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

It had been a long night. Vinyl had taken Octavia back to her dorm and had held her as she cried until she'd fallen asleep. Neon, the consummate professional that he was, used Octavia's little show as an excuse to close early so nopony knew the real reason. Nopony was gonna argue that PON-3 shouldn't go hit that after that dance.

The guards had arrived and taken away the body. Nopony who worked at Mad Mares knew the unicorn in question. Everypony had seen her, as she'd been a regular, but not one pony could remember what her name was. Nopony knew if she had any family. All the guards could do is file a report about the body and wait for somepony to file a missing pony report. The V.I.P. room had been deep cleaned, and all was back to normal. It was as if she'd never existed. And that was Octavia's problem.

She hadn't said a word since they'd woken up. She wouldn't even look Vinyl in the eye, but she clung to her like a filly clings to its mother. She held onto Vinyl like she thought she'd vanish if she let go. Vinyl didn't mind this at first, as she was more than happy to comfort her mare, but something had to be done when it came time for a potty break.

"Octavia?" The DJ asked. She didn't move. "Babe?" There was no response. "I'ma go to the bathroom. I'll be right back. Okay?" Still the earth pony sat in silence. Vinyl gently disconnected herself and the cellist's hooves fell limply to the bed. Vinyl wanted to say something but couldn't bring herself to.

She did her business, and was about to go back to Octavia's side, but she caught a glimpse of herself in the bathroom mirror. She stared at herself for a good long while, taking in the gravity of the situation. "Fuck you." She sighed at herself and reentered Octavia's room.

Octavia hadn't moved. Her hooves still lay limply where they'd been when she left. Vinyl couldn't stand it any longer. She had no clue how to handle this situation but something had to be done. "Babe. Babe please. Look at me." The cellist slowly moved her hooves in closer to her. She still didn't look up. Vinyl's voice grew in desperation. "Octavia please." Octavia began to shake softly. She finally raised her head and Vinyl saw tears streaming down her face. Octavia tried to say something but her voice was dry and cracked. "What was that babe?"

The cellist snapped to her hooves and screamed. "WHAT WAS HER NAME VINYL?" Vinyl shrank back at the volume. "How does a pony just up and vanish Vinyl? Everypony at the club knew her, she was a regular, how does she die and nopony knows her name? She was a pony, she had a family, she had to live somewhere, somepony had to know her. Now she's dead love."

She lunged forward and held Vinyl tight weeping bitterly into the side of her neck. She could only mutter the word "please" between sobs. Vinyl held her close and stroked her mane as she cried. She coaxed her crying mare over to the bed and they sat down.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry it's just." She wiped her muzzle and held her mare close. "I just can't stand the thought of losing you."

Vinyl understood and squeezed Octavia. "Hey babe don't worry! I'm not goin anywhere. See I'm right here." She rocked back and forth holding her lover's head with her hooves. "I'm right here. I'm just fine."

Octavia happily accepted the comfort her lover offered. This was the most scared that she'd ever been in her life. She couldn't bear the thought of losing her sweet sweet Vinyl, so having her reassurance calmed her immensely.

Vinyl chuckled. "And besides you were there. You see how it is. You my little stripper danced on the bar for everypony you party animal."

"I wasn't dancing for them Love. I was dancing for you. I didn't notice anypony was watching until you moved the spotlight." Vinyl stared for a moment at her mare. She broke into a shaking laughter and fell sideways on the bed. Because of course she would. Of course her little mare wouldn't think that anypony but her would watch her stripper dancing on the bar.

Octavia had to laugh in spite of herself. She laid against her lover's side and just enjoyed the feeling of laughing with the pony she loved. A thought occurred to her. "By the way love, you simply must have that bar mare retrained. Who doesn't know what brandy is?" She rolled over scoffing at the unfathomable notion.

Vinyl looked about nervously. "Yeah I'll get right on that. Oh yeah, babe! Where'd you learn to drink like that? That was fuckin boss!"

"It's part of a young lady's education in Prançe to gain an appreciation for the old vintages. A lady should know what to drink, what not to drink." She scrambled onto her mare. "And when to stop" She said mirthlessly.

Vinyl rolled her eyes. "Babe! I've been doin this a long time. I can handle my shit." She grinned nostalgically. "Trust me, no matter how fucked up I get, or where I black out, I always get back on my hooves." She winked.

Octavia slowly got off of Vinyl, face drawn with concern. "What do you mean 'black out.'"

Vinyl couldn't help but grin at the memories, or in this case lack thereof, of her intoxicated exploits. "Ah babe you don't even know! That's where your brain goes to sleep but your body goes all 'eye of the tiger' on you and soldiers on."

Octavia's horror rose. "And this is something you do?"

Vinyl underestimated her lover's discomfort taking it as harmless prudentry. "Dude!" She grinned at the recollection. "Okay like this one time, I was doin a gig in Trotterdam, and I fuckin woke up two days later in Las Pegasus!" Her cackling laughter was cut off by Octavia springing to her hooves, tears in her eyes.

"You're just okay with not being in control of your senses?" She shouted desperately.

It was only now that Vinyl realized her lover's concern. "Babe it's fine. I've.-"

"AND WHAT ABOUT WHEN YOUR NOT FUCKING FINE VINYL? WHAT ABOUT WHEN YOU BLACK OUT AND DON'T WAKE UP AGAIN?" Octavia screamed.

Vinyl held up her hooves defensively. "Babe calm down! It's just part of the life ya know? Life's a party so party till you drop."

Octavia gasped and put a hoof to her mouth. She could only whisper in horror. "Is that all there is to you? You're just okay with dying meaninglessly in some club?"

Vinyl stood up carelessly, still not grasping the gravity of the situation. "Yeah, I mean shit, everypony's gotta die sometime right? May as well be while you're having a good time."

A vision of Vinyl laying limp and lifeless with foam coming out of her mouth and nose flashed across Octavia's mind. Octavia slapped Vinyl across the face. She ran out of the room leaving Vinyl speechless.

Vinyl was stunned. The slap hadn't hurt but it had shattered her world. She sat there eyes wide, face blank for what felt like hours. Finally she got up and slowly walked home in a daze. She arrived at her apartment and plopped down just inside the door. She held her head in between her hooves.

"That bitch. That unbelievable cunt. She fucked it all up." Vinyl thought to herself out loud. "I had a good thing goin, a steady gig, a bitchin apartment, money finally comin in. And for what." She got up unsteadily beginning to shake with anger. Octavia had destroyed her world and rebuilt it with her as its center. Now she was gone. Vinyl was adrift in the void. "ALL BECAUSE OF HER!"

"Just cause some bitch O.D.s I'm not good enough for her. Just cause I don't know everypony, it's my fault she's dead. Who the fuck was she to me? What the fuck do I care if she's dead?"

Vinyl grit her teeth and screamed in rage. "WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE WAY I LIVE MY LIFE. I LIKE GETTIN FUCKED UP. WHAT THE FUCK DO I CARE WHO THAT BITCH WAS. FUCK HER." She wanted to smash everything in her apartment but she couldn't focus on anything. All she could do was scream in impotent rage. "Yeah I'ma die someday big fuckin whoop. What the fuck do I care who remembers me. I have a good time. I'm there fuckin best at what I do. Who cares what her fucking name was. It's not my fault."

She ran out of steam and collapsed against the door again. She couldn't be mad anymore. All she had left was a crushing emptiness. She needed her mare. All she wanted in the world was her mare. But she wasn't there. Her mind went blank. She sat staring at the ceiling, one thought plaguing her mind. What was her name though. . . . What was her name?

"Oh fuck.