A sequel to my previous OctaScratch fic, taking place in the nearly-immediate future. As usual, Vinyl and Octavia encounter more problems than they probably deserve.
A sequel to "A Scratch in My Heart", my other fic.
After attending Rainbow Dash and Applejack's wedding, one thing and one thing alone plagues Octavia's mind. Unfortunately, she makes the mistake of telling her marefriend, who responds in the worst way. Seeking refuge from the conflict, Vinyl Scratch attends a gig in Las Pegasus. On the way, she meets a colt whose actions will change the future of ponies that he hasn't even met yet.
“Octavia, do we really have to talk about this now?” The alabaster mare said to the mildly-peeved cellist leaning again the wall a few feet away. Vinyl Scratch continued to check over her belongings for the tenth time, guaranteeing herself that her computer, media player, spare sunglasses, and ‘wallet’ were all present in the backpack. Octavia always refused to remove the air quotes on ‘wallet’ because it’s really just an ID taped to a money pouch, in which there was rarely more than five bits present.
In actuality, the DJ wasn’t concerned with the contents of her bag; she’d assured herself over an hour ago that all her necessary items were in there. No, she was just trying to look busy. If she looked pre-occupied enough, perhaps Octavia would just give up and let the topic drop. Unfortunately, Vinyl Scratch has a notorious bad luck streak.
“Yes, we need to talk about this now. And every day for the rest of eternity, if we must. Vinyl, why can’t you see how much this means to me?” Octavia pleaded, taking a couple of steps toward her marefriend. Vinyl continued to busy herself, unwilling to meet the grey mare’s eyes.
“I know just how much it means to you, but why? All it is a piece of fucking paper! Who gives a shit if we have one or not! Really, what’s so important about it?” Vinyl replied, her voice unintentionally rising. Clearly, she was just as sick of the conversation repeating itself as Octavia was.
“It’s not just a piece of paper! It’s the idea behind it that matters. I want to know that you’ll be there for me when I need you,” Octavia said, trying to guilt the disc jockey into caving. Vinyl sighed and spun on a hoof, taking Octavia’s face in another.
“I already told you, I’ll always be there for you. What more do you need?” Vinyl said quietly, pulling her patented ‘Eye Shimmer’ that always made Octavia’s heart melt. Octavia backed away and shook her head, attempting to focus on just the argument at hoof.
“I need more because you’re you!”
Vinyl gritted her teeth and took a step forward. “Just what is that supposed to mean. . .”
“It means that you live a very wild lifestyle, and, even though we’re settled here in Ponyville now, you still have a habit of making bad choices,” Octavia said before thinking. Her eyes went wide before clamping a hoof over her mouth. Vinyl’s jaw dropped as she realized what Octavia had just brought in as ammo.
“Oh, not this again! Always with this! I told you, it was one fucking party! We’d both had too much to drink and I was tired, okay! It’s not like it meant anything, it was one fucking sloppy makeout with her and that’s it! Ugh, Celestia and Luna, I thought we were done with this!” Vinyl shouted, punching the wall angrily. Her hoof left a small crack in the wood, but she was far too outraged to notice. “We already talked this through and it meant nothing for either of us! And Applejack got over it with no problem, so why can’t you?”
Octavia snapped and slammed her hoof down. “She got over it because they’re married! Now you see why it’s so important?”
“Oh, so if we get married, you’ll finally shut the fuck up?” Vinyl hissed. The second she said the words, she knew she’d royally fucked up. Instead of backtracking, she stood her ground. “I didn’t. . . Know what, I’m done. I have a train to catch and a gig to do. I’ll be back in two days, and if you’re still on this damn thing when I get back. . . Well, we’ll have to figure something out.”
With that, Vinyl Scratch slipped on her backpack and walked out the door, slamming it behind her. Octavia was left standing there in the living room of their home, stunned. Her mind replayed those words over and over in her head. You’ll finally shut the fuck up? Finally shut the fuck up? Shut the fuck up. . . Before she knew it, her head was in her hooves and the tears were flowing like miniature rivers, slicking her grey coat wherever they touched. She’d been through this before, but never this bad, and the fact that Vinyl left like that left the wound open and stinging.
Like with most nights, the cellist pulled herself together just long enough to slump over to the kitchen table and grab the bottle of sleeping pills that had become her new lover. She thought about how Vinyl and she had grown apart because of this argument, which only stung more.
It began simply, as most arguments do. Octavia and Vinyl had been present at Applejack and Rainbow Dash’s wedding, and it was gorgeous. Rarity had sewn them both the most fabulous dresses Octavia had ever seen, and it made something in her chest burn. It was then that she realized what she wanted more than to become a famous cellist; she wanted to get married. As the night went on, her ache grew stronger. By the time she and Vinyl were on their way home, it was all she could think about. Truly, she didn’t know if she could marry Vinyl Scratch, perhaps the most talented and least lucky disc jockey Equestria had ever had the misfortune of forgetting.
And then, it happened. As they rode in their carriage back to their home, just the two of them, her anxiety from the day finally caught up with her. All her strength was suddenly sapped and she couldn’t even lift her eyelids any longer. As she started to drift off, her marefriend pulled her close, smiling sweetly. Vinyl kissed her forehead and leaned over to her ear, whispering, “I love you, Tavi.” Despite her excitement, Octavia fell asleep not two seconds after that.
When she awoke, she found herself back in their bedroom. On her nightstand, were hoof-made breakfast and a note that read, “Tavi, sorry we didn’t get to spend the day together, but you know how difficult gigs are to come by for me. With how hard it is for you to go back and forth to Canterlot and Manehattan for work, I’ve been trying to work more to earn some extra bits, even if all the ones we have now are going to my hospital bills. I made you breakfast, I hope it doesn’t suck (but I made it, so it probably does. There’s cornflakes and milk in the fridge.). See you tomorrow, -V.”
