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Prologue-Given the Pink Slip352 words
Chapter 1-A Thin String1,069 words
Chapter 2-Allegretto1,500 words
Chapter 3-Quit Pitching1,138 words
Conclusion-For Good Measure1,059 words

Chapter 2-Allegretto

You stared out the window, staring at the quickly darkening sky. Rain was almost imminent, you had to get to Octavia’s house before it started pouring. You quickly opened your bag to do an inventory check.

“Instrument...bow...stand...tuner...music...metronome...I think that’s all.” Shutting your case, you checked the clock.

“Four-Thirty...If I leave now, I’ll have...seven minutes to spare...Alright, better get going.”

As you started out the door, your doorbell started to ring. Already at the door, you quickly opened it, hoping it wasn’t anything to stall you.

“Special delivery from Ponyville!” A young gray mare smiled, holding out a package with a scroll attached for you. You stared back at her and happily received the box.

“Why, thank you, ma’am.” You nodded to her in kindness. She nodded back, one eye looking at you, the other staring at something in the sky. She quickly turned around and flew off, possibly bumping the walls of other houses in the process.

You took another glance at the clock. I have time. Might as well see what’s in this.

You unrolled the scroll and began to speed read. Your eyes widened at the contents.

“Roses? Well, that’s certainly...unexpected...I wonder if I know this secret admirer...” You stared at the box and slowly opened it, expecting the bouquet to appear when...

SPLAT!

In an instant, almost your entire body was covered in pie. Your eagerness immediately turned to anger.

“I know who sent this. And I’m going to make him pay,” You grumbled before licking part of the cake off your lips. “...Pumpkin.”

Meanwhile, in Ponyville, a pink earth pony was laughing her tail off with her coltfriend on her bed.

“A-and when he opens it...boom! Pie in his face! Hahahahaha!” The mare laughed, holding onto the stallion’s shoulders to prevent herself from collapsing. The stallion wrapped his hooves around his sides in stitches.

“O-oh man...y-you actually wrote a love letter to him? Bwahahahahaha! Oh man, that dope would totally fall for that, too!”

“I hope he likes pumpkins! Heeheeheeheehahaha!”

“O-oh my sides...M-my sides hurt so much from laughing...Whew...”

“Heehee...hey, you wanna see a little present I made for you?”

The stallion pulls out a pie from under the bed. “Oh, you mean this?”

The pink mare gasps in mock surprise and mock anger. “How did you find that?”

“Well, it was in the fridge and it literally had my name on it.” He pointed to a sticker with his name written in blue ink.

The mare froze, before bursting into another fit of giggles. “...Oh yeah!”

The stallion wrapped his hoof around his partner, planting a kiss on her cheek. “Heh, I love you, Pinkie Pie.”

“Heehee! I love you too! Now let’s finish that pie!”

You sat grumbling in anger as you wiped the frosting from your face. “Argh, there’s not enough time for me to get this all off and make it on time.” You sighed in exasperation. “I’ll explain to her later, I guess.” You shut the door behind you and made a mad dash towards Octavia’s house, your instrument case and supplies bouncing on your back.

You raced to Octavia’s house, pie crust and pumpkin filling flying from your face. Your head was clouded with thoughts of vengeance and being on time. You squeezed your way through the other ponies in your way, not even bothering to apologize. With each contact, you could feel the quick but painful thud of shoulder hitting shoulder. You stared at the sky above you. There was no more sun, only black clouds. The weather team must really want rain today.

Honestly, I’m more worried about the fact that they actually decided to put effort into weather control today. Who are they and what did they do with the actual weather team?

You shook your head, the dark sky thundering above. You were almost there. Her house was just around the corner. You did a small jump off the ground, your hooves sliding on the ground until you made a complete stop at the earth pony’s door.

Whew. I made it, and without any major troubles at all.

And then, without any warning, a torrent of water crashed down on your entire body.

Why.

Mood soured, your lifted your hoof and gave three solid knocks on the wooden door.

As you waited, the violent thoughts flooded your head about what you could do to the obvious culprit.

I wonder if they could find the body...Maybe if I do it in one of the dark alleys.

Your thoughts of vengeance would have to wait, as you were greeted by your partner.

“Oh...Oh my...” She raised a hoof to cover her mouth. It was obvious that she was stifling her amusement. You grumbled to yourself as the rain continued to attack your fur.

“No, it’s fine. Let’s stay here for an indefinite amount of time as I catch pneumonia.” You muttered, tapping your hoof on the wet sidewalk.

“Oh, my apologies, please, come in.” Octavia stepped to the side, allowing you access. As you made your way inside, you noticed her nostrils flare for a split second. “D...Do you smell pumpkin pie?”

You gritted your teeth for a few seconds. “It’s...a long story.”

She gazed at you for a second, it was a look of concern, and something else. You couldn’t exactly tell what.

“So, time to practice?” You asked, putting a hoof to your soaked instrument case.

“Ah, yes. Follow me, we’ll go to my practice room.” she responded, cantering over towards another room, motioning with her hoof to follow.

You obeyed, staying right beside her as you admired her house. Each object seemed to be arranged with the utmost precision and care. Every bit of furniture pushed and turned to the perfect alignment. The decor was simply fabulous, the walls seemed to emit an aura of poise and professionalism.

The mare who decorated it was no exception. It seemed that everything she did, she had to do with elegance. Even the simple act of walking has a certain style to it. You could never understand how it could be possible, but you had to admire it, for what it was worth.

You snuck a peek out a nearby window, an onslaught of rain continued to mercilessly assault the earth. You silently sighed in relief that you got inside before it got too awful.

You made it to her music room. It was small, yet comfortable. Although a grand piano with a entire quartet could still fit. Compared to her entire household, this room in particular was the most barren. There were no extra decorations on the walls, the only things that might pass as decor were the piano and chairs.

“Alright, let’s get started.” She stated, grabbing her cello from the corner.

“Just let me tune up first, ok?” You advised, removing your soaking belongings from your back. You unlatched the case, revealing your pristine violin. You silently thanked the case makers for the waterproof case. You noticed a lack of sounds of preparation from your partner’s side.

“Shouldn’t you be getting ready as well?” You asked, raising an eyebrow, but not facing her.

“Hm? O-Oh! Yes, of course.” You heard her sputter. You blinked. That was odd for her, it wasn’t exactly like her to not be concentrated, especially during a rehearsal so close to the performance date.

Sitting down in your chair, you began to tune. Now you were in the zone of concentration. It was possible for you to tune by ear, but you had a tuner just to be sure. First, the basics. With one eye on the tuner, you put your instrument to your chin and played the open E.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Do you want to tune first?” You stopped, looking at Octavia fiddling with her cello.

“No, it’s quite fine. Go ahead, you already started.”

You shrugged, replaying the open E note again. It was 3 cents sharp, but you didn’t want to keep her waiting, and continued to tune.

When you had finally finished, you relaxed a bit while Octavia tuned her instrument.

What am I doing wrong in this...? You opened up your sheet music to the flurry of sixteenth notes and silently mimed the hoof motions. You furrowed your brows. It seemed easy enough, so why is it so difficult to play? You kept playing the part to yourself, your concentration increasing as you tried.

“Hey! Come on!” You heard a voice shout.

You snapped back into the room to see the young mare with a concerned look on her face.

“You ready now?”

Your face reddened, “Y-Yeah...” you cringed.

“Good,” She cleared her throat, tapping the beat to the beginning portion of the tune, “One...Two...Three...Four...”

Author's Note:

You guys are still here, right?

...Right?

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