Taming Strange. Or: How I learned to stop worrying and make love in public

Octavia was galloping full speed down the sidewalk, her cello bouncing against her back. Vinyl rolled up in a hired taxi. "Yo babe where the fuck you.-"

She was cut off by Octavia leaping in and screaming. "THE FILLYHARMONIC! GO!" The taxi was off like a shot. The cellist panted like a sprinter.

She finally had a second to breathe and Vinyl tried to calm her down. "Babe chill! What time you gotta be there?" She asked rubbing her mare on the back.

Octavia gasped for breath. "I'm supposed to be there at five thirty and if I'm late I'll lose my chair, and if I lose my chair I can't pay for school and.-"

She was cut off by Vinyl putting a hoof over her mouth. "Alright! I get it! Sorry I asked." She looked out the window at the taxis growing ever closer. She pulled her phone from her mane and cringed at the time. She leaned forward in the taxi. "Eh Bro! Whatever you do, don't stop running. You go straight to the place. Don't slow down. Got it?" She didn't give him time to object as she scrambled onto the roof of the carriage. "Okay PON-3. Bae needs you right now. Try to not die."

Her horn flared and every taxi and pedestrian in front of her was raised ten feet in the air as they passed under then then put down again less than gently. All cross streets traffic found themselves going over invisible magical bridges. Octavia looked about and saw what was happening and couldn't believe her mare had that much raw telekinetic power. Vinyl on the other hoof was suffering. She DIDN'T have that much raw telekinetic power, she was over exerting herself to no end. But bae gets what bae needs damnit.

They tore through the streets of Canterlot and arrived at the Royal Canterlot Fillyharmonic. Vinyl saw through eyes squinting with pain that there were four carriages sitting evenly spaced against the curb. "AAAH FUCK YOU GET OUTTA MY WAY!" With the last of her magic she rolled their wheels until they were bumper to bumper and lifted the whole carriage, driver and all, into the space created.

She collapsed against the roof of the carriage panting heavily, occasionally choking back retches. She limply pulled out her phone. Five twenty nine p.m. "Nice." She felt an ache in her head, and every muscle felt like it had ruptured, but they'd made it.

Octavia popped up grabbing the unicorn, picking her bodily up from the roof of the carriage and kissing her hard. "THANKYOUILOVEYOU!" She dropped her unceremoniously onto the ground and galloped off with her cello into the building.

The cellist had learned the layout of the building like the back of her hoof. She ran in through a side door to avoid being seen. She'd planned to slip in through the back and take her place in the orchestra, but instead of avoiding everypony, she ran right into a crowd of ponies standing around, concern written on every face.

They were standing around Lord Fortissimo court composer to the princess herself, dressing down a terrified yellow unicorn who was hyperventilating and hiding under his hooves. "YOU'RRRE GOING TO GO OUT THERRRE AND PLAY THE IMPRRROVISATION, ORRR YOU WILL LOSE YOURRR." Despite his massive lung capacity, even he had to inhale sometime. "SITUATION!"

"But m-m-my Lord." He could barely think for terror. "I-i-i've never done an improvisation. I just don't know how." There were tears standing in his eyes.

"THE SECOND CHAIRRR VIOLINIST IN THE HIGHEST ORCHESTRRRA LAND." He sputtered in rage. "AND YOU'VE NEVERRR PERRRFORMED AN IMPROVISATION?! WELL CLEARRRLY I'LL NEED TO RRREPLACE TWO VIOLINISTS INSTEAD OF ONE! GET UP YOU SNIVELING-" He tried to tear the violinist onto his hooves with a foreleg, but the terrified unicorn galloped away.

He got all the way to the door before Lord Fortissimo's magical glow caught his back legs and he was dragged back clawing at the floor as he was dragged.

Octavia sidled up to the second chair cellist and whispered. "Whatever is the matter with him?"

The other cellist whispered. " The improvisatori got hurt in a cart accident so now he has to play the improvisation, but he doesn't know how." His tone seemed rudely unconcerned.

Octavia decided to ignore his lack of empathy. "Uum my Lord Fortissimo? I know how to improvise and I happen to know the first chair violinist part. If you'd allow I could-"

The Conductor's head snapped around and his eyes blazed at the cellist. "Who darrres to.-" His eyes locked onto Octavia. "OOOH NOT YOU." He rolled his eyes. "I suppose you also happen to play every other instrument in the orchestra as well?"

