Scratch the Octave

by overlord-flinx

Rating: everyone
Tags: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Comedy, Romance, Octavia, Slice of Life, DJ P0N-3
Length: 2593

A little time to practice isn't too hard to ask for, is it? With a friend like Scratch, it is.

One would think a short time to practice your instrument wouldn't be such an allusive chore. But Octavia rarely gets much practice time in. Why? Every time she tries, a scratch always interrupts her focus. A Vinyl Scratch. But a friend is a friend; no matter how much they bother--Trouble you...

Published 2012-04-18 00:54:03 UTC
Last updated 2012-04-18 00:54:03 UTC

Scratch

Enthralled. Enthralled was the only word that could describe her purple eyes as they danced along with the notes that were scored along the sheet's thick, black lines. Born from her own creativity, her face couldn't help but allow a smirk. "Original, if I had to simplify the piece to but a single word," she mused before taking in the piece one final time.
Taking her eyes from the piece, she instead looked at the stringed instrument propped carefully against the wall of her room. A quick stride of her grey limbs brought her over to the instrument in question, her right foreleg laced around the wooden crook of its finger board, guiding it carefully away from the wall and closer to her occupied music stand.

A moment was taken by the musician to set her instrument to a high stature while still facing its sleek, wooden belly towards the stand. With an elegant movement of her free foreleg, a bow was produced from a sheath that had been built into the back of the instrument. Following up her bow removal, the bow hair slide against the strings, bringing a soothing chord from vibrating strings. Once more, a momentary smirk came before setting her sights on the piece of sheet music. "Now then...," gradually, her hooves moved up the neck of her instrument and she pulled her bow hoof back to run through the first advance.
Her chest hugged loosely to the frame of her instrument; hind legs placed at a statured distance from one another while her shoulders relaxed. The refined expression across her face joined in settling as well.

Her bow carefully stroked up against her strings, advancing foreword through the prepared music before her. But just as suddenly as the melody of the string work filled the room, the thundering crash of a door cut short the piece. The bow screeched against the instrument's strings as its user was thrown off her focus and knobbed her forelegs. Her expression became sharp in a moment. Though her back was to the door, her mind only flicked to one mental image of who would interrupt her music. "Octavia!" her intruder called to her from the freshly open doorway.

"Vinyl," Octavia calmly replied without so much as a glance to her guest; however she removed herself from her work and used a free foreleg to adjust her white collar and pink bowtie. "To what do I owe this unwarranted intrusion?"

"Unwarranted? That would suggest I'm not welcome here," her guest snickered before kicking the door behind her closed and barging her way into Octavia's home even further. "What kind of best friend can't just pop in whenever she feels like it? I don't know, because I know I'm always welcome here, right?"

In favor of keeping her stature upheld, Octavia ran a single hoof through her mane and shut her eyes to calm herself. "Yes… of course you are. But under some announcement would be appreciated," with minor strain, Octavia agreed with Vinyl. "Please, if you would, tell me what it is you're doing here? I don't mind so much the intrusion, but I do mind reasoning," Octavia spaced her words out as easily as she would allow herself.

Just then, the neon blue pricks of Vinyl's mane flicked out before Octavia's eyes, not long followed by those violet lenses covering her eyes. Vinyl had her common cocky smile, to which Octavia had come to secretly enjoy despite her frown. "I can't just drop in on my best friend for the sake of dropping in? That's cold, Octav," her face dipped with a snicker while Octavia sighed.

"Of course you can 'drop in' on your 'best' friend. However, nothing is without reasoning. Not even you are so impulsive," scoffing ever so slightly at the phrase 'drop in', Octavia returned a smile.

Vinyl's laughter grew stronger and she gave Octavia a playful knee to her hip, much to the musician's wide eyed surprise. "And they say you can't crack a joke, Octav! You know you're my girl, my homie, my sister from another mister, my mare from another lair, my best friend! Of course I have a real reason for being here," Vinyl pointed out, thinking to herself that Octavia must have felt the same in their relationship.

Octavia rubbed her side that had been touched by Vinyl while frown grew across her face as she slipped into a minor thought. Who ever said she wasn't funny? Still, she looked back to the disk jockey. A momentary inhale of calm slipped between her lips before she turned her full attention to her visitor. Vinyl still kept an energetic smile of amusement on her face. Even so, Octavia returned to her more flat lipped expression and parted eye glance. "Vinyl, for one thing, could you please refrain from using that terminology? It's so… bothersome."

