> A Night With: Vinyl Scratch > by Dustchu > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Breaking The Silence > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Tis a glorious day, is it not?" My buddy pal best friend and matron of the night, Princess Woona asked me with a content tone to her words. "It is, very much so." I agreed with a sharp nod of my head and looking out into the blue star speckled sky she had created. "In fact, I do believe this day is... special." The princess commented after a few moments of silence, taking a sip from her tea cup. I arched an eyebrow towards her, drinking a bit of my own tea she had the staff prepare for our nightly get togethers, the totally friendship type ones of course. "Oh? How so." I felt myself questioning her in reply, eyes turning to look into her own. She eyed me, a faint smile on her dainty dark blue lips. "This is the day when you first appeared in Equestria my dear Lee." She informed me, placing her cup back onto its little plate on the table between us. "Do you not remember that day?" Oh I remembered it all too well actually. I had just left my collage dorm room for the last time after finishing up with classes and graduation and all of that, and I was heading back to my apartment in Manhattan where I was going to get a bunch of food, celebrate, get drunk, and watch ponies on my computer. But to my dismay, it was not meant to be. Because as I left an intense thunderstorm had appeared out of nowhere, and I was forced to jog to the bus station all the while cursing the weather people for getting their predictions wrong, and as the storm raged on my jog turned into a sprint. The wind was whipping by me and the rain pelting my face and clothes, but I didn't care. Apparently I didn't notice the rain practically blurring my sight and making it hard to see and eventually... well... I collided with a building, a little cottage of sorts and fell through a window smashing it to pieces and landing on my butt. Now, normally I have pretty good eye sight for my age despite the fact I spent at least 80 percent of my time in front of a bright LED screen, but this cottage had alluded me like the ninja it was... snuck up on me... Clever girl... But that cottage I ran into belonged to a certain pair of ponies I would come to be very good friends with. Octavia Melody of House Melody, and Vinyl Scratch, DJ-PON3 of the club on 32nd street. Of course they freaked out... some weird monkey thing crashed into their cottage at full speed! But that was an understatement. Octavia attacked me with her Cello bow, wielding it like it was a fencing sword while Vinyl pelted me with vinyl records, throwing them like frisbees. I, being the awesome guy I was, defended myself with a throw pillow and a towel that smelled spicy and minty. It was an epic sword fight complete with adorable pony war cries and very manly screams... but not a sword fight, get me? Anyway, our battle if you could call it that lasted for about an hour before Vinyl got tired of all the yells and decided to end it right then and there. As Octy and I fought, Vinyl wheeled in some massive contraption with large speakers and a turntable. Now, my first thought was. Is that a speaker? It was true, it was a massive speaker on wheels, and a funky turntable. My question was answered when she took to the table, I was frozen in both shock and awe and I didn't see Octavia backing away slowly before Vinyl started up her contraption. My third thought was. Wait... I'm in a house with two tiny ponies?! Naturally that freaked me out a bit, cause I was just now realizing I was in a house with two adorable and tiny ponies that looked exactly like Vinyl Scratch and Octavia. But, my thought process was disrupted when I was sent flying through the nearby wall somehow. Later I would discover Vinyl had blasted me with enough wubs to DeadMau5 cry salty tears of sadness. It was both beautiful and terrifying, the first because I loved dubstep and the second because I was almost killed by it after being sent through a wall leaving a comically human shaped hole behind. I was dazed and confused, I also think my ears were bleeding slightly and I was seeing colors everywhere. All around me I heard voices, but I couldn't understand them, all of it was distorted enough to make it sound like warbling noises. It was half annoying, half hilarious enough to make me chuckle, and lemme tell ya, laughing was weird because it was also distorted. Later my eyesight would be clear enough to actually see things around me, and I could actually hear aside from some minor ear ringing. As it turned out, - From Twilight's explanation anyway- I had somehow found a weird rip between dimensions when I was running through that storm back home. I found that a bit strange that hundreds of people take that same path and somehow I was the lucky one to get thrown into a world of adorable technicolor ponies. Oh well. So, I ended up in the hospital under guard, with a sheepish Vinyl and a scolding Octavia in the room with me. I had no idea what they were saying, it was one sided and Vinyl didn't even utter a single word during the whole thing. Which made me wonder why she wasn't talking in the first place. So I asked them both, and as it turned out Vinyl was a mute. She could hear and see fine, but I was told she had something wrong with her vocal cords, not sure what though... I can only imagine how much that must suck for her... to be without a voice. A sigh escaped me as I remembered those days. Good times... good times. It was a rough few months living here in the castle with little in the way to entertain myself. But I did get the occasional visit from both Vinyl and Octavia. I guess they felt bad about what they did to me and wanted to make up for it, Vinyl especially. I mean, blasting someone with wubs cranked up to eleven can be painful, I should know... I was on the receiving end! But, that was all in the past and me and those two were good friends, like I am with a lot of ponies, Luna included. "Yeah I do remember," I said, smiling faintly as I rubbed the back of my head. I'll never forget when I first got here. I half expected to be living in Ponyville like most of those typical stories I've read, but the sisters wanted to keep me in the castle to keep me safe or some such nonsense. I still got visitors and whatnot from PV, but it gets lonely in this place. "Man, its been... what, two years now?" I pondered, leaning back in my chair. Luna nodded, taking another dainty sip from her cup. "Indeed it has been, Lee." She placed her cup down once more before her eyes locked onto my own again. "Tell me, have you found a marefriend yet? Or do you have our eye on anypony?" I coughed on my own spit, and it took me a moment to not die from that very blunt question. "Jesus!" I sputtered, coughing. She tilted her head at me. "Jesus? I have never met a mare with such a name... is she nice at least?" I facepalmed. -ooo000=+=000ooo- A Night With: Vinyl Scratch Written by: Dustchu. MLP:FIM belongs to Hasbro and Lauren Faust. I own only my OC's and certain elements. -ooo000=+=000ooo- Luna, you can be so weird sometimes. I sighed, remembering my explanation of Jesus and how I didn't have a marefriend. I mean, having to explain a religion to a society that didn't have said religion was... tough, and not my cup of tea considering I was more or less an atheist. So I only told her who he was, I can't explain the entirety of the religion when I don't know half of it to begin with. But onto the marefriend thing, well... its not that I haven't... uh... I haven't tried so to speak. I've seen plenty of attractive mares after my trips through Canterlot, Ponyville and whatnot. I just haven't exactly tried dating yet, not sure any of them would want to to begin with. I mean I do look weird, I suppose... compared to them, anyhow. Anywho, I was just walking through the courtyard for a bit, Luna having to leave because of some business involving Blueblood, a bathtub filled with gold, and a minotaur belly dancer. Whatever Blueblood was up to, I'll never know... nor do I want to. I had more important things to attend to, like food, food, and sleep... mostly food. Courtyard's been cleaned up nice. I thought with a faint smile as I looked around at all the flowers and shrubbery. It was a nice place to