The News and the Noise

by DudeManGuy

3. Progression

“Cockadoodle doo Equestria! Mornin’ girls and boys, it’s time for the news and the noise! First of all, I would just like to give a special shout out to my main girl Twilight Sparkle. Keep on keepin’ on Sparks, and all you listening, give her a hoof bump for me if you see her. I would also like to give a shout out to another. Though, I must admit I don’t know who this honor truly goes to. I’ve received an anonymous message from Canterlot explaining some... Well, some outrage of their own. Don’t be afraid listeners, if you have a voice, I invite you to use it! Now as for this message, it sounds as though there has been an unusual act of oppression from our lovely Princess Celestia. I would hate to think I’ve caused you lovely folks any trouble, but ever since my broadcast has begun I’ve been getting more and more reports of government intervention. But this time, the Royal Guard has stepped in, a slew of protesters have been brutalized, locked up, and silenced in an unfair display of power. Cool princess, that’s just lovely. Hey I’ll be right back to all of you with the rest of the story, so stay tuned. Kick it hard with Distaff Punk”

It had been a few weeks. Each morning, except for Sundays, Vinyl Scratch could be heard on the air, and most of Equestria would listen. The accusations flew faster and farther than Rainbow Dash could have dreamt.

“Yes yes, that’s good Scoots.”

And yet, she was still stuck in Ponyville teaching her class. Well, it was a little more than a class by now, however the students wouldn’t have known. Other ponies of the town had signed up to take the class as well. Actually, it was just Ditzy Doo. Everypony and then the radio show, it was all so much to handle.

“No no! Don’t touch that...! Button...”

All of this, and the cravings. Oh the cravings were terrible. Shaking every night, feeling cold and lonely. Itching all over and twitching like some kind of epileptic cricket. Well, soon enough it would all pay off.

'And my plans will finally be complete...' "Oh for the love of... Look at the time everypony! Time to go home!”

“But Scratchy! I was just getting my groove on!” Ditzy protests. It was an incredibly early end to the day. In fact it had only been an hour and a half. Vinyl presses a hoof to her temple and squeezes her eyes shut as hard as she could, wishing it would go away.

“Well Scratchy has a headache! Class dismissed!” The room empties out with little protest, except for Ditzy, who sits confused at the console.

“I’m confused Vinyl Scratch. I thought you liked teaching us to spin and mix and stuff.” Ditzy flutters her wings and tilts her head. Vinyl was unaffected by this display of adorable, and scowls angrily.

“Now listen here Ditz. You have been here for 8 days and you’re showing absolutely no signs of understanding any of this. Fluttershy could bring in a dead mouse and it would be a better DJ than you’ll ever be!” Her eye twitches. Vinyl never was an irritable pony, but that awful itch at the back of her throat was unbearable. “Get out of my house!” she screams as she tosses a record like a disc across the room, aimed directly at Ditzy’s head. Ditzy of course dodges, and in a rather stylish manner. Turning a spin on one hoof, she swings her hind legs around in a windmill motion. Fluttering her wings rapidly she takes off, but is stopped on her way out.

“Wait...”

“Yes Miss Scratch?” Ditzy asks behind teary eyes.

“What was that just now?” Vinyl demands. A smirk finds its way onto her face as the awful itch was gone.

“You threw a thingy at my head and I dodgeded it!” Ditzy explains, quite confused.

“Hmmm... I wonder... You may be a little derpy but can you dance?” Vinyl asks.

“I really can actually!” Ditzy replies, almost forgetting that she had only just a minute ago been assaulted.

“Cool... Hey, I want to talk to you about something...”

-----

“Always one of my favorites. So I’m sure you’re all wondering about the situation with Celestia. There was a protest last night. Some locals of Canterlot decided they’d bring the question on all of our minds directly to the princess, and that there is exactly the problem. It was brought to the princess. Why is she still just a princess? After, oh, thousands of years you’d think it would occur to her to become Queen. I don’t know if this is some roundabout way to shirk responsibility, but her reaction is what really gets me. Seventeen in the hospital, twelve in jail, and eight more were made to leave the city. Can I just get a big round of applause for the brave souls that were injured for our cause? Bravo guys, y’all are my heroes. I would also like to point out that one member of the Royal Guard refused to attack the protesters, claiming that it was wrong. He was stripped of his post and kicked out of the castle. When did Equestria become a violent nation? Tyranny folks. I guess all it took was a little dose of the truth for a tyrant to be revealed. Celestia, I got my eyes on you. This is DJ Pon-3, Scratching out.”