The earth pony wasn't deterred by her boss's rudeness. "No but I know the piece on the cello and I can.-"

"ON THE CELLO?!" He spluttered again. "THE PRRRRRINCESS HERRRSELF WILL BE IN ATTENDANCE AND YOU DARRRRE TO INSULT THIS PIECE BY RRRRREPLACING A VIOLIN WITH A CELLO?!"

"Yes I can just transcribe the." But Lord Fortissimo wasn't listening he went back to shouting at the poor violinist.

Outside in the pavement Vinyl grinned through the pain. "Worth it." She propped herself up against the side of the carriage and breathed heavily. "I am definitely. Gonna hit. That classy. Hurk. Bitch."

The carriage driver sitting next to her said "Nice" through labored breathing.

Vinyl was too tired to jump at the realization that the driver had collapsed next to her on the ground. She had forgotten all about the poor pony who'd just galloped the entire length of Canterlot in less than thirty minutes. She achingly, with every muscle screaming, presented her hoof for him to brohoof. He did and the two dropped their forelegs limply after.

"Ey! Good. Job. Hurk. You deserve somethin nice. Hurk. For that." She fished a business card, that Neon had insisted on printing out for her, out of her mane. " Take this to Mad. Hurk. Mares. Ask for Roy. Hurk." She gasped for breath. "Say PON-3 says 'full ride'. Hurk. See if he can't find you a couple of. Hurk. Party freaks."

The driver's eyes went wide and he sprang to his hooves, all exhaustion forgotten. He put the business card into his tip box and galloped off. He'd just made fifty bits and now this crazy unicorn was getting him laid. It was a very good day for him. He galloped off in the direction of Mad Mares and didn't even say thank you in his haste.

Vinyl flopped languidly backwards onto the pavement when the carriage she'd been leaning against sped away. She got the back of her head against the ground eliciting a small. "dick!"

She knew she couldn't just lay in the road with carriages and taxis pulling up constantly so she pumped herself up for the task ahead. "Okay. Come on PON-3. You've been in. Hurk. Worse spots before." She creakily, slowly, agonizingly got onto all four legs. "Don't die before you see bae play." She trudged heavily to the door. She chanted "I'm. Gonna. Hit. That. Classy. Bitch." With every step just to keep herself moving.

The journey got easier as she went. She slipped in through a door that a posh looking pony had just exited. She was too exhausted to take in the lavish lobby, with its marble columns and expertly painted ceiling. She just focused on the floor immediately in front of her and seeing her bae play. That's all that existed right now. Must. See. Bae. Play.

She got to a velvet rope and a very oddly decorated wall with a pony's head sticking out of it. The head spoke. "Seating doesn't begin for another half hour ma'am." Vinyl's exhausted brain took slightly longer than was appropriate to register. She looked at him like one looks at somepony they recognize but can't place.

"Holy shit you're a dude!" She said half dazed by the realization. The towering ticket pony said nothing choosing instead to stare straight ahead ignoring her. She backed up further to see that in fact yes. It was just a very large, broad shouldered earth pony.

Her aching mind slowly started to work again, the overexertion starting to settle. She didn't have a ticket, and who would take her word that she was with Octavia. She certainly wouldn't have. She didn't have any more bits with her either, as she'd just thrown a pile she hadn't bothered to count at the first taxi available.

She trudged towards a bench to try to puzzle this out when a side door labelled "Authorized Access Only" burst open in front of her and a terrified yellow unicorn with a violin bow for a cutie mark ran out then was immediately dragged screaming back in by a magical glow. This would've concerned her in her normal state of mind but right now all it did was solve her problem. "Hey a way in. Cool." The overexertion was giving way to giddiness.

She trudged down the dark corridor and saw the most beautiful thing she'd ever witnessed. Her mare. "But what's this?" She thought to herself. "Who's that fatass yelling at bae. NoPoNy YeLlS aT BaE!" She muttered to herself in her stupor. The overweight green unicorn went back to yelling at the cowering yellow pegasus. Vinyl stumbled up and threw her hooves around Octavia. Half out of love and half for support. "BABYYYY!"

Octavia was mortified, she looked around in a panic but her colleagues were too busy looking at Lord Arpeggio Fortissimo, titles titles titles, dressing down a violinist for not being able to do something he'd never been trained to do, poor pony. She carried her stupified mare over to a bench and sat her down. She hissed. "Vinyl what in Equestria are you doing here?"

The DJ stared dumbly for a few seconds, her brain having to catch up to her ears. "You don't seem that happy to see me." She slurred, grinning as if drunk. Octavia rolled her eyes and gave her a quick peck. "That's bett- OH! I remember." She grabbed Octavia's head. "No ticket."