hang ou- "Lee!" I heard someone yell, who in the heck? Turning around, I spotted a familiar gray coated mare with a treble clef cutie mark on her flank. I smiled as I saw a blue mane bobbing behind her. "Hey girls," I greeted, jogging over to them as vinyl waved to me with a wide smile on her face. "Not that I'm not happy to see you guys, but why are you here?" Octavia smiled that dainty and cultured smile at me and spoke up, "Princess Celestia wanted to talk to us about the upcoming Grand Galloping Gala and our planned duet." She told me. I didn't notice it before but she had her Cello draped over her back, Vinyl meanwhile had her equipment floating behind her in some special boxes, making sure to keep it out of the way should anyone want by her. "We're going to be staying here to prepare for the Gala tomorrow night." I smiled at that news. "That is so awesome!" I clapped my hands, I was excited to hear they'd be staying here. That'd make my entire week so much better, and less dull then it would have been without them. "We should hang out whenever you guys get the chance!" I suggested with no small amount of excitement in my tone. I haven't seen these two in about a month and them staying here for a whole week? This will be awesome! Vinyl nodded enthusiastically to my suggestion, her mane bobbing along as Octavia gave a more subtle and somewhat stiff and practiced nod only a cultured Canterlot pony could achieve. "Indeed we should, Lee." She smiled at me sweetly. "Vinyl here," Octavia gave a look to Vinyl who sheepishly looked away, "Has been ecstatic to show you her latest wub creations." She giggled as a bright smile appeared on her face as Vinyl nodded, pointing to her chests holding no doubt a crap ton of wubbing equipment. I could only smile bigger. "Well, I honestly can't wait to hear it!" The sounds of bells in the distance alerted me it was getting... well, later then it already was. "Whoa, that was quick," I couldn't help but notice how quickly it time had pased. It seemed like a few minutes ago Luna and I were having a nice cup o tea at midnight, huh. "Well anyway, I have to go see Celly bout something, I'll catch you two later, kay?" With a wave, I was off down the path, leaving behind my two besties for now. I wonder what Celly wants? -ooo000=+=000ooo- Vinyl's Perspective I watched as Lee walked away from us in a quick stride, his footsteps echoing across the cobblestone path leading back into the castle before he disappeared entirely. A sigh escaped me as he entered the structure and disappeared from my sights. I knew I would see him again, I always did, but even so I never got to see him enough... Looking over at my Ponyvillian roommate, I saw her giving her own look his way as he vanished from our line of sight. Without another word we both turned around and walked back into the castle opposite of the side Lee went into, headed to our room. We were roomed in part of the castle reserved for special guests and the like, me and Octavia sharing the same room that had sound proof walls and potentially free room service. I was hopeful for that. We both hauled our equipment through the halls towards out room, the walk being rather brief as we didn't want to waste time fooling around like usual. I know I'm always goofing off half the time, but this was a serious like, ordeal and I didn't wanna screw it up. I already had a few tracks in mind for the gala this tomorrow night, and it wouldn't hurt to come up with a few more. Who knows, maybe I could even get Lee to help me out. He told me back in his world he would mess around with his computer and create delicious wubs. I don't know what a computer is, but I want one, he makes it sound so easy to make music with one. "Do you think Lee will enjoy our duet?" Octavia suddenly asked as we approached our room. We both went inside, me using my magic to open the door and trotting inside followed by Octavia and our equipment I only nodded with a small smile. Lee always enjoyed both of our music, saying he dabbled in both the beauty of the classical arts and the electrical magic that was EDM. "Oh, of course he would." The grey mare agreed with me, setting down her cello and opening it up. "He certainly enjoys your music a bit more though, doesn't he?" Tavi arched an eyebrow my direction, throwing the rhetorical question towards me. A sigh escaped my lips. Of course she was going there. I shook my head at her, waving a hoof in the air and going back to my cases to unpack my gear. I didn't need her to start that silly stuff again, I loved her and all but sheesh, sometimes you just have to give a girl a rest! Tavi, can you please, ju- "Are you going to tell him? Or should I say, show him?" She continued despite my mental pleading, and I knew that she knew exactly what she was doing to me. I could only sigh in reply again, then shrugged towards before going back to opening my cases. Inside were several vinyl records that I had brought along, my personal works. My recording equipment and some other things I use for the creation of my own special blend of EDM. Headphones, and some assorted wires and power crystals for my speakers and turntable. As I brought out and began setting up most of my equipment for some practice and testing, I came across an old and small beat up wooden box buried under some of my stuff, it wasn't anything special in anypony else's eyes, but in my own it was something very special... something for Lee that I made him but never showed him. Picking it up, I examined the small box as Tavi trotted over to me. "Is that the track you made for him?" Tavi had that curious look on her face, her tone soft and velvety as her violet eyes scanned the small wooden box I held in my magic. I only nodded, running a hoof over it. "When are you going to show him it?" A head shake was my answer. I didn't know when or even if I was going to show him what I had spent the better part of a week crafting. This was a really big deal for me and Tavi knew it. A few months ago I had tried to create a new track to showcase at the gala, but I hadn't been able to come up with anything no matter how hard I tried to think. An annoying fact I had to deal with was I never go to any club or major event without something new to show off to fans and music connoisseurs alike. I had hit what most musicians get on a rough day... an artist's block. I hated it, but it was something that every single one of us had to go through. But, luckily help had come in the form of my human friend, Lee. He had come to visit us for the third time that month and I was all too happy to see him, and he was just as excited to see both me and Tavi as well. We were all just talking - Tavi and Lee doing most of it, with me just nodding along and writing out my responses - when all of a sudden Lee asked me how my new track was coming along. I could only tell him with my magic that it wasn't coming along well, much to his disappointment. Then the strangest thing happened... he asked me if he could take a look at what I had so far, so... I let him. I did it mostly because I was curious to see why he wanted to see my unfinished work. I normally never let anypony look at the music I'm still working on, Lee and Tavi were the only exceptions to that rule. I watched as Lee stepped up to my turntable like a pro and in a couple of movements he had my track playing in the headphones I had given him. And as he listened I watched as he mumbled a few things to himself, eventually flipping some switches and messing with the tracks I had, adding new sounds and beats to it that I couldn't hear. I sat on my haunches, just shocked at how he was coming up with new sounds to fit in with the pitiful track I had sitting around, unfinished and struggling with for so long. After about a half hour of watching him work, he had finished my track, and by then I had scribbled down something in reply to his work. "How did you do that?!" His answer. "I dunno, just threw in crap I thought sounded nice." It was amazing he came up with such an amazing track, using what I had and making something truly amazing. I was floored when I had listened to it for myself, over and over again, I would listen to to these amazing sounds he had crafted like it was nothing. He acted like it was nothing, but this... he had weaved it into nothing short of a masterpiece. I