Moonlight Sonata

Chapters

Chapter 1: Boarding Pass
Chapter 3: Positive Reinforcement
Chapter 4: Scratch n' Sniff
Chapter 5: Sea Salt on Old Wounds
Chapter 6: Symphonic Echoes
Chapter 7: Crescendo
Chapter 8: Broken Bottles and Jaded Strings
Chapter 9: An Octave Lower
Chapter 10: Scratching Vinyl
A Night to Remember
A Night to Remember, Pt. 2
Prologue: Four Tickets
Chapter 2: Dinner and Champagne

Chapter 1: Boarding Pass

(2 Weeks Later)

Vinyl, who had never been on a cruise before, stared out the window at the hulking blue ship. The thing was massive; it could probably hold a thousand ponies or more. From the boarding building's windows, she counted about fifteen enormous silver lifeboats on the right side. Up top were two huge cylindrical funnels, one at the front of the ship, the other at the back. In the middle of them spanned an elongated semi-cylinder forged of foggy scarlet glass. Looking back down at the open brochure on her lap, she found it to be a fancy restaurant by the name Princess's Court.

Up from the leaflet, she took a good look around the waiting room. With Lyra's pass, they were at the complete front of the line to board, but the wait was killing Vinyl. The bland room wasn't helping either; the grey carpets matched the grey walls perfectly, and both did a fair job of matching the grey ceiling. Out to her right, was a large open room - the customs area, where they had presented their tickets and such. Past that was the waiting area, which was just a plethora of bolted down chairs in the style of an airport.

The walls were no more forgiving, bearing only a few pictures of other ships from the Regal Eloquence line. She soon found that she was fortunate to be sitting next to a window; looking at the odd features of the ship was the only form of entertainment she was going to get. Sitting on the row beside her was, of course, Octavia, but she was reading a book and 'politely ignoring' Vinyl, as she had put it earlier. Adjacent to them, Lyra and Bonbon were snuggling close, barely restraining their excitement to mere smiles.

So she resigned herself to staring out the window, occasionally looking down at the pamphlet. From that little booklet, she learned quite a bit about the cruise: They would be entering the main foyer, which was a huge room with elevators on either side. This was also the ballroom apparently, and would be where Lyra would be playing on the more fancy occasions. Around that, on multiple levels, there was an assortment of shops, cafes, and other small things. Past that, heading to the forward of the ship were the cabins. Theirs were on the top level; suites, given only to esteemed guests or rich ponies.

On the very top deck, according to the booklet, was a covered bar and pool that surrounded the fancy restaurant. At the front, was a huge hot tub, with a pool attached. At the back there was a mini-golf course, surprisingly. In just staring at it, Vinyl was lost in her awe-struck stare.

"Boarding in 10 minutes." The intercom boomed loudly, no doubt disturbing the countless stuck up ponies in the large room. Vinyl herself was clutching her chest tightly, rocking in her chair. Octavia sighed, but did not turn up from her book. Though if there was one good thing she got out of the sudden jolt - and her marefriend's rudeness - it was a reason to complain.

"Lyra, why do I have to wear this while we board? Can't it wait till, like dinner or something?" Vinyl asked, examining her crimson dress with a hoof. The thing arched on her back, spreading down her plot, and drooping to the floor. A scarlet bow tie sealed the whole thing, while vivid red hoofwraps encircled her legs to complement it.

"Because," she said, turning away from Bonbon. "This is a fancy occasion, so you need to be dressed for such." Her own dress was a deep emerald gown that ended at the arch of her tail. Around her neck was a teal collar, with small ruffles on its end. Hoofwraps curled up her legs as well, mirroring the whole party's legs.

Vinyl huffed and observed Bonbon. She was wearing a simple saddle that was studded with tiny gems, all of which were a deep purple. The saddle itself was a nice, soft violet, with some artisan crafted ruffles on its borders. Her hoofwraps were the same color as the gems, and they did well to complement her overall look.

After Lyra and Bonbon had gone back to chatting about the cruise, Vinyl turned to her cold marefriend. Octavia was dressed in her simple pink bowtie, but complemented it with a pink gown that almost matched her own. But instead of hoofwraps, Octavia was wearing stripped pink socks. Vinyl couldn't help but blush, a small chortle slipping free.

Octavia, she soon saw, was staring at her with an annoyed look on her face. "Oh, ha, sorry Tav," Vinyl said with a chuckle, blushing and turning away. Tav grunted and went back to her book.

"Boarding in five minutes. Please have your ticket prepared at the gate." Once again, Vinyl was caught off guard. Her heavy breathing was faintly audible.

"Everyone have their ticket?" Lyra asked her crowd. She and Bonbon held theirs up, and so did Octavia, that annoyed look still on her face.

"Yep, right here," Vinyl said, pulling her ticket out with magic.

"Alright good. We should get up to the gates now, just in case," she said and winked. Lyra fell to her hooves from the chair, and Bonbon came after. The couple smiled, and hooked out of the block of chairs.

Octavia smiled back to them, then, when they had gone up to the gates, turned to Vinyl. She scowled. "You and I are having a very serious talk when we get to the cabin, understand?"

Vinyl just gulped down her words and nodded. They both stood on their hooves - Vinyl letting the little pamphlet fall - and headed up to the gates with the rest of their party. She was not particularly looking forward to this talk, but she would do anything for Octavia at this point, so she would just have to see where it went. No fighting, she reminded herself. She would have none of that on the cruise.

The two ponies met up with Lyra and Bonbon, their tickets ready in their mouths. The gates were also what a pony could expect form an airport - a royal airport, that is. Large red felt ropes funneled ponies into an organized line, leading up to a security check, then to the boarding tunnel. Lyra, Bonbon, Octavia and Vinyl were lucky enough to be at the front of the line; from the length of the felt ropes, Vinyl was sure it would get packed.

"Boarding in one minute," the intercom announced.

Behind them, a line of ponies began to form. Most of them were content to chat with each other, their uptight tone filling the tense air. Though, there were the few who shot Vinyl looks. Scores of flutters churned in her stomach.

Vinyl looked to her forward at the large grey security pony. He was giving her an evil eye behind his sunglasses, she could tell. Anywhere else, and she'd tell this colt off. But a quick glance to Octavia puckered Vinyl's open lips.

"C'mon girls!" Lyra said, slicing through the tension with her giddy chimes. "We're boarding!"

Octavia scowled at Vinyl once more, then turned and followed their bouncy friend and her marefriend. Vinyl felt like she was getting scolded left and right, when she hadn't even done anything. If she was going to be talked down to the whole time she is on this cruise, well, she may as well jump overboard. She was a good swimmer. The thought tinged in her head as she handed the grey stallion her ticket. He took it with his mouth, slid it into a bucket, then turned to the huge line behind her.

Sighing and hanging her head, she sauntered behind them, her red hoofwraps protecting her form the cold floor. The dress was warm enough, she found, to keep the chilly air of the boarding tunnel off of her. The shaft - like everything else - was a terribly bland grey. Vinyl hoped the cruise had at least one more color aboard it, or she would die of the dullness. "Fancy ponies," she grumbled under her breath.

Octavia darted a look that commanded silence, causing Vinyl to bite her lip and retract. "Tell me darling, do we have to go through the card process?" she asked, turning from Vinyl. The way she could regain her formal rhythm eluded her mind.

Up ahead of them, Lyra was already nearing the entrance to the ship. "Nope! Isn't that great? All of our cards are being sent to the suites," replied Lyra.

"Carding process?" Vinyl's gaze fell to her hooves as she bit her lip.

"Yes, dear," Octavia said to her, "Everypony on the cruise must have a card given to them by the company. It proves that they belong on the ship. If you don't have it, you can't buy drinks, or even enter the bars... I may just take yours away." She tossed a hoof beneath her chin, rubbing it in thought.

Vinyl growled. "There you go again, treating me like I'm a filly!" she said.

"I told you before, when you act as one, I shall treat you as one!" Octavia snapped back.

"Girls, please," Bonbon said, turning to face them. "Can you put the fighting off till later, or something?" She nodded over to Lyra, who's head hung low. "Please?"

The two bickering ponies simply huffed and turned away from each other.

"Thanks." Bonbon sighed, turning back to Lyra. Her comforts and condolences were barely audible, but Vinyl could pick them up.

***

Soon they entered the ship, stepping past a grated entryway and through the ballast. Vinyl found herself looking in awe at the foyer; it was truly awe-inspiring. She continued through the side boarding door in which she came, soaking the whole place in. The floor was glossy wood, with glass laying over a finely carved recreation of a meteor shower. The floor stretched into a square, just as the room was. The walls on either side were in the continuing arch shape of the boat, lined with windows which were separated by finely crafted columns. Blue seemed to be the main theme here, as the horizontal columns on the walls were deep blue with white trim.

To Vinyl's left, there were the elevators. Two of them shot up the wall, creating the line of symmetry that ran down the ship. On either side was a hallway that led deep into the ship; she could see signs for various bars and clubs, and also what seemed to be a casino behind them all. A grin grew as she had found her first destination.

Above the first floor, but only on the left, were about five more stories. The railing on these were blue with a golden trim now, and also expertly crafted to resemble waves. All the way at the top, the theme of the ship was revealed as Vinyl saw a huge mural of Princess Luna hovering above the clashing waves of a stormy sea, the moon and stars behind her. That would explain the name of the ship: Lunar Maiden.

On her right, Vinyl saw the eloquent stage that Lyra would perform on. On the far side of it was a large doorway that she could not see into. The stage itself though was raised about three feet from the floor, with wavy blue pillars creeping up its glistening white-gold side. On either side was a staircase, white marble forming each step. As of now, the stage's dark blue floor had only a grand piano, but Vinyl was actually looking forward to seeing Lyra up there.

"Vinyl, we're waiting on you," said Octavia. She was holding the right elevator's doors open with her hooves.

She snapped from her daze and galloped to her party. "Oh, um, sorry about that," she said with a blush. Her wide eyes did not droop.

"Just pay more attention next time, will you?"

Bonbon placed a hoof on Vinyl's dress, a pleading look in her eyes. VInyl shook her head with a long sigh. "Sorry," she said with a sneer.

Nopony really said anything after that: Vinyl was content to watch the elevator rise above the foyer from the glass, and Octavia refused to even look at her. Lyra and Bonbon just kept giving each other nervous smiles, as if there was a way to ease up the tension that filled the elevator.

Behind them, the doors glided open, revealing the top floor. "Alright, this way. We need to get to the next set of elevators," Lyra chirped, bouncing off the elevator. Her enthusiastic demeanor did its job, and soon all four of them had at least a small grin.

***

Up the internal set of elevators one measly floor, the crew got out and took a right. They were in the cabin section now, the suites being the closest to the foyer and such. This area was rather small, almost box-like, with two elevators on either side of the small area. The red carpets offered a nice change of scenery here, though, and Vinyl had found her vanity comparing the awesome carpets to her eyes.

At the forward center of this room, a fine staircase topped off. On either side of the staircase loft, two hallways split off in an L shape. Lyra and Bonbon were leading them down the right hall, into another vivid area. The red carpets seriously clashed the blue walls here, but the white trim in the corners blended it in a way that made it seem attractive. She was surprised to say the least. The hallway was quite cozy.

Doors spanned down this hallway on either side, and between each was a small candle fixture that lit the place through soft scarlet glass. The gaps between them were great, but as Lyra had said, these were first class suites! Butterflies ahoy in Vinyl's stomach, she took up last place as her party stopped at a pair of doors.

"Alright, one-thirteen! This is yours and Vinyl's," she said, levitating the room key to Octavia's mouth. "We're right next door here, so if you need us, don't hesitate to come over! Now, the luggage should be brought up in about an hour, if there aren't any problems. Um, dinner is at six I think; its earlier tonight than it will be the rest of the time. So, yep, if you two need anything else, just ask!" She turned to Bonbon. "C'mon, I think they delivered champagne for us." They both giggled, and entered their suite together.

When their door closed, Octavia slid the room key into their door. The white wooden door swung open easily, and Vinyl was greeted with her new abode. The walls here were a nice, light shade of blue, with the darker blue of the room laying in the carpets. The entryway was small - the first bathroom was right there apparently, closed in a small area - but it was no problem as she barged in behind Tav.

The door slammed shut behind her, letting her prance around in private. She dashed past Octavia, and two wooden armoires, to the large countertop that spanned the left wall of the room. It was loaded with soaps, shampoos, chocolates, and even a bucket of ice that was chilling a champagne bottle.

Tempted though she was, Vinyl decided to leave it and check out the balcony next. She threw open the curtains, and slammed open the blue stained glass doors, throwing herself out onto the balcony that overlooked the Great Equestrian Sea. It wasn't as big as she'd imagined - it only spread out about twelve feet - but it was furnished. A midnight blue couch was bolted into the stained wood, a small wooden table in front of it. The couch curved around the far right corner. Above it was a blue wooden board; this separated their balcony from their neighbor's. The railing on the balcony was wavy and blue, just as most of the other railings on the ship.

Finding this place to be rather boring, she pranced back inside. Octavia snarled as she trotted past, heading to the actual bathroom of the place. Through the opening in the wall Vinyl ran, examining the whole bathroom. It was an elongated rectangle that spanned the length of the suite. At one end, there were two sinks. At the opposite, there was a rather nice looking hot tub. Vinyl's grin widened as her face grew devious.

"Vinyl, get out here," Octavia demanded in a scolding tone.

Ears flat, Vinyl poked her head out of the bathroom. Octavia was sitting on one of the two blue beds, tapping her hoof impatiently. Cautiously, Vinyl left the bathroom and neared Tav, sitting next to her on the bed. The purple eyes of the Octavia stared into her soul, a seriousness about them that she only saw in her concerts or scoldings.

"First of all, I suppose I'm happy you came. But I am by no means happy with you, so don't even begin to think everything is fine," she said. "Now this prancing around has to stop. I will not tolerate you embarrassing me or yourself. Also, that dress was expensive; I'll not have you ruining it with your silly antics."

Vinyl examined the cloth of her scarlet dress and rolled her eyes. "I'm just having a bit of fun."

"Don't talk," Octavia said with a blunt tone. "I'll do the talking, and you shall listen. If not, you can have fun sleeping on the deck." She pointed to the deck with her hoof.

Vinyl bit her lip and fidgeted, but did not speak out. Instead she just nodded and stayed silent.

"And, while we're on the topic of sleeping, there are two beds in this room. You can have the one closest to the deck, and I'll take this one."

The cold arrangements brought a frown to her face, but she knew Octavia would let her in the same bed. She just had to give it time. For now, she simply nodded again.

"Dinner is in, what, four hours? Good, we have time to get settled. Our luggage should be up soon, and then we can-"

Vinyl cut her off, wrapping her forelegs around Octavia's neck and pulling her close. "I'm sorry Tav, I just wanted to start this off right."

Octavia fumbled with her words, but returned the embrace nonetheless. "W-Well, that's very good of you," Octavia said, blushing ever so lightly. Her soft socks pressed against Vinyl's red dress, and even though both of those things severed direct contact, Vinyl still smiled, her eyes closed and her breathing deeps and warm. Unfortunate as it was, they hadn't actually hugged in a good while. A very familiar rush of heat filled Vinyl to the brim.

"So, you wanna pop that champagne open?" Vinyl asked with a giggle.

But Octavia snapped back into her cold demeanor. She pulled away from Vinyl, giving her a harsh stare, and with a tone of authority said, "Oh no, you aren't getting drunk this early in the cruise. You'll be lucky if I let you have any alcohol at all!" The grey cellist placed her hooves on her hips.

"Whoa, and who are you to say if I can drink or not?" Vinyl fired back a harsh scowl.

"I am the responsible mare in the relationship!" she said.

Vinyl gave a cold look. "I'm very responsible, thank you very much!"

"Oh please, you are hardly responsible. Has all that vodka of yours damaged your brain already?"

Vinyl was fuming with rage now. "I can't believe you! You know what, I'm gonna go explore! Yeah! I don't need this right now!"

"Don't you dare get that tone with me!" Octavia hissed.

"I wouldn't if I didn't get yelled at every five minutes!".

Octavia, before she said anything else, took a deep breath in. "Fine. Go. Perhaps we just need a little while to 'cool off'. Just be back before six, okay?" Her composition came back much faster than Vinyl had expected.

She had to blink the shock off. "Yeah, I'll be back before dinner. Can I have my card though?" Her mood was nowhere near normal yet, but she could force it if need be.

Octavia picked up Vinyl's card from the pillow and handed it to her. "If you get drunk," she said, pulling it out of her marefriend's reach, "It's the deck. Understand?"

"Yeah yeah, I get it," she said. She snatched the card with her magic, eager to get going before any more words were flung. Once it was in her grasp, she tucked it away in a small pocket of her dress and headed for the door.

Just before she managed to slip through it, Octavia gave her final warning: "And don't get your dress dirty. You have to wear it to dinner tonight." Her tone was full of stress; Vinyl quietly nodded with pursed lips.

"Gotcha Tav," she promised with a wink, squeezing though the door. It promptly shut behind her, leaving her in the quiet hallway alone.

***

Vinyl eventually made her way to the foyer again. This time, however, it was packed with ponies dressed in extravagant suits and dresses, all chatting amongst themselves. The scattered mess she found herself in now was terrible as much as it was annoying; everypony seemed eager to escape the place before more could shuffle in, creating a hurried feeling that jostled her around. It was strange, too: she was simply trying to get to the information center, behind the elevators, yet she managed to get sucked into the middle of the room.

Things were getting ugly. The ponies around her were more than uptight, so every time she accidentally bumped into one of them, they gave her a slice of their opinion. A very, very angry slice, topped with long words and drizzled with insults. To top that off, her dress was at risk of being ruined. She didn't want to piss Tav off any more, so she was doing her best to preserve it, yanking it up above her hooves and hugging it close to her body.

Eventually she was spat out of the crowd in the right place, dress and ego intact. Now she was in the less crowded hallway that spanned beyond the elevators. It was tiled with marble, spanning down the length of the ship. So far as she could see, the only place where this hall and its twin met were right where she was standing; the information desk.

Surprisingly, there was no line here. She approached the desk, which was right on the elevator wall and rang the small bell on it a few times. Bells were fun, after all.

But an annoyed looking desk clerk thought otherwise. "Hello miss," he grunted.

"Hi," Vinyl smiled politely. "I was wondering when we head off."

"That'd be just before dinner, madam."

Placing her hoof under her chin, Vinyl looked up at the board behind him. This bright blue info board held a lot of interesting things to her: There was the massage parlor, the lounge hours, and even room service. That definitely peaked her interest. "Room service, eh? What kinda stuff can I get from that?" she asked the frowning stallion.

"Anything from the ship's restaurant. Would you care for a copy of the menu?" His face was twitching, and it seemed as though he had more to say.

Remembering seeing a menu on the counter in the suite, Vinyl declined. "Nah, thanks though. I do have another question though!" she told the retreating colt. "When does the massage place open?" The thought of a massage was nice, but Octavia was on her mind as she asked. That pony needed to chill, and this was the perfect opportunity.

"Nine to midnight, miss. But I'm afraid it isn't open today. You'll also need to make reservations-"

"Reservation for two in the earliest time you got!" Vinyl slammed her blue plastic card on the table.

The stallion picked up her card and inspected it. "Why, ma'am, you have a V.I.P. card," he said in an apologetic tone.

"So?" Vinyl asked. She examined the card with an unimpressed stare.

"You don't understand the V.I.P. system?" He gave her a confused look. When she shook her head, he proceeded to say, "Well, for starters, you can set up a reservation at any time in the spa. Just say when is good for you, and I can make it happen. Also, all of your drinks at the various bars around the cruise are completely free."

Vinyl's heart skipped a beat; free drinks, from every bar? A huge smile stretched across her face. "Anything else?"

"Your room service is free, of course. And your dinners, supposing you choose to eat in the cruise dining hall. This doesn't apply to the Princess's Court, unfortunately," he explained, his sorry tone unfailing. She must've been special or something. Everything was free for her, and now this chump was being nice all of a sudden. "Though it does apply to the spa," he winked.

"Do I need a reservation for that too?" Vinyl asked with a raised brow.

The blue stallion thought for a moment, then shook his head. "Just tell me when you want to come in, and I'll make the arrangements. So, is there anything I can do for you?"

Vinyl thought about it, a sly grin spreading across her face. "Yeah...Yeah, there is!"

***

"If she ruins this cruise..." Octavia muttered. Sprawled on her bed, she was as comfortable as she was going to get. A heavy sigh slipped her lips. "I'll have her hide."

Right now, she was stretched on her back, sinking into the soft mattress and blue silk sheets. Her eye, though, was on that champagne bottle. At first she scoffed at it; it was probably a simple Charles de Ravon. Petty in her opinion. But her mouth watered, and her eyes drifted back to it.

She shoved herself off her bed, shaking her mane and tail back into place. Across the blue carpet she strode, hoisting herself up on the marble counter. Carefully with her hooves, she hoisted the bottle out from its icy bucket. To her surprise, the champagne was no Charles de Ravon. It was Bollinger, Blank de Noirs! This was almost a hundred bits a bottle in the Canterlot wineries! Octavia was blown away.

Eyes wide as saucers, she began reconsidering Vinyl's offer to crack it open. She quickly frowned and shook her head. Yet, her expression softened. "Ah, but she is my little Scratches..."

"It would not be right," she told herself. She dropped the bottle back in the ice. Besides, late night champagne was always the most romantic. Perhaps things could go well for a change.

Sudden knocks at the door sent her heart racing her. She pushed herself away from the counter, and trotted to the door. Out the small viewing glass, she saw Lyra and Bonbon patiently waiting in the hallway. Without a clue as to what they could possibly want - but glad for some well mannered company - Octavia pressed the door handle down and yanked it open.

"Hey girls," she smiled to them, "Come on in!"

"I hope we aren't intruding," Lyra apologized, stepping past Octavia. Bonbon followed, a large smile plastered on her face.

"Oh, no, no, no, it's quite alright," Octavia said. "Please, have a seat." She extended her hoof to Vinyl's bed. The couple gladly obliged, hopping up onto the soft mattress. "So what brings you here?"

"Well we figured we ought to let you know how today's laid out. But, um, where's Vinyl?" Lyra took note of the lack of energy the room had.

"Oh she, um, went to explore the ship," Octavia smiled.

Bonbon's smile fell, however, as she shot a raised brow to Octavia. "Did something happen between you two already?"

"It was a tiny scuffle, nothing severe," she said to the couple. "She said she'd be back before dinner, so I'm holding her to it. I've made ample threats to throw her out to the deck should she mess anything up."

Lyra and Bonbon just looked at each other with uneasy smiles. "Well..." Bonbon began, flipping her mane around, "Anyways, dinner..."

"Ah yes," Lyra said," the schedule! First off, we leave port at promptly five tonight. That's also when I disappear from you gals." She winked to Octavia. "Bonbon knows what to do, so stick with her when you go to the dining hall. And - OH!"

After checking the hanging clock - and finding that it was three in the afternoon - Octavia faced her green friend's exuberant smile. "Yes? I'm all ears."

"I was chosen by the cruise company, sure. But the captain apparently had a hoof in the matter too! We're all dining with him this Saturday!" She bounced in her place.

She winced. Saturday? That was only four days away. Octavia's eyes shot wide at the thoughts of Vinyl at the captain's table. The mess, the embarrassment...she bit her lip and shuddered.

"I see you're excited also!" Bonbon, who was hugging Lyra, said as she examined those wide pink eyes.

"Oh, um, yes! Yes, I am! And I'm very happy for you, Lyra." Octavia politely smiled back. But oh how she was dying on the inside.

A loud knock from the cabin door bounced through the room. The unexpected sound caused yet another startle to the ponies today, their hearts beating hard in their chests. All three ponies got to their hooves and walked across the room to the door.

"I assume that's your luggage," Lyra said, chuckling. "Well we'll get out of your mane. See you at dinner." With another wink, Lyra opened the door and stepped around the trolley. Bonbon did the same, and now Octavia was alone with the luggage pony.

"Room one-thirteen, two suitcases and a duffle bag," the grey colt said. The metal trolley beside him was loaded with multiple suitcases, but she could easily make out Vinyl's old green one. It sat next to her own red one, which was much better for the wear. Then of course was their grey duffle bag they had decided to share, containing their own shampoos and stuff of that sort.

Octavia gave a firm nod. "You can set them on that bed, over there." She pointed once more to Vinyl's bed.

The colt was dressed in a blue service suit, a uniform of the cruise no doubt. He took the two suitcases from the golden trolley first, lugging them to the far bed and gently resting them atop it. Octavia had taken the liberty of getting the duffle bag, curtly setting it down behind the door.

"Please, have a good day ma'am." The chivalrous colt smiled.

She blushed and smiled back. "You too sir." She closed the door behind him promptly; that situation had quite the awkward potential that she didn't want to stir. With a sigh, she turned back to her duffle bag.

It was time to get unpacking.

Chapter 3: Positive Reinforcement

Vinyl fumbled her way back into the suite, leaving the bottle behind. The place was empty. How long had she been out? The clock answered, chiming in on cue to announce eleven o'clock. Each tiny ding shot through the white unicorn's ears like wasps: stinging her brain, and moving on. The third, the fourth, fifth, six... She was having trouble standing up. Who would make a clock that chimed for a private suite?

Teeth gritted and eyes sharp, Vinyl stumbled up to the marble countertop. The clock, hanging just above the empty champagne bucket, chimed away. Eight, nine, ten... The unicorn lit up her horn, surrounded the machine in her pink aura. There were a few metallic crunching noises, and one or two rattling objects, but all in all, that shut it up. Vinyl pulled the best hoof-pump anypony could with such lack of coordination. Then, after that moment of sweet victory, her face slammed down on the table.

Slumped down on the counter now, the hurting mare began flattening her electric blue mane. She needed a shower - there was no doubt about that. The stickiness of her coat, and the grease in her hair made that clear. Though for now, a smile rested on her face. The awful chiming had come to an end. Face down on the cool marble, Vinyl sighed with a tiny chuckle.

It took her a few minutes, but eventually she realized that it was not marble her face was on at all - it was paper. With her head rolling around a bit, she could hear the audible crunching of the crisp sheet. Wearily, she raised her head. It took everything in her power to keep it from collapsing back down, and all in her reserves to even hold her drooped eyelids cracked open.

Her ruby eyes drifted down to the paper ever so slowly. Through her slightly blurry vision, the mare could easily make out a few lines of script font, with the flamboyant signature of none other than Octavia Philharmonica at the bottom of the tiny thing. The note in its entirety screamed trouble.

Carefully rubbing her sore eyes, Vinyl pressed her nose to the counter. She needed to get close to read the fine writing, especially now, and with squinted eyes she read:

Vinyl,

A few things; last night, when I told you the wine was for sipping, not chugging...that applies to champagne as well. I've set the clock to ring on the hour for when you wake up, hoping that it will help keep you from utterly collapsing again, as you did on the deck last night.

Also, when I say that I will make you sleep on the deck, I mean it. I hope you realize that now.

Now, I don't know what you had planned for us today. I'm sure it was sweet and whatnot, but I don't like you right now. I've decided to go golfing with Lyra and Bonbon, and will probably spend all day either golfing or relaxing in a hot tub with Lyra and her non-alcoholic marefriend. A word of warning: Should I see you once today, no matter the reason or circumstance, I swear I shall take a nine iron and shove it right up your-

"O-Kay," Vinyl whistled.

She dropped from the counter, doing her best to blink away that image. It hurt just to think about. On full alert, the mare trudged her way to her bed. Sore and stiff, she fell to the plump mattress. The feeling had to be what pegasi felt when they rested on clouds!

It was final: right when her head landed on the feather pillow, her mind blanked. For the DJ, there was no possibility of sleep, what with Octavia threatening to ram wrong things into wrong places. That didn't stop the total blackout in her mind, however. Every thought, every worry, every hope just vanished in the crushing sea of a hangover.

Willpower was a hard thing to come by with a hangover, and Vinyl certainly had very little right now, if any at all. Her marefriend was away, so why would she need to move anyways? It wasn't as though Octavia was going to burst through the door and begin spewing curses. If she did, well, once again, for being such a weak looking mare, Vinyl was quite the swimmer.

For once, the clichéd event did not strike the pained mare's rump. She was blessed with blissful silence, allowing her to mull over her pounding head in peace. A small groan escaped her dry lips, her tongue begging for water. Any water - even the water from the champagne bucket - would do right now.

While water was on her mind, it occurred to Vinyl that she had still not taken a shower. This was the perfect opportunity! Her mind was painfully abuzz once more. She hoisted herself off her bed with reluctance, flipping off the bed and crashing to the floor. Ungraceful as the DJ was, that had not been so bad. She simply rolled onto her stomach, and pushed herself up once more. "Shower..." she mumbled her goal under her boozed breath.

***

"I just don't know what to do girls," Octavia said, putting her small orange ball, the club firmly her mouth. The golf club was an awkward thing to hold - it was obvious why it was primarily a unicorn sport - but she could manage. The way she saw it: if she could play a cello on two hooves, she could top the simple feat of playing golf.

The ball rolled past Bonbon, who had politely opted out of an actual game. The cream mare was content to watch and converse, occasionally nudging or kissing Lyra. That green unicorn was doing her fair part at the game, too. Octavia was having a heck of a time trying to keep her score lower.

One would think it to be easy. The miniature course was located at the direct bow of the ship, and consisted of simple little hills and obstacles along a guided patch of green. The modest little course was fun, no doubt, but simple nonetheless. One would be wrong.

Lyra stepped up to her ball, preparing to put it over a tiny lump in the green. "Well I think you should just lay down the law," she suggested, tapping her ball with a precise amount of force. The blue orb did exactly as planned, shooting over the hill coming to a stop right at its base.

"I've been trying to," the cellist said, looking up at the ever-rising sun. Its warmth was comforting at least; comfort was something she'd do just about anything for. Dealing with Vinyl for too long had its down sides. She took her position at her own ball, aiming it down the same lump on the course. With a thud, the club smacked the ball up and over the mound.

The three ponies moved up the course, Bonbon taking the speaking lead. "Maybe you should try positive reinforcement. That works pretty well," she said, nodding confidently.

"Yeah, Bonbon here's quite good at it," Lyra said. A small chuckle escaped her lips. Using magic, she aimed the club, and gave it a good swing, sending the ball down the green. "There isn't anything I wouldn't do for a bit of 'positive reinforcement'... hint hint." She nudged Octavia's side.

The cellist blushed, but maintained her composure. "Are you suggesting that I attempt to sway her in bed?" An eyebrow shot up, but she didn't look away from her ball. She was falling behind. Carefully and with much precision, she putt the ball, making it equal with Lyra's. With the fourth hole soon approaching, she needed to catch up fast. Taking a break from focus, she completed herself: "I don't even think she deserves it, honestly, especially not after last night."

"That might be true," Lyra said as they caught up with their balls, "But it could stop nights like last night, too. Bonbon has a pretty good idea going on here; try some positive reinforcement, it'll do worlds for you."

"I don't know...She and I haven't done that in at least four or five months." Octavia stopped and stepped out of her friend's way.

Thanks to her using magic, Lyra's mouth was free to chat. "That would explain some things..." she chuckled.

"Now what are you implying?" the mare snorted.

Bonbon added her thoughts: "Implying isn't the right word. I think she's saying that you need some. You're just so uptight, maybe you should take an hour or two to let go."

Warmth flooded Octavia's cheeks, setting them ablaze with the deepest crimson. "This is...a strange conversation," she said, avoiding eye contact with either pony.

"Aw, c'mon, don't be like that. It's one of the reasons Bonbon and I are so happy! We stay...active!" Lyra chortled.

Bonbon huffed, a smile still on her face. "Lyra! We're not promiscuous."

"Ah, I know."She a hoof to her marefriend in a shooing manner. "But we still have fun, often too." Her voice seemed more directed at Octavia now; though, the grey mare still refused to face her. "Maybe if you were to do
the same..."

"I'll do what I wish, when I wish it! Perhaps if Vinyl would straighten out, then I would 'give her some'."

"You aren't hearing us, are you? Use it as a way to get her to listen to you. Besides, like we already said..." Bonbon nodded to Lyra. "You could probably use it."

A crisp, midday breeze rolled over them, doing nothing to cool off Octavia's burning cheeks. The ship swayed left to right, flowing with the awkward silence that had befallen them. The cellist was doing her absolute best to avoid eye contact; she was talking about something intimate. The fact that Lyra and her cream marefriend could do it so openly stunned her.

"Girls, I think I'm done with golf. What say we get some lunch, hmm?" she suggested, looking to the main part of the ship.

"Aw, fine, be that way," Lyra said, throwing her club down with magic. Her smile persisted though, despite the display. "I was gonna win though."

"Perhaps we'll just have to see another day, won't we? For now... I'm rather famished." Octavia let loose a long sigh,
her gut growling in contempt. She looked around, and found the long center aisle that would allow them off the course. The courteous green unicorn gathered up the clubs and balls with her magic and led the way.

"You know Octavia, it's not like Vinyl's a violent drinker or anything," Bonbon said. She turned back to face the trailing cellist, her pink and violet mane swaying gently in the oceanic breeze.

"Yes, I know. But that's no excuse for being a drunk." Octavia snorted and held her head high. The mare knew that if Vinyl were allowed to drink to her heart's content, her bloodstream would be nothing but vodka. Chin in the air, she felt the warmth from earlier fleeting fast. It was probably with the help of the slight salty breeze; her mane swayed in a way that pleasured her so, and her face was cool but not chilled. The day would've been perfect if it hadn't included alcohol and awkward conversations.

"I'm not saying it is," she replied. They had turned onto the carved walkway, and were casually walking to the equipment deposit. "But maybe if you just eased up on her a bit, she'd appreciate what you have to say more."

Octavia gulped. "So you want me to ease up on her drinking?"

"Yes, in a simple sense. Just be a little more relaxed, that's all. Once she sees that you're on her side, she'll listen to you. Hey, it's worth a shot, right?" Lyra said in a bouncy tone. "Of course, you could always go with the other idea..."

"No. To both," she snapped. Shooting both of them a cold look as they entered the covered area of the top deck, she noticed that they were going through some glass doors. They had gone through these to get to the course, yes. And through them were the sunlit bars and breakfast lounges. Past this small section of the upper deck, was the rest of the exposed deck.

Lyra dropped off the equipment in a large bucket next to the doors, where an employee nodded to them. "Why not?" she asked as she pushed the doors open and held them for her crew.

Octavia, just before she could enter the warmth of the indoors, stopped, averted her eyes, and frowned. "Because drinking is dangerous."

Quick to reorder herself, the mare cantered through the doors, thanking Lyra for holding them. Now she was in the large entrance hall, which would lead to a sort of semi-foyer, where the bars and breakfast clubs were.

The unicorn smiled back, allowing the doors to slowly fall closed behind her when everypony was in. Bonbon was at the front, with a steady pace that took Lyra a moment to catch up with. When she passed Octavia, she gave the cellist a slight nudge on the side. She was quick to catch on.

Now at the back, Octavia felt more solemn than before. How could either of them be so relaxed about this? Didn't they know... No, now that she thought about it that was done in Canterlot after they had left. Perhaps she should tell them? Ah, but that held possibilities for problems - more problems than she could deal with. There were enough as it was.

As they trotted ahead to the foyer, she fell behind. Her legs slowed more and more as her mind rang with memories and echoes. In her pink eyes was a distant glaze, one which nopony could read even if they were good at reading faces. Alas, behind her eyes was a different story. With a blank face, she lifted a foreleg, and brought it to her belly, dragging it down her soft fur.

***

Taking her sweet time to enjoy the fresh bite of food, Vinyl reclined in the stool. She had decided - after taking her shower, of course - to come up to the breakfast clubs that were in the upper deck foyer. This one, the Steamer, was a great place to get a breakfast panini. It was one of the many hole-in-the-wall cafes around the square room, and therefore it was just chance that she should wind up here. She didn't regret it at all.

Her shades rested proudly on her face as she leaned in for another bite. She had managed to tuck them away in a tiny pouch in the back of her suitcase; and since she didn't have to see Octavia today, she could actually wear them! Sure, some ponies gave her estranged glares, but it wasn't like she was staying calm behind her opaque purple shades. No, in fact most of the hour that she was out was spent with shooting funny glares towards the upper crust of society. A tiny chuckle slipped her lips just before her teeth clenched around the toasty sandwich.

The warm, rough bread crunched in her mouth, filling her with an awe-inspiring burst of flavor. Breakfast here was all she'd have for two weeks, and she knew it! She moaned a little at the flavor, the texture, and the sensation overall. This did wonders for her hangover. "Mmph, this ish good," she commented to herself, sending tiny chunks of crisp bread flying.

Magically, she set the sandwich down on her plate. It was good to relax, even with the fear of golf clubs hanging over her shoulder. She chewed it finely, and swallowed her mouthful of food. Great stuff, there was no denying it. The fact that the lounge was desolate made her wonder; did none of the ponies on this cruise have good taste?

Sighing, she turned down to see the violet spread of glossy tile beneath her table. The lounge seemed to have a 'purple' theme going on - purple tile, violet walls, orchid chairs and lavender tables...even the bar was a light lavender. It was purple overload. It didn't matter to Vinyl, though. They had awesome food.

A pair of voices detracted from her enjoyment of the artisan sandwich. The DJ's ears shot up defensively, on full alert for the obvious danger that was approaching. With extreme caution, she turned in her chair to face the entrance to the Steamer. It was an open maw, inviting the voices in.

This was bad. No, this was terrible. She had to get out now. The panicked white mare looked around for another exit, but luck was rarely on her side. There was one way in, and one way out - towards danger. A little bead of sweat rolled out from underneath Vinyl's mane, trickling onto her shades.

"Excuse me, miss?" The voice made Vinyl jump. Her heart pounding away, she turned to see who was addressing her. It was the brown bartender who had served her panini. "Is everything alright?"

"I, uh, yeah, um... do you have a bathroom in here?" The mare danced in her seat from nervousness.

"Actually, yes, we have a restroom. It's right there," he said, pointing to a blue door on the wall. Vinyl's mind erupted in embarrassment.

"How did I miss...Ah, uh, thanks!" She hopped off her chair and darted for the door. The pair of voices had gained a third, and they were fast approaching. Focusing, she engulfed the door in her magic, swinging it ajar for her to quickly dash through.

The bathroom was a small place - made for one - but was in fair condition. There were little crescent moon soaps on a porcelain sink, and the toilet sat on the tiled wall next to it. Above the sink was a mirror, and above that was the small candle fixture. The mare bucked the door shut, breathing heavy and heart pounding. A fight in a public place with a marefriend who's already angry enough to violate you with a sporting utensil was not on her agenda. She wasn't deathly worried, though, as a fight was a fight, and no golf clubs were getting shoved anywhere. At least, she was fairly sure. But the longer she avoided Octavia, the better. Especially with her shades - Tav wouldn't just have a filly; she'd eat the thing alive. Vinyl would probably be desert.

Deep breath in, deep breath out, and the white DJ was feeling a bit more calm. In the mirror, she found herself observing her frazzled electric blue mane. She quickly flattened it in an attempt to appear normal, should the need arise. She also took the time to readjust her shades and fix the knots in her coat. It reminded her of a quote she had heard before: "If you've got to die, might as well look good doing it."

