Meet Me In Ponyvilleby BrushyBill1881ChaptersLife in Las PegasusLife in CanterlotSome Dreams Aren't Meant To BeLooking For A Part to PlayWhy Are You Here?Is She Really Gone?I've Had All Of This Life I Can HandleThe EndLife in Las PegasusWell she did it. They Vinyl was. Finally in the great party city of Las Pegasus. She had only just arrived and was awestruck and the sheer size of the city. 'I'm not in Ponyville anymore,' she thought to herself. Las Pegasus was indeed a sight to behold. It was like no other place in Equestria. Full of lights, music, ponies, and debauchery. Not a place that a small town pony like Vinyl was prepared for. She wandered from the train station to the most famous part of Las Pegasus known as the strip. There were many casinos and bars, all full of ponies looking to win big, get lucky with another pony, or drown their sorrows in a deep mug of cider. Vinyl wandered it one with techno music pulsing, her kind of music. The neon sign on the outside showed a rainbow colored horseshoe flashing with the name under it "Neon Horseshoe" flashing twice as fast. Vinyl pulled out a flyer she had made to promote her self. It was a picture of her on her turn table, words at the top read, "DJ P0N-3 ready to take the town." The bottom read "Available for hire, at reasonable rates." Vinyl looked up from her flyer, "I can do this, get ready Las Pegasus here comes DJ P0N-3" The next day Vinyl had spent her first few nights handing out flyers to any club that would take them and even handing some out to people out the strip that didn't look too under the influence. Some places said they would consider her, others just tossed her flyer back at her. 'Boy Octavia would sure be mad at me for this' she laughed to herself. She stopped mid-step at that thought. "Octavia," Vinyl said aloud. How was her friend or...was she more. Vinyl shook her head, 'No don't think about it, that is the whole reason I am here after all. A new start' After being out for several nights Vinyl decided she needed to secure some type of housing arrangement. She saw a flyer for a property management place called Fishy Places. It wasn't much but it was her only lead. She made her way through the town trying to reach the address on the flyer. As she continued the area slowly got more and more detreated, less and less green, and very dark. She finally came to a small gray building. The blinds were closed but very bent and out of place making it easy to see light inside. Where once there was letters on the building were now just the shadows of ishy ces, leaving just F Pla. The door was an old storm door with the white coating peeled off in big strips, and a blackened door knob. "I guess this is the place" Vinyl muttered to herself as she reached for the door knob. The knob creaked and squeaked, even getting stuck at one point making Vinyl think it was locked before it suddenly clicked. The door opened with a creak louder than the knob. On the inside was a small poorly stained desk with an obvious cardboard back to it. Papers were all over the desk, some with coffee stains. Over in the corner was a large lamp with dim yellow light that flickered with every step Vinyl took. It was the only light in the building apart from the few rays of the sun that peeked throw the broken blinds. Behind the desk was a door that probably led to back of the building. "Helloooo?" she called out. Then came a loud crash from behind the door. "Ah pony feathers!" somepony yelled followed by another loud crash "For the love of Celestia!" The door knob started jiggling, "Come on you-" the door flew open and a flat turquoise, middle age, short, round, pony tumbled into the main office. "Son of a-" he stopped when he noticed the young mare with wild blue hair staring down at him. "Are you Fishy?" she asked raising her glasses. The stallion stood up fast sending papers flying. "Oh! Yes, welcome to Fishy Places, they call me Fishy Deal, but uh you can call me Fishy," he smiled. Vinyl raised an eyebrow and observed the pony in front of her. He was short and round, had obviously missed a few a few spots shaving, and had an obvious comb over, if not a toupee. "Uh-huh" she responded. "So uh Mr. Deal-" "Fishy please" he interrupted. "Fishy" she said with a sneer, "I am looking to secure some housing." "Of course! Why else would you be here," Fishy Deal laughed a little to loudly. "Now! What you need is a great big penthouse in Uptown. That is where all the performers are at." Fishy began to rummage through the massive pile of papers. "How did you know I was a performer?" "Oh please young one!" Fishy laughed again "No one just moves to Las Pegasus because they can. To move here is to be a performer, and performers only get the best from me." he continued to through the papers until he pulled out a flyer for new high rises. "Ah! Here it is." Vinyl took the flyer from the sweaty pony. It showed a massive high rise just above the Las Pegasus strip. "Wow this is amazing, but I'm sure it is way out of my budget," Vinyl tried to return the flyer. Fishy Deal began waiving his hooves wildly side to side. "Oh no not at all, in fact these are very affordable! Only requires a 1,500 bits down payment for me to secure it and from there I believe you can negotiate with the building manager what the monthly rate." he leaned in closer and put his hoof to his mouth "I heard someone once negotiated too 100 bits a month," he whispered. "Well...I