I Will Break The Silence

Chapters

Meet Vinyl Scratch
V's Big "Bro" Neon
Lunch With New Friends And A Chance Meeting
Care For A Little Adventure?
Onward to Adventure!
Party In The Junkyard
Fighting Hurts Like Crap
Hard Knocks And Sweat Socks
Confessions And More Confrontations
Consequences And A Sleep Over
Morning Sunshine
Rolling On Purchased Time
A Stolen Kiss
Amethyst
A Lot Of Thinking To Do
Chaos Chaos
The First Date
Kiss Me Tender, Hold Me Tight

Meet Vinyl Scratch

The alarm on Vinyl's phone burst from her bedside filling the room with loud violent wubs. With a fumbling hand she reached out blindly until she found the offending object that had rudely awoken her at the scheduled time. Sitting up in her bed she hit the alarm off switch on the touch screen before giving a silent breathy yawn. 6:00 AM an hour and a half before school enough time to dress herself and eat before walking in. With as much effort as she could muster which given her groggy state wasn't much she got into a crawling position on the busted spring mattress.

Vinyl's room was in truth more like a walk in closet. Given that the apartment her and her mother shared was only meant for one occupant the only room aside from the bathroom that was separate was a large storage space. Alexa had given the spot to her daughter and opted for living in the main room. There was exactly enough space for three things. A mattress, a bedside desk and a pile of clothes. as it was she had to step over her bed to leave the room.

Crawling her way across the bed she reached the pile of cleanish clothes in the corner of her room she selected a plain white tee from the pile and a matching skirt with a music note on it (her favorite pair) she quickly dressed herself and only after putting them on did she realize in her tired state she had gone commando without her purple pants. All it would take was one pervert looking under her desk to be a laughing stock...again. With a sigh through her nose she took them back off before pulling on a pair of panties and her purple sweat pants and replaced the skirt there after.

Now dressed in her cloths that she had only worn three days in a row without washing she grabbed her headphones and picked out a song from her playlist of "Acquired" songs. Once the wubs washed over her she opened the door to the main room of the apartment where she found her mother at the table drinking coffee from a plastic cup and paper bowl of knock off coco puffs in front of her.

"Morning honey."

Vinyl waved at her.

"Did you sleep well?"

She nodded. This was a rather common routine for them as it was too early in the morning for Vinyl to be bothered to use her notepad to write a reply and her mother was still to tired to read it. As such their morning greetings consisted of gestures from Vinyl and questions from her mother. Once she had produced a paper bowl from the cupboard and grabbed the knock off coco puffs from the shelf she sat down across from her mother and poured the cereal into the bowl before eating it in small pinches.

"Make sure you get to school on time today ok honey? I've already gotten three calls about tardies and two about skipping class."

"If she knew how many I got away with she would be horrified." The Blue haired girl thought to herself.

Sensing the stress in her daughter Alexa continued.

"Vinyl...please look at me."

Slowly the teen complied.

"I know your having a hard time with the other students. Some of your teachers told me at the last meeting that they've been bullying you but you need school."

Pulling a small pad from her pocket Vinyl put her pen to paper to reply better.

"Why? I know what I want to do and algebra, chemistry and home ech are not requirements among many of the other things they teach I don't need to know!"

"Vinyl I know you want to work with music but that's a hard field to get into. I'm not saying you can't but it doesn't hurt to be able to do other things as well. Think of it as a buffer."

The blue haired teen slouched down in her chair. Though she didn't want to admit it what her mother said was true and these days if you wanted to be a manager at a fast food restaurant a high school diploma gave you an edge. It was kinda sad really that was the first thing that came to mind. Solemnly she nodded earning a smile from her mother.

"Good girl. I wont be home till late tonight so you can raid the fridge for dinner ok?"

Vinyl nodded the end of the month was coming up and as such Miss Alexa Scratch was trying to stretch the remainder of her last pay check until her next one. As a result they had to stop buying luxury's like milk and washing soap for the next few weeks thus why they were both eating dry cereal. Vinyl finished the bowl by grabbing a handful of puffs and eating them all at once. Finished with breakfast she threw the bowl in the trash can before giving her mother a hug goodbye and heading for the door to get her shoes.

"Have a good day at school dear." Alexa called to her daughter.

Vinyl gave her best fake smile before shouldering her old backpack and walking out the door hoping to beat the morning traffic.

/l---)O(---/l\

The walk form Canterlot City to Canterlot High was from Vinyl's home a good hour. School started at seven thirty so she was expecting to be around fifteen to twenty minutes early hopefully early enough to avoid some of her less...fond acquaintances. Most of the kids from the city took the bus but Vinyl couldn't afford it let alone her own car so she had to walk. She rode her bike for a time but it had been stolen last month.

"figures." She thought to herself kicking a rock down the pavement.

As she continued down the sidewalk her mood began to lighten a bit. She was nearing her favorite part of the walk to school where she passed the Crystal Apartment complex where the higher ups lived. The apartments in truth were each about the size of a house and there was a permanent staff that attended to the occupants seven days a week. In short it's were those who were well enough off to smoke money lived.

Vinyl had other routs she could take but she took this one every morning in hopes of bumping into her. Octavia Melody was one of the most sought after girls in the school. She could have gone to Crystal prep but went to canterlot high instead for some reason. If she was lucky she might get to see her as she walked past. If she was really lucky she might be able to wave or something. As she neared the complex she saw a figure sitting on the bench at the bus stop. She had long ebony hair and wore a purple dress shirt and long matching skirt.

Vinyl could almost feel her pupils dilating as her heart sped up and her pace quickened a bit. Octavia was sitting at the bus stop by herself with no company but her Cello. This was a chance for Vinyl to talk to her! Well not talk, talk but that was neither here nor there. The pale girl quickly began to fumble in her pants pocket for her pen and notebook. It was then of course she heard the voice of one of her least favorite people in the world.

"Hey Vinyl how's your throat doing?"

Damnit Amethyst Star is here now. She though bitterly.

Amethyst Star was one of the more popular girls at Canterlot high and as such had a rather high opinion of herself. She was pretty, rich, and her father was the head of ministration which meant even Principle Celestia answered to him. She also had a superiority complex the size of most celebrities and was one of the many people who were not very fond of Vinyl. Try as she might to sink through the concreate and fade from existence she failed and soon noticed Octavia was looking her way with a sympathetic expression on her face.

"Hey Vinyl how's it going? Oh sorry I forgot to bring a white board for you to answer." Jeered the purple haired bully.

Vinyl clenched her fists in defiance but her shoulders slouched as she began walking. She was used to being made fun of, it was a near daily occurrence for her but the look of sympathy Octavia threw her way was humiliating. Of course getting away from Amethyst was harder than just picking up her pace as the girl kept stepping in front of her every time she tried to change course.

"What your not gonna say excuse me? That's what your supposed to say when you walk passed someone you know."

"Amethyst leave her alone! It's not funny!" Said Octavia as she stood up from her seat at the buss stop.

Vinyl bowed her head in shame. Even when people were trying to be nice to her it still made her feel worthless. She couldn't even defend herself from bullies because all they had to do to make her stop was crumple up her reply. As such one of two things tended to happen when someone made fun of her. They either got an audience to join in or someone would stand up for her and make her feel embarrassed at her own helplessness.

"Come on Octavia what are you getting upset about?"

"It's not her fault she can't talk and making fun of someone's disability is low even for you!"

Vinyl winced.

"You do realize who your talking to right? I'm as high up on the ladder of society as you can get!"

"Maybe because you spend all your nights on your knees!"

Vinyl swallowed a lump in her throat not sure what to do. If she left Octavia had no back up, not that she considered herself much back up anyways but if she stayed things would only get worse. Amethyst was already taking menacing steps towards Octavia after the last comment so naturally Vinyl did the first thing that came to mind to prevent the Raven haired goddess from getting into further trouble in her defense. She stepped in front of her with her hands held up in a it's not worth it gesture.

That was when for the first time that day Vinyl got a break. The city bus came to a screeching stop catching the attention of the three. With a glare and a raised nose Amethyst brushed harshly past Octavia before climbing on board and making for the back of the bus. Octavia quickly picked up her Cello before looking at Vinyl over her shoulder with yet another sympathetic glance as she too climbed on board.

With a heavy sigh the blue haired girl shouldered her backpack before turning to keep walking now sure to be late if the bus schedule was anything to go by. She hadn't even made it to school yet and she already wanted to cry. Then she felt something hit her head and tripped forward scrapping her knees in the process while the people in the buss laughed as it drove away with a loud "Nailed it!" coming from a voice sounding like Amethyst. Feeling the back of her head she realized somebody had sacrifice a yogurt cup from their lunch so they could throw it at her. As she touched the thick gooey dairy product in her hair her barriers began to break. getting back up with some sniffles she continued on he way to school this time though she cried as she walked. Better to do it where she couldn't get bullied for it.

V's Big "Bro" Neon

Vinyl grimaced as she pulled the dried blueberry out of her hair and a few strands with it. In the time it took her to get to the school the yogurt had dried mostly and now she was trying to wash as much of it out as she could. As it was she was likely already late for class, and her day was off to a bad start. When she scuffed her knees during her fall she had torn her favorite pair of pants on the pavement. These were in fact her last undamaged pair of pants, that is until now.

Dipping her head into the sink and running the water, she scrubbed her hair as best she could to get as much of the gunk out as possible. Suddenly she heard the bell for first period go off in the halls, and without thinking she raised her head nocking it on the faucet. A small sound akin to a scraping cough escaped her throat as she rubbed the back of her head in pain. Wincing and hissing through her teeth she quickly stuck her head under the hand dryer for a few moments before dashing out the bathroom to try and make it to class.

As she ran her still-wet hair clung to her head as water dripped onto her shoulders, back and chest. Miss Cheerilee, though always acting happy, was not the most tolerant of teachers when it came to tardiness. Her policy was to lock the door two minutes after the bell rang and anyone who was late got sent to the office. Vinyl had already used most of that trying in vain to dry her hair. As she rounded the corner she could see the shadow of someone making there way towards the door.

"Shit she's gonna close it!" Screamed Vinyl's thoughts.

She picked up her pace but it was hopeless. She still had half the hall to run, and the teacher's hand was on the door already. Rather than waste her effort on a failed attempt she stopped and watched as the door closed. She wanted to swear and make her anger known to the world, but knew full well all that would come out was a raspy hiss. So instead she leaned her back against the lockers and slid down till she sat. Now she had two choices, go to the office or just chill until second period. She opted for the latter.

Pulling her headphones out of her pocket, she plugged them into her IPhone before scrolling to her playlist of dubstep and picking one that was particularly loud. While once she had pondered the irony of a mute having a cell phone, she had long ago stopped caring. She could text and listen to music. At least she had a way to talk to her mom and Neon Lights, even if it wasn't talking, talking.

As she sat against the locker, listening to the loud buzzes, loops and wubs of her music with her eyes closed behind purple shades, she felt the device in her hand vibrate. Looking at the screen revealed that she had received a text from speak of the devil Neon. Flipping the answer key she looked down at the message on her phone.

"Hey V want to skip school today?"

She pondered the offer for a moment before deciding that while she liked the idea, skipping the day was out of the question. The morning however would be ok she supposed.

"Can't skip the day but fuck the mornings already off to a bad start. I missed getting into Cheerilee's room on time so half the morning is done already. What did you have in mind?"

"I was thinking we would head over to the arcade for a bit. I could spot you some quarters if you feel like loosing to me at some stuff?" He replied.

"You're on! meet me at the statue."

Stuffing her phone back into her pocket Vinyl got up from where she had been sitting and made her way to the front of the school building. Out of all the people she knew, Neon was probably the only one she considered a friend. He was the only person that neither bullied her nor pitied her. He simply treated her like any other person, which was a huge relief. He was the one person aside from her mother who saw past her muteness and acted the same around her as he would anyone else. Better still he had her back when she really needed it.

If she needed access to some equipment for a little DJing, be it for spare scratch or for the school, he would let her borrow his stuff. In fact the only reason she was able to DJ at all was because he was good enough to loan her his equipment when she needed it. The two of them never really seemed to fight, either, even though Vinyl never really did with anyone anyways. There was the one time she stole his car, or as he called it "the Bassmobile" but considering she had done it to stop the Sirens he let her off the hook for pickpocketing his car keys.

Pushing open the front doors to the school building she was greeted by her black haired and blue, grey skinned friend waving. She returned the gesture by fist pumping before doing a move reminiscent of Mirror's Edge to enter his car without opening the door.

"Hey V ready to go?"

Vinyl nodded as Neon put his foot to the gas and more or less peeled out of the school parking lot. As they drove the blue haired DJ hooked up her phone to the sound system in her friends car and turning the volume up as high as she dared letting the Bass wash over them. Vinyl began writing on her notepad a small question to ask her friend at the nearest opportunity. It came when they hit a stop light.

"How are things with Watermelody going? She doing good?"

"She's doing great and things are good. We're going out to The Tasty Treat tomorrow and I've got a little something planned."

Vinyl raised an eyebrow quizzically behind her purple shades.

"It's nothing big I just bought her a necklace is all."

Vinyl took off her shades and rolled her eyes so he could see.

"What?"

The DJ scribbled something down.

"Hoping to get lucky huh?"

The driver turned beat red.

"*Ehem* no it's not like that."

She gave an unconvinced deadpan expression.

"Ok fine it might have had a little something to do with it."