guess that might be one of the reasons I liked Lee... oh yeah, I like Lee, a lot more then one would think a friend should. He's a good friend and one of the few who doesn't treat me like a celebrity that absolutely needs to be crowded by fans and is hopped up on every drug imaginable. He treats me like a pony, not some superstar that has to bend to their every will. Another reason I like him, he loves Dubstep as much as I do, he enjoys hanging out with me like Tavi does and he enjoys her music which is perfect. He's that stallion I've always wanted to meet. Likes both Tavi's music and my own, isn't a complete senseless jerk, funny and awesome. I won't lie when I say I've entertained the idea of asking him out, of course I never actually went through with it. Don't take me as one of those mares who loathes herself all the time... but... Who'd want to go out with somepony who can't even talk back to them? I can barely hold a conversation with anyone and have to write out my reply with magic, and I know it gets old after a while because I can't write that fast. I've lost a couple of friends because of that... even a previous coltfriend who just... Before I knew it, I felt Tavi's arm across my back and her voice speaking into my ear softly. "Vinyl," she whispered to me, rubbing my back. I looked to her, her form mildly purple from my shades. "You're crying." I blinked and noticed she was right. I pulled off my shades and touched my face below my shades, when I felt the cold wet feeling against my fur I knew she was telling the truth. I then started furiously rubbing my eyes, trying to shake the feeling but it was too late. The dam had already broken and I fell back onto my rump, covering my face as Tavi wrapped her forelegs around me. I couldn't stop the tears from falling, or the shakes that followed. I closed my eyes, letting my shades fall to the floor as I buried my muzzle in Tavi's shoulder, near silent gasps escaping me. Tavi sighed as she held me, more out of pity than anything else I'm sure. "Vinyl dear, I thought you were over this?" She held me tighter. I thought I was too. I guess I wasn't over it like I had previously though. Tavi continued to hold me, humming a soft tune in my ear as she rocked me back and forth. I felt so pathetic in these brief few moments, here I am, a twenty two year old mare sobbing her eyes out because of something so frigging stupid that happened years ago. My heart felt sore, my eyes stung and I couldn't stop the shaking no matter how hard I tried. I wish I could cry, I mean really cry. Every time this happened, I would be a disgusting and quiet sobbing mess, and no matter how much I tried to make any sort of sound, nothing would come out except a gasp or a sharp intake of air. I hated it so much, almost as much as I hated myself for not being able to vocalize my feelings... "There there Vinyl," Tavi's soothing accented voice echoed through my ears, her voice was so calming and I couldn't help but want to listen to it for a few more minutes. Another choked out sob escaped me, and in return Tavi nuzzled me with her muzzle gently. "You needn't worry about that anymore, it was a long time ago, love." Tavi told me as I felt my heart rate slow down. My crying had stopped and I felt myself calming down, Tavi slowed her rocking until we were sitting still. I opened my eyes, looking for my notepad to write out something but found Tavi had it in her hooves already and held it out for me. I gave her a thankful nod and grabbed it in my magic, producing a pencil and writing out a quick note. "I'm sorry, Tavi." She read it before giving me a shocked look seconds later, then she shook her head. "You have nothing to be sorry for, Vinyl, you don't know when these things will happen." She assured me, fixing my mane and moving it to the side out of my eyes, before taking my glasses off. "I honestly thought you were over it, but..." She sighed, "I guess you are not?" I looked down, shaking my head as a bit of shame filled my heart. I thought I was over it, but I'm not... I never was... "Well, you don't need to worry about that," Tavi told me, producing a handkerchief and wiping my eyes with it. "Everypony needs a shoulder to cry on once in a while, and that's why I'm here, Vinyl, Lee as well. We're both here for you no matter what." Lee. I thought about him, the past two years of Lee being in our world and he barely knows anything about me or Tavi, except our musical likes and talents, names and what we did for a living. I rubbed my eyes as Tavi finished fixing up my face from my sobbing spree. I held my shades away from me before scribbling down something for Tavi to read. "Do you think Lee is free tonight?" I asked her, standing up and shaking off the uncomfortable feeling I was currently experiencing. Tavi thought for a moment, humming in thought as she looked at the floor. "Hmm... I'm not sure," She looked towards me, fixing up my mane again. "You could go ask him yourself you know, I don't know his schedule... though, why do you ask?" I bit my lip, writing down, "I think... I might want to ask him out..." I frowned for a moment, quickly adding, "Just for dinner or something like that, nothing serious or whatever." When I showed her the note, Tavi clapped her hooves together happily. "Oh I am so glad to hear that, Vinyl. I'm sure he'll be free to go to dinner with you." then wit ha mischievous grin, she added, "Perhaps you can finally tell him!" A sigh escaped me before I wrote another note. "It's just dinner, Tavi, I'm not sure I'm ready to... 'actually' date him, I want to see what he thinks about dating mares first, he might not want to... considering we're both different species and all that. Heck, he might be gay for all I know!" "Oh pish posh, I see him eyeing the princesses' flanks all the time whenever we visit the castle." Octavia giggled, causing me to blink. "Seriously?" I found myself asking as she gave me an amused nod. "Huh... anyway, its just dinner, nothing else." Tavi' gave me a look over, tilting her head. "So... just two friends having a nice dinner?" She asked me, smiling. "Nothing more?" I nodded. Why does she...? I found my unanswered question suddenly answered. "Well, why don't I help you then," Tavi stood up, walking over to me and saying, "I'll make you look nice for tonight! Nothing too extravagant of course. Just a touch up." A bit of worry crept onto my features but I shrugged sheepishly, I didn't care much for makeup and all that, I didn't wear any at all durinbg my performances, I was an all natural kind of mare... going around butt naked and stuff... But maybe it wouldn't hurt so much to look a bit different for tonight... ... Why did I think that? I asked the forces above as Tavi dragged me into the bathroom. I just shook my head at that, thinking about Lee all of a sudden. Lee was my friend... maybe my best friend next to Tavi, Rainbow and Pinkie Pie. But deep down I wondered if whatever I was feeling was something more... ... Maybe tonight, I'd find out... -ooo000=+=000ooo- Lee's Perspective "Celly!" I had yelled loudly, cupping my hands to allow my shout to echo throughout the halls. A few guards cast a look my way and raising their brows as I strutted down the halls. I furrowed my own, quickly ducking down and staring straight into the eyes of a mare who was also a guard. She was of average build, a cute looking pegasus that had pretty light pink eyes and a dark blue mane that accented her magenta coat well, which if I'm not mistaken is supposed to be white because of the armor's magical properties... Armor fail anyone? I put my hands on her face, suddenly squishing her cheeks together and making a face. "Doth thou knowith where thine Princess is?" I questioned in my most British accent possible, one that would make Danial Craig jealous and pee his pants in envy. She made a weird sound, moving her lips to say something in reply but all that came out was something that sounded like when you squish your cheeks together and say, She's over there, but instead it comes out like, shees oaaaar eeeeerrrrr. "That is not English, you silly pony!" I chided her in my best motherly voice and grabbed her around the barrel, picking her up and strutting down the hall with her under my arm like one of those designer dogs. "Hey!" She cried, struggling against my grasp, but