Vinyl looked back at her trimmed hooves. "It wasn't all the first day, Tavi. You remember how on edge I was that whole week?" She ran her magic across the controls of her deck, spraying the room with discordant notes and samples. "She cut my mane, Rose cut my tail down. I felt more 'right' than I had in my whole life up until then. But I was scared of everypony."

"You were right to be scared of me." Octavia remembered back to the timid mare Vinyl had been for the week. "You left a pile of your mane in the kitchen. That stuff gets simply everywhere."

Gulping, Vinyl lifted a hoof up behind her head. "Okay, I still owe you for that one, Tavi. But when she met me that second weekend…" Vinyl came to again when Octavia waved a hoof before her face. "Uh, did I zone out?"

"Just for ten minutes. Another one of her 'suggestions'?" Octavia treated her friend to a little ribbing about the extra aspect to what Cheerilee had done to help Vinyl.

"Nah nah, just remembering the first time." Vinyl was almost drifting back off, then she was gone to her memories again.

~~~~~+++++~~~~~

Cheerilee checked her notes and the special amulet the Princess of Friendship had given her. Satisfied that it was all in order, she knocked on the door to Vinyl and Octavia's house.

"Uh, coming." Vinyl trembled in worry and slunk to the door, opening it just a crack. "Oh, Cheerilee! Come in quick!"

Not for the first time did Cheerilee feel Vinyl Scratch's magic pick her up, a moment later she was inside the house and the door was closed behind her. "Are you alright, Vinyl?"

"Everypony stares at me, they think I am crazy, or a freak." Vinyl dropped to the floor. "Please tell me you have something that can hide me so nopony sees what I did to myself?"

Cheerilee's jaw nearly hit the floor, instead, her belly did. "Vinyl, what do you mean? Nopony worries about you, you look great." She was down on the same level as Vinyl, trying to encourage her to lift her head from her hooves.

"I am supposed to be a mare, like girly things, do all the 'chatting about stallions' kinda stuff… it just doesn't feel right to me, Cheerilee." Vinyl couldn't keep herself from pushing forward to hug Cheerilee, crying into her long mane. "What is wrong with me?"

"Nothing," Cheerilee started to stroke the short mane and hug Vinyl back, "nothing is wrong with you, you are just different." She felt the mare tense a little. "Want to hear a story about another different pony?"

The change in tack broke Vinyl from her mood for a moment, she nodded against Cheerilee's neck.

"Well, there was this adorable mare, going through school. She liked stallions and mares both. But then she went to a bigger school and—being a little older—tried playing with mares as well as stallions." Cheerilee wanted to look Vinyl in the eyes, but wouldn't pull away from the hug.

"You?" Vinyl's snout was sunk into the soft mane.

"Me, of course. I tried to go with the whole 'I like everypony' thing." Cheerilee had to keep hold of Vinyl now, not entirely for Vinyl's comfort. "It was not their bodies, a lover is a lover no matter their bits, it was how they acted, how… stalliony they were. I finally listened."

Vinyl finally got free of the hug and sat back. "So? What do you mean about all this? How is this anything to do with me?"

"After that, I chased stallions exclusively." Cheerilee stayed on the floor. "I looked and looked… there was always something wrong. Walked funny. Unreliable. Issues with commitment. You name it, I found it a turn off."

"But that… that is just ponies." Vinyl thought about things a moment and lay back down. "Maybe you do like mares after all?"

"I haven't worked it all out, but I like you." Cheerilee booped Vinyl on the nose. "You are clever, cute, strong," she gave a little shudder just thinking of all the virtues, "all the things I like about a stallion, but without the bits I dislike, when you are into it anyway."

" 'Into it'?" Vinyl blinked a few times at the quote. "What do you mean?"

This time Cheerilee poked Vinyl's forehead, just below her horn. "When you forget what other ponies might think, when I lean against you and you give me a look, the kind of look a stallion would give his mare…"

Vinyl watched as Cheerilee gave a little shudder. She really is into me like that. It was enough to make Vinyl blush a little. "Uh, so we both have a problem with how ponies think of me?"

"Close." Cheerilee held out the amulet again. "We both have a problem with what you think others think of you. This is the first step to help."

"Jewelry?" Vinyl picked the amulet up and looked it over. "Wait, is this thing magical? You saw what happened a year back, old magic amulets are dangerous!"

"Princess Twilight made this for you." Cheerilee took hold of the amulet and lifted it up and over Vinyl's head. The moment the little red gem came down and pressed to Vinyl's chest-fur, it activated. "Ooh, she is really good with this stuff."

Vinyl looked at her hoof, examining the misty-smoke that seemed to cover it. "A disguise? So I can keep hidden now… I guess this works…"

Cheerilee booped Vinyl where she sincerely hoped the mare's nose was. "No, silly. I asked a friend of mine, from when I went to school. She was more into geology and psychology than I was… odd mix of classes, but it was her 'thing' I guess. She said we should try hypnosis."

"What, make me just stop worrying?" The thought actually hit Vinyl as something that would be nice. "But won't that be short term… like as bad as just wearing this thing?" She reached an indistinct hoof up and touched the amulet.