Octavia facehoofed. In their haste she had completely forgotten to register Vinyl as a guest. She'd planned on doing so yesterday but then had apparently passed out for about twenty three hours. "Well it may be a mood point now." She plopped down dejectedly next to her mare.

"Whas wrong?" Vinyl said as she let her head slip into Octavia's lap.

Octavia stroked her mane, no longer embarrassed at the gallant unicorn who'd overexerted herself just to get her to work on time. "Oh the first chair violinist got hurt in a carriage accident, and the second chair violinist isn't an improvisatori."

Vinyl vaguely thought." Oh shit. Did I do that?"

"I offered to play the part in a higher register, but Lord Fortissimo positively refuses." Her voice grew slightly strained as if holding back tears of frustration. "And now the whole performance might be cancelled."

Vinyl's head popped off of Octavia's lap. She was instantly on her hooves, her exhaustion forgotten. She didn't almost kill herself lifting half of Canterlot with her horn just for this fatass to tell her bae not to play. Bae fuckin gets what bae fuckin WANTS!

She marched right up to the overweight unicorn and grabbed him by the horn with her hoof. Before anypony could stop her she dragged him into a broom closet and shut the door. She clicked on the small pull light and Lord Fortissimo, titles titles titles, could feel her breath on his muzzle as she spoke. "What's my name?" She said in her most intimidating growl.

Lord Fortissimo taken off guard by the whole scene could only stammer. "W-w-what I don't.-"

"Exactly! You don't know me. But I know you, and where you work. Now if Octavia doesn't play tonight, I'mma introduce you to a coupla big pipe hittin motherfuckers, and y'all are gonna get REEEAL acquainted if you know what I mean." She lifted her sunglasses and he got a full view of her eyes, still bloodshot from overexertion, bloody red without and hellish red irises, overflowing with hate and malice. They didn't call her the baddest bitch in Canterlot for nothing. She shook his horn as she snarled. "GOT IT?"

Lord Arpeggio Fortissimo, titles titles titles, was more scared than he'd ever been in his life. He tried to answer but he was too terrified to speak. He could only gulp and nodded intensely.

Vinyl grinned and released the cowering unicorn. In a voice purring with malice. "Good now go tell er."

She opened the door and he scuttled out. He galloped out breathlessly straight to Octavia and asked. "And you'rrrre surrrrre you can play the violin part yes?" He looked back at the broom closet still open but the light turned off. He saw the smallest glimmer of crimson shining out of it and he whimpered. "PLEASE TELL ME YOU CAN PLA-HAY-HAY IH-HIT!" Without another word Octavia grabbed her cello and slid her hoof way up the A string. She played several notes many were astonished to see coming out of an instrument so large. "Good then you play the improvisation." He said looking back at the closet. The door was closed. "Good that's settled then." He scampered off to the concert hall.

Octavia stood dumbfounded, unsure of what had just happened. She felt a kiss on her cheek and sprang away in surprise. "VINYL!" She got a hold of herself. "What did you just do."

Vinyl stared straight at Octavia from behind her sunglasses. She spoke in a hard low voice. "Bae gets. What bae wants." Vinyl's little conversation had drained the last of her will power and she slumped against her mare.

"Vinyl! Vinyl are you alright?" She shook her mare who had just done everything in her power to make sure she was happy. The DJ wasn't responding.

Octavia was about to call out for help when the second chair violinist sidled up sheepishly. "Uum May I." He asked in his timid creaky Alto. The cellist wasn't entirely sure what he meant but she held the limp unicorn out to him. His horn glowed softly and he ever so gently touched the tip of his horn to the tip of Vinyl's. His horn's glow dimmed and her's started to pulsate with her own blue magic.

Vinyl groaned and pushed away the assisting violinist. "Five more minutes." She mumbled and rolled against her mare. Octavia had tears of relief in her eyes.

The violinist stood up and smiled. "I thought so. Don't worry Octavia she was just a little tired. I just gave her a small boost." Octavia hugged him around the neck thanking him dearly. He blushed at the display. "Well I owe you for saving me from Fortissimo. I can't improvise to save my life. You're really doing us all a huge favor Octavia. Thank you." He bowed and went to go find his chair in the orchestra.

Vinyl was carried on Octavia's back to a seat front and center. She was conscious but still exhausted. Octavia kissed her horn and rubbed her cheek against her head. "You've done so much for me Vinyl. I just hope I can make it worth your while." She leaned in close and whispered. "I love you." The smallest little glowing red heart appeared out of Vinyl's horn and Octavia grinned widely. She went to take her place in the orchestra.