don't know," Vinyl looked around the office. "Hey, come on trust old Fishy, I got Sapphire Shores her first penthouse in Las Pegasus" the middle aged pony boasted. Vinyl though carefully. '1,500 bits just for this guy to secure a place seemed like a lot. She only brought 3,000 with her and who knows when she'd start making good money. But the place was nice and if rent was negotiable it may be her best option. What would Octavia think?' She got mad at her self for thinking of that. "Ok Fishy, you got yourself a deal" "Wonderful! I will just need to bits to secure it and come tomorrow you will be living it up. HA! You will be living it up in Uptown" Fishy Deal laughed hard as Vinyl went into her saddle bag to dig out the amount needed. She placed two pouches onto the desk. "Thank you Fishy Deal." Vinyl walked out, leaving Fishy grinning at the two pouches on his desk. When the door closed with another loud creak, Fishy Deal walked over and locked it behind her. Turning back to the pouches he smiled even bigger then before. "Oh no Vinyl Scratch...thank you" Author's Note Hello y'all Brushy Bill here. I have written several personal stories before but this is my first one I am putting out there. I am open to whatever you may say, just keep it civil. Hope you enjoy this story and all future ones. Life in Canterlot"Thank you very much Miss Melody," One of the three music professors spoke up. Octavia stood on stage in the concert hall of one of the most prestigious music schools in Equestria, Braylee College of Music. She had just given an audition to be able to attend the famous school. "Thank you very much for this opportunity," Octavia bowed and began to relax. "Come back tomorrow and we'll have a decision made" the professor at the of the table said. Octavia nodded and took her cello offstage. Once out of sight of the professor's she couldn't help but smile. 'Oh my gosh!' she screamed in her head. 'I just performed in front of three professors for Braylee, BRAYLEE!' She could barley contain her excitement. 'Calm down Octavia, remain professional. Act like you've been places.' She straightened up, placed her cello in its case and exited the concert hall. While making her way in Canterlot she took in the sights. The streets were bustling with high society ponies. Ponies that Octavia was used to being around with her career, but had never lived among them, did she belong. She shook the thought from her and continued to her hotel. After dropping her cell off in her room, Octavia returned outside to see what she could. Canterlot, quite the opposite of Las Pegasus. Fancy building yes, but no high rises, and there was culture in all of them. As she walked she could pick out the architecture styles, seeing Queen Celestia style, popular in Canterlot a few decades ago. Even older how ever were the Gothic buildings, her favorite style. It was much like her, subtle, yet a very complicated style once a closer look was taken. There were a few shingle style shops, and many more modern buildings with the changing of time. 'Vinyl would hate this' she smiled to herself. Her smile immediately fell with her second thought "Vinyl," she said aloud. She deeply thought about her friend from Ponyville. Her friend...that word didn't sound right. She looked around at the busy ponies, all of them having some where to be but her. She continued her walk through the capital city trying to keep her mind off of Vinyl but failing. 'Was this a mistake?' she asked herself 'No, this is my dream, I always wanted to attend Braylee. This is what is going to make me happy.' She smiled and then noticed a coffee shop in front of her. The sign read Moca Joes. "A latte does sound nice." The inside of the shop was unique. It appeared to have been two separate shops at one time or another. The counter was directly in front of her and on her left was pillars which help of the ceiling where originally there would've been a wall. On the other side of the pillar was a sitting area for customers. There were comfortable arm chairs with the daily newspaper set on an table next to it. Further back in the shop were tables that ponies were seated at tables, one of which had a chess board on it. The walls were covered with sheet rock with intentional breaks in it which exposed the deep red bricks of the original building. Octavia walked up to the counter. "What can get you miss?" Asked a pale yellow barista with a long curly mane. "What would you recommend?" "Well today's special is our honey pot, its a latte with honey in it," the barista smiled "Sounds good, I'll have it, and one of your blueberry muffins please," Octavia could never turn down and muffin once she had seen on. "Of course, that'll be 12 bits" Octavia handed her the bits and went to go sit in one of the arm chairs. She shook her head, '12 bits, back home that would've been 6 or 7 bits. Canterlot sure is expensive.' Once again her thoughts dwelled where she rather they did not. 'Home,' she began to think about the little home her and Vinyl shared, not far from Sugarcube corner. How her and Vinyl would walk there on Friday mornings to have a celebratory 'we made it through the week' treats. 