HeartBeat

by DemonBrightSpirit

All For You

I walked down the streets of Ponyville wearing my trusty headphones. The driving beat pulsating in my ears did little more than block out the noise around me. Even on a bad day, I could usually lose myself in a good beat. But not today. Today my mind was a million miles away. Well, at least like four or five blocks away.

As I crossed an intersection, my eyes drew to the side and my hooves stopped. Down that way was Derpy’s house. For once, I actually didn’t want to go there. Sure, we’d been hitting it off well, even if things were going awfully slowly. But today Derpy wanted me to watch her kid while she studied that bartending book. I just couldn’t help but to dread actually meeting her. I didn’t know anything about fillies.

Sighing, I started forward. I wasn’t supposed to be by Derpy’s place for another couple of hours, so I had another destination in mind. To put my mind at ease, I’d arranged to meet with an old friend.

I just knew she was gonna be a pain in the flank.

A couple of blocks, and I came to my destination: Carousel Boutique. Pulling my headphones off and stowing them in my trusty old jacket, I threw open the door and stepped inside. The first thing I saw was Rarity, hard at work at her sewing machine.

Rare turned at the sound of the entry bell, giving me a smile. “Why hello, Vinyl,” she said. She grabbed her materials up in her magic and set them aside. “I was expecting you to be late, as usual.”

How I wish I could groan. Instead I just rolled my eyes and threw my jacket aside.

Trotting toward her kitchen, she beckoned to me, “Come along, darling. I’ll have everything set up in but a moment.”

As I walked into the kitchen, I found Rare setting up everything for morning tea. She floated over place settings and all the fancy cups and stuff. I took my usual seat, and Rare levitated a whiteboard and marker over to me.

To make sure the marker was good, I uncapped it and scribbled on the board. It left behind a nice, dark streak and the noxious smell of chemicals. I lowered the board just in time to see Rare step away from the stove and kettle.

“It shouldn’t be too long,” she said the moment she caught my eye. Pulling the fridge open, she withdrew a platter of tiny, precut sandwiches. She set it down and took a seat across from me. “There we are. Help yourself.”

Grabbing one with my magic, I stuffed it in my mouth. It was cold from the fridge, but still pretty good. I grabbed a second one, and Rare cleared her throat. I paused, looking up at her.

“So, what brings sleeping beauty to my parlor in the middle of the morning? Aren’t you usually asleep at this hour?”

Parlor? Wasn't that the other room? Giving my shoulders a good shrug, I put the sandwich in my mouth and focused on the whiteboard.

SO I’M SEEING THIS
NEW MARE AND I
DON’T REALLY KNOW
WHAT I WANT TO DO.

I turned the board so Rare could see it, then waited for her to read it. Her eyes stopped tracing the words and she looked up at me, raising an eyebrow. “What? Surely you cannot be serious.”

I wiped away the words with my foreleg, only to hear Rare groan. The next thing I knew, a rag floated between me and the board. Wordlessly voicing my complaints, I grabbed the rag with a hoof, wiping off my leg and the board.

SHE’S TOTALLY AWESOME.
IT’S LIKE SHE COMPLETELY
UNDERSTANDS ME.

Rare’s eyes traced the board, then she sat back, crossing her forelegs over her chest. “Forgive me, but I still don’t quite see your problem.”

Wiping the board clean with the rag, I organized my response in my head. Then, I put marker to board.

WELL SHE’S REALLY
SWEET AND ALL, BUT
SHE HAS A KID AND
WANTS TO GO SLOW.

“A child?” Rare asked, her head shaking just a bit. “Excuse my asking, but wouldn’t a mare with a child be more interested in, you know, stallions?”

I grinned as I erased the board and quickly scribbled a response.

NOPE. SHE’S JUST
HORNY FOR HORNS.

Just as I expected, Rare’s face scrunched up in disgust as she read the words. I waited for her to look back up at me. The moment she did, I tapped a hoof against my horn for emphasis. I swear she turned a little green.