"Well, if we do it like that it would. Maud said it would need to be in specific ways..." Cheerilee scrunched her nose up. "Look, I really didn't follow it too well, but she said she was showing some others how to do this today, and if we hung around until after that she can help you."

"They must think I am being stupid." Vinyl sat up straight again and shook her head, making sure the amulet wasn't easy to dislodge. "Okay, so where do we have to go?"

"Princess Twilight is letting Maud do this in her castle, so not far." Cheerilee smiled wide. "And remember, you aren't alone, Vinyl." She got up and leaned in, somehow finding the snout of the indistinct pony and laying a kiss on Vinyl's lips.

"Okay, okay!" The kiss had emboldened Vinyl more than she thought it would, she felt much more assertive. "You have eaten lunch already?" Cheerilee nodded to her. "Okay then, let's go now, get this over with."

The pair slipped out the back door of Vinyl's house, getting a few buildings away before anypony saw them. It was right then that Vinyl realized just how much Cheerilee might be right. They are staring more at me like this than when it was just me. It gave Vinyl much to think on as they kept walking, and soon reached the Castle of Friendship.

"Coming!" Twilight trotted to the big front doors of the castle in response to the knocking. Opening it with her magic, she smiled widely. "Cheerilee, and your friend I take it? I am glad you came early, Maud and I need to explain some things."

Vinyl suddenly realized that either Cheerilee hadn't told Twilight who her "friend" was, or Twilight was just about the most socially clever pony she knew. Twilight's reputation, of course, told her exactly which it was. Emboldened, she leaned over and kissed Cheerilee on the cheek.

The part of Cheerilee that had been snared by Vinyl right from the start purred at the kiss. "Is it a problem?" She walked along with Twilight, Vinyl at her side. "Because if there is a problem we can just come back later."

"No, but we need to tell you something, and for it I am going to ask you to take off the disguise." Twilight led the way into the room she had set up for the meeting. "Please?"

Vinyl hesitated, particularly with a pony she didn't recognize in the room. This is stupid, you have performed at crowds of hundreds, even a royal wedding! "Okay." Her voice wasn't disguised by the amulet, and as she lifted it off with her magic, neither was Vinyl.

"I saw your show once." Maud walked closer, holding out a hoof to Twilight. The two embraced and turned significant looks on Cheerilee and Vinyl. "You showed us yours, this is ours." Maud leaned in and kissed Twilight on the bridge of the nose.

"So you are the 'mystery paramour' that all the papers in Canterlot keep digging about?" Vinyl snorted. "It's cool, a few put together that we were living in the same town, asked me about who I thought kept making you smile."

Cheerilee was a little stunned by the revelation, but Vinyl's words surprised her back out of it. "What? They came to you about Princess Twilight?" Cheerilee asked.

"I just turned up my music, or ignored them with my cans on." Vinyl lifted a leg and put it around Cheerilee's withers, felt the other mare lean in against her. "So what is all this, then?"

" 'This,' is ponies not getting hung up about what others think and doing what makes them happy." Twilight gestured towards Vinyl. "What Cheerilee described seems to be more the former being a block on the latter. For me… okay, my situation is more complicated. Could you imagine how the press would respond to me telling them I let Maud hypnotize me and make me into her own personal pet?" The silence in the room lasted long enough for Twilight to realize she hadn't actually told her friends that part of the story. "Uh… so, that was what we really needed to tell you. It won't affect what Maud is going to show you both, but it-"

Twilight was saved from having to explain further by a knocking on the front door.

Cheerilee took the amulet and put it back on Vinyl's neck, rendering the unicorn indistinct once more. "Just relax, Vinyl. We don't have to do anything you don't want to… and certainly not the pet thing…" She turned to look at Maud. "What is with the pet thing?"

"I like it, and Twilight likes it." Maud shrugged and looked past the pair at the new guest. "Rarity is here."

"Who else is coming?" Vinyl forgot her voice wasn't hidden, but thankfully the other white unicorn didn't hear.

"Darlings, I am so glad to be back. I love the Crystal Empire, particularly my new store there, but coming home is… coming home." Rarity trotted into the room, her hooves arcing high in an almost-prance. "Cheerilee, I didn't know you would be attending our little soiree. Who is your friend?"

"My friend is a little… careful about who knows she is here." Cheerilee hugged Vinyl this time. "Uh, do you have somepony that… uh…"

"Of course I do, two in fact. And it is always such work to keep on top of the little fillies. I fully understand your friend's worry, my darlings can't let anypony know what they are doing… yet." Rarity's words were obviously hinting at high-profile "fillies" but also that she wanted to be acknowledged. "Is this all of us?"

"Two more." Maud pointed behind Rarity. "And here they are." Her voice never broke its calm, even level, even though Trixie Lulamoon had just walked in, leading a Shadowbolt on a leash.

Vinyl froze a moment until she realized the Shadowbolt was a disguise not unlike her own, what she didn't expect was to see Trixie dragged along while the pony under that disguise raced forward to shove its nose under Maud's tail.

"Shade!" Trixie was almost in tears at how her pet was acting. "Trixie told you to behave!"