'Vinyl.' She didn't have long to delve on that before the barista called her name. Octavia got her coffee and returned to her seat to find an older mare seated in the other arm chair. She hesitated for a moment, contemplating changing seats, but not want to be rude, went back to her arm chair. The old mare looked up and gave a smile that Octavia returned. "Hello there, I'm Amaranth Filbert," smiled the old rose colored mare. "Hello, my name is Octavia Melody" she returned the pleasantry. "Oh Octavia, so am I right in assuming that you are a musician?" asked the old mare. "Yes, I play the cello." "Ah, the cello, such an under used and often misused instrument. I am happy someone as young as you is interested in it." "Thank you Mz. Filbert, am I correct in assuming you are an artist?" "Oh used to be dear, my old bones don't care for it much anymore but I used to be quite well known in Canterlot and Chicoltgo. In fact I attended the art institute there." the old mare smiled reminiscing. "Where did you attend?" "Um, not where yet, but I just auditioned for Braylee." "Impressive, well I hope the professors there appreciate the use of cello as much as I do. I think you'll make it" Amaranth stood up shakily. "Thank you for the chat dearie. I do appreciate it." With that the old mare walked out into the busy streets of Canterlot. Octavia smiled and began to enjoy her coffee and muffin. When she left the coffee shop it was late afternoon early evening. The little shop had helped her get her mind of waiting for tomorrow but she still had a whole night to get through. 'Maybe I should go back to my room, order some dinner and sleep. Hopefully that will make the time go by faster.' Unfortunately for Octavia this was not the case. After a small salad, she lay wide awake in her hotel bed. Many things could've been occupying her thoughts, keeping her awake. Her conversation with Amaranth Filbert, waiting for the news about her admission into Braylee, her plans if she got in or not. But there was only one thing on her mind this night "Vinyl," she whispered into the darkness. Some Dreams Aren't Meant To BeVinyl had found a cheap motel to stay while waiting for Fishy Deal to get her new place. She woke up when the sun hit her face and practically jumped out of bed. 'I gotta get to Fishy's, hopefully he has my place' Vinyl jumped around excitedly before grabbing her headphones and leaving the motel room. Her door opened directly onto the strip and she ran down it to get to the property management office. Like before the area got worse and worse, but she didn't care. Vinyl was ready to start living like a famous DJ. She got to the building and tried to opening the door. The knob didn't turn. Thinking it was just stuck like before she turn it harder. Still it didn't move. When she stopped trying she finally noticed something...fishy. The letters on the outside of the building were now all gone. Not even the F was left. The blinds were still busted but she could see no light inside like before. Vinyl finally looked at the door which had a piece of yellow note book paper taped to it. She got closer to read it. "Hello all loyal customers, After 2 years in the property management business I have decided to close up shop and move down south for the sake of health and sanity. All security payments are non-refundable. I am sorry about the inconvenience this may cause. If you have any complaints or questions please direct them towards the HR director. Goodbye Las Pegasus." At the bottom of the page was an arrow which point to the right side of the building for the HR director. Vinyl couldn't believe what she had just read. "Complaints?!" she shrieked "Of course I am going to complain! You took my 1,500 bits and split!" She followed the arrow "I am going to complain so-" She stopped when she realized the arrow was pointing at a dumpster. She wanted to yell, scream cry, but what good would that do. She hung her head and slowly made her way back to her motel room. Vinyl sat on her bed, she had been there all day. "I could call the cops, but what good would that do. Fishy is probably long gone, and when I tell them 'Hey I'm stupid and gave a dude 1,500 and he took it and ran,' that isn't much to go on. I should've made a contract, that's what Octavia would've done." There it was again. The thought of Octavia. "Was it a mistake coming here?" she asked tears streaming down her face. "No, this is what is going to make me. Octavia made her choice and I made mine." She looked at the clock on the wall. It was near dinner time. She wiped face and shook her head to rid the thought of Octavia. But it stuck around. 'What was she doing right now? Was she living it up, or was she sad too. Maybe I should write her.' Vinyl shook her head again. "I've gotta to get out of this room. She grabbed her headphones and walked out the door. The sidewalks were packed with everypony else trying to find dinner. 