As Octavia read the message, she realized two things. The first was that Vinyl had taken it upon herself to drag her marefriend up to bed instead of waking her up, as well as making her breakfast for the same reason. Octavia’s heart fluttered as she recalled the moment she realized that she could do that for the rest of her life, that she wanted to. The second thing she realized was that Vinyl put cornflakes in the fridge.
When the marble colored mare returned the next day, Octavia made the snap decision to tell her about her realization. It was the worst decision she has ever made. The argument started the same way it always did. That time, it ended with them going to be angry with one another and waking up in a much better mood. The next time, Vinyl ended up sleeping on the couch, and of her own accord. The time after that, they didn’t speak to each other for two whole days. Then, Vinyl went to a gig, a party hosted by Ponyville’s resident competition for Equestria’s ‘Wildest Partier’ award. There, the disc jockey had tried to drink her troubles away, which ended in a “sloppy makeout” with Rainbow Dash.
Once that had been ‘resolved’, things went most back to normal. And that brought them back to the present. Like most of her troubled nights, Octavia dropped three sleeping pills into her hoof and knocked them back. Leaning her head back, her silken black mane tumbled down the back of the chair and hung limply. Soon enough, her forelegs took on the same characteristic as she dropped into a deep slumber.
“Motherbucking. . . Damned Dash and her damned marriage. . . Piece of-“
“Hey, Scratch!”
Speak of the Devil. . . Vinyl plastered a fake smile on her face as Rainbow Dash caught up to her, smiling sincerely. There were no hints guilt or animosity towards Vinyl hidden in her magenta eyes. Thankfully, Vinyl’s own eyes were shielded by her shades, despite it being almost too dark to see as is.
“Hey, Dash, what’s up?” Vinyl asked through slightly clenched teeth. Dash’s smile fell and she swiped the glasses right off her friend’s face. Vinyl immediately looked the opposite direction to avoid eye contact. Unfortunately, a typical diet of a pizza or two a week and cornflakes for breakfast didn’t give her the strength to push through Dash’s outstretched hoof.
“Outta my way, Dash!” She snapped, staring daggers at the blue pegasus. “Don’t you have a wife to get back to?” Her ‘biting comments’ didn’t do enough to deflect her eyes from meeting Rainbow Dash’s. The instant she realized it, Vinyl looked away shamefully.
“Woah, Vinyl. . . Is everything alright? I haven’t seen you cry since. . .” Dash’s voice trailed off as her eyes grew wide. “Oh no, did you guys fight again?”
“Worse than ever. . . She brought up ‘that night’ and I told her to shut up,” Vinyl said regretfully. Dash shook her head.
“You two. . . You need to work things out. Like, now.”
“I just don’t get it! Why does it matter if we’re married or not? It’s just a piece of paper, a ring I can’t afford, and a ceremony we definitely can’t afford. Like, why the buck does she care so much!” Vinyl was once again gritting her teeth angrily as she walked toward the train station.
“Scratch, it’s the sentiment that she wants, not the ceremony or the ring. Octavia just wants to be sure that you’re going to be there for her no matter what,” Rainbow explained, but Vinyl only shook her head, frustrated.
“She already knows that I love her more than anything, even my music. Why do I have to get married to prove it? Can you honestly say you’re better off being married?” Vinyl growled. Dash walked in silence for a moment before it registered that was a legitimate question.
“Wha- Of course! Listen, Scratch, take a second to think about this. Can you honestly say you don’t want to be sure that Octavia will stay with you forever? I mean, look at me. I spent years working on becoming the best flier in Equestria. And then I fell for AJ. When I had to make the choice, it was obvious. And after I nearly left her for good, I knew that I needed to show Applejack that I had no intention of ever leaving her again. So I bought a ring and proposed. And you know what? It was the best damned decision I ever made.”
Vinyl’s gaze went blank for a few moments and just as she opened her mouth to reply, a train whistle sounded. “Oh buck! My train’s about to leave! Listen, Dash, I’d love to stay and chat, but this is my first gig in a month, so I really gotta take it. It’s in Las Pegasus, which usually gets me big tips.”
Dash smiled sadly, not knowing if her sentiment got through or not. “Well, you go get ‘em. And don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Rainbow poked as Vinyl took off running.
The DJ had just enough time to look over her shoulder and call back to her friend, “Cool, so I can do anything I want!” Dash laughed and stuck her tongue out at the mare just as the air took on a strange crackling. In a grey flash, Vinyl was gone, leaving only a small burn on the road and the sound of teleportation. Dash smiled again and began to fly back home to her home near Sweet Apple Acres. She hadn’t flown for more than a minute before her guilt hit her like a lightning strike and she immediately changed course.
A knock at the door awoke Octavia much too early from her medication-induced slumber. Groggily, she slid out of the kitchen chair and pulled herself into the living room. She hadn’t taken but three steps before the carpet caught her hoof, pulling her to the ground. Lazily, she half-assed an attempt to stand up before rolling her eyes.
“Come in,” she called, a twinge of anger thrown in at her midnight visitor.
The door swept open quickly, revealing a silhouette of Rainbow Dash in the moonlight. It just barely caught the edge of her coat and mane, giving the mare a surreal, yet colorful, outline. Dash inhaled suddenly and galloped forward to help the fallen grey mare up.
“Octavia, what the hay are you doing in here?”
Sleepily, Octavia stood and leaned against the wall. “I- Sleeping pills- Chair-“ Her rambling was cut off back a backhoof to the face. “Oww, what in Equestria was that for!” She snapped at Dash, who just smiled.
