The sophisticated earth pony with the warm grey coat and the dark smooth mane and tail, Octavia, was unrivaled for her air of professionalism and skill. She was the essence of poise, especially when her bow caressed the strings of her signature cello, filling the very air with the beauty she created. She was Equestria’s pinnacle of classical music interpretation, most famously known for her perfectionism. Octavia never missed a note, never faltered, and never allowed a listener to leave her concerts or performances with dry eyes.
To most ponies, it was a shock to learn that such a mare lived in a modest little two-tone cottage on the outskirts of Ponyville, far from the sophistication she surrounded herself with at her performances. Of course, this made perfect sense to Octavia, as it provided her with relief from prying and critical eyes. More importantly, though, it meant she could love the mare of her affection without judgement. A mare so far removed from her world, that when together, they hardly aroused suspicion. Her companion was a DJ, a party animal, with a reputation for flair and earth-shattering beats. The blue-maned, pale-furred, unicorn Vinyl Scratch had a life bathed in artificial lights and sounds. She stood as the forerunner of a musical revolution by combining music in a way that had never been done before. The upbeat, booming, and celebrated music she created had caused most classically-trained ponies alarm. Most, but not all.
Octavia held nothing but love for Vinyl. She enjoyed experiencing this new music, and living a life drastically different from the one her family and friends encouraged her to live. Vinyl was a breath of fresh air, but more than that, she was a wild ride. It didn’t matter to Octavia where she came from, or how she came off to others; Vinyl was her world, and she would do anything to ensure their happiness.
That was why this particular afternoon was so important. Everything had to be perfect, down to the last detail. Octavia’s movements were fluid and precise. She gingerly set the porcelain tea cup on its matching saucer and tilted her head to the side. She was trying to gauge the distance from cup to cup, and from each linen to the table’s edge.
“What do you think?” She asked her companion, who was finishing the cleaning of their cottage in anticipation of their guest. She smoothed a rug with her magic and trotted to her marefriend, tilting her head to the side the way Octavia had. Vinyl said nothing, but the inquisitive expression on her face caused the earth pony to laugh.
“I don’t know why I ask you such things. Perhaps I am just eager?” Octavia admitted with a laugh, taking her seat at the side of the table.
Vinyl smiled and nodded, putting a hoof on her shoulder before igniting her horn with magic to levitate the delicate teapot from its place.
WHOOSH
The pair of ponies looked up to the windows when they heard the unmistakable sound of a pegasus’s arrival. Octavia’s heart swelled in excitement as she sprang to her hooves and headed towards the door. She paused for a moment at the doorway to stifle her enthusiasm and straighten the collar around her neck. She peered over her shoulder to her lover, giving her an excited grin.
“Rainbow Dash!” Octavia trilled, opening the door just as the pegasus lifted her hoof to knock. “We are so delighted to host you this afternoon.”
The rainbow-maned pegasus straightened up and smiled.
“Host me? Oh! You mean have me over. Yeah, yeah, no problem!” Dash said, trotting inside and taking a look around. “I’ve never actually been to your place before… I’m totally digging the different colors. How’d you get half your house to be purple and half to be brown, anyway?” Dash asked as Octavia moved aside to allow her access. Before she could answer, Dash’s eyes lit up at the sight of the unicorn across the room sporting a smirk that rivaled Dash’s. “Hey! Pon-3! I haven’t partied with you in AGES! I gotta make one of your shows in Manehattan, your beats are sick!”
“It’s Vinyl, actually. DJ Pon-3 is her stage name.” Octavia said, trotting to the tea table and delicately taking her seat. Vinyl turned her way and pursed her lips. She knew how much Octavia hated being snubbed by the ponies that didn’t appreciate her strides in classical music.
“Oh, right! Sorry, I forgot. ‘Vinyl Scratch’ right?” Dash asked, and Vinyl nodded in return. “That’s a pretty awesome name too.”
Rainbow turned to the tea table and failed to hide the grimace that followed. Tea parties were more Fluttershy or Rarity’s thing; and on the off chance that they wrangled Rainbow to attend one, she never sat still long enough to ‘enjoy’ it. When Octavia mentioned that she and Vinyl wanted to have her over, Rainbow assumed they would be jamming out, not daintily sipping a liquid Dash so lovingly compared to drinking an old mare’s perfume.
“Tea?” Octavia asked oblivious as Vinyl gingerly poured herself and Octavia a cup.
