The Life and Times of a Travelling Bandby Bman3601ChaptersPoison WhiskeyLost for WordsWish You Were HerePoison WhiskeyA grey hoof gently pushed the old bar doors open with an ear piercing squeak. A sharp glance at the rusty hinges proved the deteriorated metal to be on its last legs. Stepping up to the bar and taking a seat on the worn, hard barstool, Octavia Philharmonica ordered her drink. Cursing under her breath, she wondered what goddess-forsaken crime she had committed towards her friend that made him suggest such a run-down location. "Here's yar whiskey, ma'am," The barcolt started, before sauntering off politely to go shine some shot glasses and serve customers, while also possibly shining some particularly dirty looking customers and serving some particularly intelligent shot glasses. The politeness of this was lost on the grey mare, however, as she downed her drink and pushed the glass forward, ready for it to be refilled once the bartender returned. A very exhausting concert only an hour prior had lessened her ability to send and receive politesse. Further exhausting the kindness centers in her brain were the brightly colored lights shifting this way and that, never coming upon a resting place. It reminded Octavia of a foal, unable to contain its excitement. How very fitting, she thought. Never could she understand what kind of sane pony would listen to such noise. The constant deep pounding rhythm coming from the speakers several yards behind her were not, in any shape, form, or fashion, to be considered music. It was primitive, almost as if the cave-ponies from which she could trace her ancestry had suddenly crawled out from wherever they hid and decided to hang up their spears in favor of making horrendous music to kill their prey with. Chancing a glance at the stage, she swore she could publish a research paper on the previous subject and earn many accolades for her theories. She could see it now, a headline in the newspapers : Octavia Philharmonica, newfound scientist, traces the mystery of the origin of recent music styles back to prehistoric times. Giggling dismissively into her recently refilled drink, Octavia wondered what caused her mind to create such silly thoughts. (Later, however, Octavia would deeply regret dismissing her theory, as a synthesizer and dj-ing equipment made of stone, dating back several millenia, were unearthed in a cave by geologists) Suddenly, she noticed a pale, wild-haired mare winking at her from the stage, breaking her from her thought processes. Reprimanding herself, she realized she had been staring at the pony working the turntables while lost in thought. Coughing embarrassingly, she affixed her bowtie and whirled around to face the bar once again. Well that was awkward, She thought. Perhaps I should apologize after her show is over. Yes, I think that is the polite thing to do. A heavy haze drifted over her mind as she took yet another shot of whiskey, becoming increasingly inebriated. She noticed that everything blurred slightly when she turned her head too fast. Putting a few bits on the bar, she payed for her drink and stood carefully, walking towards the dj from earlier once her set had ended. Patiently waiting her turn to talk to the popular dj, she took the time to steady herself. Once the crowd around her had dispersed, the dj turned towards her and grinned. “Hiya,” She said with a wink. “I noticed you staring at me. I know I look good, but let’s try to refrain from outright staring, shall we?” Octavia, completely unexpecting the mare to act the way she had, completely lost her train of thought on where the conversation should be heading. “W-well- I-…Um,” She stammered, not knowing exactly how to reason with such an outgoing pony. “I was just coming to apologize for the staring. I was lost in my thoughts.” “No biggie, although ponies are always naked, so there’s not much reason to undress me with your eyes,” The dj replied slyly. Once again, Octavia was sent into a stammering fit, trying to disprove her ridiculous claims. “It’s cool, I was jus’ teasin’,” The dj replied, giving Octavia a light punch in the shoulder. “Did you enjoy tonight’s show?” “It was… interesting. Not really my type of music however. No offense,” Octavia replied, glad that the strange mare was not as full of herself as she had first suspected. “Nonsense! You just need a couple more drinks in ya’ to loosen that uptight spirit,” She bursted, full of energy. “Cmon, follow me to the bar and we’ll get ya’ some liquid courage!” “Thank you, that is a kind offer, but I think I’ll have to pass. I’ve had a few already, and I would like to be able to make it home tonight.” Vinyl studied the mare for a few seconds before shrugging. “Eh, suit yourself. I’ve never met someone who’d turn down a drink with the ol’ Pon3,” She replied, deflation apparent in her mood. Octavia was not lost on the dj’s fallen mood, and attempted to recover the situation. “Er, well… I suppose just another shot or two couldn’t hurt,” She soothed, immediately noticing the mare perking back up like a balloon. “Now you’re talkin’! Let’s go have us a good time,” The dj replied, stalling for a moment to stand up on her hind legs and beat her chest with her hooves like a gorilla. “Onwards!” As they walked up to the bar, Octavia was reminded of her earlier theory and giggled. “Barkeep, gimme two a’ those gargle blasters,” Vinyl yelled at the barkeep, who was visibly startled at the sudden outburst. Two glasses full of a yellow green liquid slid across the bar. Vinyl haphazardly chugged the glass while Octavia simply stared into hers. She could swear she saw the entire galaxy held within the drink, tossed and turned by the barrage of bubbles coming from within the liquid. The glass looked almost as if it were being dissolved by the alcohol. Shrugging, she swallowed the liquid in one gulp and began coughing. Vinyl's head hit the bar while Octavia furiously attempted to massage her brain, which had seemed to have been smashed by some strange combination of a golden brick and lemon. Her vision swirled as the alcohol swallowed up the rest of the night in a drunken haze. *** "-And I say'sh to the guy, I sa'sh, thatsh not a piccolo, thatsh a pickle!" The two happily drunk mares stumbled out through the bar door, whose last leg was finally crippled as it clattered to the pavement. The horrid joke had them both laughing in stitches, despite the fact that neither had even understood what Octavia was saying. Vinyl had never even heard of a piccolo. She guessed it had to be some kind of food that likely closely resembled a pickle. After falling on her face for nearly the tenth time that night, Vinyl Scratch surrendered her fate to forever hugging the ground. It was only after several brutal pokes to her side that she regained the strength to march onwards, and march onwards she did, for miles and miles. A sudden interruption from Octavia was the only thing to break her from her stride. "Vinyl..." Octavia started. "Yesh?" "You'sh still on the ground," Octavia replied, extending the dj a hoof to pull herself up with. The effort was in vain, however, as Octavia fell just as Vinyl got to her hooves. From then on until a point after which history was no longer recorded, not a soul would ever understand how they made it to Octavia's apartment that night. Octavia was able to insert the key and open the door to her apartment after several failed attempts. Creaking the door open, she stepped inside and offered the Dj to stay for the night. Vinyl drunkenly raised a hoof in dismissal and was seemingly instantly gone from Octavia's sight, though in reality her exit had taken course over several minutes, in which she had spent most of it stumbling both up and down the stairs. With the Dj gone, Octavia rammed her body into the door to close it, stumbled through her house, and collapsed on the bed utterly smashed. Her vision spun and she giggled to herself for several moments before accepting the heavy weight pressing on her nervous system. within a few minutes, she had succumb to the alcohol and slept like a rock. Lost for WordsOctavia tended to be a planner. A forward thinker, if you will. She tended to try and plan for the future so that she may better avoid or at least understand possible obstacles. One thing that had been poorly planned on Octavia's part, however, was the placement of the head of her bed adjacent to the window. The poor planning proved to be Octavia's downfall the morning after as the first rays of light penetrated through her eyelids. Shutting them tighter, she resisted to be broken from her peaceful slumber. She began swatting at the curtains, which only caused them to fall completely. Cursing, Octavia rolled over and pulled her covers above her head. The dreaded light was going to have none of it, as it at that very moment apparently decided to reflect off the metal curtain rod onto Octavia's pained face. Surrendering, Octavia opened her eyes and was immediately bombarded with what seemed to be the worst hangover she had ever experienced. It seemed as if her very neurons were on fire with every thought. Her throat was so dry she could feel the desert-like cracks in it. Giving up on the possibility of returning to the world of painless slumber, she finally pushed herself off the bed and wobbled into the bathroom. Minutes later, after she finished her daily morning routine, she walked through the hallway into the kitchen to retrieve breakfast and her newspaper. As she sat on her living room couch devouring her food, she noticed several very peculiar things about that morning's paper. For one, her name was on the very front page. For two, there was a picture of her looking extremely drunk, falling all over herself and the white mare adjacent to her. A few moments recollection reminded her that the mare was indeed the same one she had encountered at the bar last night. Much of the night was a blur, but by the picture she seemed to have had a very fun time. Delaying no longer, she unfolded the entire paper and read the headline that went with the picture. LOCAL ROYAL ENSEMBLE MEMBER SEEN ACTING RECKLESSLY WITH LOCAL HOODLUM The paper went on to talk about how several local parents were shocked and appalled about the behavior of somepony who was meant to be a high class citizen. Octavia pulled the paper back and just blinked a few times before continuing on. Worse yet, an interview with her employers had not seemed to go well, and, from the choice of some of the words used, Octavia would likely not hear the last of it any time soon. A sharp ringing startled Octavia and caused her to drop her cup of tea, shattering it and splashing tea all