“Good, now you’re making sense. Now, I talked to Vinyl and she said-“
“Oh, don’t even talk about her! I’m so mad at her I could just-“
“Do nothing because you love her too much?” Dash interjected, and the fire died out of Octavia’s eyes.
“Yes, I suppose you’re right. . . I just wish that-“
“Somepony would knock some sense into her?”
Octavia grinned. “Precisely. How do you know so much about these kinds of things?” Rainbow Dash grinned back and raised a forehoof. About four inches up was a golden band that fit perfectly.
“I’m married, remember? I know these things because I’ve been on both sides of this argument. Well, not this argument per say, bu-“
“Oh heavens, she told you about that? I’m so sorry she put all that on you, it really has nothing to do with you or Applejack, I just. . .” Octavia was silenced by Dash’s raised hoof, which then gestured to the couch. Once they were both seated comfortably, Rainbow looked at Octavia thoughtfully.
“Okay, let’s work on this from Vinyl’s standpoint. When was the first time you got Vinyl to do anything out of her own free will?”
Octavia had to think much farther back than she would have thought. “Umm, the first time Vinyl kissed me. I think that was the first time she did something she wanted that she did something that benefited us both without me having to force her to do it,” Octavia said, pulling back a smile at the thought of the tingling sensation on her lips.
“And you guys were already living at your old place by then. Granted, you both were drunk, but you see? Vinyl doesn’t like being forced into things for one. Second, she’s been living free all her life. When you met her, she was drunk to boot and basically told you to buck off after she got tossed out of her own party. Before that, lemme tell you, it only got worse. Filly, she must have had three arrest warrants out on her at all times and more mug shots than Applejack has family. Point is, she’s been doing whatever she wants whenever she wants to for her whole life, and now she sees you trying to change that. What if she told you that you couldn’t play the cello anymore once you married?”
Octavia swallowed uncomfortably as she realized how foalish she’d been. “But she knows that she can still live her life. Why would that change?”
“Octavia, do you remember the night when Vinyl and I showed up at your door, led by AJ, so we could tell you about what happened? Of course you do. Well, do you know why Vinyl was so hammered that night?” Octavia shook her head slowly in response. “It’s because she was scared. She’s never had good luck, you know that. And she was terrified that night because of all the fighting you guys had been doing. She told me that with her luck, you’d be packed and gone by the time she came home. Octavia, Vinyl was scared you’d leave her. And she was hurting. But she knew it was her fault. She doesn’t want to get married because if she messes up like that again and you still leave her, there’d be nothing left.
“I know I said she lived a wild life when she was younger, which is true, but she was never really happy,” Dash told the cellist, who furrowed her brow. The pegasus sighed before briefly clearing her throat. “Octavia, you love Vinyl, right? Of course you do. Well, you need to remember never to tell anypony what I’m about to tell you. . . When Vinyl was younger, she and I had a mean streak. We’d tear through towns like cyclones, getting in all sorts of trouble. I loved it, and so did she, but the in-between was. . . Well, it was bad. She was never happy, not really. She’d drink her problems away and sleep through most days. Once, she and this mare. . . They had a sort of thing going. We’d go back to her town every other week just so they could see each other. I thought maybe Vinyl had finally found somebody to stick with, but things just fell apart.
“I tried to cheer her up, but she spiraled out. She was always drunk, hay, I found her drinking vodka instead of milk in her cereal one time. And she was still depressed about it. Not a single moment was happy for her. And then, one day. . . I found her sitting on top of the town’s clock tower. I have no idea how she got up there, but she was just sitting on the ledge, completely sober for the first time in Celestia knows how long. She told me to come sit with her, and I could tell she’d been crying. She never cried about anything, so I couldn’t say no even if I wanted to. We just sat for the longest time in silence, but she finally told me why. She was about to jump, Tavi. She was about to kill herself because she had nothing left to stay for. Well, we put her on some anti-depressants and she cut the alcohol for a while. She went her way and I went mine, which landed her in Manehattan, where she met Derpy and the Doc and finally found what she called peace. Look, what I’m saying is, she never wants to get hurt like that again, and if she does, it’ll be the death of her.”
Octavia suddenly felt her breath coming in short, rapid bursts. She’d never heard of Vinyl’s past before, and she had no idea that it was so troubled before she came along. Her eyes focused on nothing as she realized that she had just left Vinyl on her own after the worst fight they’d had yet. She didn’t even feel as Dash grabbed her shoulders and turned the cellist to face her again.
“Octavia, snap out of it! I’m sure she’s fi-“
“I need to go. I need to get a train, I need to pack, I need to- To- To. . .” Octavia’s voice failed her as she realized that Vinyl was off, alone, upset, and probably drunk in Las Pegasus. “Dash, what am I going to do!” She cried, grabbing Rainbow Dash’s cheeks in her hooves.
“You’re going to calm down and wait here for Vinyl to get back in two days, and then, when she gets back, you’ll talk this through and finally stop arguing,” Dash ordered. “In fact, I’m gonna stay here with you. Just a short stay, maybe I’ll have AJ lend a hoof, too. You’re not going anywhere.”
Octavia sighed heavily as she realized there was no way out of her situation. Exhausted, she gave up and closed her eyes, finally hoping to get some sleep. Off in the distance, under the rising sun, a rooster crowed. Her eyes bolted open instantly at the sound. Swearing under her breath, Octavia pulled herself off the couch and started for the kitchen. . . And promptly landed muzzle-first on the carpet. She would have been in intense pain, had she not fallen asleep before hitting the ground. The cyan pegasus on the couch started to try and help her friend up before stopping herself and smiling.