Our back and forth got interrupted by a building whistle. Rare scrambled to get away. Lifting the kettle in her magic, she turned back to me. “I didn’t need to know that.”

I smirked back at her and pulled up the board in my aura.

HEY, YOU ASKED.

Rare rolled her eyes. “Yes, and I find myself regretting it already.”

While Rare got to work on the tea, I turned to the board and thought about what I really needed to say.

SHE WAS REALLY CUTE
AND SOME JERK JUST
STOOD HER UP. I HAD
TO ASK HER OUT.

Rare looked up after adding the leaves and saw the board. A soft sigh escaped her lips. “I’m sure you felt that way at the time, but that’s neither here nor there. Go on.”

I DON’T KNOW. I REALLY
WANT HER, BUT IT'S LIKE

My marker just sat there, refusing to write out the rest of the phrase.

“Like what, darling?”

I erased the board, occupying myself with another cold sandwich. By the time I’d finished eating it, I still hadn't come up with a better way of phrasing it. Screw it.

I’M AFRAID I’LL BLOW
IT OR SOMETHING.

A light chuckle accompanied a smile as Rarity filled the cups through a strainer. “You simply must be pulling my leg. Why, I’ve seen you blow it with a dozen mares in half as many days and keep on going like nothing ever happened. Why in Equestria would you care now?”

As she set the kettle back down, her eyes went wide and she smirked at me. “Oh, ho, ho!” She chuckled, her smile growing wider. “Don’t tell me that you’re actually starting to develop real feelings for somepony.”

I quickly scribbled a response.

DON’T BE STUPID!

Chuckling, she hid her muzzle behind her cup. After taking a long sip, she set the teacup down. “There’s no need to get so riled up, darling. I'm happy for you. All of your incessant one-night stands and salacious affairs weren’t healthy. I'm glad to see you actually have romantic feelings outside of lust.”

HEY I HAVEN’T CHANGED
AT ALL. SHE JUST HAS A
KID AND I DON’T KNOW
HOW TO HANDLE THAT.
OKAY? I DON’T DO KIDS.

I grabbed my cup with a hoof and pressed it to my lips. Hopefully she wouldn’t be able to gauge my expression with it in the way.

“Well, if that’s true—and I don’t believe that it is—then wouldn’t you just cut your losses and run?” She took another drink from her cup, keeping her nose high in the air. “That’s certainly the kind of impulsive behavior I’d expect from you.”

I dropped the cup back onto the saucer and went back to my board.

IF YOU’RE NOT GOING
TO HELP ME, I’M JUST
GOING TO GO.

I tossed the board toward Rarity. A swipe of blue magic kept it from smashing into her tea set. After giving it a quick read, she rounded the table and kept me from getting up.

Locking me in a firm stare, she said, “If you would let me finish, I was just getting to that part.”

Breathing a long breath out through my nose, I grabbed my cup and took a long sip.

“Good,” Rare said. She went back to her side of the table and sat down. Giving me back the board, she grabbed her teacup. “I was just saying that you, Vinyl, are perhaps the most impulsive pony I’ve ever met.” She thrusted her teacup toward the board. “Case in point.”

I didn't reply other than to raise an eyebrow.

“Any artist is at the whim of her muses. I’m no exception. Inspiration strikes and I can often go days in such a tizzy that I barely eat.” She punctuated her words with a loud sip.

I rolled my eyes behind my shades as I scribbled a response.

WHAT’S YOUR POINT?

Rare leaned forward. “My point is that succumbing to those desires is what truly allows our inspiration to flow. We wouldn’t be the successes we are without them. But there is a very big difference between you and me.” Again lifting her teacup, she sent me the not-so-subtle message that it was again my turn to push the conversation forward. Like whatever I said would really affect her tirade.

OH YEAH? WHAT’S THAT?

“I know when to stop.” She cleared her throat before adding a meek “usually.” Setting her cup down, she leaned back with a sigh. “I don’t let every little, fleeting whim control my life. You know, your problem with alcohol wasn’t that you drank constantly or needed to drink. It was that, whenever you did drink, you always, always took it way too far.”