over her. Cursing, she stepped over the ceramic remains and answered the phone in a much sweeter voice than she had used moments previous. "Hello, this is Octavia," She spoke, silently wondering who it could be. "The very one? The very Octavia? The one who was in the newspaper headlines this morning?" The voice asked sarcastically. Octavia's blood ran cold. It was her ensemble's manager. She braced herself for what she knew was coming. "If so, I would like to implore you to tell me just what the hell you were doing last night! I cannot believe that you would attract such negative attention to yourself, especially not right after one of the best shows of our now very short career!" Octavia winced, then spoke meekly. "I... Had a few drinks, I admit..." She whispered, knowing as soon as the words were out of her mouth that she was making a mistake. "Oh, well that's fine, as long as it was only a few drinks, " The voice sarcastically spat. "Maybe just a couple. Not that the upper class now views you as a complete hooligan or anything. You know, they're just the ponies we depend on for our livelihood." Octavia could practically feel the venom in his words weighing down her heart. After a few moments of silence, the voice spoke again, this time much more calmly. "I'm sorry, Octavia. I really, truly am. I'm afraid that my hoof is forced in this decision for the good of the ensemble," 'Oh, no. Not another public apology. Upper class ponies are so uptight about every-single-little-thing! And to think that I even have anything in common with th-' "-You're fired." Silence flooded Octavia's mind as she was blindsided. She began to stammer as she realized the implications of this. "W-wait! I can expla-," she began, only to be cut off by the other pony. "I'm sorry, Octavia," He spoke, half-sincere pity laced into his words. -Click. She sat listening to the long, dull droning for a while before she hung the phone back on the receiver. Her head sunk as the implications really sank in. Rent was due in a matter of weeks. She had not been paid yet for her attendance in the concert the previous night, and she was not sure that she even would be, due to her ridiculous contract. Grunting in frustration, she marched into her hallway and searched for her cello. Upon finding, she haphazardly threw the case open and soon had the instrument ready to play, and play she did. It was an old habit of hers, playing music in times of crisis. Usually, the notes would be soothing to even the most tormented of souls. On that day, however, Octavia found she could play nothing of the sort. The music was jagged and quick, just like her mood. As she finished the final note, the anger and grief finally boiled over as the tears broke through the dam. She stood and sobbed for a long while, using the Cello only as a crutch to keep her balance. Finally, her tears were dried up and she was left completely exposed and empty. 'My career in music is definitely finished,' She thought. Without another thought, she laid her cello on the floor, not even bothering to put it back inside its case, and walked outside and down the stairs. "I need to take a walk to clear my head," She spoke to nopony in particular. Trudging along, she noticed several ponies along her way staring in her general direction and gossiping. Grumbling, she continued on her way. "Mommy, look! It's that h-hoolig- hool-a-hoop the newspaper talked about," A small filly yelled, catching both the mother's and Octavia's attention. "Now, now, honey, we don't associate with the lower types such as herself," The snooty mother replied, raising her snout further upwards. Gritting her teeth, Octavia stomped on. 'Really. It was one night. You ponies are unbelievable.' Suddenly, her path was impeded by a pegasus flinging questions left and right. "Miss Octavia, are the rumors true?" "Erm, what rumors? I haven't heard any rum-" "How is this sudden change in your career going to affect your music?" Her mood soured after the question rang through her ears. Gritting her teeth, she responded in the kindest way possible. "Well, I imagine that I'll be out on the street within a few months," She replied. "Uh huh. How are the rest of your ensemble taking the news of your recent expulsion?" Grunting in pure frustration, she attempted to meander around the pony slowly. "I have no idea, as I haven't spoken to any of them since our concert last night," She answered in a less patient tone of voice, already beginning to walk away. "Many of your fans believe that you have been acting selfishly by bringing this negative attention to your ex-ensemble. How do you feel about this?" The question stopped Octavia dead in her tracks. Rage built within her as she turned back toward the reporter, and she had no intentions of holding it in any further. She had no job left to lose, anyway. "How do I feel? Well, let me tell you. I feel as though the Canterlot elite, and anypony else who feels as though they're better than other ponies just because of their mere existence, should really recheck their priorities. You've caused me to lose my job, my only source of income, just because you don't approve of my way of unwinding after a hard show. Maybe I got a bit out of hand, sure. But, you know what? I don't approve of your eyes constantly beading down on everyone, waiting to criticize. Maybe if you ponies had your goddess-damned heads screwed on the right bucking way, you'd have your priorities in better shape," She responded in a huff, not missing a beat the entire way. The reporter's mouth flung open as he wrote the final words on his notepad. He stammered, dumbfounded for words as Octavia departed from his vision in obvious rage. Ponies on the sidewalk now shifted out of the way as she stomped along. Her mood had soured past what she had believed it could in one day, and she had no quarrels with unleashing it upon the very ponies who destroyed her way of life. Finally, she came to rest somewhere on a bench under a streetlight. She sat, wondering what would become of her life in the near future. It was definately an uncertain future, to be sure. A loud, crashing racket from behind her threatened to break her from her mind. Ignoring it, she wondered where she had gone wrong last night, and then it hit her. The damned DJ. She was the reason Octavia was where she was. Octavia had only wanted to unwind, but then the rowdy DJ had come into her life and helped her perform the coup de grace on her own career. Sure, Octavia had taken the drink, but only after the DJ had pestered her about it. Another ear-splitting noise came from the building behind her, once again interrupting her thoughts, and exacerbating her hangover. Gritting her teeth further together, she pressed on thinking about the DJ, and what she would say if they ever encountered one another again. She sincerely hoped, at least for the other pony's sake, that she would never see her again. A shattering racket came from a few feet next to the bench where Octavia sat. Growling in anger, she finally turned around to see what all the fuss was about. That's when she saw the building. The very building she had entered last night to have a nice, short drink. The sound of yelling inside further motivated Octavia to storm into the building and give the damn DJ a piece of her mind. Before she knew it, she had already passed the new makeshift door into the dimly lit bar. "You know how much the door's gonn' cost me to get fixt'?! Not to ment'on the property damage you caused after you came back for your later show," A brown stallion with a black goatee boomed towards the stage. By his vest, Octavia guessed that he was the manager of the bar. Octavia grinned an evil grin. She was glad the DJ was getting a piece of someone's mind, even if it wasn't her own. "Just deduct it outta' my pay," A familiar voice yelled back from the tangle of wires running behind the stage. "Pay? HA! You think'a you're getting paid? DJ, you're done," The manager replied. "Fine. I'll come back next week, then," The DJ replied nonchalantly, beginning to walk down the stairs. He held out a hoof that Vinyl ran right into, stopping her in her tracks. "No, 'ju don't understand. You're finished. Fired," Octavia wiped the grin off her face in an instant. She had been mad at Vinyl, but this was a bit much... Vinyl, however, just looked at him and laughed. "Ha. Go ahead and fire me, then. I'm DJ PON3. I'll find another club to work at around here somewhere," She replied, continuing to walk toward the exit. "With what equipment?" He asked with a smug grin. She stopped for a minute. Her expression turned to one of worry and uncertainty. "Well, I'll... just have to buy some equipment with my last paycheck, I suppose," She replied, regaining confidence. "Huh. Well I guess'a you've got it all figured out. All except for the fact that I'm 'deducting it outta' your pay'," He shot back, still completely full of confidence. Vinyl, however, was showing signs of cracking. "Well... I- Not-... I don't need you anyway! I'll get by just fine," She mumbled, finally noticing Octavia as she passed by her on the way to the exit. Octavia, not sure what to do, followed her out. "You don't sound too confident about getting by," Octavia noticed. "Yeah? Well maybe it's cause I'm not the 'Canterlot Elite'. Not all of us have job security. I don't imagine you'd know much about us 'lower ponies', though," Vinyl retorted, making her way across the street. That stung. Does she really me identify as one of them? "I'm not like those ponies. I don't quite like them either. Job security? I don't think I have much of that, seeing as I no longer have a job," Octavia countered. The Dj actually looked back. "You just told me last night you perform in the Royal Ensemble," Vinyl questioned. "Not as of this morning. Don't you read the Newspaper?" Vinyl lifted an eyebrow. "Read the newspaper? What for?" Octavia facehooved. "Perhaps so that you would know what goes on around you. Anyway, you and I? We're front page material," Vinyl grinned. "Oh yeah? That's what I'm talkin' about! What're we on there for?" "For our drunken rampage last night," Octavia deadpanned. "Oh, that. Well, you can't win them all I guess. Wait, was there a picture?" "Yes," "Neato. What'd it look like?" "We were attempting to keep ourselves off the ground, and failing very miserably," Octavia answered. "Well, it'll make good party talk, at least," Vinyl replied, sitting down at a table. They had seemingly come to an outdoor diner. "Anyway, why are you here? I wasn't expecting an audience for getting fired," Vinyl questioned, honestly curious. Most of the ponies she had good times with after a night