She smiled knowingly and punched his leg lightly.

"Ya ya go on make fun of me if you will but you would do the same thing for a black haired cellist."

The pale young woman went from white to pink.

"You really should talk to her V." He paused for a moment before making a rewinding motion with his right hand. "I mean not talk to her but write to her or I mean...Shit I'm sorry V."

Vinyl waved a hand dismissively and gave a small shrug as if to say it was fine. Neon relaxed a bit after seeing that.

"Thanks I'm sorry I just, you know get in the habit of what I say and..."

Vinyl pointed at him and put her pointer finger to her lips.

"Ya sorry I'll shut up now."

She nodded. They drove in silence for a few moments but Neon couldn't help but speak again, he was known for not being good at being quiet.

"You should try to explain how you feel though to her. I don't know Octavia well myself but Watermelody does and she says she's real sweet."

The DJ looked at her white hands in her lap.

"She also says that Octavia mentions you sometimes."

Her head bolted upright and snapped in his direction.

"She told me that Octavia see's you walk by her place everyday you have school and asked why you didn't take the bus."

She drooped her head again in embarrassment.

"She didn't tell her your stalking her or anything like that she just said you prefer to walk."

Vinyl gave him and irritated glance with furrowed eyebrows.

"What? I didn't do anything!"

Pulling out her note pad again Vinyl angrily scribbled a reply.

"I'm not stalking her! Yes I walk past her place because I hope to bump into her but I'm not following her everywhere she goes or stealing her gym cloths!"

"Whoa hey I didn't mean it like that sheesh I'm sorry ok?"

The girl just folded her arms with an angry exhale.

"Hey tell you what you can have my tickets ok? Will that work as a peace offering?"

The DJ put a curled finger under her chin before promptly nodding in acceptance.

/l---)O(---/l\

"How? Just...just...How?" Exclaimed Neon Lights.

The final score on Alone a competitive two person stealth shooter in the arcade was over 9000 points for Vinyl with a death count of zero. Neon's score was under 400 with a death count of three, and they had only cleared one area. The blue haired girl gave a cocky pleased smile of triumph against both the robots and her friend.

"You used a gun just once and a tactical baton on all the other take downs! How did you do that?"

Vinyl waved a finger back and fourth before spinning the plastic pistol like a gunslinger and holstering it in the machines holster. Neon drooped his head in shame while she pulled out a sketch pad and wrote down "You mad bro?" before shoving the pad in his face. After reading the note the taller male looked around the paper and held two fingers in close proximity.

"Just a little bit, like this much."

Vinyl's smile got wider.

"So you've kicked my ass at Alone, Psychedelic, Madness and even Spider Tank, further to the point you've beaten my high score on the first and last as well, and to top it all off I'm out of quarters because of all the buy ins I had to take from you using me as a meat shield."

"It's not my fault you can't outsmart a bunch of robots."

"Ya ya laugh while you can. Next time I'm not going easy on you."

Vinyl quirked an eyebrow with a half smile.

"Spose you'll be wanting a ride back to school?"

She nodded.

"Alright then lets get you back in time for lunch."

As the two of them made their way to Neon's car the older male pulled out his phone when a text caused it to buzz. With a few strokes he replied before climbing into the car and starting the engine.

"Who was that?"

"Watermelody asking if I can take her to lunch today."

Vinyl scribbled another question.

"You're in love with her aren't you?"

Neon smiled.

"Can you keep a secret V?"

She gave him a deadpan expression as if to say "Who the fuck am I gonna tell?". Neon chuckled at her look before turning down the road towards CHS.

"I'm gonna ask her to marry me V."

Vinyl's eyes went wide as dinner plates, even her shades couldn't hide her surprise.

"I get it she's a few months short of 18 and I'm a collage sophomore right?"

Vinyl's head bobbed from side to side as if to say "Kinda."

"I know her parents hate me, I know my folks don't approve, I know we're an odd match and I know she hasn't graduated yet but V, I love her. I love her more than my music, my parents and even my signed copy of Ra Ra's new album "Childhood Memories" I can't Imagine a life without her so I'm gonna tell her when she turns eighteen. My birthday gift to her is gonna be the promise that she's the one I choose out of all the others in the world."

Vinyl sat even quieter than normal for a little bit before scribbling a very carefully thought out reply.

"Wow you are sappy."

"Hey just because I'm a dude who can drink a bottle of vodka in one night doesn't mean I can't have feelings! Guys can be sensitive too little one."

With his right hand he ruffled his friends hair till she swatted his hand away in a fury. Neon gave a heartfelt chuckle before putting his hand back to the wheel.

"By the way I'm telling you this because I want you to come to the wedding if she says yes when I ask her. I know a guy usually asks his brother or a dude to be his best man but your the closest thing I got to a sibling and you're my best friend too so will you be my best man?"

He paused before adding.

"So to speak that is."

Dumbfounded it took Vinyl until they pulled up in the CHS parking lot to even think of a reply to write.

"Neon I can't talk! What about the speech? How am I gonna talk about how great you are or humiliate you in front of your new wife if I can't talk?"

"I'm sure you'll think of something V, you always do. For crying out loud when I was watching the battle of the bands with Watermelody and all that crazy shit happened you found a way to steal my car and help save the day! This should be a piece of cake for you. So...will you do it?"

Vinyl was silent for a while before looking at him again. He had been like a brother to her these past few years and while not always the best influence on her he knew how to make a bad day turn around. For crying out loud he would deliver his music equipment for a gig she had even if it was an hour before the performance, just because he knew how important it was to her that she make her music. How could she say no?

"How can I say no to my big brother?"

"Thanks V this means the world to me."

They shared a hug before Vinyl got out of the car and waved goodbye as she made her way towards the school entrance. Neon turned the car engine back on before peeling out of the parking lot and speeding down the street while bass came from his cars subs. The girl smiled as she thought of something, he wasn't like a brother to her, he was her brother even if not by blood.

Lunch With New Friends And A Chance Meeting

Vinyl scrolled through the many songs on one of her many playlists as she waited in the lunch line. All throughout the cafeteria the noise of chatting students and bad table manners could be heard. Once she had selected a song to listen to her gaze lifted from the phone to in front of her. Three students stood in front of her with plastic trays in their hands, the closest of which had gold and red hair and a trademark leather jacket.

"Hmm Sunset shimmer is later to the line than usual. Odd, normally she is up here with Twilight and the others but they've already sat down. She thought.

As Sunset reached the front of the line she placed the tray down and grabbed a bowl of fruit before sliding the tray down the line until she was in front of Granny Smith.

"Hey Granny! How you doing today?" She said with a smile.

"Oh just fine deary here you can have a little extra I know you must be hungry as a horse."

As Granny Smith placed a second spoon of mashed potatoes on the girls tray Vinyl noticed Sunset's face go from a smile to a slight frown. Most people wouldn't notice something like that but she was particularly gifted at reading people. It came with years of listening and none of talking. Unfortunately for Vinyl her fixation on the schools one and only magic expert resulted in her missing that there were spilled potatoes on the floor which she promptly stepped in and slipped with the comedic effect one would expect.

Time slowed as it always seems to when one falls and she tried to brace for the impact and the inevitable pain that would come with it, but it never came. When she opened her eye's she was greeted by the blue eyes and red gold hair of her savior. Sunset had looped an arm behind her shoulder and braced her feet stopping Vinyl from falling down. Once she was sure the blue haired girl had her footing back she let go before speaking.

"Whoa watch out there that looked like it would have hurt, you ok?"

Vinyl nodded.

"Wait, Vinyl?"

Another nod though this one came with a surprised expression.

"Hey we never thanked you for your help with the Sirens did we?" She paused for a thoughtful moment. "Come to think of it you have a knack for picking a good time to pitch in, you also helped Rainbow Dash at the Friendship games pep rally right?"

She shrugged her shoulders back with a small smile.

"You don't talk much huh?"

Vinyl produced her IPhone with her free hand and pulled up the text screen to use as an impromptu note pad.

"I can't talk, I'm mute."

Sunsets expression turned to one of horror at her mistake.

"Oh damnit I'm sorry I brought it up, please forgive me!"

"It's fine I'm used to it don't be so hard on yourself."

"Thanks Vinyl I was terrified I'd offended you. Hey do you want to sit with me and my friends? We have space at our table."

Vinyl gave a surprised but enthusiastic nod before falling into step beside sunset. As they walked the aspiring DJ's observational skills kicked in and she noticed a number of things about Sunset. Her jacket while in good condition was clearly worn. The weather had dried and cracked the leather in places, a trait normally only seen in old jackets or ones that had been used frequently in the rain. Anyone with leather clothing knew it ruined the leather to use it in the rain so that could indicate that Sunset didn't have another jacket.

She also noticed that her boots had been touched up in places with marker and the soles of them were well worn. This was easily noticeable to her as she had used this same pair of shoes for the past three years and the only reason they still fit was that she had finished growing early. Last she noticed a small but still present stich in her shirt that was clearly sewn by hand. All these were tell tale signs of something she knew a lot about. Making each pay check stretch as far as it would go.

"She must be hurting for money like me and mom."

Vinyl had been so focused on her observations she barely noticed that they had arrived at the table in time not to crash into it. Quickly sitting down to hide her small misstep. Sunset sat next to her and the pair were soon greeted by five of the other six most popular girls at CHS.

"Hey girls sorry I'm late I got held up at principle Luna's office."

"Your not in trouble are you Sunset?" Asked Fluttershy.

"No nothing like that. She just wanted to ask about the progress me and Twilight were making in the "better understanding of magic" project. Speaking of which where is she?"

Rarity and the others shared a clearly significant glance with one another.

"She and a certain avid reader made a rather important step in their relationship last Friday at one of their study sessions. I think she's going to spend the next few lunch's with him to umm enjoy things a little bit." Said Rarity with a knowing smile.

"You mean they..."

"Shhh Darling! mums the word!"

"No, right, Sorry! I just can't believe they finally got there. I was really starting to wonder if it was ever going to happen!"

"The poor dear was having a hard time explaining things she was wringing her wrists and-"

"An' then Rainbow Dash charged in and guessed it by dropping the F bomb, among other things." Said Applejack.

"I'm gonna throw a Twilight lost her V-"

"Pinkie Pie this is not the sort of thing you make public or throw a party for!" Exclaimed a horrified Rarity clasping her hand over the pink girls mouth.

Vinyl sat as an island in the storm of all this with her eye's darting back and fourth between whoever was speaking and whoever cut them off. Sunset eager to de-rail this subject before it got out of hand broke in the middle of Rarity explaining how this particular act of love their friend had experienced was a private matter and why a party was inappropriate.

"Hey girls this is Vinyl! You might remember her from the battle of the bands or some of her other performances?"

"Oh but of course! Where are my manners? How wonderful to meet you more properly darling!" Said Rarity in her trademark manner.

"Howdy!" Said Applejack taking her hand in a crushingly strong shake.

"Hey the DJ from the Pep rally! Awesome!" Rainbow Dash yelled fist pumping.

"Oh maybe I can throw a welcome to our school's lunchroom table party for Vinyl! Said Pinkie with a burst of confetti coming from seemingly thin air.

Fluttershy simply waved with a soft smile as Vinyl, barely recovered from the barrage of welcomes waved a reply before pulling out a notepad to write out a proper one.

"Thanks for letting me sit with you guys, and thanks for the welcome."

"Well why wouldn't we be happy ta see ya suger cube? We might not have stopped the Sirens without your help! We owe ya a lot more than a place to sit at lunch."

"Thanks but this is more than enough, I get tired of sitting by myself sometimes so...thanks!

"Why do you sit alone?" Asked the quietest of the bunch.

"I don't really have any friends that go to this school so I just keep to myself mostly."

"WHAT!" Burst out the pink one after reading the reply.

Vinyl felt hands on her shoulders as pinkie reached out and shook her making her glasses slide to a lopsided position.

"How can this have happened! A person with no friends to sit with at lunch and I didn't know! We have to throw you a party and get you lots and lots of friends stat!"

"Pinkie Pie let her go you'll strangle the poor dear!"

"Oops...sorry."

Vinyl took a moment to catch her breath and recover before scribbling down a sloppy "Sall' good!."

"Darling if I may ask why do you write instead of speak?"

Sunset was about to interject but Vinyl put a hand on her shoulder before shaking her head with a smile. Sunset seemed to get the message and sat back down as Vinyl tor off the used up sheet of paper and began writing down the answer.

"I haven't been able to talk since I was born, it's got something to do with my genetics is all the doctor could tell me."

"Oh my we're sorry to hear that." Rarity paused a moment before putting a hand over her mouth and correcting herself. "I mean read not hear because-"

Vinyl raised her hand with a smile gently shaking her head from side to side. Looking back at the group of girls across from her she pointed at them then herself before giving a double thumbs up. They all gave a collective sigh of relief as the DJ began to scribble out a sentence.

"It's ok I know it takes some getting used to in order to talk to someone like me. It's pretty hard to offend me so don't worry about a slip up every now and then. We're cool."

"That's very good of you Vinyl." Said Sunset putting a hand on her shoulder.

She simply smiled and shrugged.

"well I think I speak for all of us when I say we'd be more than happy to have you sit our table Vinyl, if you want to of course." Said Sunset.

Vinyl smiled broadly at that.

"All my friends call me V!"