When she decided that her appearance was up to par, she put on her best innocent smile. Ponies were normally forgiving of accidents - she just had to play dumb, and the whole situation would work out. Argh, but Octavia wasn't a normal pony. She was...stuck up. Vinyl hated to think of her marefriend like that, but it was true, and she knew it.

A certain green unicorn barged in, nearly giving the DJ a heart attack. "Yeah, yeah, I'll be right back," she smiled over her shoulder.

"Lyra!" Vinyl whispered, startling her. The white mare wrapped her forelegs around her friend, yanking her in and slamming the wooden door behind her.

"V-Vinyl? Look, I know we both swing the same way, but we both also have a special pony, so don't you think-"

"I think I'm screwed!" The DJ whispered harshly.

"Oh, I see... Do you think that just maybe you're overreacting?" Lyra blew her bangs out of her eyes to give Vinyl a bold stare.

"No! Did she tell you what she threatened to do to me?" Lyra shook her head, so Vinyl proceeded to explain.

"I really doubt she'd actually do that," the green unicorn sighed.

The DJ facehoofed. "I know that! But I don't know what she will do! And I don't want to find out. You gotta get me outta here." The urgency in her voice seemed exasperated, but probably well placed.

"You know, running might not be the best idea. Why not talk to her? See if you can't work something out," Lyra suggested with a tiny shrug.

"Talk to her? How do I talk to her when she's pissed as she is?" stammered the nervous Vinyl.

"Oh yeah... well, she, Bonbon and I had a little chat on the way here. I think you'll find her to be a little more agreeable. Just stay calm and polite - at least try to, anyway," the unicorn spoke, doing her best to not come across as condescending.

"I...why?" The DJ's eyes darted with a flame.

Lyra giggled. "Well you'll have to find out now won't you. But you can't spend all day hiding in a bathroom, especially not while I have to use it."

"I dunno, I mean it's not so bad, right?"

"Vinyl!" Lyra gasped playfully. "Just get out there."

"Oh, c'mon! You gotta be able to help me! I'm not ready to face her," she whispered.

"You might do better without the shades. Didn't I say they weren't coming, anyways? Give them here," the harpist extended a hoof.

Vinyl snarled. "What, no! No offense, but these are mine."

"I'm sure Octavia would agree. And unless you want to fish them out of the Equestrian sea, you may want to give them here," the green mare demanded in a not-so-harsh tone. It worked. The shades were engulfed in Vinyl's magic as the levitated from the bridge of her nose. They landed in Lyra's right hoof, and she proceeded to find a place for them. "Now that you don't look like you'll tick her off, get out there and talk to her. It's not hard."

"Well, I-I.."

"Do I need to hold your hoof?" Lyra's tone grew blunt. "Look, I'm about three seconds away from exploding. Get. Out. There."

She didn't even wait for the DJ's rebuttal: she flung the door open with her magic, and shoved Vinyl out. The white mare resisted, but that only ended her flat on her face. The blue door slammed behind her, leaving her exposed to the party of two. Bonbon and Octavia watched in slight confusion as Vinyl unstuck her face from the floor.

"Vinyl?" Bonbon questioned. The tinge of awkwardness in her voice was obvious.

"Uh, hey," she gulped as she pushed herself up. There was a large red mark on her forehead that was clear even through her coat. "What, uh, what's up?" She forced a chuckle.

"Oh, hello Vinyl," Octavia politely smiled through tightly clenched teeth. Her ears flopped sporadically, and her breaths seemed to be shallow. But her tone was polite and a smile was plastered on her face.

Vinyl was deeply disturbed. "Tav? Are you, uh, okay?"

"Of course I am." The words seethed through her teeth in a manner most unnerving. Her left eye twitched as she continued, "Hey dear, I have a proposition for you."

The DJ fumbled with her thoughts; Tav was being really weird. She looked over to Bonbon - the cream pony stood behind Octavia - for some sort of comfort or explanation. The mare just nodded, as if to say that it would be okay. "I, um, okay," Vinyl spoke.

"If you can manage to stay sober," the cellist happily fumed, "I'll give you a reward."

Vinyl was beginning to feel sick; her mind felt like scrambled eggs, and her knees like jelly. "Sure, uh, yeah okay. I'll just get going, like...now," her nervous voice cracked. Ever careful, she strafed by Octavia, and eventually out the opening. It was a speedy retreat - but what could she say? Tav was being...well, creepy.

The DJ stopped outside the cafe, her side pressed against one of the cool marble walls. Sounds were still being emitted from the lounge, and Vinyl had heard her name. Basking in the sunlight that penetrated the glass skylight, the mare shot her left ear up for a better listen; If she could figure out what was wrong with her marefriend, who she knew was angry anyways, then she could decide whether or not to bunk with Lyra and Bonbon tonight.

"Well I think you did fine," Vinyl distinctly heard Bonbon say. If they were onto whatever this was too, she may just be sleeping in a bar or something. It wasn't like she hadn't done it before.

"Ugh, but do you have any idea how hard it was for me to not explode? She had it coming!" Tav, apparently, was ranting.

"Yeah, but look at it like this, she should stay sober now, right? Who doesn't like rewards? Although maybe if you calmed down a bit..."

"Calm down? Clearly you do not understand! Vinyl has devoured a whole bottle of expensive champagne, is a drunkard, and you want me to calm down! I have every right to explode however I damn well please," Vinyl's marefriend snapped in her common hushed tone.

"Octavia, I thought we settled this. You love her, don't you?" Bonbon's voice echoed. The eavesdropping mare's heart skipped a beat. What would Tav say to that? It could be bad...but then again, it could be good! Optimism, she reminded herself, was the best way to get through any situation.

Unfortunately - or fortunately in a way - Bonbon was the one to break the intense moment of silence. "Well good! Now if you just calm down - and give this a try - I'm sure you'll both warm up to each other."

"Fine, but honestly, I'm not going to make it through today if I have to see her again. She's so...infuriating."

"Well you weren't the nicest either, I can tell you that," Lyra's voice picked up after the sound of a slamming door. There was the sound of trotting hooves, then complete silence again. Vinyl kicked the blue marble tile in anxiety.

"I... I care for her, alright? I do. But girls, sincerely, do you think it's easy to put up with her?" Octavia asked. Though she was a room away, the cellist's words stung Vinyl deeply with a bittersweet pang.

"Sometimes you've just got to put up with the one you love, for the better of the situation," Bonbon explained.

"I myself think you're just talking out of the 'heat of the moment'," Lyra exhorted.

Tav let loose a barely audible sigh, but Vinyl's brain picked it up and decoded it instantly; that was the sound of her breathing her stress out. "I...suppose you are right. My nerves are hitting their breaking point, but... I shall give your ideas a try tonight - should Vinyl manage to stay sober for once, that is."

Vinyl began grumbling under her breath. "It's not like I'm not addicted or anything-"

"That's the right idea!" Lyra chirped, "Just don't tell her anything till tonight; She should learn to stay sober without treats. Reward her, sure, but don't tell her about it."

The DJ was flush red. Not even the still air in the lounge foyer could cool her burning cheeks. "I am not a dog..."

"I see. Look girls, I'm feeling quite stressed right now. What's say we get some food, hmm? And possibly a glass of wine..." Octavia's voice trailed off, leaving the simmering Vinyl to her own device.

She spun curtly on her hind legs, and stormed away from the Steamer, as well as its newest customers.

***

The rest of the day, Vinyl had decided to try her hoof at being a ninja. Any time she even came remotely close to seeing Octavia, Lyra, or Bonbon, she would duck behind a pillar. It was her turn to explode this time! Not that she would do it in public, though. Instead, she had decided to wait until night time to give her marefriend a thick slice of her spicy mind.

Now, with the clock in the dinner lounge striking eight, she was sure Octavia was back from dinner. The dinner lounge itself was located one deck under the main foyer, and was a simple hallway of simple lounges that served simple food. It worked for Vinyl nonetheless; she was used to eating pop tarts and ramen for a living. Well, before she and Tav met. That grey mare was quite the cook, Vinyl had to admit.

Gulping down the last of her dinner sandwich, the DJ hopped off her chair and shook her head. Her blue mane was still spiked, and her coat was perfect she was sure - as perfect as she cared for it to be, anyways. She casually trotted out of the pink-themed grade-B underbelly diner, into the thin blue hall. It seemed that the only attention this place would ever get would be from those ponies in the lower rooms: the ones who bought the reasonably priced tickets. Most others were at the ship's dining hall, and Vinyl assumed the other ponies with suites were chowing down up at the Princess's Court.

Down this thin corridor, up a twin flight of stairs, out into the hall that connected to the foyer and Vinyl was easily making her way to her suite. The rage she had felt towards Octavia and her friends had simmered down, and now, she just felt the slightest twinge of betrayal. The fact that they were only two days into the cruise was just a kick in the side. With a deep sigh, the white unicorn stepped onto the deserted foyers elevators, clicking the button that would get her to the internal elevators.

Up, out, and in again: she was now inside the utilitarian elevators to get to the suite. Whatever was waiting for her in there - the reward that Octavia had promised her - better be good, or she swore she would go off like a bomb. It had been hard enough not to down some tequila shots after overhearing their condescendence; if she found it was for nothing, it was over.

When she stepped out of the elevator, she was greeted once again with the empty lobby-like room. The candle lighting on the walls made it cozy, almost serene in a way. Vinyl had always found places like this to soothe her nerves. She took a deep breath in, and released her stress with it. There wasn't much left now - after taking the day to do some reasoning, she decided that they were doing no more than talking down to her, which she could forgive of course. She was the forgiving type.

In but a few moments she was in front of the suite door. "Room one thirteen," Vinyl mumbled to herself for the sake of mumbling. She had no room key; Octavia had insisted on keeping the only one. So she was forced to knock and hope that her marefriend was in a better mood than before.

***

Octavia was ready. She was smiling, she was dressed - yep, ready indeed. On her was a set of black lingerie, with two black stockings running up her legs to hook onto the black and pink corset. Lyra had bought it for her at this small lingerie shop at the bottom of the ship, and, at the time, she was shocked out of her mind. Not that her best friend had bought her lingerie, though. She was surprised there was even a lingerie shop aboard such a fine vessel as this. But, another fine piece of naughty clothing added to her collection still.

A few thoughts were buzzing around her head right now. The first, and probably most important, was if Vinyl even deserved this. Or perhaps, when paraphrased, why was she doing this? Another was: where had her marefriend been at dinner? She had no desire to see her then, but it still plagued her mind as to Vinyl's whereabouts. That pony had quite the knack of landing in trouble...

A triplet of knocks reverberated from the cabin door, yanking her attention from her the bathroom mirror. She had been busy making sure her hair was perfect; her lace was tied, etcetera... And now was time. As she exited the bathroom, butterflies blossomed in her stomach. It had been so long - she began wondering if she was still any good. Pressing though that question was, a stronger wonder filled her mind as she approached the door: Was Vinyl drunk? Octavia wouldn't be surprised to see her stumbling around the hallway.

Deep breath in, and she hoisted herself up to her hind legs to get the door open. It swung open, hiding all but her face between it and the wall. "Hey Vinyl," she smiled to her marefriend. The DJ examined the situation with a strange look on her face.

"Uh, hey Tav. Are you okay?" She batted Octavia a ruby eye as she entered the suite. She apparently had not noticed the lingerie, thankfully, and was heading to her bed.

"Yes! Why yes, I am. Are you?" the cellist reflected, and almost immediately facehoofed at the nervous response.

"Yeah, I guess. I didn't drink, if that's what you're wondering," the DJ sighed, her face sinking into the feather pillow.

Octavia closed the door and dropped to all fours. Quiet as the night itself, she crept up to Vinyl's bed. Her eyes grazed over the relaxing mare, observing the soft inflation of her sides, listening intently to the soft breathing. "Hey Vinyl..." she whispered in a somewhat forced blithe tone as she crept onto the bed.

"Yeah?" the mare asked, voice muffled by the silver pillow.

"I said I would give you a reward, I insist you look at my while I do so," she forced a chuckle this time. She crawled on
top of Vinyl, pressing her weight against the mare.

Vinyl rolled onto her back, her eyes just cresting open. Just as their vision returned, Octavia watched the white mare's ruby eyes shoot open wide. "W-hoa, Tav what's this?"

"Your reward..." A small smile - artificial yet again - grew on her face.

But the DJ did not hesitate to frown, despite the light blush she had. "You're in lingerie?"

"Yes, I am," Octavia chuckled. Vinyl was a bit too dumb sometimes, but for now, it could slip.

"And you want to...'reward' me?"

"I do," the cellist said.

"We haven't done this in months." Vinyl's frown did not waver. "I...Well I'm sorry Tav, but I don't really want to. It's not you or anything..."

Octavia could see right through that; one did not make it to the top of the music industry without good pony skills. "I see. To be quite honest, I'm relieved," the grey mare sighed, getting off of the DJ.

"You are?" Vinyl sounded relieved as well.

"Yes. This whole thing was Lyra's and Bonbon's idea. I can't say I was looking forward to it." She rested her chin on her hooves, both guilt and alleviation washing over her.

Vinyl got off her back to sit beside her. "It was... a nice thought," the mare smiled. Her ruby eyes were softer now - much unlike that look of slight anger they held a moment ago.

"I suppose," she sighed in response. There was a small bit of silence after that. It wasn't awkward, or anything close to it. It was blunt, simple, plain silence.

"Tav?" Vinyl eventually spoke. The cellist responded with a 'hm' and looked up. "I'm kinda tired, so..."

"Ah, yes, I'll go to my bed," Octavia complied. The night felt ruined in a way, yet, at the same time it felt better. The only emotion the mare could produce with such a mixed view displayed itself as a small frown.

"Um, well, actually..." The DJ blushed a fair scarlet, as Octavia could soon see with the aid of candlelight. "I wouldn't mind it if you slept with, uh, me, ya know? It'd be nice..."

Octavia didn't have to think about it twice. Sure, she had been at odds with Vinyl this morning, but a day with no booze was definitely worth some sort of celebration. And it was comforting to know that she had done it for Octavia. "I'd...love to," the cellist smiled back.

So then Vinyl helped Octavia out of her naughty little guise, tossing the separate parts of the outfit every which way. They slid beneath the silky sheets and thick blanket of the cushy bed, Vinyl gripping Octavia tightly for both a bit of warmth and comfort. The unicorn used her magic to kill the lights in the room, setting the pair in the light of the glowing moon that shone in through their exposed window.

For the first time in two days, the air of the room held more than just tension. The intensity of clashing ends still lingered, but now there was something to combat it: comfort. It was a rare moment now, and the two shared it was tiny smiles on both of their faces.

However, that sick feeling in Vinyl's gut, that awful feeling that felt like a countdown...it was still ticking away.

Chapter 4: Scratch n' Sniff

Vinyl's eyes slowly peeked out, her eyelids heavy as stone. They burned as well, though only to a slight degree. As always was after a night of hard sleep, the sluggish mare felt stiff and sore. Her head twisted left. Her head twisted right. Loud, powerful cracks echoed out from her craned neck.

Twisted in her awkward position, Vinyl could peer over her shoulder to the deck. The early morning sun was just cresting over the horizon, only shifting with the light sway of the ship. Its rays beamed in, glowing on the mare's bed and caking her in warmth. She stretched her legs down, whipping her tail out and stretching her back. The sheets at the base of the bed were already nice and toasty; her hind legs were covered in encasing warmth. This was a great way to wake up.

Satisfied with her stretch, the DJ relaxed. She got resettled into her bed, curling her tail back and letting her legs go loose. Down in her forelegs still was Octavia. The grey mare slumbered away, her face nuzzled into Vinyl's resettled neck. Her breath warmed Vinyl's neck with tiny pulses. This was ecstasy for her. It had been such a long time since they had held each other like this, much more since they had slept with each other. And now, feeling the soft breath on her neck, Vinyl was content once more.

She ran her hoof down Octavia's back. It was a comforting motion that the sleeping cellist accepted. Vinyl stroked her marefriend's back for some time, enjoying the soft coat and warm touch. Certain that her motions were keeping Tav in her deep snooze, the aware mare casually slid a foreleg from under Tav, resting it between their bellies.

"Tav always did enjoy a belly rub," Vinyl whispered with a snicker. It was true; Octavia would often - when times were better - lie on her back, while a certain white unicorn would scratch her exposed belly. The memories that flooded her mind tasted sweeter than sugar. Every time she would give the grey mare a soft belly rub, Octavia would blush and giggle in the cutest display Vinyl had ever laid her ruby eyes upon.

Gently she grazed her hoof up Octavia's underside, ruffling the fur up before matting it back down. The cellist was in a deeper sleep now, but her face still showed signs of appreciation. Vinyl smiled and continued the simple motion. Even being the one doing it, she felt more at ease now.

Silent still, the white unicorn stopped her soft rubbing to feel the deepest part of any mare: the heart. Calm thumps vibrated Octavia's chest in a relaxing rhythm. The beats pulsed through the DJ more vibrant than any beats she could produce with her equipment. It was always this way - the beats of Tav's heart were actually the base of many of Vinyl's songs.

From the heart, Vinyl dragged her hoof down her marefriend's belly once more. Except now, she hit a sore spot, a spot that had never gone away, nor would it. She hit a spot that sucked the sweet relief from her and filled her with the turmoil that came with bad memories. Her face blanked completely. The tiny smile that was growing had fallen to a thin frown, and her ruby eyes lost their intensity. In her mind was a stormy ocean that deeply contrasted the gentle one that they were currently on.

Now Vinyl was no psychologist, nor was she a psychotherapist, but if there was anything she knew about the pony psyche, it was this: some things can never be forgotten. There are scars that cut too deep to heal, and there are emotions too heavy to let go. Her hoof traced this spot up and down its entirety, letting her mind sink away into the abyss of fear that she had so long suppressed.

Morning or not, it was dark. A chill suddenly befell the room, and the sun seemed to stop shining for a moment or two. The troubled mare's mind was creating the scene all over again. She would give anything to change her thoughts, to suppress them again, but they were intruding evermore.

"I'm getting in there!" Vinyl had demanded.

Vinyl's eyes clenched shut, her mind doing everything in its power to stop itself from bringing forth these thoughts.

"We've already told you, you can't!" the formal stallion had explained.

Vinyl raised her hoof up to Octavia's heart once more. These thoughts made her worried, scared even. She just needed to make sure it was still there, still beating. What she was greeted with when her hoof rested atop Tav's heart was a gentle thump.

She was suddenly sucked from the darkness and spat out into the warm room once again. Somehow unbeknownst to her, she had worked up a small sweat. Her breathing was slightly heavier - not enough to cause a real disturbance - and her whole body was shaking ever so lightly. Her hoof was still on the cellist's heart though, and her breathing and shaking soon calmed down to the steady rhythm.

"N-Nightmares," she muttered in the thick silence. If only it were true...

***

Octavia finally woke from her sleep, alone and cold. She was in Vinyl's bed, that was obvious. Next to her was a moist spot, roughly the size of a certain DJ she knew. With caution, she extended a hoof to take a sample of the dampness. Bringing it to her nose, she found it to smell like sweat. She didn't know if she was disturbed or worried - most likely worried, considering the revitalized feelings she had for Vinyl. There was a feeling of unease building inside her.

Yawning and stretching, the replenished mare took in the first deep breath of her day. Steam poured into her lungs though, causing an abrupt tickle that threw off her gentle wake up. She coughed out, clutching her chest in a melodramatic display. Her legs kicked out, throwing the sheets to the base of the bed, and her pinkish-purple eyes threatened to cry as she coughed with the unnecessary drama she knew she could sometimes create.

She rolled off of the mattress, the coughs dying down. The walk to the opposite side of the bed was brisk - as expected - and Octavia curiously peered into the vaporous bathroom. The shower was still dripping, and shampoo bottles were scattered nonchalantly across the floor. She could come to only one conclusion; Vinyl had recently been here.

Octavia turned from the bathroom entrance with a sigh. The clock on the wall set off another alarm - it was already eleven! Her heart skipped a beat at the time lag. It only felt like it was nine or so. She trotted up to the marble counter, above which the clock hung. As if it would help, she gave it an intense glare.

Though something else caught her glaring eyes now; under the clock, much like what she, herself, had done but a day before, was a small little note written in Vinyl's very own chicken-scratch mouth writing. Octavia had learned to read it, but she was sure that to anypony else, it would vie the outcome of burning toast and crumbling it atop paper. Taxing her mind wasn't the first thing she had wanted to do this morning, but even so, she read:

Hey Tav,

Sorry about leaving you. I had a nightmare, and wasn't feeling good. You looked like you really needed the sleep, so I just let you snooze while I took a shower. But then you weren't up, and I really needed food, so... yeah, sorry...

Love ya!
P.S., that clock doesn't work. I don't know why.

Octavia sighed. It seemed to be her turn to get the bunt end of a note suggesting abandonment. Though, Vinyl's heart seemed to be in the right place, so she could forgive her. And it helped to know that the clock was broken. It was strange to find that out, though; she had fiddled with it just yesterday, and it was working perfectly. Placing a hoof under her heavy head, she pushed through her still tired mind to evaluate the odd situation.

There was an abrupt quartet of knocks rasping at her door. Her mind went to full alert, shooting her eyes to the sounds. She dashed to the door, and threw it open as if she was in danger. That unease was still lingering in the back of her mind.

"Whoa, are you all right?" Bonbon asked, a little taken back by the display of force. She looked to Lyra as if the mint unicorn held some answers.

Octavia took a moment to recap what she had just done, and immediately let herself loosen. "I'm sorry girls," she sighed, "I'm just a tad bit worried about Vinyl. Please, come on in."

Lyra and Bonbon both entered the cabin with a bit of hesitance. "Is something wrong? Did things go alright last night?" The unicorn questioned with a worried face.

"Oh, yes, things went swimmingly," the cellist affirmed, closing the door behind the pair. "However I did wake to a missing Vinyl. And that would be why I'm worried."

"What do you mean, missing?" Bonbon asked as she sat atop Vinyl's bed next to Lyra. "Is she alright?"

"Oh I have no doubt she's fine," Octavia huffed, bouncing onto her bed, "But I'm worried she may be a little... too fine, is all."

"What do you-"

"Um, why is the bed wet?" Lyra cut her marefriend off abruptly.

The grey mare's face scrunched up in a bit of repulsion. "It seems to be sweat." Eager to get away from the nasty stuff, she added, "So you were saying dear?"

The cream pony grinned at Lyra's slight face of antipathy. "Well I was going to ask, before Lyra brought up the sweat stain there, what you meant about her being 'too fine'."

"I mean she may be tapping the spirits," Octavia said bluntly.

"Octavia, I doubt she'd do that this early," Lyra commented, tearing away from the sweat.

The cellist sighed. "You must not know her that well. She'd do it - I have no doubt."

"If - and this is simply my opinion - if she enjoyed last night, then she'll avoid the drink," Bonbon reasonably noted.

It occurred to the grey cellist that neither of her friends knew that the previous night held no 'positive reinforcement'. And yet Bonbon had made a well thought out point; if Vinyl had enjoyed the quality time with her marefriend, she'd surely avoid the poison that would prevent another night of it. "I...suppose. I'm still edgy though," she confessed.

"Ah, I know something that should take your mind off of things. I don't know if you've noticed, but your little alarm clock right there..." Octavia looked down at her bedside table, surprised to find an alarm clock sitting silently atop it. "...doubles as a ship-wide radio. You just push the little blue button on top of it, and then let your ears become filled with some smooth, classical music." When Lyra had finished her slightly lengthy explanation, she magically levitated the clock onto Octavia's lap. The mare did indeed find the blue button on its top, softly pushing it and letting the calm sound flow forth.

The sweet tune of Beethooven's Für Elise filled the room with a soft, ambient melody. The song - one of Octavia's more preferred pieces - was thankfully at its beginning. "Interesting, and they play this throughout the day?" she asked as she set the clock down, noting the red, LED-lit time: nine o'clock.

"Yeah, and it's nonstop; the ship doesn't interrupt with annoying commercials or anything like that. It's...soothing," the cream mare said, a sigh of contempt easing through her lips. She fell back on the bed with a thud, ignoring the drying sweat.

"Mm, it is," said the relaxing cellist. "So might I ask what you girls needed?"

Lyra's eyes brightened with that sparkle they held whenever something exciting was happening. "We came here to tell you about Friday!" she exclaimed, changing from the relaxed tone to one more upbeat, almost in sync with the song. "We're stopping at a group of islands for a bit of shore time! Ooh, they'll be tropical and uninhabited! Bonbon and I are planning on spending the day together on the beach."

"That's pleasant. I do suppose it would be nice to get off the boat for a while," commented Octavia as she too fell back on her bed.

"Oh I agree," Bonbon threw her input out. "A nice, romantic evening on the sandy shores of a tropical island..." Her voice trailed off as she fell deeper into her own fantasies. There was a bit of silence that followed after her. The soft tune of Beethooven blending with the ship's swaying did miracles to Octavia's stress - it was practically melting away.

"Well I guess we ought to get out of your mane. She and I are going swimming." Lyra nudged her marefriend, grasping her attention. "You're more than welcome to come along," she swiftly added, keeping a polite appearance.

Octavia thought about it, and really, what more did she have to do? She needed a shower to get Vinyl's sweat out of her coat - a fact that also made her face scrunch yet again - but that was about it. "Indeed, I think I shall. It's very kind of you to offer."

"Hey, it's nothing," the unicorn smiled. "You're our friend; we'd be honored to have you come along. Though, you may want to clean up."

Despite the fact that her warning could easily be mistaken as rude, Octavia knew better. "That is just what I was thinking dear."

"Alright then," Lyra said, clasping her front hooves together with a large grin, "We'll leave you to it. Come on over when you're ready, we've got time." The pair smiled at Octavia as they fell from the bed to the carpets. As they approached the door, the unicorn paused to add: "Oh and if Vinyl comes back, tell her she's welcome to come with us."

"I will. Thank you girls," the cellist smiled to them as they left her suite. The soft melody of Für Elise had faded out now, giving way to a more suitable song for Octavia - her favorite - the Moonlight Sonata. It was a piece that held deepness in is harmonics, and a sort of life in the piano. It was her dream to, one day, accomplish the deepness of this song on her cello.

It was a simple decision, made in the bat of an eye: stall the shower until after the song. Her nerves needed a bit more cooling anyways. Even though both of her friends had insisted that Vinyl would not touch the booze, she still had her doubts.

"No, no, Vinyl is respectable on the inside," she scolded herself, trying her best to kill the conviction, "She'll stay sober, for my sake. I must simply have faith!" On her back, the plump mattress beneath her, she assured herself that Vinyl was, in fact, sober and aware.

***

"Bartenders! Another margarita pleash!" Vinyl was so hammered she could hardly see. The shades on her face - she had retrieved them from Lyra this morning - weren't helping her at all. Her vision, however, was fine enough for her to shove a drained margarita glass down the bar in impatience for another.

An annoyed purple mare stepped out from the shades, the early morning sun illuminating her face. "Miss, you've had six already. I don't think another is a good idea," she insisted, her sweet voice having died down as Vinyl continued to agitate her further.

"Hey, now you two don't know that!" Her speech was slurred, and her movements like that of a ragdoll. "I'll have however mush I want!"

"I do know that miss. How? Well, there's only one of me."

"Wha...Nah, there's definitely two."

The bar mare growled under her breath. "Ma'am, it's early morning. How can you get drunk at this time?" She looked out the side of the top deck bar to the rising sun. The place was neatly tucked in on the right side, exposed to the wooden path that ran up and down the entirety of the ship. It was at the bow, and just around the corner was the pool area, where Vinyl had come from.

"Have you guys ever heard the one song? Ya know, it'z that... one song, by the Eagles er something, Hotel Caliponia?" Vinyl's drunken slurs were almost unintelligible, but they at least held some syllables.

"Yes, I have Miss," the bartender facehoofed. "That has literally nothing to do with the situation."

"Yeah, sure it does!" Vinyl proceeded to explain, spinning around in her stool with the coordination only a drunken pony could think they have. "Cuz there'z that one line. How'z it go..."

"Ma'am, I really-"

"Some danz to remember, some danz to forget..." she slurred in an off key sing-song tone. "Well I'm drunking to forget." The disorientated mare stopped her spinning stool at the counter, resting her hoof down in demand for another drink.

"What are you trying to forget?" the violet bartender asked with a sigh. She had given up, and was mixing up another margarita for the drunk pony now.

"I...uh, I forgot." Vinyl fell into deep thought - what had she forgotten?

Suddenly she was ripped from her diluted thinking, looking left and right frantically. "Hey, do you feel that," the DJ asked, a look of drunken alertness about her. The bartender turned and gave her a confused eye. "We're moving..."

"That's because we're on a boat miss," the blunt bartender groaned. She currently had a metal margarita mixer in her lavender magic, and was shaking it vigorously.

"Huh...Oh..." the DJ's voice trailed off as she gave a glance over her shoulder, looking out upon the great Equestrian Sea. "Wonder when that happened..."

"Oh yeah, big mystery..." the bartender huffed, rolling her eyes as she picked up a fresh glass for the margarita. She poured the green concoction into the V glass with skill. Then, she took a bit of salt and rained it down on the rim, before finally sliding it down to Vinyl and taking up her old glass.

"It iz," the hammered unicorn agreed. Her tone was of garbled philosophical insight. In the bar's interior, the violet mare secluded herself from further conversation by sinking away to the corner. Drunken Vinyl just kept going though. "It'z almost like... um... ah, Sherclop Holmes."

When her oh-so-clever simile finished dripping from her tongue, the white DJ looked down at her fresh drink, and grew a sloppy grin. The chilly thing was perfect for her dry throat, and was in fact just what she needed for her day. Her mind blanked of all conversation, and now, only held a badly misshapen image of the margarita.

***

"Oh you girls just go ahead and get us a spot, I'll be back with the drinks," Lyra promised as she departed from her marefriend and her normal friend. They were headed towards a row of lounge chairs that sat by the large pool on the bow, and she had promised to get the drinks for them. Octavia had opted for a simple glass of wine, while Bonbon had sprung for a margarita.

She departed the group, heading left and cutting the corner to hit the first bar. The morning was upon the ship, hitting it with gracious beams of sunlight that only wavered when the ship rocked. Lyra was rather enjoying things insofar; there had been only a few incidents between Octavia and Vinyl, and they were small. She and Bonbon were having plenty of together time, and were both enjoying the closeness that the ship offered. All in all, the trip seemed to be playing out just fine.

Just as she was around the bend, the sight of drunken Vinyl hit her like a bomb. There was the DJ, who, only a night before, had been rewarded for not being hammered as usual. And yet she was on a topside bar, gulping down a margarita and swaying like the wind. A displeased feeling washed over Lyra in a wave of disgruntlement.

"Vinyl, just what do you think you're doing?" she harshly snapped at the DJ. Vinyl looked like she had a heart attack for a second, before returning to as much of normality as she possibly could.

She swung her stool around to face Lyra, the margarita pressed to her lips via magic. "Hey there, you," Vinyl giggled as she took the drink away. She nonchalantly waved a hoof as she brought the drink back up again for a quick second take.

"How can you be drinking right now? Especially after Octavia only had praise for you from last night? Honestly, what is this?" Lyra's tone was one that an adult would use on a murderous filly.

"Hey, hey, ya need to chill," the DJ slurred, gulping down the last of her margarita. Lyra couldn't see if she was even paying attention behind her opaque shades, but she would have to assume for the time being.

"Chill? Vinyl I've been 'chill' the whole time we've been on this trip. But this is just outrageous!"

"Outrageous?" Vinyl was suddenly in a serious tone. Behind her shades her brow was furrowed, and Lyra could only assume that her eyes held a sudden flame. "You have no idea, Lyra. Nopony has any idea!" The DJ slammed the glass on the bar behind her with her magic, her shades not moving once from the mint unicorn that stood in awe. Vinyl's face did change however, and now there was a furious frown on it.

Lyra took a daring step forward. "What? What bit your flank?"

The drunken mare snarled, her gaze fixed intently on Lyra. There was a wary wave of silence that befell them, the intensity of the stair not failing one bit during the entirety of the quiet. But then, Vinyl let loose a drunken laugh that bellowed out. She seemed to exhaust all the air in her lungs with one fell swoop, and was turning red as she banged the bar with a hoof. Clacks fused with her high-key chortle.

"Vinyl?" Lyra slipped her name, hopefully gaining her attention. This was some worrying behavior.

"Yeah, yeah," she panted, the final laughs trickling out of her boozed breath. "It'z all good!"

"I'm a bit worried," the mint unicorn sincerely said. Even for Vinyl being drunk, this was...strange.

But the white mare simply whipped her sharp hair up and shooed Lyra away. "Don't be. I'z fine... An' besides, I'm fine!"

"Is this about last night?" The mint mare got right up to Vinyl - so close she could actually smell the liquor on the DJ's breath. "What happened? Is this something between you and Octavia?"

The fresh smile that adorned Vinyl's face flattened in the blink of an eye. All cheeriness that had returned to the place had fled as well, whisked away on the brisk salty breeze that rolled over the ship. The swaying of the smashed mare had stopped as well; she was more stiff than some sober ponies could get. It was hard to tell if she was even breathing now.

"Hey, are you-"

"Stop." That was all the DJ said, her blunt tone that of a dead seriousness instead of the light heartedness of a silly drunkard. There was no time for an awkward silence to collapse over them now - Vinyl, with severely less coordination that she had shown moments ago, slid off the barstool and landed on the all fours with a thud. She did not even bother with a goodbye to Lyra, but rather, she curtly stumbled away, heading down to one of the many ship entrances and tripping through its doors.

Lyra was in total confusion. The drunken disorder that even the drunkest of drunk Vinyl's could create didn't compare to how wrong that felt. The whole situation held an air of aberrance that couldn't be chalked up to any amount of margaritas.

"I hate to seem rude, but I must say, I'm glad she's gone," the bartending mare breathed in relief as she returned to her post. She took the empty glass up with her magic, tossing it in an exposed sink before turning back to Lyra and performing her duty. "What can I get for you?"

Snapping from her confused thoughts, the mint unicorn faced the bartender to order her poisons. Two green apple margaritas and one glass of merlot later, and Lyra was back on her way to the other two ponies - although she was no less confused than before.

Her best mask of cheeriness adorned, the unicorn, with the drinks in the firm grasp of her magic, trotted out into the sunny pool deck. Both Octavia and Bonbon were reclined in poolside chairs, enjoying the sun as best they could. Lying on their backs, their tails and manes gently whipping in the sea breeze, they were conversing amongst themselves on some unimportant matter. Though, most matters seemed a bit unimportant to Lyra after Vinyl's display of bitterness.

At the chairs, she dispersed the drinks. The oblivious mares snapped from their words exchange to take the cool spirits. These would be a nice counter to the warm sun.

"Ah, thank you dear," Octavia said, taking a slight sip of her red wine.

"Mm, thanks Lyra," Bonbon giggled, giving either the pony or the mixed drink a deviant eye.

The unicorn took a seat beside the cellist, to the surprise of all of them. She slouched down on her back, the gentle swaying of the ship rocking her into a state of comfort. Not that she could stay in it long, though; she needed an answer to that. Her eyes were scanning over the distance, not shifting in the slightest for some time. "Octavia," she eventually asked in a bit of a hushed tone as she pursed the drink to her lips, "How was last night again?"

"It was marvelous," the mare repeated, taking another sip of her own drink. Her purple eyes shifted, gazing over and observing the mint mare. "Why? Is something the matter?"

Lyra was silent for a second, staring down into her green margarita. Maybe it was simply Vinyl being hormonal and drunk. No need to create problems between the seemingly recovering couple, right? "No...no, nothing's the matter," she lied, smiling at her friend.

***

It had to be some time past noon - most likely four or so - when Vinyl eventually stumbled upon her goal. She was tripping and crashing quite a bit, but it didn't stop her from finding a long hall of shops. Marble tiles panned through the hall, the little clacks of the few ponies' hooves' here echoing throughout. It was still a blue theme on the walls, and the ceiling had a mural of many constellations and star formations. It was a marvel to Vinyl; she was walking through the hall inattentive to anything or anypony, her purple shades glued to the recreation of the night sky. A few snorts came from all around as the uptight ponies walked past her.

She was stumbling around a bit, but the alcohol in her bloodstream was waning and she could tell. Now that her mind was a fair bit less diluted than before, she had a clear goal in mind - the floral shop. A gift for Octavia would not only make her happy, but also alleviate some of the guilt Vinyl was now beginning to feel for having drank despite Octavia's wishes. It was her life, and she'd do whatever she pleased, as anypony could expect. Yet she still felt slight regret, and she could at least make up for that.

Another thought entered her mind as she rudely trotted through the center of the hall: she would have to apologize to Lyra for earlier. There was something that mint unicorn had said to press Vinyl's buttons, but she couldn't remember what. Even still she needed to apologize; it was Lyra who had gotten them on the cruise in the first place.

The sobering DJ took a right, landing her in a shop that was carved into the ship. She didn't bother looking up at the name - it was a flower shop, and that's all that really mattered. A few bits jingled in her little coin purse; she had intended to use them at any bars that refused to take the V.I.P card, if there were any at all. But here she had a better use for them.

All around her were bouquets of wonderful, colorful flowers, each assorted in ways that made them burst to the eye. Most of the arrangements were too fancy for Vinyl to even shoot a second look. She wanted something plain, simple, though eloquent. Much like her was her narcissistic thinking. Who didn't love a dash of Vinyl Scratch?

"Excuse me," she politely asked. The employee, a white pegasus with a red mane and a rose for a cutie mark, turned from the flowers she was busy cutting to attend to Vinyl.

"Hi," she smiled, perhaps too cheerily, "Welcome to Nightshade! Best flowers under Luna's moon, right here."

"Uh, yeah..." This mare was making Vinyl uncomfortable. "Look, I need a good flower for my special somepony; nothin' too fancy or anything like that, just a good looking flower."

The employee thought for a second, before lighting up like a match. "Aha! I have the perfect thing for you. How's...this!" She yanked a flower up from beneath her simple wooden counter, tossing it out for the DJ to inspect.

It was one flower, but definitely beautiful on its own. A green stem, freshly cut, connected with red petals that shot out in a cone-like structure. The center of it had more of these leaves, all twirling around each other like the petals on a rose. "That...yeah, that one, what is it?" Vinyl asked, already in satisfaction. This would surely brighten Tav's day!

"It's a hybrid between a rose and poison joke called 'Lover's Spore'. No worries though, the poison is long gone. Er, well, actually it's been repla-"

"I'll take it! How much for it?" The unicorn was simply eager to get out and return to the suite for a nap.

"That's ten bits," the pegasus smiled. Vinyl slammed the money down on the counter, nabbed the flower, and sprung off.

***

Octavia was relaxing on her bed, enjoying the sweet tune of Adagio for Strings. Her body was cooling off; her damp coat was warm still, but the open glass doors helped with that. The steam was rolling out of the bathroom and filling the room, and, were it also not for the glass doors, would be suffocating her just as it had this morning. Her mane was completely flat and soaked - a style she would never be seen in public with, but in private felt rather freeing.