“DIDST THOU HEAREST THY UNWORTHY WELP OF A SUBJECT BLATANTLY DISRESPECTING THINE CROWN?” Luna shouts. The guards outside begin to tremble as their more temperamental princess begins to get angrier and angrier. “WE SHALL GO AND DESTROY THIS MAGGOT! SHE RESIDES IN PONYVILLE WITH THY STUDENT TWILIGHT SPARKLE!”

Celestia looks out the window towards Ponyville and gives a troubled sigh. “I truly hope that Twilight has not gotten herself involved with this DJ. I would be interested to know in what capacity her shout out involves my student...” she remarks solemnly. The idea of Twilight supporting an anti Celestia movement was beyond troubling.

“THOU SHOULDST TALK TO THINE PUPIL AND DEMAND ANSWERS!” Luna walks over next to Celestia, also looking down upon Ponyville. Her face holds a level of disgust reserved for only the worst of ponies. “I’m sure Twilight Sparkle is not involved in the way you do think. I shall accompany you to yonder village and confront this DJ Pon-3.”

“No Luna. We aren’t going anywhere to stop anypony... If there is a time to act, it is tomorrow. I refuse to act any sooner.” Celestia commands. Her temper was rising and her patience was being tested to their limits.

“But sister, why dost thou wait? This is an affront to thine throne and must be absolved!” Luna demands. It was frustrating watching her sister sit and take all of this negative publicity.

“Tomorrow is the Summer Sun Festival sister... If anything were to happen it would be tomorrow. I’ll be in front of the entire city exposed, I’ll be at my most vulnerable. If an attack is made tomorrow, then I will declare action against her.” she sighs, and places her face in her hooves. The stress was getting to her.

“I hope thou knowest what thou does... I fear this might end badly...”

“Me too Luna... Me too...”

-----

“Oh would you hold still darling, I would feel just awful if I stuck you with one of these pins.” Rarity scolds as Sweetie Belle shifts uncomfortably. She had been made to model a new dress as Rarity made some last minute adjustments.

“Rarity, why do I have to do this? Can’t one of your friends do this?” she protests.

“No no Sweetie Belle, this is a new line of clothing made for younger fillies, such as yourself. Now hold still for two minutes, pretty please?” Rarity begs, and Sweetie Belle complies as much as she can.

“Hey sister? Do you think that the princess is a tyrant?” Sweetie asks, not entirely grasping the weight of her question. Rarity stops and raises an eyebrow.

“Now Sweetie, don’t let the radio tell you how to think. Put your hoof through there? Good. Now I would recommend that you stop listening to that propaganda every morning.” Rarity instructs, pinning a fold near the base of Sweetie Belle’s leg.

“But I have to or I’ll be out of the loop in class!”

“Excuse me?” Rarity tilts her head, narrowing her eyes. “Why would you be out of the loop?”

“Because Miss Scratch told us that we need to listen to her show every morning so we can discuss it in class!” Sweetie smiles, feeling involved in something big. “Like different techniques used by the artists she plays, and how Celestia is ruining our country!”

“Come again, did you just say that Princess Celestia is ruining our country?” Rarity glares directly into Sweetie Belle’s eyes, and Sweetie’s form wilts to the floor and a tear forms in her eye. “Now I can understand being excited about being included Sweetie Belle but you do not, under any circumstances, question our beautiful princess, do you understand?!” Sweetie Belle nods frantically and gives out a high whimper. “Good, now if you would stand back up I must finish this ensemble before tomorrow. You absolutely must look your best for the Summer Sun Celebration!”

“Miss Scratch told us not to go...” Sweetie Belle mumbles.

“You’re going and that’s final. Head back, legs forward. Thank you.”

-----

“Yo Sparks! I let myself in! Hey I need... Am I interrupting?” Vinyl asks, after walking into the library and seeing Twilight sitting at her table with two pegasi and two earth ponies. She recognizes one as Pinkie Pie. “I can come back later.”

