Chapter 1
Octavia Melody stared at her cello and sighed. She reached out and stroked its neck with her hoof until it fell apart again. There was no getting around it. Her cello was broken. The neck had been snapped in half, and the base was full of cracks. She had tried to hold on to it as long as she could, but it had finally given in to the damage and succumbed. She had no choice now, not with her private performance coming up in a week. She would have to buy a new one.
Sighing again, she let the neck hang from the strings and walked to her phone. She dialed the familiar number and waited for the pony on the other end to pick up. Of course, since it was only eleven-thirty in the morning, it was very possible that the pony on the other end might still be asleep, but she had to at least—
“Hey Octy,” came a familiar voice from the phone. “What’s up?”
Octavia blinked once, slightly surprised that Vinyl Scratch had actually answered the phone. “Hello, Vinyl,” she said. “I am…surprised you are awake, to be honest.”
“Oh, well, you know…” Vinyl paused for a long moment. “Things and junk.”
“Could you turn down the radio?” Octavia asked. The background noise coming from Vinyl’s phone was making it very hard to hear her.
“Radio? That’s not the radio. I’m at—” Vinyl stopped instantly.
“Where are you?” Octavia asked, surprised even more that Vinyl was out and about so early. Well, early for her anyway. “Please tell me you are not still at a club.”
“No, of course not,” Vinyl said. The background noise suddenly died to a dull roar, as if Vinyl had entered a different room. “You’re right. It was just the radio. Sorry about that. So, uh, what’s up?”
Vinyl was acting strange, but Octavia decided not to worry about it. Vinyl was always strange. It was part of what made her so much fun to be around…and why Octavia often got headaches too. Checks and balances, she supposed.
“I am going shopping for a new cello,” she said.
“Oh yeah? ‘Bout time. After those Nightmare creatures attacked Ponyville, I knew you’d have to. You can’t swing a cello around like that and expect it to stay solid.”
Octavia winced. A few months ago, Nightmare forces had attacked Ponyville. She and Vinyl had been visiting when it had happened, and had been dragged into the conflict. Octavia had ended up using her cello like a bat against the creatures, and while it had proved to be very effective, her cello had suffered for it. It had held together, but the damage had been bad. She had finally been forced to admit last week that it was time to get a new one when she and Vinyl had been playing and the neck had snapped.
“Yes, well not all of us could use magic to fight those things,” Octavia said, remembering how Vinyl had dove into the fray, blasting away.
“Yeah, I was pretty awesome huh?” Octavia could imagine the pride beaming from Vinyl’s face at the moment.
“I suppose,” she said, smiling as she imagined the slightly hurt look crossing the D.J.’s face at the words. “But anyway, I was wondering if you would like to accompany me.”
“You mean like a date?” Vinyl asked, the excitement bleeding through her voice.
“Well…not really,” Octavia said. “I mean, I am only going to the mall to buy a cello from the music store.”
“Aw, come on Octy,” Vinyl whined. “It’ll be fun. When was the last time we got to go on a date? A real date?”
Octavia thought on that for a moment. It was true. She and Vinyl did things together all the time, but they had not truly gone on a date for a while. It was always more of a get together, or just hanging out as Vinyl would call it.
And depending on what the Princesses wanted to talk to Octavia about—she already had a good idea based on what Luna had told her last month in Manehattan—there was a very good chance she might not get another opportunity to see Vinyl for a long time.
“Very well,” she said. A date did sound like fun. “But you must buy me lunch.”
“Um…uh, I hate to say this, but…” Vinyl said, and Octavia knew what was coming next.
“Let me guess: you are broke. Again.” Octavia sighed silently. Vinyl was not the best when it came to managing her money. Octavia had had to bail her out of a jam every once in a while, the most severe being the time when she had had to pay Vinyl’s rent on her place.
“Uh, yeah…” Vinyl said. “I just spent all my money on—uh, stuff.”
“Vinyl, please tell me you did not buy a new sound system instead of paying your rent again.”
“No. Come on, Octy. I learned my lesson last time,” Vinyl said defensively. “It’s just…this was something I was saving up for, and it pretty much wiped out all my extra bits. I mean, if you’re okay with, like, a three bit lunch, then I can pay for that, but…”
“Cheapskate,” Octavia said with a giggle. “Very well. I will pay for lunch. Shall we meet at the mall in an hour? That should give you plenty of time to get home, shower, and get ready.”
“Naw, I’m good,” Vinyl said. “I’m already ready for the day, and I’m already at the—I mean, I’m ready to go now.”
“Okay…” Octavia said, confused. It was very unlike her marefriend to be this…together in the morning. “So, shall we meet in half an hour at the mall then?”
“Sounds good,” Vinyl said. “I’ll meet you here.”
“Excuse me?”
“I said I’ll meet you there. See you soon, Tavi.”
Vinyl hung up before Octavia could chastise her for calling her Tavi. She had been very clear on the conditions of when Vinyl could use that nickname, and since she was positive the white unicorn was not pressed up against her and their manes were a mess of black and blue hues, those conditions had not been met. Maybe later, depending on how the date went.
She smiled at that thought and used it to help her get ready for the day. She brushed her mane again to make sure it was proper for going outdoors and straightened her bowtie to a perfect angle. She gathered her saddlebags and put the large amount of gems and bits into one of the pouches. A cello was not cheap, and the store she was going to was known for their quality instruments, which meant they cost even more. Still, they were the best in all of Manehattan and well worth the price. And she needed the best since she would be performing for Princess Luna and Princess Celestia.
Octavia paused at that thought. She wondered why she had thought of Princess Luna first. Everypony always put her second when saying the Princesses’ names. Perhaps it was because she had met Princess Luna informally, and the Princess considered them friends. She smiled at that thought. She was friends with royalty.