'I better go somewhere to eat before they all fill up,' she thought as she threw on here headphones. Wandering the strip the past few nights had been very eventful, it was full of street performers all trying to show off their skills in hope to be noticed and maybe perform in the most famous venues in Las Pegasus. Vinyl laughed to herself, 'No way am I starting here on the streets, I'm sure my rep will be enough to at least start in a club if not bigger.' She continued down the strip looking for somewhere to eat. While staring at a few signs, trying to decide what sounded good, Vinyl bumped into a tall stallion. He had a gold earring, wore a suit jacket and sun glasses. "Oh I'm sorry, guess I was lost in-" She stopped talking when the stallion turn around revealing he had one of her flyers in his hooves. "Ah I found you! Are you DJ P0N-3?" he asked in a thick accent that Vinyl couldn't quite pin down. "Uh yes I am." She smiled "Wonderful!" boomed the pony "I found your flyer early this morning and have been searching since." He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a business card. "The names Sly Alley, I own Sly's Place her in Las Pegasus." Sly boasted as he handed Vinyl his card, "I'm sure you've heard of it." "Of course!" Vinyl lied behind a polite smile. "Anypony who is anypony goes to my place, and I think you could be somepony." Sly pointed aggressively at her. "How would you like to perform tonight at the club?" Behind her glasses Vinyl's eyes widened. "Really? Yeah, yes definitely!" Vinyl was so excited she kind of yelled. "Wonderful, the address is on the card. I'll schedule a set for you around 10 tonight. How does that sound?" "Sounds great," She almost yelled again. "I'll be there." Sly nodded and walked the up the strip as Vinyl skipped down it. Things were looking up for her. Sure she was robbed 1,500 bits, but hey if this gig goes well, she'll earn that back in a night. Now she was really hungry. She eventually found a quieter restaurant modeled after diner's that were popular 70 years ago. "This will do." The inside the diner was exactly what she expected. The floor was in a black and white checkered even in the kitchen. There was a bar with swiveling stools, 5 along the front and two on the end. They had a chrome outer and the cushion was covered in a deep red leather. No chairs, just booths with the same leather cushions. The bright lights bounced of the chrome and white tiles making the diner very bright despite night falling outside. The diner was packed minus a single bar stool and the end. Vinyl walked up and sat. An older waitress walked over to Vinyl and poured her a cup of coffee. "Hello, my name is Sassy Broad, welcome to S&S's diner," the mare said in a tired monotone voice. "Thank you, uh what does the S and S stand for?" Vinyl questioned. "Short and Sassy's Diner" the mare responded flatly. Vinyl couldn't help but chuckle to herself. "But you're not short," the old mare sigh before hollering. "Short!" The door to the kitchen swung open revealing a short old colt in a cook's apron. "Quiet down! I'm busy!" the stallion yelled before closing the door again. "That's my husband, Short Order." "Gotcha," Vinyl chuckled again. Sassy began to smile and placed a order pad on the counter. "What'll you have young one?" "Um what would you recommend?" Vinyl asked hoping for some more fun banter. However, before Sassy could respond an older voice came from the right. "I would recommend the green chili omelet." Vinyl turned to the pony seated on the stool next to her. He was dark green with a long white mane, with a beard to go with it. He wore a red bandana around his forehead and had a guitar strapped to his back. "It has a spicy kick and wakes you up for the night." He smiled at her. "Ok, miss Sassy I'll have the green chili omelet." Vinyl nodded to the old stallion. "Hash browns or fruit?" Sassy scribbled illegibly on her pad. "Hash Browns" "Biscuit or toast?" "Uhh biscuit," Sassy stopped her writing and took the ticket to the window to the kitchen. "Short! I need a green bomb with potato hay and a rock!" She shouted. "I hear ya Sassy!" Short yelled back. Vinyl giggled and turned to the old pony next to her. "Thank you for the recommendation Mr. uh?" she asked him as he sipped his coffee. "Nelson," he took another sip of his coffee, "Whinny Nelson." Vinyl's jaw dropped and she raised her glasses. "Whinny Nelson? Like THE Whinny Nelson," she asked. "I don't know of to many others," Whinny chuckled. "What's someone like you doing here? Shouldn't you be in a fancy restaurant, or getting ready for a show at Luna's palace?" Whinny took another sip of coffee. "Nah, I'm too old for those places anymore." "Whinny Nelson is never too old, you're timeless." Whinny smiled. "Thanks kid, but I much prefer these quieter places now. You know the first place I performed in Las Pegasus was here at S&S's." Vinyl's jaw dropped again. "This place is special. I realized what I wanted to do here." He smiled and turned to Vinyl "Now what are you doing here uh?" Whinny asked. "Oh um I'm Vinyl Scrath." she answered, "And I am here to become a famous DJ." "Interesting, you performing soon?" "Yes actually," Vinyl bounced excitedly "I'm performing at Sly's place tonight." Whinny just nodded slowly and returned to his coffee. Soon Sassy returned with her order. "Hear you are hun" "Thank you," Vinyl started in on her dinner, hurrying a little hoping to make it to her gig on time. Sassy filled Whinny's cup and went back to the other customers. The omelet was delicious. 