Disclaimer:
I do not own ponies, My Little Pony, My Little Pony: Friendship is magic is owned by Studio B Productions, Hasbro, The Hub, Lauren Faust and anyone else who I forgot to mention, I am super duper ooper sorry for any inconveniences caused.
Now… ON WITH THE STORY!!!
Electric
She’s tried all the instruments her parents had given her, they were sure their daughter was a musician. Her father, Concerto, a brown coated unicorn with a golden mane with a black bass clef as a cutie mark, underlining his passion as a famous classical Cellist and her mother, Silkstrings, a famous harpist with a white body and a blue styled mane and a red styled treble clef, were too blinded by what they assumed they couldn’t see what their own daughter wanted. Cellos, harps, clarinets, trumpets, trombones, acoustic guitars, violins, fiddles even lyres, but their unicorn daughter couldn’t find passion in any of them, and thus, her magic eluded her.
A unicorn with no magic, their parents tried everything they could to make sure that their daughter didn’t hinder their title. Imagine that, two of the greatest unicorn musicians in Canterlot, having a silent daughter, in all senses of the word. It was a simple rule among talented musicians, ‘no music means no magic’, and their daughter couldn’t find either.
Her fifteenth birthday was when she realized it, “I’m an embarrassment.” She deducted this from her experiences, her parents even had her put contact lenses on because of her eyes, so instead of their original colour, they are a non threatening, easy to blend in with blue. She would stay and sulk in her room of her dorm at the music school she was enrolled at, “I can’t do anything. I’m a worthless unicorn.” She’d mumble into her pillow.
“No you’re not.” Her roommate Clairinet would say back. Clairinet was her roommate, she was a dark grey unicorn filly and her mane was a silver color, and as her name and cutie mark states, her passion is the Clarinet.
“Yes I am Clair!” She yelled back, “My music is hollow! I can’t play anything! And I’ve only realized it NOW that my parents don’t want me!”
“What do you mean your parents don’t want you?” Clair moved over to her roommate’s bed without raising her voice.
“Isn’t it obvious?! They sent me here because they couldn’t be bothered teaching me themselves! They can’t handle the fact that I’m a no good musician that they want someone else to do it! AND they’re too selfish to even care about my own birthday!”
“You don’t know that.” Clair calmly said back.
“I do! I’ve known it all my life but was too stupid to realize it!” A tear seeped down her cheek.
“I believe that your parents are far too generous.” Clair said with her calm demeanor, but continued at her roommate’s expression, “They give their talents to everyone that attends their concerts, they give and give and give until they can’t give anymore.”
The sad unicorn didn’t have anything to say back. She lay down on her bed for a while as she collected herself. Her roommate went to sit on her own bed, to get her book out from under her pillow; she started to hum a melody that she was practicing.
“You are so like your music…” Clair heard.
“Hmm?” The dark grey musician hummed through her music.
“You’re so calm, and you have this ability to spread that feeling.”
“And you’ll find your ability when it’s time.” She said pointing at her roommates flank. She looked towards her friend “Your flank is as blank as an empty music sheet” she paused and gauged her roommate’s expression, “… but that’s where all great songs come from.” Clair finalized with a small calm smile at her roommate before returning to her book.
The forlorn unicorn looked down her pristine white body matched with her light blue straightened tail as she thought about her roommate’s cryptic metaphor, “Where all great songs come from.” She repeated to herself.
It wasn’t until a year later, on her sixteenth birthday, that she got a taste of her true talent and was proven wrong about her parents.
“Come birthday girl! We are going to be late!” The white musician unicorn’s new friend, Guaver, a bright blue Smanish unicorn colt with a darker blue mane and a musical quaver-shaped guitar adorning his flank called after her as they ran through the streets of middle Canterlot.
“Where exactly are we going?!” She yelled at him.
“To a concert visit! I am sure you will like it!” He yelled back.
They galloped past some posters as they neared the concert area. The white pony managed to read “S and L”, she didn’t know who they were but they sounded cool. They neared a long line.
“There are many ponies here.” Guaver managed between breaths.
“Do you have the tickets?” His company asked him while panting form the run.
“Si.” He pulled out two green, red and black colored tickets, and handed one to his friend.
“Frightening Manticores and Parasprites?” She read aloud, bemused by the title. She looked towards on of the posters on the wall next to her, it was a picture of two unicorn stallions, they were both jet black in coat, but alternated in their mane, eyes and cutie mark. One of them, the one on the left of the poster had one red line that had a right angled triangle like top for a cutie mark, and had electric green eyes and a red mane, and the one on the right had two lines next to each other but with the spikes on the bottom had a green mane but had purple shades covering his eyes.
“The one on the left is called Skri, and the one on the right is Lex. They called themselves ‘Skri and Lex’, but ponies kept shortening it to Skrillex, so they adopted that as their stage name.” Guaver summed up for her, “Skri, the one with the one cutie mark work the treble, but Lex, the one with the two cutie mark and purple glasses work the bass.”
“So they go up together?” The curious white unicorn filly asked her friend.
“Yes, and they are sounding amazing up there.”
“Tickets you two.” The security pony in front of them interrupted with a low deep voice, he was a big stallion, but the black security jacket, the hat he was wearing and the darkness made it hard for the two to make out his other features, bar his green head.
“Here you go Siñor.” Guaver hoofed his ticket to him and motioned his friend to do the same.
“Say, aren’t you two a little young to be out on the streets?”
“Well yes, but it is her sixteenth birthday tonight, the ticket reads 16 and over and I wanted to treat her to something special.”