/l---)O(---/l\

The final bell. The sound that almost every high school student in history waits for every single weekday. That was the sound that all of CHS heard at this moment and it took mere seconds for the halls to be filled with students running to their lockers, cars and the bus so they could go home and do as they pleased. Octavia Melody a woman of punctuality, poise and precision found herself in a difficult situation. She had been re-stringing her cello and lost track of time while doing so and as a result the bell had caught her off guard.

By the time she had packed her cello and made it outside to the bus stop the vehicle was long gone. She released an exasperated sigh of frustration while tugging on her hair. Hard enough to relieve some stress but not enough to pull out strands. Once she was calm again she sat down on the bench and pulled out her phone. A quick text revealed that her mother was not going to be able to pick her up which meant that unless she wanted to wait two hours for the next scheduled city bus arrival she had to walk home...with her cello.

As she put a hand to her forehead in frustration someone entered her peripheral vision causing her to look up. She was greeted by a note pad.

"Are you ok? You look upset."

"Oh I'm fine dear I just need to figure out how to lug this great thing home by myself." Replied the grey skinned girl.

"Don't you take the bus?"

"Yes I normally would but I missed it today, I was tuning my cello you see and I lost track of time. Now I need to find a way to get this big hunk of wood home with me and I live ten blocks away."

Vinyl had put away her notepad by the time Octavia had finished saying "missed it", and was now shouldering her backpack so that it was supported by both shoulders. Much to the astonishment of the Raven haired cellist Vinyl picked up her cello and gestured down the road in the direction of the apartments she walked by everyday.

"Are you...? No I couldn't ask you to carry my cello all that distance for me! I'll manage I'm sure."

The DJ took a few steps foreword and waved her hand in a follow me motion.

"But I..."

Vinyl just smiled and gestured for her to follow again finally the young woman complied.

"This is most decent of you but if it gets to be too heavy please let me know alright?"

She gave a thumbs up with her spare hand.

"You won't be going out of your way will you?"

She shook her head.

"Might I ask your name? I see you walk by my home often but I never asked."

Vinyl pulled out her phone from her left pocket and picked out the text screen. With her thumb she typed her reply.

"My name is Vinyl Scratch."

"Thank you for your help miss Scratch, I'm sorry you must find it rude of me to not know your name despite seeing you go passed my house often for four years. Not to mention after you offered to help me get my cello home."

"It's ok I'm happy to help and it's no trouble, I go passed the Crystal Apartments every time I walk home so it's on the way."

"Still at least for today you're my hero."

Vinyl tried desperately to hide her growing blush and even harder not to go into a fantasy world where she was saving Octavia from some high up tower with naught but a sword and a shield. The thing she fought hardest to not think about was the idea of a hero's reward for saving her.

"Are you alright dear? You look a bit flushed."

Vinyl quickly shook her head before dry swallowing and nodding in reply.

"Well when we reach my place I'll be sure to get you something to drink as a thanks for helping me, perhaps a snack as well?"

Vinyl shook her head no with a small smile but her stomach rumbled loudly causing her face to get redder. Octavia giggled before speaking up again.

"Dear me you must be hungry, don't worry about trying to be polite and proper thanks is in order and if you are thirsty, hungry or both it's the least I can do to say thank you."

With a quiet sigh Vinyl nodded in defeat. Besides if she said yes it meant she would get to spend time with Octavia...at her house...Alone...where her bed was-"Damnit Vinyl get your head out of the gutter and stop fanaticizing!"

/l---)O(---/l\

As Vinyl carefully carried the cello case through the door Octavia followed close behind closing the door after them. The blue haired girl soon found herself amazed at the sheer size of the apartment and the fine finish on the walls and woodwork. In the main room hung numerous paintings and a gas powered fireplace, the windows were crystal clear and there were even stairs leading to a second floor of the enormous apartment.

"You can set the cello down in the corner when your done looking around dear."

Vinyl started in place before complying as Octavia opened the chrome finished fridge and withdrew a tray of egg salad sandwiches cut into triangles. Once placed on the kitchen island she returned to the storage unit and produced a pitcher of iced tea. Upon turning back around she saw that Vinyl was already on her third sandwich and seemed to be eating hungrily.

"My you were hungry weren't you?"

Vinyl swallowed before typing out an apology on her phone.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to be rude!"

"Oh it's fine dear don't worry, help yourself while I get some glasses for the tea." As she turned her back to fetch the glasses she realized something. "She's awfully thin for someone who eats so ravenously, It must be all the walking she does."

Vinyl had finished half the sandwiches by now and was forcing herself not to swallow the rest. the truth of the matter was that today had been the most she had been able to eat all week. She got lunch on weekdays due to the schools system paying for her but more often than not there was no breakfast at home towards the end of the month and dinner was even rarer. nights that she went to bed full we're uncommon to say the least. Octavia carefully poured out two glasses of tea at exactly the same height before pushing one towards her guest who drank three gulps in quick succession.

"I say you must have been thirsty! I'll pour you a bit more shall I?"

She prepared to pour more of the beverage but stopped when Vinyl placed her left hand on top of the glass and wrote a sentence down with her right.

"Don't worry this is enough."

"Oh, alright then."

The two sat in silence for a moment as they both sipped their tea. The DJ pushed the tray of sandwiches towards Octavia but she promptly pushed them back and told her to go ahead as she rarely ate them. The blue haired girl persisted but was beaten when the cellist refused to hear contrary. Finally Octavia broke the silence with a question.

"Why is it you don't speak if I may ask?"

Vinyl swallowed the sandwich she was chewing before looking down at the table. For a minute the raven haired girl thought she had offended the other woman but she looked back up and producing the note pad again wrote the answer to her question.

"I was born without properly developed Larynx so I can't make most of the sounds needed to speak. I can make sounds like f,s or sh but that's it, I can only make those because they use the tongue and lips instead of the Larynx to be pronounced but since I can't make vowel sounds I can't talk."

"I'm sorry to hear that Vinyl and I'm sorry asked you such a personal question I shouldn't have intruded."

"It's fine Octy, I wouldn't have told you if I didn't want to."

"Octy?" Asked the cellist with an amused look. Vinyl's face paled as she franticly scribbled a reply.

"Sorry I was just short handing! If that's not cool than I'll write your full name next time!"

"Vinyl dear it's fine, I actually kind of like it. It has a certain ring to it, Octy...it's nice."

The DJ gave a silent sigh of relief before glancing at the clock on the wall and seeing the time had gone to four thirty.

"I should go, I need to get home and clean up some before my mom gets back from work."

"Oh alright then, have a safe trip home dear."

She gave a thumbs up.

"Oh and Vinyl?"

She paused at the door.

"Thank you for being so kind today, If you want you can sit with me and my friends at lunch I'll save you a spot."

The DJ smiled and blushed a bit before nodding and waving as she left through the door. As she walked down the steps to the street she found herself smiling happily, for a bad start to the day it had turned out pretty good after all.

Care For A Little Adventure?

Vinyl awoke with the usual aches and pains that accompanied a night sleeping on her old mattress. Most every morning began like this and today was no different. Stretching and cracking her knuckles, neck and back she pushed the door of her closet open with her foot and crawled out across her bed into the main room of the apartment. Her mother was still asleep on her old couch snoring softly so she treaded carefully towards the kitchen area.

After checking what remained of the provisions she opted to skip breakfast for her mothers sake. There was only enough cereal to make even a meager breakfast for one person let alone splitting it in two. So with an empty stomach and a sore body Vinyl made her way to the door put on her shoes and slung her backpack across her back before walking out the front to go to school early. The nearly empty box of cereal remained atop the table as she had left it.

/l---)O(---/l\

Water dripped off of Vinyl's bangs as she trudged forward through the rain. She had been walking for a full three minutes before the first drop of water landed on her nose and was soon followed by it's companions in quick succession. Now every other step was in a puddle and every step that wasn't in a puddle was made with the squish of a soggy shoe and sock. She was nearing the Crystal Apartments and was hoping to bump into Octavia this morning. If she was lucky they could talk for a bit before Octy had to go on the bus and she had to continue in the rain.

When the Crystal Apartments bus stop came into view Vinyl was warmed by a most welcome sight. Octavia sat at the bus bench with her cello and an umbrella and there was no Amethyst Star in sight. Picking up her pace with a slight spring in her step she walked over to the Raven haired Cellist and was greeted with a friendly smile.

"Oh why hello- Oh my, Vinyl your soaked to the bone!"

The DJ shrugged before sitting down on the bench next to Octavia.

"What are you doing walking in weather like this! You should at least be wearing a rain coat, you'll catch your death in this weather!"

Grabbing her phone from inside a protected pocket in her pack Vinyl gave a reply.

"It's fine I've lived through worse."

"No dear it's not fine, your not even dressed warm! Your hands are shaking for goodness sake!"

Sure enough Vinyl's hands were pruney and cold, even paler than usual as well. Octavia reached into a pocket on her cello case and pulled out a purple scarf and a pair of black gloves handing them out to the freezing girl beside her.

"Put these on this instant I insist."

Vinyl tried to object by holding up her hands but to her surprise Octavia used it against her and slipped both gloves on faster than she could pull away. Seconds later the scarf was tied in a comfortable knot around her neck.

"There that's a bit better now you can be warm until the bus arrives."

Vinyl shook her head, pointing at herself then the sidewalk making walking motions with her pointer and middle finger.

"No Vinyl your not going to walk to school in this weather I won't allow it!"

Her fingers now covered in gloves, couldn't type well on her phones text message screen so instead she reached into her pack again and produced a fortunately still dry pad of paper and a pencil holding them in the safety of the bus stop roof and Octavia's umbrella.

"I can't ride the bus, I don't have any tokens."

"Dear they accept money too, it's only a dollar a day."

Vinyl sighed reluctantly before scribbling an honest reply down opting for truth rather than a lie. She hated lying and only did it if desperate.

"Mom doesn't really have any money to spare for that sort of thing and she won't let me get a job because I'm in school."

"Oh? Oh...I see..."

Suddenly things made more sense to Octavia. She thought back to yesterday and Vinyl's sandwich binge. Until now she simply assumed that she had a large appetite but now she saw that the girl probably didn't get enough to eat. As if on cue Vinyl's stomach growled somehow louder than yesterday.

"Please tell me you've had breakfast."

She gave an unconvincing nod followed by an even louder growl causing her to clench her stomach from the empty ache. That was all Octavia needed to know to make her next decision. Standing up she lifted her cello with her spare hand while holding the umbrella above her and her new friend with the other.

"We're going to Sugar Cube corner and you are going to pick out anything you want and eat it along with a nice coffee or tea."

Vinyl shook her head then pointed to herself with her thumb before making a don't worry I'm fine foreword wave.

"I'm not asking dear I'm telling you to get your rear off that bench and come with me to get some food."

With a quiet sigh and a shrug she did as she was told but unwilling to be a burden she reached out and took Octavia's cello case from her before pointing down the road as a signal to lead the way.

"Fine you can carry it if you promise to eat your fill and not what you think would be polite." Said Octy sternly.

/l---)O(---/l\

When they arrived Octavia handed Vinyl a ten dollar bill and said she wouldn't take a penny back and it was hers to do as she would. When the DJ returned with her purchases she had a large coffee, a scone, a muffin, a small bowl of fruit and a plastic wrapped cluster of three cookies. Once again she ate hungrily but this time with a bit more restraint so as not to embarrass herself in front of her crush.

Octavia sat across from her sipping a cup of tea quietly thinking and feeling a bit guilty about her privilege compared to Vinyl. She had never had to worry about her next meal and anytime she wanted new shoes or a CD or anything of that nature all she had to do was ask. Vinyl had none of these privileges and yet still she took Amethyst Star's bullying without any resistance and would help others at the drop of a hat. She found herself feeling upset that life had been so unfair to this sweet person cross from her eating cookies like they were bite sized.

Here was a person she didn't know much about but still felt drawn to help out of...pity? No that wasn't it she was actually enjoying just sitting quietly with this friendly individual. Vinyl was just sort of likeable. She had made a good first impression when she offered to carry her Cello home yesterday but that still wasn't it either. Frustrated at being faced with a perplexing question she didn't know the answer too Octavia blurted out the next one that came to mind.

"Why we're you so kind to me yesterday Vinyl?"

The DJ coughed on a bit of cookie caught off guard by the question and not sure how to respond. It wasn't like she could just say "Oh I've had a crush on you for the passed several months so I was thrilled when I had an excuse to talk to you." Instead she took a sip of her coffee to hide her blush and despite her poor skills and hatred of lying gave the best fib she could think of on short notice.

"Because you stood up for me in front of Amethyst yesterday."

Vinyl gave her best smile as she ate another cookie, while Octavia continued to think. Looking out the window she saw that the rain had stopped and while the sun wasn't shining the weather was improving slowly. It was then that the blue haired woman across from her felt her phone buzz in her pocket. pulling it out she read the message, seeing it was from Neon. Her irresponsible brother figure had sent her an invite to something that peeked her interest and in a moment of bravery she scribbled a question to Octavia.

"Hey Octy, what would you rather do? Go to school today or go on an adventure with yours truly?"

The Cellist was Silent for a moment but for some reason, despite every fiber of her upbringing screaming the opposite she felt both intrigued and energized by the Idea of doing something bad and skipping school. She was having a good time with Vinyl too and she wanted to hang out more so why shouldn't she? It would be rude to refuse an invitation from a friend wouldn't it? Against her better judgement she gave the reply she felt like giving rather than the one her parents would approve of.

"An adventure? What did you have in mind?"