of drinking weren't usually too keen on seeing her again. Octavia thought for a moment. She had originally had the goal of making the DJ's day miserable, but it seemed that her boss was already able to do that, and then some. She couldn't bring herself to kick a pony while they were down, especially since they were essentially in the same boat from what Octavia had overheard at the bar. "Oh, you know, just out wandering around. Trying to make sense of my life. I guess I really came into the bar to see if you were there so I could yell at you for ruining my career, but seeing as we're about equal now..." Octavia echoed. "Yeah, it's cool. I can see now that I was a bit pushy getting you to drink last night. I just wanted someone to hang out with, and you didn't really seem like the kind of pony to be friends with somepony like me when sober. Plus, you seemed like you kinda needed to loosen up a bit," Vinyl explained. "I just... I have no idea how I'm going to make rent on my apartment now. From the sound of it, I'm about 200 bits short, and it's due tomorrow," Octavia softened. Perhaps they were more alike than she had thought. "I'm in the same situation, really. My rent is due in a few weeks, though, luckily," Octavia added. The waitress was soon upon their table, taking their orders. "I'll have the usual, I guess," Vinyl ordered, while Octavia sat awkwardly. Turning the the grey mare, the waitress grinned and likewise asked what she would like. "Um, well... I hadn't had time to adequately loo-" "She'll have the same," Vinyl replied, covering for her stammering friend. "Two lettuce burgers, coming right up," The waitress replied with glee. As she trotted away, Octavia glanced between Vinyl and the ground. Noticing this, Vinyl spoke up. "Somethin' wrong? Don't like lettuce?" Octavia started, and then replied hesitantly. "No, no, nothing like that. It's just... I don't have any bits on me. I was out for a walk and I didn't really thin-" Vinyl waved a hoof and interrupted the anxious mare. "Nah, don't sweat it. I'll pay," Octavia just stared at Vinyl for a moment, dumbfounded. 'Here she is,' Octavia thought, 'Rent due tomorrow, and she still offers to pay for my meal,' "I can't let you do that, though I really do appreciate it. You seem a very generous mare, willing to risk your own home security for my burger," Octavia began, trying desperately to think of some excuse to give the waitress so she could run home and get her bits. "Nah, I don't really like my place, anyway. Plus, I kinda walked us here, so I'll pay," Vinyl assuaged. The plates arrived, and they ate and chatted. As Octavia finished the last of her lettuce, she patted her mouth clean with a napkin and smiled at the white mare. "That was a very delicious meal, Vinyl. I really do appreciate you covering the price for me. Do you have some way I can contact you so I can ensure I pay you back soon?" "Um, not really at the moment, no. Don't sweat the money, it's not really important," "A-Are you sure? I know it won't be enough to cover your rent, but..." "Yeah, it's cool. Listen, I gotta be somewhere in about 15 minutes. It was really cool hanging out with you, though. You're a pretty chill mare," Vinyl replied, offering a hoof-bump to the said 'chill mare'. Octavia stood confused for a short moment before she took Vinyl's hoof and shook it, happy to make a new friend. Cocking an eyebrow and grinning, Vinyl turned away and began walking. "I'll see ya around, Octy," Octy, Octavia echoed in her mind. That's new. Grinning to herself, Octavia bid the generous mare farewell and trotted back in the general direction of her apartment complex. Her troubles had been mostly forgotten for the time being. Vinyl's words played back in Octavia's head, causing the recently alcohol-impaired cogs in her head to begin spinning again. I don't really like my place, anyway, Vinyl had said. Octavia needed bits soon to pay her rent. Vinyl would be losing her place within a day. Two ponies splitting the rent would be much cheaper for both. Smiling, Octavia reached for her cell phone, but then the reality sank in. Octavia had no way of contacting Vinyl... Downcasting her eyes, she threw the idea away. 'Well, it was worth a thought, I suppose," Reaching the stairs to her apartment section, she pushed the door open and closed it on impulse, still deep in thought. Suddenly, a great idea struck. She could put an ad in the newspaper for a roommate. She could only hope that Vinyl would read the newspaper, just this once. A few phone calls to the paper later, and she had an ad ready to be placed in the paper the following morning. Octavia spent the remainder of the day until sundown organizing her belongings. After a grueling several hours, she finally had the apartment looking the way she wanted. Soon later, she had dinner and a shower, cleaned up the broken teacup from that morning, and fell into a deep, relaxing sleep to the thought of her new friend. Wish You Were HereOnce again, Octavia found herself at odds with her arch nemesis, the window at the head of her bed. The cursed sunlight once again drained in through the malevolent transparent sheet, and threatened the very existence of Octavia's peaceful slumber. Octavia would have none of that, however. She was going to get some more sleep. She resolved that she would finally beat her arch nemesis, and she did just that, by smothering her head with the pillow. Soon after, she was back in the peaceful land of slumber. At least, that is, until the door was knocked upon several hours later. Oops! Octavia thought. She had forgotten about the visitors coming to see about her apartment. Unfortunately, her lack of time forced her to abandon her morning routine, only allowing for a quick hoofing down of her bedraggled hair. Swinging the door open a little too hard on accident, she put on her best greeting grin, but probably only succeeded in looking like a maniac. Disappointingly, the pony at the door was not Vinyl, but Octavia couldn't just turn somepony away like that, in case Vinyl didn't show up later. "Hi, are you here for the room?" The other pony, however, just raised an eyebrow. "Um... no. I'm your mailman. Here's your mail," Handing Octavia the mail, he was soon off to other apartments in the complex, leaving Octavia to contemplate just how strange she had just looked. Stepping back inside, she laid the envelopes and newspaper on her living room table and trotted to the bathroom to do her morning routine. As she adjusted her bow tie, a knocking from the front door once again interrupted her routine. I'm quite the popular mare this morning, Octavia chuckled to herself on the way to the door. Using actual control of the door handle this time, Octavia got a much better reaction out of the mare standing in the doorway. "Hi! Are you here for the room?" She asked again. "Yup. It's a pretty sweet deal," The blue mare replied. She wasn't Vinyl, but Octavia still needed the bits one way or another. After showing her around for several hours, and having the mare nitpick each and every detail, they were unable to come to an agreement. Closing the door gently behind the leaving mare, Octavia sighed. Well, this is Canterlot, after all. She grumbled. Grunting in frustration, she fetched the morning's newspaper from the table and began to read. As she made her way to the classifieds, she was further assured that her ad was in the paper. Funny, she had expected more people to call, rather than just show up at the address. Either way, she still held on blindly to the hope that Vinyl would come by sometime before somepony else sealed the deal. At least she had a prior history with Vinyl, no matter how brief, rather than having to share the apartment with some complete stranger. Plus, she knew Vinyl could drink, which was always a plus. Folding the paper up and chunking it into the pile with the rest of the old newspapers, she idly hummed. Soon, another knock on the door startled her. After scolding herself for being startled by something so silly, she once again opened the door to find somepony she didn't know standing there. Sighing inwardly, she began the tour. It was going to be a long day. *** Hours later, as the sun's final light sank over the horizon, she led the fifth pony to visit that day to the door, locking it behind him. Octavia's mood had begun souring after the third. It was never any different with those ponies. Always some minute detail bugging them. Damned Canterlot nobles. Octavia wondered if she should maybe look into moving out of the city. She'd always heard Manehatten was a nice place for the artistically inclined. Regardless, the day had been entirely useless. She still had no roommate to share the rent with, Vinyl still hadn't come by, and she doubted, at that point, that she even would. Perhaps Vinyl really didn't read the paper. Typical. Slouching down on her couch once again with a sigh, she turned on the radio and listened to some soothing classical music for a while. It was 8'O clock, nopony else would be coming by. Closing her eyes and reclining on the couch, she relaxed while humming to the melody. Funny, she thought, I don't remember being tir- Sometime later, she was awoken by a rapping on the door. It was not, as many may believe, the kind of rapping that concerns knocking. Yawning, she stepped in the general direction of the noise. Squinting at the clock, she confirmed that the time was 10:30 Pm. As she got closer, the noise became clearer. Confused, she wondered who would be literally rapping at her door at that time of night. Swinging the door wide, she beheld a strange mint-green unicorn dressed in a dark hoodie, lost in her own world. "-and if I had one wish, I'd ask for an ass big enough for the whole world to k-" Noticing Octavia for the first time, the unicorn cleared her throat and chuckled nervously. "H-hey, I'm here for the room," She greeted, inviting herself in. Closing the door behind her, Octavia turned to the mare and considered her. The mare indeed looked very shady, even with her hood off, and Octavia felt as though she should be careful and watch her closely, especially since it was so late at night. "Yes, well, the time on the ad was listed til eight, but I suppose I can give you the tour anyway," Octavia replied. Stepping into the hallway, she led the mare to where she would sleep, eat, and whatever else she may decide to do on her own time. "Rad, I'm likin' the feel of the place. I see you have a cello, looks pretty cool," She complimented. Octavia stared wide eyed at the mare. She actually knows what a cello is? "What? I don't look like the type to know my instruments?" The mare interrogated, reading Octavia like a book. Gulping, Octavia nodded sheepishly. The strange mare, however, just grinned and pulled the bottom of her hoodie up slightly, exposing to Octavia her cutie mark. "Yeah, I'm a bit of a musician myself. Name's Lyra, by the way," The mare shot back, extending a hoof, expecting a hoof-bump. Octavia shook the hoof, and introduced herself. Lyra chuckled and turned to look out the window. Why does everyone keep laughing at my hoofshakes? Is there something wrong with my hooves? Octavia questioned inwardly, raising a hoof and inspecting it closely. She looked up from her hoof to see Lyra eyeing her with a cocked eyebrow and smirk. Slowly lowering her hoof, she chuckled nervously and found the ground to be suddenly interesting to look at. "Well, I'm really likin' the place. It ain't got that stuffy feel that most of this city does. I'll take it," Lyra reckoned. Freezing up, Octavia came to the realization that she was really about to rent the room away. Looking downcast, she realized that Vinyl would be on the street in another hour and a half, with no way for Octavia to find her. Mistaking Octavia's pained expression for second-guessing, Lyra quickly spoke up, not wanting to lose the deal she was getting. "Alright, how's about... 