“Oh, well then… Happy Birthday, enjoy the concert, Birthday girl!” The bouncer said, handing the filly back her ticket, and at her confused look he replied, “For memento’s sake.”
“Thank you sir!” She happily said.
"Please, Call me Z."
"Thanks, Z." She smiled. As they made their way in they noticed the severe amount of ponies on the stands. “Wow, these guys sure are popular.” She smiled as they made their way to a clear spot.
“WELCOME FILLIES AND GENTLECOLTS OF CANTERLOT!” The giant speakers on the stage amplified the energetic voice of the red maned stallion, creating a roar of cheer from the many ponies around them. The two young ponies looked toward the stage from their position, they saw the ponies from the poster. The setup was a simple DJ configuration with the tables in the middle of the stage. The green maned stallion was sitting at the table to the right in the audience’s perspective, while the other stallion was standing next to a mike on the front of the stage.
“As you may have already noticed my name is Skri! And this is Lex, say hi to our fans Lex!” There was a small pause.
“Hi.” Came a deep response, causing another cheer from the crowd.
“Alright settle down, settle down or we will be here all night, which I’d admit wouldn’t be such a bad idea, but we gotta sleep sometime right?” The audience collectively chuckled at the joke.
“Now, before we get started, I’d like to say that I bought every single one of you a bass…” He paused, getting back to his part of the DJ board, using the mike his side of the DJ kit he finished, “…But Lex dropped it, FRIGHTENING MANTICORES AND PARASPRITES, FILLIES AND GENTLECOLTS!” Then [url=www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSeNSzJ2-Jw]the song started to play[/url]. The crowd went berserk with cheer, almost drowning out the beginning of the song, but she could hear it, the silent unicorn could hear all of it, from the melody to the back track to the near silent beats in the background. She heard it, she saw it, and she felt it. It felt amazing, it was amazing, Skrillex was amazing. She started to bob her head in tune with the music, and despite the noise around her... She was at peace. It was a different kind of peace, not a meditated peace, but it was a soulful peace. It was electrifying. She closed her eyes, she didn’t need to see the flashing lights, because she could see the music in her mind. She felt a tingling feeling in the back of her head when the vocals started, it was reversed, she heard the vocals but she understood, “like you… Just like you… My friend… Just like…” Then she heard the yell, and then the drop. The bass almost hit her to the ground, and it surged through her very soul. Throughout the song she was moving her head in time with the drops and bounces, and mouthing the reverse vocals. She opened her eyes again, but her vision was obstructed by her lenses, she didn’t know why that would be the case but she knew she wanted them out, then she saw clearly, but she was too captivated by this music to realize what she did. The music, stage and ponies were easily seen. When the ending of the song arrived she shut her eyes, swaying with the piano as she spoke the words softly, “I’m a coward to, you don’t need to hide my friend, for I’m just like you.” The song ended slowly with a piano loop, losing layers of music until finally the song came to a close. The crowd erupted in a tremendous yell, hers was the loudest, the next song played. She was in a euphoric trance for the rest of the night, feeling this electric haven until the last song ended. There was a slow electric song playing as the ponies left, she and her friend lagged behind.
“Hey, the ponies are leaving, we should to.” Guaver snapped her out of her musical reverie, she looked at his eyes, completely forgetting that she took out her contacts during her hypnotized state. Her friend looked surprised, “Your eyes! They are not blue! Why are your eyes red now?”
“What?” She panicked, My lenses must’ve fallen out! Mum is going to kill me! She quickly moved her head away from his face and shut her eyes. “I’m sorry… I must’ve lost my lenses when I was dancing.”
“Is okay.” He used his hoof to make her look at him again, “I like your eyes this way, never in all my time in Smane have I seen such amazing eyes.” She opened her eyes again, and looked into his.
“Thanks, Guaver.” She smiled, “For everything.” She moved forward and gave him a friendly peck on the cheek.
“D-De n- My pleasure” He stuttered.
“C’mon, let’s get back to the school.” Vinyl started but movement was halted by a voice behind them.
“Hey!” The unicorns spun around to face the new voice, it was Skri, with Lex following behind him and a group of security keeping a potentially fatal crowd behind them, “You’re the girl who's turning sixteen tonight aren’t you?” he said.
She was stunned by the sudden arrival of the two stallions that sent her into musical reverie, but managed to nod slowly, “Ah-huh.”
Several flashes of a camera.
“Wouldn’t a birthday girl deserve a gift?” He smiled at them, while he managed to levitate her ticket that the bouncer gave back toward him in a green bubble of magic, as he levitated a quill out as well, “To our fan…” He looked at her expectantly.
“Visati.” The white unicorn said.
A gasp, more flashes.
“You don’t exactly look like a Visati… Hmm…” Skri thought aloud quill feather tapping his chin.
“Vinyl.” Lex said behind him, earning a look from all of them, he smiled softly, “She looks more like a Vinyl.” He must have winked through his glasses, because Skri smiled in response and returned to the ticket floating in front of him.
“To our fan Vinyl, Signed Skrillex.” Skri continued then levitated her ticket back to her, “Y’know, you have really striking eyes.” He commented, “Something you and someone I know have in common.” He looked toward the stallion with the shades.
Lex smiled. His glasses shimmered red as he magicked them off his face...
A collective gasp, a thunder of camera flashes.
...to reveal a pair of ruby red eyes, “Skri and I are opposite in everything but our music, coat and attitude.” He said as he levitated his shades over to the speechless unicorn, and wrapped them around her neck, “Happy birthday Vinyl.” He simply said with a smile. The glasses stopped shimmering as they fell down her neck.