Onward to Adventure!

Vinyl and Octavia sat on the curb of Sugar Cube Corner awaiting the arrival of Neon Lights, who was picking them up for their little "adventure". Cars passed them by on the busy street and the quiet was becoming more awkward by the moment. Looking for any way to ease the silence Vinyl pulled out her earbuds and offered one to Octavia. The Cellist looked at it quizzically as the young DJ typed something out on her I Phone.

"I was wondering if you wanted to hear one of the remix's I made? I'm always looking for a second opinion.

"Oh well, in that case I'd be delighted Vinyl."

With that she took the spare earbud and rested it in her right ear while the blue haired girl put one in her left. Careful not to turn the volume up too high and burst the raven haired girls eardrums she set the volume to thirty and hit play on the remix she had titled "Free We Can Be". As with most of her songs there was a low roll of base in the background while other sounds of machines took over the foreground of the song.

For Octavia this was a new type of music, she was used to string instruments, the sound of Violins and on occasion drums and other such things. Rock was by far not her favorite type of music, but she partook from time to time. In fact it occurred to her that this was her first time listening to electronic music.

The sound of the beats in the background continued to rise as well as the other sounds. She could feel her ears vibrating from the intensity of the growing noise but for some reason she liked it. The sound of Dubstep was completely foreign to her, it was a kind of music she had never heard but, while incredibly different and in no way close to what she was used to, it did have it's own charm. It was loud, it was rude, it was the opposite of everything her parents had told her she was supposed do and everything she was supposed to be.

The music only got louder but suddenly stopped. for a split moment she thought the song was over but then a mechanical sounding voice shouted "BASS DROP!" and her ears were bombarded by the loud screeches and the blasts of scraping wires and technology crying in her mind. She flinched at first but didn't pull the bud out, finding that this only continued to feed the fire that she was feeling from the earlier part of the song. It was like this music, this song, was an act of protest against the world's Ideals of decency. It was like nothing she had ever heard.

As the song came to an end Octavia found herself almost remorseful as the feeling of renegade behavior was leaving her. Still, no song can last forever and this ones end was at hand. Removing the earbud from where it hung on her lobe she turned to Vinyl.

"That was wonderful Vinyl! You made this?"

"Well sort of yeah. It's a remix of a song, so I took one that already existed and threw my own spin into it. I liked the song but I felt that if I could change it a bit I could change the meaning of it."

"What was the message supposed to be and what was the original song about?"

The DJ took a second to remember the interview with the author she had seen on YouTube before answering by typing a reply on her phone.

"The origonal song was called "Damned Are We". It was supposed to be about how we're being oppressed by the people who run our world. At least that's what the guy who made it said he wanted the message to be. I kept a lot of the background, but changed some of the louder parts and the quieter ones while re-writing different portions."

"But you changed the message when you changed the song right? What was it supposed to mean?"

She smiled, typing out another reply.

"When you listened what did you feel?

Octavia took a moment to think about how to answer, after a full few minutes she was able to piece together her feelings as best she could.

"I felt...free, rambunctious and...and..."

Vinyl cocked an eyebrow with a coy smile accompanying it.

"And, guilty..."

"What I was shooting for was that if we want things to change, but they aren't changing, we have no one to blame but ourselves. Change comes from action, not from wanting it."

"Well, that was...deep Vinyl."

The DJ smiled and nodded in thanks. Octavia was about to ask if Vinyl had any other songs that she had made, but was interrupted by the growing sound of bass from a different source. Looking to her right she saw that Vinyl had stood up and was looking down the road, waving a hand as if to get someone's attention. As she got to her own feet a black haired driver pulled up on the side of the street and leaned towards the DJ.

"Hey V! Ready for the party?"

She nodded and pulled out her phone while turning to face Octavia.

"Octy, meet Neon Lights, my big brother."

"Neon Lights, as in Water Melody's boyfriend Neon Lights?"

"The Very same." He replied. "I take it your Octavia?"

"Why yes, I am."

"Nice to meet you, I've heard a lot about you from Water Melody. I take it Vinyl asked you to tag along with us?"

"Yes, she was kind enough to invite me to come along."

"Cool, hop in and we'll head out."

With a cocky smile Vinyl vaulted over the cars back door into the backseat of the open roofed car before opening the door for a surprised Octavia. The Cellist climbed in before turning towards Vinyl.

"That was quite the display! How did you do that?"

"I took parkour classes for a while. I'm not the best but I can climb a two story building and do a lot of the basics."

With yet another cocky smile the DJ kicked up her feet upon the top of the passenger chair and leaned back in the seat. Neon revved the engine before putting his foot down and pulling a U turn that Octavia was sure he would have been fined for had an officer been present. As they drove towards the east side of town Neon did his best to make conversation. So naturally the first thing he asked was...

"So I take it you were expecting me to be younger, and not a sophomore in collage right?"

"Wait your in college! Umm, well, I..."

Vinyl snorted into her hand at the bluntness and the reaction it got out of Octy. Neon joined in with a hearty chuckle as he made a left turn on a yellow light.

"Relax, I get it. I'm a bit old for her right?"

"I didn't say that."

"But you were thinking it right?"

"Well...yes."

"Yeah, her folks hate my gut's and my parents are pissed too, but sometimes you got to just say fuck it. In my case, love is more important to me than others approval. That's why Water Melody comes first."

"I thought I saw you at the Friendship games with Crystal Prep though?"

"Yeah, that was me. I went there when I was younger but sometimes if they're short staffed for a field trip I help chaperone. Miss Pencil Pusher was sick that day so I took her place."

"I see."

"Your taking this better than most people do, so thanks for that."

He looked back with a smile as he stopped at a red light.

"Neon's a good guy Octy. Well ok, he is a bad roll model, but he's like a brother to me and he always has my back."

"Like a brother to you?"

"Me and Vinyl aren't related but we might as well be. We've been friends since she was seven. We used to be neighbors before I moved into the school dorms. We started hanging out because we were pretty much the only people who could tolerate each other's irresponsibility."

Vinyl held out her hand for a high five and Neon was quick to accept. More comforted by the show of kinship, Octavia finally asked the question she had been holding on to for a while.

"So where are we going?"

The blue haired DJ smiled wide.

"It's a surprise my dear Octavia. It's a surprise...

Party In The Junkyard

Octavia had long ago given up trying to guess where Neon and Vinyl were taking her. Every time she thought she had figured it out they would either drive passed it or turn down a different road. Now they were nearing the edge of Canterlot City and she was well and truly out of ideas. Even so, when they arrived at their destination she found herself perplexed. There were many cars, vans, and even some motorcycles but they were at a junk yard of all places. As Neon killed the engine Vinyl once again neglected the door as she hopped out. Still she must have seen the confused look on Octavia's face since she grinned wickedly as she pulled out her phone.

"We're here Octy!"

"We're at a junkyard?"

Vinyl nodded, her smile only growing.

"I'm afraid I don't understand?"

The DJ typed furiously, clearly excited.

"It's a junkyard raid! Amature bands from all over the city come out and perform as loud as they can while everybody either dances and listens to the music or loots the place for whatever they want! People bring food and drinks and just cut loose, it's awesome! You haven't lived until you've been to one of these!"

"Is this legal?"

Vinyl scratched the back of her neck with a nervous grin.

"As long as we don't get caught."

Octavia paled a bit, if her parents learned she had been here for this they would be beyond furious but...she felt it again. She felt excited, sick and naughty all at once! She was breaking rules, it was Taboo, and even though she felt like she could vomit, at the same time she felt...alive. She was pulled from her thoughts when a hand waved in front of her face and she saw a concerned looking Vinyl holding her phone out for her to read off of.

"Are you ok with this? If it's too much or your uncomfortable I can ask Neon for the keys and take you home.

The Cellist thought for a moment. On the one hand she had an out now, Vinyl had offered and she could leave. She could go back to town and pretend this never happened and if she was lucky her parents wouldn't even know she'd skipped school. On the other hand though, she was already here and didn't want to ruin Vinyl's and Neon's fun either. On a final note she had to admit that breaking all these rules was giving her a sickeningly good rush, like she had drunk a dozen cups of coffee on an empty stomach! Cracking an excited and nervous smile she gave her answer.

"I'll follow your lead Vinyl, I trust you."

Vinyl's heart skipped a beat at those words. She felt fuzzy and warm like the first time she had downed a shot of Whiskey, strangely enough it was at one of these raids. She felt high on life and in a moment of adrenaline she flung open the car door and pulled Octavia out by her hand and rushed passed the junkyard gate with the Cellist in tow.

As they hurried through the place, passing mountains of scrap metal and other forms of debris, the sound of electric guitars and makeshift drums began to get louder and louder. The pair could hear it growing, and their hearts sped up both from the running and the growing intensity of the music. Once they rounded the final pile of stacked old cars a glorious sight for Vinyl and a new one for Octavia came into view.

In a large clear area of the Junkyard was a makeshift stage crafted from old car beds. All kinds of people were about jumping, dancing, head banging, and even a few pairs dancing in provocative, suggestive manners. There were people with dyed hair and black clothes adorned with bracelets, rings, chains and all manner of gothic clothing that jangled as they danced. There were people with long braids, dreadlocks and tie-dye, wool and plaid shirts and even others who looked completely normal. In fact Octavia was sure she could see a familiar black and yellow leather jacket and a two toned head of sunset hair.

On the stage the current players were saying their thanks to the crowd and making way for the next performers who were dressed in black paint and leather clothing of the same dark shade. While they did this one of the members from the group taking the stage was setting up gear where they removed. Drums and guitars all made from hashed-together materials! On the drums were old trash can lids and the bodies of the drums were old cut up oil drums. Even the electric guitar was covered in salvaged matierals for a junk yard look as was the microphone on stage.

To say that Octavia was experiencing culture shock was an understatement but at the same time she was invigorated. Her blue haired guide to this strange new world was smiling at her watching as her friend took all of this new place in.

"Vinyl this is...I don't know what to call this!"

The pale girl gave a toothy, beaming smile before flipping out her phone again to respond.

"It's bitchen right? The first time I came to one of these I had so much fun I got an adrenaline rush and threw up!"

"What am I supposed to do though?"

"Whatever you want! There's no limits here, we're free to do anything! That's the whole point of these things, we tell society to leave us alone and make our own! Don't worry, stay close to me and Neon and we'll keep you out of too much trouble."

Vinyl winked as Octavia read the last part before grabbing her hand again and pulling her through the crowd. Octavia held on firm, while she was trying to be adventurous she would be lying if she said she was completely comfortable. This place, while exciting, was entirely foreign to her and she would be lost without a guide and someone to help her. As a result she found herself incredibly happy that Vinyl was making sure to keep her close at hand.

When they finally found Neon he was at the front of the crowd with a surprisingly familiar face that should have been at the same place Octavia and Vinyl we're supposed to be.

"Sunset Shimmer?" Exclaimed Octavia.

"Hey! There you two are, Neon was just telling me that you guy's were here too!"

Vinyl quickly reached out and high fived Sunset before typing a quick question.

"I never knew you were into these kinda things! When the hell did this start?"

"You kidding? I love these raids! I haven't been able to make one since freshmen year though."

"I thought you were reformed now though?"

Said Vinyl teasingly. Sunset laughed loud enough to be heard over the crowd.

"I may be reformed but I never quite stopped being a bad girl, you've got to live from time to time right V?"

Vinyl gave a happy and approving nod but before she could type anything more there was a great noise from the stage.

"How is everybody today!" Yelled the performer into the microphone.

The crowd cheered.

"Great to see you all here today! We just need a few more minutes to set up then we're gonna rock this junk yard till it falls down!"

The crowd, that at Octavia's best guess made at least fifty in all, cheered at the top of there lungs. The Cellist had to clasp her ears at the sheer volume. Turning toward Vinyl she saw the girl had an excited look on her face but somewhere within that smile she still saw...sadness? Sorrow? It was strange, it was both a sad and happy smile at the same time. Vinyl was unaware of Octy's observations, all the same though, unknown to the black haired Cellist, they were right.

While Vinyl loved the crowds and the music it was impossible for her to be in a setting like this without being a bit sad too. While others would cheer, she had to be silent. Where others would sing, she had to be silent. Where others would laugh, she could only cough. Her smile was slowly turning to a frown as she continued to think of the same thing she always thought at times like these. No matter how bad she wanted to she would never be able to do the things the others could. She would never find a voice to call her own.

Just when she was about to lower her head to hide her frown she felt a hand on her right shoulder. Turning to look she saw the soft purple eyes and calm grey skinned face of Octavia looking at her with concern. Leaning foreword she spoke directly into vinyl's ear. "Are you all right Vinyl?" Unknown to the Cellist Vinyl's heart sped up, her pupils dilated and her skin got goose bumps. Octavia was touching her! She could feel the beautiful girls breath on her ear and the touch of her finger tips on her shoulder. She was having to fight not to hyperventilate or worse still get over excited. With a deep gulp and flushed cheeks she hurriedly fumbled out her phone and pecked with anxiety at the keys on the screen.

"I'm fine Octy don't worry just thinking a bit."

"What about?"

"Its not important, don't worry, we're here to have fun and cut loose!"

Vinyl followed up the message with a reassuring smile. Octavia didn't quite believe her but before she could say so the sound of a guitar rang out from the stage. The croud cheered and the band started playing.

