Author's Note

Freefall was originally supposed to be a short story about Vinyl falling through the sky for my deviantART's second anniversary. Unfortunately, I couldn't finish in time so I decided to just leave it as part 1. Slowly, more ideas about Vinyl's mental state, Derpy's past, Vinyl's relationship with Octavia, and everything just came to me. And this is fun to write, so I see it going on longer than intended.

Gaining Speed

2

"...don't know how it happened..."

"...sorry, I'm so sorry, I'm so..."

"...hard enough getting her out of that party without Cheese Sandwich waving that dumb rubber chicken around..."

"...think Vinyl's waking up..."

Vinyl slowly climbed up a long, black tunnel and found herself back in consciousness. She felt a pillow behind her. There was bright sunlight coming through one of the windows, making the white room even whiter. It hurt Vinyl's eyes, and she didn't even have her shades. Where'd she leave them this time? Sometimes it was in Octavia's room (don't ask why Vinyl was there in the first place), sometimes on her DJ stand, sometimes...

Oh right. Primary Alley. He tried to... to...

"Vinyl, can you hear me?"

One voice above all the rest. Vinyl felt immense relief to hear her voice.

"Octavia..." She whispered, her voice coming out dry and cracked. Her vision was blurry, but she could make out a few shapes. She felt somepony gently grab her hoof.

"I'm here, Vinyl. Come on... wake up."

Vinyl blinked a few times and groaned in pain. The hooves holding her own suddenly gripped tighter. Through the thick haze, Vinyl could start to make out Octavia's wide purple eyes.

"Vinyl...!"

"Oohhh..." Vinyl moaned, and then grinned at Octavia, "Come on, Tavi... just five more minutes..."

Octavia blinked once, staring at Vinyl with her mouth slightly open and eyes wide, and then she moved so swiftly that for a moment, Vinyl thought she was going to slap her. Instead, Octavia wrapped her hooves around Vinyl in a hug.

"Don't... you ever... do this... again..." Octavia said through deep breaths.

"I won't, Tavster. I promise," Vinyl said, closing her eyes and smiling.

When Vinyl and Octavia had finally parted from their warm embrace, Vinyl looked around. The first thing that she noticed was that she was lying in a bed in what looked like a hospital room. She wasn't wearing a hospital gown and didn't have any needles stuck in her leg, so she assumed that meant she was fine. The second thing Vinyl noticed was that the Doctor and Derpy were standing at the foot of her bed.

"Hey! Doctor! Derpmeister! Good to see ya!" Vinyl greeted them cheerfully, but her smile faded when she saw the solemn expression on the Doctor's face and the tears flowing down Derpy's face, "What happened...?"

The Doctor opened his mouth like he was about to speak, but no sound came out. He cleared his throat and opened his mouth again, but then Derpy let out a loud cry, and fled from the room. Vinyl, smile now completely gone, stared at the doorway long after Derpy had gone. She turned toward the Doctor.

"What happened?" She asked him. The stallion awkwardly adjusted his tie and smoothed his jacket. Clearing his throat one last time, the Doctor began to speak.

"I'm not sure if you remember, but you had gone out to the balcony-"

"It's more of a porch, really," Vinyl interrupted.

"Ditzy and I were outside at the time, investigating a possible lead on Zarbi in Equestria-"

"What's a Zarbi?" Octavia asked.

"Giant ant-like things with two strange-looking legs... I'd rather not go into detail. Anyway, the lead turned out to just be a fruit bat-"

"Vampire fruit bat."

"Oh, can everypony please stop interrupting-" The Doctor exclaimed, but stopped when he saw who had spoken. Derpy had returned to the room, and was wiping tears from her face. She went over to the corner and stood there, staring emotionless at the floor. The Doctor looked back toward Vinyl, appearing at a loss for words, and then continued.

"Right... well then, the lead turned out to be a VAMPIRE fruit bat. Ditzy and I were both quite disappointed, but then we heard you screaming for help from the balcony."

Porch, Vinyl thought.

"Ditzy had wings, so she was up there faster than I was. I had to go through the house and fight my way through a crowd of party ponies! One of them almost spilled his Applejack Daniels on my jacket... don't know where he would've got that..."

Oops... Vinyl thought, grinning a bit.

"When I got to the balcony, you were on your back, delirious and mumbling things, and Ditzy was... well... repeatedly slamming... that stallion's head into the floor... It didn't take the brightest stallion in the world to piece together what was going on. I tried helping you up, but then..."

