“Vinyl, would you please turn down the music. Even though you have headphones on I can hear it from here,” Octavia politely requested. Her words had fallen upon deaf ears though, as the music Octavia could only describe as wubs and bass blocked all forms of communication towards the entranced unicorn. Heavily sighing, Octavia turned towards the last hope she had of being able to find any sort of peace and quiet on her four-hour journey.
“Dustin, can you please get her to lower the volume. It’s giving me a migraine,” Octavia pleaded, rubbing her temples softly with a hoof. It took a moment for the human to realize he was being addressed; having prepared himself for such an occasion with heavily enchanted earplugs that eliminated almost all sound. Reaching up with his left hand, Dustin removed the earplug before giving Octavia a questioning glance.
“What’s up Tavi? You need something?” he asked, though almost knowing the answer as he could hear the music from his old I-pod echoing throughout the carriage.
“Yes, can you please get Vinyl to lower the volume? If I have to listen to any more of that infernal screeching she calls music, I'm going to throw myself out the window,” Octavia stated with a frustrated sigh. Dustin smiled lightly towards Octavia, his head shaking as he began to rummage through his backpack.
“You and I both know she won’t listen. Luckily I came prepared,” he said, pointing to the one earplug in his ear as he continued his search.
“And it just so happens, I may have an extra pair of earplugs for you if I can find them,” the human added. Dustin continued his search for another few seconds before pulling out a small case with an extra set of earplugs.
“Well it looks like this is your lucky day Tavi. It seems I do have an extra pair.” Octavia’s eyes filled with tears of joy, as she could practically taste the sweet silence that she was about to enjoy. Reaching for the set of earplugs, they were promptly pulled away from the mare before a devious grin spread across the human’s face.
“Hey, I never said they were free. You know the drill Tavi,” Octavia furrowed her brow in confusion for a moment before growing bright red in her cheeks.
“Y-you can’t be serious Dustin? You’re not going to make me do that, right?” Octavia countered, though her voice was a few pitches higher than normal. The human only nodded in confirmation, the plastered grin on his face never fading for an instant. It was at this time Octavia weighed her choices. Suffer the next few hours with Vinyl’s terrible taste in music, or subjugate herself to something as embarrassing and demeaning as... The mare shuddered as she looked back up at the human with pleading eyes. She knew all too well which decision she was going to make. The young mare sighed heavily and she nodded her head, a defeated look in her eyes as the human’s eyes lit up with glee. Getting into position, Octavia raised her head and forehooves, locking eyes with the human as she sat on her haunches. With a final nod, Octavia began her rehearsed rendition of the Nyan-Nyan dance, complete with sound effects and all.
The performance lasted no more than twenty seconds, though by the time it was over, Octavia’s face was beat red from embarrassment. Luckily, Vinyl was too engrossed in her music to notice what was happening, so at least Octavia could rest a little easier.
“I hate it when you make me do that. You shouldn’t put your marefriend through something so embarrassing,” she scolded, snatching the earplugs out of the human’s hands and promptly placing them in her ears.
“Come on Tavi, you know you like doing it. Besides, I find you irresistible when you do that,” Dustin added, though it didn’t deter the scowl on his marefriend’s muzzle.
It took a few tries for Octavia to position the earplugs correctly, though once she did, silence filled the carriage. It was a sweet relief to the mare, one that did cost her part of her dignity.
“You know I'm going to get you back for this,” she commented. Dustin could only smile at her playful threat.
“I look forward to it sweetie.” Positioning himself against the window, the human closed his eyes and tried to get a few hours rest before they made it to their destination.
A sudden jolt in the carriage managed to wake the sleeping human. Using his left hand, he wiped away the tiredness out of his eyes before the door to the carriage opened, revealing a large, white earth pony in a vest. From what the human could tell, it was a worker at the villa that he was going to be staying at for the next few days.
“Welcome everypony. I hope you all had...” the worker began to say before lowering his voice to a silence. It was obvious exactly what happened, though it still annoyed the human every time it did. Realizing that he must have been staring, the worker’s cheeks reddened lightly, which was very obvious against his white fur. Though in the human’s opinion, he did recover much better than most, falling back into his typical, rehearsed greeting to all guests.