She looked at them as they hung around her neck, she was sort for words, “Wow… Umm… Thank you… I really… Wow.”
Lex laughed softly, “Don’t mention it, but we have to run, we got to make it to Manehatten for a concert tomorrow.” They turned and walked off towards their cart.
“You are a lucky filly…” The unicorn’s friend said from behind her, “Vinyl.”
The night after
They made it back to school before the next morning; Vinyl had the good fortune for her birthday to land on a Saturday so it was a Sunday the next day. She woke up in her own bed, but she noticed something different. Her room just seemed… Colourful, all the colours in her room seemed more defined, clearer and more beautiful then before. She smiled, this reminded her of the day before, the lights, the sound… the electricity. She wondered if she could ever feel that again. She made her way to her mirror in the bathroom and she looked at herself. Her hair was all messed up, it was all over the place yet it looked styled, instead of falling straight down her neck it came out to the front of her face. To sompony else it’ll be called bedmane, but she called it... electrified. She came back to attention to her neck, or more specifically the purple shades around it. She looked at them… She concentrated on them… Nothing, she let out a sigh. She used her right hoof to slide the shades over her eyes. She looked really good now, like a DJ. This might stick she thought. She laughed, “Now presenting Vinyl!” She reared up onto her hind hooves but frowned, “No, Vinyl sounds weird on it’s own…" She said to her reflection she got back down and stared into the shades in the mirror, "Vinyl, Vinyl, Vinyl Catch? No... Vinyl Hhh- Mmm- Mmaahh- Saa- Scraa- Scrtch Scratch... Vinyl Scratch?" Her reflection smiled at her through her shades, "Vinyl Scratch! DJ Extraordinaire!" Something clicked in her mind, she didn't mean to say 'DJ Extraordinaire'... She would've wondered longer only a voice from her room interrupted her.
"Visati, breakfast is almost ready, hurry or you'll miss it." Came Clair's angelic voice, over the years that Vinyl was her roommate, Clairinet's voice got softer and softer, probably from all her clarinet playing.
"Right! I'll be out in a minute!" She looked at the pony in the mirror, mane all over the place, big purple shades covering her eyes, "Hmm... I lost my lenses so I'll keep my glasses, but, I should get my hair back to normal." She wondered, she concentrated on the brush on the counter, she concentrated hard... Nothing. "DAMNIT!" She yelled out.
"Are you OK?" Came the reply from Vinyl's yell.
"I'm fine." She frowned, she used her hoof and picked up the brush and fixed her mane, "Just... Fine." She looked at the mirror, her mane was straight and tidy, but she didn't have her lenses. She had a choice, to keep the shades on, or take them off, if she kept them on she'd get teased about them... If she took them off... She'd probably become the least popular kid at the school, the freak with the red eyes... Ultimately, she decided to keep them on, teased is better then tormented after all. She left the bathroom and made her way to the door, she opened it to Clair.
The dark gray musician's calm facade faltered slightly as she caught sight of what her friend was wearing, she subtly scowled, "Nice shades."
Vinyl ignored her tone, and moved passed her friend, "I know! Do you know who used to own these?"
"I don't know... Your father?" Clair hoped.
Vinyl scoffed, "I wish." Vinyl started to make her way down the corridor, followed closely by her friend.
"Who then?"
"Lex did!"
The dark grey unicorn was taken back, "Lex? Who's Lex?" For the first time, Vinyl could hear her friend's voice crack.
"Only the Barron of Base himself! Lex out of Skrillex."
"You listen to them?"
"Yeah they’re amazing, it's as if their music spoke to me." The white unicorn blurted out and trotted out in front of her friend, who stopped at the realization of what Visati said.
This was the first time Vinyl was really scared of her friend, because before the white unicorn could react her friend had rammed her into a wall and came in front of her and spat venom in her face, "Who are you and what did you do to Visati?!"
"What? What are you talking ab-"
"DON'T LIE TO ME!" Clair yelled out of character, "I WILL NOT BELIEVE THAT THE DAUGHTER OF TWO OF THE MOST TALENTED CLASSICAL MUSICIANS LISTENS TO... THAT!" She yelled into her 'friend's' face. Clair's intention was to intimidate and she was successful, Vinyl was trembling in her friend's grasp.
"Clairinet! Unhand Miss Visati at once!" Came the voice of her woodwind teacher, Ms. Reed. Ms. Reed was a tall slender unicorn, her coat and mane was a dark brown, but her mane and tail had a golden line through the center of it, her cutie mark was of a musical reed and her voice was strong and commanding. At her voice, the angered musician dropped her confused friend and faced her teacher, "Now, tell me why Miss Visati deserves that level of verbal interrogation?"
"Yeah, why di-" Vinyl attempted.
"Hush child, let Clairinet tell me." Ms. Reed chided Vinyl for interrupting.
"Ms. Reed! You have to understand, Visati just told me that listens to my bother's music."
"Brothe-" Vinyl attempted to interject.
"You mean Skri and his friend Lex's awful noise?" Ms Reed continued, ignoring Visati's unfinished remark.
"That is right Ms. Reed." Clair responded.
"Where is your proof?"
"These..." The dark grey musician went to levitate Lex's shades of her friends face.
"Hey!" Vinyl attempted, she was too slow to grab her shades, but she closed her eyes in time, so that the crowd that has gathered sometime through the fight couldn't see her secret.
A laugh
"...are Lex's shades, she told me so herself." Clair submitted the shades into her teacher's magic.