I just tickled her in response to her efforts at escaping, making her laugh and growl at me in frustration. "Let me-heheeehe-go-hohoho-stop it! Hahahah!" "Mmmm, nope." I retorted, strutting a bit faster down the hall as several guards looked towards us, casting strange looks of wonder and amusement. "Umm," One guard tilted his head. "Why are you carrying around Lieutenant Sideswipe?" "She's my new snuggle buddy," I shot him a look, raising my eyebrow and narrowing my already narrowed eyes. "You jelly?" "Pffft, what? No!" He said, looking away like I had insulted his mother or something. "I'm a guard, I don't need a snuggle buddy!" I nodded to that, "Sure." I told him, elongating the u before walking away. As I made my way down the hall towards Celestia's room, I heard a faint voice sadly mutter, "I am jelly actually." I knew it! Haha! Everyone wants to be my snuggle buddy, they cannot deny it at all. "Can you put me down? I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to be away from my post regardless of my suddenly becoming your, and I quote, snuggle buddy." Sideswipe told me, enunciating the last two words with her wings in the form of air quotes. I laughed heartily, much like a British Writer from the American Revolution Era would. "Hahahaha! You are one silly pony, you are my snuggle buddy now! Therefore ergo cheese waffles and bacon, you are now mine to snuggle." "But... I don't want to though..." "Do you want this to be a struggle snuggle relationship?" I asked her, I was not afraid of the struggle snuggles! I am the king of snuggles! Sideswipe just huffed and rolled her eyes at me, shaking her head in disapproval and bemusement no doubt! I eventually arrived at a room I knew belonged to Celestia, so I strutted up to the door and with the beautiful grace of a Russian bomber Jet, I kicked it open. "CELLY!~" I called, my luscious voice echoing throughout the room and alerting any and all to my wonderful presence. Princess Celestia came out of a door leading to an adjoined room and raised an eyebrow at me. "Yes, Lee?" She trotted into room with the grace of a dancer, her stride smooth like water before she stopped, standing a few feet away from me. "Why do you have one of my guards in your arms?" "She is my new snuggle buddy~" I sang to the princess, holding said pony up like a a brand new puppy I had gotten and hugging her against my chest. I heard something akin to a squeak sounding from her as I squeezed her barrel tightly. "She's so snuggable~" "Can you stop!" Sideswipe cried, trying to get out of my grasp. "Princess! Can you tell him to let me go, I have duties to attend to... please?" Celestia paused for a few moments before she nodded to me, and I sighed before I reluctantly let her go. "Ugh, fine... but!" I held up my finger. "I shall have my snuggling done one of these days... just you wait... just you wait." Sideswipe stared at me for the longest time, then gave a questioning look to the princess, "Should I be worried?" "Um..." Celestia looked at me, I gave my best smile before she sighed, rolling her eyes. "I would be wary if I were you, he may appear in your bunk and demand snuggles like he has with several of the other guards." Sideswipe looked shocked, why would she? I give great snuggles! Just ask Shining Armor. Pfft. "Are you... how does he get past the guards?!" Sideswipe asked, eyes wide. "There's dozens of night patrols!" "... That is a mystery that even I in all my wisdom cannon't figure out." Celestia sighed again, shaking her head as Sideswipe left the room, casting looks back at me. "How do you get past the guards?" I held a finger to my lips. "That's my little secret~" "... it involves Luna doesn't it?" "..." "..." "..." "LUNA!" I yelled to the heavens above. "Did you tell Celly about my devious plans of sneaky snuggles?!" "... Noooo~" Luna's sing songy voice came back from the next room, my eyebrows twitched. "What did she offer you!? I bet it was donuts wasn't it!?" I accused, no doubt that was the reason. "... Maybe~" Her reply came back. I facepalmed, turning back to Celestia. "That mare, I swear." Celestia only chuckled as she sat down on a cushion she conjured up, Sideswipe eventually taking her leave. "You know, Lee." She started, making a chair pop up and letting me sit down on it as we got comfortable. Despite my shenanigans, Celestia and I got along pretty well. "Not many ponies in your position could talk so freely to two powerful alicorns such as myself and Luna, let alone joke like you do." I chuckled lightly at that, leaning back in my chair. "Well, I'm not a pony, I'm a human remember? And I've been known to make poor judgement calls, so speaking so disrespectful like to royalty such as you and Moonbutt is no problem for me." I looked towards said princess, crossing a leg over the other with a grin. "So, anyway... what did you want to see me for?" I decided to get things back onto a semi serious note. She had said for me to meet her when the bell rung, but I didn't know why she wanted me to meet her. This isn't a booty call is it? The princess sighed softly, and I saw the metaphorical mask she always wore slip just a few scant inches, "I wanted you to meet me here, because tomorrow night is going to be very important." She told me, her face getting serious. "Tomorrow night will mark the first ever Gala hosting Griffon and Minotaur guests, both prime ministers and their guests will be attending. And as a result, I have been worrying constantly about you." I jabbed a finger into my chest, raising an eyebrow towards Celestia. "Me? Why worry about me? I'm going to be hanging out with Vinyl behind her turntable, sitting in the back and watching her work and stuff. Maybe mingle with the food table" I shrugged towards her. There really wasn't any reason to worry about me. I mean, I'm a douche and I tend to make a scene more than a few times, but there was no reason to worry about me during this. I promised to be on my best behavior, and not drink all of the hard cider Applejack was bring... Mmm... how hard that would be, maybe I can sneak a barrel away if I sweet talk a guard into helping me. Celestia's voice tore me from my thoughts. "I know, Lee... but it's not that." She told me, making me raise an eyebrow again. "Word has gotten out about you and your kind's..." She danced around the word, making me wonder... "... My kind's... what?" I asked, where was she going with this? I thought she was gonna tell me, but a new voice appeared. "Word has gotten out about humanity's superior fighting skills and machines of war." Luna chimed in as she pranced into the room, sitting down next to her sister. "The griffons and minotaur kingdoms have become rather interested in humanity's fiery passion for war and destruction." "Pfft" I scoffed, was that all? "We're not passionate about it, well... some people aren't anyway, we're just really good at killing one another." I chuckled dryly, before I looked to both sisters. "Why're they suddenly interested in me about that? And how did word get out anyway about that?" "I am not sure how, we've kept word of your species tendencies for war under wraps for plenty of reasons... but it seemed that did very little to stop it from getting out." Celestia sighed. "So I think you should expect both griffons and minotaurs coming to you and asking questions about your world's fighting abilities, perhaps even wanting to gain knowledge from you on how to improve their own military might with that of Humanity's." "Indeed, as of now... Lee, you represent your entire race." Luna added with a stoic look my way. I balked at that, uh oh... politics. "Wha? Me representing my entire race? That's... a no no from me." I laughed nervously, that was not something I wanted right now. "I'm not the right guy for that, and I really don't think I'd feel comfortable answering questions like that to people, it'd go awry right quick!." "Should they approach you, you can simply redirect the conversation, or just not answer it all together. The minotaurs are an understanding race, the griffons however can be a bit... violent. Regardless, I will try and stem the tide of individuals who wish to question you, my friend." Luna told me, making me nod my head at her. "Thanks Luna, you're great." I told her honestly, smiling. Celestia looked towards the window, and I noticed it was