The Earth pony walked out of her house and locked the door, then made her way through the busy city of Manehattan. Ponies were everywhere and all of them were trying to get somewhere else. Pegasus ponies were flying through the skies, zipping around and dodging one another in a well rehearsed dance, but Unicorns and Earth ponies like herself were stuck on the ground, suffering the flow of pedestrian traffic and fighting for a cab.
Octavia looked up as a pair of Pegasi flew overhead. She envied them slightly. They were allowed to go wherever their wings could take them, and weren’t forced to follow roads and signs if they didn’t want to. It was not the first time she had wished she had been born to a different tribe.
She shook the thought away. Vinyl did not care what she was, and that was all that mattered. Her good mood restored, she made her way through the busy city streets until she managed to reach the mall, exactly twenty-eight minutes later. She smiled at her punctuality.
The inside of the Manehattan mall was as busy as ever. There were ponies wandering around the shopping center, some of them window-shopping, while others were carrying bags full of purchases. One pony had apparently bought too many things because she was struggling to balance everything on her back. Thankfully, a Pegasus flew over to help her balance the bags and the two of them walked away, melting into the crowd of ponies.
How am I going to find her in this crowd? Octavia suddenly realized she had not told Vinyl where to meet her. Oh well. She had told the Unicorn that she was buying a cello, and Vinyl knew where she liked to go for her instruments. Hopefully, Vinyl would just meet her there. If not, Octavia could always call her cell again.
The cellist waded through the crowd, dodging other ponies and offering polite smiles to the ones that made eye contact with her. There was no point in being rude, she told herself. Besides, she was used to the crowds after living in the big city for so long.
She turned a corner and spotted her destination at the end of a string of stores. Harmonic Notes. They had the finest classical instruments, and always had a fresh supply of strings, bows, music stands, and anything else she ever needed for her musical life. She smiled to herself and patted the pouch that held all her money, then began to make her way to the store.
She was almost there when a white Unicorn suddenly jumped in front of her. “Hey, Octy! Glad you could make,” Vinyl said, placing herself directly between Octavia and the door to Harmonic Notes.
“It is nice to see you too, Vinyl,” Octavia said, smiling at the face before her. Red eyes mixed with white fur made her expressions so much livelier than most ponies’, and the mess of electric blues that made up her mane was a testament to the D.J.’s wild personality. “I was just on my way to purchase my new cello, so your timing is impeccable.”
“Uh…” Vinyl’s red eyes looked away for a second, then snapped back to Octavia’s. “How…how about we wait on that, huh?”
“Why ever would we do that?” Octavia asked, tilting her head to the side.
“Well, it’s just...I don’t really want to carry it around the mall while we go on our date. It’ll get in the way.”
Octavia made a move to step past Vinyl, but she found herself blocked. “I am certain the owner would not mind holding it for me.”
“Please, Octy,” Vinyl said, giving her a puppy dog pout. “Can’t we do this last? I mean, it’s not like they’re going to run out. You’re the only cellist in all of Equestria.”
“I am not,” Octavia said.
“Did I say only? I meant best.”
“Flatterer.”
“Yep.” Vinyl closed her eyes and smiled, but still refused to budge from her spot in front of the door. “So…is it working?”
Octavia sighed. Vinyl was stubborn sometimes, to the point of being a child. Most of the time it was borderline annoying, but right now Octavia found it rather charming. Sometimes all Vinyl had to do was unleash this quality of hers and Octavia would do whatever she wanted. Right now was one of those times.
“Very well,” Octavia said. “I suppose we can—”
“Yay!” Vinyl jumped forward and wrapped Octavia in a hug. “That’s great. So…”
Octavia heard Vinyl’s stomach growl and she smiled. “I take it you want to get lunch first then?”
Vinyl blushed. “Yes please.”
Octavia gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and then pulled out of the hug. “Okay. Anything particular sound good to you?”
“Food,” Vinyl said as she walked up next to Octavia. “There’s lots of it over at the food court.”
Octavia rolled her eyes. “Your powers of deduction astound me Vinyl. They truly do.”
The two mares walked through the mall, dodging other ponies and occasionally stopping to look at something in a window, until they reached the food court. They ordered their lunches—a sandwich and a bowl of fruit for Octavia and two carrot dogs and an extra large order of hayfries for Vinyl—and then sat down at a nearby table.
Vinyl didn’t wait. The moment she was sitting, she dove into her food. Octavia hadn’t even managed to take a bit of her sandwich before one of Vinyl’s dogs was halfway eaten.
“Vinyl, slow down,” Octavia said as she took a bite of her lunch. Flavor flooded into her mouth as she slowly chewed her food, savoring every bite. “You are going to make yourself sick.”
“Then you—” Octavia glared at Vinyl and the mare swallowed her food before she continued. “Then you’ll just have to take care of me.” Vinyl stuff some fries into her mouth and swallowed them in seconds, then reached for her drink.
“Or, I could leave you to your misery so maybe you would learn your lesson,” Octavia said, but she knew that she could never do that. Besides, Vinyl ate like this a lot. Her body was used to it.
“Hey Octy, watch this,” Vinyl said as she pulled her drink toward her. She put the straw in her mouth and then blew a bubble in her drink.
“Honestly, Vinyl,” Octavia said, doing her best not to laugh. She hadn’t blown bubbles in a drink for years, not since she had been a little filly. It just wasn’t something a proper pony like her did. “You could at least try to act your age once in a while.”
“But then who would make you laugh?” Vinyl asked as she looked up from her drink, blowing more bubbles as she spoke and pretending that nothing was happening.
