Author's Note

I write in order to listen.
The two are intertwined. Can't have one without the other.
No words come out otherwise.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrR5whMTICI

Soundcheck

“Fuuuuucking Hell…”

You were expecting it to be busy, but you’re honestly surprised at how many ponies are present.

If you didn’t know any better, you would swear half of Manehattan has shown up for Vinyl’s gig.

Which, you're genuinely proud of. Girl deserves it.

Vinyl has been your friend for the better part of three years, and you’ve gotten to know each other incredibly well during that time.

You remember first bumping into her, or rather… hearing her as you wandered ponyville one day. The electric flow of noise coming out of her headphones caused you to approach and ask for a listen, the kind of music you thought she might be listening to was rare in Equestria, and you wanted to know where you could find some.

She smiled and handed her headphones over to you, and as you drew them over your ears, your eyes lit up; the rhythm, the flow, the thumping bassline.

It was everything your life had been missing.

And as your eyes fell on her, her grin confirmed one thing.

You two were going to be fast friends.

From that day on, you two met regularly, her discussing the latest music trends, and you giving her as much info as you could on some of your own music from back home. You had nearly lost it when she mentioned she was responsible for close to half the beats you were now regularly listening to, and hearing her regale her experiences at different venues and shows only heightened how much respect you already had for her.

She was one of really, only a handful of DJ’s around Equestria. And unfortunately, Ponyville wasn’t exactly destination number one on the club scene. Vinyl traveled a lot. Canterlot, Las Pegasus, Fillydelphia; there were a lot of gigs in the bigger cities of Equestria, and while she didn’t accept all of them, she was still in and out of her home in Ponyville.

After an extended trip to the Crystal Empire (Cadence and Shining Armor apparently being more “with it” than other royalty), she mentioned how tough it could get to be away for days, sometimes weeks at a time, traveling from city to city to put on back to back shows.

Sensing the unspoken hint, you offered to go with her on her next trip, provided you could get the time off.

You nearly couldn’t make it though, on account of having the life nearly squeezed out of you by Vinyl’s unexpected hug.

Sure enough, the next trip was a big one. Vinyl had been asked to play at the Chaos Theater in Manehattan. One of the biggest DJ scenes around. Lucky for both of you, you were able to get the time off.

The two of you had arrived in Manehattan the day of, and, after helping unload all her gear into the venue, Vinyl asked you to check on the hotel she booked to make sure things were good there, and avoid any complications after the show.

Unbeknownst to you, when you finally did arrive, you found out that Vinyl had made arrangements for a single room.

With a single bed.

With a single, perfectly placed chocolate in the middle of two pillows.

You were less than impressed. And also a bit flustered.

You were going to need to have words with Vinyl about this.

Muttering obscenities, your mind wandering through countless possibilities as to why, you left the hotel and made your way back to the venue.

Which led to now. With you standing in front of a throng of ponies who weren’t here before. Staring at one of the biggest clubs you’ve ever seen.

The pounding, raucous noise flowing out of the building is energetic, you can’t see inside, but you can hear the symphonic chaos as it seeps out of the building. Ponies in front of you are already bobbing their head to the sound of the final soundchecks being performed before the show begins.

Shaking yourself out of your stupor, you head around the line and make your way to the side of the building, Event Staff pass dangling from your hip. One of the perks of helping Vinyl.

You're stopped at the back door by a gruff looking pony. He gives you a grin as you approach. Brass Tack, a friend of Vinyl’s who’s helped out at a couple of shows she’s been to. Turns out Bouncers are as much of a commodity as DJ’s in Equestria.

“‘Sup Monkey man.”

You chuckle, “Sup Brass, mind letting me through?”

“Sure thing pal, lemme see that badge though, gotta follow procedure y’know.”

“I hear you, gotta make sure you don’t let any unsavory types through, yeah?”

Laughing, he gives your ID a once over.

“If that was the case, I wouldn’ta let Vinyl in here. You keep her in check for me will ya? I helped out at one’a her shows back in Fillydelphia, girl can get wild when she’s on stage.”

Images of Vinyl flash through your head, it’s hard to imagine her getting too crazy. She likes to have her fun of course, but if what he’s saying is true, you may be in for more than just the good music tonight.

You wish you had a camera.

“If that’s true, I won't promise much, this is the first time I’ve had the chance to be at one of her shows.”

“No shit? Well alright then. I’ll let you two get away with it tonight. On the promise you have just as much fun as she usually does.”

You bring your arm up in mock salute.

“You got it boss.”

He chuckles.

“Heh, no wonder she likes you so much. You’re just as bad as her.”

“I don’t know if I should be offended by that.”

“Don’t be, I mean it in the best way possible. Now go on, get goin’. I gotta stand here and look angry for the next few hours.”

You hold out your fist and he bumps it with a hoof.

“Thanks Brass, take care alright?”

“Always do.”

You head through the door, but are stopped by Brass shouting behind you.

“Hey, do me a favor?”

You turn to look at him.

“Tell Vinyl, ‘Good luck with both shows tonight.’”

You cock your head to the side.

“Both shows? I thought it was just the one?”

Brass chuckles, waving you away.

“You’ll figure it out.”

Shrugging, you turn and continue down the hall towards the Main stage. Several ponies rush by, shouting at each other as they check on equipment, lights, and monitoring. You try to shuffle out of the way as best you can, but are still given some curt stares as you mutter apologies, weaving between ponies.

As you get to the end of the hall, you round a corner and pull back a curtain, walking onto the main stage.

It’s breathtaking.

When you first arrived, it was just a big empty room.

Now though, it’s exactly what you expected, and more.