For the first time since arriving, Vinyl stopped smiling. But it wasn't sorrow, hate, or even rage that took its place; it was a warm, thankful smile and tilt of her head. "Aw, you mean that? I never knew I got you bothered!"

A grey hoof plopped against Octavia's face as her face burned red. Her own words used against her in the most lewd manner; at least in Octavia's opinion. For a short moment, Octavia could only feel the burn on her face and the thumping of her quickened heart. "Vinyl… Could you please not be so ribald? It's vexing as much as it is bother—troubling. Would it be too much of a foreign concept to worry about my embarrassment when you speak as such?" Octavia half pleaded, but couldn't help but have a fluster in her voice.

Because her eyes were clamped shut from irritation, Octavia couldn't see Vinyl's sudden worried expression. Her top teeth dung into her bottom lip as she took in her friends words. "Sorry, Octavia…I don't mean to step on your hooves!" Vinyl quick smiled again and laughed. "You're just pretty easy to get bothered. No hard feelings, right?"

Octavia's fluster quickly settled like a fresh string and she readjusted herself to her typical stature. Vinyl had her point; she was at times a little uptight and easily tipped off her center. Which is why she felt a twinge of thanks that she had someone like Vinyl to keep her on the tips of her hooves. "Vinyl Scratch, you needn't even ask such a question. There is no true harm done, so I haven't a reason to hold a thing against you." Vinyl let herself relax when Octavia came back to her original thought and question. "Now if you're done jostling me about; you have yet to answered my question about your reasoning for being here."
"My what now?" Vinyl joked, getting an un-amused frown from Octavia. "I'm just poking at you, Tavi. You want a reason? I got it. But I warn you, what I've come here for will blow your stale, sophisticated mind in was you have yet to even imagine," the white mare warned with a serious tone.
Octavia chuckled at Vinyl's serious tone before covering her mouth so as not to seem rude in her own home. "Vinyl, I believe I can handle anything you have for me. Now let's hear it."

In that moment, Vinyl's horn sparked with a magical aura that guided two small, gold rectangles from out of her messy mane. Octavia watched as they floated in the air, feeling her intrigue slither through her body. "It's not about hearing… well not yet. It's about seeing. And boy is it a sight for you to behold," drifting the rectangles down between the two of them, she separated them and loomed one before Octavia's curious face. "Check it. Tickets to that fancy orchestra you're always talking about. Interested?"

Her heart skipped a beat looking at the ticket before her while her mind fell to thought. The most elegant strings in Equestria only magnified by the powerful percussion and woodwinds that brought such lift to the soul when even the smallest of sets in their pieces touched mortal ears. She couldn't process the idea. However, it was that that let suspension creep into her mind. Octavia's eyes narrowed to a fine point as she moved herself inward at Vinyl. "How did you come across these? I know you don't make enough at your raves and such to just buy these tickets… particularly tickets to a show that you have no interest in." the question was posed, all that remained for Octavia now was proof.

As if waiting for the question, Vinyl scoffed and tucked her own ticket behind her ear. "There's a story for that answer. So listen up, it's a good one," despite Vinyl's comment, Octavia remained in her usual state and waited for this story to be told.

"Well. It's a pretty funny story really," Vinyl snickered, tilting her head to the side and bringing smiling sheepishly. "Rarity gave them to me."

"Rarity?" Octavia crossed the name through her mind; completely sure she had heard the name from somewhere. In no time it dawned on her; she nodded and half-smiled since that name also brought up an interesting night for her. "Right. That one you did music for as per her 'fashion' show? As well as the pony who made an… interesting… spectacle at the Gala?"

"Come on, I heard it wasn't that bad. And she's a dang good designer. Since then, she always calls me up for her music. She's my first regular that wasn't party related," Vinyl defended, pushing a hoof into Octavia's shoulder with a playful chuckle. "Actually, she's my only regular outside of parties."

Octavia rubbed her shoulder with a, for once, playful mumble. "I cannot imagine why…"

"Anyhow. I went by her shop yesterday so I could give her the track I planned for her next show. And wouldn't you know it? Sapphire Shores was up in there," retelling her tale to her friend, Vinyl waved her hoof out before her as if to have Octavia visualize it with her.

"Sapphire Shores?" Octavia was genuinely surprised by such a famed individual being with somepony of a lesser notability.