Octavia felt a smile beginning to tug at her face, so in order to hide it she reached for her own drink. She stared down at the tea in front of her for a moment, watching it slowly swirl around the glass as it came to a rest, and then she focused on her reflection: onyx black mane and a charcoal colored coat. The same color scheme her family had carried for generations. The smile that had been pulling at her lips quickly went away as she stared at her eyes in the liquid. There was so much about her that Vinyl didn’t know, and she was terrified of telling her about it. What if Vinyl didn’t—
No, I am not going to let that get in the way today. Octavia closed her eyes and took a small breath, then did something she hadn’t done for years. She blew air down her straw, causing her tea to bubble. She opened one eye to watch them pop constantly as she continued to blow.
Vinyl started laughing. “What are you doing?” she asked.
“I have no idea what you are talking about,” Octavia said, closing her eye again and continuing to blow bubbles. “I am simply drinking my tea.” She sipped some of it up her straw to prove her point.
“Oh yeah? Well, I bet I can make mine bigger than yours.” Octavia opened her eyes to see Vinyl staring at her with a look that screamed mischief. Normally, Octavia would have turned her down, but shattering that reflection in her tea had also loosened something in her.
“Can not,” she said. She blew into her tea again, using more force this time so the bubbles came closer to the rim of the cup.
“Pssh, that’s nothing,” Vinyl said, waving her hoof in contempt. “Watch this!” Vinyl blew into her straw until some of her bubbles were causing her drink to spill over the edge.
Octavia retaliated by blowing her bubbles even harder, yet still managing to keep her drink from spilling. She looked up and winked at Vinyl and smiled when the mare’s eyes narrowed.
Vinyl sucked in a huge breath and blew as hard as she could into her straw. Her cheeks ballooned as she pushed more air throw the straw and into the drink, and Octavia instantly realized what was going to happen. She tried to say something, but the straw was still in her mouth. All she could was watch.
Vinyl’s drink instantly exploded, covering the Unicorn’s face with milk. Vinyl’s eyes went wide for a moment and then she slammed them shut as milk continued to spray her muzzle and soak her mane. She opened one red eye and stared at Octavia, liquid dripping from the tips of her spikey mane and running down the curves of her face.
Octavia couldn’t help but laugh, and realized her mistake the second she did. Her tea splashed up in her face and she jumped in surprise, hitting the table and causing the drink to spill across her lap. She looked over at Vinyl and found the Unicorn slamming her hoof on the table while she laughed.
“That…that is…the greatest thing…I’ve ever…” Vinyl’s eyes were closed and she was gasping for breath as she laughed. “Oh Octy, if only you could see…your face!”
“I imagine it looks something like yours,” Octavia said, trying to be cross but failing. The sight of Vinyl laughing so hard that she had tears in her eyes was making it hard for the cellist to get angry. Smiling, she reached for some napkins and dried herself off. She undid her bowtie—it was too wet to keep wearing—and stuffed it in her saddlebag, then tossed several napkins on Vinyl’s face. “Clean yourself up. I will not be seen in public with you looking like that.”
“Okay, okay,” Vinyl said, still snickering as she used her magic to wipe her face and the table. “Oh, hey Octy. You got some tea right here.” The Unicorn tapped her cheek to show where she was talking about.
Octavia wiped her cheek. “Did I get it?”
“No, it’s still there,” Vinyl said, taking a step closer. “It’s right here.”
Octavia rubbed her cheek again, harder this time and in a bigger circle. “Now?”
“Nope,” Vinyl said, stepping right up next to Octavia. “Here, I’ll get it.”
Octavia waited to feel the warm touch of Vinyl’s magic and then a napkin wiping her face, but instead she felt something wet touch her cheek and realized that Vinyl had just kissed her. She smiled.
“Did you get it?” she asked.
“Yep, all better,” Vinyl said, grinning.
“Thanks.”
The two mares sat back down and finished their lunch in relative silence. After they cleaned up their table they left the food court and stood off to the side to avoid the mall traffic.
“So…where to now?” Vinyl asked.
“I would very much like to go purchase my cello now,” Octavia said, her eyes drifting over the crowd toward the music store. She was happy to have a full stomach, but now she really wanted to complete the task that had brought her here in the first place.
“Aw, come on. Can’t we go somewhere else first?” Vinyl whined.
“Vinyl, why are you so intent on keeping me from the one thing that brought me here?” Octavia asked as she turned to glare at the Unicorn. “You do not honestly think I brought you along only so you could carry it for me, do you?”
“No, of course not, I—”
“Because I am perfectly capable of carrying it myself. I do not need your magic to carry it.”
“I know, it’s just—”
“Good. Now, we are going to Harmonic Notes.” Octavia turned sharply and made sure her tail gently brushed Vinyl’s cheek. She didn’t want Vinyl to think she was mad with her. She started to make her way into the crowd and looked back to make sure Vinyl was following her.
Vinyl was still standing off to the side, looking like a terrified puppy. Her eyes were locked on Octavia, but they were wide with emotion. It was the type of look she got when she was upset about something, but didn’t want to trouble Octavia with it.
Sighing, the cellist walked back to her marefriend. “What is it?”
“Well, it’s just…once you get your cello, the date’s over,” Vinyl said, pawing at the tile floor. “ I mean, it’s not like you can carry it around the mall and into all the stores. All we did was eat lunch. I was kind of hoping we could do some more stuff.”
“I told you before that I am sure the shop owner would not mind holding it until I return.” Why was Vinyl so obsessed with this? They would have plenty of time to wander around and do nothing after Octavia made her purchase.
“Yeah, okay,” Vinyl said, her face falling as she looked at the floor.
Octavia rolled her eyes. “Okay, you win, moody pants. Where do you want to go?”
“I have no idea,” Vinyl said, her ears perking up slightly. “Maybe we could just…walk around?”