“Uh… heh… no thanks, not really a fan.” Dash answered, taking her seat and eying the china like it would shatter at her mere touch. “So uh… what’d ya wanna do? I heard Pon-3-- er, Vinyl’s got a new show stopper and I’m dying to hear it!”
Vinyl smirked and levitated the cup to her lips to take a dainty sip. It was a little odd for Dash to see her behaving in such a way when she was used to watching the mare make a spectacle of the bassy-beats she thundered from her speakers.
“Oh yes, she has been working hard to perfect her songs and her DJing skills. The industry for her music is still in its infant stages, but she knows from watching me that the music world can be quite cutthroat. If you do not establish yourself in the forefront, you are easily forgotten.” Octavia slowly stirred two lumps of sugar into her cup as she spoke, never once meeting Dash’s gaze.
Dash looked a little confused. She met Vinyl’s shades, searching for her gaze beneath.
“You’re… a mare of few words, huh?” She asked blatantly.
Octavia laughed a little and Vinyl snickered.
“She cannot speak, Rainbow Dash.”
Rainbow’s blue face turned pale when she heard that. Immediately she looked away and tried to suppress the blush that would inevitably follow.
“O-oh! I’m sorry! I didn’t know! I never really thought about it. I guess when I see you, the music’s too loud to notice and… I’m so sorry!”
Octavia arched an eyebrow, bemused at Rainbow tripping over her words, in an effort not to offend her hosts.
“It’s quite alright, Rainbow Dash. Most ponies aren’t aware, with the exception of a handful of event organizers and Princess Twilight. Many assume she is shy.” Octavia said, lovingly putting her hoof on Vinyl’s. Vinyl smiled in turn and squeezed her hoof, nodding in Rainbow’s direction. “In fact, that’s something we’re working to change, isn’t it dear?”
Vinyl nodded and ignited her horn to take a hearty bite of one of the provided biscuits.
“Oh? Like… speech therapy or something? Pinkie mentioned that once. Her sister Maud didn’t talk when she was a filly until she went to that. Not really sure how that works, but if it could work for Maud, it can work for you!” Dash offered, trying to fix her faux pas by offering solutions. “I’ll ask Pinkie about it when I get back and--”
“That won’t be necessary, Rainbow, though I thank you for the thought.” Octavia interrupted. “We will be handling it in our own way, much like we do everything else.”
Dash shifted awkwardly in her seat, reaching for a biscuit and trying not to make eye contact with Octavia or Vinyl. Octavia noticed her discomfort, and gently set the tea back down on the table.
“Tell me, Rainbow Dash, have you ever been in love?”
Rainbow’s head immediately snapped up and she locked eyes with Octavia in shock. It wasn’t exactly a common question asked, especially amongst ponies who were little more than acquaintances. She blushed, opening her mouth to respond, but closing it again briskly for fear that she would further embarrass herself.
“I never thought I would fall for somepony.” Octavia pierced the awkward silence and took another sip of her tea. “I simply didn’t have the time. Being an accomplished cellist since fillyhood meant there was a constant demand for my attention. I was surrounded in Canterlot pretension; lost in a sea of imposters who puffed themselves up to seem more important than they were.”
“That sounds about right.” Rainbow said with a mouthful of pastry. “Rarity tried to be like them once, and that didn’t go so well. I don’t know why anypony would want to be that way.”
Rainbow’s lack of manners caused a crumb to fly from her open maw to strike Octavia’s cheek. Octavia bristled, her eyes narrowing for a moment, and she took in a sharp breath. For a moment, it looked like she would cry out in disgust, but instead, she let out a calming breath and sat up a little straighter.
“Nor do I, Miss Dash. More than anything, though, that kind of life is… lonely.”
Vinyl put her hoof reassuringly on Octavia when that last word left her quivering lips in a whisper. There was genuine hurt behind those words, and even Dash could sense her pain. Dash set down the rest of the pastry and smiled reassuringly.
“Well, hey! You’ve got Vinyl now, right?” Dash asked, infusing as much excitement as she could muster to try and lighten the mood. “How’d you meet, anyway?”
Octavia knew Dash was just trying to change the subject, and she was glad she did so. She leaned into Vinyl, who wrapped her hooves around the earth pony and planted a soft kiss on her head.
“I rescued her from a dark, terrible place.” Octavia said simply, nuzzling into Vinyl’s soft fur. Rainbow sat up a little straighter. If there was something she enjoyed, it was a good story, especially ones with danger in them.