Youtube Video

Suddenly the stage erupted with the sound of loud drumming and screaming guitars. The lead grabbed the mike practicaly stratling it. Howling like a wolf with his heart in the song the crowd gave way to the passion in the bands music. Right now the were free, no one owned them and no one could tell them what to do. The music only got louder and the cheering only doubled.

Everyone in the crowd cheered, danced, and screamed, jumping, howling, and singing along. Everyone, Octavia noticed, except Vinyl. The DJ had her eyes closed as if she was in a world of her own, then as if out of nowhere Vinyl's eyes shot open and she moved foreward out of the crowd into an open space. Then she began.

Vinyl would be lying if she said she wasn't unhappy about not being able to sing along and cheer the band on. But something happened when Octavia touched her shoulder and spoke with concern. The Cellist was worried for her, like a friend about another friend, yet they had only hung out together for two days, counting this one too. The girl must have stepped incredibly far out of her comfort zone to be here and she was doing it because Vinyl had asked her, she was doing it because they were friends.

If Octavia was willing to do that, then Vinyl figured she had nothing to complain about by contrast. That meant in her mind she had two choices, she could either continue to fuss or do something bold like Octavia had. She opted for the latter. In front of the crowd, between them and the stage, she took her place. She started small with basic arm and leg movements but as the music claimed more of her she got more adventurous more bold.

One moment she was dancing upright the next she had flipped onto her back, using the momentum of the flip she rolled towards her head and ended with a handstand. From there she fell foreword, landing again on her feet before rolling off them, keeping up the momentum to make it a backflip. Move after move, motion after motion, she continued break dancing and before long the crowd was not just cheering for the band but for her as well. Sunset let out a loud "You go girl GO!" and Neon swung his hand around above his head as he cheered for her. Through it all Octavia stood amazed at the display.

"She's gone her whole life bullied for being different and never being able to speak but she doesn't let it hold her back! She pushes on and lives like no one I've ever seen! She wont let her problems keep her down, she lives for life!"

Octavia continued to watch as the song came to an end, mesmerized by the world she had stepped into. She had taken a huge chance today and she was glad she did. It had paid off well.

Fighting Hurts Like Crap

When the song came to an end so did Vinyl's dancing. As she finished and moved back towards rejoining the crowd everyone she passed gave some kind of a gesture of appreciation, be it a pat on the back or a "you did awesome girl!" The DJ retook her position between Octavia and Neon Lights with a small grin on her face. She had done something bold and brave and, for the moment at least, she felt great about her achievement.

"Vinyl that was awesome!" Cheered Neon.

"Fucking tits V!" said Sunset slapping her on the shoulder heartily.

"It certainly was quite the performance Vinyl." Added Octavia with a genuine smile.

The DJ blushed making a 'it's no big deal' gesture with her hand to brush off the deed. Still, on the inside she felt great, if a bit dizzy from her performance. Once more everyone's attention was drawn to the stage as the lead singer spoke into the microphone.

"I see your all having a good time here! Especially you miss break dance!"

The crowd cheered and whooped as the singer pointed out Vinyl in the crowd. The girl tried to shrink, shying away a little bit from the large amount of attention she was receiving. Before she could disappear though, Neon swept her up and lifted her onto his shoulders amongst the crowd as they cheered in approval.

"We got another song coming up that I think your all gonna love! After all, we're all rebels here right! He yelled into the mike.

Youtube Video

The band started up again, moving with the music in their element, heads banging with black hair swinging in the air as they played their hearts out for the people in front of them loving their music. Octavia found herself moving with the music a bit as they played and when she looked to her left she saw that her blue haired guide had come down from her perch and was now jumping with the crowd beside her.

The Cellist's gaze lingered on the pale girl beside her, taking in the joy on her face and the energy radiating off of her. The sadness she had seen there earlier was gone now, at least for the moment. Something had changed after she had gone dancing, and whatever it was she was glad it had helped her friend. Not realizing she had zoned out Octy was suddenly staring into the purple shades of her new friend who was smiling back at her.

Octavia stammered out an apology for staring as she backed up, bumping into somebody on accident. In return she felt a shove on her back as a pair of hands pushed her for bumping their owner. Falling foreword, Octavia let out a small yelp of surprise as she plummeted towards the ground and the inevitable pain that would follow, but it never came. Thinking on her feet the DJ held out her arms to catch the falling angle in front of her before she could hit the ground. Succeeding in stopping her fall, she helped the girl to her feet again before lowering her shades to make eye contact and type a question.

"You ok Octy?!"

"Yes Vinyl I'm fine, thank you."

Nodding the blue haired girl carefully moved Octavia to the side before typing on her phone again and roughly grabbing the arm of the person who had dared push the raven haired girl. Once he was facing her she recognized him as Bulk Biceps' older brother Granite Brick, He was tall, bulky, and known for havin a mean streak. It didn't make any difference to her though. Shoving the phone in his face she sneered at him.

"What the fuck's wrong with you prick! Don't you touch her again or I'll kick your ass!"

The taller male in front of her shoved the phone away and got close to the DJ's face so that when he spoke spit landed on her nose and face.

"Fuck off Dike!"

That was the last straw. Octavia watched in horror and astonishment as Vinyl head butted the taller man in the nose and followed up by grabbing his shoulders to help her knee him in the groin. He fell to earth as Vinyl went to kick him in the chest to send him prone. Instead of what she intended however the larger bully grabbed her foot before it made contact and pulled her down. The DJ fell with a thud and hiss of pain as the brute tried to push his advantage by twisting her ankle. Vinyl Coughed out a hurt rasp as he did this, before using her other foot to kick his chin, making him loose his grip. Hobbling back into a standing position she raised her hands, ready to continue the fight as her foe stood back up doing the same. Just as she was preparing to launch another punch however, a voice called out that caught her attention.

"Vinyl please stop!" Cried the Cellist.

The DJ turned to face the girl but her challenger took the opportunity to get a free punch in, smashing his hand into the left side of her face. He followed it up with a blow to the gut and Vinyl stumbled back gasping with a bloody cheek, lip, and mouth. Her enemy let out a loud guffaw at her expense.

"Dumbass! You can't fight for shit!"

"Hey."

"Yeah wha-"

A loud smack rang out as Neon punched his adversary in the nose with his fist closed tight. He had used their fighting as a chance to sneak up behind Granite Brick so he could help out Vinyl. When the large man had stopped to laugh at her he took his chance and decked him. The blow was followed by a loud scream of pain and a very rewarding cracking noise as blood splattered the ground from the broken cartilage. Neon spit on his fallen enemy as he shook off the pain in his fist. Funny as it was to do so, hitting with a closed fist took it's toll on both parties, just one more than the other. While the aggressor lay rolling in pain, blood, and snotty tears, Neon stepped on him rather than over to get to Vinyl. Sunset and Octavia were helping to hold her upright as the crowd that had been at first watching music and dancing was now fixated on the beat up girl being kept upright by her two friends.

"All right everybody fuck off." Said Neon to the crowd. "Nothing to see here, go back to listening to your music."

The crowd gradually complied as a few people dragged the still crying bully out of the group, every so often another cry could be heard when they dragged him over a stone or bit of rubble. Neon gently moved Octavia out of the way and took her pace in helping keep the dizzy and hurt Vinyl upright. The four of them all silently agreed it was time to go and made there way for their vehicles. The Cellist followed as close to Vinyl as she could, watching as the pale girl limped with the help of her friends.

When they reached the car she took the opportunity to open the door as Neon and Sunset helped lower her onto the seat and get her bad leg in with as little pain as possible.

"You gonna be ok now V?"

She nodded and gave a thumbs up. Sunset patted her on the shoulder before speaking.

"I'm gonna head out. If I hurry I can make it to the school around lunch and maybe sneak in without being caught."

Vinyl pulled up her phone to type out a reply.

"Thanks for the help guy's, sorry I ruined everybody's day by picking a fight."

"Hey, that prick had it coming, right Sunset?" Chuckled Neon.

The girl nodded in response.

"You go on ahead to school, I'll take these two back to the city and drop them off at Sugarcube Corner so they can catch their breath before they do anything else."

"Gotcha, see you two at school ok?" Replied Sunset to the high school duo.

Octavia and Vinly nodded while the latter pressed some tissues from the glove box to her bleeding jaw. As Neon started the engine and backed out, the Cellist looked to her left at the beaten and bruised DJ beside her. She had started bleeding from her nose now too and was having trouble stemming the flow of blood from her lip and nose, even with her head tilted back.

"Here let me."

Octavia pulled out some more clean tissues and gently craned Vinyl's head forward while wiping the blood off her face and mouth. Unknown to both of them, Neon Lights was watching the display through the rear view mirror. The Raven haired girl continued to dab gently at her friends cuts and bruises trying to keep them clean.

"I don't know why you did that, he was practically twice your size."

Vinyl pulled out her phone and typed a reply on her text screen.

"He pushed you, almost made you fall down and get hurt."

Octavia's eye's widened.

"You got in a fight because of me?!" With her exclamation she pressed a bit too hard on the largest cut on Vinyl's cheek making her flinch in pain. "Oh sorry, sorry ,sorry!"

The DJ waved it off with a hand.

"I gave as good as I got."

"Vinyl, while it was sweet of you to try and protect me, it wasn't worth all this."

She frowned at Octavia's response.

"If someone hurts one of my friends it's always worth it."

"I...Vinyl, why will you stand up for everybody but yourself? When Amethyst Star or someone else is being mean to you, you...you won't do anything!"

The blue haired girl sighed through her nose accidently sputtering blood and making herself cough due to the gut punch she took.

"Oh my are you all right?"

The DJ nodded once she was done coughing. Typing on the phone again she answered the question.

"I don't do anything about it because I'm not worth it. My friends are."

"Oh Vinyl, you are too worth it. You're very sweet, kind, and brave to boot, not a lot of people are like that these days."

The pale girl blushed brightly at the compliment, shying away a little bit. Octavia giggled at the response as she touched up the last two bleeding cuts on her cheek.

"I think he must have had a ring or something on when he hit you, these cuts are pretty bad."

Vinyl shrugged.

"Hey girls we're here, V, have a five on me and get a drink to calm down. It's been a rough day so relax a bit and then head home is what I'd recommend."

She nodded as she took the bill with her right hand and climbed out of the car, careful to keep weight off her bad ankle. Once they made it inside the coffee shop Neon waved and drove off, leaving the two of them alone. The Cellist guided her friend to a table and then went to order their drinks and a few snacks before returning. There was quiet for a bit before Octavia broke the silence.

"I had a good time today.."

Vinyl raised a curious eyebrow.

"Up until the fighting I mean."

Her expression changed to a small smile.

"It was very different, and completely new to me. I haven't ever felt that...what's the word? Alive? Yes alive, I've never felt quite like that before! It was all so new and foreign to me, It was exciting!"

The DJ smiled.

"I'm glad, I was hoping you had a good time."

"I did. In fact, I wanted to ask you for your number so we could talk, if you wanted to spend some more time together?"

Vinyl practically beamed with joy. In near a frenzy she pulled out the contacts section of her phone and began adding a spot titled Octy.

"556-785-9983" said the Cellist with a smile.

The DJ hurriedly typed it in before giving her own.

"556-023-0991 is mine! Text me any time you want!"

"Very well, I will.

Vinyl smiled, fighting and getting beat up sucked, but she wouldn't trade today for anything.

Hard Knocks And Sweat Socks

It was Saturday at the Scratch household some days after the events at the junkyard, and yet Vinyl was still incredibly sore. She had gotten a good scolding from her mother upon her arrival home that day, though she eased up a bit after she found out she did it for a girl. Under the circumstances she was only grounded a week rather than two. The penalties of this grounding were that she was not allowed to use her phone for purposes other than writing and she couldn't leave the house except for school. The obvious problem with this though was seeing as how Alexa worked seven days a week, only one of which was at home, there was virtually no way to enforce this and so Vinyl was now laying on her bed listening to music with her shades on and eyes closed.

She tried to focus on the music she was trying to listen too but it wasn't working. No matter how much she wanted to empty it, her mind was so preoccupied by the bombardment of her thoughts that she could find no peace. Her and Octavia had been doing a good deal of texting to each other since Vinyl was grounded as it was the only way they could communicate at present, and even then only when V's mother wasn't home or being too observant. Right now she had nothing to do but think since Octavia was attending Cellist lessons for the next three hours.

Neon was on a date with Water Melody, and Sunset and the others we're busy working on some kind of project making use of the schools lab. While she had tried watching YouTube, listening to music, and even playing Tetris, nothing could take her mind off of one topic in particular,. More specifically one person in particular. The Raven haired angle, as Vinyl would call her in her mind, was at the forefront of all her thoughts. Try as she might the only thing she could think about was the girl she was crushing on. More and more with each day no less.

They were friends now, and for the first time Vinyl no longer had to hope to bump into her on "accident" or admire from afar. No, now she could text with her and meet up to have fun or just chat over coffee. Heck, they were spending more time talking now than her and Neon usually did! So why was she less content than usual, probably if she had to guess more than ever? She let out a quiet sigh of frustration with a small pound of her fist on her bed to join it. She knew why but had no way to vent or change it that came to mind.

She was friends with Octavia, good friends in fact but at the same time while she loved being around her she wasn't happy with just being friends, she wanted more than that. But what could she do? It wasn't fair to pin this on Octavia and she had no way of being able to know how she felt about her. She had no way of knowing if the feeling was mutual or if it would drive her away. Much as she wanted more from Octavia than friendship, the Idea of scaring her off worried her more than it hurt to be stuck where she was.