Octavia moved next to Vinyl and wrapped her tail gently around Vinyl’s, then bumped her flank. “Okay. I would like that.”
That got Vinyl to raise her head and smile. “Great!”
The two mares spent the next hour simply wandering around the mall, window-shopping or just watching other ponies hurry about. Vinyl begged Octavia to visit the candy store and then used her best face to make her buy a small box of chocolates. Which the D.J. immediately tore into. She at least had the decency to offer Octavia some, but the mare declined with a smile. She was having too much fun watching Vinyl’s white coat slowly turn brown around her mouth.
Next, Octavia practically dragged Vinyl into an antique store. She pretended to take an extreme interest in an old clock, commenting on the craftsmanship of its base and how the script used for the numbers was an offshoot of an ancient Canterlot style. Of course, she was making the whole thing up entirely, but watching Vinyl try her hardest to pretend to be interested too and not beat her head against the nearest wall was amusing. When she tried to stifle a yawn and ended up sounding like a cow in the process, Octavia giggled and finally decided to leave the store.
“I will have to come back for that tea set later though,” she said as the two of them left the store.
“Which one? There were like, a hundred of them,” Vinyl said, blinking her beautiful red eyes again and again in a effort to shake the boredom.
“There were only seven in there, Vinyl. And I was looking at the blue one with the red trim.”
“Well, those are some of the best colors in Equestria,” Vinyl said with a sly grin, running her hoof through her mane. “Just saying.”
“Really? I had not noticed.”
“Heeeey...”
“Oh, do not give me that look,” Octavia said with a smile. “You know I am teasing you. Those colors look very striking on a certain pony and you know it.”
Vinyl opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it and tilted her head to one side, raising her ear. She rolled her eyes up as if she was listening to something, then her face seemed to deflate in the most pitiful way possible as she stared at the floor. Octavia would have assumed she was just trying to get more sympathy, but the look in Vinyl’s eyes said that the Unicorn had just taken a massive mental blow from something.
Octavia scooted closer to her marefriend and gently nuzzled her head up until Vinyl was looking at her, then she pressed their foreheads together. She could feel Vinyl’s horn slide through her black mane. She loved that feeling. It always relaxed her. It felt better than any hoof or comb ever could.
“So…”Octavia said, leaning forward just enough so that her mane fell forward and covered both of their faces from prying eyes. This was Octavia’s and Vinyl’s private world. She did not care what it looked like to other ponies. She could not see them with her hair draped around her face, and this close to Vinyl, they did not matter. If they were somewhere private, things would have started to get very mature very quickly. “Is my marshmallow going to tell me what is bothering her? Does she need more chocolate?”
To Octavia’s disbelief, Vinyl’s eyes met hers for a brief moment, then looked away with tears in them. Now she was really starting to get worried. She raised her hoof and brought it gently under the Unicorn’s chin, making it so she could not look away or pull away.
“Vinyl, I know something is bothering you. Tell me. Please.”
“I…I don’t like this song,” Vinyl whispered.
Octavia blinked in shock. The song? What song? Since when did music, something that the D.J. lived for, cause her so much pain? Sure, she found quiet a lot of Octavia’s preferred music rather boring, but it had never threatened to break her like this. Octavia raised her ears to listen.
The mall was playing music. Music was always being played in the background. It was nothing new, and it had been playing even when Octavia had arrived. She, like so many other ponies, had simply let it fade into the back of her consciousness and had given it no more thought.
The song that was playing now did sound familiar. She perked her ears even higher, trying to filter out the other noises of the mall.
“I'm resonant, won't stop for you playing away, playing away, you play your games, you bring me pain…”
Now Octavia understood. Several months ago, she had recorded this song and it had been a smash hit. Ponies everywhere had not been able to stop talking about it. She had been the most musically important pony in Equestria, and even now she still had fans come up and ask for her autograph from time to time. It should have been the happiest moment in her life.
But the song had also been the breaking point for Octavia and Vinyl. Vinyl had missed the debut performance of her concert where she had first sung the song, and Octavia had ended their relationship. It had nearly destroyed both of them, and if Lyra, Bon Bon, and even Rarity had not gotten involved, Octavia was not certain that she and Vinyl would be together now.
Those weeks where she had been separated from Vinyl had been rough on Octavia, but she knew that they had to have been even harder on the D.J. Vinyl had truly turned over a new leaf, making sure that she always attended Octavia’s performances, even the small ones. She had tried so hard that she had started falling behind on her own work, to the point where Octavia had had to tell her that it was okay if Vinyl did not make every engagement. Octavia just wanted to make sure that Vinyl would not take her for granted again, not smother her with attention. Their relationship had never been better since then.
But clearly Vinyl still felt terrible about the ordeal. The pain in her eyes as Octavia stared into them was enough to almost make her cry too. She had found Vinyl crying softly a few times since they had gotten back together, and each time she had said that she was afraid of losing Octavia again. Octavia had told her that everything was fine countless times, but it was still eating at the D.J.
Octavia needed to find a way to cheer Vinyl up, otherwise this little date was going to end in a depressing manner.
“What?” she said, pretending to look hurt. “You do not think I have a nice voice?”
“No, that’s not—”
“Oh, so you do not like the lyrics I wrote? The ones I put all that effort into?”
“Octy, that’s—”
“Then it must be the music that I composed myself,” she said, giving Vinyl a pout. She saw the hint of a smile tug at the Unicorn’s lips, but the sadness did not leave her completely.
“Octy, you know why I’m…well…I just don’t want to screw up again.”
“And I have told you that you would have to screw up pretty…what is that phrase you like? Epically? You would have to screw up epically for that to happen. Now no more crying.” Octavia pulled away from Vinyl’s face and the rest of the world returned around them. She quickly put her hair up again, and as she did, an idea sprang to mind.