More knocks came from her door. With a small 'ugh' of annoyance, she rolled off of her bed and headed for the door. She just wanted some time to herself; Lyra and Bonbon were pleasant to be around without a doubt, but some alone time would've been nice too. Despite her displeased demeanor, she trudged across the carpet and slowly opened the door. In the hall before her stood Vinyl, looking slightly weary.

"Hey," the mare said in a small, plotting tone. She winked a ruby eye to Octavia before slipping past, an all too familiar scent radiating about her.

"Vinyl Scratch, have you been drinking?" Octavia chided, demanding the answer she felt was obvious.

Yet her marefriend stayed calm and collected, the small grin never failing. "Nope," she said in a light tone, "But I know what it is you're smelling. Here, I got you a gift!" With her light pink magic, she levitated a brilliant red flower to Octavia, resting it gently on her ear.

Octavia shot her eyes up to glimpse at the overhanging petals. "Vinyl, it's beautiful, truly. But you haven't answered my question." The cellist disliked sounding so rude, especially after she was given such a thoughtful gift, but the smell of rank alcohol was exuding out with each breath Vinyl took.

"It's the flower," Vinyl explained, "The place I bought it from soaked it in some kind of alcohol. It's apparently a mix between poison joke and a rose." Octavia immediately tried to get the poisonous flower off her head. How could Vinyl even think this was a good idea? "Hey, hey, calm down. All the poison was removed. That's why they were soaking it in alcohol."

Were that true, things would make a bit more sense. Vinyl was acting normal: she wasn't swaying, she wasn't slurring, and most importantly, she wasn't convulsing. And seeing as the flower may have been carried in her mouth as she left the shop - also assuming the alcohol was still on the stem - then her breath would surely smell of it. "Well...alright I suppose," Octavia said, calming herself as she had done early that morning.

"Yeah, and don't worry about dinner either. I already explained to Lyra the situation," the DJ sighed, falling back on her bed as though her day had been taxing.

"What are you talking about?" the grey mare questioned warily, sitting on her own bed. "And what was wrong with Lyra earlier? She seemed...upset."

Vinyl froze for a moment, but seemed for forcibly relax. "S-She and I bumped into each other, and I was a bit rude. Ya know, cuz I was feeling kinda sick this morning. Don't worry, I apologized."

"Alright. And about dinner?" Octavia batted a fierce eye to the DJ, who was oblivious given her sprawled position.

"Oh yeah, I kinda figured since last night was so good, we should just order some room service and chill up here." Her tone got a bit bashful at this last part, "Ya know, together."

It was there. Deep in that coy tone that was just added, and Octavia knew it: a little tinge of remorse, sadness, guilt? Perhaps, though she could not see why. Nevertheless, the concept of dinner together, alone, was sweet. Octavia gave a soft smile. "That'd be lovely."

"Really? Awesome!" Vinyl shot to life like the high point in a symphony. "We should order a really big plate of-"

The red flower atop Octavia's head pumped out a gaseous cloud of pure scarlet. It was odorless, and tickled the cellist's lungs no more than normal air. She did her best to wave it away from her face, but she had already gotten a good whiff of the gas.

Vinyl was quick to react. She grabbed the flower with her magic, tossing it to the marble counter as she quickly explained, "I had no idea it did that, I swear! I don't even know what that was!"

"It's quite alright dear," Octavia said. While she was no botanist, she did just so happen to know that poison joke did not shoot out gas clouds. A bit more reasoning, and she came to the conclusion that it was probably harmless; after all, it would be illegal to sell poison, eloquent cruise ship or not. Though, the gas left a sweet taste in the back of her mouth, much like that of cupcake icing. "As you were...ugh...saying?"

"Uh, yeah, I was saying we should get a huge plate of, well, something, and share it," Vinyl smiled, one eye still on Octavia as though to observe for danger.

"Vinyl..." the cellist began, "do you know something about that flower?"

"I don't, I swear!" There was a look of sincerity in the unicorn's eyes.

"Indeed... Anyway, when do you plan on ordering? I presume you've mapped tonight out already?"

"Yep, I figured we could eat at like seven or something. It's what, five now?" Vinyl glanced down at the alarm clock that was singing the strange tune of Hall of the Mountain Pony. It read five-thirty three, close to the DJ's assumption.

"And until then?"

Her marefriend grew a soft smile that beamed affection.

***

The next two hours were spent in a sweet haze. The couple had gone out to the deck to watch the start of the sunset; it was, equally to them both, a beautiful spectacle. As the golden rays shot over the watery horizon, illuminating the sky with streaks of gold, pink, and orange, the pair sat close to each other on the couch.

Vinyl seemed a bit reluctant to stay too close to Octavia for long, however, she always did come back to cuddle up. It was clear - to both ponies - that things were not alright between them. Yet for now, they were content, smiling to each other as the sun rolled on its descending course.

Around seven, Vinyl ordered some room service. Delivery was quick, and soon, the pair were feasting on a shared platter of rigatoni and tomato sauce. For desert was a thick slice of strawberry cheesecake; a load of calories for sure, but delicious nonetheless.

The night was spent idly chatting, exchanging pleasantries, and a displaying a few intimacies like hugging and cuddling. Celestia's day eventually fled, the empty sky being eaten by the Luna's starry night. The moon shone it's light through the blue glass, morphing with the dim candlelight that truly lit the room now.

All in all, it was a fairly successful day for everypony.

Chapter 5: Sea Salt on Old Wounds

Thursday was more than mundane; it was boring. At least, a certain blue-maned unicorn thought so. It was nice, weather-wise, with the sun beaming down all day and a crisp breeze never failing. But the activities that Vinyl had been forced to endure were dreadful: shuffle boarding, chess, and talk of orchestral pieces to name but a few. The day was mainly planned out by Octavia and Lyra; Tav had dragged Vinyl along, and Lyra had done the same with Bonbon. The bright side of it all was that she at least had someone to suffer with.

To top it all off, dinner had been an absolute disaster. It started well enough - Lyra was lost in her harp, and the rest of them were idly chatting away as the music breathed around the room. Although, on a ship that never stops, who couldn't expect rapid change? Lobster - faux meat, of course, but the real lobsters had been more than upset about it - arrived on a large platter for them to share. Vinyl was never one for table manners anyways, and just tore off a hunk with her magic, proceeding to dig in. Needless to say, there was a rapid decline in jubilance in the night.

The bewildering fact was this; everything had turned out alright. Despite all odds, when Vinyl and Tav returned to the suite, they simply talked things over. It was a bit disturbing to the DJ, who was used to the fights and more than willing to resume shouting. Yet they talked, Octavia relented, and the night went on as planned.

Night rolled on, and morning eventually burst upon the horizon. The sun this morning was nice and warm yet again, but the day itself seemed thick with a sort of invisible sludge. Vinyl and Tav had slept together again, presenting a tender moment to even the stoniest hearts. Well, Vinyl thought so anyway. That morning was fair; the pair spent it with smiles, kind words, and a few hugs here and there. They were by no means ready to shower with each other again, but that did not stifle the light hearted mood that the morning carried. Vinyl could feel the day approaching swiftly, and for once in months, did not dread it.

***

"Yep," Vinyl said, her mouth stuffed with yet another breakfast panini. All four ponies had decided to meet for breakfast and discuss the day ahead. At around eight or so, the captain had come on the intercom to announce the landing at the islands, and thus there was much to discuss.

Apparently, when Tav, Lyra and Bonbon had vulgarly booted the DJ from the Steamer, they found it to be to their liking. All of them had a panini of some sort in their grasp, with milk or water accompanying it. Lyra, busy enjoying her own artisan sandwich, nodded in agreement to Vinyl.

"Absolutely," she said, swallowing her bite.

To Bonbon and Octavia, it seemed that the two unicorns had spoken previously about this. "Why?" The cellist asked wearily, slowly taking a chunk from her own food.

"Actually, I suppose it makes sense," the cream pony noted, placing her hoof under her chin. "Think about it; it is an island after all."

"I know dear, however I think that it may be a bad idea-" Octavia was cut off by herself as she began coughing rather violently. Normally it could be attributed to the food she ordered - however, she had not yet taken a bite, and was actually sipping down her water quickly this morning. And here she was coughing up a fierce storm.

Vinyl was up and by her side quickly, patting her gently on the back as though it would help. The cellist's face was becoming flush as she gasped for oxygen. From all three breathing ponies, urges to suck in and breathe echoed. Tav was doing her best, but despite her efforts, she just couldn't get a breath in. That is, until a tiny little poof of pure scarlet came through her snout. It was small - almost invisible to an inattentive eye - but both Lyra and Bonbon had spotted it. In the corner of Vinyl's eye, she could see the couple exchanging interesting glances.

Octavia couldn't have seen it; her eyes were clenched tight. Vinyl decided it best not to tell her until she herself knew, for the sole sake of keeping their relationship on good terms. "You okay Tav?" asked the DJ, rubbing her marefriend's back as the pony calmed.

Clearing her throat, Octavia replied, "Yes, thank you, though I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't hit me so hard next time."

Vinyl backed off, a bit confused. She was only tapping Tav's back. "I was only trying to help, ya know."

"Indeed."

"Sorry," Vinyl grumbled, heading back to her seat.

"It's alright," the cellist sighed, taking another sip of her third glass of water.

"So where were we?" Vinyl asked, taking note of the strange, strained looks on her friend's faces. They were biting their lips and turning red - the mare had seen this before. It was the look of chugging hot sauce! Ah, but there was no hot sauce on the table... And, to throw her off a bit more, there were grins on their faces, instead of the normal grimaces one could expect from guzzling fire.

"We, uh, the islands!" Bonbon spoke up. Her tone was suppressed for some reason. "Well there'll be three of them. You can go to any of them, really. At least that's what we've read in the activities pamphlets."

"Huh. Does it matter?"

"Not really," Lyra commented. "Though the largest one does have a bar they use each time they stop here."

"Well I know which one we won't be on," Octavia grouched. She leaned in and took a crispy bite from her sandwich.

Vinyl sighed, ignoring her marefriend's totality for control. "And how do we get on the islands?" she asked with the most polite smile she had.

The harpist across from her shifted in her chair as she spoke, "I think there's an offloading area at the bottom deck. I'm not sure, we'll just have to find out."

Suddenly, bellowing throughout the ship, the intercoms rang on:

"All passengers, this is Captain Starlight speaking. The weather today is clear and sunny, with a few off course clouds here and there. This is rather perfect for today, as we shall be landing at the Maiden Islands in approximately thirty minutes. When we stop, please proceed to the bottom deck for instructions on offloading. Have a wonderful day." The captain's voice was a peculiar mix of formality of a royal, and handiwork of an engineer. He seemed rather charming though, and the slightly rustic accent did him well.

"And there we have it," Lyra chirped, her face still a bit flush, "our orders!" The mint unicorn - excited for some other reason than the islands, Vinyl knew - levitated her sandwich forward to take a bite, making a soft crunch as she did so.

"Yeah..." was all Vinyl said, giving her a dangerous eye as she took up her own food.

***

When breakfast had finished, the four of them split in groups of two. Lyra and Bonbon vanished to their suite, while Octavia and Vinyl had done the same. There was a bit of work to be done before they could leave: gathering lotions, taking up their boarding passes, and simply planning the day. The ship would not be leaving them, of course, and therefore they were free to enter and exit whenever they pleased. However, the pair of musicians - Vinyl and Octavia - had already decided to spend the entire day on the sandy beaches in each other's company.

They spent their thirty minutes - after preparing, of course - spending time with each other on the balcony.

"So we've got to get going soon, huh?" Vinyl rhetorically asked, staring out over the sea. In the foreground, a group of three islands slowly grew.

"I suppose," Tav responded.

The DJ had an off feeling about her marefriend today. The grey earth pony sitting next to her had been acting increasingly...strange. She was fine until the end of breakfast, and when their group had split, her decline to weirdness began to quicken. There was affection in her eyes - not something that Vinyl normally minded, but instead liked - yet it was different, diluted in a way. What she would call clingy. The cellist had become increasingly close, preferring to rest on Vinyl rather than sit away as she normally would.

"Yeah, so, uh, let's get going. We should probably meet up with Lyra and Bonbon, ya know?" Vinyl suggested out of her discomfort. It wasn't that she disliked the affection; she just wasn't ready for it. There was still plenty ill-will crammed up in her mind, even if she did still love Tav. Which she did, she reminded herself. Tav meant Equestria to her.

"We could, but you know today's about us, right?" Octavia's voice sung a low tune of giddiness.

"I know, but we still gotta meet up with them. They know more about all of this than we do," suggested the DJ. If there was one thing she was good at, it was formulating excuses. Not that it was entirely a lie, though; they really did know more, and would probably be helpful in getting off the ship.

"Fine," Tav sighed, dropping from the couch. Vinyl followed, throwing on a fancy pair of saddlebags that rested on the table. They strapped securely under her belly, and she was ready to face the day. Not clingy Octavia - just the day.

The pair left the suite in familiar silence, hardly saying a word to their friends, who were waiting patiently outside the door. They had apparently already knocked, but Vinyl was too preoccupied with her marefriend's behavior to notice. Still, the only words or explanation given after the greetings was a "we're sorry," and "let's go".

As they boarded the interior elevator - which was rather packed with stiff, well dressed ponies - Octavia stuck close to Vinyl. The mint unicorn and her mate, red faced and lips pursed, seemed to have a hard time suppressing...something. Vinyl couldn't tell what; it looked like either laughter or breakfast. If she had to choose, the DJ would pray for the former.

The elevator shot down farther than ever before now. The lit button displayed two capital letters - 'BD', most likely for 'Bottom Deck'. The fancy trolley sped down with ease, the tiny bumps in the ride most likely the cause of its occupancy. It wasn't until the cart stopped and unloaded that Vinyl felt she could breathe once more. When the cluster fanned out, air hit her like a tsunami.

From the elevator the four ponies found themselves lodged in the lowermost deck of the ship. The place - a simple, long corridor - was surprisingly eloquent for its position. There was blue carpet that fanned the area, and bars spread up the right side, between which sat offloading elevators that were carved into the mural wall. To the left was a glossy window strip that spanned the entire length of the hallway, displaying the grouping of sandy islands that they were sailing up to now. The sea was a crisp cyan, shimmering up to and over the horizon, creating an enormous tropical feel.

The islands were almost alongside the ship now, and soon, to everpony's disgruntlement, the ship came to an uneasy stop. Vinyl was at center of their group, but not even the support she gained from face planting Lyra's flank could keep her steady. It did manage to knock a laugh out of the mint unicorn, but not much else.

After finally regaining her balance, mostly by using her steady friends and Tav, Vinyl quietly followed them to a forming line. She was embarrassed, sure, but there was more confusion in her mind than anything. Octavia, who would have snapped at Vinyl any other day, was instead busy brushing up on her as they walked. Her side gently swayed up to the unicorn's own, their coats meshing. Such a feeling would normally be welcome, but, given the circumstances, was simply uncomfortable.

The line of ponies began at two large, curved sealed doors that were the only things to sever the elongated window. All seemed to have a flat expression; they always seemed to have a flat expression. And, to make things a bit queerer, they were all still dressed well. Most were in nice suites, or fancy dresses that seemed to be made only for the elite of Canterlot. The exceptions of this included the few who were in pants or skirts for some reason. Vinyl found herself wondering if these ponies realized what an island even was.

At the back of the organized line, Vinyl took her place, Octavia next to her, and her friends directly behind her. With the recent silence, the unicorn had expected no one to talk whatsoever. However - and slightly to the DJ's chagrin - Bonbon placed her hoof on Vinyl's back to grab her attention. She turned to face the cream mare, a look of question on her face. Bonbon did nothing more than smile and wave her hoof, motioning for the unicorn to come stand beside her.

As Vinyl did so, Lyra filled her spot as to sever her from her marefriend. It seemed she was in on...whatever, as well. Careful to not get the reflected sunlight in her exposed eyes, Vinyl leaned next to Bonbon. "Hey," she whispered in the unicorn's ear as if they had just met. A look of annoyance washed down Vinyl's face, but her friend continued still. "What was up with that red stuff in Octavia's nose earlier?"

"You tell me," Vinyl whispered back in a commanding tone. "You seem to know." In their fore, Lyra was occupying Octavia with some pointless conversation of her plans for the day; the cellist was oblivious to the hushed conversation going on behind her.

Bonbon snickered under her breath. "I do," she prodded.

"Then tell me! It was that flower, wasn't it?" Vinyl's tone was overgrown with worry. Cautious as not to get caught, she craned her neck up to see Tav and Lyra. They were idly chatting away. This was good - the troubles of Vinyl would not be heard. Even still, she got closer to Bonbon to hear her answer.

The line behind the cream mare was growing, and thus the hall was getting loud; Vinyl's ear was pressed to Bonbon's warm cheek, making her whispers barely audible. "Let me guess...A mix between a rose and poison joke?"

"Yeah," Vinyl whispered back, "How did you-"

"Shh," Bonbon demanded. "If you want to know, I'll tell you, but you may want to save your questions-"

"Don't speak down to me," The unicorn seethed. "I'm so tired of everypony talking down to me like I'm a filly. I'm not!"

"Alright, alright," Bonbon relented, her smile faded at her friends chides. Their heads were still low and together, gaining a few estranged looks from one or two ponies. "But don't get snappy. I'm trying to help, that's all."

Vinyl took a deep breath and sighed. In an attempt to calm her riled nerves, she glanced out the windows; the islands were upon them now, and the sun no less intense. As another deep breath entered and fled her lungs, the DJ found herself ready to resume the conversation in a more...civil manner. "Fine, I'm sorry. Just tell me what that is. She's been acting weird since last night. Almost...clingy, I guess."

Bonbon tilted her head, fluttering her eyes at Vinyl. " I thought so," she hummed in a playful tune.

"Quit with that! Just get on with it," stammered the once again flaring DJ.

"Jeez, you're a grouch. Fine, it looked to me like Lover's Spore, a flower with spores that can be brewed in tea. The rose mixes with the poison joke to create a spore like effect," she explained, "I should know. I pump that stuff in Lyra's nose all the time." The cream mare tried to cover a chuckle with her hoof, but failed miserably.

"Okay, and what's it do?" the DJ asked in a calmer tone. She had found a bit more patience, but her supply was fading quickly.

Her friend took note, and took swift action against it. "It's an interesting little thing. See, it-"

"Ladies and gentlecolts, this is captain Starlight once again. As you have noticed, we've come to our stop, and will proceed to unload. Please follow the instructions of the crew. Make sure you've got your boarding passes, as you'll need them for re-entry to the ship. That should do it - have a wonderful sunny day," The captain rang over the intercom in his cheery, well-mannered tone.

When the ring of the intercoms had died down - though the buzz of the growing crowd had not - Bonbon opened her mouth to finish her sentence. She never got the chance. "Let's go girls, I'm rather tired of being cramped aboard this ship," Octavia rang, a grin on her face to display her sarcastic tone. "And besides, Vinyl and I have quite the day in store."

***

The warm sand softened Vinyl's blow as she collapsed. The skies were clear, the trees were swaying, the breeze was crisp, and the waves were soft. The DJ found herself staring up, out into the vast beyond that was the sky. The sound of waves rolling in just beneath her spread hind legs was soothing, the breeze holding a calming levy. With the small crashes of the humming waves mixed with the sweet song of palm leaves rustles, the mare found herself to be in true paradise...a place with a bar. Not that she could hit it while Tav was around, but, there in her mind, she could at least pretend. She knew Tav was more important that drinking, no matter how fun it would be to be drunk on an island.

Her cellist marefriend eased herself down beside Vinyl, resting her back on the sand. The pair lay sprawled out under the sun, in a silence that each of them respected. Their section of the beach was empty. It made some sense - after the initial rush of ponies, most of which had taken refuge at the center island and bar, the loading ramps were deserted. The unicorn preferred this; she wouldn't have to put up with some high class pony griping of how the salt was messing with his mane. The only reason Octavia wasn't complaining - and this was proudly Vinyl's idea - was because she had opted to take a shower with Vinyl once they re-boarded the ship.

Vinyl glanced over to her marefriend, her styled, sharp blue mane grinding against the coarse sand. "Hey Tav," she said, her head resting gently on the baking quartz. "What do you think? I mean, about this cruise and all. Do you still think it was a good idea?"

With a small, unhidden yawn, Octavia let her head droop to her side in a most uncivil manner. When she was eye-to-eye with Vinyl, she responded tenderly, "Of course I do. I'm glad I came: the sea, the sun...you."

"Me?" The question was rhetorical - Vinyl had heard quite clearly. Yet she didn't exactly like it. "I'm glad I came, and our 'us' time is nice too and all, but-"

"Aw, Vinyl, sh-sh-sh," whispered the grey mare in a sly little voice. She rolled onto her side, the loose sand falling from her mane. A small grin was carved onto her face as she spoke. "Our 'us' time is indeed nice. Like now, for example..." Her voice trailed off, carrying her eyes with it. They looked down at the sand, a pouting look washing away the grin. With a hoof, Octavia drew circles in the sand. All together, she looked like a scolded filly that had been denied a candy bar.

And it was adorable; disturbingly so, in fact. Nevertheless, Vinyl rolled over to the pouting cellist and wrapped her in a warm embrace. Her forelegs gripped Tav's neck as she hoisted herself atop the mare, nuzzling into her neck. "Yeah...like now," she whispered, unsure of what she was doing.

Octavia giggled and hugged back, locking the pair close. There they stayed in each other's grasp for a minute or two, alone on the warm beach, the song of waves filling their ears. They held each other tenderly, setting a tone fit for deep romance.

"My belly itches," Octavia poked with a grin, licking Vinyl's ear ever so lightly.

The white unicorn, heat swelling in her cheeks, had to clear her throat to find words. "I, uh... I can fix that."

Her marefriend chuckled, sprawling out. Her legs went their separate ways, not only freeing Vinyl but also exposing her underside. Vinyl carefully slid off of the strange mare; she was uncomfortable, no matter how she tried to view the situation in her mind. A belly rub though - the prospect was cute. She hadn't done it in a while - with a conscious Octavia, that is - so it would be nice to hear those little giggles again.

Her ruby eye's locked in her marefriend's own. Vinyl began running her hoof up and down the cellist's belly, creating a calming rhythm. Octavia, shifting in the sand, let out a small sigh of content. The DJ let her electric blue mane wave in the sea breeze as she gently caressed Tav's side with a free hoof. Her other grazed up and down the mare's chest; the feeling of soft fur on her warm hoof was ecstatic. The sun warmed her back, and the creeping waves cooled her hind legs, dabbing her tail like a paintbrush to watercolors. Each stroke of the soft grey fur was just one more lash of stress alleviated from Vinyl's back.

Now, the DJ herself let a sigh of ease slip through her lips. This was nice, soothing even. The rhythm of the world, the strokes of Tav's fur, and the soft breaths of the same mare, only broken by a rare, benign giggle... there was nothing that could compare. Gentle as to not shake up Octavia, she rested her head atop the cellist's belly. Her hoof continued to brush up Octavia's chest, then down to her belly, and then to her chest again; it was a pattern that she knew by heart. Finally happy, with the apprehension of her marefriend's behavior slipping away, Vinyl nuzzled into the soft fur with a smile. She opened her mouth, the coded words 'I love you' about to breathe out.

Nothing came. She was calm, and the words seemed to be spoken for her. It had been such a long time since she had been like this, and she was enjoying it. Sure, it was slightly strange - Tav was stoking Vinyl's mane, oddly enough - but the sensation felt good nonetheless. The unicorn nuzzled deeper into her marefriend's belly, heat filled in her cheeks, and a smile graced upon her lips.

But everything stopped. Her resting eyes clenched shut, and her muscles tensed. They burned; she was sure this was worse than being lit aflame. Everything around her distanced: the island, the sand, the warmth. It was all cold, gone, evaporated like steam from a hotplate. Even the soft feel of fur beneath her cheek faded away, exposing an empty vast coldness.

She sat in the chair, waiting, tears on her face. Each time she had asked, they simply told her 'not yet'.

Vinyl squeezed her eyes shut as hard as she could - so hard, in fact, she was beginning to see things. These voices, these images just wouldn't leave. They were invading in waves, strong and unstoppable.

Seconds, minutes, hours...nothing changed.

"Vinyl? Vinyl, are you alright?" Octavia's voice echoed in her head. The DJ did her best to force her eyes open, but they were locked.

"We don't know..."

Her eyes shot open, bright sunlight flooding them. There were tears on her cheeks; she could just now feel their wet streaks. Through her blurred vision, she looked back up to Octavia. The worried cellist gave her a soft look of concern that was muddled with pain; Vinyl had been squeezing her sides tight, and the cellist seemed to just now be getting a breath in as her trembling marefriend eased up.

She took her own breaths now, air swarming her wanting lungs. From the lightheadedness, the burning, and the pain, it was clear that she had not been breathing. Her lungs took in all they could, stinging and burning as they inflated.

A sudden nauseas feeling warped her gut. Her stomach twirled and churned; the obvious outcome would not be pretty. Her eyes clenched shut again in an attempt to suppress her innards, but to no avail. It would come. It was simply a matter of where.

Vinyl quickly pushed herself off the sand, off her mare. "I...I-I..." Her tone was hurried, her breathing hastened.

"Vinyl, what's wrong?" the cellist asked in her sly little tone. The DJ just couldn't take this right now.

"I-I..." Her eyes raced around, looking for an escape from herself. "I'm sorry," she choked. With that, she darted away, into the thin tree line that separated that part of the beach, not looking back.

***

Lyra and Bonbon were chatting away. It had been a few hours, and lunchtime quickly rolled around. They were sitting aboard the ship, in the offloading hallway. The bar on the island was rather unkempt; it seemed that it was something they just threw up when they came to the island: filled with spiders, smelling of rank, dried up salt, and just flat out falling apart. They decided it would be best to eat aboard the ship.

So, they had opted for a little bar with no name. They made some damn good salads though, and they even had a couple's platter. Green, crispy leafs of lettuce, onions a perfect shade of purple, and tomatoes juicy and plump as a bushel of grapes. With her magic, Lyra lifted one of the plump little fruits and plopped it into Bonbon's mouth. The cream mare took it with a giggle, graciously adding to the jubilant mood.

"So you didn't get to tell her about the flower?" Lyra chortled. "Whew, she's in for a surprise."

"I know," Bonbon agreed with a snicker, swallowing down her tomato. "Though...I want to know where she found it. The moon's supposed to be bright tonight, and the air's supposed to be warm..." The mare shot Lyra a seductive look, winking for extra effect.

The harpist chuckled, taking a tomato for herself. "Then we should ask, hmm..." She popped the tomato in her mouth, returning the wink.

Just then, a white and blue streak whipped by them, spinning them around in their barstools. It flew at an open elevator, and before either could react, rapidly spammed a button. The doors slammed close, and the elevator was off.

"What was that?" Bonbon asked, steadying herself out.

Lyra could not respond; the tomato had made this certain. It was still whole, lodged deep in the mint unicorn's throat. Bonbon snapped into action when she realized that her marefriend was choking; she slammed a hoof straight into the unicorn's chest, knocking the wind and the tomato from her system. The little ball of pain flew out, falling to the floor and rolling underneath the bar.

"What the hay was that?" she cried out, coughing up anything she could. Her hoof pressed to her burning chest in an attempt to clear her throat out. Her face a fiery red, she looked up at Bonbon for an answer.

"Vinyl... and she looked upset," the cream mare said, looking over her shoulder to the elevator. "Very upset."

"Yeah," Lyra agreed, sucking in deeply. Air flooded her lungs, the blood rushing back to her head. She released a huge sigh, continuing with: "What do you think happened; another fight? Those two are always fighting. I swear, I wonder if they're even right for each other..."

"Lyra Heartstrings!" Bonbon berated. She glared intensely at her marefriend. The unicorn was taken aback by the scolding; she had not expected it, that much was obvious in her eyes. "What if somepony had said that about us? You know that was wrong."

"I know, I know...I didn't mean it, honestly. Really, though, take a look at them. They're our friends, yes. And I care about them a lot. But...are they even happy together now?" The unicorn sighed and picked up an onion, tossing the
crunchy ring into her open mouth.

"I don't know. But...But I don't think talking like that will help either. We're their friends, we should help them. Not gossip," the earth pony explained.

Lyra grudgingly agreed. Brushing her sea-foam mane from her blunt face, she said, "So we should probably find them. I'll go get Octavia, you get Vinyl. Sound good?" The onion in her mouth had long since been swallowed, but a few tiny pieces remained to be flung onto her blocking hoof.

"Let's hurry, too. Vinyl looked sick, or close to it."

Lyra thought it over. "Well maybe that's it. Maybe she's just sick. Did you see her face at all?" she asked, falling off her barstool. Perhaps there was a chance to save her romantic day out with Bonbon.

The pony followed, responding, "Not really. But from what I did see, she looked sick. It's just a suggestion. C'mon, let's get moving." She looked over to her marefriend, who held a look of contempt. "Lyra, are you alright?"

"I'm, argh, fine. I just...well I just wanted a peaceful day with you. I'm sorry, but I'm tired of putting up with their constant bickering." There was a tinge of anger in the unicorn's voice, but it was caked with annoyance and sprinkled with guilt. She seethed out with a sigh. "That's why I took this job: so that we could have a romantic vacation. Not police two immature fillies..."

"Please, Lyra. Look, I promise to make it up to you tonight. Can we just take care of this?" Bonbon pleaded. These were her closest friends; she would hate to see harm come to them.

"Alright...I... I'm sorry, by the way. It's just..."

"I understand," Bonbon promised, kissing Lyra on the cheek. The unicorn's cheeks filled with heat as she smiled. "Don't worry, I'm gonna make tonight perfect, I promise," the cream pony said with a wink, knocking her flank against Lyra's.

The mint mare nodded, feeling her negative emotions washing away. "You better," she chuckled.

***

Octavia had been found sitting on the beach, hazed via the flower's spores. Lyra took her incapable flank onto the ship, and up to her suite. She had taken the liberty to grab the pair's saddlebags, which by a fortunate streak of luck had not been sucked into the ocean - they were dangerously close to the waves. Any closer and Octavia would've been stuck in the ship's brig for the next nine days.

At the suite, Bonbon was patiently awaiting their arrival. Sickening sounds were emitting though the door; it seemed as though Vinyl truly was sick. Not that either of them could know for sure. Octavia had said that 'Vinyl ran off'. Actually, that was all she had said.

After they unlocked and popped the door open, they found Vinyl - unconscious and truly sick - on the bathroom floor. It was a nasty job, but mainly out of pity, all three of them helped clean the mare up, Octavia doing much more than her fair share. It took a good twenty minutes or so, but they finally got her cleaned and dried.

There they left Vinyl, in her bed. Though her breathing was normal and her heartbeat fine, she showed no signs of awareness, no signs of waking anytime soon. It was a bit hard to drag the spore-filled Octavia out, but they managed. Vinyl looked very ill, and in need of sleep.

And sleep she did: past dinner, past dessert, all day, all night, and unto the morning hours.

Chapter 6: Symphonic Echoes

It was late. They were late. The night had come swiftly, the dark outside only fluctuated by the shimmering of the ghostly moon. The pale light glistened in through any windows it hit. The clock was approaching seven, and they were supposed to be at the captain's table five minutes ago. As Vinyl and Octavia charged down the hall and into the foyer, they exchanged glances. Vinyl's was that of false concern, while Octavia's was of utter annoyance. After the flower had worn off around midday or so, her clinginess had given way to something less adorable: a migraine. Coupled with the fact that it was Vinyl who had kept them waiting, it was an easy assumption to make that the cellist was a bad mood.

"What a great way to start the night..." Vinyl muttered under her breath, careful as to not let her marefriend hear.

They trotted calmly through the foyer and into the piano lounge; anything faster and they would appear uncouth. Celestia forbid Octavia seeming uncouth. So they stuck to a canter, making their way down the carpeted aisle, and into the elevator lobby. Vinyl, taking the lead, trotted right past the steel elevators, and up the stairs. "Oh Vinyl," Tav called from behind her, "unless you plan on turning into a pegasus, I suggest you get on the elevator."

The DJ glanced back just in time to see her sneering mate enter an empty elevator. Quickly she joined Tav, rushing in and pushing the proper button. The doors meshed close, and within seconds, they were shooting up a floor. No words were exchanged as the two mares exited the car - the pressure of the situation alone was enough to silence them.

Out they ran, into a room that was a perfect copy of the lower lobby, excluding the stairs. To their left was a similar archway, crowded by a few straggling ponies such as themselves. With quickened haste, both mares raced into the archway, and out of the little cache it fed into. They now found themselves in the lofts of the dining hall - the perfect overlook of Lyra's stage, empty and soundless though it was. The harpist was not playing tonight; that job was taken over by a pianist who had set up in the corner of the loft, next to the captain's table.

The table itself was on the other side of the room, an easily locatable target, as the huge piano, illustrious captain, and vibrant mares all made it stand out. Vinyl led the way, hurrying around the corner of the open loft, and down an aisle of blue carpet. Octavia was quick behind her, and soon, the pair approached the table.

It was laid out for a feast. The long, rectangular slab sat with a blue tablecloth depicting a moon draped over it. At the head was the captain, sitting next to the piano. To his left were the well dressed Lyra and Bonbon, both giving expectant eyes to the DJ and the cellist, and to his right were two open seats painted of gold. Vinyl and Octavia curtly took hold of them, exchanging many apologies, excuses, and one or two blames.

"Well, well," the captain started, suave as ever, "four very pretty mares at my table. I'm a rather lucky stallion." His hat lay next to his bread plate, his tux was neat and ironed, and his wings were properly tucked by his sides - he had come more than prepared.

"Oh my," Octavia giggled. She was just getting settled into her chair, her pink gown giving her more trouble than it's worth. "I'm flattered-"

"But we're all taken," Vinyl said, cutting her marefriend off. She herself was having a fit trying to get adjusted; her scarlet gown too was annoying. Even still, she gave a polite smile to show no hard feelings.

The stallion whipped his dark blue bangs from his face, giving a genuine smile back. "Ah, yes, of course you are! I envy you mares, you know; love's a hard thing to come by in this day and age, and yet here you all are, happy and together!"

Vinyl cringed at the statement. Giving a look to Lyra for some support, and only getting a soft smile in concern, she attempted to withdraw from the conversation. Her gaze slipped away, turning to the small candle in the center of the table. Doing her best to appear preoccupied, she stared intently at the little flickering flame.

This did not work.

"So then," the captain began again, "you must be Octavia the Cellist. Lyra here has told me of your magnificence with a bow." The grey mare, now the center of attention, blushed and looked away with the playful wave of a hoof. "And if that is true, then this lovely lady must be none other than Vinyl Scratch."

The DJ choked at the mention of her name. "I, uh, yeah, t-that's me," she stammered, trying to refocus her attention to the captain. She failed though, landing her eyes upon Lyra and Bonbon instead, both of whom were giving her nervous smiles. Tonight meant a lot to them both and, as unfortunate as it was, Vinyl knew she was the only one who could mess it up.

"Well it's a pleasure to meet you Miss Scratch," the captain politely said. In a rather rapid topic change, he continued speaking with: "Just before you and the stunning Miss Octavia here arrived, I believe you, Lyra, were going to enlighten me with the workings of a harp."

"Ah yes," the mint unicorn said in a tone most formal. "It's rather hard to play, considering..." Soon she was lost in her ranting on the workings of the instrument, providing plenty of hoof motions and elaborate faces.

Vinyl watched with a pretended interest and an uneasy smile; situations like these were the worst. Nowhere else could she feel so out of place than at a fancy occasion, already at the chagrin of three other mares. To buy some time - and hopefully kill off the churning in her gut - she began glancing around the room. The pianist behind captain Starlight was playing away at a piece the DJ easily recognized as - no doubt the cause of Octavia's singular taste of music - Clair De Luna. A calming peace...if she was drowning in her own pity, that is. No, she was simply uneasy. The soft piano did absolutely nothing for that.

"Fascinating," Starlight noted as Lyra finished. "I never would have imagined it to be so complicated. I say, the only instrument I can play is a ship's horn." Octavia and Lyra both got a good chortle from this. Bonbon too let loose a little giggle, covering her mouth with a hoof. Laughter seemed to be abundant. As for the DJ unicorn, however, she was smiling the best smile she could muster. Fake, obviously enough, but it was all she had.

Soon two waitresses came out in black dresses with bread baskets and menus balanced on their backs. One split off to Vinyl and Octavia, whilst the other attended to the opposite side of the table. They rested two baskets down, one for each party, and then distributed the menus. They then began taking drink orders, beginning with Starlight.

The captain was a more chivalrous colt than Vinyl had presumed. Extending a hoof to Lyra, then sweeping it across his front, he said, "Please, ladies first. I can wait."

Both nodded, and turned to face their assigned parties. As Lyra and her marefriend began their orders, so did Vinyl and Octavia.

"Hmm," the cellist began, placing a socked hoof under her chin. "Tonight's a rather special night I suppose...I think I'll have a small glass of your finest Woodford Reserve Bourbon please. Oh, um, the Distiller's Select."

Vinyl was. In. Awe. Did her anti-alcohol marefriend just order a glass of whiskey? When the waitress came to take her order, the DJ was too dumbstruck to speak. It took a firm nudge from Octavia to set her back into motion. "I, uh, yeah drinks... I'll take the, uh..." Reasoning kicked in here; if Tav could order hard liquor, then she sure as hay could. "Yeah, I'll take a full glass of vodka or something. Just make it hard and full," she said with an edge of excitement. A grin was plastered to her face as she watched the waitress scribble her order down.

"Um, excuse me?" Octavia sneered, giving Vinyl an evil eye. To the waitress, she said, "She'll have no hard liquor, thank you very much."

"I'll have a glass of vodka," Vinyl seethed, her tone choppy and filled with annoyance - her life, her rules.

"Vinyl..."

"Thank you," the DJ said. She gave the waitress a smile, dismissing her from the table. The orange mare nodded and took her leave, orders scribbled down in her little flip-book.

"Just what do you think you are doing?" Octavia was shaking, her hooves curved and her eyes darted. She spoke to Vinyl in her hushed, rushed, angry tone that she normally would when she scolded the unicorn in public.

"What are you doing? Getting whiskey," the white mare scoffed. Her head tilted up in a display of disdain.

"Do you wish to know why I can get whiskey, Scratches?" Vinyl winced at the use of her nickname - a name only used when things were blithe between them - for scolding purposes. "I can get whiskey because I'm no drunken deviant. Look at yourself; you can guzzle a flagon of whiskey in an hour! Uncouthness is stuck in your fur."

Her tone getting slightly louder than a whisper, Vinyl retorted, "Or maybe stuck-upness is stuck in your fur! Why can't you let me run my own life, huh?"

"Um, girls?" Lyra asked with a nervous chime. Her face was that of angst; so much so, in fact, she seemed to be having a hard time just sitting still. "The, um, captain here was about to tell us about tomorrow..."

Starlight never ceased to be jubilant, rushing to the aid of the night with a smile and a wink. "Ah yes, tomorrow! That's a big night, you know, as it marks the halfway point of our trip!"