“I hope you all had a pleasant journey. If you would come this way, we will have your bags sent to your room as we check you in,” he stated, stepping to the side as Octavia, Vinyl, and Dustin stepped out of the carriage. A minute later, the three new arrivals were in the main lobby of the hotel villa. Seeing as how Vinyl was the one that had made the reservations, Dustin opted to take a seat on a large couch, as he admired the homely feeling of the hotel.
About ten minutes later, Octavia and Vinyl had returned from the sign in desk with three separate keys.
“Alright Dustin, this is your key to the villa we will be staying in. The workers should have already moved our bags there, so why don’t you go ahead and get us settled in. Vinyl and I will join you shortly,” she said. The look of confusion was more than evident on Dustin’s face as he stared at the two mares in front of him.
“What are you two going to be doing?” He asked.
“We need to talk with the staff to find out where in the resort the reunion is going to be held, along with a few other things,” Vinyl replied.
“Oh, ok. I will see two in like an hour or so then?” he questioned, receiving two nods of confirmation from the mares.
“Alright then, I will see you two in a bit. I might not be back at the villa when you return. I’ve been sitting for too long and will probably just take a walk to look around the place,” Dustin added, his curious side always getting the better of him. Vinyl and Octavia nodded once again before Dustin made his way to the villa. It was only once their human disappeared that Vinyl and Octavia let out a sigh of relief.
“Do you think it was a good idea to bring him along Vinyl?” Octavia asked, unsure of her decision in inviting Dustin.
“It’s fine Tavi, don’t worry. He won’t find out about us ok. If he does,” Vinyl paused for a moment before continuing. “Don’t worry Tavi, he won’t. I promise you.” Vinyl stated with an assuring tone. This did help calm Octavia’s nerves; though not fully extinguish her fears.
“Alright Vinyl, I trust you. Let’s go find somepony that can help us,” Octavia stated, before turning on her hooves and walking towards one of the staff members with Vinyl in tow.
True to his word, Dustin had finished settling in and was now wondering around the villa grounds, taking in all of the beautiful scenery and fresh air he could.
“Ah, this is nice. Nothing like Canterlot.” Dustin said aloud to nopony in particular. He was met with a verbal response, which caused the human to jump in fright. Realizing who it was, he grew a small frown before looking over the rows of grape vines that spanned miles long.
“How many times do I have to tell you not to sneak up on me like that?” he questioned. A light blue tail playfully whipped itself across the human’s lower chest, Dustin rolling his eyes at the antics.
“That was for the whole cat thing you made Tavi do in the carriage.” Vinyl stated with a small laugh.
“I do suppose that is fair, and she did say she was going to get me back. Though please Vinyl, don’t do that again. Ever since my incident in Canterlot, I'm a bit jumpy,” Dustin reminded her, flashing a quick glance of his perfectly sheathed blade to the mare.
“Dude, why did you bring that thing with you?” Vinyl asked, probably a bit louder than she meant too.
“Like I told you before, it’s better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. I don’t want to ever be in the same position I was when I first ventured out into Canterlot.” The few thoughts about that particular day sent shivers down the human’s body.
It had been a normal day like any other, only a few months since the poor human landed face first into a plate of mashed potatoes in the royal dining hall. How he came to appear in front of the two Alicorns and guests was a mystery, though he did always feel that they might have had something to do with it.
After setting the human up in one of the guest rooms in the castle, he was ordered that he wasn’t allowed to leave the castle grounds until further notice. Several months passed by, the human growing stir crazy as the days went on, before he was allowed to see the city of Canterlot. Since Dustin had been confined to the castle for a few months, the human jumped at the chance to finally see a bit of the outside world.
Dustin’s journey lasted less than an hour as a mob of noble and common ponies alike had apparently formed and began pelting food and rocks at the human in an attempt to scare him away. Some even went as far to try and stab the human with an assortment of pitchforks, knives, and swords. For the locals of Canterlot, the human was seen as nothing but a monster that had escaped the confines of his cell in the Canterlot dungeon. What was meant to be a fun and adventurous day had quickly devolved into a fight for the human’s life. Suffice to say, Dustin no longer wished to venture outside the castle.