Well, it’s not like she’ll be going anywhere soon. Might as well let her sleep it off. Dash walked toward the front door and looked back to where the stairs led upward. Scratch did say that their bed is really comfortable. . . I wonder if AJ would mind testing that out. . . Dash thought with a smirk before taking off toward home.
“Hey, mind if I sit here?”
Vinyl Scratch looked up from her computer, her eyes bloodshot from working on a set list for the upcoming gig. Standing in the doorway was a handsome colt with a short-cropped black mane, two ear rings on the left, a gap in the edge of the right one, a small vertical scar under his left eye, and a tattoo of stretching vines on his neck. His eyes were a purple like a late evening sky, something that Vinyl was sure wooed all the mares.
Grinning politely, she held out a hoof, gesturing for him to sit across from her. His light brown coat shined as he walked into the small room and laid himself on the seat. When he looked up, he grinned at her, showing a set of stunningly white teeth that oozed an overconfidence that only comes from the beds of several dozen mares.
“So, what’s a mare like yourself doing on a train to Las Pegasus at this hour?” His smile practically seemed to twinkle, even in the poor lighting of the train. Vinyl had to suppress a chuckle.
“Going to do a gig. I’m a DJ. You look like the kind of pony who enjoys a good DJ,” she commented, which seemed to spark something in his eye.
“Oh, believe me, I enjoy all sorts, not just a good DJ. . .”
She couldn’t help herself. She let out a long wave of laughter, which ended with her wiping the starts of tears from her eyes. “Oh colt, that’s rich. . .” The stallion seemed both uncomfortable and wounded by the event, but Vinyl waved her hooves to stop him from leaving.
“Hey, hey, chill out. Sorry, I’m sure that gets all the fillies tripping over themselves, and if that doesn’t, I’m sure your look sure does,” she poked, which caused him to look away bashfully. “You’re just barking up the wrong tree.”
He looked up at her and cocked his head to the side. “Steady coltfriend, eh? Well, can’t say I blame you. Sometimes, I wish I’d gone that route.”
“Ha, nah, wrong team, buddy,” she corrected with a grin. He raised an eyebrow in response.
“Ah, into the mares, then? Can’t say I blame you. Something about them. . .” She nodded in agreement, leaving the sentiment open. “Can’t say I haven’t had my share of ‘wrong team’ encounters, though.”
“Oh? So whose side are you on?”
The colt shrugged casually, like most things he probably did. “Sex, that’s which side. Sex is sex, fun is fun.”
Vinyl grinned devilishly at him as her computer screen lit up her face. “I think this may be the beginning of a very nice friendship. . .”
“Yah think we should wake her? Ah mean, she is kinda cute like that, but that can’t be good for her neck.”
“Yeah, probably- Hey, wait, she’s cute while sleeping? You told me everypony looks like a drugged slob when they sleep, and I was no exception.”
“Yer not. And not everypony does, just a certain few,” Applejack corrected her wife. “You just happen to be one of ‘em.”
“Real romantic, AJ. Hard to believe we’re actually married,” Dash quipped sarcastically. Stretching out a hoof, she poked the sleeping cellist in the flank, who just kicked her hoof away and turned over. When Dash turned to look at Applejack, the cowpony just replied with a confused shrug and a turn on a back hoof.
“Ah’m goin’ to bed -- let her sleep,” the tired farmer said, stifling a yawn. Without hesitating, Dash joined her as the two of them climbed the stairs to the second floor and the bed that beckoned them. On the first floor, a certain cellist’s eye flicked open as soon as she heard the creaking of bedsprings. She slowly raised herself off the hardwood floor and sharply twisted her neck to the left, sending several muscle-relaxing pops through her body. Octavia sighed quietly and looked out the window. The moon rose slowly over the peaceful land, shining like a beacon. Octavia felt it calling to her, urging her to press ahead.
“I will not let passivity get the better of me this time. Vinyl needs me, and I am going to find her,” she whispered to nopony in particular. The stars seemed to watch her silently, awaiting her next action. Octavia herself hadn’t even considered this, despite lying painfully on the floor for nearly half a day now.
“Well, who’s stoppin’ yah?”
Octavia whipped around so quickly that her neck popped once more. Standing just past the staircase was Applejack, watching her with her motherly emerald eyes. Octavia felt her pulse pick up and her cheeks grow hot.
“Applejack, oh, I- I just, umm,” Tavi began, which was quickly silenced by a raised hoof from her friend.
“Save it. Ah’m not here to try and convince you to stay. Ah’m here to do the opposite, actually,” the cowpony said with a smile. “Rainbow and Scratch are two peas in a pod alright. They’re more alike than they’d like to admit, and sometimes Ah wonder why they didn’t just end up with each other. But they ain’t always alike in good ways. When Dash gets hurt, she gets… Lost, destructive. Last time it happened, she damn near snapped her wing in half runnin’ away. Now, Vinyl ain’t got any wings, but she does got a heart that’s achin’. Yah may not see it, and Ah sure as heck doubt Dashie ever sees it, but when Scratch looks at yah, I see it.
“She loves you, Octavia. She may not know it herself, but she wants to marry yah. She just loves herself too much to let her guard down. If she gets hurt again, she knows it’d be the death of her. Ah know this because Ah’ve watched her before, watched when she’d look at yah. Ah know the feeling. Everythin’ just floats away and suddenly it’s only you and them. The world could fall apart around yah and yah’d still be standin’ there, lost in their magic. That’s how she looks at yah, and Ah’ll be damned if Ah’m gonna let a knucklehead like mah wife get in the way of that,” Applejack said calmly. Her eyes shined with tender feelings, and the soft smile that came to her lips was characteristic of a pony lost in the magic of better times.