"Truly? Will there be any events to mark said occasion?" Octavia inquired. With her attention shifted - forcefully no doubt - from Vinyl, she leaned in to hear what the captain had to say.

Bonbon gave a soft glance to the DJ that was worth thousands of words and more. Among them: be polite, be considerate, and don't fight. Vinyl squinted and shot a look hard as the ship's hull back. It read simply: screw off. If she truly had no allies, if nopony would stand by her, then by Celestia she would take the charge! Her life! She could do what she damn well pleased, and nopony had any right to treat her condescendingly for doing so.

"Indeed there will be! But, before I begin on one of my ramblings, I'm afraid I must attend to the crowd. If you'll all please excuse me," the captain said. He stood, and strode over to the vaults edge. The pianist - and the crowd - hushed.

Captain Starlight began chatting away, talking of some weather and sailing, and a bit more stuff of the sort. Vinyl paid no heed; she was angrily grinding her teeth and whipping her tail. The blue tablecloth was the bunt of her disgruntlement. She found pleasure in squeezing it between her hooves like a stress ball.

Most of the 'stress' had not come directly from the situation, but more of an exasperation of the situation. Vinyl's mind was cooking, ready to boil over - a situation even she did not want to occur, given the luxurious spread. Across from her, the mint harpist and cream pony were staring at her from the corner of her eyes - a fact that only turned the cooking fire up. Watched over like a filly, stared at like a convict, treated like an imbecile...

"So, ladies and gentlecolts, please enjoy your dinner," the captain said, bowing his head.

As the pianist resumed playing, the well built Starlight then fell from the railing, and promptly returned to his illustrious seat.

"Terribly sorry about that," he chuckled, shifting around. He tore a chunk from a bread loaf and rested it on his plate swiftly, as to not keep his guests waiting any longer. "Now, about tomorrow night: as I said, it is the middle of the voyage, and that calls for celebration!"

"Um, may I ask why?" Bonbon asked, attempting not to lock eyes with Vinyl again.

"Why?" the captain mocked with good natured sarcasm, "Because we've hit no icebergs of course!"

Lyra threw in a soft chuckle to try and lighten the darkening mood. Next to Vinyl, the arrogant cellist also gave a small chortle. Then Bonbon, and soon, once again, the DJ was the only one to show no lighthearted emotion. Instead she continued to fiddle with the tablecloth, her ruby eyes lost in the fire again.

"So, in celebration, we always hold a mid-cruise ball! In the foyer, we gather and dance and drink and talk the night away. And, of course, eventually wake up on the bathroom floor," he chuckled. All four ponies chuckled now - Vinyl especially, as it seemed to link up with her own plans for tonight.

***

After the explanation, there was mild chattering amongst the table. Vinyl found it in her to cool down, and soon, she joined in as well. There was a bit of room for a good, short conversation of ever flowing topics; however, the waitresses soon returned with full hooves.

They dispersed the drinks: water for the distracted cream pony, wine for the chatting harpist, fine bourbon for the angry cellist, and a tall, thin glass of vodka for the liverless DJ. Vinyl found all eyes, with the exception being the captain's, on her drink. Lyra and Bonbon's held wary, nervous looks, as if they could plead her out of drinking, while her own marefriend's eyes held a look of pure, unrefined homicide. The unicorn didn't care; with her magic, she brought the drink up and took a stout sip.

She gave a triumphant 'humph' to all of them, guzzling down about half of her drink. This came with repercussions, of course; she began hacking away as she slammed her drink back down. The stuff had to be at least one-twenty proof! Hoof clutched to her chest, she coughed till it burned. Neither Octavia nor her friends lent so much as even a helping hoof.

"My, my Miss Scratch, you sure can drink," the captain joked, clapping his hooves with a genuine, painted smile.

"Indeed she can," Tav spat, looking down into her own drink with a grimace.

Vinyl snorted, and took another sip, despite her screaming throat. It was mostly in defiance - but even with the accompaniment of strong emotion, it burned to Tartarus and back. Not stopping for a breath, she guzzled down a bit more, until there was barely any left. That was going to hit her fast and hard.

The cellist beside her sneered, looking away with a repulsed face. "So, um, captain; may I ask about this 'ball'? Say...what sort of festivities will it include?"

"I heard there would be something with lanterns," Lyra piped.

"Indeed there shall be!" Starlight said, his face alight. "During the night - tonight, that is - the staff and crew will go around hanging lanterns from the railings, decks, and anywhere else they can reach. The whole ship will be aflame!" He chuckled again. It seemed as though he enjoyed tormenting his passengers with disaster jokes. "Ah, but honestly, I've been told that for many ponies, it sets a...romantic tone, hmm?"

Lyra and Bonbon locked eyes, cheeks burning with heat. They exchanged cute little giggles and one or two winks. Opposite them, in every way, Vinyl and her marefriend did not so much as look each other over; they were content to stare angrily into their alcohol glasses, a pair of soon-to-be drunk statues.

"W-Well that sounds lovely," the harpist stammered. She had noticed the stone faces of the rocky couple, and was fearful that the captain was taking it the wrong way. Yet the suave pegasus was surprisingly cunning; he seemed to understand where that relationship stood in comparison to Lyra's own, and respected the silent ponies mulling.

"It is," he said with a grin, tilting his head to the mint unicorn in a cheeky fashion. "You and Miss Bonbon shall have a wonderful time, I have no doubt."

"Ooh, I hope so," Bonbon snickered, nudging her flush marefriend.

"And perhaps for you both as well," captain Starlight said. He gave a tiny wink to the pouting cellist, who raised her head to offer a smile.

"Indeed...perhaps."

***

Minutes of idle talking passed. Nothing of importance was exchanged but time; the fleeting resource was gone faster than anypony could've imagined. The waitresses had returned some time ago, taking down orders for more ravioli, dumplings, pasta and such, and were to be back very soon.

The cellist beside Vinyl had rejoined conversation, though she herself had not. Instead she silently stared at the fire, not necessarily angry but by no means calm. But she was listening to the nonsensical chatting that intruded her ears - it wasn't as if she had something better to do.

Captain Starlight was blabbing away of some adventure at sea he had once headed when Tav picked up her drink for the first time. This caught the silent DJ's eyes immediately; her gaze shot to the glass of smooth amber liquid as it came up to her marefriend's soft lips. The rim of the glass pressed down on her lips gently, and the glass tilted up. Vinyl was fixed intently on this motion, her eyes tracing the glass, her mind geared and ready. The bourbon crept towards Octavia's ready tongue slowly, steadily, anxiously.

It flowed in graciously, filling Octavia's eloquent lips with its flavor. A sudden pain riveted Vinyl's body; it was as though a knife had been plunged into her gut.

It was late, the music was loud, and the stack was tall.

Those deep ruby eyes shot wide, sweat just beginning to form on her brow.

"Fifteen!"

She felt sick.

"A challenge? Ha!"

Vinyl gagged hard and thankfully, nothing expulsed. She slammed her hoof down on the table, trying to keep her on her chair as her head thrust forward in another gagging motion. The glass was still in Octavia's hooves as she backed away with a repulsed face. Yet the grey musician rested a reassuring hoof on Vinyl's back, rubbing up and down her extended spine.

"Vinyl dear, if you're going to be sick, you may want to find a bathroom or something of the sort," she suggested.

Sick...sick...sick... the word echoed in the DJ's mind.

"I feel a bit sick..."

It was impulsive; Vinyl have couldn't have stopped it even if she had tried. Her horn lit ablaze with her magic, gripping Octavia's glass and shattering it into thousands of pieces. Glass flew in every direction, laced with drops of fiery bourbon. Luckily, no shards impaled anypony, but the scene was still enough shock to silence the pianist. With that new, dead silence, anypony who could get even a glimpse of the captain's table craned their neck to see the disaster.

And here came the vodka, hitting strong. Everything spun, slightly at first, but furiously building. Vinyl could hardly force herself back into an upright position, much less make out the ranting of her marefriend. It sounded like plenty of harsh scolding, and one or two less...pleasant words. As her splitting head finally stabilized, her eyes refocused not to Octavia - who was still busy roaring on of how angry she was to have her dress ruined - but to Lyra.

The mint harpist had cracked under the heat of anxiety, and tears were swelling in her glossy amber eyes. This was her big move, a solid shot to move up, and Vinyl still understood this regardless of her blood alcohol content. Her mint-green body was quivering, tiny droplets of bourbon trickling down her stained fur. Bonbon was swift to act, grappling Lyra's neck with her forearms and pulling her in. The cream mare shot a look of confusion and complete angst to Vinyl. Not that she could comprehend it, however. It was just another look.

"What in the name of Celestia do you think you're doing Vinyl?" Octavia berated in her ear. The DJ snapped her head left to face the fuming mare. "Do you have any idea-"

"Ah, dinner!" Starlight said. His suave smile had broken, faltered, and was now replaced with a chiseled and fractured grin. Though his words held true - the waitresses were approaching, dinner trays balanced on their sturdy backs. Vinyl, attention shifted to the steaming plates of food, found that it would be more logical to carry them as such if they weren't on the ceiling.

Lifting her head off the table, she returned to the scowling cellist. "Ya know what?" she asked with a sarcastic smile. Her speech was not yet slurred, but chugging a half a glass of pure alcohol would get it there soon enough. "I do have an idea, thank you very much."

"Vinyl, please, don't-"

"Yeah, an' screw you too," the DJ hissed, cutting Bonbon off. Her ruby eyes darted at the cream mare a look of death. "In fact, the only pony I don't want to screw over righ' now is the captain. Mister Starlight, good job." Hoof extended to the uneasy captain, Vinyl gave a disoriented bow.

"Vinyl Scratch, you stop this instant. You are completely ruining the night! I haven't a clue as to what's gotten into you, but you stop this now!" The plates of food were set down, and the waitresses scurried away. The whole scene was falling apart, and they did not want to be part of the final relapse.

"Well, um, thank you Miss Scratch," Starlight gulped. The situation was falling from his hooves quickly, and he was running out of options; the worry was flickering in his pupils like a dying fire. He scanned the scene: the crying harpist, comforting mare, drunken DJ, and seething cellist. "I...It's over," he sighed, looking down to his plate of linguini.

That crushed Lyra. Though the captain's tone made it apparent he was speaking of dinner, a distraught mind can dilute anything. Her forelegs squeezed Bonbon tighter, knocking most of the air from the cream mare's lungs. Bonbon gripped Lyra tighter still, a look of swollen emotions in her eyes as they darted to Octavia, the captain, and then Vinyl.

"Just look...look what you've done," the cellist sneered in a soft, disappointed tone, aiming a hoof at her marefriend. She stood up, shoving her dinner and her chair away. "I'm heading back to the suite. And so help me Vinyl...just...ugh, it's hopeless." With a sigh of defeat, she left, trying to restrain any words from escaping her desperate lips.

Vinyl snorted, turning from her uptight marefriend to face the adjacent couple. Lyra was still tucked into Bonbon, her face strained and red. The cream pony looked over to the captain, who gave them a small smile of reassurance. "Well, all right...c'mon Lyra, let's get going, you could probably use some sleep," Bonbon cooed.

Lyra sniffled and nodded, and with that, the two stood and quietly left the scene. As they made their way about the loft, Vinyl could barely make out soft coddles.

With only a sigh, the DJ stood and fumbled away from the table, leaving the captain to dine alone.

***

She was almost to the suite. Just a few more steps down the crimson carpet and she could finally have her soft bed back beneath her. The thought of her plump, silken pillow cushioning her pounding head was just enough to keep her from collapsing. The motivations was good, too; she had accidentally gone the wrong way, winding up at the other end of the ship. This, unfortunately, was the cause of walking by Lyra and Bonbon's suite door.

When she arrived at their door, the sounds from within drew her near. Carefully, and with the little guilt that a drunkard could muster up, the unicorn pressed her ear to the door for a listen. What she heard cracked her heart.

"I don't care!" Lyra shouted. Her voice was muffled; probably by a pillow, or perhaps Bonbon's shoulder.

"It's going to be alright, I promise," the sweet voice cooed. Vinyl could only assume they were lying down, as there was a shifting sound of sheets.

"T-This was it. This was my shot! W-With high r-remarks from the captain, I-I could get jobs like this anytime...but..."

"Please, honey, calm down. Why don't we just talk to the captain tomorrow? We can explain it all then," Bonbon suggested. Her cool, collected voice seemed to have a soothing effect on Lyra. "Then, we can talk it over with Octavia and Vinyl-"

"No!" the distraught voice cried. "I'm so sick of this! I'm so sick of them..." Lyra sniffled, letting a small squeak slip through her throat. "It's their fault."

"Now now, that's not entirely true," Bonbon said.

The harpist sniffled again, and made a few more shifting sounds. "Y-You're right. It's not their fault...It's Vinyl's fault. Why...why did we even invite her?"

Vinyl tore her ear from the door, too shocked for even the smallest grunt to slip. Her fault, her fault? The words were a boot back to sobriety, a harsh kick back to the real world. Eyes wide, mouth agape; she just couldn't move.

Her fault.

"Don't beat yourself up. It's not your fault."

That ticking was back, now stronger than ever.

Chapter 7: Crescendo

Vinyl didn't remember much - only that it was the morning after a horrible dinner and she had woken to a cool breeze...on the deck couch. The easy swaying of the silent ship jumbled her gut and disoriented her sight as she rolled off the plump sofa to the harsh wood below. Her crash sent waves of pain searing her body; fire would be more welcome than the tormenting feelings she had in her now. Her mind pounded with the weight of the ship, throbbing in mocking sync to each gentle sway.

Pressing a hoof, and soon her whole arm to the deck table, the sickly unicorn managed to get back on her hooves. It was strenuous; her legs were shaking like the crumbling columns they were, and she gagged once or twice. But once on her hooves, after a moment of wobbling - she headed towards the blue glass door in hopes of finding it unlocked; why they had a lock in the first place was a mystery to Vinyl, but mystery or not it would cause problems. At the door, she grazed a hoof over the handle, and gave it a tiny nudge left.

It didn't budge.

And so she tried it again; with even more force and a reddening face, she yanked at the door. It should've slid open easily, tossing the curtains aside to reveal the luxurious suite, fine carpets and soft beds. But it didn't budge.

"Horseapples!" she spat. Today was going to be good, too! With nothing else to do she could just go inside and relax on her bed, falling into the cushioned haven to never return. The images of such luxury flashed through her mind, making her writhe in pain and wanting. But no, instead of giving her sore body a break she was stuck on a breezy patio with no more than the sun to provide warmth. It was hardly doing its job. The wind that morning carried a salty nip to it, biting her fur with each pass. Once again, she yanked at the door, the handle tightly gripped in a light pink aura. Yet even with the most powerful force her aching horn could muster, the door did not budge. It was true, then; Octavia had locked her out.

Moments later the cellist came, throwing the curtains aside to expose her glaring scowl, darkened eyes, and frazzled mane. It must've been early; Vinyl could reason this easily, as Octavia was normally an early riser. From the looks of her exhausted marefriend, she must've just risen. From the dead, that is.

"Vinyl..." Her cracking voice seethed through the stained glass. "You..."

"I know, I know, go ahead and spew about how I ruined everything again. Just let me inside," the DJ grumbled, pressing her hooves to her aching temples.

"Let you inside?" She asked, a low hissing seeping through her teeth. "You'll be lucky if I don't come out there and shove you overboard."

"Shove me over...Look, I'm not in the mood-"

"Not in the mood?" Octavia jerked her hoof back and slammed it against the glass. Vinyl stumbled back, tripping and landing flat on her haunches. "Perhaps you're not in the mood because you always ruin the mood!"

"It's never too early to be mad, is it Tav?" Vinyl asked, snarling and standing again. She pressed her face to the cool glass, frowning at her marefriend.

"Early? Vinyl, it's almost noon! Maybe if you didn't drink so much, you'd actually wake up, you insufferable drunkard!"

"Oh, so here we go!" Vinyl rolled her eyes and tossed her head around flamboyantly. In her best 'eloquent' tone, she mocked: "Vinyl you're always wrong! Vinyl stop being yourself! Vinyl let me run your life because I'm a control freak!"

Silence. Everything stopped, even the nippy breeze. The two mares stared into each other's ferocious eyes, the blue tint of the glass being their only barrier. Snarls burned into their faces, mirrors of anger and fire alike.

But Octavia sighed, and backed away from the door.

"Fine, Vinyl, you can come in. Then, you can get out. I don't want to see you again until tonight at the ball, do you understand?" she asked, unlatching the door with her patented high-society scowl. Nose scrunched, eyes darted, she backed away to let the DJ pass.

Vinyl did so with her head held high, suppressing the painful grimace that she so wanted to display. Instead she gripped her own frown of contempt, fumbling but a few times as she trotted through the suite. At the door, which she had tossed ajar with her magic, she snorted and said, "See you later dear."

"Bye, honey," the mare retorted as she fell back onto her bed.

Before more words were exchanged, Vinyl stomped out of the room and into the red and blue hallway, slamming the door behind her. As she turned left, her hoofsteps pounded audibly and purposefully brutal against the floor. Her rampage did not last but a mere second however, as Lyra and Bonbon slammed into her, causing the three of them to tumble to the floor.

"Oh, um, hey Vinyl," Bonbon said, rubbing her flank.

Lyra, rubbing her own, concurred. "Um, yes...hello Vinyl. What was all the shouting we heard-?"

"Shut it!" she said, lashing out at them. Her jaw clenched shut with a rather loud snap, and her greasy tail and mane whipped right. "I don't want to talk to anypony right now, especially not you!" Hoof extended, she pretended to spit at Lyra. Quickly she stood, spinning on her hooves to face the opposite direction.

"Me? Vinyl, what's wrong? What did I do?" The harpist was taken aback, an offended frown dressing her face.

But Vinyl did not respond; she kept walking, head held high as her hangover would let it go. With a few grunts, she trotted away, down the hall, and disappeared into the elevator lobby.

***

"What was that about?" Lyra asked, falling to her haunches with a blunt face.

"I'd be willing to bet it had something to do with the shouting," Bonbon said. In response to her marefriend's flat look, she offered a smile and a wink. After giving a little nudge to Lyra's chin, she walked up to the recently slammed suite door, raising her hoof to knock.

Just before she could, the unicorn sighed and said, "Yeah, well...look, I'm going back inside. You deal with Octavia."

"Oh, c'mon Lyra, please don't be that way," Bonbon cooed.

But the mare did not stop on her receding course. She trudged to their suite, going in and throwing closed the labeled door behind her with a bang. By now, a few ponies had their heads peering through their suites, looking for the source of the commotion with scowls and gripes.

Bonbon ignored them; they were just another thing that would stress her out. Her eyes glanced at her abused door, low and sad. Lyra wasn't fairing well on a cruise that was for her. The stress of the whole situation was sinking in, bags beneath the cream mare's worried eyes. Even still, she turned back to the task at hoof, bringing a rasping knock upon Octavia's door a few times. The response was immediate, sending her aback as the grey cellist lashed the door ajar.

"What, Vinyl? I told...oh my, um, hello Bonbon dear," Tav said, her sneer giving way to a nervous smile and a light chuckle. "I'm...terribly sorry about that."

Bonbon's eyes sunk back to normal, and her heart slowly regained its rhythm, her hoof falling from her chest to get her back up from her haunches.

"It's...fine. Look, we're, uh, I was here to tell you about tonight, as usual. But...what was wrong with Vinyl? She seemed angry."

"She's just being uncivil is all," the cellist snorted. "Please, come in." She waved a hoof, inviting the wary mare into the open room.

Yet she rejected the offer with the wave of her foreleg. "I, uh, well I can't come in right now. Sorry," she said, offering but a polite smile. Finally on her hooves again, she strode across the hall, back to her suite's abused door. "Vinyl lashed out at Lyra. I think her feelings are hurt, especially after last night..."

"Oh my, um, yes, please do tell her I'm sorry about that," Octavia gulped, returning the nervous smile through her doorway.

"Yeah, I will. I think she'll be fine." The cream pony pushed her cabin's door open, but paused before it. "And about tonight, just be ready by, say, six or so. We'll swing by."

Octavia nodded, curtly falling back into her suite. Bonbon gave a deep, thick sigh, her gaze shifting down to her hooves for a mere second before she herself re-entered her suite. She shut the door behind her, calling in, "Lyra, are you alright?"

***

The rage of the morning seeped off of Vinyl, trailing behind her. It was early - at least by her standards - and that was more than enough of a reason to not be angry. In fact, she was forcing a smile on her strained lips as she trotted through the gently swaying ship. It was surprisingly active this morning; even in the bars, an unusually large crowd of ponies was occupying themselves with idle chatting.

As she strode through the main deck's halls, she recalled her own thoughts. After she had left, the smile that smothered her face grew. There was only one thing to do in this situation. Rage - no, of course not. Leave - absolutely. And leave she did, down the elevators, and to the foyer. Now at her destination, she read the bright cyan bar banner that was strung across the doorway, holding the name Of Dreams.

"Buckin' cheesy," she sighed as she slipped into the well lit, crowded hole-in-the-wall.

The theme was blue - as if there was more than one to choose from. A raised brow, she swerved past the filled tables and shuffling crowd to an empty barstool. Quickly she hopped up, slamming her card - she had cleverly snagged it with her magic before being booted out - down on the marble top, demanding service.

"Your poison?" a plump bartending mare, dressed in rolled up, unfashionable sleeves asked in a hoity-toity tone. Vinyl jumped, not expecting to be approached from behind, but was kind enough to keep her jaded smile.

"Uh, yeah," she said, swerving around, "get me a screwdriver."

"Are you quite sure?" the mare asked, a wary eye adorned.

"Of course I am. I just ordered it, didn't I?" Vinyl's smile faded quickly; now she held a face easily mistaken for paranoia. She was scowling, her eyes darted and drawn back in a defensive fashion.

The bartender gulped and said, "Um, yes, of course miss. I'll have that for you in a jiff."

The DJ sighed, spinning back around to rest her hooves on the bar. The place smelled of fruit for some reason, drawing a soothed expression from the hard scowl.

Pounding, throbbing, screaming pain seared in her temples, her hangover returning full force. Or was it? Pain as such came rarely; the few times Vinyl had felt this was either after her equipment set her alight one time, or...

"Mild poisoning..."

"Oh sweet Celestia..." she muttered, pressing hard against her temples. Her face scrunched tight, her jaw and her eyes lapsed shut.

The bartender who was currently fiddling with the orange juice noticed, asking, "Ma'am, are you all right?"

"Y-Yes, just, how long till you have that thing ready?" she strained to ask, glancing at the in progress drink with bared teeth and wanting lips.

"In just a few moments," the bartender replied.

"We'll know in a few moments..."

Vinyl groaned in agony, tossing her head to and fro. Her hooves pressed harder to her head, squeezing it like an orange. "Stop!" she cried out. The whole bar did as commanded, falling silent to observe the writhing mare.

"Um, miss, your drink?" the bartender asked, sliding a tall, skinny glass of diluted orange liquid down the bar.

Wordlessly Vinyl gripped the wet glass with her magic, unceremoniously bringing it to her lips and sloshing it down her crying throat.

"Another," she demanded as the glass drained of all its contents. Throwing the glass down and sliding it back to the bartender, the grimace on her face grew. "Now."

***

The rough jets of the steaming hot tub were just what Octavia needed. As the water bubbled and the tub vibrated, she let herself drown into a sense of ease. What seemed like perfect harmony, though - the gentle massage of the jets, the soft rocking of the ship, and even the sweet steam that was ever rising - was not enough to kill off the thoughts that riveted her head. And yet she let her tail and mane soak to her little heart's content, not caring if the drenched sepia strands fell uncouthly in her face. Her eyes softly lapsed, and her mouth opened ever so slightly, letting the warm water brush her lower lip as she fell farther into the rectangular tub.

Her blood was as hot as the water, still boiling and pulsing from her little scuffle with Vinyl. That mare really knew how to curdle somepony's insides. "And give them a deathly headache," she added aloud, lightly kicking the water's surface. It splashed out of the tub, plopping on the floor and creeping outward.

"But fine Vinyl," Octavia softly ranted to nopony, "Do what you want. I'm sorry I'm such a 'control freak'." The words seemed to echo through the water as tiny ripples spread out in front of her. It was a cause of the jets, of course, but the timing could not have been more perfect.

"If wanting you to keep your promise is called such." As those new words rolled off her tongue, she actually spat into the water. In fact, such words flared her thoughts so much that she actually cringed. A small wave of pain shot up her spine, implanting itself in the base of her neck. Chagrin awash on her face, she gripped her head, squeezing her temples, and scowling at the bubbling water.

"But you can't even do that, can you? You can't even keep a promise you made so long ago...Fine!" she shouted. It was unintentional, but loud nevertheless. She bucked her hind leg, slamming it into the side of the tub. Another bolt of pain crept through her body, eliciting a quiet moan. "No, no, calm yourself Octavia."

She sank lower, dipping the back of her head into the tub. The water invaded her ears - not far by any means, but enough to cause her to yank herself back up. She scowled at the invasive feeling. Once again, she reared her leg to buck. But now she successfully stopped herself, lowering her flank to the seat of the tub again.

"I just need to be calm," she told herself. And what better way to be calm than a little fur stroking? Petting, no matter how much anypony denied it, felt euphoric. Her hoof raised from the steam, dripping with little plops. She brought it up to her chest, pressing ever so lightly on her smoothed over fur, and then dragged it down. It slowly rubbed down her chest, to her belly, then back up.

"See?" she asked herself," calm..." Her hoof followed that path effortlessly; she had done this plenty of times before, mostly on nights wherein Vinyl was sleeping on the couch. Down again her hoof fell, landing intentionally on a sweet spot of hers. Despite what many would think, or had assumed for that matter, it felt somewhat comforting to rub this place.

She looked down at it. The spot on her belly, while comforting her, enraged her. It was a strange mesh of emotions, and Octavia could not portray it properly - her face looked like a psychopath who was happy he had burned himself.

"One chance. She has one chance," Octavia whispered with a sigh. "But if she breaks her promise just one more time..."

No more words slipped loose; her mouth did not even try to form any. Instead, her eyes fixated on that sweet spot, letting her mind do the talking. The pinkish purple eyes of the emotional cellist traced the spot - a line, as it were - up and down its full length. It was thick, long, and precise; only could something be this exact if it were premeditated. It's paleness contrasted her darkened fur, and was even more visible due to its submersion. It lay vertically on her stomach, never to leave her body, and yet she had no direct memory of getting it. But she knew...despite having no direct memory, she remembered everything. And so Vinyl would have one more chance.

"Just. One."

***

It was six thirty; the moon had been raised with the stars lighting the night sky. At least half of the entire ship was laced throughout the foyer, either chatting with mindlessness or dancing with skill. The center of the room was a maelstrom of dancers, graciously curving and twirling around each other to an instrumental piece played by the ship's pianist. He had the stage once again, allowing Lyra time to herself.

The mint unicorn's wish of quality time with her lover was unfulfilled in every way. At their table, one of the many set up around the outskirts of the darkening foyer, three ponies sat with three very different expressions. On their woven lace tablecloth, Octavia's head rolled to the swaying of the ship, inaudible mutters riding out with every breath she took. Lyra and Bonbon were at her sides, both with a hoof stroking the cellist's pink gown. Even now, with the simple tune of Moonlight Sonata to expunge tension, there was nothing that could be done.

"It's alright, honest. I'm sure she'll show up," Lyra cooed, a stressing herself. There was sweat dribbling down her forehead. What she really wanted to say was: That mare's probably passed out, now let me dance with my marefriend. But, it was not in her to be so harsh, especially not to her friend, even if it was her obnoxious marefriend causing all the problems.

"No...No, she won't..."

"Aw, just give her time," Bonbon said as she glanced away. Her eyes drifted to the large, arched windows. The moon was about half full, its reflection painting the still water pale.

"No...I give up," the muffled cellist sighed, her voice wavering. "I-I just can't take it anymore girls. I've done some thinking..."

"Calm down. Maybe you'd like to go rest?" Lyra suggested, flashing a look to her marefriend. Bonbon sighed, and for once, did not scold her for the obvious attempt to be rid of the mare.

"I suppose...T-There's more thinking to do anyways..." She pushed herself off, revealing her bloodshot eyes, and dark tear trails on her fur.

"Oh my...do you need help getting back?" Bonbon was always quick to offer help; it was a simple fact that not even Lyra could dislike. A smile blossomed on the harpist's lips, kind and gentle towards both Octavia and the kind pony she lumbered herself with.

"N-No, I'll manage. Thank you girls, I'm sorry tonight was a disaster," Octavia said, pushing off and disappearing into the crowd.

When she was out of earshot, Bonbon sighed and told Lyra, "Do you think she'll be alright? I mean, I've seen her upset before, and I've seen her upset with Vinyl about twice as often, but..."

"She'll be fine, I'm sure. Underneath that well tamed mane, there's a tough pony," the harpist said, leaning on her companion's shoulder. "Besides," she said with a tiny peck to Bonbon's cheek, "based on how things are going so far, they'll just fight and get on with their lives."

"I don't know..."

"Aww, c'mon, let's not drag the night down!" Lyra perked up, a smile and flame alight in her. She bounced off her chair, Bonbon's hoof enshrouded in her magic. She dragged the mare out onto the edge of dance floor, propping her up onto two hooves before she could even comprehend the situation.

"Lyra, what-"

Her voice was cut off by Lyra's lips, pressing deeply against her own. Her tongue perused the slick caverns of Bonbon's warm mouth, dancing with her own willing tongue. The music had changed to a fitting tempo, fast and unrecognizable to either as they began swinging in a waltz. One thing not many ponies knew of the mint green harpist was of her ability to sweep ponies off their hooves.

As they drew back from each other, spinning around the edge of the ball floor, Lyra whispered, "You know I love you, right Candy Lips?"

'Candy Lips' giggled, nibbling on Lyra's neck and replying, "I do, as a matter of fact. It's just..."

"Don't worry about them right now," the harpist sighed, her smile unfaltering. "This is about you and me, and nopony else." As they continued dancing, bliss spinning in the air around them, she added, "And like I said, they'll be fine."

Bonbon giggled, nuzzling up into Lyra's warm coat. "You're probably right," she breathed. She had quite the dancer for a companion, following with ease. The two spun slowly, meshing with the crowd of other dancers. A few shot estranged looks to them, disapproving even, but they were politely ignored. Only between the two of them would a moment be shared - their locked gazes and sweet caressing made sure of it.

"I know I'm right. They're always fine...just...oh just kiss me you sad sap." And she did - Bonbon planted a huge, wet, soft kiss on Lyra's guiding lips as they continued their waltz of the night.

***

Vinyl stumbled down the dim hallway, treading and almost falling on the thin carpet beneath her hooves. The suite was but a few doors down, but that was by no means a simple feat. Soon she was using the wall to support her drunken weight, scraping along it just barely. It was cold, the wallpaper brittle, though she could not feel it - she could not feel a thing. And still she subconsciously gripped her gut, biting her lip and suppressing a gag.

"Tav," she slurred as she approached the door. At the wooden portal, she dragged her hoof down in a grinding, rasping sound of hoof-boots on a chalkboard. "Tav, open th' door..." her tired voice called.

The sound of hooves shuffling on carpet echoed under the doorway, lighting Vinyl's face with a fiery hope. Her eyes fixed themselves on the wooden plank labeled 'Suite 113', waiting. Soon the sounds stopped, and the door handle jerked. It flew ajar, exposing a scowling cellist, watery eyes and distraught sepia mane.

"Oh hey Tav, I-"

"Where were you?" she quietly asked. Her face was not a scowl, nor a frown. It was flatter than a pancake, no curve on her lips, and no fire in her eyes. "Where were you tonight?"

"Tonight?" the DJ repeated. Her face fell from its puckered form, taking up a frown with serious eyes; something was wrong; very, very wrong. "Ah was, um, around..."

"You were 'around'? Yes, Vinyl, of course you were," Octavia said, her tone oddly quiet and somber. Her pink eyes were engulfed in a sea of blood red veins, her ducts watery and puffed. With quivering lips, she continued: "Of course you were around. At bars, I see?"

"Yeah, uh-"

"A-And did you have a good time?" she asked with a quivering smile.

"Well, um, yeah I guess." Vinyl carefully dragged her hooves forward, almost falling.

"That's g-good," Octavia said. Her smile was strained, red, but it held. Through her puffy eyes, a map of red lines criss-crossed their way around, slicing up the whites.

The DJ extended her hoof, bringing it near Octavia's face. "Tav, are you-"

"Shut up!" The cellist stomped her hoof down in a ferocious display. Vinyl stumbled back from her, collapsing to her haunches and then falling to her side.

"Whoa, chill," she said, weakly heaving herself from the carpet. A red scar of carpet burn spanned her side, but had no effect on her expression; the grimace and wide, drooping eyes were unmoved.

"Tonight was important. Important to Lyra, important to Bonbon, important to...me..." Octavia took one lone hoofstep outside the suite. Her darted eyes locked themselves onto the stabilizing mare, fire alight in her dark, burning pupils. "I had hope," she sniffled, "that you would pull yourself together. I had hope that you would somehow, in some Celestia-forsaken way be the Vinyl I fell in love with!"

"Hey Tav, you're freaking me out..." Vinyl backed against the wall, almost collapsing again. The alcohol on her breath flowed from her putrid breath, seeping into the air around it. The sniffling up mare sneered at the smell, her drained nose scrunching up.

"But no! All you do is drink and buck things up!"

The DJ's blurred eyes flared at the chastisement. "I buck things up? You know what; you buck things up more, with your control-freak attitude and uptight standards. Maybe if you let me be myself, I would be the Vinyl you fell in love with!" The mare snorted and tossed her mane left, shooting a sloppy snarl at her marefriend. The grey pony, fur ruffled and legs shaking, returned the gesture.

"You know quite well why I do the things I do!" she cried. Her posture, slumped and low, seemed to sink further down as she stood her ground. The candles in the hallway flickered, a somber crimson-orange glow lighting up the faces of the arguing mares. The cellist in particular held a menacing gaze that one would give a killer who had been caught. "Or...Or have you forgotten? Six months ago? You did, didn't you? What...Dammit Vinyl what's wrong with you!"

Vinyl's face blanked. Her ears dropped, her jaw snapped closed, and her ruby eyes dilated to the size of peas.

"You could've stopped her."

After a bit of mindless muttering, she stammered, "B-Buck off Octavia! Y-You don't do anything but fight! Where's the mare I fell in love with, huh? The laid back, easy going Octavia that was pure awesome? Not...you..." She pointed a hoof to a candle beside the door.

Octavia gasped, letting but a lone tear skid down the corner of her eye. "All you do is cause problems," she said, "For me, for our friends, for our relationship! I find myself wondering if we even have something left."

"Oh, so it's my fault our relationship sucks?" Vinyl said, shoving herself back to her hooves. In an abrasive display, she hissed at the cellist, disoriented though she was.

"Yes, Vinyl, it is! You and your drinking! You've ruined everything!"

There was a thick silence now, clotted and diluted with the broken gazes of two shattered mares.

"What're you saying..."

Octavia's lips fumbled, but no sound slipped loose. The white mare stumbled her way up to the cellist, pressing her up against the grey, slick, wet nose. Their eyes gazed deep, locked; Vinyl's slanted with the rage of a drunkard, and Octavia's sagged with the despair of a widow.

"I'm saying..."

"Don't you do it..."

In her sweet, soft voice, she finished, "I'm saying it's over."

Without further adieu, she retreated into the confines of the warm suite, slamming the wooden door right onto Vinyl's nose. A harsh cracking reverberated through the hallway, bouncing off the walls and into the ears of a few curious ponies.

Vinyl paid them no heed; she was desperately trying to regain her bearings, steady out, and perhaps even understand the situation. "Over?" she muttered, swaying to and fro.

And then it clicked. It clicked louder than the crack of her nose, or the slamming of the door. It clicked with the force of a jackhammer splitting down a section of concrete. It clicked like the final second of a bomb.

The DJ fell back with a cry of pain, gripping not her nose but her chest. Over? That meant...she was alone now, truly and surely alone. It was over.

Chapter 8: Broken Bottles and Jaded Strings

Vinyl's eyes snapped open, reddened and puffy as they soaked in the dim candlelight around them. They were like two volcanoes on her face; Celestia knew they had been erupting enough to be considered such. Though the fire did not source in these watery globes; no, it was in her mind. She wrapped her forelegs around her head, scrunching her face tight. A low moan eased through her cracked, white lips, filling her ears with more fuel for the flame. Her eyes squeezed shut, giving way to more bolts of pain as the sore ruby gems were pushed into their sockets.

"Ah good, you're awake," a voice said from the darkness. It was sweet, calming, but had a good edge of annoyance.

"I-I, uh..."

"Shh, don't try to talk. Just lie still," the voice said. Vinyl did as she was told; staying as still as could be on the soft surface she had awoken on. Soon a hoof grazed her mane, stroking it down to its base. She gave her eyelids a tug, nudging them open though they had been welded shut.

"Hung over?" the voice asked, trailing up from Vinyl's side and to her fore. The DJ nodded, a light crinkling noise coming from beneath her chin.

"And how does your nose feel?"

Her nose...? Now that she thought about it, she couldn't even feel her nose. "I...I-I don't know. Where's my nose?" she asked, panicked.

The sweet voice giggled. "You still have it, it's just...eh...I'll try and put this gently. It's shattered."

"S-Shattered?" she stuttered. Almost instantly she forced herself up, only to fall back with a small whimper.

"Yes, shattered. You stumbled in here last night complaining about how somepony had stolen something from you, and then you just...passed out. You looked pretty bad," the mare said matter-of-factly. "Try and open your eyes, won't you? Do they hurt? You looked like you were crying."

"I...I don't know why I would be," Vinyl said nasally. Her body felt limp now, a simple ragdoll on a shelf. Forelegs sprawled of the sides of her platform, hind legs spread - she was simply limp. Then, suddenly and unpredictably, her legs tightened and her tail curled up. She threw her aching head down, landing it with a thud on what felt to be a pillow. Spasms riveted her limbs. Chills shot up her spine. Her fur stood on end, and her ears flattened.

"Celestia be damned," she said. Her voice mutated with a cough to form an awful hacking. "O-Octavia..."

"Yes, I believe that was the name of the pony who stole from you. You were muttering about how you never even wanted something in the first place. Was it the thing she stole, if I may ask?"

Vinyl's eyes creaked open as a groan passed by her parched tongue. What she saw was a pony clad in white, with a cap atop her head. The lumps in the side of her long white robe were the outline of wings. On the cap sat an embroidered cross of the deepest scarlet color; a perfect match to the red eyes of the pain-stricken mare. The pegasi's face was gentle enough though; her light magenta fur carried her glowing amber eyes with a tilted smile.

"I...yes..." she said at a lack of words. Her eyes turned from the nurse's, falling to her cushy platform. It was a blue bed, heavily resembling a stretcher, with a long rectangular sheet of paper spanning its length.