After regaining his thoughts, Dustin turned to his mare with a small but loving smile.
“It’s peaceful, isn’t it?” the human asked, before feeling the softness of Vinyl’s coat at his side.
“I’m not normally into these kinds of things, but I have to agree. This is rather nice,” the mare responded as she nuzzled her face along Dustin’s side. She was promptly met with an ear scratch, much to the satisfaction of the mare, before sighing as the two continued their gaze.
“We should probably head back. Tavi is going to be worried if we are gone too long,” Vinyl said, breaking the two out of their moment with each other. Dustin nodded his head, though the previous smile had been replaced with an even larger grin. Without warning, the human scooped up the surprised mare at his side, carrying her bridle style down the cobblestone path.
“You know, ponies might get the wrong idea if they see us like this.” Vinyl stated, though she couldn’t help but lightly flush at the human cradling her in his arms. Dustin let out a chuckle before kissing the top of Vinyl’s head, careful to avoid her horn.
“Maybe in a couple years or so Vinyl. Besides, I don’t think I would be able to carry you and Tavi at the same time,” he added. Dustin promptly received a light strike from the mare’s hoof, a look of playful annoyance adorning her face.
“Are you insinuating that Tavi and I are fat?” Vinyl exclaimed in an overly dramatic but comical fashion. Knowing full well that his marefriend was jesting, Dustin shook his head.
“I wouldn’t exactly call you two fat, just a bit fluffier than most,” the human replied. This prompted Vinyl to jut her hoof into her human’s stomach with more force than before.
“Ouch, I was kidding sweetie. Jeez, that freaking hurt,” Dustin replied, unable to rub the soreness of his stomach without dropping the mare. Satisfied with his answer, Vinyl began to lightly massage the injured area.
“That’s what I thought. Remember, there are two things you never say to a mare. One of them is that she is being irrational, because I will tell you straight up that us mares are the most rational beings on the planet.” Vinyl proudly boasted before continuing.
“Second, never tell a mare that she is fat. Even if you are being playful, don’t. Though we are rational, we will not be held responsible for what we do to a stallion who calls their mare fat.” Vinyl finished her short rant before settling back down into the embrace of the human. Dustin could only nod his head with a smile as he continued on his way back to the cottage.
“Duly noted my love. I promise not to call either of you fat or irrational,” Dustin responded with a playful attitude. Seemingly satisfied with his answer, Vinyl nuzzled her human’s chest.
“Good. Now pick up the pace. We don’t want to be late. Luna forbid what Tavi will do to us if we don’t hurry up.” Thoughts of the grey colored mare giving both of them a thrashing with a frying pan quickly motivated the human to pick up the pace.
Ten minutes had passed before the front door to the villa slammed opened with a faint blue aura. Dustin was quick to walk inside and straight over to the bed before dropping the white mare on top of the comforter along with himself.
“Ugh, my arms are killing me. I need to work them out more,” Dustin complained. It was at the moment Octavia decided to poke her head through the door to the bedroom.
“I see you two had a lot of fun,” the mare teased with a playful smile.
“Tell me about it. Vinyl was...” Dustin was beginning to say, though stopped short of completing his sentence as he noticed the deathly glare Vinyl was giving him.
“A pleasure to carry back to the villa,” Dustin finished, as Vinyl gave him a nod of acknowledgement before rolling herself off the bed.
“Well I’m glad you two had a good time. Vinyl and I are going to freshen up a bit. Dinner will be in an hour and a half, so please be ready by then. We are going to eat at the main restaurant they have on the property.” Dustin gave a small nod of understanding before hearing the sound of hooves approaching his side. Turning his head, the human was greeted with a light but loving kiss from Octavia.
“There’s more where that came from if you are ready on time,” Octavia playfully teased as she dragged her tail along her lover’s chest in a provocative manner. Within seconds, both Vinyl and Octavia had disappeared from the doorway.
“Damn it. These mare are going to be the death of me,” Dustin grunted, sitting up from the bed before quickly following after the mares for a bit of fun.