“No Vinyl, I think it might actually be beneficial for you to stay.” Twilight corrects. Vinyl walks towards the table, though her instincts tell her not to. Other than Pinkie, none of the others seemed to look too happy about her being there.

“Yeah, ok. What’s happenin’?” Vinyl starts, sitting at the table between an orange earth mare and cyan pegasus. She is met with two very distasteful glares. “I can leave, it’s really ok.”

“No, in fact we were just discussing you. Applejack and Rainbow Dash here had some concerns about your radio show. Care to elaborate girls?” Twilight smiles, introducing the two mentioned.

“Yeah, I will Twilight.” Rainbow slams a hoof on the table. “You’re stupid show is turning the fillies in our town into rebellious drones! And how DARE you speak about our princess like that!”

“Oh, is that all? Heh, I expected as much. Well look girls, I’m not trying to turn your children into rebels, it’s just easier for class if they all have the same information.” Vinyl smiles nervously, adjusting her glasses.

“Now Ah ain’t got no children of mah own, but mah little sister has been spoutin’ all this properganda nonsense at the farm and sayin’ things about how we’re livin’ under a tyrant. Care to explain that Miss Scratch?” Applejack also stomps a hoof on the table and shoots Vinyl an incredibly unfriendly look.

“Hey whoa whoa girls, Vinyl wouldn’t try to brainwash your little sister! She’s totally cool, and besides, brainwashing sounds really cool! I think we could all use a good brainwashing! Just imagine all the dust that thing collects over time!” Pinkie Pie says with a wide smile. Vinyl smiles a little too, calmed by the presence of her fellow partier.

“Thank you everyone. Now Vinyl, we are all concerned that maybe you’re not sending the right message to the younger ponies in town. And to the rest of Equestria.” Twilight explains, her face turning to concern.

“And you even got Fluttershy all afraid of everything! I mean most of that stuff you say isn’t even true!” Rainbow stands and points her nose angrily at Scratch.

“Oh, I’m really fine girls. There’s no need to EEEP!” Fluttershy disappears under the table as the door slams open. In walk Rarity with an expression nothing short of fuming mad.

“Please tell me who is responsible for teaching my little sister to hate our princess!” she demands. All of her friends point at Vinyl, and Vinyl only sinks lower to the floor. “YOU!? Well I have a few words to say to you! First off, how DARE you call our princess a tyrant!”

“Already said that Rarity” Dash interjects. “We were all just discussing how Vinyl Scratch is ruining our town.”

“I wasn’t!” Pinkie Pie beams, happy to be there for her friend. However, Pinkie did still feel that the message offered by Vinyl was a little harsh.

“Look, I appreciate that you have concerns about my show, but I’m not going to sit here and take this from all of you. I’m gone, and don’t bother knocking on my door, I won’t answer.” Vinyl explains, grabbing a book on her way out. “I was only here to pick up a book. And I’m the detriment to society, please.” She walks out of the room and heads back home. The six friends look at each other, beginning to feel somewhat bad.

“Y’all suppose we coulda been a mite nicer ‘bout all a that?” Applejack suggests. The rest nod, except for Rainbow Dash.

“Hey, she needed to hear it.” Rainbow offers. They all agreed, but still felt bad.

“And did you SEE her mane? Who lets her leave the house like that?” Rarity adds, and is met with a few exasperated stares. “Well excuse me for noticing, that was the most offensive color scheme I’ve seen on a pony in a long time. And I see Rainbow Dash on a regular basis!”

“Hey!” Rainbow protests and gets ready to pounce. Applejack steps on her tail and sighs.

“This is no time to fight girls, we need to think of how to stop this. I don’t care how much nicer we could have been, the fact of the matter is that the Summer Sun Festival is tomorrow and if this continues then something bad could happen.” Twilight explains. The rest nod their heads in agreement and sit down to formulate a plan.

