No Day but today

No Day but Today
Chapter 2
Vinyl’s Past

“I didn’t make it.” Whispered Vinyl as she continued to stare out at the sky. Tears beginning to form in her eyes.

“Didn’t make what?” Asked Octavia as she stood and placed a hand lightly on Vinyl’s shoulder.

“My Dad, he died, and I didn’t make it in time to say goodbye. He was the only one who ever believed in me and yet when it was time for him to go I wasn’t there.” Vinyl sobbed as she told Octavia about the hardest day of her life.

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Three years ago

A young girl ran towards a building looming in the distance, the rain pouring down, making the sidewalk slick underneath her feet, but she didn’t care, she had to make it to the hospital before it was too late.

She doubled her pace at that thought and fell, skidding slightly down the street and tearing through her jeans and cutting into her leg, but she didn’t care, she had to make it in time.

“I... have... to...make...it.” Hissed Vinyl as she got up and began running again. Every other step feeling like someone was stabbing her in the leg, but she pushed it out of her mind.

She reached the hospital steps and took them three at a time. Busting through the door and earning herself a reproachful glare from the receptionist, but she didn’t care as she slammed her hands down upon the woman’s desk.

“Stardust Scratch, what room is he in!” Vinyl demanded, impatiently tapping her foot as the receptionist typed at the keys, trying to find the information she was looking for.

“Room 816 I.C.U, but you really shou...” Began the Receptionist before noticing the girl had ran off once she had the information she needed. Rolling her eyes and muttering something about punk teenagers she returned to her typing.

“Faster, Celestia damn it, Faster!” Screamed Vinyl as the elevator numbers slowly ticked by as if trying to torture her for running through a hospital; soon the number eight lit up and the doors opened, as soon as they did a blue haired blur shot down the hallway. Counting the numbers on the wall until she reached the sliding glass door of room 816 and was stopped by a woman whose hair was the same color, but was set in an elegant bun and was wearing a dress made of the finest black silk, who used her aura to stop her from entering the hospital room.

“LET ME GO YOU BITCH, I HAVE TO SEE HIM!” She screamed, fighting tooth and nail to escape the woman’s aura which was holding her stationary.

“And what would that accomplish Vivian; You are too late, he is dead, there is no point in letting you make a fool of yourself talking to a corpse no matter how much you claimed to have loved him.” Said Vivian’s mother as she started walking away from the room. Which in turn forced Vivian to float after her mother in her silver aura screaming and fighting to say her goodbyes?

“NO, LET ME GO, I HAVE TO SEE HIM, I HAVE TO, DADDY...DADDDDDDDDY!” Sobbed Vivian as her mother turned the corner and led her away.

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Present Day

“Your mother wouldn’t even let you try and say goodbye?” Asked Octavia, appalled at the actions of the woman whose name she didn't even know yet.

“She was a bitch, if it was something that didn’t have a point to her then she wouldn’t allow it, she always, always tried to control me, what with that ridiculous name, and trying to get me to be her perfect little daughter, I hated her, hated her more than anything I’ve ever hated before, oh and when I told her I wanted to be a D.J. oh how she exploded.”

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One week later

Vivian lay on the floor, bruised and bleeding from the beating she had just received, her mother standing over her with a wooden paddle stained with her blood.

“Now what did you say you wanted to be?” Hissed Briar Scratch as her daughter lay before her; defiance obvious in her eyes.

“I want to be a D.J.” Spat Vivian. “And you’re not going to stop me you stupid psycho bitch!” She yelled while getting to her knees and staring up at her mother.

Refusing to break eye contact with her as the woman made to swing the paddle again. Hitting Vivian in the face and sending the girl flying into the wall, knocking the wind out of her as she hit and fell crying to the floor.

“You are my daughter, and therefore you shall listen to everything I say. Regardless of whether you think its right or not, for you see my stubborn little Vivian, you belong to me and children are to be seen and not heard.” Hissed Briar as she walked up to Vivian and kicked her in the chest breaking three of her ribs with a horrible crunch as Vivian writhed in pain.

“Dust yourself off and drag yourself to the doctor so that you don’t die, and remember if I ever hear so much as a whisper of this foolishness about being a D.J. instead of a respectable career again and you will be sorry.”

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“She beat you and then left you to get to the hospital by yourself; how did they not have reported this to the child protective services?” Asked Octavia after Vinyl had pulled off her dirty wife beater to show Octavia the scars from all the times Briar had beaten her and their family doctor had to fix her up.

“Please, my mother had the whole upper crust on her side; you should know that Octavia, I mean you’re part of it all, aren’t you?” Asked Vinyl

“Not as far back as all of that Vinyl, I made my own way into the elite of Canterlot Society a couple of years ago after I had gotten cleaned up and faced the facts that no matter what I did I was meant to be a cellist.” Explained Octavia lifting up her left hand showing Scratch her cutie mark- a treble clef. “My family was so happy when this appeared it meant that through all the time I spend fighting against their dreams for me; they were right all along. My long hidden love of classical music was truly meant to be my passion.”

“But if you loved Classical music and your parents wanted you to be a cellist why did you fight it?” asked Vinyl confused as to why Octavia would have tried to deny who she was inside; especially when her parents supported her.

“I also love animals Vinyl; I always thought that since my whole family was involved in music, my parents owning a music store and all that. I wished that I would be different from them, that I could make my own way in life as it were.” Explained Octavia while brushing her hand down Vinyl’s back, feeling the different areas where the scars made Vinyl’s skin rise and fall.

“Anyhow, shall we continue?” She asked as Vinyl walked over to the couch along with Octavia.

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12 hours later

Vinyl sat outside of her old home, alone in the rain and physically beaten. She refused to be defeated however as she grabbed her bags and began to limp down the street. She didn’t know where she would go, but she couldn’t nor would she ever return there.