'Octavia would love this,' she stopped before taking another bite. Whinny took notice. "Sorry if you don't like it kid. It warms my old bones and reminds me of home." "Oh no!" Vinyl waved her hooves back and forth frantically. "The omelet is wonderful." her gaze fell to the flow. Whinny chuckled. "Oh I see, girl troubles." he set his cup down. Vinyl's head shot up. "How did you figure that?" "Kid, I'm 89 years old. I've seen it all. Now I know it ain't boy troubles because boy troubles often mean going somewhere loud with lots of people. It's not parent problems, that involves running to nature or a close friend, and I know its not friendship problems because then the princess would show up or something crazy like that. Girl troubles on the other hand, often entail a quiet diner with a cup of coffee." Whinny laughed. Vinyl smiled at the old stallions laughter. "Thank you Whinny, just you noticing helps a lot." "I ain't going to bug ya about, one because not my place, but also," he looked up at the clock. "I do believe you have somewhere to be." Vinyl looked up at the clock. "Oh my gosh!" she gasped. Quickly she got up and starting looking for bits. "Don't worry about in Vinyl. It's on me. But before you go, just let me tell you, girl troubles can often be fixed with just a talk," Whinny winked at her. "Thank you Mr. Nelson. I'll pay you back." She called as she ran out of the door. Vinyl was in a full gallop on her way to Sly's Place. With all the ponies on the strip at the time it proved difficult, but her excitement helped her manage. A big clock on the outside of a building titled Time Zone showed it was 9:40. "I have to get there at least by 9:50 if I want to be professionally on time." She began running again. Eventually she made it to the address. The building looked like it may have been a theatre at one time, but now it had flashing neon lights dancing all over the outside. A big red vertical sign read Sly's Place. She went into the building and found the front to be an open casino floor with the club to the left. She could hear the ponies cheering to the music and pulsing of the bass from the massive speakers. As she walked to club she saw Sly Alley by the door. "Hello Sly, I'm here for my set." she said with a big smile. "Huh?" Sly turned around and saw Vinyl, "Oh, oh yeah uh DJ P0N-3. Um listen kid, tonight's not good. You see I've got a huge crowd tonight and I really don't need an amatuer going in there tonight. Gotta keep the crowd happy you know," he chuckled to himself. Vinyl's smile slowly faded. "Amatuer? I was the biggest name in my home town." she explained. "Yes I'm sure you were" Sly rolled his eyes, "But I am running a business here. It's just good business to have a more experienced and talented to run in these situations. Come back in a month when we're in a lull." Vinyl was furious, first her money was stolen and this guy was stopping her from her lifetime goal. She got on the train all the way from Ponyville to get here only for everything to go wrong. It all started with Octavia, 'Octavia,' that thought angered her even more. "But this is my dream!" she screamed. "Some dreams aren't meant to be" Sly spat back. She took a step back. "That's the truth kid, don't blame me." Sly straightened up. "Now Miss P0N-3" he said in a condescending way "You can either join the crowd in there or get out of my club." And with that Sly turned and walked into the club followed by two large bodyguards. Vinyl didn't know what to do. She just stood there. Unable to think or move. Slowly she slouched. "This isn't how it was suppose to be." Tears began to stream down her face. "How did it come to this." Looking For A Part to PlayDespite her thoughts the night prior, Octavia managed to fall asleep. The alarm clock in her hotel rom went off, emitting an obnoxious ring. Octavia lazily rolled over and silenced the clock. She was typically an early riser, and wanted to get up early to prepare for her next meeting with the Braylee Professors, but she felt drained. "I guess I was just too excited yesterday." she sighed to herself. Slowly she rolled out of bed and into the bathroom to prepare herself. Her alarm was set for 6:30, and she wanted to be back at the school by 8. By the time she had fixed her hair, put on her tie, and grabbed some breakfast, it was 7:30. Octavia stepped out of her hotel and onto the streets of Canterlot. Even this early the streets were busy. Mostly ponies on their way to the day jobs, not to many fancy ones out at this time. She joined the commuting crowd and made her way to the Braylee campus. 'Ok, I am going to get in, and this will all be worth it,' she thought, 'I'll live on campus for a little, just to get established, then maybe I'll find a place to rent. Maybe Braylee will help me with outside housing.' Octavia continued on her path, passing by the coffee shop. Amaranth Filbert was seated outside and saw Octavia. The old mare gave her a wave, but it seemed Octavia was too deep in thought. Amaranth smiled and shook her head. "Oh to be young, she has quite a journey ahead of her." she took a sip of her coffee. Octavia continued her thinking right up until she realized she was on the school campus. Like most campuses there was a large clock tower. The hands shown that it was 5 till 8. Octavia hurried her pace to get to the concert hall. Excitement and dread slowly crept in with every step. 'Why dread?' She thought to herself, 'Of course I am going to get in. No reason to worry.' Octavia smiled confidently as she entered the concert hall. Like the day before, it was completely empty apart from the three professors sitting upfront, and a pony up on stage. "Congratulations, Miss Breve, you have been accepted in Braylee, please proceed to the advisors office to get your semester setup." The mare onstage bowed, thanked the professors and walked off stage. "Octavia Melody," one of the professors called. Slowly Octavia made her way to the stage. She stood in the middle of it while the three professor looked over their papers and quietly deliberated. The suspense was killing her. 