3 months rent in advance, on the spot?" She inquired, pulling out a rather large sack of bits and handing it to Octavia. "Oh, no, it's not that, you don't have t-" "Hey, listen, I really gotta pee. Where's the bathroom?" Lyra interrupted, not allowing Octavia to protest. Pointing in the general direction, Octavia received a quick thanks. Left alone in her hallway, she carried the bits into her living room and sat the bag on the table. She thought of how much Vinyl could use the money. At that very moment, however, another quick succession of knocks broke her from her thoughts. Trotting over to the door, she got ready to deliver the bad news, that somepony had already bought the room. Opening the door, she opened her mouth to speak, and froze as she saw the mare with the electric-blue mane standing out of breath. "Hey, Octy," She huffed, struggling to catch her breath. "Listen, I know I'm a bit *huff* late, but I have your bits right *huff* here." Leading Vinyl into the living room, she tried desperately to think of some way to solve the predicament she was in. "Wow, pretty nice place you got here, Octy. So, where do I sleep?" Vinyl inquired with a confident grin. A dreadfully confident grin, Octavia thought, not without a tinge of sadness. Octavia felt like doing anything besides grinning. Facing Vinyl, she delivered the news all at once, not looking her in the eyes. "I'm sorry, Vinyl, but the room has already been rented out. I tried waiting for you, but a mare showed up a few minutes ago and bought the room out." Vinyl visibly deflated, the grin no longer present on her face. Nodding slowly, she turned back towards the door. "Ah, yeah. I understand. Well, it was still nice seeing you again. See ya around, I guess," Vinyl replied, twisting the doorknob. Octavia, not wanting to just throw her friend out on the street, handed her a hoofful of bits and bargained, "If you come back tomorrow, I might be able to find a bed or something for you to sleep on. You can stay here, at least until you get back on your hooves." "Nah, it's cool, Octy. I can't be a burden on you like that," Vinyl rejected, forcing a smile that was dangerously close to cracking. Octavia swore she saw her eyes tear up ever so slightly. "Nonsense! I can't let you just live out on the street," Octavia protested, grabbing Vinyl's tail with her hoof. "Listen, it's really nice of you to try and all, bu-" "Could it be? IS THAT VINYL-FUCKIN'-SCRATCH? Get the hell ouutt," Lyra yelled, charging into the living room. Octavia nearly turned around and scolded Lyra for being rude, but noticed the grin on her face at the last minute. Looking between her and Vinyl, and noticing that they shared the same expression, Octavia released Vinyl's tail and watched patiently. "LYRA! It's been so long! How've ya been?" Vinyl asked, rapidly cheering up again. They came together in a forceful hug, and gave each other hoof bumps after they broke apart. "Oh, I've been cool. Just got a room here," Lyra answered, grinning. "How 'bout you?" Vinyl's grin dropped for a moment before she answered. "Eh, I've been better, I guess. Lost my job, apartment, and I just generally just can't seem to win," She replied. "Aw, man. Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?" Lyra investigated, laying a comforting hoof on her good friend's shoulder. "No, actually, but it's cool. I can probably get into a hotel or somethin-" "Nah, you're bunkin' with me," Lyra interrupted in a no-nonsense kind of way. Vinyl, having had her mind made up for her, turned to Octavia. "I dunno, you'd have to ask Octy. I dunno if she'd want to have both of us under the same roof," Vinyl replied, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. Octavia attempted to reply so fast that she tripped up on most of the sentence. "Ofcourse I'dhavyo here," Clearing her throat, she began again. "I mean, of course, I would love to have you here, Vinyl. I can't let you spend the night out by yourself in a dingy hotel. Come to think of it, I don't even know of any hotels in Canterlot," "There aren't any," Vinyl admitted. "Then you're staying," Octavia retaliated. Chuckling to herself, she remarked innocently, "Besides, you two seem to be alright, what's the worst that could happen?" Octavia would later deeply regret making the remark to the point of completely denying having ever asked. Several minutes later, they had all gotten settled, with Octavia sleeping in her normal bed, and Lyra and Vinyl sharing the queen sized bed Octavia had gotten ready for her new roommates. It was a strange feeling to Octavia, having others in her house. It was not, however, an unwelcome feeling. Even with all the problems in her life, she felt that having others around would help her confidence in tackling them. Drifting slowly into the land of slumber, Octavia felt strangely serene in her new situation. Several hours later, however, the serenity was completely shattered by the constant, repeating thunking noise emanating from the bed beside hers. Turning her head towards the sleeping forms of the other mares, she beheld a sight that struck her as giggle-worthy. Vinyl and Lyra lay exactly opposite each other on the bed. Each pony would rythymatically kick the other in the head after such an act was done to her own noggin. Back and forth this went, all the while Octavia's urge to burst out laughing grew. Removing herself from the room, she only returned when she had gotten all the giggles out of her system. Completely deficient of laughter, she laid herself back into bed and dozed off once more. ****** It seemed that her arch nemesis was not going to show that morning. Smiling into her pillow, Octavia sighed contently. Nuzzling further into the comfort, she thought a single thing. Life is good. And so, life was indeed good for a long while afterward. For many long periods of time onward, Octavia saw nothing but good fortune and fate. Things were really beginning to look up. That is, until the horrid crash emanating from the kitchen occured only minutes later. Shooting from her bed entirely, Octavia landed head-first onto the hardwood flooring. Rubbing her aching muzzle, she glanced over to the bed adjacent to hers. Both ponies were absent. Creeping into the hallway and proceeding to the kitchen then afterwards, Octavia was mortified at the atrocity she beheld. The once spotless tile flooring had been entirely caked over by a hardened mixture of flour and water. The walls, ceiling, and window in the general vicinity of the stove had been smeared by the charred remains of something that may have, at one point, been actually edible. Finally taking in the two startled unicorns sharing sheepish grins, Octavia cleared her throat and furrowed her brow. "Well, hey there, Octy. Lyra and I were gonna make you some breakfast, as a... er... gift!" Vinyl beamed, nervous at what Octavia would say. Octavia, however, put a cheerful smile on her face and reassured her friend. "Okay!" Stepping back out of the kitchen, the two unicorns also shared a sigh of relief, at least until one of them tried fighting the other for custody rights of the entire sigh. "So..." Lyra began, beginning to take in the mess that they had made. "Ya think she's mad?" "Pfft! We're in the clear, I don't even think she even noticed the mes-" Vinyl would probably have enjoyed finishing her sentence, but, unfortunately, a very angry grey missile with a pink bowtie at that very point had decided to tackle the poor unicorn. The missile had nearly succeeded in throttling the aforementioned poor unicorn before Lyra was able to pull her off. Lyra was not, however, able to keep Octavia from yelling silly things like "OF COURSE I NOTICED THE MESS YOU DOLT," and "VINYL SCRATCH I SWEAR TO CELESTIA IF YOU DON'T CLEAN THIS MESS RIGHT NOW," Over the course of the next hour, Lyra and Vinyl cleaned the entire kitchen, down to every molecule, under the close inspection of Octavia. As the cleaning wrapped up, Vinyl dropped the washcloth into the sink mid rinse, stared out the window in an eerie manner, turned toward the door, and began trotting in a zombie-like manner. "Um... Vinyl? Are you alright?" Octavia asked, not entirely sure what to make of the strange situation. Vinyl turned on a perfect 90 degree angle and looked Octavia in the eyes with her creepy, blank stare. "My DJing equipment! I left it at my old apartment! I have to go get it," Vinyl yelled, swinging the door wide as she made her dramatic exit. Chasing her out the door, the other two mares were able to calm her into slowing down. "Come to think of it, there's probably some stuff I need to pick up too. I'm gonna go get it, see you two later," Lyra began, trotting off in some direction away from the apartment. Turning to Vinyl, Octavia shot her a reassuring smile. "Very well, I'll help you carry what you need," Vinyl huffed and looked back at Octavia as they walked onward. "Yeah, if any of it's even still there," She replied. "What do you mean?" "My rent ran out yesterday, the apartment's not mine. Knowing the asshole landlord, he probably gave all my equipment away to the first pony he saw, just to screw with me," Octavia reserved from asking anymore questions along the way. Clearly Vinyl did not have much hope, and nothing Octavia could say would change that. Sighing, Octavia followed Vinyl through the concrete jungle. It was going to be a long day. Author's Note Sorry about the long wait for this chapter. Comments and criticism welcome!