Life felt like purgatory. sometimes she was happy and would find a joke funny or be able to enjoy her music and hanging with Neon or the other girls, but then she would hear a song or see an image or something on the TV and all the pent up frustration of being stuck would come roaring into the forefront of her mind and take over the next several hours of her day. All she could do was sit and dwell on how much she was frustrated and how much it sucked.

She rolled onto her side and pounded the bed again, this time harder and recoiled with a hiss. Her hand was still sore and bruised from her scrap with Granite Brick. People always seem to forget that when you punch somebody it hurts your hand as much as it hurts the person taking the blow. Especially so if you hit something hard like the scalp or the elbow. She curled and uncurled her hand to ease the pain a bit. She may have been bruised and sore from head to toe and still limping if she moved faster than a walk but it was worth it. On the same note she would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy a good scrap every now and then anyways.

She felt herself starting to laugh through her nose and was quick to clutch her stomach in pain. It still hurt to breath if she took one that was too deep. Those cheep shots that prick had taken were in no way light blows. Looking down she lifted up her shirt off her belly to see a large dark purple blotch the size of a soft ball. It was indeed still prominent and likely would be for a few more days, the soreness had gone down to a dull occasional throb but if she moved she was soon reminded of that eventful day.

She pulled the shirt back down and sat up on her bed. Moping and whining wasn't gonna get her anywhere, what she had to do was figure out what she could do to make this feeling of angst go away. The question was, how was she going to do that?

/l---)O(---/l\

Youtube Video

Octavia carefully drew her bow across the strings of her cello, her movements were poised, precise and near perfect. Her talent and training were both on display as she played in front of her instructor. The prim, proper, and stern but sweet Miss Fleur or as the musical world called her Fleur De Lis de la voix de soie, was a retired singer and cellist from overseas. Despite speaking with a thick, yet charming to many, French accent she was versed well in English, Spanish, German and French. She could sing in any of these languages and with the beauty of an angle as many men and the occasional woman would say, she had spent some time modeling as well.

With such a glamorous, well lived life and more than enough money to retire several times over it was, in the eyes of most in the community, very strange that she had decided to take up being a private tutor for aspiring cellists. Whenever this question came up her typical response was, "Why, because I love music monsieur and it is my gift to others now." She was one of the most sought after woman in all of Canterlot and although he had put up a good effort even Fancy Pants had failed to convince her to go out to dinner with him.

Any time someone asked her to a party or a dance as their date or on rare occasion simple offers of marriage she would simply smile and say "My apologies but music is my only love now." To everyone in high society she was this strange unattainable thing, like a mermaid or a siren always sought after but forever out of reach to all. To be honest that was how she liked it, at least the cheeky playful part of her did.

Octavia's hand continued to skillfully pull the bow across the several strings of her mahogany instrument, each pull and push of it creating sweet melody pleasing to the ears of all present. As she finished the final note and brought the song to an end her teacher smiled and began to clap the back of her hand lightly in approval.

"Magnifique ma chere Octavia! You have done most excellent."

"Merci beaucoup Miss Fluer!"

"Ah, I see your French is coming along most splendidly no?"

"Yes thank you." Smiled the cellist.

"Your lessons for today are done but could I interest you in some tea?"

"Yes of course Miss Fluer thank you." Replied Octavia.

The elegant woman before her burst into a light lady like laugh.

"No no no no, just call me Fluer, Octavia, we've been doing these lessons too long not to call each other friend."

"Of course, Fluer."

The woman smiled and gave a small nod as she led the way to the living room and called out in her elegant voice for the maid. Soon after the young woman appeared.

"Yes madam?"

"Could you please bring us some tea and biscuits Lilly?"

"Yes of course what kind does her lady wish for?"

"The earl grey S'il vous plait."

"Oui Madam, right away."

The maid quickly departed and the lady of the house turned back to her guest.

"Octavia I wanted to ask you something."

"Yes of course Fluer, what do you want to know?"

"You know you are my Protégée yes? There is a concert at the Canterlot Pavilion in two weeks time. I want to recommend to the manager of the party that he hire you for a performance there, if you would like to perform of course."

"Oh, yes Fluer I would love that!"

"Oui, then it is done, I shall notify him tomorrow! You can even bring a plus one as you will be a performer."

Octavia beamed, this was going to be wonderful! She could hardly wait to tell Vinyl and her friends about this!

/l---)O(---/l\

As Vinyl shuffled about the house in her pants, a bra, and a pair of grey sweat socks with black trim, she continued to feel the angst in her mind. She was still suffering from thinking too much about Octavia and the more she thought about her the more she wanted to see her, be with her, kiss her-"No Stop it! Bad DJ! Bad brain, shut up!" She sighed again with her hand placed on her bruise preemptively to help deal with the pain from her injuries.

"No matter how hard I try I can't stop thinking about her!"

She closed her eyes, thinking about the cellist she so often dreamed about both at day and night. Her long black hair and piercing purple eyes. The way she had taken care of her cuts that day of the fight. She was beautiful in both body and mind, and her music oh her music...Vinyl had only heard her play once at the battle of the bands. A chance to hear her crush play her cello was one of the few things that could convince her to take her headphones off. That day though...oh how she'd played with each pass of the bow on those strings, she felt her spine get colder and her skin prickling.

In a way, they were two of the same kind. They both cared about their friends, they both loved their music, and that was just the beginning of the reasons she liked her. Her gift for music was wonderful and she was one of the most beautiful girls she had ever seen, Vinyl had been crushing on Octavia since she was a freshman. She had seen how Octavia treated everybody around her with respect and kindness, she loved the way she put passion into everything she did whether she was playing the cello or listening to music. She was brave too, stepping out of her comfort zone like she had done on the day of the raid must have taken guts, and even though she was rich she never thought she was better than anybody else. At school and after, she treated everybody like they were on the same level as her, she treated them with respect and kindness.

Vinyl finally came to a realization as she stared down at her grey sweat socks with black trim.

"I don't have a crush on her...I'm in love with her..."

/l---)O(---/l\

While Octavia was on her way home she found herself thinking very hard about who her plus one should be if the manager of the concert accepted Fluer's proposal. She was virtually certain they would though, when it came to music and fashion you doubted Fluer De Lis at your peril. She could ask Water Melody but given when the Concert was and how much she raved about Neon and their weekends together she figured it would be best not to get in the way of that.

As she thought about it she decided that, assuming Vinyl wanted to go, she would be a good choice. They were friends, though relatively new ones, and this would give them a chance to bond and spend time together. Also, if she was being honest, the Idea of showing off to her new friend was an appealing one to the slightly more vain side of her. She made a small smile at that, showing off once in a while was ok right? Yes, Vinyl was the best choice out of the options, assuming she wanted to go. Reaching into her purse she produced her phone and went through her contacts. as she searched she saw the time was three PM. Finding Vinyl, she hit the call button.

/l---)O(---/l\

Vinyl stood still, looking down at her socks, she was stuck, unable to stop thinking it over and over.

"I'm in love with Octavia, it's not just a crush *I'm in love*!"

She was finally pulled from her reverie when she heard her phone's text notification go off. Running back to her closet she pulled open the door and grabbed the phone, wondering who it was that had texted. When she saw the name she felt her heart skip a beat.

"Hello Vinyl! I have great news! My cello teacher is going to recommend me for a position in a concert and I get a plus one! Would you like to come and hear me play?"

With wide eyes she furiously pecked at the keypad to give a reply as soon as possible.

"Hell ya Octy! Count me in when is it?"

"Two weeks from now! Oh I'm so excited!"

"I'll be there for sure! Already adding it to my calendar!"

Thanks Vinyl! See you later!"

Vinyl closed her phone after the last text with a sigh. On the one hand she was happy, Octavia had got great news and she was going to get to spend more time with her! But on the other Vinyl wasn't sure how much longer she was going to be able to be happy with just being friends. She exhaled through her nose sadly. She would rather have Octavia in her life as a friend than not at all. For now, and as long as she could, she was going to keep her feelings hidden.

Confessions And More Confrontations

"Mondays suck..."

Vinyl sat at the table with her six friends poking her plastic spork into her chicken fried steak. Ever since Saturday she had been dwelling more and more on the Raven haired girl she worshiped. The more she tried to shove her feelings down the harder it got to keep them buried. Every time Octavia texted her heart sped up and a smile took over her face, every time she saw her in the halls her eyes dilated and she felt warm and happy and every moment they were separate at the very least was boring and dull.

Her world wasn't without joy or fun but whenever Octavia was around to share it with her the enjoyment of everything was multiplied. She loved her but didn't know what to do or say. Should she tell her? Should she keep quiet and hope it went away? She didn't have the answers she needed to these questions. So there she sat poking her food with no apatite for even the best looking things on the menu, how could she eat while being eaten on the inside?

"You gonna eat that?"

The DJ's vision was suddenly a blur of pink as the party loving girl to her left turned and leaned so that she could look directly at her. Still frowning Vinyl shook her head and pushed the tray to her friend. Pinkie took no time at all to dig straight in and had devoured a good portion in the time most would have taken a few bites. It was almost as if her mouth was a black hole or at the least could unhinge it's jaw. As the rest of the girls continued to eat (Or in Rarity's case shield her eyes) Vinyl could no longer stand the public setting. Pulling out her notepad and pencil she quickly scrawled out "I'm not feeling well I'm gonna get some air." With that she stood hoping to leave without any questions being asked, naturally what you want and what you get tend to be very different.

"Vinyl darling if your ill you should go home and rest, or if you like we could get you some tea? The cafeteria has hot water dispensers and I try to keep some echinacea on hand for when I'm not feeling too well."

After Rarity made her offer Twilight was quick to chip in and Applejack soon after.

"Rarity is right, the tea would likely ease your stomach if that's what's bothering you."

"And if your not a tea person I'm sure Granny Smith has some soup in the kitchen. Aint nothin better for a sick day meal than a good bowl'a soup."

Vinyl smiled at her friends but shook her head with a sad smile. She pointed through the window outside than just gave a thumbs up. While most wouldn't get the gesture the group had been around Vinyl enough to understand most of her gestures fairly well. Unknown to Vinyl her fake smile had been seen through by a Sunset and a pink haired individual who with a glance and a nod knew they had seen the same thing. With a few words and a quick "excuse me" the two of them headed off after their sad friend.

/l---)O(---/l\

Vinyl leaned against the front of the C.H.S. statue facing the street watching cars go by as she mulled over her thoughts unhappily. She was starting to reach the point where she was thinking about calling Neon for a ride and asking if he wanted to hang out or go to the arcade again or something when someone behind her broke the silence.

"Hey Vinyl how you doing?"

She turned from behind the statue to see Sunset and Fluttershy both looking at her, concern in their eyes. Still trying to keep up the façade the DJ gave a thumbs up with an unconvincing smile.

"V I'm good at knowing when someone is lying to me and I can tell you are right now."

Vinyl's head dropped as her feet suddenly became very interesting. Sunset took a few steps closer putting her hand on her shoulder before continuing.

"Hey Vinyl listen. If you don't want to tell us what's wrong that's up to you but we're your friends. We want you to know we're here to help whenever you need us."

To Vinyl's surprise Fluttershy moved towards her and reaching into her backpack pulled out a bunny.

"Here hold Angle, you'll feel better I promise."

The DJ accepted the small furry animal and gently held it in her hand. To her surprise soon after the small criter began nuzzling her and she felt compelled to lightly hug it causing it to nuzzle even deeper into her tummy.

"Ahhh he likes you!" Cooed the pink haired girl quietly.

Sunset moved so that she was half hugging Vinyl with her arm draped around the DJ's back and her hand on her opposite shoulder.

"Do you want to talk about what's bothering you now?"

Vinyl's defenses broke and the tears started flowing freely as she sniffled and sobbed huffing in small gasps of air. Nodding she handed the bunny back to Fluttershy before slumping down against the statue and crying into her hands. Sunset took to sitting on her left and the animal lover sat taking up a post on her right. Sunset pulled Vinyl's head onto her shoulder as she waited for V to write out her reply. After about five minutes of crying she managed to pull herself together enough to pull out her pad and scribble somethings down.

"I'm in love with Octavia and I don't know what to do! I've been crushing on her since freshmen year and now were friends but I feel worse than ever but I can't tell her that because it would hurt her and I don't think she feels the same! It's eating me up inside and I don't know how much longer I can hold it in! I don't know what to do!"

She broke into tears again as she finished writing the last part and dropped her notepad on the ground. Sunset had been watching as she had written with wide eyes and when Vinyl broke again she went back to consoling her to the best of her ability. Fluttershy picked up the paper pad and read it quietly with a contemplative look. Sunset hugged the weeping girl a bit harder before speaking up again.

"It's ok Vinyl, everything is going to be ok..."

The DJ's reply was continued sniffling.

"Hey listen this is just my opinion but what I would suggest is you try to work up the nerve to tell her. If you don't it will just fester inside you till your being eaten from the inside out. It's not healthy for you and even if Octavia says no at least you'll be able to start healing. I know you're worried about hurting her but if she's a real friend than she'll at least be nice about it and if she doesn't feel the same she'll let you down easy. Don't worry about wrecking your friendship, if she's a good friend she'll understand and stick around."

Vinyl sniffed a few times and wiped her tears away with the back of her hand.