close to bed time... my bed time, anyway. "I do believe I've kept you long enough, you should head to bed, Lee." She stood up along with me and Luna, and she gave me a quick hug. "I hope you sleep well, my little human." Luna came over and gave me a hug as well. "I wish you sweet dreams, Lee." "Awww thanks guys," I blushed and gave em both a tight hug back. I let both of them go then spun around. "TO BED I GO!" I bellowed as I jumped out of the room, rolling onto the floor like a ninja and sprinting madly down the hall. "Weeepah!" An unspecified time later, Lee's Room I was sitting inside of my room on my bed, looking down at the floor as I let my mind wander like a hurricane. I should have been asleep, but I was still awake and thinking about tomorrow night and the GGG. I had told the Princesses about my world when I had first arrived here, because I wanted them to know I wasn't a threat to them. But answering questions about my world's capacity for absolute destruction and war, made me feel... uncomfortable for some reason. I wasn't sure why, probably because I had an inkling saying something like that would end horribly for me. I sighed, falling back on my bed and looking up at the ceiling. I wonder how my friends are doing? I wondered, thinking back to Dusty and Ann, one being my neighbor back in Manhattan and the other my childhood friend. I missed those two a lot. *KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK* I heard come from the door, and I wrinkled my brow in confusion before I got off of my bed and walked over to my door. I straightened up my shirt and pants a bit before I opened it up, looking down a bit and I saw Vinyl... and... Whoa. She looked really different. "Oh, hey Vinyl, what's up?" I asked, kneeling down to eye level with her. Vinyl's horn glowed faintly and she drew her hoof across the floor, writing letters with her hoof. I had seen this kind of thing before, but I didn't know Vinyl could do it. It was some kind of magic pen type of magic that let unicorns write words with their hoof and a little bit of magic, it was pretty neat to see. "Hey Lee, are you free tonight?" She asked me, smiling faintly towards me after I had read it. I thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah, I'm free," I told her. I was bored from not getting any sleep, staying up worrying about the GGG tomorrow night was... ugh. Maybe Vinyl wants to hang out, hopefully it'd help ease my woes. "You up for doing something?" She nodded her head towards me, tracing more letters onto the floor as the others faded away into nothing. "I was wondering... if you..." she paused, biting her lip which I could see had a sort of glossy sheen to it. Was she wearing lip balm? Finally she added onto her dying sentence. "If you wanted to get dinner or something with me..." She finally asked, a faint red blush on her slightly rosy cheeks. I chuckled slightly, making her blush harder. She's so cute when she's nervous. I noted with a grin, and nodding my head. "Sure, it beats hanging around here trying to go to sleep and failing horribly," I told her, patting her on the head. "So where do you want to go get some munchies from?" I wondered, I was open to just about anything. She tapped her chin, then wrote. "I was thinking about going into Canterlot for a bit, maybe going to one of those diners or something?" She answered, I could tell from her expression she probably thought it was a stupid idea. I frigging love diners, why not? "Sure, I know one in Canterlot I think you'd like." I smiled, turning around and going to my bed. "Just let me throw on something real quick and we can go, don't want people to see mah jammies." I sung~ -ooo000=+=000ooo- Vinyl's Perspective I sighed in relief when Lee had agreed to this... stupid idea of mine. I watched as Lee entered his room again to put on something besides his pajamas. I was freaking scared out of my mind right now, my heart was beating faster than I ever thought it was capable of. You'd think with me being a DJ and living the nightlife I'd be all over asking somepony out with ease! But nope, I'm sitting here like a love struck filly, crushing on a cute colt and hoping he says yes to a playdate. Except he's not a colt... or even a stallion, he's a human. I reminded myself, regardless though... *thump* I blinked at that noise, looking at the shirt Lee discarded to the floor. And blinking again, I looked up and saw Lee without his shirt on, standing with his back turned to me as he looked through some of his clothes. It shouldn't have affected me at all, I mean... all ponies are naked to begin with, and it was normal to see someone like that. But Lee always wore clothing, something about nudity taboos or some such nonsense. Didn't stop him from running around the castle in his underwear though. But... looking at him now, when the moon was shining in through the window nearby... it was like gazing at some hidden treasure. Sweet goddess above. I felt my shades slide down my nose as I got a good look at his back, I didn't know much about human anatomy, but I could tell Lee was very well built. His back was taut with toned muscles, and he had a few scars on his upper back. His arms weren't big either, nor were they small. He kept saying he had a sleek toned body with enough muscle to make him look like a, and I quote: god. The things he says and with that body... he looked really... wow... Oh jeez. Was I staring? I think I was staring. Oh jeez, get yourself together Vinyl! "Eh, I'll throw this on." He said, grabbing a hoodie I noticed he had in his hands. How about no shirt...? I wish I could have said, but... oi, why am I thinking this?! I'm being weird and I don't like it! I shook my head as Lee put on his hoodie, slipping it on and zipping it up halfway and turning around to face me. I could see his chest was still a bit exposed, and I felt my heart beating in my chest at the sight of it, slamming against my rib cage like a jackhammer. "I got some bits on me for some food, not sure how much though. But I'm sure if it came down to it, I could win over someone with my dashing roguish charms~" Looking back towards me, he smiled. "Ready to rock n' roll?" I nodded my head, letting him take the lead as I followed him out through the door, and eventually, down the hall towards the exit of the castle. -ooo000=+=000ooo- A Twenty Minute Walk Later I never really told anypony this before, but the night time... that was my favorite time to be outside. It was cold but not by a lot, the stars shone brightly in the skies like a thousands of little fireflies, and the moon was like a beacon above that guided ponies on their way. The crisp air washed over my body and I suppressed a delightful shiver. Lee didn't have fur and I assumed he would be worse off, considering he was wearing shorts and a hoodie with no shirt... but he was actually pretty fine. He walked through the streets with a purpose, a smile on his face as I trotted next to him. I couldn't help but smile at his excitement. We hadn't ever had any alone time or any of that, what with my tours across Equestria, work stuff with Tavi, and Lee's job with the princesses. We never really had time to hang out much, and I really wished that would change... but now we're going out, so... Wait... does this count as a date? I wondered, shaking my head quickly at the thought. No no no no, not a date! It's just... two friends enjoying a night out at dinner, that's all this is... nothing I told myself as we walked along the road, but even so... there was something tugging at my heart. There were not that many ponies out tonight, only a few trotted along the darkened streets, keeping to themselves and not paying either me or my human friend any attention. I liked it that way, it meant less questions about why we were out here at night. In the day time we'd probably have to avoid the bustling crowd of Canterlot, which would have been annoying to do. Nopony asked questions about us though, because one look at Lee and some bolted or froze on the spot. Of course they were nobles, ponies with too many sticks up their butt and were scared of anything that wasn't a pony. I think one of the ponies we ran across wet themselves at the sight of Lee. He just shook his head with a sigh and continued moving on, despite it all. He wasn't showing it, but I could