“I know you said that, but I just—” Vinyl started, but the cellist put her hoof on the Unicorn’s lips to silence her, and then put on her best alluring face.
“Since you clearly do not believe me, how about I give you some…incentive, in order to make sure that you do not screw up?” She walked passed Vinyl and made sure that the tip of her tail gently tapped the Unicorn’s nose as she passed.
It did not take Vinyl long to figure out where Octavia was heading. “Uh…Octy…um…”
Octavia turned around to a wonderful sight. Vinyl’s cheeks were bright red and she was staring above Octavia’s head. Her eyes were wide and Octavia could see her chest rising and falling as she struggled to keep her breathing under control.
“Well?” Octavia asked in a voice that she knew would make Vinyl’s fur stand on end. “Are you coming, or am I going in alone?”
“But…you never shop here.”
“So I am going alone then,” she said, turning and making sure she put a little bit of extra sway in her hips as she walked forward. “Too bad you will not get to see any of those outfits all over me…” She did not care if other ponies saw what she was doing right now. She had already made up her mind earlier that this date was going to be fun, and she could not think of anything more amusing right then than making Vinyl the luckiest mare in the world.
“Hold up there!” Vinyl shouted from behind her, then came galloping up until she was huddled next to Octavia with the biggest, dumbest, happiest grin on her face. “I never said I wouldn’t go in with you.”
“Good,” Octavia whispered as they crossed the threshold of Dis Lee’s and entered a realm of exotic colors.
Octavia watched as Vinyl shuddered. She was certain that she could press a few more buttons and the D.J. would literally collapse on the floor, but she did not want the Unicorn to pass out completely. She was, after all, looking forward to wearing something from this store. The outfits were rather racy in a lot of cases, and as much as Octavia protested wearing them, she had to admit that she liked the way Vinyl drooled over her when she did put one on.
And she would never admit it to anypony, not even Vinyl, but she did rather enjoy the sensation of slipping one of these outfits on. It was liberating in a way. A chance for her to drop her guard completely and forget about her Canterlot upbringing and all the stress that was in her life.
“Welcome to Dis Lee’s, ladies,” the salespony said as Octavia and Vinyl entered the store. “Please let me know if I can help you in any way.”
“Fitting rooms?” Octavia asked.
The yellow Unicorn smiled knowingly and the respectable side of Octavia’s brain suddenly demanded to know what she was doing, but she silenced it. “Toward the back of the store.”
“Thank you,” Octavia said with a smile, hoping her blushing cheeks were not showing too much. She began to make her way to the back of the store, pausing every now and then to examine a particular outfit just to see Vinyl’s reaction. Whenever the unicorn’s eyes went wide, or she looked away quickly, Octavia felt a rush of joy. By the time she reached the fitting rooms, she had a dress that was clearly not meant to be worn to formal occasions, and…she was not even sure what the other outfit was. A swimsuit maybe? It involved a lot of lace though, and bows. That did not seem very practical for swimming, but then a lot of mares did not wear swimsuits to swim in them.
“So, which should I try on first?” she asked as she turned around in front of the fitting room. She had to cover her mouth with her hoof to contain her laughter at the sight of Vinyl’s face.
“Uh…um…h-how about the…dress one?” the Unicorn said as she tried to look everyone but Octavia’s face. Her face was so red that Octavia was growing just a bit worried.
“Okay,” she said. With that, she walked into the fitting room and closed the door behind her. She hung the other outfit on the hook—thankfully the store was aware that not every pony could fly our use magic, so the hook wasn’t too high—and laid the dress on the bench.
The dress was a striking blue color, bluer than Vinyl’s mane. It was cut low in the front, to the point where Octavia wasn’t sure it was a dress so much as her just wearing two straps of blue cloth over her top. The design was clearly meant to draw the eye to neck, and then down the front. That, combined with the color, meant that it was meant to grab attention, not be presentable. The lower half was long and silky, with a deep cut running up one side of it, meant to show of the pony’s hind leg.
In short, this was the type of outfit that Vinyl dreamed about seeing her in when they went to a club. Octavia smiled and put it on. The straps crisscrossed on her back and she felt the front of the dress slide up under her forelegs and the middle part of the fabric hug her waist. She adjusted her tail until it poked through the small hole in the back, then gently ran her hoof over it to straighten it out. As the dress settled around her, she looked at herself in the mirror, making sure she was wearing it correctly. Everything appeared to be in place. The v-cut on the front went down below the top of her chest, her black mane was hanging loosely over her shoulder, her tail was free to swish about, and the bottom cut was offering a full glimpse of her back leg, but nothing else.
“Vinyl?” Octavia called, trying to keep the excitement out of her voice. “Are you ready?”
Octavia heard a small squeak that meant Vinyl was trying, and failing, to remain calm. She smiled and opened the door.
“Uh…” Vinyl said as Octavia exited the fitting room. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was slightly open. Her head was tilted to the side ever so slightly and thrust forward just a bit. She blinked once, then didn’t move.
“Is that good?” Octavia asked, turning around slowly in the dress and enjoy the feel of the silk brushing against her fur.
“Uh…”
“If you do not like it, I can just take it off.”
“No!” Vinyl said suddenly, waving her front hoof. “You…you look great.” The Unicorn scratched the back of her head and looked at the floor. “Um…any chance you’ll be wearing that out of the store?”
“As if I would be seen in public in such a…revealing outfit.” Octavia stood on her hind legs and stuck one leg out further through the slit.
“But…you only ever where that bowtie anyway,” Vinyl whined.
“So you are saying you want other ponies staring at me? Are you sure you can handle the competition?”