"Well, whatever she stole can easily be retrieved with the help of security," the nurse said as she spun around. There was a table behind her holding the only lamp in the small room. It illuminated the wooden walls and floors, their deep mahogany colors easy for the DJ to see. The nurse took grabbed the golden candleholder, casually taking it from the table and back to Vinyl.

"Now, follow the light," she said through her muffle.

Vinyl did as she was told; fixating her eyes on the harsh light and following it left, right, up and down. "I...I don't think it'll help."

"Oh? And why not?" she asked as she replaced her candle. From that, she walked over to a clipboard that stayed silently upon the wall. Pen in mouth she scribbled a few words down, not turning to face Vinyl, but ears darted nonetheless.

"It just wouldn't. Do you have any water?" the DJ asked.

"There's a glass at the bottom of the bed," the nurse responded, still scratching a few things down. Vinyl looked past her pale bandages to the wooden floor, where a stout glass of cool water silently stood. With a deep breath she lit her horn aglow, raising the glass to her lips.

"What time is it?" she asked just before taking a small sip. The refreshing liquid forced her throat open, spreading to its parched walls and gracing them with ecstasy. Before she could comprehend any of it, the water was nearly drained from the glass.

The nurse set the pen in its holder, turning back to face Vinyl.

"It's about nine-thirty in the morning. You slept pretty hard. Heh, I almost slept hard. But I felt bad for you, for one reason or another. Whatever the reason, you had me up all night."

"Oh, I, uh, sorry," Vinyl said, placing the glass by her side. It tipped and rolled to the floor. She winced, ready for the inevitable shattering sound...but it did not come. The nurse had caught it, and was just now setting it on the table. "And, um, sorry again."

"It's alright." The nurse gave a soft, reassuring smile as she turned back to face her patient. "So, care to tell me about what happened last night?"

Vinyl mulled it over, her scarlet eyes rolling around in their places. "I...it's hard to remember it all, but then again...I don't think I want to, at least, not with this hangover." She tapped her temples lightly, nodding to the nurse. "But I think...I think I lost something important."

"I see. Well best of luck to you then. You're free to go whenever you want, so long as you keep that bandage on at all times. Don't be afraid to shower with it, it's waterproof. But if you take it off, it'll be a nightmare, trust me." The nurse extended her hoof, which Vinyl gladly took. She helped hoist the white unicorn from the bed, lowering her to the floor. It took a minute or two, but eventually her shaking legs stabilized, and her head managed to stay in the air. Her eyelids still drooped but she could see perfectly fine.

The door was behind the bed; it was wooden, just as everything else, and labeled with the number one.

"Just go out this door, to the left, and through the reception room. You're on the middle deck, so I don't think you'll have a problem from there," the nurse said. She guided Vinyl to the door with a gentle hoof, kindly opening the door and stepping aside.

Yet just as Vinyl was about to trod into the warm, red-carpeted hallway before her, she froze. She felt as if there were bees, hornets and wasps invading her mind, stinging it endlessly. Now in the mixture was pure, vile poison.

"Or...Or have you forgotten? Six months ago? You did, didn't you? What...dammit Vinyl what's wrong with you?"

"Um, hey nurse?" the DJ asked, turning around. The helpful pony had returned to her tiny clipboard and was busy ripping the top sheet from its bulk. "Can I ask you a quick question?"

"Of course," she replied, tossing the paper to the desk.

"Have you ever worked in a real hospital?"

"I have as a matter of fact! Manehattan General, four years! It's where I got my PhD," she said proudly. Her chest puffed out, head tossed high with a smug grin.

"Well...have you ever dealt with two ponies who were in love?"

The nurse fell from her proud stance, a very serious face adorned now. Her lips were flat, and her eyes were focused. In a cracked voice, she responded, "Yes. Yes I have. Why?"

"What happened? How did things turn out, I mean, for them?" Vinyl bit her lip, looking away.

"We got a colt one day. Bad condition, too. Had some sort of kidney damage. We had to do some major surgery... If you've got the time, I've got the tale." The nurse hopped up on the bed, indenting a small place in the paper beside her.

Vinyl looked back out her exit, sighed, and shut the door. She jumped up next to the magenta mare, looking her dead straight in the eyes. She could see her bandages still - an unwelcome sight to her smoldering brains - but she forcibly ignored it to watch the tale in the deep amber eyes adjacent to hers.

"He was a rather wealthy colt," the nurse began. "Large, red, had a moustache too." She traced a handlebar moustache on her snout. "Our medical crew rushed him in on a stretcher. I was a doctor at the time, working in the emergency wing, so, well he came to me with horrible kidney failure. I thought he was dead right there. I...I almost opted out of treating him. I had the chance to pronounce him dead. I'm still a bit ashamed of how I almost did, but...I can honestly say I made one of the best choices of my life - and his, too."

Vinyl was engrossed in the topic; her wide eyes made sure to announce it. "Well what about the 'in love' part? What about that?"

"Ah. He had a wife; pretty, no...gorgeous young mare. Real tall, skinny, and had a nice green mane to boot. She followed the poor colt in. I swear, I've never heard more screaming than when that mare started yelling at security." The nurse trailed off, staring over at the flickering light of the dying candle.

"And then?"

"Well we saved him, narrowly - had to get a whole new kidney for the guy."

"And his wife...?" Vinyl asked.

"When he got out," The nurse explained, "there were plenty of tears. I'll tell you, there's nothing more beautiful than young love. Ah, but I digress. Anyways, as far as I know, they're happily married. And alive - mind you - thanks to moi." A confident grin spread across the nurse's face as she whipped her hair right.

"Are you sure?"

"I can't be positive; I've not seen him since, but fairly sure, yes. They seemed so happy when they were finally together..."

Vinyl let the nurse's voice trail off, the silence doing its part in killing the hornets' nest in her head.

"Alright, well, thanks," she told the nurse, giving a curt nod and the best smile she could put on. "I ought to be going. Gotta find out what happened last night sometime, right?"

"I suppose we all do, eh?" The nurse winked with a tender smile. "Good luck."

Vinyl fell to her hooves, swaying but standing strong. As she pried open the door with her horn and stepped into the hallway, she turned and said with a smile, "Thanks."

***

Octavia giggled. She actually giggled. Here she was laying on her bed, single, with her two best friends promising that things would be fine...and she was giggling. "Girls...I feel free. How many times do I have to tell you this?" she asked, more chortles slipping through.

"I really don't think this is healthy," Lyra whispered to the cream pony next to her. Bonbon nodded silently, not taking her sight off the snickering cellist.

"Girls," she said with the wave of a hoof, "I cried. I honestly did. I cried all last night. But you know what? I did some thinking too! And I thought, 'Why in Equestria am I lumbered with this insufferable oaf in the first place?' There are plenty of mares out there, and even one or two finer gentlecolts. I've got plenty to choose from. Why have a bottom-feeder like her?"

Lyra glanced to Bonbon, wincing. The mare returned the gesture in silence, an unsure look in her crystal blue eyes. "W-Well only if you're sure..."

"I am," the grey cellist said, sitting back up. She smiled away, her ears up and eyes jubilant. But that was not all about them: they were sunken and puffy, with dark rings around them. And her mane was ruined too; patches were greasy, slickened and ruffled. Her mane even stood on end. A look such as this took effort.

"Alright," Bonbon said quietly. She stood from the bed, motioning for Lyra to come with her with a nod. "We'll leave you to get cleaned up. You still want to go to breakfast with us, right?"

"Oh, of course, just give me ten or fifteen minutes to take a shower, won't you? I'm a mess," she noted, mockingly rubbing her fur.

"Right..." Lyra turned and headed for the door, tossing it aside with her magic. "See you in a few minutes," she said over her shoulder. She and her marefriend both zipped out of the room, into the glowing hallway that was its link to the ship.

When the door closed behind them, Octavia too stood, and instead of heading for the shower, dragged her hooves across the carpets, to the blue windows that separated her and the elements. The sun was no longer shining through them; it was raised on the other side, as their course had been reversed. But the light of the new day still lit the room aglow with soft blue light. The cellist bathed in this, awash with the monotonous color.

Her eyes were trained to the horizon, watching the gentle waves approach the ship to keep its rocking in rhythm. Flat was her face, with neither not a smile nor a frown. Her ears were low, and her whole body sagged as she stood in silence, simply staring out upon the ever expansive ocean. It was quiet. Everything was quiet. Even her mind, which had been so active all night as to keep her awake, was silent and empty.

She wasn't giggling anymore.

***

"What do you think?" Lyra asked. The two were in their own suite now, taking some time for themselves. They lay interwoven on the plump mattress by the windows. Lyra's head was propped up against one of the many silver, silken pillows, with her companions just beneath her. The warm breath of Bonbon kissed the harpist's neck, blanketing it in the most condolences she needed.

"I think she's in denial. It's got to be some sort of coping method. I mean, the two were in love for a year and then they break up pretty brutally...there's no way she's just happy all of a sudden." Bonbon sighed, nuzzling deep into Lyra. Her foreleg was draped across the mint unicorn's slowly rising chest, her ear listening to the soft beat of her pulse.

"I think so too. You know, I...kind of feel guilty."

Bonbon looked up, locking eyes with Lyra. "Why?"

"For all those things I said. You know...how I said I wished they didn't come, and all that jazz. I feel guilty." She sighed, looking to her left to face the Great Equestrian Sea. There were rumors that it never ended, that it just spanned to eternity and beyond. She found herself wondering if it too had an abrupt end.

"I'd be lying if I said you shouldn't...but don't beat yourself up. I doubt there was much we could've done," Bonbon said. Her head readjusted beneath her marefriend's neck, and now her eyes were locked on the shimmering horizon as well.

"I know..." Lyra gulped, squeezing Bonbon tighter with her foreleg. "That won't be us, right? I hate to compare us to this situation, especially so early, but I can't say I'm not a bit scared."

"It's alright. I'm having those thoughts myself," Bonbon agreed. "But no. I love you Lyra. And as long as I have that, I think I'll be able to put up with you." She licked Lyra's chin playfully.

"Aww, well I feel the same. It's just...they didn't have that, did they? They didn't love each other anymore."

"No. No, I don't think they did." The cream pony drew a deep breath, her chest expanding in unison with her lover's. As they both released, a mutual feeling of empathy was shared.

"And what about Vinyl? How do you think she's taking it?"

"I think we both know the answer to that," Bonbon sighed.

***

"Liver...? Nopony gives a damn about mah liver...at least, not anymore...eh, look! It's not yer job to drag my mood down. It's your job ta get me a drink. So...go do it," Vinyl slurred as she rocked in her barstool, waving the bartender away with her hoof. She remembered. She remembered everything. And now she was forgetting again, simple as that.

But from behind the bar, the bartender protested. "Ma'am, you're becoming quite the pariah around the bars. I honestly suggest you stop before something bad happens-"

"Bad? Somethin' bad already happened, ya freak! Now get me another damn tequila shot!" She slammed her hoof down on the marble counter, sliding her light blue card to the colt.

"I don't care," he said, "It's no excuse for being a rude drunkard." With a snort and the jerk of his head, he took the card up and stormed off. Vinyl sneered and turned away; that pony had no idea what bad really was.

She looked down to her previous feats - three empty shot glasses - and began kicking them around with little clinks. The conversational air of the window lit bar was starting to pick up again, luckily for her; when she wasn't at a gig, she hated public attention. So thankfully she was on her own once more. She twirled a dripping glass around in a circle, leaving a little trail of miracle juice behind it, ignoring the mess she was making. When she did stop, however, it was to get a closer look at what the spinning glass was painting. It was a simple ring. No, it was a work of tequila art! When she bent lower to take a look, though, she could see her reflection in the shiny glass, and it was not a sight to behold.

Her head sagged, but she jerked up immediately. A few more inches and she'd be back with the nurse to remove some unpleasant intrusions. Yet not even the thought of more bodily damage could keep her unsteady mind from wandering. She bent lower, down to the glass once more to get a good look.

It was her eyes she saw first: red, ruby red, and not just her irises. To an untrained eye, her whole eye was simply red. She could not tell where the veins ended and the color began. On top of that, they were puffy and sunken, with nasty bits of crust forming beneath them. When she raised a hoof to scrape them away, she lost her balance, swaying left and almost collapsing to the floor.

Luckily, she managed to slam her hoof back atop the bar and stifle her descent. She barely missed a shot glass, nicking its edge and sending it flying from the bar top. The tiny thing was slung against the back bar wall, tapping a wine bottle and falling with but a tiny clank. Nopony seemed to notice, not even the bartender - that blue colt was busy rummaging around in a cabinet.

She went back to examining herself with a hazy eye, looking deep into one of the two remaining glasses. Now she stared at her mane, its distraught strands and greasy thatches making for a sickly show. If fact, now that she thought about it, she had given bits to ponies that looked like her.

"Ma'am, your drink," the bartender grumbled, sliding the shot down to her atop her card. She took it with her magic, wordlessly lifting it and chugging it down.

"Yeah, thanks dude," she said with a cough. Without further words, she took her card and fell from the barstool, slowly trotting to the entrance. She knew neither where she was going nor why, but she felt like she needed to go somewhere.

As she exited the bar, and entered one of the two main hallways, she muttered a few incomprehensible slurs beneath her breath, stumbling left and heading to the foyer. The ponies that crowed her gave her snarls of distaste, but moved from her path nonetheless. She stumbled her way into the foyer, lit with only the golden sun. And she simply kept walking, on and on.

***

The Steamer was fairly packed this morning, but Octavia's disturbing mood was untouched. Lyra and Bonbon could hardly keep their smiles burning. As they tore into yet another breakfast panini in almost perfect sync, they exchanged wary glances.

"I tell you girls, no more worries from here on out!" the cellist said, bouncing in her chair. A smile was bright on her face, plastered and chiseled.

"Octavia, I...I don't think this is healthy..." Lyra sighed, swallowing her bite with uneasy nods from her marefriend.

"Why, of course it isn't dear. You can hardly expect to get a healthy meal around here, eloquent or not. It's simply a bar; I'm not sure why you're expectations are so high," the cellist said, tearing into her own crispy sandwich.

"No, not...oh, just nevermind. You're right. I don't know why I had such high expectations," Lyra said as she leaned her head on her hoof.

Bonbon gave her a soft but firm to force her back upright. "So what did you want to do today?" the cream pony asked.

"Well," Octavia said with a chuckle, "I was thinking we go out for a relaxing day at the spa. Doesn't that sound wonderful?" Her eyes darted, a grin on her face, she looked both of them over.

Lyra opened her mouth, her lips already forming words of angst, apologies, and denials. But Bonbon gave her another good little kick, leaning in and whispering, "She could use this. Just...go with it, please?"

"Fine," the harpist said. She sighed, turned back to the grey mare at her table, and said, "We'd love to. The spa's down on the middeck."

"Well then let's get going, shall we? I'm not too hungry today, as it were," Octavia said. She tossed her sandwich down, falling from her chair and curtly exiting the steamer. In the lounge's maw, she beckoned for them to follow.

"I, uh..."

"C'mon, let's just do this, and we'll sort things out later, all right?" Bonbon cooed, stroking Lyra's mane.

"But...just look at her. How do we deal with that?" she asked. Her hoof darted at the cellist in the doorway, who had shifted her own attention. She seemed to be staring out one of the multiple large windows, rather silently and stiff. Cold and stone-faced, Octavia just stared quietly.

"She can't keep this up for long," Bonbon noted.

"I know. She'll crack soon."

***

Vinyl's head was flat on one of the many tables that were sprawled throughout the room. This was the piano lounge, quiet and lonely as ever. Good for her, too; she could rest in peace.

A small, crystal clear fluid pooled from beneath her head. To anypony else, her face was hidden in the greasy tangle of her mane. She was silent, too; no noises or movements, not even the slightest of shifting. She was stiff yet limp, quiet yet loud in appearance. The gentle swaying of the ship was probably the closest thing she got to moving, but there was no movement needed to portray just how pathetic this mare felt.

Possibly the only notable thing about her was the empty whiskey bottle that lay on its side next to her. A few ponies that passed by had actually whispered amongst themselves as to if she was dead or not. Celestia knew only a hardy pony could chug that much god-juice in such a short time. Though most of them were polite enough - or maybe simply disgusted enough - to avoid speaking to her. The last thing she wanted was some pony coming up to her and asking the annoying question, 'Are you okay?' Should one ask, the probable response would be, 'I'd be better off drowning,' or maybe even, 'Yes, with three or four shots of vodka.' The thoughts burned her mind like fresh coals to an open fire.

But no, she was not dead; on the unfortunate contrary, she was trying her best to speak. Even if no one would listen, she was trying to speak.

Yet words are hard to come by when the sting of tears burns paths down a pony's face. Possibly all the words she was trying to speak were swirling around in her alcoholic pain, creeping down her cheeks and growing the pool larger.

When at long last she could finally get her lips to meet, all she muttered was: "It's not my fault..."

Her hoof tightened, slamming down on the table. "It's not..." she said.

Again, she hammered against the table with the only movement she had made for hours. The shimmering bottle rattled against her ear, clanking down to her core. She swept her hoof across the table rapidly, sending the empty flask flying.

"Ma'am, we do not permit such displays," a voice said. Vinyl slowly lifted her head, staring at this new mare with bloodshot, tearstained eyes. This mare was donned in a blue dress, appropriate for the eloquent line of service.

"Yeah," Vinyl started with a quiver, "Well you should take that up with my ex!"

"Your...ugh, I'm sick of all you depressed ponies whining over your ex's, just get over it and stop driving away our customers, won't you?"

Vinyl fell from her seat, marching unevenly up to the service mare. The pony stood her ground, scowling as she puffed her chest out. The DJ put on her own grimace - an amorphous look of pure alcohol - as she got right in this pony's face.

"W-What did you say?" she slurred, squinting her burning eyes.

"I said-" The mare began, but her stuck up, matter-of-fact voice got no farther than that. She was sent to the ground with an audible popping noise, like the cracking of bones. A small trickle of blood rolled from her lips as she skidded across the tiles, slamming into one of the tables. Now, under a heap of chairs, tablecloth, and the table itself, she lay limp.

Vinyl only spat at her, ignoring the uproar of shocked ponies as she stumbled away.

Yet just before she could escape the scene, a disoriented voice from behind her called out: "We need security!"

***

Lyra, Bonbon, and Octavia all lay flat on their bellies on the soft pink platforms. Each was currently attended to by one mare, carefully and expertly grinding her hooves on her assigned pony's back. The slow, steady kneading was doing wonders to the harpists aching back, as was told in the multiple cracks that came from her many kinks. Her hooves draped over the sides of the bed, lying limp and still. A large, sloppy grin was etched into her face as she let her eyes close again, enjoying her day in a rather messed up sense.

"Mmm, this place is heavenly," Bonbon said, her masseuse doing her job excellently. Lyra peeped through her heavy eyelids, opening her pupils to the pink and frilly architecture that found its sole hold in the spa, namely the massage room. The gentle swaying of the ship and the gentle grinding on her back did their part in making her sight blurry in a sea of bliss, but she maintained the sliver of a visor she had.

"It is..." Lyra said, sighing out long and heavy.

"Ah, we should come here more," the cream pony said with a smile. Her eyes relaxed, closing her out. Lyra chuckled - it was too cute not to - and let her own eyes shut.

But then she remembered: Octavia. Her eyes shot open, and her head rolled, facing her left. The grey mare beside her was attended by her spa pony, getting a full on back massage, just as they were. And yet, on her face, there was nothing. Not a single hint of emotion, or a sliver of soul. Her pink eyes stared out beyond, fixated on the pink wall in front of her. Her breathing was slow and steady; mechanical, even.

"Hey, Octavia, you alright...?"

"Hm...? Oh, yes of course," she said with a smile. The jump to emotion sent Lyra aback, cracking her neck thoroughly. She lifted a hoof and placed it on the sore spot with a grimace.

"Uh, yeah, alright." The harpist slowly turned away, craning her neck back to Bonbon. The mare was already staring back at her with an uneasy gaze, biting her lip hard enough to turn it beet red.

She mouthed the words, 'I don't know.' Lyra just shrugged back, a bit unnerved. She shifted a bit on her platform, the masseuse behind her not easing up, which was something to be thankful for; she was beginning to feel a bit queasy.

Slowly and carefully, she rolled to face Octavia. The cellist was back to her silent stare, not even blinking, nor truly breathing. Lyra opened her mouth to speak, and would have too, had it not been for the comforting hooves of her attendant. They struck a sweet spot, just beneath her shoulders. That spot had been aching for days. Playing the harp wasn't easy, especially with hooves.

There was a loud pop, and Lyra's jaw dropped. Her tongue lolled out, her head planting itself firmly on the thick pillow beneath it. "Right there..." she muttered, falling back to a state of mindless bliss.

***

"I just don't know. I mean, she was cheery when we left her..."

"But did you see how she was when she went inside? All...quiet," Bonbon said with a sigh. She and Lyra were on their bed, spending their afternoon together alone.

"I know, I know...Celestia, why did you curse me with this," Lyra softly cried, gripping her marefriend tighter. No tears streamed forth, but the worry was apparent in the sunken, dark rings around the tired mares eyes.

"Sh-sh, calm down, it'll be alright, you'll see."

"You keep saying that, but when? When is anything alright?"

Bonbon drew in a deep breath, looking at the little alarm clock by her side. "We're alright, right? I mean, we still have each other. And if you're talking about the cruise-"

"I am."

"-Then you should note that it's not a total disaster. Sure...Vinyl and Octavia have... um, look, this is still a good little vacation." The mare gulped, giving her best smile to the mint pony beneath her.

"Yeah...right..."

"Well, uh, on a different note, are you playing tonight?"

"Yeah, I am. It's my job; I still gotta do it," Lyra said with a heavy breath.

"Okay, well I'll be right there by you."

There was a pause. "I know you will be, Candy Lips. I know you will."

***

Octavia had dinner alone, in the confines of her own suite. Things were silent, dead as the night that beamed in through her windows. The moonlight filled her otherwise dark room, as the somber tune of its maiden song drift silently beneath it.

As she sat on the bed, staring down at nothing in particular, the smell of crispy rose leaves filled the air. Her salad was only half eaten - her appetite had fled quickly, giving way to an empty pit of nothing.

She turned her head to face the moon, basking in its glow. It was growing with each passing night, and was now huge, and over half full. A small green glass cylinder glinted in her hooves as she reveled in the light, making tiny clanking sounds when it rolled the wrong way.

But it was not on her mind now. Actually, it seemed that nothing was. Not a thing. No fire, spark, not even a tiny flicker behind those glossed over magenta eyes that stared so blankly at the moon. Nothing at all.

Chapter 9: An Octave Lower

"What..." Octavia's voice cracked in the darkness of her room. The quartet of knocks from her door was insistent on driving her mad. It had to be at least midnight! Who in Equestria would bother her now?

As she finally gained enough strength to kick her sheets off herself in an abrasive display, she was struck with the realization that this may be the one pony that was notorious for stunts like this. Heaving herself into a sitting position, she let a low, guttural growls seep through her clenched teeth. Her mane was a mess, and her tail matched, both clumpy, slick and matted down. Her eyes were more painful than ever; in fact, she firmly believed that their burning could light the whole room by itself. All down her fur were patches of oil and grime, collected from a day of not showering and a night of uneasy dreams.

To top this cake off, she had no recollection of how she had even made it to her bed. If this was her bed, that is. Everything seemed wrong for some reason. Sore and stiff though her neck was, she craned it around, taking in the room. In the darkness she could make out the glossy outline of the marble counter beyond the foot of the bed. To her right was the wall, and behind her was a silent, gaping maw that led her into the - for whatever reason - rank bathroom. Turning left, cracks and pops echoing through the whole journey, she landed her eyes on another bed.

And then it hit her. That was her bed over there. She had managed to stumble her way into Vinyl's.

"And thus was the pain," she said, twisting her neck with a symphony of audible pops.

What's more: there was a chilly solid next to her, lying on her flank. The cold was just now tapping her mind, hitting it with even more pain than before. As fast as her tense muscles could go, she snapped her foreleg to her plot, crashing her hoof to a dark, unidentified object with a tiny clank. It was a familiar sound, one that she had heard mostly at night. For some reason, it made her angry. A scowl touched her lips as she shook her head, even more pain riveting her body.

She tapped the thing repetitively, listening to the light little clanks that echoed into the darkness.

Then it clicked like the clanks. This was a miniature wine bottle: merlot, if she remembered right. Not much, of course, but enough to wind her up in the wrong bed. What was worse: her eyes burned unnaturally. Octavia had had hangovers-a-plenty, but this kind of burning came only from some kind of serious eye strain. In fact, she only recalled feeling this when she read in the dark, was repairing her cello, or...

Her hoof came up to her eyes, tracing the slick lines that trailed from the ducts down to her cheeks. Once sat straight, she slumped, her mind now wrapped entirely around the situation. A sudden nausea swept through her, a system shock for somepony who'd just awoken. She gripped her gut, writhing as her world began to spin around her.

The knocks came again.

"I'm coming!" she called out. She immediately regretted it; heaving, she did her best to stay stable. It wouldn't last long. The swaying of the ship, gentle though it was, mixed with the new spinning was a combo of disaster. Another dry heave and a metallic taste built up in the back of her throat. She gripped the silk sheets in one last attempt to stop it, jerking them up to her chest, yet with one final heave, it was done and done.

***

"I don't know Bonbon, she sounds...sick. Here that?" Lyra asked, pressing her ear to the door. Bonbon did the same, and soon both could hear the revolting sloshing and rasping cries from inside.

"Yikes, I do," the mare agreed, a worried flicker in her eyes. "It sounds pretty bad in there." She hopped down from the door, shaking her mane back into its normal frothy pose.

Lyra did the same, dropping down and landing on the firm carpet with a thud. The harpist fell to her seat with a sigh, shaking her mane back as well. "I don't know what to do."

"Well she said she'd be right out. I suppose we'll just have to wait," Bonbon said, placing her hoof under her chin.

"Why? Let's just go back inside. It's almost lunch, I mean. She's been sleeping all day, and honestly, I'm getting annoyed," the mint unicorn said with a shrug.

"Lyra, what...what has gotten into you lately? I'm trying to be patient, honestly, but I can't do this," she warned, pointing her hoof and darting her eyes.

Lyra stepped back, looking offended. "Do what?"

"Put up with Octavia, Vinyl, and you! Please," her tone softened, "honey, just please can you ease up with the...well, everything, for me?" The relaxing pony stepped towards her marefriend, leaning in and kissing Lyra on her neck. "Please, for me."

The harpist huffed, slamming her haunches down and crossing her forelegs. She whipped her head left, saying, "How about you drop it, for me? I mean...think about it. It's over. We're still friends with them, sure, and we will be. But right now, and I'm talking about right now, we should spend time with each other. Not bickering like those two." She waved her hoof at the door, from which only whispers were leaking through. "It's our vacation. Not some therapy session! And ,and you know what...?"

"All right, let's calm down," Bonbon said, reaching out to her marefriend. Lyra's eyes had shifted from hard and angry to soft and droopy. Her lip was no longer steady, holding the slightest quiver. She bit it, trying to stop it as she looked away.

Swatting down Bonbon's kind hoof, she said, "You deal with this. I'm done. If you want to spend time with me for a change, then come find me. Have fun with Octavia." Then, she jumped to her hooves, and stormed off, marching down the hallway and doing her best to keep her chin high.

Bonbon didn't try to follow; instead she simply sat on the red carpet, her words failing her as her lips did their best to work. Just as the mint unicorn swerved around the corner, disappearing from sight, she could hear the door beside her creak open on its hinges. She did not look up; her eyes fell to her hooves, her head following soon after.

***

Octavia, having hidden her little bottle somewhere in the darkness, carefully opened her door. Her coat reeked of something foul - slick, and foul - just as her bed. The room released an awful odor as the door swung wider and wider.

Bonbon, who was just on the other side, snapped up from a sunken in state, turning to the cellist with a scrunched nose, grimace, and darted eyes. "Octavia...? What is that? We thought you were sick, but..."

"We?" the mare asked, rubbing her eyes and looking down the length of the corridor.

Her friend sagged for a moment, before coming back up. "I. Anyways, you look awful. Is it...is it in your coat? Oh Octavia, what happened to you..." She rubbed her eyes with her hooves, shaking her head and sighing.

"I, um, oh dear it was a...rough night," the cellist said, examining her sickly coat. Snarling and shaking her head, she quickly added, "I feel much better now though."

"It smells," was all Bonbon said as she too snarled and pinched her nose.

"Indeed." She sighed. Behind her, a putrid, foul odor wafted out, filling the hallway with wave after wave of disgust. Wiping her tainted lips with a hoof, she said, "And...it seems as though I...didn't make it to the facilities in time..."

The cream mare leaned in, her nose still held tightly shut by a hoof, and observed her friend. The mare's sunken, seemingly sleep-deprived eyes sagged, with dark circled encompassing them. Her shoulders were encumbered, or so it seemed; they too drooped. Her dark sepia mane was a wreck. Her coat was thick with grime. All around her a foul odor seeped out, no doubt from her inability to reach the bathroom in time.

"I, um, I'm sorry to hear that. Look, we - er - I came here to talk, but...maybe you should go get cleaned up. I can call room service up here, have them send a maid," Bonbon said, extending her hoof apologetically.

All Octavia did - all it seemed she could do - was nod, spin, and retreat into her suite. Behind her, with a scowl that was directed towards the smell more than the cellist, Bonbon followed in. The grey mare stumbled her way in, past the filth-ridden bed, and into the dark portal that led to the bathroom. She flicked on the blinding lights, squinting as she made her way to the small shower stall.

Carefully she flicked on the dials - a lukewarm temperature seemed to fit. As the water came on - freezing though it was - she immediately stepped in, slamming the fogged glass door behind her. The water took hold of her, matting her fur down, but doing nothing to release the pungent gunk that stained her lower belly. That would have to be done manually.

A voice called from outside the bathroom, beyond the soft pattering of the warming shower - a voice that was accompanied by a few tiny clinks. Clinks, Octavia knew, that came from thick glass being fondled in dry hooves; like that of a wine bottle, perhaps.

"Octavia, were you drinking?" Bonbon's sweet, concerned voice came from afar. The cellist felt her heart lose its rhythm, cringing and retreating to a corner of the ceramic stall as if it would help.

"W-Well, not necessarily," she called back. Her eyes focused on a shampoo bottle that sat on a little metallic rack. It was close, all she had to do was cut through the steam with a hoof, and she would make progress. But it was so far away, and the safety of that corner - falsely placed or not - still eased her deep frown a bit.

"Then what is this?" A few little taps on the glass echoed around the room.

"Bonnie, it was simply a bit of wine," the cellist said with a nervous chuckle. She reached out, snatched the bottle, and yanked it back. It pressed against her fur with a sloshing sound, tightly held to her pounding chest.

"Wine...? This is whiskey, bourbon to be exact."

That wasn't going to fly. Octavia set the bottle down, opened the door by just a sliver, and popped her muzzle out. Baring her teeth to the bite that the cold air held, she said, "It's wine dear. Merlot. I remember ordering it."

There was a pause. When Bonbon did reply, she did so in a matter-of-fact tone, tapping on the glass and saying, "I don't think you do. Right here, it says: Woodford Reserve Bourbon...Distiller's Select."

The showering mare froze, her face contorted into a mix of a scowl and a frown, with darted eyes that drooped ever further. She backed up into the shower, falling to her plot and gripping her head with a groan. She shook. She rocked. Her face flushed a deep crimson as the water trickled down her cheeks, doing nothing to ease the twisted look of pain.

"Octavia, are you all right in there?"

Things began to spin again. Once more the ships gentle sways became tsunamis in her mind. Even still, she forced a smile and said in the best voice she could muster, "Of course. I'm quite alright, thank you."

"Are you sure? You sound...not well. If you need-"

The sweet, soothing voice of her loyal friend was chopped by a horrid gagging sound. Full of force, the rasping motion knocked Octavia forward, her mouth barely sticking closed. She pressed a hoof to her lips, pressing as hard as she could. Her other hoof wrapped itself around her belly as she cringed lower into the showering water.

The gag came again, forcing her lips to part. Nothing yet, but the feeling worsened in her gut. Her belly gargled, her mind swirled.

"You sound bad. I'm coming in," Bonbon said, peering her head through the steaming archway.

It was precise timing, too; the cellist could hold on no more, and finally, the ragged sloshing, putrid odors, and raspy cries filled the room again.

***

"Indeed. At least, I would hope," Octavia said as the cleaning crew finished up, dragging away the stained, now replaced sheets.

"Are you sure? If you're feeling sick, I don't think you should do much," Bonbon advised, closing the door as the last maid dragged out with her carpet cleaner.

"I've told you, it was simply a side effect. I haven't drunk like that in a good while, so this is a simple system shock," she said, tossing her head up with a huff. She jumped up onto her own bed now, sitting tall and defiant.

"If you say so, but why were you drinking in the first place? I haven't seen you really drink in, well, months," her friend said as she joined Octavia on the bed. Her eyes locked with those dark, sunken in pink eyes of the cellist, searching, scanning, waiting.

"It was a good whiskey," she snorted. "I had no intentions whatsoever to drink as I did."

"I see. And this had nothing to do with the past few days?"

"Nothing at all," Octavia said, looking away. Her eyes trailed down through the sunlit room. The blue curtains on the wall had been tossed aside, revealing the warmth and light of the sun in a large, wavy rectangle. It was almost eleven in the morning; she had slept much longer than she thought. But, then again, when had she even fallen asleep?

"I don't believe you. I just simply can't believe it."

"Well no one said you have to," she snapped.

"All right, all right, calm down. It's early, and the morning's not been so good. Let's go get some lunch, eh? Or breakfast. Whatever." Bonbon shrugged, fell from the couch, and trotted over to the door she so recently closed.

"I don't know. Room service sounds good right about now," the cellist said, placing a hoof beneath her chin.

"Aw, c'mon, you need to get out a bit," her friend said with a smile.

"Weren't you just saying that I didn't have to go anywhere if I wasn't up to it?"

"And didn't you just say that you felt fine? Come on, it'll be good for you. We can go to a topside bar, get a couple cheese omelets, soak up some sun..." She cracked the door open with a commanding nod. A smile still graced her face though, compassionate and understanding as ever Bonbon was.

Octavia paused, carefully eyeing her cream friend as though to search for lies. But, her harden expression gave way, letting her eyes fall back to normal and her gritted teeth loosen up. "I suppose some food would do me well."

"That's the spirit!" Bonbon said, tossing the door ajar. Falling from the bed and almost tripping over her own hooves via an unexpected rock of the ship, Octavia hurried to her side, shutting the door behind her and making her way down the long, now foul hallway.

***

It was, as usual, warm, sunny, with a slight breeze, crisp and salty. The upper deck wasn't crowded - though it wasn't deserted by any means - making things a bit more breathable. The smell of the salty air meshed with the warm scent of fine food and drink, and the oceanic serenity that surrounded the ship with its calm, rolling waterscape mixed with the bustle of the various activities that the top deck housed. Many were already in the pools just behind Bonbon and Octavia, and even more in their current restaurant.

Warm steam rose from the twin omelets that sat on the pair's wooden table. The bar itself was open - a hole in the wall, more or less. Theirs was one of the few tables housed within its three blue-splattered walls. Thanks to this, the sun was not beating down on them, the crisp breeze that seemed to always flow in from the bow was brushing against them, and the smell of their savory meal was trapped within reach of their senses.

As Bonbon, who was on the exact opposite of the rounded table, took a bite of her fresh meal, she passed her friend a wary glance - a glance one would pass to a sickly pony to check on their health. But there was more. There was more to it all. "So, I've said it before, but I'm sorry about you and Vinyl," she said, gulping down the chunk of cheesy egg.

Octavia sent her own bite down the hatch, darting her eyes to the adjacent mare. "Yes, well, as I've said before, it's perfectly all right."

"I guess...How do you think she's taking it?"

The cellist took another bite of her omelet, saying nothing. She only scoffed, chomping brutally on the gooey chunk. "What about you and Lyra?" she asked, almost coldly. "Where is she?"

Bonbon cringed, coughing up her little bite of food. "Well, uh, she and I kind of had a...falling out. Sort of. Nothing major I suppose. She's just been so moody lately." She sighed, leaning her head on a hoof and pushing her half-eaten omelet away.

"Oh?"

"Yeah, she's been snappy. Especially when..." Bonbon downcast her eyes, staring at her hooves.

"When what?" the cellist asked. Having gone back to casually munching on her omelet, her expression was lax and easy.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but she gets in a...'mood' every time we try to deal with you and Vinyl."

Now the musician's expression tensed, her face scrunching, her eyed flared. "Us? Deal with us? Her. You mean her, not 'us'. Vinyl has caused many problems, and I apologize for that. But it's all taken care of," she said. "No need to worry anymore."

Bonbon sighed, her eyes not lifting from her hooves. "I guess so... But don't you think you were being a bit rash? Even in the slightest? It's just that you and she have been together for what, a year and something? And you don't feel bad at all?"

"Bonbon," Octavia said, slamming her hoof down on the table. There was a dead seriousness in her squint. "She brought it on herself. I was tired of her dragging me down. Now that's enough, all right? I would actually like to enjoy my day if you don't mind."

"Right. Sorry."

The grey mare shook her head with a sigh, shoving her own meal away. There was silence now, and her eyes once again drifted away, this time to the bow. They stared blankly, with glints and shimmers for movements.

"Well what did you want to do today - anything in particular? I've got nopony else," Bonbon said with a heavy sigh.

Octavia, not looking away, said quietly, "I don't know."

"So...anything then?"

"Yes," she said.

Bonbon sighed, turning towards the bow herself. Out beyond the steel hull of the lively ship laid the vast, rolling sea. Soothing, relaxing, but only on the surface. What pony could even fathom what lay at the depths? What kind of chaos was erupting down there that not even the Princesses knew about? A quick snap of her eyes back to an unaware Octavia made her realize that this mare and the ocean weren’t so different.

“Look, we can head on down to the spa again if you’d like,” she said, her eyes still soaking in the oncoming breeze. “Or we could go swimming, golfing even. Anything strike you in particular?”

“Not quite,” Octavia said with a long, drawling sigh.

Her friend took a sharp glance at a small circular clock that hung on the wall. “Well it’s high noon. I’ve got to meet up with Lyra at five, so we’ve got that long...”

Across from her, there was silence. A waiter came by, asking if they had finished their omelets. Bonbon gave a polite nod, and the stallion swept up the plates with his wings, curtly leaving them to their own business. But apart from the minor interaction, there was no more than silence. Octavia was content to staring out; her eyes were as empty as the night sky over a large city, hardly moving.

Brushing her mane from her face, she gave in, saying, “Then a day of sunbathing. How about that?” She motioned towards two empty white lounge chairs on the forward deck.

The grey mare - in both color and emotion - slowly nodded her sagging head. Bonbon felt a light smile crease her lips. Dropping from the chair and walking out into the warm sun, she waved her hoof for Octavia to follow. She did, and the two made their way across the warm deck, taking their own chair, and reclining.

Bonbon, stretched out and sunken back, let that tiny smile expand just a bit further, touching her lips up. Her ears perked up finally, after a good hour of laying flat. The sun beamed down rays of encompassing warmth, seeping into her skin, and melting her worries - even if no more than partially - away.