“Oh yeah? Where?? The Ghastly Gorge?”
Octavia looked up at Vinyl and gave her a knowing smile. Vinyl nodded and reluctantly pulled away from the mare and towards the living room. Octavia kept her sights on Rainbow Dash, making sure to keep her gaze.
“No, no, though that is a terrible place I am told.”
Octavia gingerly grabbed the tea set, one piece at a time to start the clean up process.
“Uh… can I help?” Dash asked, watching the earth pony move at a slow and deliberate pace.
“Nonsense, you are the guest.” Octavia said with a smile, placing each piece near the sink where they would be washed at a later time.
“So uh…” Dash started, looking around the room to see Vinyl moving furniture around. She was very confused, but tried not to make that too apparent to her hosts, so as to not offend them. “Where exactly did you meet her?”
“Well, we met here, but she came from somewhere awful.” Octavia said, walking to Dash’s side and extending out a hoof to help her up. Dash accepted the help, the confusion clearly stamped on her face.
“Las Pegasus?” Dash joked, hoping to ease the obvious shift in the mood.
Before Octavia could respond, Vinyl used her magic to lift the heavy-looking carpet from the living room floor, tossing it onto the couch she had moved against the wall. Dash’s eyes grew wide at the sight of what it revealed: a large circle with strange markings that had been crudely carved into the wooden planks that made up the floor. Her first impression of the carvings was an unpleasant sense of dread. She’d heard of dark magic circles from one of Twilight’s incessant ramblings. At that moment, she cursed herself for not paying better attention.
“Uh… that’s… cool?” Dash said, laughing awkwardly for a moment, but taking a step back.
“Forgive me, Rainbow Dash, but I fear my impatience got the better of me. You see… Vinyl and I have strived for nothing but a normal courtship and a normal, happy, life. But ponies… they just wouldn’t understand...” Octavia started, her voice quivering.
Rainbow looked up at the two, alternating her gaze between them.
“You’re… worried that ponies would be upset that a mare was with a mare? Heh… I hate to break it to you, but ponies aren’t as judgemental as you might think. Lyra and Bonbon are a pretty obvious couple and no one gives them shit.” Dash said, trying to play the part of a supportive friend.
Octavia didn’t answer. She kept her eyes fixated on the carving in the floor while Vinyl stood across the way, seemingly doing the same. A silence loomed over the three mares, and the very air around them seemed to thicken. A low, barely noticeable rumble started from somewhere under the house. At first, Dash thought she was just hearing things, but soon after, the ground beneath their hooves began to quake. The rumble grew ever louder as the objects in the house rattled violently against each other. Although Octavia and Vinyl were able to stand their ground, Dash was not so fortunate. The shaking thrust Dash from her hooves and onto the circle.
“Earthquake! We gotta get outta here!” Dash exclaimed, fanning out her wings. She pushed off from the ground, but something snapped out from beneath her and clutched itself to her back leg. Rainbow screamed out in confusion, whipping her head around to see the carvings on the ground glowing faint red, while an oozing black tendril grasped ever tighter to her leg.
“What’s going on?! What is that?!”
Dash fought hard against the unknown assailant, pulling at its slimy arm to try and free her hoof. A second tendril shot from within the circle, grasping hard at her front right hoof and pulling it away from her back leg. The tentacles pulled Rainbow Dash hard against the ground, pinning her to her back as two more latched themselves to her remaining hooves and wings.
“H-help! HELP ME! WHAT’RE YOU DOING?!”
Rainbow was in full panic now, thrashing wildly as her eyes filled with tears of terror. She looked over at Octavia, who was looking hopefully towards Vinyl instead. Dash turned to see what she was looking at, but the large iconic shades Vinyl wore only reflected back Dash’s terror; masking the expression beneath.
“She chose you, Rainbow Dash! You are the final piece! Once she’s completed, she’ll get to stay here with me!” Octavia said, almost orgasmically excited as she backed away from the red glow. As Dash thrashed about, she noted how dark the room had become; just a few steps away from them, and Octavia was swallowed up by it.
“Chose me?! Chose me for WHAT?!” Rainbow screamed in anger and anguish. “LET ME OUT! I WANT OUT, RIGHT. NOW!”
A new sound started to creep its way into Rainbow’s ear through the violent rumbling. It sounded a little like a growl; but too unworldly to belong to any known animal Dash had ever heard. Within a blink, Vinyl was no longer stoically standing to the side, but instead standing atop the pegasus, hooves on either side of her writhing frame.