Vinyl’s eyes went wide. “Quick! Take it off!” She jumped forward and began pushing Octavia back into the dressing. The cellist was still standing on her hind legs, and she hadn’t expected Vinyl to start pushing her. She began to lose her balance and fall backward, so she reached out and grabbed the only thing she could: Vinyl’s horn.
As Octavia continued to fall back through the door to her fitting room, she pulled and Vinyl came with her. The two crashed into the room, with Octavia on her back and Vinyl on top of her.
“Uh…hi, Tavi,” Vinyl whispered.
“Hi yourself,” Octavia said, leaning forward and giving Vinyl a quick kiss on the lips. “Now, do you think you could get off of me, or were you just getting comfortable?”
“The second one,” Vinyl said, her eyes narrowing and a grin spreading across her entire face.
“Not a chance,” Octavia replied, placing her hoof on Vinyl’s chest and pushing her off with ease. “Not here, even if the door does lock.”
“Aw…” Vinyl said as she stood up, her blue mane falling around her face. Her horn glowed slightly and Octavia saw that she was using her magic to pick up her sunglasses, which had fallen off of her head when they had tumbled through the door.
“Although, I could use your help with this outfit,” Octavia said, pointing to the lacy garment that was still hanging on the door. “I…am not sure how to wear that one.”
Vinyl slammed her sunglasses on her eyes and her face went crimson. “Uh…no, no thanks. You, uh…don’t have to wear that one.” She turned to leave, her face hanging so low that Octavia was worried that she was going to trip.
“But Vinyl…” Octavia said in a pouty voice that she rarely used. “I need your help. Pretty please.”
Vinyl slowly turned around, still keeping her shades firmly over her eyes. Judging by the color in her cheeks and the way she was trembling, she was barely keeping herself in check. “Tavi, that outfit is, uh…something you shouldn’t wear in public. You wear it when…let’s just say that it’s the type of outfit you wear on Hearts and Hooves Day evening. Late evening.”
Now it was Octavia’s turn to blush. She looked away from Vinyl’s sunglasses and felt her ears go so flat that they hurt. She wasn’t familiar with nightwear or lingerie, and Vinyl had never worn anything like it before, so she had no idea what it looked like. Being raised in Canterlot—and her own family history—she simply had no experience with anything like this.
“But uh…I can help you into later tonight if, you know, you want me to…”
Octavia didn’t think she could blush any more. She was wrong. She looked up and just smiled sheepishly. “I…believe I should take the dress off now,” she said as she stood up, dusting herself off so that she didn’t have to look at Vinyl’s face.
“Right,” Vinyl said. “I’ll, uh, meet you outside.”
Vinyl left and Octavia quickly pulled the dress off. She kept glancing at the lingerie hanging on the wall, but every time she did, her cheeks burned and she was forced to look away. She pulled it down and stuffed it in her saddlebag, all the while refusing to look at the thing. As she exited the fitting room, she glanced up at her marefriend, smiled, and then looked at the floor.
“I…think it is time I went and bought my cello,” she said as the two made their way to the clerk. Octavia pulled the lingerie out of her saddlebag, refusing to look at the clerk for more than a moment or two as she bought it, then quickly stuffed it back into her bag. She knew Vinyl had seen her buy it, but thankfully the Unicorn said nothing. She was apparently as embarrassed about it as Octavia was.
They walked through the mall in utter silence. Every time Octavia looked up to say something, her eyes were reflected back at her through Vinyl’s glasses and the two of them quickly looked away from one another. Still, she could at least feel Vinyl’s tail brushing against her hindquarters every few steps, and every time it did she would playfully slap it away with her own tail, so she knew the Unicorn wasn’t upset. They just…weren’t sure what to say to one another, and Octavia couldn’t figure out why. It was just a silly outfit. It wasn’t like Vinyl and her hadn’t done…stuff before. She knew every inch of Vinyl’s body, and Vinyl could make her experience sensations that made her face warm just thinking about them. So why was it so hard to look her in the eye after their little lingerie exchange?
Thankfully, Octavia’s train of thought was quickly derailed as the two of them arrived at Harmonic Notes.
“So…here we are,” Vinyl said, looking straight at the door.
“Indeed,” Octavia said, glancing quickly at Vinyl and then stepping forward to open the door. She held it open until Vinyl gripped it with her magic, and the two of them walked into the music shop.
Harmonic Notes was different than most other stores in the mall. For one, it had a door at the front of the shop, whereas the other shops tended to just be wide open. This was because the store had to keep the outside noise outside. Tuning an instrument or just listening to the sound it made was impossible with the constant chatter and drone coming in from the rest of the mall. In order to help with that, the entire store was blanketed in a constant sound-muffling spell to reduce outside noise even more. Thick carpet covered the floor, keeping the sound of hoofsteps silent. A pony was inclined to whisper the moment they entered, even if no pony else was present. The result was like entering a musical museum. Every type of instrument in Equestria, from horns and strings to guitars and keyboards, was on display in the store, each on of them in perfect condition.
“Ah, Vinyl Scratch,” the store clerk, Resonance, said as he waved his hoof. “Good to see you again. Your package is ready to—oh. Um…hello, Miss Melody.”
Octavia raised an eyebrow and looked at Vinyl. “What package?”
“Er, it was just—” Vinyl started to say.
“Vinyl came by earlier today,” Resonance said. “Ordered some new sound equipment.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, sure did,” Vinyl said with a smile.
“I thought you were broke.”
“Uh, well, I am. I mean, I spent all my bits on the equipment.”
“But how did you buy it before I got here? You said you had just arrived when I showed up.”
“Bought it yesterday.”
“And it took them an entire day to get it ready for you?”
“Vinyl asked for it to be delivered,” the clerk interrupted. “I was just telling her that it went out this morning.”