***

For hours they laid there, sprawled beneath the sun, the brisk breeze rolling over them in spurts. The rocking of the ship alone was enough to drown out the slight noise made from the pool; it seemed as though these fancy ponies had no problems respecting a mutual peace.

That is, until one peculiar pony, mint green with a seafoam mane, walked up to a chair of her own a few rows down from Octavia and Bonbon. This unicorn had a white towel draped across her neck and a pair of cheap sunglasses that hardly covered her amber eyes.

“Hey, look,” Bonbon said, tapping her friend and pointing to Lyra. “I’ll be right back all right? Stay here.”

“I am a lady, not a filly,” Octavia grumbled. She crossed her arms and threw her head to the bite of the wind. But on her face was not a hardened expression of anger, but rather a soft expression, lips flat and eyes sporadically searching. She opened her mouth, lips moving as though they had more to say. Only silence rang out.

Even Bonbon could feel the unease. Quickly standing and trotting a bit off, she said, “I know. I’ll be right back.”

She then turned and trudged her way across the deck. She didn’t bother waiting for a response; she wasn’t going to get a response. Instead, she simply approached Lyra with wary eyes that scanned the unicorn’s entirety.

“Lyra,” she said. The unicorn was at the edge of the pool, about to dive in when her name rang out. She was still for a moment, before turning around. A smile as blunt as a mallet hung on her lips.

“Hey,” Lyra responded. Turning from the pool she gave a weak wave. Her whole body seemed reluctant to move: each smile was sluggish, each blink hesitant.

“Are you okay?” the cream mare asked. She leaned in, giving Lyra a little peck on the cheek.

“No.”

“Why not, is something wrong? It did feel like you were a bit hot, are you feeling-”

“How’s the day with Octavia?”

Bonbon backed away, her lips trying to form words. “Well, it’s good I guess. Are you still upset about this?”

“You haven’t seen Vinyl today?” Lyra slowly turned back to the pool.

“I, uh, no. You haven’t?” She asked as she joined her marefriend’s side.

“Nope,” was all Lyra said.

“Oh. Well...I, uh-”

“Look, I appreciate that you came to check up on me,” Lyra said. Her voice rang with sarcasm. “But I’m going for a swim now to, oh I don’t know, relax maybe. That is what you’re supposed to do on a cruise, right?” She didn’t wait for a response, but rather, tossed off her towel and sunglasses. She leapt from the deck, hurling down and splashing her marefriend with a good spurt of lukewarm water.

Bonbon sighed, turning away and walking back over to her sunbathing, sulking companion.

But just as she approached, Octavia turned her head slowly, a soft frown on her lips. Her posture was lax; her shoulders slumped and back arched, despite being in a sitting position. Locking her dull, flat eyes on the oncoming cream mare, she said, “Dear, I...enjoyed the day. Truly, I did. But I’d like to return to my cabin now, if that’s all right and fine.”

The mare’s heart sunk at this. “I, um...yes, I guess. I feel like I could use a nap anyways...”

Octavia was up in a heartbeat, though her face showed no changes - still soft, dull, and blunt. “Let’s be off then.”

***

Octavia slammed the door behind her, with much more force than she had intended. Yet she did not look back. Making her way to her own bed, she felt weak. Her legs finally began to give, shaking like loose pillars. She stumbled on her hooves, barely staying up.

Her eyes, however, fell to the carpets beneath her, landing directly on the discarded bottle. Sure enough, it was whiskey. Drained, empty, it sat on the floor as a vague reminder of something worse than her morning sickness. She bent down and grabbed the bottle with a shaking hoof. Soon, her whole body began to spasm as she stared down at the putrid bottle, reading its labels.

She was alone. Not even the falling sun could keep her company, nor did she want it. She was alone, and that was how she wished to be.

"Dammit..." she muttered into the evening light, "Dammit all...I'm no better than her..."

The words stung, causing her to recoil and wince. But she had things to say, things to hear. "I'm no better than her..."

I'm a lady, not a filly.

"No better..."

This is whiskey.

She shook her head and bit her lip.

A twitch of her eye, and her whole body tensed. She flung the bottle at the wall, causing it to split in two large chunks, surrounded by tiny slivers of shimmering glass. The crunch and crash echoed in her ears like the barbs of a wasp.

"Six months! Six bucking months!" she shouted. She gave the bedside table a good buck, denting the little cabinet beneath it. Her strength was not great, but one more good buck, and she split the fragile thing in two. "Buck you Vinyl!"

She gripped Vinyl's sheets beside her with her teeth, she gave them a good yank, ripping the bedspread from its holster. The sheets flew off, crashing into the marble counter and falling limp.

"Octavia? Octavia!" Bonbon called from the door. Pounding knocked reverberated through the suite.

"I, um, I'm fine," she responded.

"Just open the door."

"Honestly, dear, I'm fine! I just want to be alone for a bit."

"Octavia..."

"Go away!"

"Open the door Octavia, please?"

"Celestia damn you! Go away Bonbon!" she hissed.

The knocks came again, and Bonbon yelled something into the door, but Octavia had long since tuned her out. The slumped cellist retracted her legs, letting her pulled muscles relax. She stood and trudged her way over to the blue stained glass doors, sliding them ajar and letting the cool evening breeze lash her face and toss aside her mane.

She stepped out onto the deck, slowly sliding the door shut behind her. When she heard the little latch click, she turned back to the ocean, the setting sun, and the crisp breeze. She fell to her haunches; there was no more fight in her. Her head hung low, her shoulders slumped. A whirlwind brewed in Octavia's mind, kicking around her thoughts and jumbling her altogether. And there was only one pony - one reason - for it.

Giving the deck table a horribly weak kick, she muttered to the wind, "Buck you Vinyl..."

A weak chuckle slipped her lips. She stood again, trotting over to the couch and hopping up on it with a thump. Another chuckle with a bit more strength escaped her mouth now, the corner of her lips curving up into a small grin. "Ah, buck you," she sighed.

"Octavia?" a voice rang out. It came from the left, behind the large ceramic privacy shutter. "Octavia, is everything all right? Are you there?"

"Yes, Bonbon, I'm here. And things are fine dear," she said.

"It didn't sound like it. You know...the shouting, the cracking..."

"Well Bonbon that's what happens when...when you accidentally make a pony poke her eye! Yes," Octavia said with a nervous giggle.

"Oh, I'm, um, sorry about that. Would you please let me in?"

"Hey! If you two wouldn't mind, some ponies come outside for a bit of peace!" a hoity-toity voice called from beneath them. Strange, Octavia thought, seeing as the rolling waves and unwavering breeze was already stealing her voice away.

"Sorry," Bonbon said. "Octavia, please?"

"Fine, fine," she said with a sigh. She fell from the couch, and reentered her suite, carefully trotting over to the door, her eyes locked on her mess. Yet she couldn't help but smile. At her door, she decided to let that tiny smile burn on - it would serve her well for this.

She cracked it open, peering her head outside. Bonbon was just now closing her own door, and turned to face the cellist with a somber smile. "Hey, can I come in?"

"Um, well, I suppose..." She slowly opened the door wider, exposing the splinted cabinet door and shattered glass.

"Octavia...what happened in here?" the mare asked as she entered.

The cellist shut the door, spun around, and headed for her bed. "It, um, well when you startled me-"

"Don't even," Bonbon said. Her voice became stern, commanding, condescending. She sat on her friend's bed - the sheeted one - and gave a serious, knowledgeable glare. "I've been around you long enough to know that this isn't because you 'poked your eye'."

Octavia stopped dead in her tracks. "W-Well, I - Are you insisting I've lied?"

"Yes. Yes I am." Looking down at the cellist, eyes unfaltering, she shook her head and let loose a long, drawled sigh.

"I'm insulted!" she scoffed.

"Me too. I've been trying to help you and Vinyl for the past week or so, and at my own expense, too. Now I've got to try to keep my own relationship together, and deal with this drama. Octavia, I love you. I love you like a sister, but please, I can't put up with destruction. If you need to vent, you can do it to me." Bonbon opened her arms wide, as if to offer a hug.

Octavia shoved herself atop her bed, her intense stare fixed on the cyan eyes before her. "You listen to me, I am not creating 'drama'. It has been a hard time for me, and I think it would be best if you respected that."

"I do. I respect it completely. And that's exactly what I'm getting at - it's been a hard time for you, why not talk about it instead of...this." She pointed down to the shards of broken glass and splintered wood.

"Because...well, I just-"

"C'mon. I'm here for you. Just tell me what's wrong, I won't judge."

Octavia's eyes shifted to the open deck door, staring out as faint streaks of orange and pink shot across the dimming sky. "I suppose. Look, whatever I say, you mustn't judge." Her voice had lost its harsh, commanding rasp, replaced by a soft, whimper-like tone.

"I won't, I promise."

She sighed and turned back to Bonbon. "It was about six months ago. I...it was late. Very late, and Vinyl had offered to take me out for the night. And, of course, we went to a bar..." her tone became unbelievably quieter. "I was a bit more...promiscuous back then."

***

"So you're the joke of the neighborhood, why should'ya care if you're feelin' good, oh take the long way home..."

Vinyl sat on her hard cot, staring out the portside window at the lowering sun. The room around her was hardly big enough for her: there was her cot, a mirror, and a door, all surrounded by an ugly green wallpaper. Her eyes were tired and worn, sunken in with dark rings around them. Her mane was a mess, and her coat was greasy and matted. And even her hooves were ruined, with glowing scrapes piercing her white fur up and down from constantly beating on the door whilst in a drunken stupor the night before.

"This buckin' sucks."

Chapter 10: Scratching Vinyl

"Yeah, yeah, another won't hurt," Vinyl cheered over the booming music. The stack of tiny glasses atop the bar in front of her was a true testament to her disorientated state.

Octavia giggled, sluggishly waving a playful hoof. "Aw, fine, for my little Scratches," she snickered. Then, she downed the clear liquid in her other hoof, shaking her head and snorting when it was gone.

Vinyl eyed her over with a grin. The night was young, but even in the dim blacklight-lit bar, she could tell her marefriend was partying. Her sepia mane and grey fur were carelessly rustled and messy, and her face never dropped that sloppy grin. "Aw yeah, now that's how we roll!" She turned down the bar to face the busy bartender. "Hey! Another round, S'il vous please!" she shouted with a hiccup.

A thump came from her side, but she paid it no mind. The bartender did, however; his eyes flew wide as the clear bottle of brew fell from his magic, shattering on the floor. Vinyl gave him a wary glance, grinding her teeth and snarling. "Dude that's good stuff you're wasting!"

He didn't answer - he was too busy throwing off his tie and apron and rushing over to her. She backed away, falling from her plush purple stool. What she landed on, however, was not the hard plaster tile that was supposed to be beneath her. She landed on something cold, something plump and curvy, something that seemed like it should be alive. A quick glance down to her hooves revealed a slumped grey mare with blue lips and a glazed gaze.

Immediately she fell to the Octavia's side, placing her ear next to her marefriend's drooling lips. Silence. She raised a shaking hoof and poked the mare's cheek. Stillness. Everything about her had stopped - her breathing, her blinking, and when Vinyl pressed her ear to the still mare's chest, her heart.

***

She awoke with a start, jerking up and off of her hard bunk. With an unceremonious thud she collapsed to the floor in a heap, waves of pain crippling her from any further movement. Her nose had barely missed a direct impact, but that didn't stop the horrible knives of agony the rippled through her face.

"Oh my," she heard a voice say. "I was told you were a heavy sleeper, but I didn't think..."

Carefully tilting her head up, she peeked open one ruby eye. Through the blur that clouded her vision, she could make out a tall, white stallion dressed in a nice green suite with a light cyan tie that covered his auburn fur. His striking blue mane was neatly combed, and his tail was brushed and groomed as it shimmered in the morning light. He seemed prepared for business - exactly what kind, Vinyl had no clue, but she frowned nonetheless.

"I...um..."

"Here, let me help you up," he said with a gentle smile as he extended his hoof. The DJ carefully took it, raising herself up to her own hooves once more. "My sincerest apologies for startling you Ms. Scratch."

"Right, uh, don't worry about it," she groaned, twisting her neck for the loud cracks that it entitled. Sitting back down on the cot, she batted her eyes at the captain. "So did you need something?"

"I did in fact," he said, taking a seat beside her. He smelled of deep cologne and hair gel. "I needed something two days ago. But I swear, the administration on this ship is so slow. I got the new brig records only last night; I'd have come sooner had I known."

"Known what?" the DJ asked. A long yawn drawled out of her throat. She stretched her arms left and right with a little, wide grin.

"Known that you were in here." He in turn had his own grin on his face. "Though I suppose I should have seen it coming. I saw the bar records a few days ago..."

"Oh, um...well ya see-"

"It's all right," he said, shushing her. "I remember our dinner a few nights ago, and well, quite honestly, I'm not dumb. I could tell just how bad things were between you and that charming cellist of yours."

"She's not mine anymore," Vinyl huffed with pouty eyes.

"I guessed as much. How are you feeling? From the looks of your hooves, I'd assume not so well."

Vinyl looked down to her hooves. They were scratched, scarred, with little lines of crimson running down them. "Oh this? I was...drunk. But look, I'm not really myself when I'm drunk," she explained in a defensive tone as she tucked her hooves between her plot and the bunk.

"Are any of us? I could guess that that too would be the reason for the bit of stability I'm seeing, hmm?" he asked, cocking his head with his patented smile.

Vinyl's cheeks filled with heat. "No offense captain, but I'm not a filly, so I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't treat me like one."

He thought this over for a second, before saying with a wry wink, "I beg to disagree. You may only grow up once, but you're a filly twice." A little chuckle slipped his lips.

The DJ rolled her eyes; she couldn't think of anything else to do. "The humor's nice and all...but it's not really helping."

"I never meant to be funny - that was an accident," he said. His smile never left his lips once. "What I mean to say is that we never really stop learning. So to say that you aren't a filly would mean that you've learned all you need. And this may just be my opinion, but I highly doubt that that is your case."

"As if it's yours..."

"I never said it was," he said with a gentle nudge. He fell to his hooves and headed towards the door, saying over his shoulder, "Come, I think you and I need to have a little chat."

***

"Lyra...did we really have to sleep in different beds?" Bonbon asked as her marefriend casually trotted out of the steamy bathroom, a white towel bound around her mane. "It seems...well..."

"Well what?" the unicorn asked with a huff. She made her way around Bonbon's bed, to her own, jumping on it with a hollow thump.

"It seems like you're just..."

"Just what?" Lyra squinted, gazing harshly into her marefriend's cyan eyes.

Bonbon bit her lip and shifted on her sheets. She took in a deep breath, but instead of speaking, looked out behind her. Light was flooding in through the deck windows freely, lighting up the room with an orange glow. "It's just that you're being cold," she eventually said, turning back around. "And not just to Vinyl and Octavia...but to me too."

Lyra snarled, whipping the towel from atop her head. It flew to the bedside table, draping itself over the clock and lamp. "I'm being cold? Me? Look at yourself. I just made us sleep in separate beds. I thought that's what you wanted, after all. A break from me," she said. She crossed her forelegs and turned away, her chin high.

"Lyra, how could I want that?" Bonbon leaned in, extending her hoof with a hurt expression across her face.

"How? More like why. Maybe if you paid attention to me, instead of Octavia and that oaf of a DJ, you'd know the answer! Seriously Bonbon, is it just that they mean more to you than your own special somepony?"

"Now that's not true," Bonbon said with a scowl. "I love you dearly-"

"You don't show it! It's always Octavia this, Vinyl that... they're over Bonbon! And I'm afraid we will be too if you don't quit!"

There was a stiff silence. Not even the gentle rocking of the ship could alter it, nor the soft sound of rolling waves crashing against the side.

"We came here for us," Lyra said, her tone much quieter. "We came here to be together. We came here because we loved each other, and we wanted to spend quality time together. What don't you understand about that Bonbon? I want to spend time with you, not policing them..."

Bonbon searched for her words, gripping the sheets beneath her and tugging them close. "I...You would just turn your back to our friends?"

"They're not our friends anymore," Lyra huffed. "They've been dragging us down, don't you see? They're destroying our relationship, all because they couldn't keep their own together. It's so...so stupid! It's their fault. And now, Vinyl's going to give herself alcohol poisoning, and Octavia's going to become a hermit, and if you keep trying to help this failed cause..."

The cream pony scrunched her face up. Her cheeks flushed red, and her lips pursed. Squinting, she said, "Lyra Heartstrings. They are not the ones destroying our relationship."

"But-"

"Get out. Go on, get out. I don't want to deal with you right now." Bonbon pointed to the door.

"So that's it then? I knew it...I knew you cared more about them than me!" Another bitter silence befell them, sucking the warmth from the air. A tear trickled down the corner of the unicorn's eye, creeping down her cheek and dripping to the floor. She hopped down from her bed and sauntered to the door.

"That's not true either-"

"Fine!" Lyra snapped. "It's over, I get it!"

"It's not," her marefriend said sternly. "I just can't put up with anymore stress right now, and you're not helping."

Lyra ignored her, whipping the door open with her magic, and slamming it shut behind her. The mare, now alone in the room, sighed and rubbed her temples.

"It's not over..." she grumbled, shaking her head. Of all the ways to start off her day, it had to begin with this. She couldn't catch a break; everywhere she turned there was drama, the was heartbreak, there was lunacy. She growled, stomping her hooves down on the floor and storming over to the door.

When she reached it, she stopped, taking in a deep breath. "No no, Bonnie, calm down. There is a much better way to deal with this," she told herself. Patting her mane down into place and fixing a bit of ruffled fur on her side, she regained her composure and reached out for the door handle.

But when she opened the door and peered down into the hall, she was greeted with nothing but silence.

***

"Breakfast is on me," Starlight said with a grin and a wink. Vinyl followed him as he cantered into one of the various topside lounges. This one had the peculiar name, The Wayward Sail, chalked onto a blackboard that stood at the entrance. She sighed and went in, examining the plain, rustic surroundings.

The floors were wood, the walls were wood, and the ceiling was wood. The glazed, auburn planks added a cozy, cabin like feel, and did wonders for trapping the cool breeze that was constantly flowing. Both ponies inhaled deeply as a large gust filled the room, pressing the ashen red tablecloths to their circular tables. Vinyl and Starlight took a seat at one of these tables - one close to the back bar - and with haste, snatched up the menus at the center.

Vinyl cracked hers open and examined the laminated page, her eyes racing down the choices and her lips quivering, trickling with the slightest trail of drool.

"I don't imagine you have had a hearty meal as of late?" Starlight asked, peering up from the top of his menu.

Vinyl shook her head as she continued to examine her options. There was a large, cheesy faux omelet. Then there was the warm, steaming breakfast panini with crisp greens and scrumptious cheddar. And of course, at the bottom of the page, there was the breakfast wrap: a toasted, golden tortilla stuffed to the brim with leafy greens, fresh spinach, succulent mushrooms, and juicy tomatoes. She nodded at this with an eager stare.

"I didn't think so," the captain said with a chuckle. He was nonchalantly scanning over his menu. "The brig never does feed well. But, then again, you shouldn't land in there in the first place."

"W-Well it wasn't my fault," Vinyl said, slamming the menu closed and looking away.

"Oh? Then how did you land in there?" he asked.

"I - It was my ex's fault," she said with a huff.

Starlight almost chortled, but bit his lip and softened his smile. "That lovely mare you were with? Octavia, I think it was. What happened?"

Vinyl sighed and turned back to the table. "We, uh, just weren't right for each other..."

"Is that so? Well I'm terribly sorry to hear it," he said. His smile faded, replaced by a kind gaze. A waiter approached; he was the only stallion working, and had just finished wiping down the bar.

"I hope I'm not interrupting," he said.

"Nonsense." Starlight offered him a light smile. "I'll have the breakfast salad, nothing more thank you."

The stallion nodded and turned to Vinyl. "Yeah, I want the breakfast wrap and a glass of scotch," she said. The waiter smiled, spun around, and receded behind the bar once more.

"Scotch? This early?"

"I need something," she said with a sigh.

"Do you? Do you really? What, then, happened at my table those few nights ago?" He leaned on his hoof, an expectant yet kind look in his stare.

Vinyl blushed. Her eyes flew about and her lips fumbled, but in the end she said, "Just...memories."

"Strong? Must be," he said, "to cause something like that. But why the alcohol? What prompted it, I suppose I'm asking."

"If you don't mind, it's private," she said, turning her face to the wind.

"I do mind actually. Ms. Scratch, you've gained quite the reputation around the ship for your drinking. I get the records, you know," Starlight said. Eyes darted, his expression fell from kind and soft to stern and piercing. "It's not every day I get a complaint about a ship wide drunk. And I get even less brig admission reports."

Vinyl did not look back, but instead sighed and let the wind kick her mane back. "So I had a bit too much..."

"I've been following you, you know." Vinyl snapped her head around, her lip drawn up in a snarl. "No no, not literally. But I've followed your records, your actions. I even know about your little fracture there," he said, pointing to her bandage nose.

She blushed and grazed the rough gauss bandage with her hoof.

"You've gotten drunk on more occasions than I preferred to read about. And at my table, you shattered a full glass of bourbon. Then you created quite the ruckus with your...ex." Starlight's tone softened and his lips eased up from their frown. "Now you've got a shattered nose and managed to get yourself locked in our fine brig due to a fit of misplaced, drunken anger. Ms Scratch...It's not private anymore. I don't want this aboard my ship, and..."

"And what?" she asked, looking back to the bar. The waiter was giving them sly little glances ever now and then, failing in his attempts to be inconspicuous.

"And something tells me it's not what you want either." He sighed and leaned in. "What is the reason for all of this?"

"I don't need another pony running my life and treating me like a filly," Vinyl said, backing away with a sneer. "I'm sick of it, and won't take it anymore. Not even from you, captain."

Starlight leaned back in his chair, pushing the menu away and taking in a deep breath. He closed his eyes, slouched, and bit his lip. "I don't doubt it. But that's not what I'm trying to do. Listen to me, please. I only wish to help."

"Yeah, well...I don't want 'help'." She looked back over at the waiter, who was preparing two loaded plates to be brought out. Atop one was a crispy green salad, and atop the other sat her steaming breakfast wrap. She shook her head at it, gripping her stomach. Pain rippled up through her gut, but even still, her appetite had faded. Her eyes quickly shifted to the little glass of burgundy liquid that sat next to the plate, small trickles of water dripping down its cold sides.

"So you insist that you want to drink, break vital parts of your body, and end up in jail? All for what? For losing your marefriend?"

"It's her fault all of it happened in the first place!" Vinyl yelled, pointing a hoof to Starlight. "Jail! Booze! Everything!"

"Now now, no need to get upset," he said, waving his hooves down slowly. "Look, our food is here. I imagine we're both famished. Let's eat a bit, shall we?"

The waiter took the two ceramic plates from atop his outstretched wings and set them down before the two ponies. The savory scent of fried mushroom and spices wafted through the air. He then put the glass down next to Vinyl's wrap, the small cubes of ice clinking like little chimes.

She took no time in tearing apart her wrap, unceremoniously ripping into it and yanking a huge chunk out. Chomping down on it, she let tiny chunks and spittle fly with an ungracious snarl on her face.

Starlight took in another deep breath, the wind blowing through his mane. "All right, let's take a good look at this. You're an alcoholic." Vinyl opened her mouth in protest, but he raised a hoof to her. "And, something about alcohol makes you blow your top, no?"

She huffed and slumped down.

"You're keeping a secret, and it has to do with Ms. Octavia. You freely drink, but can't stand her drinking. As well, you are sensitive of ponies interfering with your life. I think it's fair to assume that I'm correct here?" There was silence. The captain took a large bite of his greens, giving the mare across from him a soft gaze.

"I guess," she muttered, crossing her forelegs.

"Good. It would then be fair to say that it has serious repercussions on your life." He bent down for another bite, but stopped, his mouth open and his eyes fixed on the mare across from him. Vinyl had taken up the glass with her magic, bringing it to her lips.

"Wait," he said. "Before you take a sip from that drink, I want you to think. That is why I've brought you here, after all - to think. Think long and hard about what you're about to do."

"I know what I'm about to do, thank you," she said, shaking her head and pressing the cold glass to her dry lips.

"If you did, I doubt you'd do it," Starlight said, once more bringing a halt to her movements. "I do not know what has happened in the past, but think about the present. Let us propose, for just a moment, that you hadn't taken a single sip of that blasted drink whilst on the ship. Where would you be now?"

Vinyl leaned forward, squinting her eyes and biting her lip. Her face was turning a deep scarlet, and her muscles tightened.

Gulping, Starlight quickly said, "Think about it. Is it worth it?" Then, there was a pause, a stillness that weighed heavy on them both.

Vinyl leaned back, resting her drink back on the table.

"There we go," Starlight said in a soft, calm voice. "Progress. Let us talk, for just a moment. No anger, no sadness, just talking. Is that all right?"

She picked up her wrap with her light pink magic, bringing it forward and taking off a significantly smaller bite. "I...sure. Whatever."

"Good, good. How has the cruise been so far?"

"It's been...fine," she said, gulping down her bite and slowly taking another.

"That's lovely. And the food? We serve only the best, you know." He offered a small wink.

"It's good, too."

"Interesting enough. And the music? How is it? Your friend, Lyra; she's quite the musician. Classical music, I find, always washes my stress away, wouldn't you agree?"

"Yeah." Vinyl took yet another small bite.

"My personal favorite - classical piece, that is - would be the Art of Fugue, by Johann Sebastian Buck. Might I inquire yours?" he asked with a gentle grin.

There was silence for a moment, Vinyl staring at the cool glass.

"I, uh, I guess the Moonlight Sonata. Tav loved that one..."

"And there we have it," Starlight said, clapping his hooves together. Vinyl's eyes shot wide, and she slammed her wrap down on the plate with a loud crashing sound. The bartender shot up, frantically searching for the source.

"My apologies," Starlight said with a nod. He shook his head, rolled his eyes, and got back to work. "See, Ms. Scratch, I knew that you didn't despise her, nor did you blame her for everything. I'm not a stranger to relationships."

"It's just a song," she grumbled, turning away and hunching down.

"Ah, but it's so much more, don't you see? For starters, it's not your preferred music, am I correct?" She reluctantly nodded. "You remember it by name. See, it's her song. And...you like it, don't you?" he asked, bending over to see into her ruby eyes. They were glossy, with tiny droplets forming at their base.

"Y-Yeah. So what?"

Starlight sat back up and looked out to the ocean. The never ending expanse of rolling waves seemed to be just that: never ending. On and on they rolled, their soft crashing music to his ears. He sighed and smiled now, a motion he was aware of constantly repeating. Even still, he nodded and chuckled to himself.

"I have a question for you. One last question, and then I must be off," he said, turning back to her. She looked up, her tearing ruby eyes shining in the morning light. "Is that glass of poison worth more than somepony you love?"

She looked at him, then down to her drink, then to him once more. "I-I..."

"If you want, I'll be here again tomorrow. If you're feeling comfortable enough, why not meet me here. We can...talk things over. I'm just a friendly stranger, sure, but sometimes it helps to talk to a stranger."

Silence once more.

"That sounds nice," Vinyl eventually said, wiping her eyes and stiffening her back. Clearing her throat, she slowly began to regain her composure, looking Starlight dead in the eyes.

"See? That's all you need - somepony to talk to. Don't worry, you can trust me," he said. With a muffled chuckle, he continued, "I'm sure you don't, but you can. Ten tomorrow, and I'll be here. And maybe you can tell me what the real trouble is. What you're keeping locked up."

"M-Maybe," she quietly said.

The captain smiled, standing and heading towards the door. "I look forward to it, Ms. Scratch. By the way," he said, just before he rounded the corner, "stop by the reception desk tonight. I'll have a key to an empty cabin waiting for you."

She smiled. "Thanks captain."

"Of course. And please, call me Starlight. We're friends after all, are we not?"

Vinyl gave one small nod.

"Good. I shall see you then." With that, he walked on into the midmorning breeze.

The mare, now alone, turned back to the glass in front of her, giving it a wary look. Licking her lips, she imagined the cool sensation as it would glide down her parched throat. But then, she turned away, leaning into the wind and sucking in deeply. Biting her lip, she tried to focus solely on the vast sea before her. But her eyes drifted to the glass once more, examining it, taking in its tempting form. The bitter aroma filled her senses, and she swore she could hear those little ice cubes clinking away.

Groaning, she leaned in, gripped the glass with her magic, and guzzled the whole thing down in one burning chug. Writhing and snarling, she slammed the empty container back onto the table, pushed herself away, and hopped down from her chair.

She rounded the corner of the restaurant and disappeared into the day.

A Night to Remember

This chapter is dedicated to those who've stuck with the story thus far. Thanks for the support!

Vinyl examined her surroundings as her eyes finally opened. For once, she did not have a hangover, and could see clearly. The second class cabin was just that - second class. Fair by most standards, it was one of a row of compact rooms constructed of glossy wooden walls, a ceramic ceiling, and red carpets. She pushed herself off of her plush bed that sat in the room's center and made her way to the mirror that hung beside it, just above an old, small bedside table.

The oval portrayed her as a mess, but she herself had a smile on her face. Her mane was ruined, her coat was ruffled, and her eyes drooped. But her appearance now was a stark contrast to what she had seen upon entering the single cabin the night before. Confidently nodding, she stepped away.

The only bathroom was in the far corner - a tiny, cupboard-like area with a hinged metal door to seal it. Vinyl sauntered over to it, her grin falling. Tossing the door ajar with her magic, she stepped in. White tiles lined the walls, even in the small shower stall that made up half of the thing. She closed the door behind her, eyeing the shower in particular.

She was just about to step in when her eyes squeezed shut and her face became strained and reddened. She stomped her hooves down on the floor, her front in the stall and her back out of it. Pain shot through her skull like fire, searing her mind. She breathed a small moan, nearly collapsing into the stall.

But then it was gone. In one overbearing wave of relief, it was gone. She sucked in deeply, tossing her head up and wishing for the cool sea breeze. Her breathing soon returned to normal, and her head fell back.

"Damn," she muttered to herself.

Just as she was reaching for the shower handles, shaking her head and taking deep breaths, the intercoms boomed to life, sending her forward and slamming her face to the shower floor. She shrieked, her bandaged nose shooting waves of pain through her skull.

"Good morning ladies and gentlecolts. Captain Starlight speaking, and you have my sincerest apologizes if I've disturbed you. It is currently seven fifty in the morning, and our sailing is smooth for now. Unfortunately it does not seem that it will stay that way. We Pegasi are rather clumsy I'd say; a bit ahead of us is a rather interesting pegasus storm. Our radio workers say it was blown off course from Manehattan. Once again, my most heartfelt apologies for this. Thank you."

Vinyl muttered a few inaudible words to the floor as a few tears leaked out. She pushed herself up to her weak knees with a scowl, her face steaming red. Stepping fully into the shower, sliding the clear glass door shut and twisting the dials with her magic, she sighed, sniffled, and let the warm water rain down upon her.

***

"Okay Bonbon, calm down. She's somewhere," Octavia said as she gently stroked her friend's mane.

"B-But..." Bonbon hugged her closer, burying her face into Octavia's thick, soft mane.

"No, no, don't talk." Octavia continued to softly stroke her mane, then her back. She looked down to the trembling mare in her forelegs, making sure she stayed close. Her cream fur was glowing in the soft orange lamplight that illuminated the room. Beyond the shut curtains to the right, the sun was just beginning to rise. It was early, yes, but Octavia had opted to stay the night with Bonbon. With a firm nod at her choice, she continued to shush her friend.

"I-I didn't say it was over."

"I know dear, I know. She doesn't though. You mustn't worry; we'll find her and explain things." She turned and bit her lip. Where had Lyra even slept?

"All right," she continued, "Let's take a deep breath in." She sucked in deeply, and Bonbon did the same. Simultaneously they breathed out, sinking into each other. "Better?"

"A l-little..."

"Good, good," Octavia said, her tone hushed and kind. She leaned her head on Bonbon, closing her eyes and rocking her back and forth.

Then, an image flashed before her mind's eye in a mentally blinding stroke. An image full of power and fury, yet as calm as a midsummer breeze. Bright lights, a faint beeping, soft music, and a familiar face.

She twitched, shooting herself onto her back. When air finally returned to her lungs in one long, forceful gasp, and her eyes flung open, she found Bonbon looking over her.

"Octavia!" She gripped the mare's sides, bending down to closely inspect her. Octavia could clearly define the faintest trickle of a tear in Bonbon's eye.

"I'm fine Bonnie. C'mon," she said, pushing herself up, "Let's go get some breakfast and see if we can't find our missing mare."

"It's strange."

Octavia looked to Bonbon with a raised brow. "What is?"

"Everything, it's strange, like how we got here: the trip, the cruise I mean."

"Well yes dear, but what is so strange about it?"

Bonbon sighed, lying back on the bed. "We came here as two couples; we all wanted to have a good time, and we were all smiling, even if it was just a little. Now... well now we're all single, the cruise has been a disaster, nopony's smiling, and not even the sun is shining anymore. It's... It's just so..."

Octavia rested her hoof on her friend's shoulder. "I know. I really do," she said.

"I miss Lyra's smile," Bonbon said, wiping her eyes.

"Indeed, the smile of somepony close is very special... it... well it..." Octavia blinked rapidly, looking down to the floor.

"It's nice." Bonbon offered a teary smile. "C'mon. I'm getting hungry."

***

Vinyl trotted down the long hallway. It was more crowded today; the impending storm had many ponies frenzied, chatting away on the side, drinking the bars dry, and simply staring at nothing. Vinyl, however, was much too occupied to notice any of them. As she trotted down the expansive hallway that linked the grand foyer and the bow, a little piece of paper floated along in an aura of magic in front of her. She had found it, neatly folded and stamped with the captain seal just outside her door.

Dear Ms. Scratch,

As I am sure you heard, we seem to be stuck in the boat instead of on it. I hope you don't mind, but I'll be at the concert hall instead of our planned meeting place. You can find the hall at the complete front of the ship. You should see signs for it in the main halls.

Sincerely yours,

Luminous Starlight

She refolded the thing with her magic, curtly tucking it away in her neatly styled mane. She had been extra careful with her preparations this morning; her mane was finely brushed, and her coat scrubbed spotless. Her teeth were white and minty, and her tail had just enough bounce.

She looked to her right. The bar here was packed, though that wasn't what she noticed. Outside the bar's small, round steel windows, dark grey clouds were beginning to streak the sky, quickly covering the vast, calm sea with an expansive shadow. She could feel the wind rocking the ship harder now; it wasn't bad enough to make her stumble, but she bit her lip nonetheless.

Swiftly approaching was the end of the hall. Here it cut left, and from what Vinyl could see, joined with the other hallway to make one central corridor. Through the crowd of ponies, she could easily make out a wooden sign that was tacked to the wall. It had a few arrows pointing to various directions, some up, some down. One in particular was pointed left and down, into the combined hallway. Vinyl eyed it over, gritting her teeth.

She rounded the corner, swiftly turning right into the conjoined corridor. There was a small ramp here that was covered in thick blue carpets. On the wall, there was another arrow that pointed in the same direction in which she walked. It read Symphony and Orchestra Hall. Nodding to it, she picked up her pace.

At the bottom of the ramp there was a dome shaped room that ended with a large wall. On either side of here were two huge wooden doors. She quickly entered one, shoving it open and letting it fall shut behind her. What she saw made her eyes shoot wide.

The large - no, massive hallway curved on both sides, ending at the front in a sort of V shape. It mocked the shape of the ship's bow, and seemed to shoot up all the way to the upper deck. Hanging from its ceiling was a giant crystal chandelier with many tassels and ornaments deflecting the light in an almost kaleidoscopic display. The orange glow bounced off of the finely crafted wooden walls, each of which was carved by what had to have been a master artisan. Bulging out from them were two side portraits of Princess Luna galloping over the moon as it sank on the watery horizon.

Just above Vinyl was a vaulted loft, much like that of the dining hall. It too spread around the outer walls, built in seats of fine wood and velvet bolted down to their slanted floors. These seats also made up the row after row of chairs on the main floor too as it slanted down to the blue curtain-covered stage.

"Ah, Vinyl - may I call you that?" a familiar voice asked, his calm tone hardly echoing in the huge room. Vinyl snapped from her awe-struck gaze, looking down Starlight was standing at the bottom of the aisle ramp, a cheery smile on his face.

"I, uh, yeah, sure," she said, trotting down to him. The room was cold, sending goosebumps down her spine as she approached the stallion.

"Good," he said, taking a seat. Vinyl trotted past him, choosing her own chair to his left. "My, what happened there?" he asked as she sat, inspecting her nose with wide eyes. It was without it's bandage, displaying a grisly display of twisted bone beneath scared fur.

"You're announcement," she grumbled, rubbing the throbbing thing with her hooves.

"Oh, my sincerest apologies, Ms. Vinyl."

Despite herself, she allowed a dry laugh. "Captain, 'Vinyl' or 'Ms. Scratch, please," she said. Nodding, Starlight sat there in thoughtful silence. A minute passed, then two, and soon enough, the throbbing in her nose began to dull and fade.

Vinyl yawned, stretching her hooves out. "So what's with the storm?"

"Why, I'm not sure. I can't say it's the first time it's happened though, so no worries. We know what to do." He gave her a gentle nudge on the side.

"I don't doubt it. Kinda feels good though," she said, exaggerating the ship's swaying.

"Indeed," Starlight said with a sigh and a grin, "The gentle rocking of this ship is one of life's finer luxuries."

Vinyl looked at him with an estranged gaze. "Yeah, sure. So why are we here?"

Starlight seemed to pep up at this. "Of course! You see, on the final night of the cruise, we all meet here - well, most of us anyways. The ship stays operational of course, and the restaurant is open. But this is the final event; a concert by our ship's harpist, your lovely friend. In fact I dare say she'll be on stage in a few moments to practice."

As if on cue, Lyra trotted out, her harp in her magic. She looked down to the captain, and they nodded to each other. Not once did she or Vinyl lock eyes though; they actually seemed to be looking away from each other, not even noticing the other's actions.

While Lyra began to get set up - pulling up a stool and tuning her harp - Starlight looked back to Vinyl, examining her unwillingness to see her friend. "You know," he said, turning away from both of them, "you were going to tell me about your little secret, were you not?" His tone was soft as ever, and even his smile kept up, but Vinyl eyed him. The captain was mischievous, no doubt about that, though his mask held up well.

"Yeah. But... can we do this somewhere else?"

"Might I ask why?"

She looked around with fumbling lips. "W-Well, uh..."

"Then here shall do nicely, I think," he said with a nod.

"Fine," she sighed.

"Right then! I've already ordered breakfast to be brought here. I hope you don't mind; what with the odd schedule I went ahead and ordered for you. Got you that strange thing you devoured yesterday. My apologies, but I have no doubt that the kitchens shall be utterly empty by tomorrow." He gave a hearty chuckle.

"Yeah, it's fine I guess."

"Well good," he said. He turned to her with his gentle smile, leaned in and said, "If it truly bothers you that much, we can always move back."

