Simple Melodies are for Fillies

by bahatumay

Bets and Losses

Late on Thursday night, Octavia knocked on Vinyl's door. She shifted from one foot to the other, feeling just the tiniest bit apprehensive. Their date wasn't actually scheduled until Saturday, but she had decided to come over for a surprise visit. That was acceptable, wasn’t it? With all she had going on right now, a familiar face would be a wonderful sight. Besides, Vinyl had done many nice things for her, and she had really made an attempt to step out of her comfort zone for her. If Octavia was being perfectly honest, she was rather excited to see her again. She also had the distinct impression that Vinyl would be pretty happy to see her, too.

But to her surprise, Vinyl didn't answer the door. Instead, it was Lyra who tore open the door, only to look disappointed as she saw Octavia. “You're not Bon Bon,” she said sadly.

“No, I'm not,” Octavia said wryly. She raised her eyebrow as she looked at Lyra's outfit, which consisted of loose, untied pajama pants, and a short shirt that was far too tight for her, revealing that she was not wearing anything beneath it. “Is Vinyl here?” she asked.

Lyra shook her head. “No, she's not. She's performing tonight.”

“Performing?” Octavia frowned. A performance? Why wouldn't Vinyl invite her? Was she embarrassed? Did she not want Octavia there? She glanced at the apartment, and memories of Vinyl’s recording equipment came to mind. Though certainly not top of the line, it definitely hadn’t been cheap. She briefly wondered if Vinyl was moonlighting as a stripper.

Oblivious to Octavia’s internal questions, Lyra nodded and explained. “Yeah. She's doing a gig down at Scissor's.”

Octavia paused. Her previous idea suddenly sounded slightly more plausible. “Is that supposed to be a fillyfooler establishment?”

Lyra squinted. “What? No. The owner won it in a game of Rock Paper Scissors; he threw scissors.”

Octavia nodded. That would also make sense.

“Actually…” Lyra turned around and leaned over, digging around in the basket on the table by the door. Octavia could tell that she was not wearing anything under her pajama pants, either. She retrieved a lanyard with a card dangling from it and held it out. “Here. This pass will get you in the door if you want to go see her. Backstage, too. Normally, I would go; but as you can probably tell, I'm… expecting company.” She grinned sheepishly.

Octavia hesitantly took the offered lanyard. She looked at the address on it, along with the words 'all-access pass' emblazoned on the top. She bit her lower lip. What was Vinyl doing?

* * *

The club owner was asking a somewhat similar question: Where on Celestia's green earth was DJ Pon-3?

Absinthe smirked to him as she continued mixing her drinks. As the only attraction that night, she was already racking up the tips. Pon-3 not showing up was one way to lose the bet, and she (along with her wallet) was not about to complain.

The crowd, however, had no qualms about doing so, and very loudly at that. The owner was just about desperate enough to try playing music himself when he noticed a smaller mare pushing her way through the crowd and heading towards the stage. She climbed on and turned to the crowd. “Seriously? Is this what you came for?” she demanded, her voice slicing through the dull roar of the crowd. “Overpriced drinks? Making out with your marefriend in the corner? You could have done that at home and saved yourselves the cover charge!”

She turned towards the stage and flipped back the hood and dropped her jacket.

The crowd began to murmur excitedly. She had bright blue frizzy hair, a barred eighth note as a cutie mark, and jean shorts that left very little to the imagination. She spun around and her shirt (or what was left of it; a jagged diagonal tear up the front meant that while her right breast was covered, her left breast seemed to be covered by shadow and good luck) fluttered in its own breeze as she positioned herself behind the decks.

“No. That's not it at all. We…” She hit the deck's power switch and laid a single record on. “We are here for one reason and one reason only. To dance!”

A deep note pulsed once, just once through the club, and then came a fast drumbeat. It seemed to increase in pace, and then the deep note returned--had it ever left?--and it raised in pitch, as if preparing to drop. As if they had been magically summoned, every single guest dropped their drinks and sprinted to the dance floor. Unicorns relit the magic trails on their hands and foreheads, earth ponies broke out new glow sticks, and pegasi swung and gyrated in the air as the music slowly increased in complexity and volume. Then it fell silent; but only for the briefest of moments.

When it dropped, it was like a needed release. Even the firmest of wallflowers were sucked onto the dance floor, pulled in by the hypnotic music of the DJ and the dancing atmosphere. DJ Pon-3 looked over her crowded domain and glanced over at the empty bar, and just smirked.

Well, it wasn't entirely empty. Far back in the corner, in the shadows and somewhat away from sight, a gray earth pony mare wearing an all-access pass watched her display. She bit her lower lip.