I didn't wait for her to send me another little signal. I shoved the board in her face.

JUST CUT TO THE CHASE!

Rare used a hoof to move the board away from her face. Catching me with a glare, we stared each other down. Finally, she relented with a sigh. “Fine. I think you should pursue this relationship with her, child and all.”

Wait, what? I could've sworn she was going the other way on this.

“Oh, ho, ho. Weren’t expecting that, were you?” She gave me a smug grin that made me want to smack it off of her. Again, she raised her cup to her lips.

I crossed my forelegs over my chest, taking my marker with my horn.

FINE. WHATEVER.
MIND TELLING ME WHY?

“I tried doing that earlier, remember?” I gave her a glare fierce enough to spur her on. “Well, my point was that you always throw yourself to the wind, following whatever fleeting desire guides you. Having somepony to tether you down and give your life stability would be the best thing in the world for you.”

Rolling my eyes at her, I grabbed the last sandwich.

THAT’S JUST STUPID.
DO YOU HAVE ANY
REAL ADVICE FOR ME?

She stared back at me, totally unamused. “Yes. Try not to blow it right away. If you make it for a week with somepony looking for a real relationship, I’d consider it an astounding miracle.”

Washing down the sandwich with my last swig of tea, I scribbled one last phrase.

HAVE YOU SEEN HOW
SMOOTH I AM?

That bored look never left Rare’s face. “Yes. Reminiscent of a cactus, that.”

I just rolled my eyes as I got up. Waving a hoof, I started for the door.

Rare shoved her chair out, leaning toward me. “Wait, you’re leaving already? We haven’t even discussed the latest gossip!”

I grabbed the board and marker again.

I HAVE TO GO
AND FOALSIT.

“Oooh! Don’t think you're getting off that easily. You’re coming back later this week to tell me what's going on with Roseluck and that stallion!”

I didn’t pay her any mind. There were much bigger problems to worry about.

Comments

[RoyalRainbow]

NOPE. SHE’S JUST
HORNY FOR HORNS.

Oh come on, Rarity! That was funny, and you know it!

[Scruffy]

Ah Rarity; so full of good intentions, but so much more willing to twist the verbal knife than any other pony. Well done!

[PinkiePieFox]

[SilentMech]

You know, by this time tomorrow, every one is going to know about Vinyl trying to go steady with some one. And no, that isn't limited to ponies despite Rarity only having Ponyville to spread it through.

[The Rogue Wolf]

6776533 Rarity likes to keep her karma scale balanced, so she counters every good deed with a little snark and snippiness.

[Texus]

6776450 well that joke was really not bad.

Okay I hoped for more, but this was a nice chapter, i liked Rarity in this chapter pretty much, even if I´m not sure how much I would like her, if I would see more of her with that personality, I get the feeling I had once a similar Rarity in a fanfiction, and I didn´t liked her, but it was nice to read this time.

[Nue]

I don't usually leave comments like this but... Moar please, This fic is just way too sweet and heartwarming...

The change in POV to Vinyl's was a nice touch also

[punzil504]

I turned the board so Rare could see it, then waited for her to read it. Her eyes stopped tracing the words and she looked up at me, raising an eyebrow. “What? Surely you cannot be serious.”

I AM SERIOUS, AND DON'T CALL ME SHIRLEY.

[AppleTank]

Awww, my cold shriveled heart thawed a bit. Found this in the Box, hasn't disappointed. Great work. Love your characters.

[Dustchu]

Awwwhaaaawhaaaw, that was sweet, I love it man, nice.

Nice work!

[Torroza]

Really good story so far.
But is this story alive still?

[DemonBrightSpirit]

6994673
It is. And I apologize about the wait. I've been rather busy lately. On the bright side, spring break is in like two weeks. Should definitely have enough time then to put out another chapter or two.

[Torroza]

6994967
Well, I haven't really waited that long.
Found it like 5 or 6 hours ago.
Looking forward for more chapters.

[Bronitigerboy15]

Please continue the story