~~~~~+++++~~~~~

It would be highly suggested, at this point, to go back and read Dash's Restraint (if you haven't already). The scene plays out as it did there, with Shade being revealed as Rainbow Dash. Vinyl, however, maintains her disguise throughout the meeting.

~~~~~+++++~~~~~

"That was just about the oddest thing I have ever seen." Vinyl only spoke once the doors had closed on Trixie, Shade, and Rarity. "She is really into being a pet… is it like that for you, Princess Twilight?"

"I told you, just Twilight is fine." Twilight gave a nervous laugh. "And no, I don't go that… well, I do get hypnotized, but I don't like being a pet-pet. I just like doing exactly what I am told, following instructions… I can see by your expression that isn't what you want."

"I just want to not… not get freaked out by ponies staring at me." Vinyl pulled the amulet off and looked at it. "I want to be able to find out who I really am."

"Inhibitions." Maud cut in on the conversation. "I could remove them, it would be hilarious, I am sure there is a stage show about it." Her monotone voice and bored expression, more than ever, showed what she thought about the idea. "You need to be able to understand that feeling what you want is okay."

Vinyl pondered the idea, but then the thought of being "taught" as Maud would likely do it hit her. "No! I'm not letting you make me into some kind of pet." She was about to turn and stomp away when she felt Cheerilee nuzzle against her cheek.

"It won't be that," Maud interjected. "Being a pet is what Rainbow Dash desires. Being my property is what Twilight desires. What do you desire?"

"I want to feel right about myself, I want… I want others not to care what I am or aren't." Vinyl felt a squeeze from Cheerilee.

"Other ponies don't think about it, Vinyl." Cheerilee let go of the hug, but kept leaning against Vinyl.

"Okay, I want to feel right about me and stop worrying about how I look to others." Vinyl froze and blinked a few times in revelation. "That really hasn't got anything to do with being a pet, does it?"

"No." Maud gave the pair a little half-smile. "You will need to trust the pony who does this."

Cheerilee leaned up, her snout just touching the soft fuzz of Vinyl's ear. "Do you trust me to do it? If we plan and take our time?"

Buck it all, I trust her, and I really want this fix… fixed is a bad word, but I want to be me. "I want to know everything we are going to do, everything you are going to say. We are going to work on the words together." Vinyl finally turned her head to look at Cheerilee and gave a relaxed grin.

Author's Note

A note about this. This particular chapter has been revised so many times in the last 12 hours I am surprised it has even two words that are from the original version. I anguished and couldn't feel happy about what it was, but it wasn't until I slept on it that I remembered exactly why. My vision of Vinyl is of a bi-gendered pony, and a pony that perceives a lot more prejudice to what feels right to her than actually exists in Equestria. I am sorry if I am not showing this as well as I would like, I will happily admit that as a writer, and a person, I am still growing.

If any of this feels wrong, or doesn't fit for what your experiences with these issues is, please join me on Discord and talk with me about it, I promise I will listen and try to understand as best I can.

~~~~~+++++~~~~~

So I do this "Ask x" thing, x can be any pony within the story. You can ask them anything and ~~I~~ they will definitely hopefully reply. Keep the questions appropriate to the age-rating of the stories and of course, ~~I~~ They will answer the best question(s) in the author notes of the next chapter. The more votes a comment has the more likely I will get it to the right pony to answer, try and keep it to one answer per post! ~~I~~ They will pick one question per chapter.

Support me on Patreon or fuel my writing on Ko-Fi!

Join me on Discord. Warning, said chat may contain NSFW material and should be considered adult in nature.

Awesome ponies who are already helping to keep me in keyboards and rum:
Canary in the coal mine
Daremo
Mary Rowland
Boulder
A.P.O.N.I.

And special thanks to the following, for careful eyes and friendly words:
Daremo
Vutava
Boulder