'Rhythm & Harmony: Fantasy Embrace' OctaScratch Prompt Collab

by Divine Path

95 Princess by palakai

Princess by palakai

Vinyl Scratch couldn't remember the last time she'd experienced so many butterflies in her tummy at one time; even that fancy shindig in Canterlot couldn't compare to this, and that had been an honest-to-goodness royal wedding for crying out loud! By sheer coincidence, her current trepidation also happened to involve castles, weddings and the aristocracy. Sucking a deep breathing into her reluctant lungs, she gingerly approached the gleaming Castle of Friendship and knocked politely on the door.

“Good morning, Vinyl,” Spike said upon answering the door. The dragon ushered the unicorn inside and led her to a small, but well-appointed sitting room. “Sorry to keep you waiting, but Twilight's finishing up some last minute reports for Princess Celestia. Can I get you a cup of tea or anything else?”

You wouldn't happen to have a keg of hard cider just lying about the place, would you? “No, thank you, Spike,” replied Vinyl with a shake of her head. As the dragon disappeared into the castle's innards, no doubt to inform Twilight of her arrival, Vinyl took the opportunity to have a quick look around the place; it was clear that its owners were still in the process of moving in, and she suspected that this might be the only room that was properly furnished for visitors.

Running through the breathing exercises taught to her by Lyra, Vinyl wondered when it was that she'd started noticing just how much stress she was under. The coolest cucumber in Ponyville, who had DJ'd parties at some of the roughest nightclubs in Equestria and lived to tell the tale, was actually checking her pulse every ten minutes to make sure that her heart wasn't on the verge of exploding.

Then again, it's not every day that you're sitting in a crystal castle waiting for an audience with a princess, she reflected sagely, rubbing her cold forehooves together until a flicker of warmth spread through them. Especially considering what I have to talk to her about.

“I'm so sorry for making you wait,” Twilight Sparkle said, looking about as regal as a dishevelled, sleep-worn alicorn could do. Still, she made a fair hoof of entering with as much dignity and élan was was possible. “That's something they don't tell you about being a princess in fairytales: there's a heck of a lot of paperwork involved with even the smallest of decisions.”

“I can imagine,” said Vinyl, greeting Twilight with a slight bow. She probably didn't look much better than the Princess of Friendship, anyway; the long nights of preparation, coupled with maintaining her work, hobbies and social life, had meant she'd been seeing less and less of her bed lately. If it weren't for the trademark sunglasses, everypony in Ponyville would see her tired, bloodshot eyes, and the beginnings of crow's feet.

“You don't have to bow. It's awkward enough with strangers, never mind friends,” said Twilight uneasily. In formal settings, it was almost mandatory for a supplicant to prostrate themselves before their ruler, but it was an aspect of royal protocol that Twilight was very uneasy about and she'd said so many times to Celestia about changing it. Just a couple of years ago, she'd been a shy, socially awkward unicorn; so wrapped up in her studies, in fact, that her acquaintanceship with the real world barely approached nodding terms, but all that had changed with what was supposed to be a short trip to Ponyville to oversee the Summer Sun Celebrations. “Uh, do you want to talk here or shall we go through to the throne room?” Twilight looked faintly embarrassed.

“I'm fine with here,” said Vinyl, biting down harder than she'd intended on her bottom lip. “It's, um, very comfortable.”

“Yes, it is.” Twilight nodded in agreement, her tiny smile suggesting that she was relieved.

“What's wrong with it?”

“With what?”

“The throne room. Sorry, you just looked a little bit queasy when you mentioned it just now,” said Vinyl.

“There's nothing wrong with it, per se, but … I really hate the idea of having to sit on that big, crystal throne and look down at other ponies like they're-”

“-commoners?”

“Mm, exactly.”

“Isn't it one of the perks of the job, though?” asked Vinyl with a wide grin. “I mean, getting to boss everypony around and-” She trailed off, noticing the aghast look on Twilight's face. “I was kidding.”

“I know, but I'm still getting used to all of this.” Twilight shook her head to try and clear it. It didn't matter how many times she spoke to Celestia, Luna or Cadance, she was simply resigned to the fact that she probably wouldn't be a very good princess in the end. “Anyway, what can I do for you?” She sank gratefully into a cushy seat opposite Vinyl.