Vinyl sat limply in her chair phasing in and out of consciousness. Eventually the other seats filled and the concert hall filled with a gentle roar of personal conversation. Lord Arpeggio Fortissimo, titles titles titles, came out and, in a voice that scraped against Vinyl's mind, called out. "Ladies and Gentlecolts, please welcome our revered guest Princess Celestia."

That got Vinyl's attention. She sat upright in her chair and looked around. Everypony was cheering loudly and looking up at a point high up on the wall. She saw several little balconies jutting out of the walls and in the one closest to the stage was emblazoned the royal solar crest. Her eyes went wide, there she was, tall as life, mane and tail waving like a shimmering Arora, smiling regally and waving a hoof, was the princess.

Vinyl suddenly got very nervous. "Why the fuck is the princess here?" She muttered to herself. "Well it is the Royal Canterlot Filly whatchamacallit. My bae's boss is the fucking princess. " Vinyl rubbed her aching temples. What had she gotten herself into.

The music started and the limp unicorn shifted to get comfortable in her seat. She'd always loathed classical music when recorded, but live it had a weirdly pleasant quality about it. She noticed her ear swaying to the movements of the music like a conductor's baton. Then it happened the rest of the orchestra grew quieter and the cello sang out high above the rest.

Octavia was playing choked all the way up on the fret board, playing a part written for a much smaller instrument with a practiced ease that stunned the DJ. She sat upright in awe as Octavia pulled the music out of the large wooden box. It was the most magical thing Vinyl had ever seen. She could hardly believe just wires and a wooden box were able to produce such a sound.

Octavia as we have seen could play cello all but literally in her sleep. She noticed that her mare was staring mouth agape and had to fight to keep a grin off her face. She sawed away through the movements and the symphony moved from bright cheery upbeat tones, to slow lazy sleepy sounds, to jubilant festive measures.

Then came the final movement. It built slowly, and pensively, then burst into intense fast sawing away at the strings. It was the most beautiful thing Vinyl had ever heard. She leaned forward in her seat in awe at what she was hearing. Tears streamed down her face at what the music made her feel. She wept openly not caring who saw.

The posh ponies in the audience had all heard this piece dozens of times but ponies are an impressionable lot, herd mentality and all. Vinyl's weeping eventually got the whole concert hall in tears. Even the princess herself, who'd been at the premier of this piece hundreds of years ago had to wipe a stray tear from her regal eye.

Octavia, consummate professional that she was, couldn't help but staring at the effect the music was having on her mare. She was caught in the limbo of wanting to stop so she'd stop crying, but wanting to play all the more for her mare, and then came the improvisation.

The rest of the world melted away. She didn't care that the princess herself and the most elite of Canterlot were watching. This was just for her Vinyl. The mare she loved, the mare that loved her, the mare that had lifted half of Canterlot out of her way to get her there. Nothing else in the universe existed but the two mares, and her music.

Finally she pulled the last notes out of the cello, and the symphony ended. Everypony was on their hooves cheering and stomping harder than they ever had. The princess herself nodded to a servant who darted off to speak to Lord Forte. He was told that the princess had requested she play at the Grand galloping gala later that year. He grinned widely and waddled off to tell her the good news.

Octavia had to stop for a moment, to calm herself down. Her hooves shook as she placed her cello in its case. Ponies had always enjoyed her performances, but she'd never moved a pony to tears. She took a moment to ponder her sweet sweet Vinyl. She'd not only lifted all of Canterlot out of her way so she could pass, but didn't let anypony dare to stop her from playing, and then wept at her performance. The cellist couldn't believe her luck at meeting such a wonderful mare.

She was knocked out of her reflections, and off of her hooves respectively, by Vinyl tackling her to the ground and grinding her muzzle as hard as she could against the cellist's. Small moans escaped her as she squeezed the cellist tight. The DJ had never experienced this emotion before. She was desperate to love this pony in her hooves as hard as she possibly could.

"Lord Fortissimo came around the corner grinning widely. "Aah Octavia! What an ex.-" He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw those same hellish eyes glaring at him. They seemed to say very clearly. "If you stop me I will literally actually murder you." He walked backwards around the corner in silence.

Octavia had to pry her face away from the amorous assault. "Vinyl! VINYL! Calm down. I need to.-"

"We need. To get. Home. Now." Vinyl gasped between kisses. She looked dreamily at her lover with her crimson eyes glazed over with desire. She could only breathe the word "Please." Octavia quickly decided whatever business she had could fucking wait.