"Is this true Miss Visati?" Ms Reed's gaze was fixated on Vinyl's hidden one.
Even though Vinyl couldn't see her, she shuddered, but responded, "Y-yes."
The teacher gasped, "Explain yourself young lady."
Vinyl kept her eyes closed, but responded regardless, "W-well, yesterday was my sixteenth birthday, and Gu- my friend took me out to see a concert..."
"Who is this friend?" Ms Reed demanded.
"I-i'd rather not say." Vinyl mumbled.
"Speak up!"
Vinyl cringed, her eyes still closed, "I don't want to t-!" She tried.
"It was me! I am the friend." Came the voice of Guaver as he emerged from the crowd, "I took her out to see Skrillex the other night." He went to stand next to Vinyl but was stopped by Ms Reed.
A hushed whisper.
"Why on earth would you take her to see them?" Ms Reed challenged.
"Because they were only in the city for that night, and it was her birthday." He answered back to her.
"...and I enjoyed myself..." Vinyl quietly said.
"I'm quite tired of you Visati, SPEAK UP!" Ms. Reed yelled at her.
"I ENJOYED MYSELF!" Vinyl yelled at the teacher with her eyes shut tight, "IT WAS THE BEST NIGHT OF MY LIFE! And you know what? The music was better then any of you could produce!"
Several gasps.
The teacher gasped in response, "Take that back!"
"Never! The music was so good that I dropped my act and became who I REALLY am." She opened her eyes.
A collective shocked gasp.
The teacher lost focus and the shades dropped to the floor, and anyone who had seen her eyes were shocked, save for Guaver, who had already seen it the night before. "This is who I am!" She shook her mane to make it go out of place like it was in the morning.
"Visati?" Clair attempted from behind her.
Vinyl spun around to face her 'friend', "NO! Visati is the classical freak who can't even play the simplest of instruments, Visati is the name my parents gave to me..." This was Clair's first time seeing Vinyl's eyes for what they really were, so naturally she was stunned, "The name I gave myself is Vinyl! Vinyl Scratch DJ Extraordinaire-!"
"DIFFUSE THIS situation... Please." Thundered the dominant voice of the principal, Mr. Zealous, he was a Pale green unicorn with a light orange mane and tail and a music sheet with a treble clef as his cutie mark, "Visati and Clairinet, I expect you both in my office at 9, but for the mean time, I feel we are all quite undernourished from last night's sleep, it will be best to continue this discussion after our stomachs are full and breakfast is only memory, yes?"
Vinyl's stomach agreed, eliciting a small laugh out of the collected group and herself.
"... And I believe these are yours, Miss V." Mr. Z levitated Lex's shades back onto Vinyl's face. The crowd dispersed to the mess hall for breakfast.
Breakfast was different then usual, everyone avoided Vinyl, except Mr. Zealous and Guaver. Even Clair was acting very uncharacteristically mean, she avoided Vinyl completely, she was over with her woodwind buddies. Vinyl enjoyed her breakfast well enough, if it weren't for the constant scowl from her 'friend'.
9 o'clock came around and Vinyl made her way to the principal's office with her shades around her neck. Clair was already waiting for her.
"I see my brother's music has already infected your mind Visati, tisk tisk... Tardiness." The condescending tone that Clair had irked Vinyl.
"That's Vinyl to you Clarinet, and I think Skrillex's music is far beyond your own even." Came Vinyl’s snarky response.
Clair sighed, “Stop referring to them as one person Visati.”
“Vinyl, and I’m not, I’m referring to Skri and Lex as their stage name… You know, what they’re so ridiculously famous with? Don’t you think your brother deserves at least some respect from his sister?” Vinyl winked with a devilish smile.
“MY BROTH-“
“Clairinet? Visati? Ah you’re right on time.” The door opened to reveal Mr. Zealous holding a coffee mug in his magic, “Come inside girls.” He held to door open for both of them.
Clair pushed past Vinyl to get inside the principal’s office. Vinyl glared at the back of Clair’s head.
He motioned the mug towards the two chairs in front of his desk, “Please have a seat.” The principal instructed lightly as the girls entered the room, and the girls complied, “Now I’m sure you know why I have summoned you here this morning,” He continued.
The two nodded.
“Excellent, now I would like to hear both of your recollections of recent events...”
The two started to exclaim their side of the story in a rush of voices before being halted by Mr. Zealous’ hoof, “... One at a time please, starting with Clair’s side.”
“Yes sir, It started this morning when I collected Visati for breakfast, she took longer then usual to exit the room though, when she did though she was wearing these shades over her once normal eyes.” Vinyl was about to interject but was stopped by Mr. Z’s hoof while nodding to Clair to continue, “When we were walking toward the meal room, Visati told me something that had deeply offended me and insulted her parents’ art at the same time.”
Clair paused, “I assumed she was an imposter, a fake, a liar. I had to react, but my Clarinet teacher stopped me.”
“Very good Miss Clair, you may leave.” The door opened in his magic and Vinyl’s ‘friend’ got up and left, the door shut behind her, leaving Vinyl alone with the principal.
“Now, Miss Visati, or Vinyl."
"Vinyl." She responded with a quick tone.
The principal closed his eyes, sighed and compiled a serious demeanor, "Okay, Miss Vinyl, what happened earlier was both concerning and eye opening, given the content of the fierce argument of earlier this morning and evidence given by Clairinet, Ms. Reed and the students who saw you, I am rather worried by your future here at The Academy for the Classical Arts..."
"Mr. Zealous, Please-!" Vinyl panicked, knowing where this is going.