Poison WhiskeyA grey hoof gently pushed the old bar doors open with an ear piercing squeak. A sharp glance at the rusty hinges proved the deteriorated metal to be on its last legs. Stepping up to the bar and taking a seat on the worn, hard barstool, Octavia Philharmonica ordered her drink. Cursing under her breath, she wondered what goddess-forsaken crime she had committed towards her friend that made him suggest such a run-down location. "Here's yar whiskey, ma'am," The barcolt started, before sauntering off politely to go shine some shot glasses and serve customers, while also possibly shining some particularly dirty looking customers and serving some particularly intelligent shot glasses. The politeness of this was lost on the grey mare, however, as she downed her drink and pushed the glass forward, ready for it to be refilled once the bartender returned. A very exhausting concert only an hour prior had lessened her ability to send and receive politesse. Further exhausting the kindness centers in her brain were the brightly colored lights shifting this way and that, never coming upon a resting place. It reminded Octavia of a foal, unable to contain its excitement. How very fitting, she thought. Never could she understand what kind of sane pony would listen to such noise. The constant deep pounding rhythm coming from the speakers several yards behind her were not, in any shape, form, or fashion, to be considered music. It was primitive, almost as if the cave-ponies from which she could trace her ancestry had suddenly crawled out from wherever they hid and decided to hang up their spears in favor of making horrendous music to kill their prey with. Chancing a glance at the stage, she swore she could publish a research paper on the previous subject and earn many accolades for her theories. She could see it now, a headline in the newspapers : Octavia Philharmonica, newfound scientist, traces the mystery of the origin of recent music styles back to prehistoric times. Giggling dismissively into her recently refilled drink, Octavia wondered what caused her mind to create such silly thoughts. (Later, however, Octavia would deeply regret dismissing her theory, as a synthesizer and dj-ing equipment made of stone, dating back several millenia, were unearthed in a cave by geologists) Suddenly, she noticed a pale, wild-haired mare winking at her from the stage, breaking her from her thought processes. Reprimanding herself, she realized she had been staring at the pony working the turntables while lost in thought. Coughing embarrassingly, she affixed her bowtie and whirled around to face the bar once again. Well that was awkward, She thought. Perhaps I should apologize after her show is over. Yes, I think that is the polite thing to do. A heavy haze drifted over her mind as she took yet another shot of whiskey, becoming increasingly inebriated. She noticed that everything blurred slightly when she turned her head too fast. Putting a few bits on the bar, she payed for her drink and stood carefully, walking towards the dj from earlier once her set had ended. Patiently waiting her turn to talk to the popular dj, she took the time to steady herself. Once the crowd around her had dispersed, the dj turned towards her and grinned. “Hiya,” She said with a wink. “I noticed you staring at me. I know I look good, but let’s try to refrain from outright staring, shall we?” Octavia, completely unexpecting the mare to act the way she had, completely lost her train of thought on where the conversation should be heading. “W-well- I-…Um,” She stammered, not knowing exactly how to reason with such an outgoing pony. “I was just coming to apologize for the staring. I was lost in my thoughts.” “No biggie, although ponies are always naked, so there’s not much reason to undress me with your eyes,” The dj replied slyly. Once again, Octavia was sent into a stammering fit, trying to disprove her ridiculous claims. “It’s cool, I was jus’ teasin’,” The dj replied, giving Octavia a light punch in the shoulder. “Did you enjoy tonight’s show?” “It was… interesting. Not really my type of music however. No offense,” Octavia replied, glad that the strange mare was not as full of herself as she had first suspected. “Nonsense! You just need a couple more drinks in ya’ to loosen that uptight spirit,” She bursted, full of energy. “Cmon, follow me to the bar and we’ll get ya’ some liquid courage!” “Thank you, that is a kind offer, but I think I’ll have to pass. I’ve had a few already, and I would like to be able to make it home tonight.” Vinyl studied the mare for a few seconds before shrugging. “Eh, suit yourself. I’ve never met someone who’d turn down a drink with the ol’ Pon3,” She replied, deflation apparent in her mood. Octavia was not lost on the dj’s fallen mood, and attempted to recover the situation. “Er, well… I suppose just another shot or two couldn’t hurt,” She soothed, immediately noticing the mare perking back up like a balloon. “Now you’re talkin’! Let’s go have us a good time,” The dj replied, stalling for a moment to stand up on her hind legs and beat her chest with her hooves like a gorilla. “Onwards!” As they walked up to the bar, Octavia was reminded of her earlier theory and giggled. “Barkeep, gimme two a’ those gargle blasters,” Vinyl yelled at the barkeep, who was visibly startled at the sudden outburst. Two glasses full of a yellow green liquid slid across the bar. Vinyl haphazardly chugged the glass while Octavia simply stared into hers. She could swear she saw the entire galaxy held within the drink, tossed and turned by the barrage of bubbles coming from within the liquid. The glass looked almost as if it were being dissolved by the alcohol. Shrugging, she swallowed the liquid in one gulp and began coughing. Vinyl's head hit the bar while Octavia furiously attempted to massage her brain, which had seemed to have been smashed by some strange combination of a golden brick and lemon. Her vision swirled as the alcohol swallowed up the rest of the night in a drunken haze. *** "-And I say'sh to the guy, I sa'sh, thatsh not a piccolo, thatsh a pickle!" The two happily drunk mares stumbled out through the bar door, whose last leg was finally crippled as it clattered to the pavement. The horrid joke had them both laughing in stitches, despite the fact that neither had even understood what Octavia was saying. Vinyl had never even heard of a piccolo. She guessed it had to be some kind of food that likely closely resembled a pickle. After falling on her face for nearly the tenth time that night, Vinyl Scratch surrendered her fate to forever hugging the ground. It was only after several brutal pokes to her side that she regained the strength to march onwards, and march onwards she did, for miles and miles. A sudden interruption from Octavia was the only thing to break her from her stride. "Vinyl..." Octavia started. "Yesh?" "You'sh still on the ground," Octavia replied, extending the dj a hoof to pull herself up with. The effort was in vain, however, as Octavia fell just as Vinyl got to her hooves. From then on until a point after which history was no longer recorded, not a soul would ever understand how they made it to Octavia's apartment that night. Octavia was able to insert the key and open the door to her apartment after several failed attempts. Creaking the door open, she stepped inside and offered the Dj to stay for the night. Vinyl drunkenly raised a hoof in dismissal and was seemingly instantly gone from Octavia's sight, though in reality her exit had taken course over several minutes, in which she had spent most of it stumbling both up and down the stairs. With the Dj gone, Octavia rammed her body into the door to close it, stumbled through her house, and collapsed on the bed utterly smashed. Her vision spun and she giggled to herself for several moments before accepting the heavy weight pressing on her nervous system. within a few minutes, she had succumb to the alcohol and slept like a rock.
Lost for WordsOctavia tended to be a planner. A forward thinker, if you will. She tended to try and plan for the future so that she may better avoid or at least understand possible obstacles. One thing that had been poorly planned on Octavia's part, however, was the placement of the head of her bed adjacent to the window. The poor planning proved to be Octavia's downfall the morning after as the first rays of light penetrated through her eyelids. Shutting them tighter, she resisted to be broken from her peaceful slumber. She began swatting at the curtains, which only caused them to fall completely. Cursing, Octavia rolled over and pulled her covers above her head. The dreaded light was going to have none of it, as it at that very moment apparently decided to reflect off the metal curtain rod onto Octavia's pained face. Surrendering, Octavia opened her eyes and was immediately bombarded with what seemed to be the worst hangover she had ever experienced. It seemed as if her very neurons were on fire with every thought. Her throat was so dry she could feel the desert-like cracks in it. Giving up on the possibility of returning to the world of painless slumber, she finally pushed herself off the bed and wobbled into the bathroom. Minutes later, after she finished her daily morning routine, she walked through the hallway into the kitchen to retrieve breakfast and her newspaper. As she sat on her living room couch devouring her food, she noticed several very peculiar things about that morning's paper. For one, her name was on the very front page. For two, there was a picture of her looking extremely drunk, falling all over herself and the white mare adjacent to her. A few moments recollection reminded her that the mare was indeed the same one she had encountered at the bar last night. Much of the night was a blur, but by the picture she seemed to have had a very fun time. Delaying no longer, she unfolded the entire paper and read the headline that went with the picture. LOCAL ROYAL ENSEMBLE MEMBER SEEN ACTING RECKLESSLY WITH LOCAL HOODLUM The paper went on to talk about how several local parents were shocked and appalled about the behavior of somepony who was meant to be a high class citizen. Octavia pulled the paper back and just blinked a few times before continuing on. Worse yet, an interview with her employers had not seemed to go well, and, from the choice of some of the words used, Octavia would likely not hear the last of it any time soon. A sharp ringing startled Octavia and caused her to drop her cup of tea, shattering it and splashing tea all over her. Cursing, she stepped over the ceramic