Octavia nodded eagerly as her companion tossed a satchel to her.
“Everythin’ you’ll be needin’ should be in that bag, with a few extra bits to spare in case of emergency. Now get gone before Dash wakes up and spends the next hour lecturin’ us both about goin’ behind her back.”
Once again, the grey mare nodded resolutely before tossing the brown bag onto her back and stealthily walking to the door. Just as she was about to leave, she looked back at Applejack. The cowpony smiled silently at her and slowly nodded, eyes closed. In that moment, Octavia knew that she was doing the right thing in trying to make things right with her marefriend. Not even bothering to close the door, the cellist bolted into the poorly-lit street and toward the train station. The ever-present stars observed emotionlessly, and the luminous moon arced its path across the heavens.
“No. Way.”
“Yes way.”
“Hahah, you’ve got to be pulling my leg!”
“Not even a little bit. It’s all real.”
Tails rolled across the floor with peals of laughter, which inspired Vinyl Scratch to kick him in his brown leg roughly. Taking deep breaths, he finally managed to calm himself down long enough to form a sentence.
“Sorry, sorry, I shouldn’t have laughed at that, but I mean c’mon! You looked like a chunk of white cotton candy,” he attested, which sent him laughing uproariously again. Vinyl laughed lightly as well, only holding back because it comments like that that drove her to change her hair in the first place.
“Yeah, yeah, yuk it up, dude. So I was a bit of a fur-ball back then, at least I don’t look like a try-hard boy band wannabe,” she joked, which caused Tails to laugh even harder. After a few solid minutes of laughter, they both calmed themselves and sat back in their seats.
“So I showed you mine, now you show me yours,” Vinyl said cheekily, flicking her tail into the colt’s face. He smiled at her use of wordplay, but sighed sadly, closing his eyes briefly.
“Alright, a deal’s a deal. So what do you wanna know?”
“Why do you go by Tails? What’s your real name?”
He frowned so briefly that Vinyl wasn’t even sure she’d actually seen it. “Alrighty then. My parents named me Tree Chaser. They weren’t exactly the brightest bulbs in the house, but they were good people. A few years back, some guy heard about my name and said that they should have named me ‘Tail Chaser’. I liked the idea and his wit, so in the morning, I went and got my name changed. I’ve been Tails ever since,” he explained. The DJ nodded in understanding, chewing her bottom lip for a moment.
“What do you mean ‘in the morning’,” she asked.
“Well, I couldn’t just let a witty one like that go, could I? He swore over and over that he was straight, but no straight colt would ever do the things he did…” Tails said with a grin. He finished by looking out the window of the train and onto the dried, cracking, decayed remains of the Mohoové Desert.
As disturbed by his vulgarity as Vinyl was, she couldn’t help but admire him. He was a pony who saw what he wanted and took it, and Scratch absolutely loved those kinds of ponies. They were killer at parties.
“Tails, what are you in Las Pegasus for again?”
He smiled coyly. “Depends who you ask. Most likely, it’ll be for a concert, maybe a business proposition, or I might even be a scout of Equestria’s Next Top Model,” he said with a wink. Vinyl couldn’t help but laugh at her new friend’s honesty.
“Well, if you’re looking for a concert, I am doing a gig there. From what I’ve heard, drinks for the DJ and her groupies are free, so if you’re in the mood for some partying and mares with inhibited decision making skills, I think I might be able to add you to my VIP list,” she said casually. Tails seemed to perk up at the mere mention of drinks and possible targets.
“Oh, you can count me in for sure!”
“Excellent. Meet me at the Upper Eastside Gentlecolt’s Club at nine,” she told him as she gathered up her things. Tails’s eyes grew wide.
“Your gig is at a strip club?!” He threw his hooves around her neck as she made her way toward the door. “You’re the coolest friend ever!”
Vinyl Scratch smiled and patted him gently on the head. “I know,” she said with a grin. “I know.”
Zero hour. Mission’s a-go. This is it, Scratch. Get ready to blow some minds. Vinyl thought to herself as she stood in the darkness overlooking the large gentlecolt’s club. A few lights were lit, showing ponies milling about aimlessly, awaiting a show.
“You want a show, I’ll give you a show,” Vinyl said to herself under her breath. She pressed play on her computer, which started a slight hum. Ponies all around looked up to her platform just as the music changed to the sound of a gun cocking back.
“Drop it,” said a deep, automated voice from the speakers. The gun fired and the beat kicked off, starting a back and forth beat with slowly ascending tones. After a few moments, it stopped the beats and snares just as Vinyl picked herself up a microphone.
“You want Rage Valley? WELL THIS IS DEATH VALLEY, BITCH!” She shouted into the microphone as she slammed her hoof on a round button on her console. Due to the copious amounts of subwoofers provided and the fact that Vinyl had somehow managed to overclock the system’s bass levels, the resounding drop was enough to blast some hats off. Ponies started jumping as the lights all around flashed and spun, turning the whole scene into a giant, glitter-filled, scantily-clad mosh pit. During the more intense parts, the performers took it easy, and then matched every electronic beat of the song as the slower parts continued.
As the song began to come to an end, Scratch hit a button off to the side of her computer. Several ponies moved as a massive circular bowl rose out of the middle of the room. The music switched over right as everypony’s attention was on it.
“B-b-b-bon-bonfire!” A voice called from the speakers just as intense, multicolored flame burst to life in the metal pit that had been created. The magic fire twisted and writhed, bewitching the audience with its graceful flicks and amazing color changes. After a few seconds, the drop sounded forth and the partying resumed. Everypony jumped and stamped their hooves, which, combined with the booming subwoofers, literally shook the entire club. Vinyl smiled happily and hit play on a playlist so she could sneak away and take a drink.