Absinthe quickly sauntered over. She didn't intend to lose this bet just yet. “Hey there,” she said, casting her eye down at her glass, instantly recognizing her drink of choice. Normally, she would have given her a little flak for choosing something nonalcoholic, but in the interest of winning her bet, she let it slide this time. “Can I interest you in a free refill?”

Octavia shook her head. “Thank you, but I believe I've seen enough for tonight.” She calmly finished her drink, pushed the empty glass away, and hurriedly left the club.

* * *

Vinyl Scratch wasn't one for drawing public attention. She was perfectly happy letting her fame grow through word of mouth, and she enjoyed doing little shows around her neighborhood. Recently, she’d even purchased a few cheap microphones, and had started doing little karaoke sessions for parties. This was great for her because it let her be at the parties without actually needing to be the center of attention.

DJ Pon-3, however, loved the limelight, and felt it was important to show a little love to her fans. Every once in a while, and against Lyra’s advice, Vinyl would (for lack of a better term) let her out to play.

And play she did. With Absinthe’s paycheck (with tips) in her pocket, she had money to burn, and she had splurged on some new clothes that just begged Pon-3 to be shown off. This Friday morning, she strutted down the street, greeting any who came up, posing for pictures, and signing autographs onto anything offered.

She had just finished tagging a female’s buttocks when something happened she didn't expect. Or rather, someone. A tall gray earth pony with jet-black hair and a purple treble clef on her shoulders.

DJ Pon-3 raised her eyebrows as she approached. “'Sup?” she asked, looking over the tops of her sunglasses.

“Well, hey there. You look familiar,” Octavia said with a wink, inviting a conversation.

DJ Pon-3 frowned, but it quickly morphed into a grin. “I don't think I've seen you before,” she said. “DJ Pon-3,” she introduced herself, holding out a hand.

Octavia frowned as she instinctively shook it and returned, “O- Octavia.” Had Vinyl really just said that? And to make it worse, her body language made it seem like she really believed it. “Are you… sure we haven't met?”

DJ Pon-3 grinned as she lifted her sunglasses and unabashedly took in Octavia's body. Octavia blinked. Vinyl usually tried to hide it when she looked at her body, and it was somewhat endearing how hard she tried to not be noticeable. That, Octavia didn’t mind at all. This, though, was different. She was being… ogled.

“Trust me, sugartits. There aren't many mares with a set like that walking around. Those I'd definitely remember.”

Octavia's jaw dropped. A nightclub alter ego she could maybe accept, even if it was odd that Vinyl hadn’t trusted her enough to share that little tidbit; but denying she ever knew her and then objectifying her? Vinyl would never do that.

Would she? Was Vinyl really just the same as everyone else, just hiding behind an adorable facade?

Seemingly oblivious to Octavia's internal conflict, DJ Pon-3 reached into her pocket and found a piece of paper; a pass to some club that had a name Octavia didn’t recognize. “Hey, if you're down, I'd love to see you dancing on stage. Wearing less clothing, of course.” She winked as held out the ticket. As Octavia was reaching for it, she reached around with her other hand and spanked her, hard.

Octavia jumped and squeaked. She was hardly opposed to a little intimate physical contact, of course—she was often the instigator of such things—but this was hardly the time or place!

DJ Pon-3 pulled down her sunglasses, and ran her tongue across her upper lip and winked before flouncing away, shaking her hips.

Octavia watched her go, and then she clenched her fist, crumpling the pass in her hand, and dropped it onto the street before crushing it under her heel.

Oh no, Vinyl. I won't be played by you, too.

* * *

DJ Pon-3 got home and kicked the door shut behind her. She frowned as she removed her outfit. Vinyl wasn't entirely conscious of all that she did as DJ Pon-3, but for some reason she had the distinct impression that she had made a terrible mistake somewhere today, and that it had something to do with Octavia.

She pondered for a moment, and then attributed it to just her worrying. She did that far too much.

Comments

[Charon the Chronicler]

Damnit DJ!

[Roxylalolcat]

Uh-oh...

[AeroFiction]

I'm not sure if I like your version of Vinyl's alter ego. I mean on one hand it can be very interesting and lead to a lot of different plot points like this chapter. It also feels a bit different with DJ-Pon3 and Vinyl being such different personalities. I think this is a very good way to make the story interesting and fresh from other Octa/Scratch fics. I look forward to the next chapter you bring out.

[bahatumay]

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Thanks for commenting!
'Different' was definitely what I was going for. Tbh, I'm not so sure I like her, either.

[ChaseTheChangeling]

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I have to be honest, I know this feeling. I was a mascot for my school, and I'm typically a very shy person, staying away from crowds and not wanting to embarrass myself, but as the panther, I was a whole new person! Dancing, flirting, entertaining new people. It was fun! None knew it was me until I was tackled by a student and by head came off. Everybody was surprised.

Long story short, I can relate to this.