'Why are they talking so much? Did I walk up here wrong, did I walk off wrong yesterday, I don't think I missed a note, oh Celestia was my cello off-tune?' Octavia thought a panicked spree. "Miss Melody," she snapped out of it and looked at the professors. "Yes sir?" The professor in the middle stoop up. "Unfortunately, after your audition and our deliberation, we have come to the conclusion that while you are undeniably talented with the cello, you're are not quite what we are looking here at Braylee." All of Octavia's thought came to a hard stop. "Pardon me?" she asked quietly yet wide eyed. "We are not accepting your admission here. I am sorry," the professor to her left said. Octavia opened and closed her mouth a few times no words came out. Finally she was able to ask, "May I know why?" "Miss Melody, the professor to her right stood. "Here at Braylee, we are extremely dedicated to classical music and the traditional ways it is played. The cello is traditionally not an earth pony's instrument, it was originally played by unicorns. For the sake of tradition and this school's traditions. We are not accepting you." Octavia didn't say anything, she couldn't. She left Ponyville to pursue this dream, left it all behind, left Vinyl. Vinyl, she's the reason she was here, on this stage. She smiled and looked at the three professors. "Thank you for your consideration." She trotted off stage, to the confusion of them. Once outside she ran off the campus. Every emotion possible hit her the moment she was off the campus. Disappointment, anger, sadness, happiness, excitement, for the school yes, but also for herself but why? She couldn't quite figure it out. While deep in thought about her emotions, she again passed by the coffee shop. While slowly walking by she heard a sweet voice. "You're quite deep in thought today dear." Octavia looked over and saw Amaranth sitting outside with a cup of tea. "You didn't notice me this morning and now you seem even deeper." Amaranth chuckled. "Hello Miss Filbert. Yeah, I am pretty confused." Octavia gave a small smile. The old mare pulled out the chair next to her and gestured to it. Octavia walked slowly over to it. Once she sat Amaranth spoke. "It seems to me Octavia, that there is more on your mind than just your audition." Octavia laughed. "That's completely off my mind. They denied me." Amaranth studied the young mare before her. "That emotion you are feeling now, that's relief, and maybe something more" the old mare smiled. Octavia hung her head. "Are you sure, how do you know?" Octavia looked up. Amaranth smiled sweetly are her. "Because I felt the same way when I left the Art Institute Of Chicoltgo" "You left?" Amaranth nodded. "Why?" Amaranth looked up the sky "All of us are looking for a part to play. I realized my part wasn't there. Now I don't have all the answers, but maybe you are realizing the part you play isn't here." "All my live, I always wanted to attend that school, become a famous cellist and travel the world. Perform for large crowds. Now, now I don't know. What's the something more?" Amaranth looked back down at the gray mare. "That's for you to decide" Even though Octavia now knew her what emotion was, she still didn't understand it or what the something more Amaranth spoke of was. "How did it come to this?' Author's Note Hell y'all Sorry for the shorter chapter. I don't think I set up Octavia's struggles to well. But here we are. Look for a new chapter to be posted on Monday. Thank you to all who have been reading -Brushy Bill Why Are You Here?The small clock tower in the middle of the strip began to chime. "10" Vinyl sighed, "10 rings, I thought I wouldn't hear those till at least 2am in not 10am." A tear fell down her face. She was wandering down the strip, her thoughts still on Sly's words. "Some dreams aren't meant to be." She looked up and saw that she was back at S&S's diner. "I've got nothing better to do," Vinyl said with a bitterness in her tone. The little bell on the door rung when she walked in. Unlike earlier it was dead inside. No pony at booth or the bar. The door closed behind and she made her way to the bar stool she was sat on early that night. The door from the kitchen swung open. "Welcome to S&S's what can I-" Sassy Broad stopped when she saw the blue maned mare with her head on the counter. "Well Vinyl you're back, I thought you had a gig to get to," the waitress chuckled as she made her way over. Vinyl looked up and simply shook her head. Sassy could tell that she had been crying. "Oh hun," she raced around the counter and gave her a hug. "I'm sorry." Vinyl leaned into Sassy's hug. The whole time she was in Las Pegasus, these were the nicest ponies to her. Sassy picked Vinyl's head up. "How about about a slice of pie and a cup of coffee, on the house." she smiled and made her way to the kitchen. In the sweetest way Vinyl had ever heard Sassy talk to Short Order, Sassy called "Love, we have an achy one." "Uh oh." Short Order poked his head out from the window to the kitchen. "Understood ma'am." He went back in and came out with a steaming slice of pie. "Fresh out of the oven and full of lovin." the older stallion smiled as he placed in front of Vinyl. She slowly began to eat it while Sassy poured her some coffee. "Can I have a cup?" The three turned and saw Whinny Nelson walking in. Sassy got another cup as Whinny sat next to Vinyl. "Well looks like you had rough night." Whinny grabbed his cup. Vinyl