remains and answered the phone in a much sweeter voice than she had used moments previous. "Hello, this is Octavia," She spoke, silently wondering who it could be. "The very one? The very Octavia? The one who was in the newspaper headlines this morning?" The voice asked sarcastically. Octavia's blood ran cold. It was her ensemble's manager. She braced herself for what she knew was coming. "If so, I would like to implore you to tell me just what the hell you were doing last night! I cannot believe that you would attract such negative attention to yourself, especially not right after one of the best shows of our now very short career!" Octavia winced, then spoke meekly. "I... Had a few drinks, I admit..." She whispered, knowing as soon as the words were out of her mouth that she was making a mistake. "Oh, well that's fine, as long as it was only a few drinks, " The voice sarcastically spat. "Maybe just a couple. Not that the upper class now views you as a complete hooligan or anything. You know, they're just the ponies we depend on for our livelihood." Octavia could practically feel the venom in his words weighing down her heart. After a few moments of silence, the voice spoke again, this time much more calmly. "I'm sorry, Octavia. I really, truly am. I'm afraid that my hoof is forced in this decision for the good of the ensemble," 'Oh, no. Not another public apology. Upper class ponies are so uptight about every-single-little-thing! And to think that I even have anything in common with th-' "-You're fired." Silence flooded Octavia's mind as she was blindsided. She began to stammer as she realized the implications of this. "W-wait! I can expla-," she began, only to be cut off by the other pony. "I'm sorry, Octavia," He spoke, half-sincere pity laced into his words. -Click. She sat listening to the long, dull droning for a while before she hung the phone back on the receiver. Her head sunk as the implications really sank in. Rent was due in a matter of weeks. She had not been paid yet for her attendance in the concert the previous night, and she was not sure that she even would be, due to her ridiculous contract. Grunting in frustration, she marched into her hallway and searched for her cello. Upon finding, she haphazardly threw the case open and soon had the instrument ready to play, and play she did. It was an old habit of hers, playing music in times of crisis. Usually, the notes would be soothing to even the most tormented of souls. On that day, however, Octavia found she could play nothing of the sort. The music was jagged and quick, just like her mood. As she finished the final note, the anger and grief finally boiled over as the tears broke through the dam. She stood and sobbed for a long while, using the Cello only as a crutch to keep her balance. Finally, her tears were dried up and she was left completely exposed and empty. 'My career in music is definitely finished,' She thought. Without another thought, she laid her cello on the floor, not even bothering to put it back inside its case, and walked outside and down the stairs. "I need to take a walk to clear my head," She spoke to nopony in particular. Trudging along, she noticed several ponies along her way staring in her general direction and gossiping. Grumbling, she continued on her way. "Mommy, look! It's that h-hoolig- hool-a-hoop the newspaper talked about," A small filly yelled, catching both the mother's and Octavia's attention. "Now, now, honey, we don't associate with the lower types such as herself," The snooty mother replied, raising her snout further upwards. Gritting her teeth, Octavia stomped on. 'Really. It was one night. You ponies are unbelievable.' Suddenly, her path was impeded by a pegasus flinging questions left and right. "Miss Octavia, are the rumors true?" "Erm, what rumors? I haven't heard any rum-" "How is this sudden change in your career going to affect your music?" Her mood soured after the question rang through her ears. Gritting her teeth, she responded in the kindest way possible. "Well, I imagine that I'll be out on the street within a few months," She replied. "Uh huh. How are the rest of your ensemble taking the news of your recent expulsion?" Grunting in pure frustration, she attempted to meander around the pony slowly. "I have no idea, as I haven't spoken to any of them since our concert last night," She answered in a less patient tone of voice, already beginning to walk away. "Many of your fans believe that you have been acting selfishly by bringing this negative attention to your ex-ensemble. How do you feel about this?" The question stopped Octavia dead in her tracks. Rage built within her as she turned back toward the reporter, and she had no intentions of holding it in any further. She had no job left to lose, anyway. "How do I feel? Well, let me tell you. I feel as though the Canterlot elite, and anypony else who feels as though they're better than other ponies just because of their mere existence, should really recheck their priorities. You've caused me to lose my job, my only source of income, just because you don't approve of my way of unwinding after a hard show. Maybe I got a bit out of hand, sure. But, you know what? I don't approve of your eyes constantly beading down on everyone, waiting to criticize. Maybe if you ponies had your goddess-damned heads screwed on the right bucking way, you'd have your priorities in better shape," She responded in a huff, not missing a beat the entire way. The reporter's mouth flung open as he wrote the final words on his notepad. He stammered, dumbfounded for words as Octavia departed from his vision in obvious rage. Ponies on the sidewalk now shifted out of the way as she stomped along. Her mood had soured past what she had believed it could in one day, and she had no quarrels with unleashing it upon the very ponies who destroyed her way of life. Finally, she came to rest somewhere on a bench under a streetlight. She sat, wondering what would become of her life in the near future. It was definately an uncertain future, to be sure. A loud, crashing racket from behind her threatened to break her from her mind. Ignoring it, she wondered where she had gone wrong last night, and then it hit her. The damned DJ. She was the reason Octavia was where she was. Octavia had only wanted to unwind, but then the rowdy DJ had come into her life and helped her perform the coup de grace on her own career. Sure, Octavia had taken the drink, but only after the DJ had pestered her about it. Another ear-splitting noise came from the building behind her, once again interrupting her thoughts, and exacerbating her hangover. Gritting her teeth further together, she pressed on thinking about the DJ, and what she would say if they ever encountered one another again. She sincerely hoped, at least for the other pony's sake, that she would never see her again. A shattering racket came from a few feet next to the bench where Octavia sat. Growling in anger, she finally turned around to see what all the fuss was about. That's when she saw the building. The very building she had entered last night to have a nice, short drink. The sound of yelling inside further motivated Octavia to storm into the building and give the damn DJ a piece of her mind. Before she knew it, she had already passed the new makeshift door into the dimly lit bar. "You know how much the door's gonn' cost me to get fixt'?! Not to ment'on the property damage you caused after you came back for your later show," A brown stallion with a black goatee boomed towards the stage. By his vest, Octavia guessed that he was the manager of the bar. Octavia grinned an evil grin. She was glad the DJ was getting a piece of someone's mind, even if it wasn't her own. "Just deduct it outta' my pay," A familiar voice yelled back from the tangle of wires running behind the stage. "Pay? HA! You think'a you're getting paid? DJ, you're done," The manager replied. "Fine. I'll come back next week, then," The DJ replied nonchalantly, beginning to walk down the stairs. He held out a hoof that Vinyl ran right into, stopping her in her tracks. "No, 'ju don't understand. You're finished. Fired," Octavia wiped the grin off her face in an instant. She had been mad at Vinyl, but this was a bit much... Vinyl, however, just looked at him and laughed. "Ha. Go ahead and fire me, then. I'm DJ PON3. I'll find another club to work at around here somewhere," She replied, continuing to walk toward the exit. "With what equipment?" He asked with a smug grin. She stopped for a minute. Her expression turned to one of worry and uncertainty. "Well, I'll... just have to buy some equipment with my last paycheck, I suppose," She replied, regaining confidence. "Huh. Well I guess'a you've got it all figured out. All except for the fact that I'm 'deducting it outta' your pay'," He shot back, still completely full of confidence. Vinyl, however, was showing signs of cracking. "Well... I- Not-... I don't need you anyway! I'll get by just fine," She mumbled, finally noticing Octavia as she passed by her on the way to the exit. Octavia, not sure what to do, followed her out. "You don't sound too confident about getting by," Octavia noticed. "Yeah? Well maybe it's cause I'm not the 'Canterlot Elite'. Not all of us have job security. I don't imagine you'd know much about us 'lower ponies', though," Vinyl retorted, making her way across the street. That stung. Does she really me identify as one of them? "I'm not like those ponies. I don't quite like them either. Job security? I don't think I have much of that, seeing as I no longer have a job," Octavia countered. The Dj actually looked back. "You just told me last night you perform in the Royal Ensemble," Vinyl questioned. "Not as of this morning. Don't you read the Newspaper?" Vinyl lifted an eyebrow. "Read the newspaper? What for?" Octavia facehooved. "Perhaps so that you would know what goes on around you. Anyway, you and I? We're front page material," Vinyl grinned. "Oh yeah? That's what I'm talkin' about! What're we on there for?" "For our drunken rampage last night," Octavia deadpanned. "Oh, that. Well, you can't win them all I guess. Wait, was there a picture?" "Yes," "Neato. What'd it look like?" "We were attempting to keep ourselves off the ground, and failing very miserably," Octavia answered. "Well, it'll make good party talk, at least," Vinyl replied, sitting down at a table. They had seemingly come to an outdoor diner. "Anyway, why are you here? I wasn't expecting an audience for getting fired," Vinyl questioned, honestly curious. Most of the ponies she had good times with after a night of drinking weren't usually too keen on seeing her