"I fell, didn't I?" Vinyl finished. The Doctor nodded without taking his serious-looking eyes from her. Vinyl looked around, "But... what happened to Primary?"

There was no response. Octavia looked away from her and suddenly became very interested in what was outside the window. The Doctor shifted his weight on his hooves awkwardly. Derpy finally lifted her gaze from the floor, staring in Vinyl's direction but not at Vinyl, and said, very plainly:

"I killed him."

And with that, Derpy burst into tears once more.

* * *

Vinyl sat alone in the room, trying to sleep. A nurse had came in, and told her she'd have to stay in the hospital another night for "possible schizophrenia evaluation". Vinyl had argued (like it would help) that she was feeling fine, only a slight headache, but the nurse had been adamant about making her stay.

So here she was, lying in a bed. Vinyl pulled the blanket over her. She listened for a sound, but the only thing she could hear was a soft hum from the lights. Vinyl threw the blanket off her. She had done enough sleeping, but was that truly the reason she was so restless? Perhaps she was afraid to close her eyes, afraid that when she opened them she'd be 100 feet in the air falling, with the ground coming at her-

"Vinyl?"

Vinyl had just been dozing off when there came a quiet whisper from her left. Vinyl jumped in fear and surprise, but then noticed Derpy lurking over to the side of her bed.

"Oops, sorry. I didn't mean to startle you..." Ditzy Doo apologized, standing up straighter and putting her front hooves on the bed. Vinyl relaxed, now recognizing the mare.

"Oh, of course not. You? Startle me?" Vinyl joked, trying to create a lighter mood. Derpy let out a small grin, but her eyes twinkled with tears even as the grin appeared and then vanished. She let out a sigh, and Vinyl decided that now wasn't really the time for jokes (It never was, was it?), "I'm only kidding, Derpy. I... I really owe you for saving me. Primary was going to..."

"I know, Vinyl," Derpy whispered, "It's just... I killed him."

"He might've killed me."

"The party shut down when the paramedics arrived. They took you away on a stretcher... and they took him away in a body bag. I... I couldn't stop crying..." Derpy told Vinyl, while distantly surveying the floor, "The Royal Guards took me away and made me tell them everything that happened..."

"They couldn't throw you in some dungeon, you were protecting me!"

"There's justice in Equestria, Vinyl. I'm not going to be thrown into a dungeon," Derpy said with a weak (though reassuring) smile, "It's just... I killed a pony that night... I... actually...killed..."

"First of all, stop saying that," Vinyl interrupted. Derpy looked over at her with a surprised expression, "You're not a killer. You're Derpy, and you saved my life. Second of all, Primary was a creep. If it hadn't been me, it would've been somepony else. He took the opportunity to attack me, and you stopped him. You're a hero, Ditzy."

"It's not that simple!" Derpy yelled, "I thought I was just punching him. I-I-I wanted to kill him, but I never thought I actually would! His head... the back of his skull cracked on the balcony, and he died even as I sat on top of him, hitting his lifeless face with my hooves!"

"Derpy-"

"No Vinyl! I'm a murderer! I could kill anypony next! I could kill you!" Derpy shouted, more tears starting to stream down her face. She looked to the ceiling and roared: "I WANT TO KILL MYSELF!"

There was a sudden silence in the room as Vinyl stared at Derpy, who buried her face in her hooves and cried. Vinyl looked at the Pegasus, and felt something. She wasn't sure what it was. Fear definitely, but also... what was it? Pity? Sorrow?

A distant memory of Octavia scolding Vinyl as she was brought home by Royal Guards surfaced in Vinyl's mind. I'm worried about you, Vinyl, Octavia had said, You're going to ruin your life. Vinyl shivered, finally coming up with the right word.

Sympathy.

"I... I'm sorry, Vinyl..." Derpy said quietly, the rage leaving her, "It's just..."

"Why?" Vinyl asked. Derpy looked over, confused, "Why did you do it? It'd be one thing if you just knocked him off me, but you... you kept hitting him. Why?"

Derpy sighed, "Because... when I saw you lying on your back with him standing over you... I knew what he was going to do... and it made me remember..."

"Remember...?" Vinyl asked. Suddenly she realized what Derpy meant, and her blood went cold.

