ChaseTheChangeling]

I mean, she was the one who suggested putting the beer in the river to cool it off, and that’s essentially what we do

I'm from Delaware and I do this all the time!

[ChaseTheChangeling]

5723055

Wouldn't be surprised if Golden Tiara became her mom. And nip I haven't read past this chapter, but her name and attitude struck in such a way.