"Right? I was surprised too. Had to suppress an urge or two to ask for an autograph; professionalism of performers and all that; you know how it is. But anyway. Like I said, Sapphire was there and she was having Rarity make some new outfits for her next tour. The two of them were talking about her next show when I over heard that Shores lost her current DJ; something that had to do with the Wonderbolts, three rings, and a cart of fruit."
Octavia lift one of her brows curessly only to have Vinyl shake her head disturbed. "I didn't ask… I was sorta' afraid to… Anyway, the show would've had to been cancelled… Except that's were I came in.
"I offered my help to Sapphire, and Rarity put in a good word for me. Next thing you know, bing bang boom, I'm working on a piece for Sapphire Shores." Vinyl carried forth with her 'epic tale', to which Octavia had actually started to take an ear too, nodding periodically to key Vinyl on.

"Hold for a moment," Octavia interjected with a raise of her hoof.

Vinyl snickered. "You can't even say 'wait' without sounding stuffy."

"Never the less," Octavia snapped partly before putting a hoof to the bridge of her forehead in a calming fashion. "Were you not collaborating with the Wonderbolts for their opening theme come next event?"

Nervously, Vinyl chuckled and ran her foreleg through her spiked mane. "I was… But Spitfire kinda' told me that they would just use their old opening."

A twinge of sympathy enlaced Octavia's heart as her brow furrowed looking at the white mare. "I cannot imagine why…" she said for a second time.

Vinyl picked up on Octavia's mood and struck a smile, followed only by her foreleg tapping upon Octavia's shoulder. "Easy come easy go, right? Their old theme is better anyway. You don't mess with a good thing, right? So yeah, they took me off the job so I was pretty free to help Shores." Changing the gears of the subject, Vinyl took a quick step back and carried on with her story. Accustomed to topic changes like this, Octavia shook her concern loose and returned to her usual nature. "Now here's where I got the tickets. Rarity was so thankful that I came in all heroic and stuff that she gave me these two tickets that Shores gave her. At first I was like 'naa, it's not my kind of scene', but then it hit me. 'Octavia would love this kind of thing'!"

Octavia let the story sink into her mind, letting it flip over in her head. Sure enough, Octavia looked up to Vinyl with a genuine look of curiosity. "Is that all so? Am I to assume you'll relinquish one ticket to me so easily?" in spite of her best efforts, her voice came across surprisingly hopeful.

"Yes and no." Vinyl said in a slight sing-song tone.

"Yes and…No?" Octavia repeated slowly, feeling her insides sink.

"That's right. I won't just give you the ticket. You need to ask for it," Vinyl knew she was holding the cards in this situation; relatively speaking.

Spiting her sophistication, Octavia blew a grunt, appalled by Vinyl's offer. "You expect me to grovel for a ticket? To degrade myself to the level of a commoner?"

"Geez, Tavi. You don't have to take it so seriously," Vinyl laughed. "I just said you had to ask for it; not cut your back leg off."

At that moment, Vinyl's smile grew wider as she saw the embarrassment grow across Octavia's face. It was at that moment that all of Octavia's inner strings became curled over into themselves. "O-of course… That is what I meant." Octavia lied as her face flushed red.

A warm smile snuck across Vinyl's face and she put her own forelegs on Octavia's. "Calm down, Tavi. It's your ticket no matter what. Please, thank you, gratzi, whatever. It doesn't matter. I accepted the deal so you could go…" the single ticket wafted out from before Octavia and the small stub was slid behind Octavia's ear. "You can thank me now or later. Just remember I'll keep reminding you until you do."

Octavia's burning sensation gradually sank away and was replaced by her more usual cool tone. A smile crossed her face once more; a genuine, thankful, smile. "I am much oblige-… I mean…" Octavia gave an airy giggle with a friendly tone, "thank you."

"Awww man, there it is! There's that smile I was looking for!" Vinyl pointed out. "And no prob, Octavia! Now saddle yourself up fancy and snazzy," carefree as she was, Vinyl inched up close into Octavia's personal space and placed her hooves on her friend's pink bow, adjusting it ever so. "You're rolling with me tonight, so you'll need some snaz. The fancy is more for your own needs."

Once more, the burning sensation swelled up all throughout Octavia as she was forced to look away from Vinyl. "Honestly Vinyl… Must you always be so unconventionally foreword?"

"Like I tell you, Tavi. I can't help if I get you all bothered. It's just the way I am…" Vinyl reminded before looking up into Octavia's blushing face, smiling. "But we find ways around that, right?"

Octavia said no words as an answer, merely let out an embarrassed, whimpering groan.