She descended the stairs next to her platform, which led into a circular room, lit with lights of various blues and purples. The purple made her think of Tavi’s eyes, which nearly brought tears to her eyes. Reaching over, she swiped a triple shot of some liquor from some colt near her and downed it without hesitation. Mmm, vodka. The good kind.
“Hey, that was-“ The colt from whom she stole the drink began. When he spun around, he saw her and grinned. Vinyl was greeted with a crushing hug and the scent of cologne and various other perfumes.
“Can’t. Breathe,” she rasped. The colt released her and smiled at her. She immediately recognized his characteristic scars, tattoo, piercings… The whole package, really. Tails’s smile was just a bit too wide for normal and he seemed to be having trouble focusing his eyes.
“Sup, Tails. Say, how many drinks have you had?”
“Only a couple, but one of the bros out in the crowd has got some killer E, girl. You have to try it!” He insisted, nearly stumbling as he leaned toward her.
Vinyl laughed and righted him again. “I got a set to do, bud. I’ve got a few minutes, but I don’t want the crowd thinkin’ I abandoned them,” she told him. He smirked and hooved her a flask.
“Take this with you. Don’t want you gettin’ too bored up there, after all. Don’t worry, it’s only the Everfree stuff,” Tails said with a wink. Vinyl smiled back and raised the flask to him before taking a drink. It stung her system like a throat full of bees.
“Yup, 190 proof Everfree Dandelion Vodka. That shit’ll kick your ass for sure!” Tails said with a laugh. Scratch grimaced and then smiled before lightly hitting him on the side of the head. Her friend fell over onto his side and burst into laughter as he struggled to get back up.
“Stay frosty, Tails, I’ll be back in a few,” she said, turning away and trotting back up the steel stairs to the platform. Hitting play skillfully, the end of an intro transitioned into the current music. It quickly got quieter as the song got higher and higher pitched.
“December the first, twenty-eight o’ eight.”
“Doomsday,” boomed a new, extremely deep voice. The bass dropped again and everypony’s vigor was renewed.
Tonight is gonna be a good night…
“Ticket, madam.”
Octavia snapped out of her quiet stupor to look up at the ticket taker. For a moment, she furrowed her brow and frowned behind her bandana. She was wearing one of Vinyl’s baggy sweatshirts and her marefriend’s white bandana over most of her face. Nopony had been able to identify her as a mare or a stallion yet, but this elderly colt seemed to know right away. Hesitantly, she handed him her ticket.
He punched it with a smile and started toward the end of the cabin.
“Sir, if I may,” Octavia started, which caused the colt to turn and look at her with a kind smile. “How could you tell that I was a mare?”
He chuckled and shook his head. “Miss, I’ve been working these rails for decades. I’ve seen everything: griffons, drakes, ponies, even the princesses once or twice. I didn’t doubt for a second that you were a mare,” he said with a smile. She nodded thoughtfully in response. “And, well, I fancy myself quite the connoisseur of the classical arts. Even without your cello or a look at your Cutie Mark and I’d recognize the esteemed Octavia Philharmonica without more than a second glance.”
Octavia’s eyes went wide and she was immediately thankful for the bandana covering her rapidly reddening face. The colt started off again before looking back.
“And I’ve seen a lot of things, but a colt with legs like those isn’t one of them,” he said with a wink before trotting off and out of sight. If her face wasn’t already red enough, it surely was now. Octavia quickly curled her hind legs against her chest and pulled Vinyl’s sweatshirt over herself. As she sat and stared out the window and the passing scenery, she could only imagine what kind of trouble her marefriend was causing for herself. However, as much as Octavia wanted to stay focused, the scent of Vinyl on the sweatshirt caused her mind to wander.
She imagined Vinyl holding her on their couch, watching television and getting drunk. She imagined all those times Vinyl and she had fallen asleep like that, just holding each other. She saw the look on Vinyl’s face that the unicorn only wore when she thought Octavia was asleep. Her crimson eyes softened and her wide grin shrank to a tender smile as she looked down at Octavia. As the cellist dreamt about all of this, she started to doze off in her seat. Before she knew it, the train was speeding ahead with one more sleeping passenger.
In the darkness, a deep throbbing pumped. While many were not phased in the least by the guttural pulse, one being was. It pervaded her sleep and dove into her mind like the jabbing of a thousand tiny pins, causing her closed eyes to scrunch together in blatant pain. However, this mare was struggling to tell the difference between the beating of the bass and the pounding in her own body. As her senses slowly flowed back to her, she felt something wet pressed against her cheek, as well as the sensation of being upside-down. Ever so gently, she eased her eyes open, slamming them shut immediately to protect her suffering retinas from the assault on her optic nerve by the Celestia-blessed sun. Attempting to swallow the pain, she quickly realized that she neither had enough saliva to swallow, nor was she in a position to swallow. Throwing caution to the wind, her eyes rocketed open. The bright sun and violent pain were plenty to blind her for several seconds as she adapted.
She found herself indeed upside-down, her hind legs dangling above her head, which was pressed into the drool-soaked carpet. Thankfully, it was her own drool. Rolling to her left, or maybe her right, her sense of direction was gone with her strange positioning, she found herself quickly on top of something soft and warm. Looking down, she found a pale yellow mare lying on the floor with her head turned to the side. While the mare wasn't necessarily ugly, far from it, actually, the pony who found herself lying on top of the mare couldn't help but turn her lip up in disgust. Under the mare's nose was a thin powdering of something white, a sign that perhaps that particular mare was one to shy away from.