“Oh,” Octavia said. “Well, then perhaps you could help me as well, Resonance.”
“Anything for one of my most loyal customers,” the stallion replied with a friendly smile.
“I fear my cello has suffered…non-repairable damage. The neck has been snapped clean in half.”
“How in Equestria did you do that?” Resonance asked, shock coming to his face. He knew as well as anypony how hard it was to do that much damage.
“I was forced to use it to battle some unpleasant creatures a while back,” Octavia said. “It proved effective, but I am afraid that swinging it like a club was not its intended use. But I have a private concert coming up in Canterlot—specifically, for the Princesses—and I would like to purchase a new one. The instruments you make and sell are the best, including my last cello.”
Resonance’s brown face suddenly winced and his eyes darted to Vinyl before coming back to Octavia. “Er, well, thank you for the high praise. It means a lot coming from such a famous artist.”
“Your craft is second to none, of that I am certain.”
“But…I’m afraid I don’t have any cellos available right now.”
Octavia blinked once, not sure she had heard correctly. “Excuse me?”
“I…I don’t have any cellos.”
Octavia turned around and pointed to a cello right by the front of the door. “What about that one? Surely it is not just for display.”
“I’m afraid I sold that one already,” Resonance said. “Just this morning, actually. The pony is supposed to be by later today to pick it up.”
“Well, how long would it take you to make one?” she asked, a sense of panic rising in her. She was due in Canterlot at the end of next week. Sure, she could buy cello there, but Resonance’s always felt right, always sounded right. She wanted to be at her best when she played for Princess Luna and Princess Celestia.
“I’m afraid I’m booked solid on orders right now,” the stallion said as he gave an apologetic look. “I wouldn’t be able to get to yours until next month, at the earliest.”
“Next…month?” Octavia said, her face falling along with her spirit. “But…I have to play—” She caught herself. Too many times she had seen other ponies throw fits or demand the impossible from a poor salesclerk. She would not be one of those ponies. If Resonance said he couldn’t help her, then he couldn’t. Pleading and telling her sob story would change none of that.
“Very well,” she said, trying to regain her dignity. “Thank you for your time. I will have to pick another one up in Canterlot then.” She turned to leave, but looked back as a thought crossed her head. “Though, if you would not mind, the next time you get one in, could you set it aside for me?”
“Of course, dear,” Resonance said.
“Hey, Octy,” Vinyl said. “I’m going to hang out here for a bit. Got to hammer out some details with Resonance about my equipment. See you at home?”
“Sure,” Octavia said as she walked out the door without looking back. Her sole purpose for coming to the mall had ended in failure. What was she going to do? How was she supposed to play for the Princesses if she did not possess the best? Only Harmonic Notes and Resonance’s work were good enough for royalty, and now she did not have it. How could she face the Princesses now?
Vinyl! she thought angrily. If she had just let me go to the store first thing, I would not be in this mess!
The moment the thought crossed her mind, Octavia realized that she was not being fair. Vinyl had just wanted to spent time with her, and that time had indeed been enjoyable. If Octavia had found out at the start that she would not be able to get her cello, she would have spent the rest of the day being depressed. At least Vinyl had prevented that.
Stuck in a melancholy mood, the mare made her way out of the mall and began walking home. Her mind refused to focus on anything and instead just drifted from thought to thought during the walk. She worried about performing for the Princesses, wondered when she could expect Vinyl to come over, and thought about where in Canterlot she would be able to buy a new cello. Her mother would likely know the best place in the city. Octavia would ask her once she arrived. It would have to do.
Before she realized it, Octavia was standing in front of her home. She pulled her key out, unlocked the door, and walked into her living room. It was just as tidy as she had left it, with her glass coffee table resting just in front of her couch. Vinyl’s turntable was sitting against the back wall like it always was, and Octavia’s chair and music stand was placed perfectly next to the D.J.’s equipment. The only thing that was missing was her cello, something she had hoped to remedy today. She had thrown her broken one out earlier today before she had left to meet Vinyl.
Sighing as she looked at the empty spot in her room, Octavia tossed her saddlebag and the bag that held her purchase on the couch and walked into the kitchen. She pulled out her teapot and began making herself a cup of tea. She needed something to lift her spirits and take her mind off of her missing cello.
“It is not the end of the world,” she told herself as she watched the steam rise out of the pot. “There are plenty of other cellos in Equestria. But…they are rather expensive.” She did not have enough bits to go out and buy a cello every other day. It had taken her a good two months of saving just to get enough to afford the one she had wanted to buy today. Now she was going to have to spend those bits on an inferior cello that was likely to cost more since it would be in Canterlot.
The teapot began to whistle and Octavia’s growing frustration began to ebb at the sound. She pulled the teapot off of the burner and poured herself a small cup of tea, then went to sit on her couch. She placed a coaster on her table and set the cup down, watching the steam rise from it as she waited for it to cool.
There was a knock at the door, and Octavia sighed. She really was not in the mood for company. It was already late afternoon, getting close to suppertime, and she was getting tired. Maybe the pony would leave if she did not answer the door.
She had no such luck. The knock came again, louder this time. She growled under her breath and reached for her tea, trying to ignore the pony at the door.
“Octy, I know you’re home! Open the door!”
Octavia sighed and set her cup down. Of course Vinyl would show up just when she was trying to settle in. She got up and walked to the door, suddenly aware of the fact that her bowtie was still in her saddlebag. It did not bother her too much—it was just Vinyl, after all—but she felt rather naked without it around her neck when she answered the door.
“Hello Vinyl,” she said as she opened the door. “Would you like…to…come…” Octavia’s brain refused to finish sending the signals to her mouth to finish the sentence. She was aware of the sensation of her eyes widening like a newborn foal tasting sugar for the first time, and she could feel her mouth hanging open like a fool. It…it was not possible, was it?