"Don't interrupt..." Vinyl sat back down, Mr. Zealous continued, "Your skill with all the Classical instruments we have available are questionable and below standard, however, your attitude and effort in theory classes, is well placed. I am the principal at the Classical Arts Academy for a reason, I am in charge for caring for and monitoring my student's progress, in the Classical Arts." He opened his eyes, and placed a small smirk on his mouth, "And your progress in the Classical Arts is below average, I feel as thought your talents are misplaced."
Vinyl panicked again, "Don't expel me! I'll be a good stud-... What?"
"Long story short, you don't belong here, at the Academy for the Classical Arts." He took a sip from his coffee, "Ah, that's good joe," He whispered to himself, but he continued at Vinyl's severely confused expression, "I hope you could catch what I was emphasizing in my previous argument, that being your skill in the **classical* arts*. Your mother and father are both classical musicians, but do you know who your uncle on your mother's side is?"
"Yes and no."
"I'll some it up, he is Clopfer, and he was part of the famous band Dire Straits... Lead electrical guitarist and vocalist if I'm not mistaken, then his sister is a famous classical harpist. You have a family of musicians, and I'm sure they just guessed that since they both play classical instruments and you would to, that's why you're here..." He smiled behind his coffee mug again as he took another sip, "...and that's why your father is here to."
Vinyl stood up quickly, "What?!"
Mr. Zealous summoned a telepathic communication spell to talk to his secretary, "Ms. Tones, Send in Mr. C." A few panicked seconds for Vinyl later and her father arrived in the room.
"Visati?"
"She goes by 'Vinyl' now it seems." The principal interjected.
"Is this true? About all this?" Concerto asked his daughter.
"How much did you-" Vinyl attempted.
"Just enough..." Her father responded.
Vinyl stayed silent.
"...and I approve, though we will have to chat with your mother about it, she will end up agreeing, we only want what's best for you."
"Then why all the Classical instruments that you forced on me? And the contacts?"
"We didn't know what instrument you would play, we just knew you'd play an instrument, your mother plays the harp and I play the cello, we had thought you would play something along those lines... And the contacts? We knew the ponies here would shun you because of them, we thought that you'd be considered a freak and tormented, so contacts... Where are they by the way?"
"Oh um... I lost them on Saturday."
"What were you doing on your birthday?"
"A friend took me out to a concert, I believe that was how this all began."
He was momentarily stunned, "...And I believe, I need an enrollment form sorted out."
"One step ahead of you," Mr Zealous said as he levitated out a stack of official looking papers, and stacked them neatly on the desk.
"The Manehattan Academy for The Electronic Arts?" Vinyl read aloud.
"Were you learn to manipulate the forces of your own electricity, pretty much, I am in good with the principal of that school." Mr. Zealous said.
"Thanks Mr Zealous, Thanks dad!" Vinyl jumped up and hugged her father.
"Anything for my little Vis... Vinyl..." Her dad smiled and returned.
Vinyl hesitated, "Dad, To Mr. Zealous and everypony else, I am Vinyl... But to you, I will always be your little Visati." Both father and daughter began to tear slightly, but were interrupted by Mr. Zealous' cough.
"As much as I'd hate to be the rain on this marvelous parade but we do need to hurry up with this, I have a part-time I need to get to, so can we please?" He motioned the paperwork on his desk.
"Tell me where to sign." Vinyl's dad broke his embrace with his daughter. After document signing and filing Mr. Zealous had to go.
"Alright I must get back to my other job, I'll need to see you tomorrow at breakfast though... around 10?..." He slipped a hat and jacket on using his magic, making it hard for the two to make out his other features, but his green head, his voice dropped to a deeper tone, "Birthday girl..." He winked., and Vinyl was struck with realization, she smiled.
"Oh yeah about that, did you get my mail?" Her father asked her.
"What are you talking about? You guys never sent me any mail."
"What? I'm sure I did! Your mother and I sent a letter to you every year on your birthday."
"I never got any mail."
Her father scoffed, "It must be that new mail-pony they've hired, that grey one. Anyway, what they said was basically: Happy birthday!" He embraced Vinyl and ruffed up her mane.
"Noo! You're messing up my mane!" Vinyl playfully laughed, as did her father, as they made up for missed time. Afterwards everything was done and dusted her father returned home and Vinyl retired to her room, with Clair awaiting her. The smile Vinyl had dropped when she caught sight of her most likely former friend.
"Soo, how did it go?" Clair sang in that angelic tone. Vinyl decided to have a little fun with Clair. She put her right hoof on her forehead in a dramatic manner.
"Oh it was simply dreadful!" She exclaimed in a dramatic tone, as she walked dramatically to her bed with a dramatic demeanor.
"Pity." Came the response, Vinyl noticed that Clair had an evil smirk across her lips, "Care to elaborate?"
"After you left Mr. Zealous went all out! He brought down my talent in the Classical Art and told me I was wasting my time here!" She flomped on her bed in a dramatic way, "He even brought my father into it! And they agreed!"
"Aww... That's a shame." Clair responded, "Did that get you out of your crazy phase?"
Vinyl picked up her head, and looked in Clair's direction, "I never said that."
Clair looked towards Vinyl, "What?" At Clairinet's gaze Vinyl dropped her head back to her pillow.
"I never said that they tried to get me to remove this 'phase', in fact they want me to embrace it."
"What do you mean?" Clair said weakly
Vinyl smiled, "My dad signed this little sheet saying that I don't belong here."
No reply.
"I'm going to the Manehattan Academy for the Electronic Arts." Vinyl sang almost.