again. Octavia thought for a moment. She had originally had the goal of making the DJ's day miserable, but it seemed that her boss was already able to do that, and then some. She couldn't bring herself to kick a pony while they were down, especially since they were essentially in the same boat from what Octavia had overheard at the bar. "Oh, you know, just out wandering around. Trying to make sense of my life. I guess I really came into the bar to see if you were there so I could yell at you for ruining my career, but seeing as we're about equal now..." Octavia echoed. "Yeah, it's cool. I can see now that I was a bit pushy getting you to drink last night. I just wanted someone to hang out with, and you didn't really seem like the kind of pony to be friends with somepony like me when sober. Plus, you seemed like you kinda needed to loosen up a bit," Vinyl explained. "I just... I have no idea how I'm going to make rent on my apartment now. From the sound of it, I'm about 200 bits short, and it's due tomorrow," Octavia softened. Perhaps they were more alike than she had thought. "I'm in the same situation, really. My rent is due in a few weeks, though, luckily," Octavia added. The waitress was soon upon their table, taking their orders. "I'll have the usual, I guess," Vinyl ordered, while Octavia sat awkwardly. Turning the the grey mare, the waitress grinned and likewise asked what she would like. "Um, well... I hadn't had time to adequately loo-" "She'll have the same," Vinyl replied, covering for her stammering friend. "Two lettuce burgers, coming right up," The waitress replied with glee. As she trotted away, Octavia glanced between Vinyl and the ground. Noticing this, Vinyl spoke up. "Somethin' wrong? Don't like lettuce?" Octavia started, and then replied hesitantly. "No, no, nothing like that. It's just... I don't have any bits on me. I was out for a walk and I didn't really thin-" Vinyl waved a hoof and interrupted the anxious mare. "Nah, don't sweat it. I'll pay," Octavia just stared at Vinyl for a moment, dumbfounded. 'Here she is,' Octavia thought, 'Rent due tomorrow, and she still offers to pay for my meal,' "I can't let you do that, though I really do appreciate it. You seem a very generous mare, willing to risk your own home security for my burger," Octavia began, trying desperately to think of some excuse to give the waitress so she could run home and get her bits. "Nah, I don't really like my place, anyway. Plus, I kinda walked us here, so I'll pay," Vinyl assuaged. The plates arrived, and they ate and chatted. As Octavia finished the last of her lettuce, she patted her mouth clean with a napkin and smiled at the white mare. "That was a very delicious meal, Vinyl. I really do appreciate you covering the price for me. Do you have some way I can contact you so I can ensure I pay you back soon?" "Um, not really at the moment, no. Don't sweat the money, it's not really important," "A-Are you sure? I know it won't be enough to cover your rent, but..." "Yeah, it's cool. Listen, I gotta be somewhere in about 15 minutes. It was really cool hanging out with you, though. You're a pretty chill mare," Vinyl replied, offering a hoof-bump to the said 'chill mare'. Octavia stood confused for a short moment before she took Vinyl's hoof and shook it, happy to make a new friend. Cocking an eyebrow and grinning, Vinyl turned away and began walking. "I'll see ya around, Octy," Octy, Octavia echoed in her mind. That's new. Grinning to herself, Octavia bid the generous mare farewell and trotted back in the general direction of her apartment complex. Her troubles had been mostly forgotten for the time being. Vinyl's words played back in Octavia's head, causing the recently alcohol-impaired cogs in her head to begin spinning again. I don't really like my place, anyway, Vinyl had said. Octavia needed bits soon to pay her rent. Vinyl would be losing her place within a day. Two ponies splitting the rent would be much cheaper for both. Smiling, Octavia reached for her cell phone, but then the reality sank in. Octavia had no way of contacting Vinyl... Downcasting her eyes, she threw the idea away. 'Well, it was worth a thought, I suppose," Reaching the stairs to her apartment section, she pushed the door open and closed it on impulse, still deep in thought. Suddenly, a great idea struck. She could put an ad in the newspaper for a roommate. She could only hope that Vinyl would read the newspaper, just this once. A few phone calls to the paper later, and she had an ad ready to be placed in the paper the following morning. Octavia spent the remainder of the day until sundown organizing her belongings. After a grueling several hours, she finally had the apartment looking the way she wanted. Soon later, she had dinner and a shower, cleaned up the broken teacup from that morning, and fell into a deep, relaxing sleep to the thought of her new friend.
Wish You Were HereOnce again, Octavia found herself at odds with her arch nemesis, the window at the head of her bed. The cursed sunlight once again drained in through the malevolent transparent sheet, and threatened the very existence of Octavia's peaceful slumber. Octavia would have none of that, however. She was going to get some more sleep. She resolved that she would finally beat her arch nemesis, and she did just that, by smothering her head with the pillow. Soon after, she was back in the peaceful land of slumber. At least, that is, until the door was knocked upon several hours later. Oops! Octavia thought. She had forgotten about the visitors coming to see about her apartment. Unfortunately, her lack of time forced her to abandon her morning routine, only allowing for a quick hoofing down of her bedraggled hair. Swinging the door open a little too hard on accident, she put on her best greeting grin, but probably only succeeded in looking like a maniac. Disappointingly, the pony at the door was not Vinyl, but Octavia couldn't just turn somepony away like that, in case Vinyl didn't show up later. "Hi, are you here for the room?" The other pony, however, just raised an eyebrow. "Um... no. I'm your mailman. Here's your mail," Handing Octavia the mail, he was soon off to other apartments in the complex, leaving Octavia to contemplate just how strange she had just looked. Stepping back inside, she laid the envelopes and newspaper on her living room table and trotted to the bathroom to do her morning routine. As she adjusted her bow tie, a knocking from the front door once again interrupted her routine. I'm quite the popular mare this morning, Octavia chuckled to herself on the way to the door. Using actual control of the door handle this time, Octavia got a much better reaction out of the mare standing in the doorway. "Hi! Are you here for the room?" She asked again. "Yup. It's a pretty sweet deal," The blue mare replied. She wasn't Vinyl, but Octavia still needed the bits one way or another. After showing her around for several hours, and having the mare nitpick each and every detail, they were unable to come to an agreement. Closing the door gently behind the leaving mare, Octavia sighed. Well, this is Canterlot, after all. She grumbled. Grunting in frustration, she fetched the morning's newspaper from the table and began to read. As she made her way to the classifieds, she was further assured that her ad was in the paper. Funny, she had expected more people to call, rather than just show up at the address. Either way, she still held on blindly to the hope that Vinyl would come by sometime before somepony else sealed the deal. At least she had a prior history with Vinyl, no matter how brief, rather than having to share the apartment with some complete stranger. Plus, she knew Vinyl could drink, which was always a plus. Folding the paper up and chunking it into the pile with the rest of the old newspapers, she idly hummed. Soon, another knock on the door startled her. After scolding herself for being startled by something so silly, she once again opened the door to find somepony she didn't know standing there. Sighing inwardly, she began the tour. It was going to be a long day. *** Hours later, as the sun's final light sank over the horizon, she led the fifth pony to visit that day to the door, locking it behind him. Octavia's mood had begun souring after the third. It was never any different with those ponies. Always some minute detail bugging them. Damned Canterlot nobles. Octavia wondered if she should maybe look into moving out of the city. She'd always heard Manehatten was a nice place for the artistically inclined. Regardless, the day had been entirely useless. She still had no roommate to share the rent with, Vinyl still hadn't come by, and she doubted, at that point, that she even would. Perhaps Vinyl really didn't read the paper. Typical. Slouching down on her couch once again with a sigh, she turned on the radio and listened to some soothing classical music for a while. It was 8'O clock, nopony else would be coming by. Closing her eyes and reclining on the couch, she relaxed while humming to the melody. Funny, she thought, I don't remember being tir- Sometime later, she was awoken by a rapping on the door. It was not, as many may believe, the kind of rapping that concerns knocking. Yawning, she stepped in the general direction of the noise. Squinting at the clock, she confirmed that the time was 10:30 Pm. As she got closer, the noise became clearer. Confused, she wondered who would be literally rapping at her door at that time of night. Swinging the door wide, she beheld a strange mint-green unicorn dressed in a dark hoodie, lost in her own world. "-and if I had one wish, I'd ask for an ass big enough for the whole world to k-" Noticing Octavia for the first time, the unicorn cleared her throat and chuckled nervously. "H-hey, I'm here for the room," She greeted, inviting herself in. Closing the door behind her, Octavia turned to the mare and considered her. The mare indeed looked very shady, even with her hood off, and Octavia felt as though she should be careful and watch her closely, especially since it was so late at night. "Yes, well, the time on the ad was listed til eight, but I suppose I can give you the tour anyway," Octavia replied. Stepping into the hallway, she led the mare to where she would sleep, eat, and whatever else she may decide to do on her own time. "Rad, I'm likin' the feel of the place. I see you have a cello, looks pretty cool," She complimented. Octavia stared wide eyed at the mare. She actually knows what a cello is? "What? I don't look like the type to know my instruments?" The mare interrogated, reading Octavia like a book. Gulping, Octavia nodded sheepishly. The strange mare, however, just grinned and pulled the bottom of her hoodie up slightly, exposing to Octavia her cutie mark. "Yeah, I'm a bit of a musician myself. Name's Lyra, by the way," The mare shot back, extending a hoof, expecting a hoof-bump. Octavia shook the hoof, and introduced herself. Lyra chuckled and turned to look out the window. Why does everyone keep laughing at my hoofshakes? Is there something wrong with my hooves? Octavia questioned inwardly, raising a hoof and inspecting it closely. She looked up from her hoof to see Lyra eyeing her with a cocked eyebrow and smirk. Slowly lowering her hoof, she chuckled nervously and found the ground to be suddenly interesting to look at. "Well, I'm really likin' the place. It ain't got that stuffy feel that most of this city does. I'll take it," Lyra reckoned. Freezing up, Octavia came to the realization that she was really about to rent the room away. Looking downcast, she realized that Vinyl would be on the street in another hour and a half, with no way for Octavia to find her. Mistaking Octavia's pained expression for second-guessing, Lyra quickly spoke up, not wanting to lose the deal she was getting. "Alright, how's about... 