“Heh,” was all Vinyl said as she stood on the doorstep, her glasses covering her eyes but the giddy smile on her face betraying any attempt she made at looking suave.
Behind the Unicorn, incased in her blue magic, floated a cello.
“Vinyl…you…” Octavia stammered as she gazed at the instrument, tears beginning to come to her eyes.
“I asked Resonance to make you one a few weeks ago,” the D.J. said. “He called me this morning and told me it was ready for pickup. I was at the mall getting it when you called me.”
“Vinyl…that…that is over a thousand bits…” Octavia said. Her pride and guilt took over briefly. “I…I cannot accept this.”
“Well, I guess I could just smash it against the ground then. I’ve always wanted to see how these things break when—”
“NO!” Octavia shouted, reaching out with a hoof to try and grab the cello. “But…but how did you…? I thought you said you had no money.”
Vinyl scratched the back of her head and smiled. “Well, the special order did cost a lot of bits. I’ve been saving up ever since I saw yours was cracked.”
Octavia felt emotion swell up inside her. She would find a way to pay Vinyl back. She knew the mare would be too stubborn to accept the bits that Octavia had been saving up, and she did not want to try and out-gift her by buying a new sound system or something. But she would think of something later. Right now, all she wanted to do was show her marefriend how much she appreciated the gift.
Octavia reached out and wrapped her hoof around the back of Vinyl’s neck. She pulled the Unicorn, none too gently, forward and slammed her lips against hers. She felt Vinyl tense in surprise and reflexively try to pull away, but Octavia only pulled her harder into the kiss. She rarely kissed Vinyl this way, with so much raw emotion, and she relished every second of it. She closed her eyes so she could focus on the Unicorn’s taste, what it felt like to have her breathing on her and their tongues touching.
She began to back up slowly, refusing to pull away from the kiss. She kept her hoof wrapped tightly around Vinyl’s neck, laced through her mane, and used it to pull her through the door into the house. She kept backing up until she felt her flank hit the edge of her couch. She put her other hoof under Vinyl’s front legs and guided her into a two-legged stance as she too stood up on her hind legs. She then took a single step back, allowing herself to fall over the edge of the couch and wrapping both of her front hooves around the Unicorn’s neck so that she fell with her, still locked in the kiss.
Finally, with Octavia laying on the couch and Vinyl on top of her, Octavia pulled out of the kiss and opened her eyes. Vinyl’s face was bright red, but she still had her glasses on, so Octavia reached up and removed them with a flick.
“Uh…hi,” Vinyl said, staring down at her and blinking rapidly. Octavia could feel the D.J.’s heartbeat against her own chest. “So…what was that for? And more importantly, can we do it again?”
“Maybe,” Octavia said as she looked up and smiled at the eyes before her. “You did promise to help me put on that outfit after all.”
Vinyl let out what Octavia could only describe as a squeak as her ears with down and she buried her face in Octavia’s chest to hide her embarrassment. “I take it that means you like it?” she mumbled
“Almost as much as I like you,” Octavia said, stroking Vinyl’s mane slowly.
“Guess I should bring it inside then. I had to put it down because I was going to drop it if I tried to carry it during…that.”
“Perhaps you should.”
Vinyl turned her head away and Octavia watched her horn glow—grey, she noticed with a smile—and then she heard the sound of her door closing. “You might want to lock it too,” she said.
“Right,” Vinyl said, turning back to Octavia as she locked the door. She blinked a few times, looking nervous as Octavia continued to hold her and stroke her mane and back.
“Is something bothering you?” Octavia asked after a moment.
“I was going to ask you that, actually,” Vinyl said. “Are you okay?”
“What do you mean?”
Vinyl took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment. “Look, don’t get me wrong Tavi. This day has been great. And I’m really liking where it seems to be heading.” To prove her point, she leaned forward and gently kissed Octavia on the cheek and pressed her body against hers for a tender moment. “But…you never act like this. Or, at least you rarely do. Blowing bubbles in your drink, spilling it and not minding taking your bowtie off. Giving in to me when I begged you not to go into the store. Thanks for that one, by the way. Willingly going into Dis Lee’s to put on a mini show for me. Buying that. And then, that kiss just now. It’s all very…not you, I guess. Is something bothering you?”
Octavia looked away as her thoughts drifted to dark places. “It is nothing to worry about,” she said after a moment, returning her gaze to Vinyl. “I just have a lot on my mind, especially with my upcoming performance for the Princesses. The stress has been getting to me, so I just wanted to forget about it for a bit.”
“Okay…” Vinyl said. Octavia could tell from her tone that she knew Octavia was not telling her everything, but that she would not pry any further tonight. Instead, she pressed her body against Octavia’s again. “So, you want me to help relieve any more of that stress?”
“I do not know,” Octavia said. “I really should tune that cello first. I mean, playing for Princess Luna and Princess Celestia is a great honor, and I want to make sure that everything will be perfect.”
“Uh-huh. Sounds like that’s just going to make more stress for you.”
“And what, exactly, do you think you can do to stop me?”
“Fun fact, Tavi,” Vinyl said, putting her hooves on either side of Octavia’s head and pushing herself up slightly so that she loomed over the cellist. “I’m on top of you right now.”
“And I suppose I am to just pretend that I am not stronger than you, is that it?” Octavia asked with a sly grin and narrowed eyes.
“Well, yeah, if you want this to be fun,” Vinyl said, a slight blush coming to her cheeks again. “Now, where’s that outfit you bought?”
Octavia rolled her eyes in a playful manner. “That thing is hardly an outfit, but if you insist, it is in the bag over there.”
“Perfect.” Vinyl grinned as her horn glowed again.