"Keep your chin up V. Your a great girl and someday I just know your gonna meet someone who's gonna make you as happy as you make them. Whether or not it's Octavia remains to be seen but someday you'll have a very special person in your life."

Her tears coming to an end at last the DJ reached out and hugged her friend tightly receiving a few assuring pats on the back in return.

"Just tell her when the time feels right, don't try and plan it out too much just let your heart do the talking and it will speak the truth."

Vinyl hugged her tighter and while she may not have said anything the message was clear.

"Thank you Sunset."

Fluttershy joined in the hug as well to show her support in the matter and the three sat there for some time letting the atmosphere they were in do the talking for them. No words needed to be exchanged they all knew what needed to be said already. Vinyl finally found herself ready to stop crying. Sunset was right, a time would come when she would tell Octavia and when that time came for better or worse it would be worth it. It might not be now, It might not be next week but when she did she could finally know she had been brave enough to not run and hide from herself or her feelings.

Sunset left first after a brief whisper exchange with Fluttershy turning back to the school doors as the pink haired girl moved a bit closer.

"Umm... Vinyl I want to help so-o-o I'm gonna tell you something I've only ever told two other people..."

/l---)O(---/l\

The end of the school day saw Octavia riding the bus home with her cello beside her. While she enjoyed her lessons with Fluer she had to admit that the walk home she had to take was a bit tiresome and often she found herself wishing that the bus schedule coincided with her lessons. At the moment she was having trouble staying still and not fidgeting in excitement. Fluer De Lis had called her before school to let her know she had secured the spot for her to have a solo performance and even a mention in the venue! Safe to say it had taken up all of Octavia's mind all day and she had trouble thinking or focusing on anything else.

When the bus came to it's stop at the crystal apartments the Cellist heaved her cello up and began to make her way towards her home. As she disembarked she felt a rough shove on her left shoulder and a quick glance forward showed a Dark two toned stretch of long purple hair and the showy cloths one would expect the daughter of the schools dean to wear.

"Oh my Octavia I didn't expect to see you here! I expected you would be off with that Dike girlfriend of yours Mute Mouth!"

The raven haired girl had not had to try this hard to keep her poise and not strike the girl in front of her since the time she saw Snips and Snails messing with her cello in the music room.

"Vinyl is my friend Amethyst, I would kindly ask you not to be so rude towards her."

"Really no snappy comeback this time? Not to mention you never said I was wrong about you being her girlfriend, that said I'm not surprised you probably hopped in bed with her right after she beat up Bulk's brother! Oh and by the way just so you know I can rat you out to your parents any time I want so watch your step, I own you now!"

"I-I..."

"Oh poor Octavia, at a loss for words all of a sudden? Tell you what, keep your mouth on that mutes crotch where it belongs!"

"You know what? At least I'm not so full of hate from my abusive father that the only way I can be happy is to be a sadist! You may be high and mighty now but once high school is over you'll just be another average airhead heiress living by licking her parents boots!"

Red faced and not as good at holding her temper Amethyst recoiled her hand and brought it back across Octavia's face. The slap echoed across the open area as the cellists head reflexively turned downward and her hands came up to her hurt face as her cello case fell to the ground with a thud. Through the ringing in her ears she could hear the girl in front of her yelling something with hate but suddenly the shouting turned to a scream of fear. When Octavia came back to her senses she was once again faced with an angry and vengeful blue haired girl.

/l---)O(---/l\

At first on her walk home Vinyl had been feeling a lot better about herself and her emotions. After her talk with Sunset and Fluttershy. She had even felt well enough after some venting and compassion from her friends to be able to make it through the rest of the day. She was on her way home getting close to the Crystal Apartments when the bus her beloved Octavia took went passed her.

"Maybe if I hurry I can meet her as she gets off the bus! I may not be ready to tell her how I feel just yet but maybe I can ask her if she wants to spend some time together this weekend!"

She picked up her pace as the bus got a bit farther away. She assumed she would have about a block to go by the time the bus stopped at the waiting station so she would probably have line of sight of Octavia by the time she rounded the corner, that is if Octavia didn't head straight inside. When she got closer she could hear Octavia's melodic voice but as she neared her black haired angle she could tell that she was fighting with somebody. She rounded the corner and had line of sight just in time to see Amethyst slap Octavia across her ear and side of the face.

Something in Vinyl snapped when she saw that happen. Her good mood was dead but she was no longer sad, she was enraged. In seconds she had dropped her backpack and was charging a surprised Amethyst Star at a speed Rainbow dash would find impressive. Her enemy barely had time to scream before she was tackled to the ground having blows rained upon her all over. Their was no aim, rhyme or reason to were Vinyl struck her. All the rage, sadness, confusion, frustration and hate she was feeling was being channeled into her fists, she struck her in the chest, stomach, gut and anywhere else she could land a blow.

Her usual pale skin was crimson with rage and she could hear something in the background but not enough to be intelligible. It wasn't until she felt a soft hand on her shoulder that she saw sense enough to stop swinging blindly. Somehow that touch and it alone whipped away her rage like it had never been there. She knew who was trying to stop her before she even looked behind her. Breathing heavily she climbed off of the crying Amethyst who as soon as she could scrambled to her feet and ran painfully into the entrance of her home. Vinyl finally caught her breath enough to see a teary and frightened Octavia in front of her.

"Vinyl why did you do that? Do you have any Idea who her father is? Do you have any Idea what you've gotten yourself into?" She exclaimed through sobs in a shrill voice.

The DJ Instantly felt ashamed of what she had done and began fumbling through her pockets for her notepad or phone whichever she found first.

"Vinyl why did you do that?" Octavia said quieter still crying from the intensity of the scene she had just witnessed and the sheer shock of the experience.

The Blue haired girl stopped fumbling in her pockets trying to figure out how to convey why she had acted that way. Looking at the developing bruise on the Cellist face she reached out and gently cupped her palm to it before pulling Octavia in for a hug. No words were said but the raven haired girl knew what Vinyl meant instantly.

"You did all this because she slapped me?"

Vinyl withdrew from the hug but kept her arms on her Octy's shoulders nodding, shame written on her face.

"Vinyl her father is the dean! He could have you expelled from school! do you have any Idea what you've done to yourself?"

Her head got lower and a few tears fell to the pavement as well.

"Damnit Vinyl you worry too much about everyone except yourself! You are so reckless!"

Vinyl had gone back to crying quietly her face towards the ground and tears raining on the pavement. Octavia swayed her head from side to side in a mix of frustration and worry before hugging her friend and leaning the crying girls head on her shoulder and shushing her quietly.

"Come on were gonna go upstairs to my house and get you some tea. You'll feel better with some food and a hot drink."

Vinyl nodded and slowly backtracked to grab her backpack before returning to Octavia. Ushering the girl towards the doorway the pair made their way towards the inviting apartment above.

/l---)O(---/l\

While most of Vinyl bruises from her fight with Granite brick where healing well, those on her hands were now freshened and painful again. She even had small cuts on her hands from the ferocity her strikes had wrought and it was likely that at some point it the commotion Amethyst had used a book or something as a make shift shield given the present damage. Octavia sat across from her friend who at the moment was staring into her mug like the secret to longevity was in their somewhere. Cupping the small porcelain tea cup in her hands the cellist lifted it from the saucer and took an awkward sip before setting it down. Finally deciding to break the Silence she spoke.

"I'm not mad at you Vinyl I'm just...mad about what the consequences of this could be. I don't want to see you get expelled and there is no way this isn't going to be all over the school by tomorrow with the way the student body is! My parents will no doubt be upset about the whole ordeal as well and will want to wash their hands of every aspect of it they can."

Vinyl gave a heavy sigh through her nose. pulling out her pad she scribbled a question, one she feared the answer to.

"Do you still want to be friends? If you don't I can leave, it's probably the wise thing for you to do."

"Oh Vinyl of course I want to stay friends! You have to be one of the most loyal people I've ever met even...even if sometimes you take it too far."

The DJ felt relieved as she gave another huge sigh through her nose.

"But Vinyl, we have to be secretive about it. My parents won't like this one bit and...I'm scared of what could happen if they found out I was still spending time with you."

With a perplexed look Vinyl wrote another message out.

"What do you mean?"

"Vinyl my parents are very influential and are extremely...fussy, about their public image. If they found out we were friends after all this...they would do whatever they could to make sure we never talked again. I wouldn't even put it passed them to ship me to Baltamare for a private school like they did to my brother when he *ehem* made certain friends, that liked to smoke a certain plant, that is not legal in certain places."

Vinyl nodded in understanding before responding.

"I suppose I should stay away from your recital then. Your parents will want to see you play and if I'm there it would cause problems to say the least."

"Actually you can still come just be discreet, my parents won't be attending."

Vinyl quirked a curious eyebrow.

"They would come if they could trust me, it's a big event, but they were just asked to come to a business conference that is more pressing. If you come they won't be there to stop us spending time together."

Vinyl cheered up a bit at that and gave a small smile as she wrote her last reply before holding it up for Octavia to see.

"Thanks Octy. I promise I'll be there."

Consequences And A Sleep Over

The rate at which things had gone from fine to a shit storm were amazing even to Vinyl. She had beat up Amethyst on Monday by Wednesday she had been expelled. On Thursday she filled out an application and by Monday she was a high school drop out working part time as a trainee waitress which would change to full time within the week. Octavia had been right and her actions came with consequences.

It turned out that beating up the most powerful person in the school districts daughter was a bad idea especially when he was known for his temper and had a Vendetta against every living thing that wasn't him. A pissed off figure in power was a machine that could not be stopped and in the case of Fallen Star the machine was well oiled and finely tuned to perfection.

The day that Vinyl had gotten expelled was obviously rather shitty, she had been forcefully removed by the schools security officer despite not resisting. She was fairly sure that the dean had made it clear to the entire staff that she was no longer welcome as every faculty member she passed as she was literally pushed out the door either gave her a sympathetic look or a scowl. Cheerily had been a rather funny exception though.

Once she was off school grounds and turning to leave, the window to the pink skinned teachers classroom opened and a matching hand threw a paper airplane in her direction. When Vinyl retrieved and opened it she found twenty dollars had been paper clipped to the inside with a note reading "Thanks for pissing off the dean! He was so livid I had to try not to wet myself laughing. He's a total jerk, here's a little something for your trouble!"

Vinyl smiled as she opened the door to the ally behind her place of employment. Despite Cheerily's best efforts not to show it most people knew she hated working at Canterlot high for a multitude of reasons. The dean, crap pay, and the fact she used to work for Canterlot College before getting sacked to cut costs a week before getting tenure just to name a few.

The DJ pulled a pack of Cigarillos from her pant's pocket before producing a match pack flipping the back of the pack so that the match was clenched between two pieces of cardboard before pulling it to light the twig of cardboard. Touching it to the tip of her death stick she inhaled before flicking the spent match to the pavement and taking a good draw of the soothing kill you slow time goodness. She wasn't big on smoking and had never touched a cigarette but her first day on the job at the Taste of France had taught her that her co-workers were jerks and her boss was an Asshole with a capital A. The Nicotine was her ticket to both a fifteen minute break from them and helped ease her nerves.

She sighed in contempt exhaling the smoke through her nose earning a slight burn. She was a minimum wage employee who could only serve food and not take orders meaning many of her lazy fellow legalized slaves pawned their work on her. If nothing else it kept her busy and meant she got to piss them off every time she took a break which made them do their jobs. She coughed out a quiet mute laugh through her nose. Octavia may be right that she didn't stand up for herself as much as others but she made up for it by being passive aggressive.

She took another draw from the smoke as she pulled out her phone, she couldn't use it during work but she could on break! pulling out her contacts she swept her thumb through them till she found the name of her beloved Octy. three days and she would be listening to the lovely melody of her cellist skills and getting to spend time with her after. At the thought she frowned and took another draw from her death stick. While she had kept in contact with Octavia school had kept her too busy to spend much time together and with her schedule Vinyl didn't get off work till her parents were home.

Basically if she spent time with Octavia it had to be through texts and never in person lest the raven haired girl get shipped up to Baltimare. with her brother Harpo. The DJ glanced at the clock on her phone as she prepared to text the cellist she Idolized, the time was eight, ten so she had about fifty minutes till her shift was over, not much longer till she had her freedom. Clicking the buttons with her thumb she finally finished typing the message and sent it.

"Hey Octy! How you doing?"

after a few seconds she got a reply as her phone buzzed in notification.

"I'm fine just practicing for my place this weekend, only five days left to do so!"

"You don't even need to practice this stuff, I heard you play at the battle of the bands you got this!"

"Perhaps if it we're something I already knew but right now I'm studying a new piece I don't have experience with so I need all the time I can get! I wish I had someone to play for though a second opinion would go a long way."

It was at that moment Vinyl had a spark of mischievous inspiration, she took a few minutes to search her memory for some precious information and once she was sure she had remembered right she sent a reply.

"Leave your bedroom blinds open tonight k? I have an idea! ;)"

/l---)O(---/l\

When Octavia received the last of Vinyl's texts she was quick to reply but unfortunately the DJ did not respond. Frowning she read the text over a second time to try and figure out what the DJ had meant but while it was clear enough to make her worried it was mysterious enough that she had no idea what the blue haired girl was planning. Despite wanting to think this over further she was interrupted from her speculations when a knock came at her door. Standing from her seat she moved to the door and opened it, her mother was on the other side.

"Octavia dear your father and I are going to the airport now!"

"I thought you weren't leaving till tomorrow?"