“Okay, uh.” I can do this! I can do this! I can do this!

“Are you all right?” asked Twilight, looking concerned.

“Huh? Yeah, why?” Vinyl blinked. Even my eyelids are sweaty.

“You're hyperventilating.”

“Sorry.”

“It's not a problem. At least, not for me. It could mean that you have alkalosis, diabetes or heart failure, though. Those would be problems.”

Vinyl just stared at Twilight Sparkle, unsure as to whether or not it was appropriate to laugh in a princess' face. She'd always had the tendency to babble when she was nervous, and it seemed to be one habit that she was never going to break. Despite being a bearer of an Element of Harmony, despite the Rainbow Power, despite receiving Celestia's blessing and becoming an alicorn, Twilight still wasn't used to ponies in need coming to her for aid. How will she cope with a marriage proposal, then? “Twilight, I want you to marry me!” Vinyl flushed slightly, realising what she'd said. “Sorry, I mean, marry us.”

“You mean, you want me to perform the ceremony?” Twilight asked in surprise.

“Yes.”

“But I've never done one before,” she said quietly. A frown crossed Twilight's face. “What if I screw it up? I don't want to ruin your special day.”

“We know this is kind of a big thing we're asking you, but you're our princess, our saviour, and more importantly than all that, you're our friend. Octavia and I have talked about it a lot and we would be honoured to have you preside over our wedding.” The corner of Vinyl's mouth twitched. “Besides, with Pinkie Pie doing the catering and Rainbow Dash handling the entertainment, there are plenty of other opportunities for stuff to go wrong.”

Twilight made a noise in her throat.

With a more serious tone, Vinyl said, “Look, you're scared. I know you're worried about making a mistake, but no more than I was when I asked Octavia to marry me in the first place. You can't let fear hold you back. As the Princess of Ponyville, you're gonna have to do something like this sooner or late, so why not start with two ponies who love you and will cut you a little slack if you aren't pitch perfect?”
Releasing a pent-up sigh, Twilight found herself feeling a lot better. “You're right, Vinyl. It's just that, ever since getting the castle, the whole princess-thing is a big deal in a way that it wasn't before. I mean, foals running around and asking for my autograph is harmless and silly, but having this thing-” she stamped her hoof on the floor “-reminding everypony that there's royalty here … I'm so afraid of letting everypony down that I keep trying to duck any sense of responsibility I may have.”

“I know this is in no way the same as your situation, but the first time I was asked to headline a gig I was nervous as heck,” said Vinyl, scratching the back of her neck. “I couldn't sleep the entire night before, I kept hoping I would fall ill or get in an accident so that I would have a good excuse for cancelling, but in the end I just had to suck it up and do it.”

“And how did it go?” asked Twilight.

“To be honest?” Vinyl raised her eyebrow. “I drank so much that the entire night's just a blur to me. But hey, I'm still DJ-ing, so it must've gone all right.”

As inspirational stories went, Twilight reckoned it was probably one of the worst she'd ever heard, and she couldn't stop herself from chuckling loudly. Fortunately, Vinyl soon joined in, and they laughed for a good few moments. Sometimes, there just wasn't anything to do but snicker at the ridiculousness of a life that saw you going from a nobody to a national hero in the space of a few short years. “So. Have you set a date yet?”

“No, not yet,” replied Vinyl, calming down enough to answer. “We wanted to make sure you were cool with the whole thing first before getting down to the nitty-gritty. We've had some vague talks, made some vague plans, but it's all-”

“-vague, got it,” said Twilight. “I'm definitely cool with it now, though.” Bringing ponies together: it was the exact mission statement of the Princess of Friendship after all, and she couldn't go through life shirking the important burden she'd been tasked to shoulder.

“Awesome! I'd better go find Octavia and tell her the good news,” Vinyl said excitedly, almost leaping for joy on the seat. “I'll let you know all the details just as soon as I find them out for myself.” She got up to leave. “Thank you.”

“Take care,” said Twilight, smiling warmly. “And good luck.”

“You, too, Princess.”

Author's Note:

Beautiful prose this, methinks.

Comments

[goaway]

I forgot about this story.