just nodded as she continued to slowly eat the pie. "Why don't you tell us hun." Sassy pulled out a stool from behind the counter. "Yeah, whose head do I need to knock." Short Order smacked his spatula on the counter. Vinyl let a giggle escape her. "Ok" she sighed. Vinyl then recounted the whole story to the three older ponies. From when she first met Sly Alley, up until he told her to leave. "And now we're here." she finished the last bite. Whinny shook his head and sighed. "That sounds like Las Pegasus now. No pony cares for talent as long as somepony is making them money." "That does it, I am putting up a 'No Sly Alley' sign on the window." Short Order grumbled. Sassy patted her husband's head. "Oh yeah that'll show him." She rolled her eyes. Sassy then looked back an Vinyl. "I think there is more to your issue than just Sly." Vinyl looked up at her. "I agree," Whinny chimed in. "I am beginning to think your decision to come out here was rushed and reckless." he looked over at Vinyl. "And I'll betcha it has to do with your girl problems," he gave a warm smile. Vinyl opened her mouth to deny it, but nothing came out. "Ah ha." "What was her name kid?" Short asked. Vinyl looked around her, the old ponies waiting patiently for her response. After a few seconds she realized that maybe they were right. They had years on her and looking back on it maybe. "Octavia," she whispered. Whinny put his coffee down, and put all his attention on Vinyl. "And who is this Miss Octavia." "Tav- Octavia is or was, I don't know, my f-f-friend." Vinyl struggled to say the word. It didn't sound right. All three of the old folks noticed her hesitancy to say friend, though none pointed it out. "Vinyl, why are you here," Sassy asked. Vinyl sighed. She began to think back. "It was only a few days ago." Vinyl's flashback Back in Ponyville, Vinyl was fast asleep in her bed. Her room was dark. Records were all over the place. Some still in their sleeves, and some just out and about. Posters of famous bands adorned her walls, The Horseflys, The Hooves, even a Whinny Nelson one. There was a knock on her door. Vinyl grumbled and rolled over. Three more knocks came and then a voice. "Vinyl come on! We're going to be late," Octavia called from behind the door. Her voice made Vinyl's heart tingle despite being half asleep. Slowly she sat up. "Late for what?" her door opened revealing the gray mare. Her hair was already fixed and she had her signature tie, well tied. Octavia giggled. "For the music swap of course. I know that one of the vendors has an original composition by Johann Sebastian Buck and I need it!" she squealed. Vinyl smiled at her excited friend. 'She's so cute when she's excited.' "Ok ok, I'm up. I'll be ready in 15." Vinyl got out of bed and stretched. "I'll be waiting outside." Octavia walked outside of the house leaving Vinyl's door open. She stared after Octavia until she was out of view. When she looked away, she noticed her heart racing. "Keep it together Vinyl." she whispered to herself. Vinyl had no idea when she started feeling something for Octavia but it was getting stronger. For a few months now she felt nervous about being in the same room with Octavia, but she played it cool as possible to not make the living arrangement awkward. "I am going to have to tell her eventually. I don't know how much longer I can hide it." She wandered to the bathroom, styled her hair, brushed he teeth, and threw on her sun glasses. "Looking good Dj P0N-3," she winked at herself. Vinyl walked out of the little house and saw Octavia standing in the sun light. 'She's beautiful,' Vinyl's jaw dropped. Shaking her head and hitting her self she walked up to Octavia. "Ready?" Octavia seemed surprised and jumped at Vinyl's words. "Oh goodness" she chuckled. "Guess I was thinking to hard." Vinyl laughed and playfully pushed her. "You think too much." "And you don't think enough." Octavia pushed back. They began walking to the fair grounds where the music swap was being held. Vinyl was looking around the town and glancing at Octavia while doing so. Everything about the mare in front of her was enamoring. Her gentle steps, her little pink tie, her beautiful purple eyes and gorgeous black mane. "You looking for anything specific today?" Octavia asked, startling Vinyl out of her thoughts. "Oh um not really." she said panicking a little and caught off guard. 'Had she noticed me looking at her?' "Weren't you looking for an original record of Balloon Spirit by the Horseflys?" "Oh yeah, that! Yeah it'd be great to have that one to go with my poster." Vinyl smiled calming down. "What about you, going after anything besides the stuff from Buck?" "If I see anything I like I'll get it, but nothing specific comes to mind." They continued till they got to the fair grounds. Almost all of Ponyville had shown up. "Oh my gosh, I hope I'm not too late." Octavia nervously tapped her hooves. "Go on to your place Tavi, I'll meet up with you at the center when you're done." "Oh thank you Vinyl!" Octavia gave Vinyl a hug and raced off into the crowd. Vinyl stood stiff watching Octavia disappear into the crowd. Her heart was racing even faster than this morning. "That was awesome," she smiled to herself. After a while Vinyl regained her ability to move and starting looking through all the different booths. However, she was unable to focus. 