-----

Vinyl lays on her bed, holding her new book up so that she could read it clearly. Her glasses rest on the bedside table and her hair was flat and frazzled. No need to get all dressed up to stay indoors. All of this reading was good, it kept her mind off of her thirst, and she had noticed her vocabulary expanding since she started. But the real reason for these books wasn’t at all to sound more educated, and the distraction was just a nice little benefit. Expanding her mind was pertinent to her plans, and more specifically her magic. Maybe Twilight didn’t pay attention to the books she had loaned to the nations favorite DJ, or perhaps she wasn’t as suspicious as she seemed. Either way, a new copy of “The Music of Life” floated open above Scratch. It was an old philosophy book by a long forgotten unicorn by the name of Farrier Chopin, outlining how life and music coincided. It also contained a few spells, first designed by Chopin, to use your horn to make your life embody the music you love. She had read almost the whole thing in one day, since there wasn’t a whole lot else to do in town, especially for a party girl of such a caliber.

“You wanted to see me?” Ditzy opens the door and walks in. Vinyl smiles wide and closes the book, floating it over to the table and resting it next to her glasses.

“Ditz, yo, right on time. Look I had something I wanted to ask you.” she begins to explain.

“Cool! I like questions. What did you want Scratchy?”

“I was impressed with your moves back in class. Y’all ever seen a riot?” Vinyl smirks, her eyes narrowing. Without her glasses and her hair down, she looked like a whole different mare. She looked sinister rather than fun, evil rather than energetic. Ditzy dips her head slightly due to her nerves.

“A riot? I can’t say I’ve ever seen a riot, nuh uh. I’m just a mail pony, I don’t know nothing about riots.” she replies. In the back of her mind, she hopes that she doesn’t need to get too involved with something dangerous.

“Ok, well that will change. I’m covering the Summer Sun Celebration tomorrow and I want you there as my right hand.” She turns to open the book to a specific page. ‘The Balance of Discord and Harmony’. The chapter outlines how to use your music to balance the good and bad in life. Otherwise, things can get out of hand. “I want to work with you tonight, consider it a private lesson. You can’t scratch, but you can dance. If I’m going into the heart of Canterlot, there will be ponies that want me gone there. I need a strong arm.”

“But I’m not strong” Ditzy explains, trying to flex her arm to no avail.

“That’s ok, you don’t need to be. With moves like yours all you need is speed. Also remember we’re going to see the princess, and some of my supporters will be there as well. There will be a riot, no question about it.” Vinyl continues, reading over the pages in front of her again.

“How do you know that? Would anybody really try to attack the princess?” the mail mare asks, confused and incredibly nervous. None of this sounded like a good thing. Vinyl turns and presses her forehead against Ditzy’s and grins maniacally.

“There WILL be a riot Ditzy.” her horn begins to glow a neon blue and Ditzy’s head begins to hurt. “There will be a riot, and you’re going to start it.”

“Y... Yes Scratch.” Ditzy says as her eyes focus. Vinyl celebrates in her mind at this little victory. She had tried out her new spells, but never an another pony. This was going to be easier than she thought.

-----

The night fell over Canterlot as everypony got to bed early. It was the Summer Sun Festival tomorrow and everypony needed to be rested so they could party all day. Octavia however was still up. She had just returned from playing at a garden party and wanted to clean up the apartment. After all, Vinyl was coming to Canterlot for the Festival and Octavia wanted her to have a place to stay. ‘Hopefully a permanent place to stay’ Octavia thought. Luna flew over the city and all was dark. One light was on in the city, and that was that of Octavia’s apartment.

“It needs to be perfect. She’ll come back, and I’ll have a room mate again, and then all of this dreaded nonsense can be over. Please tell me this can all be over.” she pleads as she watches Luna soar overhead. Her radio was still on, in fact it hadn’t been off for two weeks. A familiar voice is heard from the speaker, and Octavia jumps. She then checks the clock. ‘No’ she thought, ‘It’s far too early for her to be on... Why is she on the air at this time?’

“Good Evening Equestria. You may be wondering what I’m doing on your speakers at this time of night, but I have an important message to make. Tomorrow I will be in Canterlot for the Summer Sun Festival. If you think this means action, then you may be right. I look forward to seeing all of you there. Let’s get some answers Equestria!”

“Vinyl... What are you planning?” Octavia puts down her duster and turns off the radio. Tomorrow would surely prove to be interesting. Whether that was good or bad, she had no idea.