Clair was still silent... Vinyl heard a sniff coming from Clair's direction. "Clair?" Vinyl looked towards her friend as a tear rolled down her cheek.
"Why?" Clair barely breathed out above a whisper.
Vinyl got off her bed, "Clair?" She moved over the her friend's bed, "What's wrong?"
"It's that blasted music, that electric crap." There was a first time for everything, this was the first time that Vinyl heard her friend swear.
"What do you mean by that?" Vinyl asked her weeping friend.
"It's taken everything I love away from me." Clair dropped her head onto her pillow, she continued, "First it's taken my brother away from me, now it's taking my best friend as well."
"Clair?"
"My brother died that day that Lex showed him that awful noise. My only brother."
"He didn't die..."
She shoved her head out of her pillow and glared daggers at Vinyl, "YES HE DID! He left and never came back, playing his ridiculous music all over Equestria!" Clair returned to her pillow and started to sob quietly, "That music has taken away everything that I love."
"Look Clair..." Vinyl used a hoof to make her sobbing friend look at her, "When I saw Skri and Lex perform yesterday, it was like watching you play your clarinet, they were at peace together, two parts working as a whole... Just because his music is different from yours, doesn't make it anything more than horrid noise, the songs I've heard from him had all the basic elements to a song that you'd play... It has bass, treble, melodies, bridges, vocals and body, it's just played differently." Vinyl smiled a bit taking her glasses off with the hoof that was by her friend and let them fall down her neck, "You've always helped me with cryptic metaphors now it's time for me to help you," Vinyl paused for thought, but came up with an idea, "If a baker could only bake a kind of pastry that only you didn't like, would you stop him from making it?" Clair smiled.
"That's a pretty bad metaphor..." Clair laughed through her tears.
"I'm doing the best I can." Vinyl said back, "Besides, when I saw your brother up there, he was very much alive, maybe you should write to him."
"I guess." Clair said forlornly.
"Now I have a bag to pack." Vinyl finalized and let go of Clair. After an afternoon of packing vinyl was ready to leave, though she thought it was best that she'd left after breakfast on the Monday.
"I see that you have retained at least some of your sense." Clair joked.
"Shuddit you!" Vinyl replied, "Well I have to go now." Vinyl turned to leave with her bags in tow.
"Wait." She heard from behind her, Vinyl turned... Only to be shoved into an embrace by her friend, "I'll miss you."
"I will too." Vinyl said as she returned her embrace. After a few seconds she broke the embrace.
"If you see my brother, tell him... Tell him I said 'hi'." Clair resolved.
Vinyl smiled, "Will do Clair... Will do." Vinyl turned to leave and made her way to the front to wait for her father. It was bright outside so her shades had a use, other than looking awesome, of course.
“Hey! Don’t think you are going to leave while not saying good bye.” Came a familiar voice from behind her.
Vinyl knew who that was, “I wouldn’t dream of it, Guaver.” She said as she turned around to behind her Smanish friend.
“I will never see you again will I?” He said sadly.
“I wouldn’t count on that.” Vinyl said as she made towards her friend, “We can still write to each other.”
“While that is true, that was not what I was asking.” Guaver said, “We will never physically see each other anymore.”
“I’m not sure if that is entirely true, Guaver.”
Guaver sighed, “I am moving back to Smane with my family at the end of the month.”
Vinyl smiled, and kissed him on the cheek, “Well, when I’m a famous DJ, I’ll make sure to tour around Equestria, and I’ll make Smane my first visit.”
“I like this idea.” He said back with a smile.
“I will see you later Guaver.”
“I will wait until then... It looks like a carriage is coming, I have to get to class now, adios!” Guaver
“Adios, mi amiga!” Vinyl yelled after him, smiling.
"Mi Amigo!" He corrected, but ran back inside to get to his class, Vinyl chuckled at her friend's expense as she turned to the street where the carriage is getting closer.
The carriage pulled up in front of Vinyl, the door opened to reveal both of Visati’s parents. Vinyl's smile dropped, she still had to get through her mother.
"Visati, dear! How long has it been since we have last seen you!" A voice came from inside the carriage.
"Long enough." Vinyl scowled slightly as she closed in on the carriage hauling her belongings.
"Smit! Help her with her bags." Her mother called out to the family butler.
"Right away Mistress SilkStrings." A familiar voice came from behind the carriage. The stallion rounded the carriage and took sight of Vinyl as she did of him, not much has changed, he was the same unicorn with a white coat and black mane and that same tuxedo that covered up most of his body including his cutie mark.
"Smitty! How good to see you!" Vinyl greeted her oldest friend.
"Lady Visati! How you've changed!" Smit levitated her the biggest of her bags onto the cart, followed by her others, "Your mother is eager to catch up with you."
"And I have some questions for her." She frowned as she entered the carriage. She saw two figures there, whom she could only assume be her mother and father.
"Visati dear, why are you still wearing those shades? It's not bright in here." Her mother's voice kidded.
"I lost my contacts." She said bluntly
She could almost make out her mother's twitch, Vinyl kept a sick smile off her face, "It's quite alright dear, I haven't seen the real Visati in a while, come now... Take of those shades."
"Alright mum." Vinyl used her hoof to take the shades off, freeing her real eyes.
Her mother cringed slightly, "That's better." Her mother strained as she tried to give her a hug.
"Hold it," Vinyl moved back, "Before I forgive you for years of neglect, I have some questions."
"Neglect?" Her mother objected, but was stopped by her husband.
"Now Silk, Let's hear what she has to say... Go ahead dear." Vinyl's father allowed.