Gingerly, the mare on top planted her hooves and rose shakily, taking in her surroundings carefully. All around the bedroom were mares and colts, all passed out from whatever semi-legal activities had occurred the night before. One colt seemed to have gotten his head stuck inside the air duct, which was no small feat considering that most foals would struggle to fit in that cramped space. Turning her head the other direction, the mare saw three other mares blacked out on the bed, tangled in a mass of blankets and sheets, the pillows long-since having been cast onto the floor. Judging from the way they cradled each other, she had to guess that they were more than just simple friends. Walking carefully toward the open door, which seemed to be blocked over by some form of blanket, the mare explored the rest of her current residence.
Beyond the brown sheet on the door frame, there were at least thirty other ponies scattered about what appeared to be an apartment. Here and there, ponies had found the oddest ways possible to fall asleep, one curled up under the table and another sleeping on top of the stove. Against one wall was a large flat-screen television, which faced a wooden table and a couch. On the couch lie a colt with two mares with their faces still next to each other in the colt's crotch. His head was rolled back and to the right, exposing a dark tattoo climbing up his brown neck. The mare's breath caught in her chest as she looked at the table. Except for the legs, it was impossible to discern the color for the top was covered in a thin coating of white dust and liquor bottles. Her head swiveling quickly, she took stock of the ponies in the room. Perhaps only one or two of them lacked broken white mustaches that marked the users of the devilish substance. Swallowing, or at least attempting, the mare backed up into the bedroom and began looking around. In one corner of the room sat a door slightly ajar, showing a hint of reflection inside.
Frantically, the mare ran to the bathroom and flicked on the light switch. Surprisingly, the room was void of other beings, leaving her alone with her reflection. She looked in and found herself staring back. Her bloodshot eyes were only a tint lighter than her irises, giving them a drastic contrast to her paper-white coat. Thankfully, her muzzle was missing the feared "drug-stache" as she was now referring to them as inside her head. Her electric blue hair stuck out in all directions, even wrapping itself around the horn protruding from her forehead. In the reflection, she saw a mare stumbling toward her. She was one of the mares who were tangled up in the sheets, the mare noted. The new mare trotted into the bathroom and threw herself onto the back of the first mare. Lazily, she leaned her mouth up to the mare's ear.
"Coming back to bed?". Her voice was little more than a whisper, but it hit with the force of a runaway train. The white mare turned back to the mirror and placed a hoof on it, her reflection mimicking the act. Her chapped lips opened slightly, her eyes never leaving their own reflection.
With trembling lips, she uttered but one question: "Who am I?".
Octavia disembarked the train in Las Pegasus as if it were an ordinary occurrence. To everypony else, she was naught more than a passenger, which was more than fine with her. The less ponies recognized her, the less they could get in her way. The less they got in her way, the less time it would take her to find Vinyl and get her back home. Trotting off the train, she had head down in thought, not exactly looking where she was going as she bumped into somepony who must have stopped in front of her. She shook her head and muttered an apology as she continued walking, but quickly found she couldn't walk any further. Turning around, Octavia saw the kindly old stallion from the train holding onto her tail with his mouth. She stopped attempting to walk away and instead turned around to look at him.
"Pardon me for stopping you like that, but I was urgent to stop you before you got too far," he said, abashedly rubbing the back of his thinning mane. "I just never got to ask why a pony like yourself would be headed to a. . . City such as this." The look of disgust as he looked around the glittering high-rises was plain enough, and Octavia sighed sadly. So much for nopony getting in my way. . .
"My, umm, associate has gone missing somewhere in this place and I need to bring her home," she said, trying not to reveal too much to this stranger.
"And this 'associate', is she incapable of coming home herself?"
Octavia hung her head disappointedly when her explanation wasn't enough to quell the stallion's questions. "I suppose she is, but my, err, entourage needs her direly, and I'm afraid we, I mean, they weren't on the best terms when she left," Octavia stuttered, mentally kicking herself for the flaw in her speech.
The stallion smiled sweetly at her and took a few steps toward the cellist. "I'm sorry to hear that. Any idea where Vinyl Scratch is now?". Octavia's eyes met the old stallion's eyes and took a cautious step backward.
"Who said anything about Vinyl Scratch?". Octavia's heart hammered as she realized her story had been unraveled so easily. The stallion chuckled and placed a hoof on Octavia's shoulder.
"You two may not be headline in the tabloids, but there certainly has been buzz over one of Canterlot's most esteemed cellist moving in with a disc jockey of all things. I know it may come across as a bit strange and more than a little unnerving that somepony who has never met you before today knows such thinks about your life, but I only want to help. I seen far too many relationships demolished in this. . . Well, it's a cesspool, really, but that's not the point. The point is that I can tell there's something about you. Not just who you are, no. I can tell this isn't one of those relationships that gets broken up so easily, so there must be some reason behind you coming all this way in search of your partner," he said solemnly. "So, what happened between you two?"
"You see, I want to get married," Octavia said, looking the old stallion in the eyes as she lifted her teacup to her lips.
"Now? We hardly even know each other, I mean don't you think it's a little soon?". He laughed at his own joke and even Octavia couldn't suppress a giggle, though she did punch him in the shoulder for it. "Okay, so you want to tie the knot. What's so wrong about that? Equestria's quite the free nation, and while some ponies may not be too kind toward ponies of your preferences, there's not much they can do to stop Celestia's law. So what's the problem?"
Taking another sip of her Earl Grey before heaving a sigh, Octavia prepared to explain. "Vinyl has. . . Other ideas," she muttered. The stallion nodded thoughtfully in return.
"So you want to take the plunge, but she's not exactly on board for your trip down the river. What's so bad about that?"
Octavia threw her hooves up in the air exasperatedly. "Precisely! What's so hard about just talking about it like two civilized ponies?". She grumbled angrily, which elicited another nod from the aged colt.
