The Music of Harmony

The crowd hushed as a booming voice came over the loudspeaker. The show was about to start.

"And now," said the voice. "The moment you've all been waiting for, Octavia Melody and Vinyl Scratch!"

The crowd went crazy. Sounds of cheering echoed through the packed concert hall. It was a sound that the performers lived and breathed for.

The two ponies behind the curtain gave each other a hoof bump and went to their instruments.

"You ready for this, Vinyl?" Asked the pony holding the cello.

The other pony walked up to her turntable and put on her trademark sunglasses.

"Hell yeah, Octavia. Let's do it."

Just then, the curtain opened, revealing the screaming crowd. Through all their years in music, the crowds were something they could never get bored of. They drunk it in for a minute, and the song began.

It started with a simple pull across the strings by Octavia. She closed her eyes and drifted off into the zone that she felt when she played. The notes were slow and carefully articulated, gradually growing in sound and speed. Vinyl set up a beat, coordinating perfectly with Octavia's notes. The beat quickened, and Vinyl played a stuttering DJ buildup right up to the climax. There was a slight pause.

Vinyl dropped the bass. Octavia played right along with it, feeling better than she ever had before. There was a certain defiance to the song. Ponies had always criticized them for combining classical and EDM, but they didn't care. Critics could say what they want. They continued playing, combining their styles almost effortlessly. Note by note, measure by measure, flowing to perfection.

Suddenly, they stopped playing. The song had ended. They performed a few more songs, and the concert was over before they knew it. The voice came over the loudspeaker one last time.

"Give it up for Octavia Melody and Vinyl Scratch!"

The crowd exploded in a euphoric frenzy. Octavia sighed. Concerts sapped her energy, but it was always worth it for the applause at the end. She took a bow, and the curtains closed. Another performance was finished.

They packed up their stuff and left the stage, talking and laughing happily. By the time they made it back to their house, they were dead tired. Octavia and Vinyl each grabbed a chair in the living room to relax for a while.

It was short lived. A sharp knock on the door snapped Octavia awake, and she got up slowly to answer it. She opened it to see four of her best friends. She smiled and waved them inside.

"Come on in, guys," she said. "How did you like the concert?"

Derpy, The Doctor, Lyra, and Bon-Bon found a place around the living room to sit. The sudden stimulation woke Vinyl up, and she waved hello when she saw who they were.

"Oh, it was just great, Octavia," Derpy said energetically. "You were all playing the cello all smoothly, and then Vinyl came in with the wubs right after that. You guys are awesome!"

"Thanks, Derpy," said Octavia. "We do our best."

"I'll say. Ever since we saved Princess Luna last year you two have just been stunning. I'm surprised you haven't bought a house in Canterlot yet," Bon-Bon pointed out.

"I don't know, I'm kinda attached to this place. I would hate to leave all my friends behind."

"Well, I'm glad you chose to stay," said Lyra. "It's been fun having you two around."

"Luna said to stick together in case we need to use the Elements of Harmony again anyway. There would be no point to run off."

Lyra nodded. "That's true."

"So anyway," said The Doctor. "How are you both doing?"

Vinyl sat up, as if she had just remembered something.

"I almost forgot. Something interesting happened to me yesterday, and I think you might want to hear it," she said.

That grabbed their attention. A lot of things happened to Vinyl, and when she said something was interesting, it usually was.

"I got a phone call," she continued. "Can you guess who it was from?"

"No clue," said Bon-Bon.

"Rainbow Dash. I trust that you all know her."

The other ponies grumbled and complained. None of them liked her very much.

"Why would she call you?" asked Lyra.

"To apologize for how she acted last year. Can you believe it? Rainbow Dash apologizing? She sounded so funny, it was all I could do to keep from laughing through the whole thing."

"So, what did you do?" Derpy asked in curiosity.

"I accepted her apology. I mean, what could I do? She offered us all tickets to the Wonderbolts rally tomorrow, saying we could start over. All her friends are going to be there too. I couldn't help but feel bad for her, so I took the tickets. You guys want to come with me? They're really good seats."

They contemplated this for a minute.

"Why not?" said Bon-Bon. "I got nothing better to do. It could be fun."

"I'll go. It's worth it for the free tickets," Lyra said.

"Me too!" Derpy exclaimed. "The Wonderbolts are great!"

"Sure," said The Doctor. "Sounds good to me."

Vinyl looked at Octavia hopefully.

"What about you, Octavia? You don't want to be left out, do you?"

She sighed. "Okay. I suppose we should give these guys another chance."

"Alright!" Vinyl cheered. "Wonderbolts rallies are awesome, you'll love it."

They chatted lightly for a while, and soon it grew very late.

Lyra yawned. "Gosh, I'm getting really tired. I need to hit the hay," she said. "Great concert you two."

She left for the door, and Bon-Bon followed.

"Yeah, I'd better go too. See you at the rally tomorrow," she said leisurely.

Derpy and The Doctor also wished them good night and left. Octavia and Vinyl waved goodbye until they were all gone.

"Well, it was nice seeing them again," Octavia said. "But yeah, I need some sleep. Good night, Vinyl."

Octavia got up off the couch and headed towards the stairs, barely managing to keep herself awake.

"Wait!" Vinyl called. "I need to talk to you for a second."

Octavia turned around to face her. Vinyl took off her sunglasses and set them on the table.

"Yes, Vinyl?" she asked sleepily. "What is it?"

"I don't really know how to say this, but please, hear me out."

Vinyl looked nervous, something she rarely was. Octavia smiled reassuringly.

"Of course," she said. "Don't worry."

"My whole life, I've tried to be normal. I hid how I really felt just so I could be like all the other ponies. Day in, day out, I wasn't myself. I thought it was worth all the stress it caused me, but I was wrong."

Octavia nodded.

"I didn't realize it until I was tied up and faced with death. Thanks to the Elements, we escaped and were victorious. From that point on, I swore that I would tell you how I truly felt about you, because I knew we would never be that lucky again."

Vinyl stared at the ground. Octavia was slightly confused, but she said nothing.

"I... I wanted to tell you how beautiful you looked. How much you meant to me. But every time I tried, I couldn't. I was afraid you would just laugh."

Octavia reached over and stroked her mane. She had no idea what Vinyl was trying to say, but she was clearly stressed out.

"I would never laugh at you, Vinyl," she said.

"Then I'll just go out and say it. I love you, Octavia. I always have. For years, I've tried to deny it, tell myself that I was normal, but I'm not."

Vinyl got down on one knee. Octavia stared at her, stunned. She didn't know how to react.

"I want us to be together. If you say no, that's fine, but I can't live knowing that I never told you how I feel. So please, give me an honest answer."

Vinyl looked her right in the eye.

"Octavia Melody, will you marry me?"

Octavia couldn't believe it. All these years, they had felt the same way about each other, just too scared to say it. She had been turning down all the stallions that chased her, waiting for the right moment to say these words to Vinyl. A single tear fell from her eye.

"Yes," she said softly.

They smiled at each other, happier than they had ever been. Vinyl stood up and hugged her. Both of them were trying not to cry.

"You know," Vinyl said. "Things are really looking up."