The only light comes from the stage and above, spotlights shining into the audience area. You can see the strobes and lasers, tucked into the rafter, patiently waiting for their turn to impress.

The main stage has been elevated up five feet, Skirting panels and cloth keeping the messy underside of metal safe from audience view.

Speakers surround the entire perimeter of the stage, huge and powerful. Short snippets of audio fly out of them, the sub-woofers set against the floor pulse as bass flows through them.

You take in the sight, before finally settling on center stage, a single pony bobbing her head back and forth, headphones grasped with one hoof, the other adjusting switches and sliders on her mixer. You can see traces of her fur glisten slightly against the light, no doubt from the heat of everything around her, and the work she’s put in over the course of the day. Her shades set to the side, you can see her eyes, focused on getting everything just right.

She leans back, letting out a deep sigh.

You find yourself staring, mesmerized by the sight of her.

Vinyl Scratch.

DJ Pon-3.

Your closest friend.

Its hard to hide your feelings of admiration for her.

The work she puts into her music. The effort she spends creating some of the most bombastic tunes you've ever heard, and the dedication she has to making it perfect.

The way she always puts you in a good mood, always laughs at your stupid jokes. How she always wants to see you smile, and goes out of her way to be there for you when you need it.

Her gorgeous figure, the beautiful mane, her curvaceous flank.

The way she booked only one bed.

You sputter and cough, choking on nothing as you try and shake the thoughts out of your head.

Vinyl turns and finally notices you, her eyes going wide as she catches you clinging to life amid the coughs, and runs over to help.

“Dude! Your back! Why are you dying?!”

She pats your back, and you ease out of your coughing fit.

“F-Fine! I’m fine! No reason! Just swallowed wrong.”

Vinyl chuckles, ”You better be fine. I can’t have you dying before the show even starts.” She pauses, frowning, “Don’t really want you dying after the show either come to think of it.”

You flick her ear as she laughs, hopping out of the way of another swat.

“Funny girl.”

She giggles, sticking her tongue out at you.

“Seriously though Vinyl, this is nuts. I can’t believe how much this place transformed, I was only gone for a couple of hours.”

She smirks up at you, “Uh, duh? Dude, who do you think you’re talking to? I’m DJ Pon-3. Premiere DJ of Equestria? this kinda stuff is foals play to me.”

You return her confident smile with one of your own.

“Huh. Is that why when we got here, the first words out of your mouth were ‘Mother Bucker, how am I gonna set this place up?’”

Vinyl moves to smack you, but you dodge out of the way just in time.

“Whatever! I got it set up, and that’s all that matters.” She looks at you, a tinge of red on her face, “And you helped too y’know. So… thanks. It means a lot to me that you took time off to come help me out, I owe you dude.”

Your own face goes red at the praise, and you scratch the back of your head.

“Don’t worry about it, I wanted to remember? It’s not often I get to go to a concert anymore, let alone one headed by my best friend.”

“Yeah… friend… Hey, listen, do you think maybe, after the show we could...”

You look down, and for a split second you can see the hint of a frown forming, but it's gone just as fast as she shakes her head.

“Never mind, come over here and gimme a hand with some last minute prep.”

You’re about to ask what was wrong, but the thought floats away from you as Vinyl speaks up.

“Hey, watch your step around the cables, last thing we want is to accidentally trip or disconnect something.”

You look down and notice the taped down snake cable winding around the stage. Looking up at her, you lift one foot up, exaggerating the motion and slowly lifting your leg higher than you need to, and slowly setting it down on the other side. Vinyl gives you a deadpan stare as you repeat the process for the other leg.

“Think I nailed it. Thanks for the warning.”

You wink, smiling broadly at her.

Her expression falters as a grin forms, and she bumps against you with her flank.

“Smart ass.”

“Hey, I learned it from you.”

“And don’t forget it, now grab that Mic, I need to make sure the level’s good on it.”

“Yes ma’am.”

As you bend down to grab the Microphone, you remember the hotel.

“Hey, I gotta ask you something.”

Now back at her table, Vinyl doesn’t look up as she responds.

“Whats up?”

You tap at the Mic, and hear a faint echo of it in the open hall.

“Back at the hotel. What’s up with the bed situation?”

Vinyl suddenly jerks, twisting a knob violently, and the tapping from the mic suddenly explodes through the speakers, echoing throughout the entire building.

Several ponies come out from behind the curtain and look in, checking to make sure everything's OK.

Vinyl waves them off, readjusting the dial.

“Uh… yeah, about that.”

She fumbles with the controls a bit before looking up to meet your gaze.

“I figured it’d be cheaper, y’know? Cut costs and all that.”

You frown, “Really? Vinyl, I told you I didn’t mind paying for a room. I can go back if you want and-”

“NO!” She shouts, taking you by surprise.

“It’s… not just that...”

You stare at her, and can see the blush forming on her face. You watch as she plays with the knobs on her mixer, occasionally glancing up before looking back down again. The usually confident DJ hesitates before speaking.

“I figured, y’know. I don’t really get to hang out with someone after a show, since I’m usually flying solo on these gigs. I thought it’d be cool if we could just crash and chill when it was done?” She looks up at you hopefully, her eyes piercing into you.

“Oh… geez. I’m sorry Vinyl, I didn’t even think… Of course. I’m totally down for that!”

Her demeanor immediately shifts, but the blush remains etched into her features.

“Great! Trust me, tonight's gonna be bucking wild!”

You chuckle at her enthusiasm, and once again, the two of you are back to work making last minute preparations.

One of you woefully under prepared for just how “Wild” the night was going to get.