"Thanks dad, First off... Why did you force me to try all those instruments?"
Her mother hesitated, "We wanted to see what you were best at."
"And even after I didn't do well with any of them you persisted in sending me to Classical School?"
"We didn't know what instrument you would play, we had figured we let you find out for yourself."
"Yet still send me to Classical school?" Vinyl rebuked.
"We... We were sure you would be a classical musician, judging by the instruments we play being in the same type, we were sure you'd be in the same type as well."
"But what about the contacts?"
"Oh Visati, you forget, your father and I went to the Classical arts school as well. When we were there, there was an earth pony that was massively prejudiced based on her race. So if you turned up with red eyes, we couldn't imagine the torment they'd put you through."
"Oh..." Vinyl moved closer to her mum, "In that case." She hugged her, "Thank you."
After a bit Concerto interrupted, "Now Visati, I had the chance to research this 'Electric Music' that you enjoy so much, and your mother and I have agreed on one thing..." Visati's father said from the other side of the carriage, Vinyl slightly feared what would come next, she broke the hug with her mother, "...It makes sense."
Vinyl was stunned momentarily, "What?"
"You enjoying the Electric arts makes sense." Her mother reiterated.
"How? You two are some of the most renowned Classical artists... How does 'me enjoying the Electric arts' make sense?" Vinyl questioned her parents.
"Well, I couldn't understand why either but when I was doing my research I came across a phrase that stood out above the rest, 'Contrary to popular belief, Electric Music is only made properly when the treble and bass coincide perfectly'."
Vinyl thought for a minute, "What?"
"Think of the instruments we play Visati." Her mother said to her.
"The harp and cello? But how does that... Wait." Vinyl stopped, her parents smiled.
"I play bass and your mother plays treble, it's so frighteningly obvious, I don't know why we didn't see it before." Her father laughed.
"So you both are alright with me if I made Electric music?"
"Not only would we be alright with it..." Her mother started.
"...We would be amazingly proud of you." Her father concluded.
"Thank you mum and dad, I love you." She hugged both of them, which was awkward at the angle they were at but she pulled it off.
"We love you too." They said in unison.
After about an hour of family catching up time the three arrived in Manehatten and about ten minutes after that they arrived at the Manehatten Academy for the Electronic Arts, the principal, Mr. Eager, greeted them. Mr. Eager, or Mr. E as he prefers, is a pure green unicorn stallion with a dark green mane and a music sheet with a... Bass clef?, as the cutie mark. Vinyl moved through the school with Mr. E and Smit in tow, Smit was carrying her luggage with expert precision.
After a while Vinyl got curious, "Wait... Mr. E?" she asked him.
"Yes Miss Vinyl?"
"Do you know who Mr. Zealous is?"
"Who? The principal of the Classical Academy in Calterlot?" Vinyl nodded, "Yeah I know him... Lived with him most my life."
Vinyl was taken back, "You... Lived with him?"
"Well yeah, he is my brother you know."
"Oh! Eager and Zealous... I get it." Joked Vinyl, Mr. E winked. After initial introductions Vinyl was shown to her dorm by Mr. E, she was surprised to say the least, throughout the whole time Vinyl forgot that her shades were around her neck, not on her face, but no one objected, I am going to enjoy it here... she finalized. She was finally introduced to her roommate, he was a particular colt, around her age, his coat was black and his mane and tail was black as well but with a yellow stripe through the middle of them, he also wore glasses over his yellow eyes.
"Hey, I'm LuDytrot, but I make music under the alias, LDT." He said with a heavy Trottingham accent while holding out his right hoof for a hoof-shake.
She shook his hoof, "Vinyl Scratch, I'm yet to make a stage alias though." She wondered for a brief second, "How did you come up with LDT?"
"My initials plus Country. LD and Trottingham. LDT."
"Oh," Vinyl smiled.
"Excellent, so now that you are acquainted I have to get back to my office to arrange a guest appearance for Friday," Mr. E said as he left the two alone.
"I suppose you'd need to unpack, nice shades by the way," LDT said.
"That'd be nice, and thanks," She looked down the aforementioned shades and smiled, "Ten points if you can guess where I got them from."
"Hmm I'll put that aside for later, in the meantime I'll grab the heavier stuff will you can sort out the smaller ones."
"Don't you think I can get the heavier ones?" Vinyl asked.
"That would be a bit hard without magic," He stated as Vinyl's biggest luggage bags flew through the door in a yellow hue.
"How did you know I couldn’t use my magic yet?" She looked at him skeptically.
He paused his work to point at her flank, Vinyl's eyes followed his hoof "You haven't realized fully yet."
"What?" She asked looking back towards LDT.
"No cutie mark, but the look in your magnificent eyes says that you have seen had a small amount of your talent, but not fully." He smiled as he resumed his work, "Every unicorn realizes in a different way, the most common way is that your senses are heightened, you see clearer, taste better, hear better, smell better and feel better..." He nodded his head towards the floating bag, "And magic..."
"Ah..." Vinyl smiled as well, as she opened her bags, "But if 'realising' heightens your senses... Why are you wearing glasses?"
"Because," He motioned towards the cutie mark on his flank, "My specialty is with music, my hearing is improved more so then my sight, in fact, when I had realized, I'm pretty sure my sight degraded in favor of my hearing... But I don't mind, that means I can make the most awesome music, and..." He made Vinyl notice the lightning bolt, "... tear apart others, I can hear all the levels of all music."