"So you told her you wanted to get married, and when she said she didn't want to, you two ended up arguing over it. I'm guessing it never got any better, so Vinyl ran away to Las Pegasus to get away from the heat," he summarized wisely. Octavia blinked as she realized that a practical stranger had deciphered her cryptic responses to nearly spot-on assumptions.
"More or less, yes. That was quite impressive, by the way," she admitted. The stallion shrugged and looked out the window to the sidewalk far below.
"I might just work on trains, but I've had my share of experiences with love, too," he replied quietly. Octavia desperately wanted to know more, but she was behind schedule and something told her that if the stallion wanted her to know more, he would have told her. Looking back to his new acquaintance, he continued, "Well, the way I see it, it's a big city and any job that can be done by one pony can be done even faster with two. Any idea where she went?".
Octavia was about to object just as an old saying came to mind. Never look a gift horse in the mouth. Before this, she had no idea how that would ever make sense, being that Vinyl had assured her after many a late night that there was, in fact, nothing inside her mouth, but a sudden clarity settled on the grey mare.
"Upper Eastside Gentlecolt's Club. She had a performance there last night, so they might be able to tell us where she went to stay. Or knowing Vinyl, which back room she passed out in," she said unhappily. The old stallion nodded as he paid their bill.
"Well, we best get to it," he said, sliding out of his seat. As soon as they were both standing, he extended his hoof toward Octavia. "Call me Han, by the way."
Vinyl sat on the concrete stairs that led into the apartment building, staring at her trembling hooves intently. She thought as far back as she could, but always came up blank. Her last memory was always waking up on the floor of that same apartment, as if she had sprung up out of the ground last night. Nopony inside was any help, they barely knew their own names in their drug-addled state, which left her sitting on the front steps alone. Her hooves were rough, but still cared for, as though they saw frequent use as well as nurtured care. She searched for a word to compare them to.
"They're like. . . Instruments," she muttered to herself, and something in her mind seemed to click. She saw flashing lights, dancing ponies, a wondrous fire, and elegant turntables that moved to her every whim. She had no idea where or when these memories came from, but she was so exalted at her breakthrough that she was on her hooves and dancing in seconds.
"Well, you're certainly in a good mood this morning," a voice behind her said. Opening her eyes and turning around, she found the brown colt with the neck tattoo scratching his chin lazily as he leaned against the doorway. He was the one pony who she had been unable to wake, and she nearly thought he was dead until she checked his pulse. She rushed over to him have grabbed his shoulders.
"Woah, you're certainly feeling better after that trip to the hospital," he said with a laugh, which caused Vinyl's brow to furrow in confusion.
"Hospital? Why the hell was I in the hospital?".
"You don't remember? Well, I guess you were pretty drugged up there for a while. . . When you were up on stage yesterday, you had a bit too much to drink and fell off the side of your platform. Busted your dome pretty bad, but they got you all stitched up at the hospital and sent you on your way," he told her. She only got more confused.
"Platform? What platform? Why was I on a platform?". The colt leaned his head back and looked into her eyes suspiciously.
"You- really don't remember, do you?".
"Remember what! I don't remember anything," she cried furiously, to which he laughed.
"Jeez, I knew last night was insane, but I had no idea it was that off the hook. So you don't remember last night at all?". His question nearly made Vinyl slap his stupid earrings right off his stupid head, but she calmly took a breath because he was giving her more answers than anypony else had been able to.
"No, no, no. You don't get it. I don't remember anything," she told him forcefully, and the recognition dawned on his face like the sun dawned over each morning.
"You mean like anything anything? Like nothing at all?". Vinyl nodded slowly as the colt pulled away and ran a hoof through his short-cropped hair. "Oh shit. Oooooooh shit. Oh shit!". He opened his mouth and gestured toward her, but then quickly turned away and started pacing up and down the sidewalk again. Once again, he stopped to point a hoof out to her with his mouth agape before starting to pace again while muttering something to himself.
"Okay, okay, okay. Let's see. You're Vinyl Scratch. You're a DJ, and a damn good one at that. You were at a gig last night, and I guess that fall knocked a few screws loose or whatever," he stammered anxiously.
"So what are you, like my manager? My coltfriend? Brother?". He started waving his hooves wildly as she spoke.
"Nonononononono! No. I just met-- Wait, did you say manager?". Vinyl had no idea what was going on, but a shit-eating grin broke out on the colt's face. "Yeah! I'm your manager. You rocked it last night. Let me tell you, Vinyl, you're going places. Big places. Last night probably put you on the map, so let's get that pretty face of yours out there," he told her, to which she responded by looking down at her hooves again.
I'm a DJ? Well, that would explain what I remembered. . . I guess if he's my manager, he would probably know what's best. What's the worst that could happen? She thought to herself as she nodded gently. "Alright. Yeah, let's do this," she said with an eager smile. The colt practically seemed like her wanted to jump for joy when he heard that, but settled for just crushing her with an intense bear-hug. As soon as he let go, she pointed a hoof at his face.
"But we need to go to the hospital first and check out what they got on me. The more I remember, the better," she said, to which Tails put his hooves up in a defensive manner.
"Hey, I got no reason to stop you. Just, uhh, come to this address when you're done there. I need to grab a coffee," he grumbled, passing her a piece of paper with an address on it. She nodded and started down the street slowly before he called her name. She turned back to see him pointing in the other direction. "Hospital's that way, babe," he told her, which caused her to blush, mutter her thanks, and start walking again.
As he watched her walk away, his face broke into a grin that seemed to split from ear to ear. "And just like that, I'm back in business," he said to himself before starting his leisurely stroll toward the coffee shop.