Vinyl finally looked up at Lyra, who was too busy attempting to tune her harp to even notice. "It's all right," she eventually said quietly with a roll of her eyes.

Starlight sat back up. "Perfect, let's start then, shall we? Whenever you are ready, Ms. Vinyl... I'm sorry." He chuckled. "Just Vinyl."

Vinyl took a deep breath in, slowly breathing it out. Then again, and again, until her heart had slowed down, and her muscles relaxed. "It was... six months ago. It's hard to remember, but..."

Starlight nodded. "Please, take your time."

She looked up to him, and then hunched back down. "Six months. I think... I think we were at a bar..."

~Sonata~

Vinyl stepped into the warm room, Octavia at her side. The bass was thick, as always, booming through her body almost euphorically. She smiled and smelled the air. It was damp with sweat and alcohol; just how a bar should be. The huge blacklights that spanned the walls and ceiling did a good job of illuminating the place, too, and with the side bar and huge, crowded dance floor situated around a DJ station, it was the epiphany of Canterlot nightlife.

"C'mon Tav, this is gonna be great!" she said, darting forward to the bar.

Octavia chuckled, trying to keep up. "Vinyl, how do you rope me into these situations, hmm?"

"With my sexy plot," she said with a wink. Hopping up on one of the bar stools, she slammed her hoof down. The bartender snapped around, almost dropping the shot glass in his hooves. "What'cha want, Tav?"

She bit her lip as she took a seat beside Vinyl. "I'm not sure. Might I ask what you plan to get?"

"Hah, bartender! Two shots of Everpony please!" The bulky red stallion nodded with a warm smile, bending down and grabbing at a clear bottle with his teeth. While he prepared the drinks, Vinyl turned to Octavia. "I love this song," she said, bobbing her head, her eyes closed and her hips swinging.

Octavia giggled, placing a hoof over her mouth. "Curse you Vinyl. That's... adorable."

"Eh, that's my talent. That's why I have this cutie mark, you know? Here, take a look!" She hopped up and shoved her flank into Octavia's face. She giggled, pushing the white cheek away with a crimson red blush.

"You disturb me. I have a reputation you know," she said, her smile not faltering.

"Yep. As my little plaything," Vinyl said with a wink. Two full shot glasses slid down the marble bar top, ending curtly in front of them.

"So," Octavia said, picking hers up. "A toast?"

Vinyl, just about to down the liquid, paused, lowering her glass with her magic. "To what?"

"Hmm... why, to love and happiness and all that nonsense!" she said, lifting her glass high with a hearty smile.

Vinyl nodded with a smile of her own, tossing her glass high as well. "To us! And vodka. And whatever else!" Then, she brought the glass down and shot the clear liquid in one gulp.

When she returned to her normal posture, she flashed Octavia a grin. "Another?"

"Well... I wouldn't normally, but I suppose one more couldn't cause too much trouble," she said.

"Hey bartender! Another, please!"

Soon, another two shots came flying down the counter. Once again they raised them, clinking the glasses and chugging them down.

"Whew!" Vinyl said, slamming her glass on the marble. "Stuff's strong!"

"It is," Octavia said, nodding. She gently rested the glass down, peering down the counter. "Um, bartender sir, two margaritas please, lime and salt!"

"And I thought I liked it fast." Vinyl snickered and winked. "But what're you doing getting margaritas? We party tonight!" She turned around. "Hey! Scratch that - another round of shots!"

The bartender sighed, scrapped his set of margaritas and proceeded to pour two shots. It wasn't long before they were swirling in their chairs with cheeky smiles and flailing arms. To them, it was 'dancing'. To everypony else, it was a seizure, and occasionally the bartender would stop by to inform them of the looks they were getting.

A few songs passed, ponies came and went, and the night moved on. It was late, the music was loud, and the stack was tall - the stack of clear, dripping shot glasses that is.

"Fifteen!" Vinyl shouted, hiccupping and staring at the stack. "We're doin' good."

"Indeed," Octavia said, snickering. "I dare say we've accomplished quite the... feat."

With a sloppy smile, Vinyl turned back to the bartender. But Octavia cut her off. She swayed in her seat, reaching a hoof out and landing it on Vinyl's back. "Vinyl, hon... Sweetie. I don't think another is a good idea..."

"A challenge? Hah!"

"No, Vinyl. I don't feel good." She leaned forward, and then straightened her posture once more. Vinyl gave her a curious look.

"Uh... you wanna dance or something?"

"No, no," she said, waving her hoof and pressing her foreleg to her stomach.

Vinyl bit her lip and eyed her marefriend over. "Look, if you don't want to have more..."

"I don't want you to have more either," she said, doing her best to straighten her face. She failed, giving a messy frown instead.

Vinyl darted her eyes. "I dunno Tav, we're here to party and stuff..."

With a gentle, blurry smile, she sat up. "We do, erm, did. Vinyl, can we please go home?"

Shaking her blue mane in either direction with a dumb grin, she said, "Nah, not yet."

"I feel a bit sick..."

"Yeah, yeah, another won't hurt," Vinyl cheered over the booming music. The stack of tiny glasses atop the bar in front of her was a true testament to her disorientated state.

"Aw yeah, now that's how we roll!" She turned down the bar to face the busy bartender. "Hey! Another round, S'il vous please!" she shouted with a hiccup.

"T-Tav?" she asked, gripping the mare's shoulders. She gave Octavia a little shake. There was no movement, no breathing. Nothing but a limp body in her hooves. Or two, or three. She wiped her eyes, inspecting the wetness on them.

"Somepony get a hospital carriage!" a voice from above her shouted. She didn't look up; her eyes were trained on the bluing mare in her hooves.

"Tav, are you okay?" she whispered. The music came to an abrupt halt, and suddenly there was only silence. She sniffed the mare, looking down with a snarl that quickly turned into a flat frown. "Tav? Say somethin'."

Some of the ponies from the dance floor made their way to the scene, overshadowing Vinyl. She paid them no mind either; rather, she poked Octavia's cheek. Then again, and again, until she was sure that her marefriend would not respond. Dropping the mare's head to the cold tile floor, she looked around at the crowd of ponies, her mouth open but unable to speak.

"Move, move!" a strong voice shouted from somewhere. The sound of shuffling ponies filled the air, as well as a few grunts and yelps. Vinyl didn't move once. She stayed above the limp Octavia, her mane falling in her eyes.

Her voice was weak, cracking even. "Octavia?"

A hoof pressed against her shoulder, and she was greeted by the worried gaze of a tall green stallion wearing a white cap with a red cross. "Ma'am," he said, nodding. Vinyl stepped to her right, and he and another brown stallion stepped forward. They began shouting to each other, their faces gaining exasperated glances of fear.

Eventually, they hoisted her up onto a long, flat board they had brought with them. Quickly, they magically lifted her up and began carrying her though the crowd.

"Miss," the bartender said, snapping Vinyl aware. She looked at him with a flat gaze and glossy eyes. All he did was nod to the door, which the paramedics were just now passing through.

After a moment of standing with that blank stare, she coughed harshly, snapping left and stumbling out the doors.

~~~

"Miss?" a voice called from the darkness. "Miss, are you awake? I can't believe she's slept this long... Miss?"

Vinyl slid her eyes open, letting bright lights flood in. She flinched, sinking back down onto the hard surface upon which she laid. Covering her face with a hoof, she tried opening them again. Pain seared her mind as the lights blinded her; they were so close to snapping shut again, and the instant she let go, they would. But she didn't. Rather, she forced them wide, letting the pain breach her mind and sting her. Gripping the sides of the blue chair she found herself on, she rocked back and forth, gritting her teeth and clenching her muscles.

Vivid white walls surrounded her. Row after row of hard blue chairs were lined up, some holding a pony who was crying or sleeping, but most empty. At the far end of this square room was a semicircular desk with a sign reading Emergency Wing it in bright red lettering hanging above.

"Miss?" the voice asked again. Vinyl snapped her head down, wincing and jerking back. She shut her eyes again, gripping her stomach tight. "Oh my, all right, stay still. The icepack please." There was a small rustling noise, then Vinyl could feel a cool, soothing sensation on her forehead and horn. She drew a quivering breath, sinking down in the seat.

Opening her eyes, she was confronted with by a frowning yellow mare, whose blue mane curled up just above her horn. She was dressed in a white medical gown, a muzzle mask hanging limp around her neck. "Ah, finally," she said. "Miss, do you know where you are?"

Vinyl squinted and looked around. "I, uh, the hospital?"

The mare sighed, a small smile flashing across her lips. "Right. And do you know why?"

Pressing her hooves to her temples with a groan, Vinyl closed her eyes and thought. Hard. She clenched her teeth and squeezed her face in strain, but there was nothing. "Um... no," she eventually said, relaxing her muscles and looking up to the mare.

A stallion beside her - a large, brown colt who was dressed in the same attire - stepped forward. "What do you remember?"

"Not much," she said, shaking her head and looking down to the tiled floor. "Um, music. There was music. And... hey, what time is it?" she asked, tilting her head up. She scanned the room, but to her dismay found no windows.

The colt looked to his companion. "It's about one in the afternoon."

"One in the... where's my marefriend?" She shoved herself up from the chair, but the pain in her mind sent her flying back down with a grimace.

"Now, now, take it easy," the mare said, resting her hoof on Vinyl's shoulder. She smacked it off, though. "Look, we're here to help. You're in no condition to refuse, either."

"You could at least tell me your names..."

"Very well then," the colt said. "I am Nurse Stout-"

"And I'm Doctor Warmgaze, and you are in deeper hay then you know," she said, leaning in and giving Vinyl a good once-over.

"You think I don't know that?" she retorted.

"No, I don't miss." She stepped back and sighed. "Let's take it back a step. Tell us everything you remember from last night."

Vinyl leaned back. "Fine. I remember me and Octavia - you know, my marefriend - walking into a bar. Let's see... there were drinks. Um, lot's of them. I think she said something about being sick. Then we were in a cart... Can't you just tell me what happened? Where is my marefriend?"

"We will tell you, but you need to calm down," Stout warned, giving her a cold eye. "The last thing we want you to do is freak out and scare the rest of the ponies in here."

"Fine, fine. I'm worried dude, not spastic or whatever. Just tell me," she said.

Warmgaze and Stout looked at each other, silently and slowly. "I'm pretty sure you know she's in the hospital. Otherwise you wouldn't be here," Warmgaze said. Vinyl nodded slowly, almost sarcastically. She sighed and continued. "She's in surgery right now. We aren't sure why, but her body didn't take kindly to all that alcohol. We have to pump it out, and-"

Vinyl jerked up, grabbing Warmgaze's sides. "What?"

"What did we just say about not panicking?" Stout asked, gently pushing Vinyl back down.

"How is she? Will she be fine?"

"We don't know yet, she-"

Vinyl jumped to her hooves. "What do you mean you 'don't know'? You're a doctor, you're supposed to know!"

"Keep. Your. Voice. Down," Stout said, his voice strong and firm.

Warmgaze stepped forward. "We are doctors, not psychics. So far, I'd say she's doing fine. We'll know everything else in about a day or so."

Vinyl slowly sat back down, biting her lip. "I feel... bad..."

"Hey, don't beat yourself up over it. It's not your fault," she said.

She was silent for a moment. "I need to see her."

"I'm sorry, miss, you can't. Surgery is a delicate procedure."

"Then when can I see her?" Vinyl asked quietly, her voice finally cracking.

Stout gave her a gentle smile. "We need to go check on the surgery. We'll know in a few moments, all right?"

She nodded, and at that, the pair trotted away, disappearing behind a pair of white, swinging metal doors. She placed her head in her hooves, rocking back and forth.

And so she sat in the chair, waiting, tears barely trickling down her face. She had gone to the reception counter a few times, once to return the icepack, but mostly asking about the state of Octavia. But each time she asked, they simply told her, "Not yet."

Seconds, minutes, hours... nothing changed. She shivered in place, thought after thought of her marefriend laying on a table, spliced open with a pump attached to her ran through Vinyl's mind, and no matter how hard she fought them, they kept coming. No true tears came, though. One or two slipped loose, but they only made her harden her face even more and strain herself. Soon her muscles were so tight they burned, and she could feel her teeth grinding away as she attempted to keep another tear from falling.

Eventually, the doctor made her return, not by appearance, but by a call. The pony at the front desk - an old, saggy mare - sauntered her way over to Vinyl. "Ahem, ma'am," she said. Vinyl raised her head, but it drooped almost as soon as it was up.

"Yeah?" she asked, her mouth covered due to the ball she had rolled into.

"Doctor Warmgaze would like to see you." She didn't say more; she just walked away, up to the set of swinging doors. Vinyl did not wait. She was up and cantering forward, despite the dark circles around her eyes. She swayed left and right, but made it nonetheless.

Through the small windows on the doors, she could see Warmgaze leaning on an inside wall, her white coat now dripping with crimson fluids. She seemed distracted, her head sagging much like Vinyl's. Vinyl quickly leaned on the doors, spreading them open and lurching herself into a bleach white hallway.

Warmgaze pushed off from the wall, letting her muzzle mask jiggle around her neck. "Ah, Vinyl; well, that's what your delirious marefriend was calling out when she woke up. You are Vinyl Scratch, yes?"

Vinyl nodded, blankly extending her hoof. Warmgaze chuckled and shook it. "Well it's a pleasure to meet you formally. I have some good news and some great news," she said with a huge grin.

Ears up and eyes wide, Vinyl leaned forward. "Octavia's fine?"

"She is. Well, for now anyways. We have her under pretty close watch. I tell you, that operation was interesting!" She laughed, but seeing the dropping mood on Vinyl's sinking face, she stopped and offered a kinder smile. "Well that's the good news anyways. And see? It wasn't as emotionally taxing as all those stories you hear of this place. In fact, you're looking fairly well. I hope it hasn't been too hard for you."

"I, uh, thanks. And I'm fine. Just a bit stressed," she said hoarsely. She cleared her throat and looked Warmgaze in her emerald eyes. "What's the great news?"

"Oh., oh yeah, you're going to love this. We here at Canterlot Regional like to plan ahead, so we already have Miss Octavia's room number for when we transfer her from her temporary intensive unit. Turns out, that room has two beds, and one of them isn't scheduled to be used, so that means you can use it if you want!"

"What? Really?" she dryly asked.

Warmgaze nodded with a smile. "Room number three-forty, floor five. It's unlocked; all you have to do is settle in. We'll be bringing Octavia in later tonight."

"Tonight? What time is it?"

Taking in a deep breath, Warmgaze looked around in thought. "Last time I saw a clock, it was about ten or eleven at night, right around when we finished the surgery. Probably later now though, by a good three or four hours. Anyhow, I hope you have a good night. We'll be running tests on Octavia periodically, and you must remember to not mess with her. No touching, poking, hugging, whatever. None of it. And- oh. Oh my..."

"What?" Vinyl asked, squinting and pressing her face close to Warmgaze's. The mare smelled of blood, making Vinyl's gut churn.

"Well, it's probably nothing," she said with a chuckle. "Like I said, we'll just need to run some tests on her, and I wouldn't expect her to wake up any time soon. Give her a day or two. We'll also need to know if she has any family -"

"She doesn't. At least, none that she's told me about," Vinyl said.

"Right, well we'll still need it on a form. Um, I think that should do it. Our cafeterias are in the basement, and there's a lavatory in the room, so..."

Suddenly, down a hallway to the right, two large steel doors swung open. A pair of stallions rushed a stretcher down the hall, atop which a blue mare with a deep blue mane and a cyan strip was strapped down. They rushed by her, only stopping for a moment. "We've got a mare - Colgate, she says - major lacerations, crushed ribs, and a pierced lung. We need you now."

Warmgaze steeled her face and nodded. "Good luck," she said to Vinyl as she galloped away. Vinyl nodded back, watching her disappear down the maze of hallways.

One set of stairs and two elevators later, and she was found herself staring at a thick metal door, reading in bright silver lettering Room 340. The hallway around her was empty. Doors on either side remained shut, and no maid, doctor or nurse was in sight. Of course, when she had passed the circular rotunda that was the floor's main hub, she got all the activity she needed, be it flying pegasus nurses or teleporting doctors, or even the speedy medical assistant. The silence actually brought a weak smile to her face.

She popped the door open, stepping into the dark room. A light switch on the side set the place alight, revealing bland grey walls, two beds, a white curtain between them, and a door to that read Lavatory. With a sigh, she stepped in fully, shutting the door behind her with her magic. It made a little click as the latch slid into place.

Taking the first bed, she hopped up on it and nestled under its covers. They were surprisingly warm, though not very soft. Thin though they were, they were comfortable enough for Vinyl to let a smile wash over her face.

She left the lights on. Every time she even tried lifting her body to head for the switch, it rejected the thought, sending her crashing down to her stomach with a thud. Eventually, she stayed down, letting her eyes slowly lapse close. Muffled by her pillow, she breathed out her final words, before the darkness of sleep overtook her.

"Had me scared, Tav. Had me scared..."

~Sonata~

Vinyl swallowed the last bite of her breakfast wrap. Lyra's melodic harp filled the hall with soothing notes, and Starlight was busy munching away on a crisp salad.

"Well, I'm terribly sorry to hear that," he said, looking over at Vinyl, "But tell me; how did that escalate to this? That seems like a truly heartfelt moment. Glad to hear things turned out well, I might add."

"You're funny captain," she said, shaking her head.

He rested his hoof on her shoulder. "I think I understand-"

"No, you don't," she said, shooting him a cold glare. From the corner of her eye, she could see Lyra looking down to her. She snapped her head around, snarling. "What do you want?"

Lyra simply held her chin high, closed her eyes, and continued to play.

"Vinyl, I, please calm down. It's all right to feel what you do right now. This is a painful memory-"

"You're bucking right! And you know what? It's not fine. Nothing. Is. Fine. And I'm sick of hearing it!"

"Miss Scratch," he said coolly, his composure remaining formal and friendly. "I assure you that it is perfectly fine right now."

"No," she said. Her tone softened, and she hung her head low. "Not now, not then, and not anytime soon..."

He took a quick bite of his salad, swallowing it as quick as he could. "Why not? She survived, did she not? And it sounds like you two would be well off..."

"It's... well... nothing's ever that easy." She let her mane fall to cover her face, but it did nothing to muffle the sniffle that came next. "I love her... you know?" she asked, not looking up. Starlight bit his lip and leaned forward. Vinyl continued. "I... I love her."

He paused, taking in a deep breath and looking down in thought. "What happened? What came next that brought all this on?"

Vinyl took a shallow breath, her lips quivering. There was a long pause; even the music that once resonated through the hall had come to an abrupt halt. Silence - an eerie, heavy silence - descended upon them, with the only sounds remaining being that of the rain as it began to pound away against the ship's hull.

Eventually, Vinyl took in another deep breath and said, "It started a few days later, when she didn't wake up."

A Night to Remember, Pt. 2

“It’s called a coma. Well, that’s what we’re calling it,” Warmgaze explained. Vinyl’s eyes darted over to Octavia, who was deep in her slumber in the hospital bed. The IV tubes were working hard, and the monitor beeped rhythmically. Warmgaze stayed silent for a few minutes, scuffing at the ground and biting her lip. “The liver poisoning is what we think did it. We need to keep an eye on her for a little while, make sure her liver will recover. Just... be careful with her, alright?”

It took a few seconds for Vinyl to find her voice, and when she did, it was weak and meager. “Alright.”

Warmgaze placed a hoof on her shoulder, locking eyes with the crestfallen Vinyl. “I know how much this hurts. I really do. But I can make you one promise, at least. I promise that we’ll get her back to you.”

Slowly, Vinyl nodded, looking back to her still, silent, deathly marefriend. “Hey doc, is it true that ponies can hear while they’re all... y’know, like that?” she asked, pointing a hoof to Octavia.

Warmgaze rubbed her chin for a moment. “Yes, at least, from what I’m told. Why?”

“I was just wondering...”

There was a silence shared between them.

“Hey,” the doctor said, placing a hoof beneath Vinyl’s fallen chin and locking their gazes. “This isn’t your fault.”

“Actually...” Vinyl sighed and let her head fall again. A small sniffle killed the new silence.

Warmgaze gave her a light hug. “I need to go. If you need anything, you tell me, I’ll see what I can do, alright?”

Vinyl gave a muffled thank you, and the doctor left it at that, quietly shutting the door behind her as she departed. Turning around, Vinyl wiped her eyes, clearing them of their blur. She sauntered up to Octavia, and, after taking a brief look around the dark, quiet room, took a grey hoof in her own, stroking it gently.

So, she could hear? Could she feel? Vinyl found herself wondering just how a coma felt. Was it painful? Or cold? As her hoof ran down Octavia’s foreleg, she nodded. It had to be cold; Octavia was freezing. She brought the hoof to her lips and gave it a light huff, rubbing in the warmth.

What was there to do now, other than wait? As a long sigh passed her lips, she let her gaze wander again. Bland walls, bland sheets, bland pictures... wait, what was that in the corner? She squinted, leaning forward. There, by the window, was a small, old phonograph. It was unsuspecting, packed like a briefcase. The only oddity about it was the broken stand that protruded from it’s cracked opening.

Being a music mare herself, Vinyl’s mind began to wander. Tenderly setting Octavia’s hoof down, being sure to cover it with the sheets for warmths sake, she stood and headed for the case. It opened with ease, only a loud creak from its hinges proclaiming its age. With care she flicked the needle. It still swung.

A button on the side read On/Off. Pressing it, she watched the machine begin to spin, recordless. It worked, and that was impressive part. After a quick glance over her shoulder, Vinyl came to a decision. She let her marefriend end up in that bed, she’d keep her occupied while she’s there. And where better to find boring, classical music than Octavia’s Canterlot home?

It was settled. Vinyl was going to suffer with Octavia, by risking a falling into a boredom induced coma of her own. Smiling, she turned and head for the door, taking a moment to promise her return to Octavia. Then, she trotted out of the hospital, humming softly.

~Sonata~

“I admit, I’m cheesey when I fall for somepony,” Vinyl said with a huff, rubbing her neck. “Don’t worry though, my story’s almost done.”

“No no, don’t apologize,” Starlight said, flashing her a smile. “It’s interesting, really. I’m still curious, though. How did you go from, well, where you were, to being here?”

Vinyl looked up to him from her hunched posture. “What does that mean?”

“Well, no offense intended, but you were respectable, at the top of your game, and devoted to your mare. Now you’re a drunk who can’t own up to her mistakes,” he explained, staring up at Lyra, who occasionally passed them a glance. Vinyl sighed, eyes downcast and face crestfallen.

Starlight placed a hoof on her back. “I’m... sorry if I offended you.”

“No, it’s the truth,” Vinyl said with a half hearted shrug. “I was gonna jump off the ship today anyways.”

“Well then, I’d say it’s a good thing we captured you!” Starlight said with a contagious chuckle.

A slight smile on her face, Vinyl sat back up, arching her back and stretching. “I guess so. But, um... you mind if we go get a drink or something? I-I mean, just something light. I could go for a glass of...”

Starlight eyed her over with an arched eyebrow.

“A glass of wine actually sounds good,” she eventually said. A smile returned to Starlight’s face.

“I think that can be arranged.”

~~~

Bonbon had spent the night with Octavia. Today, they were supposed to head out and search for Lyra, but with the storm rocking the ship, they decided--Bonbon decided, for the sake of Octavia--that, after breakfast, they return to the, at least until lunch.

And that did well for them both, it seemed. Rain pounded against the deck doors as the sea stirred and shook beneath the boat. Bonbon ran a hoof down Octavia’s back as the cellist leaned on her, sighing softly.

“That was one heck of a story,” she said. Octavia looked up at her, then back to the windows and the rain. Silence reclaimed the room, cut only by the dull thuds of the pounding storm.

Eventually, Octavia took a deep breath, letting it out in a light sigh and saying, “We should go find Lyra. Who know’s what kind of trouble she’s gotten into?”

Bonbon was about to respond, when a knock at the door set her heart aflutter. Both she and Octavia jerked to their hooves. Shakily, they trotted through their swaying cabin to the door. On the other side was a tall blue mare, they found, in a blue uniform. She cleared her throat and looked to them with vibrant green eyes.

“Are you... Octavia?” she asked, as if lost in thought.

Octavia stepped forward and nodded. “Yes, that’s me.”

“Ah, yes. Your ticket is tied to one Vinyl Scratch, correct?”

The mention of her name sent a burst of adrenaline through Octavia’s spine. She frowned, but nodded. “What has she done now?”

The mare chewed on her lip for a moment. “Yesterday she was taken to the brig for drunken disorderly conduct. She was in tears, babbling something about you. Being tied to her ticket, we’re supposed to let you know.”

Octavia cursed and stomped her hoof down, her face turning visibly red. Bonbon was quick to act, gently pushing her back and stepping forward. “Where is she now?”

“I don’t know. The captain removed her personally, and right now, I’m unaware of their whereabouts. But, um, Miss Octavia?” Octavia peered over Bonbon’s rump, scowling at the security mare. She only sighed. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen somepony as distraught as Vinyl. Just wanted to let you know.”