"Neat," Vinyl said as she sorted out her clothing. After a morning of sorting the two headed out to lunch, Vinyl wondered something, "Say, Isn't it a Monday today?"
"Sure is," LuDytrot responded.
"Shouldn't you have classes?"
"Nope!" He smiled, "My classes are Tuesday to Friday."
"Why only Tuesday to Friday?"
"Well, I study Harmonic Music, Music Back Tracks, Bass and Treble Class, also Light Rigging."
"They offer Light Rigging?"
"Yeah! Light Rigging, Theory, and Programming."
"What? I thought this was a Music school."
"Pfft, No. It's Electronic Arts, everything electronic pretty much."
"Huh..." The two arrived at the hall, the food was pretty decent, provided that she'd get some, the line took for ever... There were so many ponies here, but the smell of hay fries, hay bacon burgers, hash browns and assorted juices kept her waiting. After lunch LuDytrot directed her to the subject selection area, she had to choose her subjects by next Sunday or they'd choose her subjects for her.
Friday
"...and here is the auditorium. We have a guest appearance today, so classes are off... or in some cases, mine for example, moved to Saturday," Lu, as Vinyl has come to call him, sighed as he is going to give up his Saturday in favor of school, The auditorium was full of all the students attending the school, to sum it up, it was chockers.
"Where do we stand?" Asked Vinyl.
"Anywhere really, you can sit in the roof beams if you want."
Vinyl snorted a laugh, barely heard above the crowd.
"I'm being serious, the pegasi doing Light and Speaker Rigging normally sit up there," he gestured up to the roof beams, where a few pegasus ponies were sitting.
"HEY LD! HOW'S IT!" A pegasi on the roof shouted down to him.
"NOT TO BAD, HOW'S THE WEATHER UP THERE?!" LD shouted back.
"MILDLY PLEASANT THANK YOU!"
Lu turned back to face Vinyl with a smile, "See?"
"I see." Vinyl smiled as well. LD moved over to a couple of spare spots and waited for Vinyl to come over to him.
"Your attention please, everypony!" Mr. E's voice projected through the speakers, casting everyone to an eased hush, "Thank you all, now I'd like to introduce a couple of previous students of this academy..."
A small collective groan.
"... They are well respected, well known ponies known almost all over Equestria!"
A slightly louder groan., Vinyl started to get bored.
"I'm sure many of you already know them as well..."
A hushed murmur., Vinyl started to disconnect.
"Please welcome Skri and Lex to the stage, Fillies and Gentlecolts!"
A confused gasp of appreciation. Vinyl's ears perked up.
"Hey guys," Skri started, Vinyl remembered her promise, and she held onto it during the whole talk. Skri and Lex talked about Lights and how they can aid in the presentation of music with the addition of another sense... or something along those lines. After the talk, and a few new unreleased tracks, Vinyl made her way to talk to them.
"Hey!" She called out after them.
"Oh hey! It's our friend Vinyl." Skri smiled as the filly approached them.
"Vinyl Scratch now." She smugly corrected.
"Well then, Miss Vinyl Scratch... To what do we owe the pleasure?" Lex asked her.
"Actually, I was told by a friend to tell Skri something."
"Yes?" Skri asked.
"Clairinet says Hi, and she misses you." Vinyl added the 'misses you' part for effect.
Skri was stunned, "What?"
"Your sister says hi." Vinyl restated.
"Really? Wow... The last time I saw her she made it very clear that she didn't want to see me again."
"Yeah, I knocked some sense into her."
"Wait... You managed to out-talk Clair?" Skri said disbelievingly.
"Yep." Vinyl simply replied.
"Are you sure you aren't Celestia in disguise or something? Honestly, I lived with her all my life and could not out argue her!"
"I'm just amazing like that." Vinyl said smugly.
"Amazing you are, you now hold the Awesome award Miss Scratch, For commendable Awesomeness." Skri gushed, "Wow, my sister misses me!" Skri was gob smacked, "I'll go wait in the carriage Lex." Skri left with a triumphant laugh, Vinyl watched him go with a smile on her face.
"So I see you kept my glasses intact," Lex said from behind her.
"Yeah." She responded, she noticed what Lex was wearing, or to be more accurate, what he wasn't wearing, "Were these your only pair?"
"Well yes, but I could always get more, I just thought that since I now know that I'm not the only one with red eyes I won't have to hide them any more." He smiled soflty, then moved to meet up with Skri, he looked back and smiled, "Thanks"
"Don't mention it." She said back. He then left her on her own, "Now, let's see if I can make it back to my room."
The school gave her a week to listen into the subjects she is interested in, before she chose her subjects. After a week she had decided what subjects she'd study they are, Harmonic Music, Bass and Treble Classes, Synthesizer Class, Light Programming and Sound Analysis. She has a hard road ahead of her in the three years she has in this school... but, in the end... how would that differ to the road she took getting here?
A week ago, elsewhere.
"Letter!" The mailpony called from the front door of a house.
The door opened to reveal a dark grey earth pony with a black mane, "Thank you Miss Doo."
"No problem!" The mailpony saluted, and then flew off after giving her the letter.
The charcoal coloured pony sighed, it's another letter sent to her mistakenly. The letter was designed so only the intended recipient could open it, so she could guess that it was a unicorn. She kept receiving these letters the same day every year, she attempted to give it back to the mailpony but Derpy refused saying that she'll find out in time. Still... she didn't know who it was, and she certinatily doesn't know who this 'Visati' is.
22/02/12 9:33:10AM - Fixed, for the most part, I'm sorry you had to put up with that piece of SSSSSHHHHHHHunedited work.