Dash’s breathing became erratic as her brain tried to comprehend what she was seeing. The unicorn smiled down at her, but the corners of her smile were extending far beyond the capacity that her cheeks ought to have been able to hold. Her horn ignited, the sound of her magic drowned out by the unholy noises she made. Slowly, the shades on her eyes lifted and Dash beheld the truth in horror.
Vinyl’s face was nothing more than a twisted grin and two large, blackened, empty places where her eyes ought to have been. The darkness she saw in them terrified Dash to her core; like they would suck her into them at any given moment. She couldn’t be sure, but she could have sworn she saw figures in those dark portals, and heard their sorrowful wailing. Their voices rang out like a chorus, pleaing to be released from this hell.
The center of this "creature" called Vinyl’s lips started to part, elongating her jaw in an unnatural manner; consuming her face with the size of her smile. Rows upon rows of sharp teeth glistened in the red light as another tendril shot out from within the creature’s mouth. Rainbow hardly had a chance to react when the black tongue suctioned itself around one of Rainbow’s eyes. Stunned in her terror, she couldn’t even scream while another ‘tongue’ jetted from within and onto her second eye. Rainbow thrashed; she could feel vein-like growths moving around and encompassing her eyes until they hit the optical nerves.
Finally, she found her voice. Her screams, though visceral, unhinged, and mighty, were barely audible above the cacophony of sounds around her. It melded into the chorus of screams from the souls she’d seen moments earlier in those gaping black craters; but only for a moment. Something thick and slimy had been waiting for that scream, that opportune moment, and took sudden occupancy of her mouth, jutting down her throat. Unable to draw breath, Rainbow stopped her wail for want of breath. The tentacle had found what it was looking for, encasing it in its black grasp. All at once, the three tendrils pulled back with undeniable force and precision. Blood immediately spurted from Rainbow’s eye sockets and filled her throat; furthering her suffocation. The tendrils pinning her in place were holding firm as the blood filled her lungs. Empty sockets, wide in terror, eventually sunk back to hide behind eyelids that would never open again.
~~~
“Hey Tavi? Do ya loooooove me?” Rainbow's voice asked, coming from another's lips.
“Oh God Vinyl stoppit! You’re such a child!” Octavia said, playfully shoving her marefriend from behind her in their bed. Vinyl laughed heartily while Octavia pulled the blankets to her chin.
“Aww come on, you love it when I talk like that.” Vinyl laughed, resuming the lower timber of the voice that she had trained the vocal cords to accept as ‘normal’.
“I do not!” Octavia said, throwing one of the extra pillows at her marefriend, who caught it in her magic. She turned to face her with a warm smile, and was met with Vinyl’s signature smirk.
“But I thought everypony had a boner for ‘THE Rainbow Dash’, the lesbian icon herself.” Vinyl said, pulling Octavia close and smoothing her mane with her hoof.
“Not me. I’ll take my rebel in the form of a talented musician over a brash show off any day.” Octavia said, nuzzling into her and sighing contentedly.
“I dunno, Tavi, I’ve been gettin’ some looks, now that I’ve got those dreamy magenta orbs of hers.”
“You what?!” Octavia snapped, sitting up abruptly and locking eyes with her lover, who just laughed in response.
“Kidding! Kidding! Hahaha you should see the look on your face!”
“Not. Funny.” Octavia said, hitting her with another pillow; repeatedly this time.
“Okay! Okay hahaha I’m sorry!”
Octavia pouted and turned away from Vinyl, clutching the soft weapon to her chest in case she needed it again. Vinyl could sense Octavia’s unease and realized that joke might have been a step too far.
“Hey… Tavi… it doesn’t matter. You know that, right? I’m yours. I've BEEN yours since the moment you called to me, and will always be yours, well beyond this mortal plane.” Vinyl said, stroking her back.
“Always?” Octavia whispered, a renewed feeling of comfort washing over her.
“Always.”
Author's Note
I was always fascinated by the fact that Rainbow Dash and Vinyl have the same eye color; and that Vinyl never speaks. I challenged myself to write something that was dark, but also so romantic and pure in the sense of two ponies love for one another. (Plus I couldn't help but make that comparison with people calling new styles of music 'of the devil'; clever, no?)
And, of course, inspiration came from my love TheLostNarrator, famously known for voicing Dash and Vinyl both! I hope you all enjoy the full casted reading on her channel of this story! Happy Nightmare Night and Happy Halloween!