3 months rent in advance, on the spot?" She inquired, pulling out a rather large sack of bits and handing it to Octavia. "Oh, no, it's not that, you don't have t-" "Hey, listen, I really gotta pee. Where's the bathroom?" Lyra interrupted, not allowing Octavia to protest. Pointing in the general direction, Octavia received a quick thanks. Left alone in her hallway, she carried the bits into her living room and sat the bag on the table. She thought of how much Vinyl could use the money. At that very moment, however, another quick succession of knocks broke her from her thoughts. Trotting over to the door, she got ready to deliver the bad news, that somepony had already bought the room. Opening the door, she opened her mouth to speak, and froze as she saw the mare with the electric-blue mane standing out of breath. "Hey, Octy," She huffed, struggling to catch her breath. "Listen, I know I'm a bit *huff* late, but I have your bits right *huff* here." Leading Vinyl into the living room, she tried desperately to think of some way to solve the predicament she was in. "Wow, pretty nice place you got here, Octy. So, where do I sleep?" Vinyl inquired with a confident grin. A dreadfully confident grin, Octavia thought, not without a tinge of sadness. Octavia felt like doing anything besides grinning. Facing Vinyl, she delivered the news all at once, not looking her in the eyes. "I'm sorry, Vinyl, but the room has already been rented out. I tried waiting for you, but a mare showed up a few minutes ago and bought the room out." Vinyl visibly deflated, the grin no longer present on her face. Nodding slowly, she turned back towards the door. "Ah, yeah. I understand. Well, it was still nice seeing you again. See ya around, I guess," Vinyl replied, twisting the doorknob. Octavia, not wanting to just throw her friend out on the street, handed her a hoofful of bits and bargained, "If you come back tomorrow, I might be able to find a bed or something for you to sleep on. You can stay here, at least until you get back on your hooves." "Nah, it's cool, Octy. I can't be a burden on you like that," Vinyl rejected, forcing a smile that was dangerously close to cracking. Octavia swore she saw her eyes tear up ever so slightly. "Nonsense! I can't let you just live out on the street," Octavia protested, grabbing Vinyl's tail with her hoof. "Listen, it's really nice of you to try and all, bu-" "Could it be? IS THAT VINYL-FUCKIN'-SCRATCH? Get the hell ouutt," Lyra yelled, charging into the living room. Octavia nearly turned around and scolded Lyra for being rude, but noticed the grin on her face at the last minute. Looking between her and Vinyl, and noticing that they shared the same expression, Octavia released Vinyl's tail and watched patiently. "LYRA! It's been so long! How've ya been?" Vinyl asked, rapidly cheering up again. They came together in a forceful hug, and gave each other hoof bumps after they broke apart. "Oh, I've been cool. Just got a room here," Lyra answered, grinning. "How 'bout you?" Vinyl's grin dropped for a moment before she answered. "Eh, I've been better, I guess. Lost my job, apartment, and I just generally just can't seem to win," She replied. "Aw, man. Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?" Lyra investigated, laying a comforting hoof on her good friend's shoulder. "No, actually, but it's cool. I can probably get into a hotel or somethin-" "Nah, you're bunkin' with me," Lyra interrupted in a no-nonsense kind of way. Vinyl, having had her mind made up for her, turned to Octavia. "I dunno, you'd have to ask Octy. I dunno if she'd want to have both of us under the same roof," Vinyl replied, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. Octavia attempted to reply so fast that she tripped up on most of the sentence. "Ofcourse I'dhavyo here," Clearing her throat, she began again. "I mean, of course, I would love to have you here, Vinyl. I can't let you spend the night out by yourself in a dingy hotel. Come to think of it, I don't even know of any hotels in Canterlot," "There aren't any," Vinyl admitted. "Then you're staying," Octavia retaliated. Chuckling to herself, she remarked innocently, "Besides, you two seem to be alright, what's the worst that could happen?" Octavia would later deeply regret making the remark to the point of completely denying having ever asked. Several minutes later, they had all gotten settled, with Octavia sleeping in her normal bed, and Lyra and Vinyl sharing the queen sized bed Octavia had gotten ready for her new roommates. It was a strange feeling to Octavia, having others in her house. It was not, however, an unwelcome feeling. Even with all the problems in her life, she felt that having others around would help her confidence in tackling them. Drifting slowly into the land of slumber, Octavia felt strangely serene in her new situation. Several hours later, however, the serenity was completely shattered by the constant, repeating thunking noise emanating from the bed beside hers. Turning her head towards the sleeping forms of the other mares, she beheld a sight that struck her as giggle-worthy. Vinyl and Lyra lay exactly opposite each other on the bed. Each pony would rythymatically kick the other in the head after such an act was done to her own noggin. Back and forth this went, all the while Octavia's urge to burst out laughing grew. Removing herself from the room, she only returned when she had gotten all the giggles out of her system. Completely deficient of laughter, she laid herself back into bed and dozed off once more. ****** It seemed that her arch nemesis was not going to show that morning. Smiling into her pillow, Octavia sighed contently. Nuzzling further into the comfort, she thought a single thing. Life is good. And so, life was indeed good for a long while afterward. For many long periods of time onward, Octavia saw nothing but good fortune and fate. Things were really beginning to look up. That is, until the horrid crash emanating from the kitchen occured only minutes later. Shooting from her bed entirely, Octavia landed head-first onto the hardwood flooring. Rubbing her aching muzzle, she glanced over to the bed adjacent to hers. Both ponies were absent. Creeping into the hallway and proceeding to the kitchen then afterwards, Octavia was mortified at the atrocity she beheld. The once spotless tile flooring had been entirely caked over by a hardened mixture of flour and water. The walls, ceiling, and window in the general vicinity of the stove had been smeared by the charred remains of something that may have, at one point, been actually edible. Finally taking in the two startled unicorns sharing sheepish grins, Octavia cleared her throat and furrowed her brow. "Well, hey there, Octy. Lyra and I were gonna make you some breakfast, as a... er... gift!" Vinyl beamed, nervous at what Octavia would say. Octavia, however, put a cheerful smile on her face and reassured her friend. "Okay!" Stepping back out of the kitchen, the two unicorns also shared a sigh of relief, at least until one of them tried fighting the other for custody rights of the entire sigh. "So..." Lyra began, beginning to take in the mess that they had made. "Ya think she's mad?" "Pfft! We're in the clear, I don't even think she even noticed the mes-" Vinyl would probably have enjoyed finishing her sentence, but, unfortunately, a very angry grey missile with a pink bowtie at that very point had decided to tackle the poor unicorn. The missile had nearly succeeded in throttling the aforementioned poor unicorn before Lyra was able to pull her off. Lyra was not, however, able to keep Octavia from yelling silly things like "OF COURSE I NOTICED THE MESS YOU DOLT," and "VINYL SCRATCH I SWEAR TO CELESTIA IF YOU DON'T CLEAN THIS MESS RIGHT NOW," Over the course of the next hour, Lyra and Vinyl cleaned the entire kitchen, down to every molecule, under the close inspection of Octavia. As the cleaning wrapped up, Vinyl dropped the washcloth into the sink mid rinse, stared out the window in an eerie manner, turned toward the door, and began trotting in a zombie-like manner. "Um... Vinyl? Are you alright?" Octavia asked, not entirely sure what to make of the strange situation. Vinyl turned on a perfect 90 degree angle and looked Octavia in the eyes with her creepy, blank stare. "My DJing equipment! I left it at my old apartment! I have to go get it," Vinyl yelled, swinging the door wide as she made her dramatic exit. Chasing her out the door, the other two mares were able to calm her into slowing down. "Come to think of it, there's probably some stuff I need to pick up too. I'm gonna go get it, see you two later," Lyra began, trotting off in some direction away from the apartment. Turning to Vinyl, Octavia shot her a reassuring smile. "Very well, I'll help you carry what you need," Vinyl huffed and looked back at Octavia as they walked onward. "Yeah, if any of it's even still there," She replied. "What do you mean?" "My rent ran out yesterday, the apartment's not mine. Knowing the asshole landlord, he probably gave all my equipment away to the first pony he saw, just to screw with me," Octavia reserved from asking anymore questions along the way. Clearly Vinyl did not have much hope, and nothing Octavia could say would change that. Sighing, Octavia followed Vinyl through the concrete jungle. It was going to be a long day. Author's Note Sorry about the long wait for this chapter. Comments and criticism welcome!