"That was the plan at first but we had to change it yesterday when we found out there was storm warning apparently their is going to be hail on Thursday night. We decided to fly in early and beat the storm."

"You changed it yesterday?"

"Yes we did, we'll see you next Tuesday but we'll keep in touch when we can."

"But why didn't you tell me sooner that-"

"Philharmonica dear were going to be late for our flight! It leaves in an hour!"

"Ok honey be there soon!" Called back the older woman "Sorry darling we have to go now I'll call you when we're at the hotel!"

With that Octavia's mother was gone out the door with her suitcase and purse before Octavia could do much else. With a frown and a sulky sigh she sat back down and pulled out her phone. Might as well tell Vinyl she didn't have to be all secretive when she came by or whatever she was planning to do. She sent a quick text but no response came so with yet another sigh and a roll of her eyes she went back to practicing her cello. If her parents wanted to ditch her without warning and Vinyl wanted to make things harder for herself that was fine by her so long as she could practice undisturbed.

/l---)O(---/l\

An Hour and a half later saw Vinyl off work dressed in her usual well worn clothes and checking her breath and hair to make sure she was presentable. She was standing outside the Crystal Apartments staring at the third floor windows planning her way up. She was still blissfully unaware of Octavia's attempt to text her of her parents absence so she was still planning on taking her current path to reach her friend.up.

Making her way to the base of the building she took a quick look to size up her climb before dusting her hands with some of the chalky dirt that made up the gravel patch at the base of the building. her hands now nice and dry she jumped up and grabbed the nearest window frame and began pulling herself up. Vinyl had more experience then most when it came to urban climbing as the first apartment that her and her mother lived in was two floors up and as a kid she was fond of sneaking out to play in the yard when she was supposed to be asleep. She had never been very good at bed times.

Years of practice climbing out of her bedroom window had taught her how to properly brace herself against the walls and window frames so she could distribute her weight. She knew to use both her hands and legs as well as where and when to take chances. Luckily the building was much easer to climb then her previous home. The structure was made from cut bricks of stone with occasional lumps and more hand and foot holds. It was meant to make the place stand out and look more "Posh". Vinyl had heard Octavia use that term to describe her place of residence. Granite might be expensive but Vinyl wasn't about to argue with something that made her current task easer.

Once she was passed the first window things got a bit more tricky, She had to clear a yard and a half of open space where her only holds were bumps and indents in the stone. She achieved it though not without a slip, a mental curse and a scuffed knee. It was hard being Vinyl, you were lucky to go a day without bleeding or being bruised. Finally her fingers gripped onto Octavia's lower window frame and a quick look inside showed the cellist playing on her instrument.

With a cheeky smile Vinyl knocked lightly on the window making a surprised and dumbfounded Octy do a double take and rub her eyes to confirm what was before her. Realizing she wasn't going insane Octavia quickly opened the window and held out her hands for the crazy blue haired girl to grab onto. Vinyl did so quickly and let the cellist pull her into the room making a slightly noisy entrance when her feet hit the floor with a stomp.

"Vinyl are you insane! Please tell me you used a ladder at least!"

The DJ gave an unconvincing nod and the raven haired girl was quick to walk over to the window and call her bluff. When she turned back around she was clearly upset at Vinyl's reckless action of free climbing her way up the building but at the same time grateful she hadn't fallen in the process. The DJ waited for a "Don't you ever do that again!" or a "You could have broken your neck you idiot!" instead Octavia said something else.

"I guess you didn't get the text that my parents weren't home."

Vinyl stared for a moment before doing the enviable face palm at hearing that. Octavia burst out laughing while Vinyl pulled out her note pad and scribbled a reply while trying and failing to look angry.

"You mean I didn't have to sneak in tonight? They were gone the whole time!"

Octavia couldn't stop laughing so she did her best to nod instead. Vinyl clutched her head briefly in frustration before bringing her eyes back to Octy's smiling face. On second thought it didn't matter that she had to go the extra mile to get here, her efforts had made the cellist smile and that was worth all the trials it took to get here all by it's self. Putting pencil to pad once again the blue haired girl decided to state why she came in the first place.

"Well you said you wanted someone to listen to you play for a second opinion right? Well here I am so lets see this new piece your practicing!"

Octavia read the reply quickly before yet another smile graced her features.

"You mean you climbed three stories to my window just to hear me play my cello?"

Vinyl smiled with a happy nod following after.

"Vinyl that is incredibly sweet of you."

The DJ waved a hand dismissively before taking a seat on Octavia's bed and rolling her hand in a "go on and play" gesture. Trading her smile for a poised expression the cellist obliged. She sat back down in the chair at her desk taking the cello and her bow into her hands to begin her solo private show. Vinyl sat listening intently as Octavia began to play and swiftly drew the bow across the several strings with the grace one would expect only a goddess to have (at least in Vinyl's eyes.)

Youtube Video

The tune was caught somewhere between fast flowing and slow, jumping from one to the other in different places, the requirement for skill clear as Octavia played. The speed at which the bow danced across the strings was amazing and the practice and natural skill of the cellist was on it's finest display. As the DJ listened the cellist let herself become lost to the music, fingers dancing on the strings in an eloquent display of talent. Her cheek rested against the side of her beloved instrument, her eyes closed so her ears could focus more greatly on the music she was creating. She was an artist and in the DJ's mind the skill on display made her a rival of Leonardo da vinci, Picasso and even dare she say Vincent Van Gogh.

As she continued to play both began to feel as if they were in their own world were only three things existed, Vinyl, Octavia and the music the latter created. Vinyl sat eyes glued to the alter of beauty in front of her. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest as she watched her long time love play her heart out just for her an audience of one. Tears began to well in her eyes as she gazed at the raven haired girl. She felt as if the music was both breaking and stitching her heart together at the same time and she felt overwhelmed with both sorrow and joy at the tune. This moment was one she wouldn't trade for anything, this moment of her Octavia and the music so beautiful it made her cry.

As the song came to an end the cellist raised her head opening her eyes to see the teary eyed DJ in front of her. Unaware that it was her music that made the girl cry tears of joy she rested the cello on the ground and hurriedly sat next to Vinyl shushing her quietly.

"What's going on Vinyl? What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

The DJ brushed the tears from her eyes before grabbing the pad and paper off the bedside table where she left it and writing a reply.

"Octavia that was one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard! You were amazing! How can you think you needed to practice when you can play like that?"

The cellist blushed bright red at the compliment unsure at first how to respond. Had she truly moved the DJ to tears with her performance? A part of her felt that the praise from Vinyl was more important than that from anyone else, though she didn't know why she felt that way for sure. Thinking for a moment she carefully planned out her next words.

"Vinyl I don't know what to say at receiving such praise! Did you really love it that much?"

Vinyl's heart lodged in her throat and she had to fight back a crying fit. This moment felt so, so...right. She felt compelled to reach out and hug the girl in front of her, kiss her and finally let her feelings be known. She wanted nothing more than to be able to speak just this once and tell Octavia what she felt, to say what was on her mind. "Octavia it was lovely! It was like being in heaven for the time you played! I loved it and I love you! I've wanted to tell you for so long how I feel about you and your music makes me want to all the more!"

But she couldn't, she couldn't speak and she was too scared to write what she felt down. The thought of Octavia saying she couldn't feel the same and making this beautiful moment change to one of sorrow for her was too much pressure so instead she swallowed and merely nodded with tears still falling from her eyes, only now they were tears of repression and hurting instead of joy. After a few more moments she swallowed again and putting pen to paper gave a final reply, a half truth that was the most she could say for the moment.

"Will you keep playing please? I want to hear more of it if your willing. I really did love it."

Octavia smiled at the response and nodded.

"For you Vinyl, of course."

Reaching for her cello Octavia began to stand but felt a gentle hand on her shoulder. Turning she saw Vinyl with a pink tint to her cheeks holding up her pad.

"Could you sit next to me while you play?"

While the cellist was a little surprised as well as curious as to why it mattered, she decided to humor her guest and do as she requested. Swiftly she retrieved her cello and went back to sitting near her friend as she took the bow in her left hand and rested the cello on her neck once again. She was just about to start playing when she felt one of the strings vibrate from being plucked. Looking to her right she saw a sheepish DJ looking at her with apologetic eyes.

"Do you know how to play?"

Vinyl shook her head no before grabbing her pad and writing a quick response.

"No but I'd like to try something if that ok with you."

"I suppose what is it?"

The DJ smiled and made a go ahead and play gesture by rotating her hand in a forward motion. Octavia obliged and began to pull the bow across the one of the strings. As she brought it back against another one and the tune began she started flowing further into the song. Once the beginning was established she felt the strings being lightly plucked at different heights on the cellos neck. Glancing right she could see Vinyl experimentally plucking the strings adding a deep low echo and hum of noise accompanying the singing of the strings.

Not quiet sure what her friend was doing she continued to play on as more of the strings were plucked and soon after joined by the echo of gentle pats and light thumps on the body of the instrument. Octavia continued to play as her elegant ringing of the strings filled the room with cello bass and hollow echoes playing along. The strings were like high pitched vocals to a song and the noises of the DJ's efforts were lower and more somber. Still they worked together rather well. Instead of changing the speed at which the cello was played the pace stayed the same and instead the change in the song was made by the deeper tones. It was like nothing Octavia had heard before and part of her was screaming at how this was not the way to play a cello. It was different, improper and broke all the rules of a professional musician, but...she liked it.

The tune was not the work of one musician but two somehow working in harmony despite having not planned this out in the slightest. Octavia soon realized she wasn't even playing a song she knew anymore. Her and Vinyl were improvising now! This was a special moment the two of them were sharing as friends. "No not friends" Octavia thought. "Best friends sounds better to me."

Unknown to the cellist Vinyl had different thoughts in her mind at the moment. "This is so perfect! If the world ended this very moment I wouldn't care! As long as this moment was saved and preserved I could care less! The girl I love is sitting next to me and were making music together that is all our own! This is our song and no one else',s this moment and this song belong to us! Me and the woman I love."

Vinyl was fighting a war within herself not to put an arm around the cellist and pull her into a loving kiss and embrace. At this moment if Octavia asked for the moon Vinyl would oblige if for no other reason than to make her smile. It would be so easy right now to pull her head forward and kiss her. She could do it right now! Her head screamed no but her heart beat in her chest like it was trying to break out saying Do it, Do it! With closed eyes and a slight frown she let her mind win. This moment was too precious to risk ruining and she was near certain that kissing her would do so. With a heavy heart she bit her lip as their song that had gone on for untracked moments came to an end.

As Octavia drew the bow one last time across the resonating strings and the DJ plucked out a final note, their song found it's own end. In the wake of it's ending the cellist rose from her seat on the bed and gently placed the cello in its case, closing the lid and snapping the latches in place. Looking to the clock on her wall she saw the time and gave a small "Oh my it's late isn't it?" The time read 10:56 PM much later than Octavia usually stayed up. When Vinyl saw where she was looking and examined the time she waved goodbye with a smile and started towards the door. To her surprise though she felt a velvety hand grab her wrist and stop her.

"It's pretty late and dark Vinyl I'm not sure it's a good idea to walk home this late."

The DJ raised a curious eyebrow as if to say "I don't follow." Picking up on this Octavia continued.

"I've never had a sleep over with a friend before and my parents wont be back till later next week so if you wanted to stay..."

Vinyl smiled enthusiastically before nodding happily. As she turned the rest of the way back she made for the bed and grabbed one of the spare pillows placing it on the floor. She was about to lay down when Octavia spoke up.

"No no no, Vinyl you don't have to sleep on the floor I've got a king sized bed you know."

The DJ's cheeks flushed a bit at the Idea of sleeping in the same bed as Octavia, on the same mattress, in the same sheets...Snuggling-"Bad brain stop it" she screamed internally. As the cellist pulled back the covers and sat down on the bed Vinyl placed the pillow back in it's place before doing the same. Pulling the covers over them Octavia gave a small sigh as she began to feel warmer from the comfort of the layers. Vinyl was adjusting as well trying to find a good position to sleep in.

"Are you having trouble getting comfortable Vinyl?"

The DJ held up a finger as she turned on her side so she was facing Octavia before giving a thumbs up.

"Good, I suppose I should turn out the light so we can sleep shouldn't I?"

The blue haired girl shrugged.

"We could talk for a bit if you want I suppose."

Vinyl elevated her palm to rest her head on while giving a "your kidding me right look".

"Oh I mean not talk talk but...umm...I'll shut up now."

The pale girl simply smiled and gave a quiet raspy laugh into her palm. Octavia gave a pouty look before hmffing and turning away in the bed.

"That will teach me to try and be sensitive of my best friends feelings."

Vinyl started surprised at that, with a more serious look on her face she grabbed her note pad and poked her bed mates shoulder. With mock frustration Octavia turned around surprised at the serious expression on the face of the girl in front of her.

"I'm your best friend?"

Eyes softening the cellist answered.

"Yes Vinyl of course you are. How could you not be after all you've done?"

Vinyl's eyes watered a bit but before they could get any worse she pulled the raven haired girl into a tight hug. While she couldn't speak the message was clear as day.

"Thank you Octavia, that means the world to me."

Patting her on the back Octavia waited until she was released from the hug to speak again.

"Your welcome Vinyl, but I'm tired so can we go to bed now?"

Vinyl Nodded and with that the cellist turned off the lights and snuggled into her pillow closing her eyes for a good nights sleep.

Morning Sunshine