tell he was tired of this kind of treatment and attitude towards him, I was sick of it too. We had that in common, among other things of course. He was well known throughout Equestria as the only human around, and ponies, among others of course, were very interested in him. In his body, how he spoke, his mind, his fingers and some other way too personal things I didn't want to delve into for obvious reasons. Some wanted to study him, others wanted him for their own, like a pet or something. I even heard some rumors of griffons wanting the rights to hunt the only human. I was angry that they wanted that. but thankfully Celestia prohibited it and didn't allow them into the country. There were still rumors of course... and Lee said he could handle himself, I hoped that was true. "Welp, here we are!" Lee announced, breaking me out of my thoughts. I looked up, and my shades fall down a bit as I saw the name of the establishment. Wubway. I turned to look at Lee, who wore an innocent smile on his face like a mask. "You like wubs, I like subs, this place is perfect!" He chuckled lightly. I only sighed, a smile on my face as we walked into the establishment together. The smell of food being prepared assaulted my nostrils as we went inside, clamoring behind the counter could be heard as the chefs got to working on the foot for the customers. A few ponies were inside, sitting at tables and ordering food for themselves. And I felt a little self conscious when some of them looked our way with a few looks I knew all too well. Why is she all dressed up? Who's the monkey? "Hey, isn't that the Princesses' toy?" I heard one mare whisper from far in the back, and I scowled. I had really sensitive ears due to my musical talent, so I could hear farther than most ponies and it helped me with my music. I heard the mare and her friends talk about Lee, and I hated that he didn't hear them. He didn't have anything in his eyes that suggested he heard them. Oh Lee... I sighed as I watched he walk over to the counter. Lee turned to look at me with a smile as some dubtrot started playing in the background. "Anything in particular you would like to snack upon?" He asked, I shook my head, waving a hoof around in a circle. He nodded and turned back to the counter, speaking a pretty looking mare that looked a bit tired. Turning around I trotted over to an empty booth and sat down, adjusting my shades as I looked over at the window and outside. I could see my reflection in it however, and I felt kinda stupid for letting Tavi doll me up like this. Ugh. Maybe this was a bad idea. -ooo000=+=000ooo- Lee's Perspective "Okay thank you kindly~" I said to the mare behind the counter as she flashed me the most sauciest wink. I stuck out my tongue at her and earning a giggle before I turned around and made my way towards Vinyl, who was sitting in one of the booths nearby. I sighed softly to myself as I sat down across from her. I placed my hands down on the table in front of me and smiled. "I ordered us both a veggie sub," I told her, thinking of the sub I had ordered. I would have preferred mine with sixteen different kinds of meats and cheeses but alas, we all couldn't get what we wanted, specially in pony land. "That cool with you?" Vinyl looked my way, seemingly snapping out of a stupor before nodding her head, neon colored mane bobbing along to it. Now that we were in a well lit establishment, I could see there were a few things different about her. For one thing, her mane had been combed... What manner of dark sorcery is this? I found myself wondering in deep though. She never combs her mane! I mean, it doesn't look bad, it actually looks really nice, silky smooth and all that. I saw she had taken off her shades as well, something she rarely ever does unless it's me or Tavi. - For real, she won't even take them off for the princess for crying out loud, - and I could see she just a faintest bit of eyeliner around her eyes. She looked nervous, like... really nervous. Her red eyes darted from side to side, lingering on a few of the other patrons inside before darting back to mine. I wonder what's wrong? Clearing my throat a little, I asked. "So uh... V," Looking at her, Vinyl turned her head towards me and I noticed she kept her eyes averted from my own. "Anything interesting been happening with you lately?" She shrugged, placing her hoof on the table in front of me before her horn lit up with a faint blue aura. "I haven't really been doing much, aside from practice for the upcoming GGG, its been a nightmare." She told me through her writings. I nodded. "I'm honestly a bit... anxious about the upcoming Gala," I told her, sighing. "I've been told by the princess that I'm probably going to have to talk to some dudes from out of the country about my world." I shook my head, I hated politics, so much. "So... yeah, that's what's going on with me." I told her. "But, eh... my life's pretty boring, to be honest." Vinyl shook her head however, quickly writing on the table in front of me. "Your life isn't boring Lee!" She told me "Your life is really interesting!" I rose an eyebrow at her saying that, and she seemed to blush a little bit before adding, "It is interesting, I mean... you're the only human on this world and you've always told me really cool stories back from where you live." I smiled at that, chuckling just a bit before saying, "Well, that's sweet of you to say V, but some don't really think so, heck, I don't think so." I leaned forward, touching one of the blue words she wrote on the table. I felt the faintest of fuzzy feelings from touching it, like a gentle electrical current running up my arm. "I'm just a regular dude, nothing special." Vinyl looked like she was about to write something else, but a ding sounded before she could do anything. "Order up! Numbah one oh one!?" I heard the mare yell out, that was my number. "NUMBAH ONE OH ONE!" I chuckled. "One tiny moment my sweet little friend." I told Vinyl as I got up and made my way over to the counter to snag our dinner. The small tray had been left behind by the mare who flashed me yet another saucylicious wink, I gave her a small smile and a nod inreturn as I returned to Vinyl and out table, who was fidgeting. I took my seat in the chair in front of Vinyl, setting down the food I got for us. "So, you were saying?" I took my sub, laying it in front of me as I grabbed my drink. She fidgeted once more, rubbing the back of her neck before writing out, "I... I think you're... pretty special." She told me with a sheepish smile, sucking in her lips and looking me in the eyes. She really thinks that? I smiled brightly at those words, "Well that's... really nice of you to say V, I appreciate it." I grinned, Vinyl was such a good friend to hang out with. "I think you're pretty special too." I winked, causing her to blush brighter. After a bit more talking to one another, we eventually decided to down our food, I for one did not like wasting food especially when it smelled like it fell from heaven off of the back of the awesome truck. Back home, I never wasted food. I'm not kidding, back in New York I once dropped a sub on the subway tracks... I climbed down to get it, then I proceeded to munch on it to the disgust of many a passerby and the subway staff who tried to get me away from the sub I wanted to munch. Oh yeah, I also almost got hit by a train, but eh, whatever. I was hungry! I finished mine in a few minutes before taking the time to look around the Wubway. I saw a few mares belonging to the nobility looking over at us, some of them giggling for some weird reason. What was so funny? Maybe cause I was wearing clothing and looking sexy as ever? I mean, how can anyone resist my manly and snuggly looks? I may lack fur, but I give the most supreme of snuggles~ But eh... Eventually we were done, bellies full and I was less sleepy then before. Food always seemed to do that to me, keeping me up when I should have been in bed hours ago. I sighed through my nostrils, my eyes turning to gaze at Vinyl who gave me a smile. We decided to spend the next couple of minutes talking about some things, mostly some stereotypical things like the weather, who's going to the Grand Galloping Gala, who're we're bringing with us. Things like that. Eventually however it ended up getting a wee bit too late for us to be out, so we