With that, she took her leave, trotting down the silent hallway and disappearing behind the bend. Bonbon glanced over her shoulder, only to see Octavia trotting to the deck windows, silent, staring.

~~~

Vinyl sipped idly on a tall glass of burgundy liquid. The simple act made it surprisingly easy for her muscles to relax. She breathed out a content sigh, closing her eyes and letting the music drift through her ears. Lyra’s tune was significantly more... somber, now. Slow, simple, low. Vinyl wondered if she had been eavesdropping on her while she spilled her problems.

Starlight took a sip of his own wine, his eyes flicking back and forth between the two silent musicians he had in his company. “So, Miss Vinyl, you were saying?”

“Oh yeah.” She finished off her wine and set the glass down on the floor. “When I came back, I couldn’t get into the room. I remember shouting, screaming that I would go back there. Eh, it didn’t work, but hey, it was worth a shot.”

“Well what happened?” he asked, a caution in his tone.

Vinyl sighed. “The doctors had to operate on her. Plain and simple. I got to see her about three days later, and...”

~Sonata~

A hoof traced the long scar along Octavia’s belly. Vinyl was sure it was sensitive, and she hoped it didn’t hurt her marefriend. In fact, she was stroking it in an attempt to make things better. Warmgaze’s words were still fresh on her mind, the psuedo warning she had given just before Vinyl was allowed in echoing in her ears.

I’m supposed to tell you not to touch her, but that never helps. A tip? Light pressure does wonders to dull pain. Now I’ll be leaving, but before I go... what’s in the box?

Vinyl’s eyes wandered to the ragged white box that sat beside the corner, beside the old phonogram. Sunlight skittered through the curtains, casting warm rays of sun over the box. After planting a kiss on Octavia’s cheek, Vinyl pushed herself away from the bed. The box and phonogram hovered, surrounded by a glowing aura, and floated to Octavia’s bedside.

The setup was quick. She cracked the top open, holding it up with a hoof as she threw off the lid of the box. Her magic came to use again, shifting through lines upon lines of files, until she gave up and yanked out a manila sleeve. In it was a large, black record, on which she had no idea what song it would be. She quickly slid it into the phonogram’s holder, set the needle on a random track, and pushed the button.

And nothing happened.

Vinyl stared at the machine, a frown on her face. She smacked it once. Twice. Thrice. The disc did not revolve, and the speaker was silent. A sneer on her face, she kicked it aside, grunting and turning back to Octavia.

Taking her hoof, she paused, staring at the calm, grey face of her marefriend that rested on the fluffy pillow. It was calm, and a smile came to Vinyl. At least she could take solace in the fact that Octavia was probably comfortable. “Hey,” she said.

It felt silly, talking to somepony that couldn’t talk back. But if she could hear, Vinyl would talk. “You know, when you wake up, you owe me,” she said with a light giggle. “I’m stressing so much, I haven’t slept at least a day. And look at you, sleeping all day, every day. I don’t ever want to hear about oversleeping again.”

There was no response. It made sense, ponies don’t talk when they’re unconscious. Vinyl sighed and rested her head on the bed, listening to the heart monitor proclaim that Octavia was, in fact, alive.

That only lasted about an hour, before the beep began to echo in her skull. Each beep made her frown, deeper and deeper, until she felt her hooves heading for the electrodes from Octavia’s chest. She groaned and stood heading back to the phonogram, beating on it.

Hollow thuds bounced through the room as her hooves slammed down on this thing.

And to her surprise, the disc began to spin. There was static at first, but it was enough to light up her face with a smile. A girlish giggle escaped her lips, which she quickly stifled with a hoof. It worked. And now that infernal beep would stop, and Octavia would finally have something to listen to.

As the needle tried to find its first track, Vinyl, with a smile on her lips, took Octavia’s hoof one last time. “Hey, you hear me? I’m gonna make you a promise, no, a deal. You come back to me, come home, then I’ll drop the booze. I’ll drop it completely. You hear me? That’s our deal. Because...” She took in a deep breath, holding it, listening, waiting. Octavia’s slow, rhythmic breaths stopped, and the monitor sped up, beeping quickly.

Then, Octavia coughed. “You promise?”

There was a stiff silence. Vinyl’s eyes grew wide, and she froze. Not even a breath could enter her lungs. A tear formed in her eye, rolling down her cheek and dripping to the floor.

It was then the record began to play. And when it did, it played the Moonlight Sonata.

“I promise.”

~Sonata~

“Well that’s absolutely heartfelt,” Starlight said, reclining in his chair.

Vinyl felt a tear roll down her cheek, but she quickly swatted it away. The music that had once filled the hall had died, Lyra wordlessly sauntering offstage, her head heavy on her shoulders.

“Then what happened? I still don’t see how you got here from there,” he said rubbing his chin. “In fact, I daresay I’m more confused.”

Vinyl sank low, lower than she had before. “I, uh... I started drinking. But wouldn’t you!” she snapped, pointing a hoof.

Starlight raised his hooves and gave her a smile. “I don’t blame you. I can’t say I agree with you, but I don’t blame you. But now that that’s all out...”

Vinyl snorted and turned away, hiding her face in her mane. Starlight caught another tear rolling down her cheek, leaving a trail of matted fur in its wake. He sighed and rubbed his neck, looking down.

“Listen, we’ve burnt through the day, you and I. And that leaves you two days on this cruise.” He eyed her over. “Now you listen to me, and listen closely. If you let Octavia get off this ship, if you let your friends walk away as they are now, you’ll never get them back. Never.”

Vinyl looked up to him with watery ruby eyes. “Well what am I supposed to do? Lyra blames me, Octavia hates me, and Bonbon’s just gonna side with them...”

“I’ll admit, I don’t know what I would do,” Starlight said, leaning back and tilting his head up. “But... every captain has a trick up his sleeve, and he may or may not know it at the time. When we started on this cruise, I had a friend aboard. I won’t say much about him, but I’d recommend you meet with him. Listen, tomorrow at noon, I’ll have him be on the bow, lounging by the pool. You... may want to meet him. Now, ah, I must be headed back to the bridge. I’m honestly surprised that we’ve stayed afloat this long.”

He stood and straightened his captain’s cap, before helping Vinyl out of her chair. She smiled to him, despite the tears in her eyes. “I’d say you feel like the ship does right now,” he said. “Rocky, unstable, pounded by something out of your control. But this ship’ll get out of the storm, you’ll see.”

With a wink, he trotted away, up the ramps and out of the concert hall altogether. Vinyl was alone now. For now.

“Tomorrow, bow deck, pool lounge,” she repeated. Who was this stallion? She frowned at being left in the dark. But the captain was right; she had two days to fix this, and if she didn’t, then Octavia would be gone forever, and she might as well have jumped today.

Prologue: Four Tickets

[Author's Note: Apparently the story doesn't really pick up until chapter 2. I've been told that this chapter is a tad bit boring... ]

"A cruise? Like, a boat?" Vinyl asked, taking her poptart out of the toaster. She flipped the steaming pastry, landing it on a small napkin she had laying out.

Lyra sighed. The blunt look on her face matched her slumped shoulders, but she was determined to stay polite. The weight of stress laid heavily on her friend's dark, sunken eyes, despite her still buoyant demeanor. "Yes, Vinyl, a boat. A fancy boat, with many high class ponies."

Vinyl took her burnt pastry from her kitchen to her living room, falling atop her dark green couch. The broken springs prodding through were tough to adjust to, but with a bit of hip swaying, Vinyl hunched over with a grin. "Well why do I have to go? You know I can't stand ponies with their heads up their arse."

Lyra came in and sat beside her. She took her time getting comfortable; it was hard to do, given Vinyl Scratch's old apartment. It was an absolute mess, with random items sprawled loose, and old wrappers and dishes everywhere. To top it off, it smelled rank, like a collection of body odor samples. "Octavia says otherwise," she said, turning away from the repulsive mess.

Vinyl stopped chewing her pop tart and sighed. "Yeah," she said through a mouth full of food, "Let's not talk about her for now."

"Why not? Is something bothering you?" Lyra's eyes darted, sticking to Vinyl, waiting, watching like a filly would watch candy.

"I just said I don't want to talk about it," Vinyl said. She levitated her pastry to her cheap wooden coffee table, and crossed her forelegs, giving a small huff. Her head shot away from Lyra, facing one of the few windows in the small apartment.

She leaned over to her friend with a sly little smile. "You're lying," she whispered with a grin.

"Oh would you shut up?" Vinyl said, a scowl across her face. Lyra bounced back, darting her deep amber eyes.

She sighed. "Hey, we're friends. Good friends, too. Why not tell me about it? Maybe I can help, who knows?"

Vinyl flashed an aggressive snarl, but retracted and slunk down into her couch soon after. "I... I dunno. It's Tav. I mean, I love her and all, but she's just ugh sometimes." She rolled her eyes and shook her head. With her magic, she brought the pop tart back to her mouth, and took a bite. Tiny chunks of food expulsed as she continued, "We had another argument, and I may have stepped over the line."

"How so?" Lyra asked, looking around at the cobwebs in the corners to escape the spittle.

Vinyl swallowed her bite and shrugged. "Eh, she was mad about me touching her cello or something."

Lyra shot her a fiery gaze.

"Alright, fine. I spilled a bit of vodka on the thing. But it wasn't much!"

Lyra's face went flat, her eyes stony and lips pursed. "You know how special that thing is to her. I know I'd kill Bonbon if she even looked at my lyre wrong."

"Yeah, well, it's not like she hasn't messed up my equipment before," Vinyl said, snorting and taking another bite of the cooled tart.

"Vinyl, your equipment is replaceable-"

"This is expensive stuff!"

"-but that cello holds a lot of sentiments," Lyra said, turning away. There was a short moment of silence that followed, but Lyra's eyes still trained themselves on Vinyl. "What happened next?" Vinyl muttered something under her breath. "Vinyl..."

She stomped her hooves down on the couch. "I told her to screw off, okay?"

"Calm down," Lyra said, sighing. "Tell the whole story. I'm not going to get mad, I swear."

Vinyl scoffed. "It started when she began yelling. She's been doing that a lot recently, ya know." She eyed Lyra, taking a bite of the toasty pastry. "So yeah, anyways I yelled back. Who wouldn't, huh? Here was Tav, screaming in my face for something I didn't mean to do. I had to stand up for myself."

After she swallowed, she took another bite of the quickly diminishing thing, getting crumbs everywhere. "She was rambling about how I'm so clumsy, and how I need to 'clean up'. So I told her she was just being uptight. One thing led to another, and, well, we decided that we just needed some time away from each other. Good thing I kept this apartment."

"Don't you feel guilty or something?" Lyra asked.

Vinyl sighed and ate the last chunk of the pop tart, her eyes falling to meet the floor. "Eh, a little. But she practically booted me out! That's just... ugh. Sometimes I wonder if it's even still there. That 'spark', ya know? The spark of love, or something."

"You don't think she hates you, do you?"

"How am I supposed to tell?" She gulped the bite down. "All we do is argue now."

Lyra sunk deeper into the couch. "I see."

"Yeah, uh, look, let's change the subject. I really don't wanna talk about Tav right now," she said, her eyes still trained on her carpet. "Say, where did you get the cruise tickets anyhow?"

Lyra perked up. Her smile was beaming. "Oh yeah! Well, hold onto your seat. I was invited to play for the dinners there! This is a fancy, prestigious cruise line too!"

"Really? That's awesome," Vinyl said with a encouraging nudge. "So they just gave you the tickets, or did you have to buy them?"

"Oh I could never afford them! A ticket for this line is normally a thousand bits or more per pony," she explained, displaying her empty hooves to Vinyl. "And we have upper class cabins!"

Vinyl's eyes shot wide. "Wow. Totally not worth it, in my opinion."

"So you don't want to come?" Lyra asked, eyes, ears, and head dropping.

"They gave you two tickets, and you want to take me instead of Bonbon? You two hit the rocks too?"

Lyra eyed her friend suspiciously. "Two? They gave me four. Weren't you paying attention earlier?"

"Yeah, I thought you said two is all. Anyways, who else is coming? There's you, Bonbon, and me, but that leaves one ticket," Vinyl said, placing her head on her hoof as she mulled over the possibilities of the fourth guest.

Lyra slammed her hoof to her face. "Octavia, of course."

Vinyl gasped. "You want me to get cramped on a boat with Tav for two weeks?"

"Oh c'mon, you two love each other. You girls are just hitting some hard times, that's all. A vacation would be good for the both of you," said Lyra, who was now on her hooves. "Why don't you mull it over for a while? The cruise is two weeks away; just let me know when you've decided. I have to go find Bonbon, we're shopping for some fancy dresses to wear." She winked to Vinyl. "If you're coming, you may want to do the same. I'm sure Octavia would lend you the money if it meant making you appear high class."

Vinyl's mouth hung agape, her tongue in position. Lyra threw on her saddlebags, and opened the apartment door. "Octavia's coming, and it'd mean the world to her if you came too, I'm sure." The wooden door curtly shut behind her, leaving Vinyl to wallow.

***

"A cruise. What am I suppose to do on a stuck up cruise?" she mumbled to herself. She rubbed her back, grimacing. Falling from the sofa to the floor, she continued talking. "I'm not going."

Vinyl sauntered back into the kitchen. On the stove clock, in flashy red led lights, the time read four-thirty. With a heavy sigh between gritted teeth she took a left through her kitchen, leading her into a small hallway that was the rest of her apartment. There were two doors in this dank hall, both on the left; one being the bedroom, and the other being the bath.

Down this hallway she went, grinding her hooves on the strangely soft carpet beneath them. The whole apartment, with the exception of the kitchen, had the same rustic look as the hallway. Bland, brown walls spanned either side, linking with the chipping ceiling and the dirty floors. There was hardly anything on the walls; a picture here, a record there. Not much, though. "Leave for a month," she said under her breath.

She nudged the wooden door to her bathroom open, revealing a window-lit white tiled room with no more than a sink, mirror, toilet and shower. Vinyl started up the water with her magic, not bothering to close the door. Who would see her, anyways? A burglar? A small chuckle slipped her lips as she adjusted the water dials.

Once the dials were at their sweet spot, she shoved off and returned to the mirror. Steam began to rise as Vinyl stared into her reflection. The idea of a burglar was slightly amusing, but soon her mind was searching for new forms of entertainment. She found herself staring into her vivid crimson eyes, examining her lightning blue mane, and her soft white coat. A deviant white smile swelled on her as she complemented herself with a wink.

Chuckling at her gesture, she turned away from the fogging mirror and stepped towards her shower. The white tub was being sprayed with lukewarm water; she soon realized that she had forgotten to pay a bill or two. She groaned and griped her way into the shower, pulling her blue curtain closed behind her.

A minute or two into the semi-cold shower, Vinyl found herself thinking over the cruise idea once again. She was in the middle of scrubbing the grease from her mane when the thoughts began to flood her mind. "I'm not going," She told herself, harshly spitting out a small bit of shampoo. But even though her stubborn mind disagreed with the trip, she found that Lyra's words still rang in her head.

"It'd mean the world to her if you came too"

"Tav." She frowned. Octavia was her marefriend after all; Vinyl hated disappointing her, even now. She scrubbed harder as though it would bring some alleviation.

"I'm right here," a familiar, tight voice said. Vinyl jumped at the sound, quickly peeking out of her curtains. "It's interesting to see that you think of me in the shower though."

"Oh, um, Tav? What are you doing here?" Vinyl asked, warmth filing her cheeks. The brick red heat was vivid under her wet, bleach white coat.

Octavia, standing in the bathroom doorway, rolled her eyes and said, "I have a spare key, remember? Look, I'll be on the couch when you finish. Just hurry up, will you?"

Octavia turned from the door way with a flat expression, slowly walking off. Vinyl's heart was pounding harder than the initial shock; she soon began to fidget, bouncing from one hoof to another. She vigorously shook her wet head, flinging droplets of water from it.

The rest of her shower was rushed; vigorous scrubbing, harsh lathering, all just so she could breathe again. Wiping the rest of her oily coat down in a quick cleansing motion, she shut the water off and hopped out. The steam in the room had fled through the doorway. This meant the mirror was clear. Quickly, she went to it, and propped herself up on the sink. With her light magic she brought her towel to her from atop the toilet and dried herself.

Everything on her frizzed. Her mane, tail, and fur all popped to their full extent - an easy fix for a her. She brought her brush up from the sink, running the coarse bristles through her mane first, untangling and undoing all the knots. Then, it went to her tail to do the same. When both had been restored to their normally sharp look, Vinyl took care of her coat. The brush ran through it only a few times to get the knots out. She kept going though, a soothed sigh breathing out.

It had been more than a few minutes, and now it was simply stalling. She tossed the brush on the small sink counter, and, without haste, exited the warm bathroom.

Octavia was staring out the apartment window when Vinyl entered the living room. The clock in the kitchen read five now - she had spent longer in the shower than she had thought. Then again, a scrambled mind has a way of eating time. Sighing, she trotted over to the couch and slumped down.

Octavia held her chest tightly, taking in deep breaths as she shot Vinyl a menacing look. "Don't do that!"

"Sorry Tav," Vinyl said, gulping and backing away.

"You should be! Nopony with any manners, no matter how inadequate, would scare an unnerved pony! It's just flat out rude!" she said, crossing her forelegs and turning from the scene.

Vinyl bit her tongue, her face reddening and strained. "Octavia-" She rarely used the her full name anymore. "-I said I was sorry. What more do you want?"

"Well... It might help if you cleaned this place up. Honestly, how can you live in such a sty?"

"Hey, now it's my apartment, I'll do whatever I want with it!" Vinyl leaned forward, face redder still.

Octavia relaxed her posture, sinking into the couch. "Yes, well I didn't come here to fight."

Vinyl, however, did not relax in the slightest; her body tensed, and her jaw clenched. "Are you sure? Cuz you're doing a pretty good job of it."

"I'd ask you to be reasonable here, but I see that it is out of the question," said Octavia with a snort.

"Was it reasonable to kick me out, huh?"

The situation was exasperating by the second. Octavia's posture stiffened again, her teeth bared. "I'll admit, it may have been a tad irrational, but you had it coming! Spilling that nasty vodka on my cello, and then having the nerve to tell me to 'buck off'." She crossed her forelegs, and scooted away from Vinyl.

"You were shouting in my face! What's up with that? It was an accident!" Vinyl threw her hooves out, displaying their purity under the lamplight.

"And that's another thing, Vinyl Scratch!" Octavia's tone was getting harsh. "You never own up to your mistakes! An apology, even if you had given a proper one, is not worth three hundred bits of repair money, mind you!"

"Oh, so it's money you want? Fine, I'll pay you back!"

"That's not what I'm talking about, Vinyl!" she spoke, condescendingly darting her eyes.

Vinyl abruptly stood. "Don't talk down to me! I'm not a filly!" she exclaimed.

"You are most certainly behaving as one!" said Octavia.

Eyes darted, Vinyl slowly got in Octavia's face. She stared right into those pinkish-purple eyes. "What do you want? It's not to make up, apparently."

"I came here to talk about the cruise," Octavia said with stunning composure. She backed away from her marefriend, who, in turn, mirrored the motion. As Vinyl sat back up on the couch, Octavia said, "And no, I am not here to make amends. When I said that I didn't want to see you for a long while, I meant it."

Vinyl scowled, a low growl slipping loose. She stomped her hoof down on the beaten sofa, a low thud accompanying a poof of dust. "I'm not going on that cruise."

"Oh is that so? I suppose you just don't care of what your good friend has gotten you then?" she said, scoffing. "You truly are inconsiderate."

Vinyl snapped her jaw. "I care about Lyra, and I'm happy that she got the job. It's just, fancy cruises aren't my thing. And I don't need you to lecture me on it!"

"Lecture you? It's rather hard to lecture someone with such a hard head as yourself," Octavia said. VInyl had no response to the castigation; she just sat and fumed through grinding teeth. "Now you listen to me. We are going on that cruise, a happy couple or not. It's for our friend, and her happy relationship."

Vinyl frowned. "You know, maybe we'd be happy if you respected my opinion at least half of the time," she said, her face softening.

"Don't change the subject," Octavia said, pointing an accusing hoof. "Vinyl, if you want to keep what's left of this relationship, you'll be going on that cruise. Do I make myself clear?"

She turned away. "Yeah..."

Octavia stood, shaking her sepia mane back into place. "Good. Well all right then, I really must be going. I need a glass of fine merlot to calm my nerves." She sighed as she headed to the door at the front of the room.

"Bye, dear," Vinyl said with a huff.

Octavia rolled her eyes, and slammed the door behind her as she left.

***

Alone, Vinyl Scratch sat on her couch with a bottle of the finest vodka seven bits could buy. Green Apple Clearpony, the label read - not that she could read the label now. The room whirled at the speed of a merry-go-round, gently spinning with a slight bounce. She swayed to the twirl in complete disharmony, a sour mix of alcohol and sweat covering her as she did so. Her lips were unreadable; one corner curved up, the other shooting down.

In the background, there was soft music spreading through the air. She had no idea what she was putting on at the time she grabbed a record, but now she realized it to be one of Octavia's records: Moonlight Sonata, or something of that sort. "Tav's favorite song," she sarcastically said, sighing and hiccuping in unison.

A soft, nostalgic smile arced on her lips, despite the music being too slow for her tastes. Memories flooded her ears on the gentle melody, igniting a flame within her chest - the warmth was much more intense than the vodka she was swirling around with her magic. In the dark room, with only the moonlight coming in from the small window, Vinyl smiled as the visions flooded her mind.

There was when they first met, surprisingly at none other than the Royal Canterlot Garden Party. She had taken up an extra job as a stewardess there, and was busy serving hors d'oeurves to the multiple guests when who other than the garden band called for her. Vinyl had obliged their request, getting them what they asked for: prawns in cocktail sauce. Unfortunately for her, she ended up bringing them some sort of crackers with a creamy sauce atop them. Octavia simply giggled and showed her what a prawn was, and boom, a new friend was made.

A transition cut through her wasted mind. She found herself now watching over her first kiss with that awesome mare. They were out in the rain, under a tree or something. Vinyl squeezed her eyes and tightened her jaw. She remembered the feeling vividly, the rush when their lips met, the sweet taste of her flavored lip balm... It was almost like kissing one of the goddesses themselves. Octavia had the softest lips she'd ever touched, and when they met, it was instantly known that they were meant for each other.

Then there was the time when they made the decision to move in together. This was at least six months into their relationship, but Vinyl thought the move was overdue anyways. The two had decided that she would move in with Octavia, seeing as she had an extravagant house on the upside of Canterlot. While she never really cared for that stuck up city, Vinyl accepted the offer anyways. Anything for Tav, as it were at the time. And so long ago, when Vinyl's smiles became increasingly rare, Octavia was nice enough to make her summer house in Ponyville her main place. The happy couple moved back with ease. From then on, Vinyl was able to lax up on her DJ'ing, and she and Octavia had been fine.

About four or five months later, there was nothing left but shouting. They had their arguments before, as any relationship would, but... it was never quite like this. In previous agitated periods, they would simply fight, apologize, and have some make up fun in bed. Now, however, the make up sex stopped, their smiles waned, and everything jaded..

Vinyl's eyes creaked open, breath invading her lungs. She took a good swig of her vodka, gulping down all she could before her brain could recognize what burning was. It wasn't long until she hacked up a storm. Too much vodka in too little time, and she felt ready to give it all back. Gripping her gut as hard as she could, she assured herself she would be fine with soft, slurred coos. As she released her death grip from her belly, things gradually grew fuzzier. But even as her room spun around her, Vinyl went back to her memories. Now, the music had changed to Requiem for a Pony, a slight, genuine smile graced her quivering lips.

Her mind had skipped back but a few days now; she could see herself in Octavia's house as she was three days earlier. The cello, in its open case, was stained with a good bit of Everpony Vodka. Vinyl's drunken stupor wasn't as bad on that day - she could stand, and wasn't bending over the toilet - but it was enough for her to almost shatter her relationship via the tipping of her bottle. The clear liquid stained Octavia's prized possession. She could remember the eloquent mare losing it - Octavia exploded. Vinyl couldn't remember the exact words exchanged, but they caused her new smile to fade, even now.

When she had decided, in all her drunken glory, that she had had enough, Vinyl finally told Octavia to buck herself. Everything happened so fast after that: she was immediately kicked out, Tav screaming about how she didn't want to see her again for years to come. At first Vinyl fell into a hermit state, receding deep within her blank stare, sputtering of how it was all over. But Octavia said otherwise. Well, actually she said they'd talk.

And talk they did. About a day later, the booted Vinyl was getting settled back into her apartment. She would come here at least once a month since she moved in with Octavia, simply for a bit of nostalgic joy. Well Octavia showed up, and laid down her commands. They were more like conditions than anything else, but Vinyl had listened unbiased. First, Octavia didn't want to see her for a while. Second, when she finally cooled off, Vinyl had to get her act straight. Thirdly, Vinyl was subject to do whatever Octavia told her to do. She said it was 'over watch'. Vinyl snorted and turned away.

Now she was up to date, yet a grimace on her face, and a blankness in her hazed eyes.

***

A sharp sound sent Vinyl flying from the couch. "What the hay," she asked the floor. She pressed her hooves to her temples, a sharp snarl of pain scrunching her face.

The sharp sound came again, echoing to her very core. It sounded like a jackhammer on the sidewalk. "Vinyl? Are you in there?" a voice called. It was sweet, familiar, and a bit too concerned. "Vinyl?" it called again.

"Ah... Ah'm comin!" she called back. Slowly, she managed to get a hoof up onto her living room table for support. Her tense muscles put up a fight, though; minutes before she even managed to get her chest off the ground.

The pounding came again, her legs nearly giving way. Faltering, but not falling, she continued her minute-long push up. "Ah...I said I'm coming!" She said. Growling and grumbling, Vinyl managed to get to her hooves and break from the coffee table. After a good bit of stumbling around the room, and almost landing in the kitchen, she eventually slammed into the door face first.

When the searing pain that ripped through her head subsided, she walked herself up the door. "What?" she asked, pulling the door open.

Bonbon gasped."Oh my, you look terrible."

Lyra was standing next to her. "You do. What happened last night?"

"Hey girls." Vinyl yawned, turning away. "Why don't you come in. And quit with the hammering. It's too early in the morning to make that much noise."

"Early?" Lyra asked, raising an eyebrow. She and Bonbon entered the messy place, and took a seat on Vinyl's couch.

She never really cared what ponies did in her home, so she just closed the door and went to sit next to them. "Yeah. It's gotta be like, what, eight in the morning or something," she yawned again, plopping down on her former bed.

"Ah, I think I found out what's up," Bonbon said, shaking her head with a sigh. The empty bottle of vodka sat in her hooves.

Vinyl rubbed eyes to see the object in question. "Oh yeah..."

"It's midday," Lyra said bluntly. Her tail wrapped around Bonbon's, pulling the her back from the empty bottle.

"Yeah, oops." Vinyl shrugged.

"Anyways," Lyra said, poking Vinyl to see if she was awake. She was hunching forward, almost falling off the couch. The little tap did the trick though; instantly she was up and attentive again. "Have you thought about the cruise?"

Cruise... When her mind registered the word at long last, it sent a barrage of messages up and out. She didn't want to be plagued with this stupid thing right now, especially with the hangover she had. But it seemed as though she had no choice. Eyes shut, head shaking, she fumbled her words with her nonsensical lip movements.

Her mind got to work, scanning it's options and outcomes. She didn't want to go - Celestia knew she didn't want to go - but if she didn't, Octavia would end their relationship altogether. Things may not be the best right now, but it was clear just how much worse they could get.

Besides, this was for her friend. She needed to support Lyra as much as any good friend could! Vinyl gave herself a curt nod, quickly regretting it and slamming her hooves to her temples. After a few moments, she was ready to let go, and get back to thinking. Lyra would be so happy to have her come - not that she knew why, though. But if it made her happy... Her gaze drifted right, to Lyra. A weak smile flashed across her face.

She didn't want to go; that had to be obvious by now. Just yesterday she had actually said it. Conflicted and confused, Vinyl snarled at nothing. The sunlight that beamed in through the window made it easy to see.

Now Bonbon was staring at her, anxiety alight in her focused eyes. Vinyl grew more and more nervous, switching between the two ponies, then down to the vodka bottle, then to Octavia's record that lay lifeless on the player.

"Vinyl? Have you... made up your mind? Are you alright?" Bonbon asked, looking around at nothing in particular.

All she had to do was say no. She could deal with Octavia later, and maybe work something else out. She just say no...

"Alright, I'll go," Vinyl said, biting her lip.

Lyra's face brightened with excitement. "Oh this is so great!" she said. "C'mon, go get cleaned up! This is a fancy cruise, so we have some shopping to do: maybe visit a hairstylist, buy a few dresses, oh and those shades of yours aren't coming-"

While the Lyra was busy acting like a school filly, Vinyl thought of the bright side: she still had Octavia. Maybe this would be good - she might get the chance to fix things between the two of them. Or completely destroy them, but Vinyl wasn't exactly known for being pessimistic; in her view, she had a chance.

So really this was more for Octavia than Lyra, even if the premises wasn't. And it would be nice to have a vacation, she reasoned. All she had to do was congratulate Lyra a lot, be nice, avoid Octavia, and relax at the spa or whatever ponies are supposed to do on cruises. Piece of cake.

Chapter 2: Dinner and Champagne

The ship had pushed off, and everything was in motion. The whole craft was gently swaying left and right as they sailed on out; Vinyl was lucky not to be prone to seasickness. In fact, she was managing herself quite well for the time they were out. She was beginning to get flutters in her stomach though; it was five fifty-five, and she was about to be late.

But things were still going great! Vinyl had finished up at the information desk, and after wasting all her time exploring the various bars, clubs, and shops - there was plenty to see - was currently on the elevator to the top level. The sights flashed through her mind, trailing along with mixed emotions. Most of the 'bars' were uptight clubs that only sold mixed drinks. While she was good with a margarita every once and a while, there was nothing she liked more than to sit and relax with a good bottle of gin or vodka.

With Tav, of course, before she became all uptight about liquor. Vinyl sighed as the metal doors slowly glided open on their tracks, releasing her to the small lobby. Obliviously she smashed right into a pony, her mind lost unto itself. She stumbled back, almost tripping on her dress.

"Well!" the familiar voice said.

"Tav?" Vinyl's ears perked. She rubbed her ruby eyes to clear them, getting a good look at her very angry marefriend. "Oh, uh, hi Tav..." In an attempt to ease the tension, she forced a little giggle.

"Vinyl..." the angry musician said through gritted teeth. She marched into the elevator, staring the DJ down with a soul piercing look.

"Dinner girls!" Bonbon said with a weak smile.

Octavia relented, bringing muffled sighs from all around. She snorted and turned to the various buttons on the wall. "Down one floor?" she asked to mask a sigh. Vinyl caught it however, and just sneered. In the corner of the elevator, she sat and crossed her arms. All the rudeness from Octavia was making her reconsider that jumping idea.

"No, no, we don't have time to switch elevators. Just... go down to the main deck, we'll make it from there," Bonbon said. She was bouncing from hoof to hoof, biting her lip and staring down the elevator switchboard. Vinyl understood, of course - when she and Octavia were on better terms, they would go to each other's shows often. Making it on time was a huge deal.

The elevator hummed in its decent. Tension in the air made it hard for Vinyl to breath, but she managed. In an attempt to make it through the awkward time, she found herself examining Octavia again, taking note of how cute the pink socks looked on her. Then she looked over the mare as a whole, just to enjoying her slender curves that were outlined by her pink dress. A sick feeling in her gut told her she may not be able to do it much longer.

Lucky for her, her marefriend was silently staring at the door - angry, no doubt. But still, it let Vinyl get a good look in peace. She took it as a luxury.

"Alright," Bonbon spoke first, "I think we'll end up in one of the long hallways that runs down the ship. You know, the ones filled with bars and shops. Um...We'll take a left out of the elevator, and head to the foyer. Just stick close, okay?"

"Yep," Vinyl acknowledged. Octavia simply nodded.

"Good. Here we go!" The nervousness in her voice rang like little chimes as the elevator doors slowly parted.

True to the letter, the three ponies found themselves in a long hall of bars. As they hooked left, they faced at least ten different shops and bars on either side of them. This, Vinyl noticed, was the exact same hallway she had dipped into to reach the information desk. The marble tiles that ran down it, the wavy columns on either side, and the mass collection of booze. Yep, she knew exactly where she was.

Bonbon lead onward, past the small crowd of marching ponies. It seemed that everyone was headed in the same directions, and soon Vinyl could understand why Bonbon had wanted them to stay close. It was more chaos, simply put. In suits and dresses, fancy ponies all walked with their heads held high, trampling over the DJ.

On more than a few occasions Vinyl had struck a pony that was agitating her. A drunk colt at a bar, an angry jealous mare... But the ponies here were definitely top priority. She made a mental note to find a place to hit each of them in private. It was strange that she would think this, and this she knew, as anger was very hard for her to really hold. And right now, she wouldn't be angry if it was only her getting jostled. But no... in front of her, she saw Octavia get shoved to the right by a stuck up colt. That blew a gasket in her brain. She stomped down on the floor, biting her lip as her face turned a crimson red.

They were just at the entrance to the grand foyer when Vinyl had caught up with the stallion. He was a tall, stocky colt, with enough meat on his bones to feed half the ship she was sure. With an angry undertone, she placed her hoof on his black tux and stopped him in his track.

"Hey buddy," she said, snarling at him. He turned around with a raised brow. It occurred to Vinyl - more than once - that she may be more intimidating without the prissy red gown on. Well dressed or not, however, she clenched her teeth and prepared to blow. With a hoof she pointed to Octavia. "I think you owe her an apology."

The cellists cheeks flushed the deepest crimson she could as she watched the scene unfold. As she cut through the crowd, Vinyl watched the color grow unbelievably redder. "Vinyl," Octavia quietly snapped. "Stop this right now!" Her tone was hushed, not wanting to make a scene, but a few wandering eyes had caught the sight nonetheless.

"Not till this guy gives you an apology! No one hurts my marefriend," the white mare said. She whipped her electric blue mane at the colt.

The large red colt chuckled. "I say, marefriend? What is the term ponies use nowadays, 'filly-foolers'? I'm surprised you were even let on the ship, what with high standards and all." After a hearty laugh, he turned and disappeared into the moving crowd. Vinyl watched, jaw hanging agape.

"Vinyl! Let's go!" Octavia continued in her harsh whisper.

"That guy...he, just, ugh! I'll...ugh!" The DJ stomped a hoof down on the glass.

Octavia pressed her nose right up against Vinyl's. "You listen to me. Bonbon is over there waiting patiently for your idiocy to come to an end. I believe you already know how late we are running! If you don't start moving your plot this instant I swear I will drag you up to the cabin and hang you from the balcony by your ears!"

Vinyl could almost see the steam rising off her face as it turned redder and redder. "But that guy-"

"This Instant!" The cellist commanded.

Vinyl gulped and nodded. Quickly she trotted past Octavia, to Bonbon, who was waiting beside the archway next to the stage. "I'm, um, sorry," she said, blushing hard as she approached.

Bonbon gave only a weary smile before moving on. Vinyl followed with a low head.

Behind her, Octavia was keeping pace as they entered this next area. The new room they were in had a teal carpet path that cut diagonally through the otherwise tiled place. The windows here were arches in the walls, carved into either side. Through them, the setting sun shone in its final rays of the day over the watery horizon. Inside, lit by the fading sunlight, the place seemed to be a sitting area: A piano sat in the center of the elongated place, with well kept tables sprawling around it in an organized circular fashion, each covered with a blue tablecloth. Vinyl reminded to take herself here when more fights erupted. It was almost...soothing, with the mix of fading sunlight and soft colors. It seemed to be hardly used as well, so she could probably find some alone time here.

But her attention was needed elsewhere now, as the carpet turned and led them into an archway that stood at the back center of the room. Through this arch, there was a lobby that was similar to the one at the suites. Blue carpet spanned the entire floor now, and two elevators stood ready on either side. One was offloading now, a surge of well dressed ponies exiting and heading up the few stairs in front of the dining hall.

The dining hall itself was severed from the lobby by an archway that sat atop these stairs. Bonbon was still leading the charge, guiding Vinyl, then Octavia up the stairs and through the archway.

"We have a special table, next to Lyra." She giggled, stepping through the arch. In front of them was a small mahogany desk, where a green mare sat. She was busy directing various waiters and staff to their positions, and only acknowledged their presence with a nod. To be polite, they all nodded back, and continued around her. Her little cache split in two directions, both leading out to the dining hall. What Vinyl saw here blew her mind yet again.

In the dining hall, a mass of ordered circular tables sprawled around a small circular stage that held Lyra and her harp. The carpet throughout was, of course, blue, with the exception of two white streaks that ran on adjacent sides of the room. These marked the aisles, and there were no tables or chairs on these.

On the walls, massive imprinted windows shot up to the upper landing, once again letting the dying sun shine its final light in. The vaults above spanned in a rectangle around the room; it seemed that the upper crust of the cruise sat here. The railing was, yet again, blue waves that encompassed the area. Between the windows were their lookalikes - huge wavy columns that ran down from the vaults.

Bonbon and Octavia had gone ahead, and left Vinyl in the doorway. She had to canter to catch up, heading out then taking a right. Down this white carpet she trod, catching up with her group. "Where's our table?" she asked when she was finally in earshot.

"Hmm...that one, right there!" Bonbon pointed out a particularly adorned table. It was covered in a light blue tablecloth, with stars and constellations spread throughout it. In its center was a small candle, lit and glowing already. Around it sat three stained wooden chairs, each with a small blue cushion on the seat.

The table itself was right next to the stage; perfect for, well, all of them. Grade A seats to a high class performance, as Vinyl's mind put it. They each took their respective seats: Bonbon on the right, Vinyl in the center, and Octavia on the left.

In front of them, Lyra was already lost in the soft melody of her harp. Vinyl had to admit, that golden thing could create quite the melody. It did wonders to her edgy nerves. The whole 'fancy dinner' thing was wreaking havoc on her mind; with a quick glance to Octavia, she squirmed in her seat and twiddled her hooves.

So prim and proper as could be, Vinyl sat tall in her chair. Then, another thought came to mind: a chair? Why in Equestria were they using chairs, when normally there would only be cushions. Even Octavia had cushions at her house.

Octavia interrupted the ever so deep thought. "Ah, it's nice to finally sit and eat, wouldn't you agree?"

"Oh yeah, I'm starving," Vinyl said. But her marefriend shot her a look, before turning away to face Bonbon with a smile.

"Oh absolutely. I've been looking forward to this all day," she said. She seemed lost in Lyra, her head on her hooves, eyes locked on that magical harp.

"And I am completely famished. How do the dinners work, if I may ask?" Vinyl rolled her eyes at the question; even she knew how dinner worked. Order, eat. The end, right?

"Lyra told me a bit about it, but I'm not really sure. I think they come by for the drinks first, then the captain gives his welcomes," Bonbon said, not taking her gaze from Lyra.

"Sweet," Vinyl said with a calm shrug, "I'm springing for a few shots."

"No, you are most certainly not!" Octavia said, pointing her hoof to Vinyl..

She recoiled. "Well...I can settle for some hard cider," she said with a huff. Octavia kept up her evil eye. "...Wine?" Vinyl gulped.

"A glass," her marefriend said.

"Fine," the disgruntled Vinyl sighed. She turned away from Octavia and began playing with her silverware in front of her. It was laid out next to a small bread plate, ordered and formal. She was sure there was more to it, but for now it just looked like it went from smallest to largest. Not really caring much, she wasted the time flipping the forks and turning the spoons. And pretty soon, she had a Lincoln log house of silverware constructed atop her plate.

When Octavia noticed the waiter coming with the bread, she snapped at Vinyl. "Take that thing down! Be acceptable for once, won't you?" Her hushed tone was hard and cold.

Vinyl hurried to deconstruct her silver house, doing her best to put the forks and spoons back in their normal positions. "I'm only doing this to be nice..." she mumbled. It was more annoying than anything.

The waiter eyed her attempts at normality as he approached. In his mouth he held a large silver platter, with three menus and a notepad stacked up next to a wrapped loaf of bread. He set it down between Octavia and Vinyl, quickly offloading the menus with his dim magic. One to Octavia, one to the starving DJ, and one to Bonbon, who was still lost in Lyra. Then, he levitated the bread loaf to the center of the table, gently resting it beside the lamp. His actions mirrored the actions of other waiters and waitresses as they tended to various other tables.

"A drink, perhaps?" he inquired.

Octavia had to recapture her friend's attention manually . "Bonbon, drinks?"

"Hmm, oh, yes! I'll have a glass of the fine chardonnay," she ordered, a polite smile on her lips. With a quill, the waiter scratched down the order on his small notepad.

He turned to Octavia. "And for you, madam?"

"I think I'll take a glass of your finest shiraz. Bonbon dear, you did say these are free, correct?" Bonbon nodded, then turned back to Lyra again. "Yes, I'll take it," Octavia smiled to the waiter.

"Very good. And for you, miss?" The brown stallion looked down to Vinyl.

Putting on her best 'proper' tone, she said, "I'll have a glass of the...um...red wine...or something." The stallion gave her a condescending eye.

"S-She'll have the shiraz as well, please," Octavia quickly said. She flashed a large, slightly nervous smile to the waiter.

"Once again, an excellent choice." The waiter's tone was obviously that of patronization. Vinyl clenched her teeth and did her best to not buck the table.

Bowing, the waiter spun around and left. He retreated into the kitchen doors - located next to the dining hall's reception area - disappearing from sight. Once he was gone, Vinyl turned back to Octavia. "Hey, uh, sorry," she said, forcing a chuckle.

The cellist didn't seem mad, necessarily - just disgruntled, a light frown on her lips. "It's quite alright," she said with a long breath.

Vinyl simply sighed, and after glancing over her menu, went back to killing time. She would flick the tablecloth, stack and restack the silverware, and occasionally break off some bread to nibble on. It was actually good bread; soaked in oil, but good nonetheless. Her hunger was uncurbed though, and soon the idle swaying of the tablecloth couldn't even draw her attention from her gut. She wrapped the screaming place with a foreleg, pressing the dress close to her.

It was then that Lyra plucked the last note of her harp. Silence mimicked the night: falling silently over the entire place. All ponies hushed in a wave of quiet that swept through the eloquent dining hall. Bonbon shot a quizzed look to Lyra. The green harpist grinned and nodded up to the landing above them.

When Vinyl's attention finally shifted from her gut to her eyes, she saw, on the vault at the back of the room, a large brown stallion leaning on the wavy rail. He was adorned with a striking white vest - the captain, no doubt - with his captain's hat atop his mane.

A quick glance out the window revealed it to be nighttime. Time had gone by slowly; Vinyl actually breathed a relieved sigh at the noticeable time change. She turned back up to the captain, a genuine smile now on her face.

"Ladies and Gentlecolts," the stallion began. His voice was deep and thick, but carried a suave tone to it. "Welcome aboard the Lunar Maiden. I, Starlight Shine, am the captain of said vessel. Currently, at six twenty-nine tonight, we are headed east at twenty knots... which means we are all stuck with each other!"

The enthusiasm in his voice elicited quite a few chuckles from the mass of ponies. An affable grin on his face, he continued: "And we ought to hope things go well, too! Does anyone know how many civil servants it takes to change a light bulb aboard this ship?" An awkward silence instilled. "It takes about thirty! One to screw in the bulb, four to observe, and twenty five to do the paperwork!"

More chuckles riveted the room. "Ah, who doesn't like a good joke?" he asked, snickering to himself. "But that's not why I'm here, though and that joke was a fair bit bad. Anyways, welcome aboard, I hope you all have a marvelous time."

As the captain receded to his table, hushed hoof claps echoed all around. Even Vinyl quietly applauded the captain - mainly for his cheesy joke, though. But what really lit a fire in her eyes were the waiters that were flooding out of the metal kitchen doors. Each methodically fanned out, hitting each table as though they were directed.

Their table was one of the first ones to be attended. "Ah, good evening once again madams," the same brown stallion said. His handlebar moustache, which Vinyl had not noticed earlier, made him fit the job perfectly. On his back was a platter with three glasses, two of red wine, one of white. "Have we come to a decision on dinner?" he asked as he levitated the drinks to their perspective owners.

If there was anything that could get Bonbon's attention, it was food, wine, or Lyra. She was attentive as ever, though polite nonetheless. "Octavia, you can order first." With a purple hoofwrap, she extended the offer to the cellist.

"Thank you Bonbon," she said. "I'll take the sweet Italian peppers with herbed risotto, and a basil-lime sauce please."

The waiter scratched the order down, complemented her food choice, then turned to Bonbon once more. Vinyl had nodded him to her; she had no idea what most of the stuff on the menu was.

"And for you?"

"Hmm...would you recommend the butternut squash and pear ravioli?" she asked, carefully studying the menu. When the waiter gave his nod of approval, she smiled and said," Then I'll have that, thank you."

He smiled, then turned down to Vinyl. Once again putting her 'properness' on, she smiled and pointed to something on the menu. "I want, uh, that. Yeah, that one right there."

"The escargot? A very wise choice," He emptily flattered.

"Oh no," Octavia said, stepping in, "She, uh, here. Just get her this, please?"

The waiter closely inspected the grey mare's menu. "The parmesean and pumpkin dumplings? Ah, yes, a finer choice." The two shared a chuckle. Vinyl was sure they both thought her to be mentally incapable or something. She just grimaced and pouted, looking back up to Lyra. The green pony was already plucking away as the waiter left.

"I knew what I wanted," Vinyl huffed when the stallion was out of earshot.

"Oh really?" Octavia's tone was blunt. "You wanted to eat snails?"

Vinyl's eyes grew wide as heat filled her cheeks.

Bonbon interrupted now; she seemed ready for some social interaction, finally. "So what are your plans? For tomorrow, I mean?"

"I'm not sure," Octavia began.

Vinyl's face had brightened now. "N-Nothing! I have something planned for us, if that's okay?" She smiled to Octavia, then to Bonbon.

"Vinyl, what did you-"

"It's a surprise," she smiled.

Bonbon was chuckling. "Well of course it's okay. It's a cruise, you're supposed to have fun! I was just wondering, because Lyra and I were going to head up to the mini golf course."

"Good!" Vinyl said. She puffed her chest out proudly as she spoke. And though the adrenaline surge was a bit misplaced, it sure beat the burning in her empty stomach.

Bonbon was smiling, Vinyl was smiling, and Octavia was busy - giving a wary eye, that is. None of that changed throughout the evening.

***

After the two hour long dinner, only two ponies of the three left. Bonbon had opted to stay behind and wait for Lyra; that pony would have much to rant on, Bonbon had remarked. So now it was simply Vinyl and Octavia walking back.

The dinner still sat on Vinyl's tongue. That pumpkin dumpling stuff was delicious! She had rarely had a dinner so good, though, she would never tell that to Octavia. In fact, at the time, all she had said was 'It could be better.' Vinyl wryly chuckled at the thought.

Then the dessert came... The savory taste of her chocolate mousse flooded her mind yet again. Her whole spine tingled at the thought. Its soft texture, its creamy flow, and the ice cream that came with it...it was heavenly. That was definitely on her room service list now.

"Here we are," Octavia said at their cabin door. "You know Vinyl, I've been thinking." She slid the key into the door, revealing a gas-candle lit suite. As they both entered - Vinyl closing the door behind them - the cellist continued, "And dinner wasn't a total disaster. Actually, I'm rather proud of how you handled yourself for the most part. Though maybe next time you should remember not to chug your wine. It is for sipping, after all."

Vinyl was blushing slightly. "Yeah...sorry," she said. She sat on her bed. It felt firm, used, as though something heavy had been on it. "Hey Tav, what's up with my bed?"

Her eyes widened. "I'm not sure. But anyways," she said with a smile, "I was thinking that perhaps we should open that champagne bottle. If you're interested, be a dear and pour two glasses won't you? They're under the counter." With that, she disappeared into the bathroom, the wooden door shutting curtly behind her.

Vinyl was no fool; Octavia had a silly little secret. Not that it really mattered, but she was interested nonetheless. Ah, but champagne...that was a brilliant idea! Who wouldn't like to end the day with good hoofing in their relationship, a belly full of delicious food, and a bit of fine, nerve-calming champagne? Her body relaxed a bit as she made her way to the counter.

At the marble counter, Vinyl first took the champagne out of the ice, then reached underneath to find the hanging wine glass sets. Using her magic, she poured two full glasses, the sparkling fluid barely cresting the top. She, of course, took the liberty of lowering the champagne levels, for fear of overflowing and spilling and such. And she found it to be surprisingly exquisite, too. Not like the wine from earlier, which had been too dry her taste.

Octavia exited the bathroom with a combed mane and tail. A new feature about her though, was that she had slipped out of her outfit, with the exceptions being her stripped socks. "What?" she asked, noticing Vinyl's coy smile, "They're comfortable."

"Ah, no need to blush Tav. But, um, can I take this thing off now?" She gripped her silk garment and held it up to the light.

"Fine," Octavia said. A light chuckle escaped her lips. The long forgotten sound rang like little bells in Vinyl's ears. She couldn't suppress a chuckle of her own.

Magically, she slipped her dress off and tossed it aside. It flew onto her bed and draped across her pillows. Octavia would have a filly if Vinyl tossed the costly dress to the floor. Now that her body was unconfined, she levitated her glass up to her lips, but hesitated.

"Hey...you wanna go out on the deck? The moon's just coming out tonight." She nodded to the balcony doors.

Octavia nodded at the idea, picking up her glass with an expert hoof. She joined Vinyl at the blue glass balcony door. Chivalrously Vinyl pulled the door open, letting her marefriend slip out to the crisp night air. She came quick behind her, pulling the door closed as she stepped out. The deck was cold tonight, but her heart felt warm.

Octavia had taken her seat on the couch. Her glass of fizzing champagne rest as a silhouette in front of her. Forcibly, Vinyl slouched down on the couch, setting her glass down next to its twin.

The cellist sighed at her marefriend's less-than-graceful landing, but remained calm for the sake of the mood. "I see you were right about the moon," she noted. The thin crescent was hovering barely on the horizon, making but a tiny glowing reflection on the cool water below. "How did you know?"

"Are you kiddin? The moon's awesome! It's my main source of inspiration, ya know. I have moon calendars, posters, charts... the works," she said. A smug grin grew on her face.

"Hm. Impressive to say the least." Octavia took a sip of her champagne, bringing about a rapid topic change: "Oh my, this is divine!" Her voice was slightly muffled by her hoof.

"It's pretty good, I gotta give it that," Vinyl said with a nod, taking a sip of her own.

There was a bit of silence after that. It seemed, at least to Vinyl, that neither wanted to ruin this moment. A soft, tender moment was hard to come by now; she knew that they needed to savor this - it was quickly fading. The thought of it echoed in the back of her mind.

Fading... No, it couldn't be. Look at them. They were...happy right now. But that thought still stained her mind like grape juice upon white fabric. She turned to Tav with a soft gaze. "Tav, you know I love you, right?" she asked, taking another small sip of champagne.

"I do," was all she said. Vinyl bit her lip and turned away.

"Yeah, well, anyways... Do we have to sleep in separate beds? I kinda like sleeping with you," she said with a blush, looking down into her alcohol as it floated in front of her.

Octavia rested her head on her socked hoof, staring out at the moon. "No, I suppose not. And...to be honest, I enjoy sleeping with you quite a bit." A bashful smirk grew on her face as she sank deeper into the couch.

"Aw." Vinyl poked her cheek. An adorable blush swelled in Tav's cheeks.

"Yes well..." was Octavia could push out. She shot her cute little grin into her champagne. "Vinyl?"

Her ears perked up. "Huh? Yeah?"

"I just wanted to thank you. For sticking up for me. That was very chivalrous of you," she said, sending her purple eyes deep into Vinyl's.

The mare blushed, giving a small chuckle. "Hey, it was nothin'. But I won't take anypony messing with my Tav."

"Thank you, Vinyl." She gave her marefriend a small smile.

That familiar heat once again grew inside her white cheeks.

The pair, in their sweetest moment in weeks, remained silent for a while. Under the soft glow of the moon, and with the sweet taste of the champagne, it seemed as though nothing could go wrong. The first night, and all was right...

***

Vinyl hurt. She hurt. Her head thumped hard in her sideways world, a nauseous feeling in her gut complementing the masterpiece. She was cold; her fur stood on end in the brisk sunny glow.

Sun? She was outside... That, of course, explained the rough sleeping ground; she was laying on the deck. Deck, hurting... Things weren't looking up. Yet perhaps the worst part of it all, was the blankness in her mind. Doing her best to keep a steady thought, a grimace smeared across her face, she conjured up a mental slide reel in her head.

Okay, so there they were, she and Octavia. They were sitting on the couch, enjoying the champagne, chatting about dinner and Lyra and such. It was ten... no, maybe fifteen minutes after Octavia's thank you, and the two were very close to each other. Alright, so then after that, Vinyl offered Octavia something. A gift? No, that wasn't it. She had nothing to give. It must've been more champagne. Yes! That was it! She had offered Octavia more champagne, and the grey mare chuckled and politely refused. So then Vinyl went in for more...

And that would explain the drained champagne bottle in her hooves.