"Somepony like him came after me one day..." Derpy continued, not looking at Vinyl, "But there was nopony to save me. After he... I couldn't sleep... or talk to anypony... or eat... They never found the stallion who... who..."

"Derpy..." Vinyl leaned forward and took her friend's hoof to comfort her, "You never told us this."

"No..." Derpy agreed, tears continuing to fall from those strange eyes of hers, "I felt... like it was all my fault... and I thought none of you would like me anymore..."

"Of course we'd like you," Vinyl said with a reassuring smile, "You're our friend, and nothing can change that."

Derpy smiled, and the two sat alone in the dark hospital room, both in deep thought. Vinyl admired how cheerful Derpy had always been, knowing that the stallion who had raped her was never caught. She wondered what her wall-eyed friend was thinking.

There was suddenly a loud whirring sound as a strong wind blew through the room. There came a sound like the very air itself was being pressurized around them. Vinyl gripped the blanket in fear as her mane whipped around in the tornado that the room had become while Derpy simply sighed.

"Why is he here...?" She mumbled to herself.

At the foot of Vinyl's bed, a large blue shape began to form. At first it was transparent, and became more solid as that sound continued. Finally, a large blue box stood tall in the room. Vinyl could have sworn it seemed familiar (like she had seen it in Canterlot, but never paid any attention to it) while Derpy only scowled. Near the top of the box, there were signs that read "POLICE BOX". A door on the side opened and a certain stallion stepped out.

"Evening, Vinyl!" The Doctor announced, "Ignore this box, it's not important. Oh, Ditzy! You're here too! Brilliant!"

"D-Doctor...?" Vinyl stammered in disbelief, "What... how..."

"He's always doing this," Derpy said, "Like when you showed up at, or rather IN my house on Hearth's Warming Eve."

"That was a special occasion, and I didn't want to be late!" The Doctor defended himself.

Derpy scoffed, "How can you be late if it travels through ti-"

"Whoa, whoa, what?" A very bewildered Vinyl interrupted, looking from Derpy to the Doctor to the box, "What's going on? What are you...?"

"Oh, just decided to pop on by, see how you're doing, find out where Ditzy disappeared to, all that," The Doctor answered, "Not much, really. "

"I-" Vinyl couldn't think of a reply to the Doctor's fast, smooth talking, "Visiting hours are over!"

"Yes, but you're glad for the company, aren't you?" The Doctor grinned, sliding over next to Derpy at the side of Vinyl's bed, "I'd imagine so, seeing how boring this room is. Lucky for you, you get to go home tomorrow! Oh, blimey... I feel bad for whatever poor soul has to stay here for more than a few days..."

"Ooh, that's right, Vinyl! You get to go home tomorrow morning! We're all coming to see you out... I think Lyra and Bon-Bon are making a cake to celebrate!"

"You guys don't have to go through all that trouble," Vinyl said, flattered that her friends cared that much.

"Oh, no we don't," The Doctor replied, "But we're still going to!"

* * *

No matter what The Doctor had said about how boring the hospital room was, he was in no hurry to leave. Derpy had to practically shove him back inside the blue box so Vinyl could get some sleep. Derpy had bid her farewell, bye, see you tomorrow morning, and then climbed into the box with The Doctor. Vinyl wondered how they could both fit inside such a cramped-looking box. The box had made that strange air-pressurizing sound again, and then disappeared.

Alone, Vinyl tried once more to get to sleep. Usually, sleep was something to be avoided at all costs. Party all night and take a few of Tavi's donuts in the morning was a strict code she lived by, but tonight would be an exception.

However, no matter how many times she laid her head in different spots on the pillow, no matter how much she adjusted the blanket, no matter how long she kept her eyes closed, Vinyl just couldn't drift off into slumber. Her thoughts were racing about her brief encounter with Derpy (and also about where The Doctor had gotten a magical disappearing box, but mostly about Derpy). Who knew such a quiet, but joyful pony could hide such a dark secret?

Vinyl yawned, and stared at the spot that the blue box had been. Was it an illusion? Some sort of magic, perhaps? Or maybe-

The next thing Vinyl knew, she was being nudged awake by a green stallion in a white doctor's uniform.

"Wake up, Miss Scratch," He whispered gently, "It's almost noon. Are you feeling alright? You get to leave today... are you awake?"

"Y-yeah man," Vinyl said, yawning as she stretched her front legs out into the air and then her bottom legs, "Almost noon? I can do better than that..."