ended up heading back to the castle with some smiles on our faces. As I decided to regale her with a tale of my awesomery. "So I ended up taking on all six of them while I was drunk as all get out," I told Vinyl, who was listening so intently to my words, her ears perked up like a cute puppy vying for attention from her owner. "Of course I ended up getting triple teamed, like... hard and I was thrown through a window, cut up my back some." I came close to finishing my story with a grin, recounting the time I had gotten into an intense bar fight in south Miami. "The cops came shortly after that and well... arrested them." What a night that was, Spring Break was intense that year. "And that was how I got into my 69th bar fight in just my 3rd week in Miami." Vinyl's shoulders heaved and jerked slightly with silent laughter, and I couldn't help but join in on it with my own laugh. This was the life, just two good friends walking under the moonlit and star speckled skies, talking about stories and having a grand laugh. Back home I used to do that with my friends, until we all went our separate ways, we barely kept in contact anymore... we tried but... I sighed. The castle was eventually closing in, and I was about to say my goodnight to Vinyl before heading off to bed, but she had ended up following me. My eyes found hers, and I had to ask, "Hey Vinyl, don't you have to go to bed or something?" She bit her lip, then reached into her mane-which we all know acts like a pony storage pouch-and pulled out what looked like a light blue crystal. It was one of those small and slim ones I recognized that held actual music inside of them, somehow. Vinyl showed me them back when we hung out a year ago, they were pretty interesting, considering they could hold a decent amount of music. Then Vinyl traced her hoof on the ground, writing out on the cobblestone. "Think you got time to listen to a little track I made...?" She had a curious look in her eyes, along with something... else. I thumbed the hem of my shorts, puffing out a cheek in thought. I'm not really tired... well, not after that sub I had. I suppose I have some time to kill before napping the rest of the night away. I smiled towards my friend, nodding my head. "Sure, sounds kinda interesting~" I turned on my heel, leading Vinyl back to my room. I had a thing I could play it on, some kind of weird crystal stand or something, their music players were... odd, but interesting to say the least. The two of us made our way into the castle, walking down the quiet darkened halls as the night guard patrolled around. A lotta thestrals and few ponies, some gave us some nods as we passed and others just went along with their business, guarding the castle from any potential threats. What threats those were, well I had no earthly idea. Who'd attack the Princesses? I could only shrug to that question. Eventually we arrived at my room, where I opened the door and let us both inside. I cleared my throat before taking off my hoodie, tossing it onto a chair nearby with a grunt and stretching out my arms above my head. The slight chilling bite of my room hit me and I sighed, I enjoyed the cold quite a bit. I wondered if Vinyl did as well? Turning to Vinyl, I saw that she was staring straight at me, before she looked away and rubbing the back of her head. "So, let me just get my player and we can listen to it." I told her as I made my way over to my dresser, sniffling slightly as the hairs on my arms and back stood on end. I could sense Vinyl's eyes on me as I opened up one the drawers, sifting through some of the clothes in there before running up on the player. It was a piece of crystal that had a spot in it for another to be slipped into. Insert Rod A into Slot B indeed, hehehe. I held it up, going over to the side of my bed and sitting on the floor next to my bed, Vinyl joined me shortly and sat next to me, a bit closer then she usually did. Once I set the player down onto the floor, Vinyl slid the crystal into the slot before magicking out some headphones. Her own personal pair, she slipped them onto my head before I could ask, and plugged it into the crystal player itself. Seconds later did music start playing, complete with vocals even. I found it to be rather... relaxing, it was completely different from Vinyl's usual dubstep that threatened to blow out your ear drums. And from what I could gather... it was some kind of... chillstep or something. I blinked as I heard the male vocals start singing, and I realized this was one of the songs I brought over from my own world, that was on my phone. I had given some music to Vinyl a few months or so after I arrived here, because she was curious and I wanted to be a bro, so I gave her some tunes from my phone. Don't ask how, complicated magic and wires, and me hoping my phone wasn't gonna get esploded. And I didn't know if she was listening to it or what... But now I know. I continued to listen to it for some time, listening to the beats and thumps in my eardrums, the vocals echoing throughout my ears and how everything fit together perfectly. I've heard some good music throughout my days in collage and such, and this was worthy of being up there on my playlist of things I'd want to listen to on a rainy day. A smile broke out on my face, and I slid the headphones off as the song ended to look towards Vinyl. "That was awesome!" I told her, and she smiled brightly. I always liked seeing her smile, she had a nice one, especially when she had that happy twinkle in her eyes. "You have some epic talent, Vinyl." She was really good with crafting music with that turntable of hers, same with her other gear, she was a master at her craft. Vinyl smiled at me, and then wrote on the floor beside me, "I'm glad you liked it." I scoffed, getting a confused look from her. "Liked it? I didn't like it, I loved it, V." You don't like something like that, that's something you love. The unicorn mare blushed at my words, and then wrote out, "I made it for you." She smiled bashfully towards me, and I tilted my head with my own smile. "Aww, thanks!" I drew her into a tight hug, earning a weird noise from her. "It's not even my birthday!" She slowly hugged me back and I could feel her bare fur against my chest. A gentle sigh escaped her, and I rubbed her back as the hug lingered on. Honestly, there was no better feeling then hugging a pony, especially against your bare body. And I don't mean that in a dirty way! I mean... they just feel nice... against the skin, like hugging a cold pillow on a hot day. The hug lasted for some time, before we pulled away and Vinyl looked me in the eyes. From the way we were sitting, my back was to the door leading out to my balcony, and Vinyl was in my lap so that meant she was facing the open door. And the moon was shining in, and she was in the perfect position for the moonlight to reflect off of her ruby red eyes. They stared straight into mine, and I swore for a brief second I saw something in her eyes. I could have said something... anything really, maybe nice eyes or... shiny. But any chance of doing so was practically annihilated... when Vinyl captured my lips with her own. My eyes shot open from the action, her soft pouting lips pressed against mine in a kiss, one that I could tell was a scared one. Vinyl's eyes were wrenched shut as she held onto me. I didn't move for the longest time, and it wasn't too long before she stopped, eyes popping open and pulling away to sit in my lap and staring up at me. I had never seen a pony so red in my life, until now. Vinyl's mouth moved, a choking like noise escaping from her before she bolted off of me and onto the floor. I just blinked and looked to her as her hoof shakily glided across the floor, messily writing out words. "I'M SORRY!" She wrote on the floor... or at least I think that's what she wrote. She was shaking so badly she was having trouble writing. "I don't know what I was doi-" Her magic fizzled out, little blue sparkles fluttering down as she tried to write again, but her magic wouldn't come. She slammed her hoof on the floor before looking back up to me, waving her hooves about as she tried to speak, but it just came out as strained gasps as tears ran down from her eyes. "Vinyl!" I went over to her, putting my hands on her shoulder and getting her to stop. "It's okay!" She