She would make her dreams come true and to Tartarus with her mother; she had never loved Vinyl. No, the only person who had ever loved her was now in the spirit world, and the rest of him in a sun and moon pendant that Vinyl now wore around her neck. She clasped it in her palm and muttered a small prayer to her father and to Celestia and Luna.

I’ll become the best D.J. ever, everyone will know my name, and I’ll make that bitch sorry that she ever abandoned me.
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Three days later

Vinyl sat in the alleyway finishing the last bit of food that selling her clothes and other items had bought her, it wasn’t much and she was still hungry but she was grateful for what she had gotten knowing that there were people in the same situation that were hungry with nothing to eat at all.

Vinyl sighed as she stood up and decided to see if she could get lucky and find enough cans to scratch up enough bits to get something to eat for the night. She then went to the nearest dumpster and began to rummage through it. After a few minutes, and several disgusting finds, she finished with about half a bags worth of discarded aluminum cans.

“Cool, this ought to be worth a couple of bits.” Beamed Vinyl as she moved on to the next dumpster in the alley. Continuing to rummage until she reached the end of the alley and the last dumpster; by the time she was done she had about two and a half bags of cans which was good enough to at least get Vinyl two or three decent meals.

She turned in the cans and received about twelve bits, nine of which she used to buy a loaf of bread, cheap peanut butter and jelly from a one bit store, and a case of water, the other three she put in the pouch she had gotten from her father as a birthday present to keep her allowance in, which now also hung from the chain of her pendant.

“Umm excuse me kid, do you mind sharing some of that?” Asked an older girl who was sitting against a wall between two trash cans, she was about eighteen or nineteen and she looked a horrible mess; her rainbow colored hair was matted to her face and she was shaking from head to toe.

“Umm, yeah sure I guess.” Said Vinyl, looking back and forth for anyone else. She had to be cautious, since she was young and easy to get overpowered by some of the larger people out on the streets. “Mind coming with me to my hideout, I kinda don’t wanna have to share with everyone since I don’t have much.”

“Oh yeah, no problem kid, thank you so much.” Said the girl, quickly following Vinyl into the alleyway and behind the dumpster where Vinyl had set up her blanket, one of the few things she refused to sell off for scraps, and something she was glad to have once the chill wind at night took over.

“Wow never though I’d be so happy to eat a PB&J sandwich, Thanks kid you’re a lifesaver, hadn’t eaten in a week; I’m Rainbow Dash by the way.” Said the girl hastily after she had eaten her first sandwich in one bite.

“I’m Viv... Vinyl Scratch, so how did you get like this?” Asked Vinyl while taking in Dash’s appearance and noting she was much thinner than any older teen she had ever seen before.

“Meth’s a hell of a drug, I’m trying to quit but it just keeps drawing me back in.” Replied Dash shivering again and picking at one of the sores on her face. “But anyways how did you get here kid, you don’t look any older than ten, what’s a little one like you doing living on the streets?”

Vinyl sighed as she grabbed onto her pendant and began to cry. “I have nowhere else to go; what with my mom kicking me out after my dad died a few days ago, I didn’t really have much of a choice.” sobbed Vinyl, feeling another wave of loneliness hit her.

“I never really had my folks; they died when I was very little and I ended up staying at the Orphanage, so I guess we’re alike in that aspect. No other people to care about us other than ourselves; I’m glad I met you Vinyl Scratch I was kinda lonely. And don’t worry kid; whenever I can I’ll be there to help you out.” Smiled Dash as she hugged Vinyl tightly.

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“So Rainbow Dash is the one who started you on the drugs?” Asked Octavia once Vinyl had finished that part of her story.
“What, no! No way, Dash would have never dragged me down with her, no it was some weirdo I met at some party when I was drunk, said it would help loosen me up, make me feel good ya know, but by the time I figured out what I was taking it was too late, I was hooked.” Sighed Vinyl, putting her face in her hands.

“You couldn’t have known, you were still a child and I mean no offense when I say that, it just that you had to grow up far too fast, and so I’ll tell you that when you’re with me in our sessions you don’t have to try and act like an adult; in order for us - you to get better you’re going to need to let out all the emotions you’ve bottled up inside of you since your father’s death. Said Octavia, moving closer to Vinyl and removing her hands from her face and making her look at her.

“You need to stop holding it all in.” She ordered as she kept Vinyl from looking away from her.

“You’re going to far Octavia.” Said Vinyl as she kept fighting to escape. Tears beginning to form in her eyes

“It’s not your fault.” Said Octavia as she released Vinyl’s face and held her close

“Knock it off!” Snapped Vinyl, her voice beginning to crack

“It’s not your fault.” Octavia repeated.

“Fuck you and your reverse psychology crap, let me go I’m leaving.” Ordered Vinyl as she began to struggle against Octavia: but she was stronger.

“Let it go, it’s not your fault.” Repeated Octavia, once more finally getting the result she wanted as she felt Vinyl go limp, heard her sobs, and felt the tears begin to seep through her silk shirt, and she held Vinyl closer

. “Good now just keep going until you feel all of it go away, the regret, the resentment, the sorrow, let it all out, and then we can begin working on your addition, Your father doesn’t blame you, you couldn’t do anything to have stopped his death; and your mother, you can’t control the actions of others. She was wrong in what she did; if you truly want to be a DJ then she should as your mother have wanted what made you happy.” Octavia continued to hold Vinyl as she continued to sob, hugging Octavia close to her.

“Accept that we have very little control over the things that happen to us and you’ll find that you can come to accept the hard things much easier.” Octavia sighed as she looked at the clock noticing that it was almost time for her to leave. “Take care Vinyl Scratch” said Octavia as she wrote down an address and phone number and left the room to head for her recital