"Yes, well..." the stallion, identified as Doctor Greenluck by his nametag, said, pulling up a clipboard with his unicorn magic, "Ahem, you'll have to take it easy for a few days, so no wild parties, no inappropriate beverages, and no excessive physical stress. You'll also have to start taking naps, as part of your psychiatric treatment. Not long naps, maybe from noon to two."

"Gotcha," Vinyl said, throwing the blanket aside and slowly climbing out of her bed onto shaky hooves, "But I still get wubs though, right?"

"Wubs...?" Greenluck questioned, looking at Vinyl with a raised eyebrow, "Erm... oh, right. Wubs... music. Of course... but at an appropriate volume! Loud music can severely affect your mental state, Miss Scratch."

"Awh man," Vinyl said with a slight whine in her voice, "Ah well. Better then going stone cold, I guess."

"Come with me, I'll show you out," Greenluck offered, turning toward the door. Vinyl hesitated for a moment, her hooves feeling like iron and her head beginning to throb with a pounding headache, but then it cleared and she slowly (and shakily) began to follow Greenluck out to the front desk.

* * *

After all of the "boring, official hospital stuff" had been taken care of by a spectacled mare behind the front desk, Vinyl stepped out into the hospital waiting room where she was greeted with loud cheers and a bit of confetti thrown into her face. After Vinyl had recovered from her initial shock, she laughed. All of her friends, Octavia, Derpy, The Doctor, Lyra and Bon-Bon (the last two holding an oversized vanilla cake with colorful sprinkles arranged in letters reading "V-I-N-Y-L-S-C-R-A-T-C-H" together) were waiting for her. There were a few mares sitting in the waiting room chairs, two looking over in curiosity and one fixated on a magazine. After assessing the scene, Vinyl guessed that Derpy had been the one to throw the confetti.

"What're you guys doing here?" Vinyl asked in delight, "I mean, I know Derpy told me you'd be here, but still...!"

"You told her?!" Lyra exclaimed, turning to Derpy, "Derpy, this was a surprise!"

"It was?" Derpy said, blinking in bewilderment.

"Oh well, it doesn't matter now," Octavia shrugged, stepping over to her friend and roommate, "Are you feeling alright, Vinyl?"

"I'm feeling amazing, Tavi," Vinyl smiled, stepping forward and wrapping her hooves around Octavia in a hug. Without any hesitation, Octavia hugged her back. Vinyl's smile widened, and she suddenly felt more awake than she had in days.

* * *

The group of six ponies trotted from the hospital to the home shared by Octavia and Vinyl. The Doctor told them all a story about something that had happened to him and Derpy with the occasional interruption from Derpy herself ("You didn't just flinch, you screamed!" Derpy corrected the Doctor when he told them that the "Cyberpony" had jumped at them from nowhere). The stories sounded amazing to Vinyl, and she always admired how he could come up with them out of nowhere! What a strange stallion, that Doctor.

The trip was slowed by Lyra and Bon-Bon, who were both trying to keep the large cake balanced between both of them. After Bon-Bon had nearly tripped for the 14th time, causing Lyra to scream for the 15th, Octavia finally pointed out that Lyra was a unicorn and she could carry it with magic. That arrangement greatly improved their progress.

Finally arriving at the house, Octavia opened the door to reveal a startlingly clean house. Vinyl's eyes widened as she stepped inside.

"Whoa, Tavi..." She said in awe, "Wasn't there a huge party here a few nights ago? With bottles of Applejack Daniels and rowdy ponies everywhere dancing to amazing music?"

"Of course," Octavia answered, looking over to Vinyl, "I wonder where exactly they got those bottles."

"Beats me," Vinyl lied.

"We spent all of yesterday cleaning the house so it'd be nice when you came back!" Bon-Bon announced, "It took a lot of work, even for five of us... do you have any idea how hard it is to get somepony's tie down from a chandelier?"

"Or clean up an Applejack Daniel's stain from the ceiling?" The Doctor added.

"Or to collect piercings and broken shards of glass from the carpet?" Derpy added.

"Or to-" Lyra began.

"Okay, I get the idea," Vinyl interrupted with a grin, "No more Applejack Daniel's parties."

"Wait, you knew about the-" Octavia began to scold.

"Let's not worry about the details, Tavi," Vinyl said, "Let's have some cake!"