shook her head though, tears still running down from her eyes. Her chest started to expand in and out as her breathing picked up, and I knew a panic attack when I saw one. I pulled her into a tight hug and held her against me, "Vinyl, it's okay!" I told her as her body trembled against my own, her tears fell down from her eyes onto my chest as she cried. My hand ran up and down her back as I slowly began to rock, trying to calm down my best friend. Jeez... I didn't know why she was panicking like this... it was just a kiss... Or was it something more then that? "It's okay Vinyl, it's okay." I whispered to her over and over again, rocking her back and forth like one would do to a baby. Eventually her cries died down, and she lay still in my hold, breathing steadily as her beating heart calmed down a bit. Damn Vinyl... I ran my hand through the mare's mane gently, saying, "Vinyl... what's wrong?" I asked her softly. A sniffle from my favorite DJ, and I just realized I had never seen her so... vulnerable like this before. She was always happy, carefree and a bit of a goof, like the typical night owl she was. But now, here she was after having cried in my lap for a solid minute, trembling in my grasp as she struggled to magic herself a notepad and pencil from my nightstand. I took pity on the mare and grabbed them for her, handing them to her and getting a thankful nod in return. She held the pencil in her mouth, her horn having gave out for some stupid reason. Vinyl struggled to write out something on the paper, the scratching of the pencil filling the room. Then she slowly turned the pad to face me. "I'm sorry Lee..." She told me, "I don't know what I was doing..." I pushed the pad out of my line of vision to look at Vinyl, who avoided my gaze. "Vinyl... it's something more than that," I said quietly, and she looked down, ears folding back. "You don't just... kiss someone and then say its nothing, that's like... me taking some of Celly's cake because I thought the sun was gonna melt it or something." I paused. "Wait, no... that's actually a good reason." Vinyl's shoulders shook from that, but she wasn't crying, she was laughing. "But seriously... what's going on V?" I put my hand on her cheek and made her face me, and she still looked a bit teary eyed. Her hoof went to her throat and she rubbed it, her mouth was open ever so slightly, and I wondered what she was doing. "V?" I asked her, brushing aside some of her bangs. Then something happened... something I couldn't have expected... Again. A noise came from Vinyl, "I..." She said something, it came out as a sort of wheezing croak. "I..." I sat stock still at what was happening right now. Is... is she about to... "L-Lee... I..." She swallowed hard, eyes locking on my own. In those pools of red, I saw this fierce determination rise up in them. "I... l-love... you..." Vinyl... my best friend, spoke to me. My best friend just told me she loves me... "V..." I breathed out in shock, from both what she said, and the fact she said something. I was confused... shocked, why wouldn't I be? My best friend just... oh wow. "You spoke..." Vinyl looked just as shocked as I was, probably more so when I added, "You love me?" A few seconds of tense silence... and she slowly nodded. "I... d-do..." She whispered, still rubbing her throat as if it was hurting. I thought about that for a few moments. I haven't really had any pony crush on me before, that was something I can't say I have experience with. But here, sitting in my lap, was a pony who I considered to be my best friend, who had just confessed her feelings to me. I could practically feel my heart trying to explode out of my chest like a chestburster out of Aliens or something. If I was being honest... Vinyl was a pretty mare, great eyes, a nice personality, and a fantastic character. We had been best friends, despite the rough start to our relationship when I crashed into their house like a human wrecking ball. We got along well together, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't toy with the idea of asking the mare out, only to quench those thoughts with a fire hose and remember myself that she was my best friend. Well... those thoughts came back now... Along with something Luna said to me way early on. "Tell me, have you found a marefriend yet? Or do you have our eye on anypony?" Marefriend, girlfriend... I thought to myself as I held Vinyl in my lap, and my eyes found hers again. Her cheeks were tear stained, her mane messy and her eyes... shining like red rubies in the light of the moon. I never had one, not in this world, because I wasn't looking... not hard enough anyway... Maybe... I wouldn't have to. My hand found its way to Vinyl's cheek again, and she closed her eyes as she pressed her head into my palm. Her eyes opened a tiny bit to look at me before I pulled her closer to me, closing the distance between us. And then I kissed her. Our lips touched, a mere peck at first as her soft lips touched my own and our eyes fluttered close. I turned my head slightly and deepened it as her arms wrapped around me and I did the same to her, one hand on her back and the other going to the back of her head to pull her closer and feel of her soft and messy two tone mane. I felt her lips part after a few seconds, her tongue darting out to prod for entrance, which I was more then happy to let happen. I could taste her, and it was sweet like candy, and delicious wubs. I could feel the passion radiating from her during this, her heart pounding in her chest against my own as they synced up, her desperate desire to keep going... I was the same, I didn't know I felt this way about Vinyl until now. After a while we parted, eyes opened to gaze into each other's as our lungs sucked in air. We just sat there... staring at one another for the longest time, and I knew I had to say something... So I went with, "I love you, Vinyl..." She smiled at me... a genuinely happy smile before she kissed me again, nothing like our little make out session, just a little peck on the lips. She didn't need to say anything... nor did I after that, we just sat there in each other's embrace against my bed as the cool of the night washed into my room. I could hear the music Vinyl had made me playing softly from the headphones, and I smiled... Vinyl... I never thought I felt this way about ya... I smiled... Maybe life won't have to be so lonely in Equestria after all... -ooo000=+=000ooo- Tomorrow Night - Grand Galloping Gala I sighed to myself as I sat next to a refreshment table, dressed in my best duds as I sipped from a drink. It was cider, and unfortunately not the fun kind if you catch my drift. My eyes drifted across the crowd of griffons, minotaurs and ponies in the ball room. I raised my glass when Luna and I locked eyes, she was doing a good job of keeping some of the fools away from me. I still wasn't too sure about answering all these... questions and stuff. Thankfully, I had back up. To my left a female griffon strutted up to me, her eyes were half lidded and she walked that kinda walk you know a girl walks when they're looking to hook up. "Well hello there, you must be the human, am I correct?" I nodded. "Tis I, name's Lee." "Mmm, a pleasure, I am Klaww." She introduced herself, smiling... somehow, cause beak. "Say, how about we ditch this party and go out for a drink or two?" She smiled further, one of those predatory smiles. "You look like the type of male I can get with, whaddya say?" I just smiled. "As fun as that sounds," I wrapped my right arm around my date as it were, flashing a look to Vinyl who was dressed in a black dress jacket and shirt with a cute little neon blue bowtie, and her trademark shades resting over her eyes. Because she didn't do dresses, obviously. "I'm already chillin' with someone." The griffon's smile dropped and she frowned, turning tail and strutting off with a huff. Yeah... this was life now. I looked to Vinyl and saw her looking smug, and I just chuckled. "Lucky you got to me first?" She nodded, lifting up her shades to peer into my eyes and quietly said, "Y-yes." She smiled brightly. I snickered, then clinked my glass against hers. "So am I V... so am I." And so... that's the story of how I ended up with Vinyl. It was quite the ride if I do say so myself. And if I'm being honest... I couldn't be happier... ~Fin