'Do I love her? No that's ridiculous. Octavia is my oldest friend. She gets me. Its just over familiarity that's all'. She shook her head and began looking through a box of classic rock. "Ooo, The Horseflys album Help?," She flipped it over reading all the songs on the back and stopped when she saw the 4th song. "I Need You," she whispered to herself. Her eyes widened and once again she shook her head. "I am way to influenced by music." She chuckled and continued to look through the box. "Wow, a Trotten album, Back For The Attack." she read the songs on the back once again coming to a song that seemed to try to convince her of something. "Heaven Sent," she chuckled "Whatever." she stopped once again at another song. "Stop Fighting The Love," she said flatly. "Ok we can stop now," She laughed and read the next song. "Jaded Heart." She furrowed her eyebrows and frowned. "Where's 'It's Not Love' by Trotten when I need it." she grumbled. "Oh sorry ma'am I just sold my only single of that." The vendor pointed at a pony walking away. "Oh never mind." Vinyl put the records down and walked away. As she wandered through the festival her mind raced with thoughts. 'I always trusted music. Maybe it's trying to tell me something. No no, that's ridiculous.' She stopped in the middle of walking when she heard a song over the speakers, "We've always been the best of friends, no secrets and no demands. But suddenly from somewhere out of the blue I see a different light around you." "Deana Cart, 'How Do I Get There." Vinyl smiled "A about a friend falling for a friend." "One thing I haven't told you, I just wanna hold you never let go, I need to know...' The song continued. It dawned on Vinyl then. "I do love her." she whispered. Vinyl looked up and the the hill in the center. Octavia was sitting on top of it waiting for Vinyl. Vinyl smiled and raced for the hill. "I have to tell her." She made it to the top. "Octavia!" she said a little to loudly. Octavia jumped. "Vinyl! Look." She showed her the sheet music from Buck. "That's great Tavi, but-" he huffed but was cut off. "And guess what?! While at the booth I met a professor from Braylee!" Octavia squealed. "They got me a school audition next week." Vinyl's heart sunk. "Oh just think of it Vinyl. I can play there and become well known and travel the world like I have always dream." "Braylee? That stuck up school? You sure you want to go there? Now?" Vinyl asked with some distain. Octavia's smiled dropped. "Well, yes." she was confused "Vinyl, you know it's always been my dream to attend Braylee. This is my chance." "Yeah, but it so far away, and you know who wants to be among such snobs all the time." "I thought you would be happy for me Vinyl." Octavia whimpered with a tear falling. "Yeah well, kind hard when you're abandoning everything that we've made together here." Vinyl said her anger rising. "I am just thinking of the future Vinyl. But I guess you don't think enough!" Octavia spat. Vinyl turned to her, hurt by her words. "Well you think to much!" Vinyl spat back. Octavia shared the same hurt expression. Vinyl walked away and down the hill, leaving Octavia there. Slowly she made her way home and sat in her room. Tears streamed how her face, "How could she do this to me. We're happy here why would she want to leave,” she cried. Vinyl looked up and saw travel poster of Las Pegasus. "If Octavia is abandoning this place for her dream. Then so am I." Quickly she filled her saddle bag with all she could. She walked out of her room. Octavia wasn't home. "She's not home." Vinyl's heart hurt. "Good! She can't yell at me now." She went for the door. "Maybe I should leave a note. Just incase she calls me in as missing. " Vinyl got a pencil and paper and wrote 'Gone to live my dream in Las Pegasus, Goodbye Tavi.' Back to the Diner "And that's it. I over reacted, ruined a good thing and came here. Now I have nothing. Not even a crummy night club wants me." the old ponies all nodded in understanding. "I didn't even say a proper goodbye." she sniffled. There was a long pause of silence. Then Whinny spoke up. "Vinyl, why are you here?" asking the same question as Sassy. Vinyl looked over to him. "I just told you." she said confused. he laughed and shook his head. "I think what he means kid is, what are you doing here?" Short asked. Vinyl looked over to Sassy for clarification. She just smiled "I was here to live my dream, now I don't know." "And?" Whinny raised an eyebrow. Vinyl was very confused. The old country star sighed. "It’s obvious. You are running away." the DJ looked over at Whinny in shock. He laughed. "Don't look at me like that. Look kid, you are in love. Emotions are high. You made a mistake in anger. But something tells, tells all of us that you haven't completely given up on Octavia." the two owners of the diner nodded. "What?" Vinyl asked. "Hun, in your note you wrote Tavi, not Octavia. I think we all can agree when the love is gone, so are the nicknames." Sassy Broad smiled. Short Order nodded. "Vinyl, remember I told you I realized what I wanted to do in this place?" Whinny asked. She nodded. "I wasn't talking about music." He smiled. Vinyl looked confused. "It was here, after being denied a show, that I realized, I want to go home and I wanted apologize to my girl. Without her, I couldn't have done anything." Vinyl looked around at the three ponies. "What should I do?" "Well whenever I make Sassy mad, I write her a note." Short Order smiled. "In your case, you might want to go with a letter." Vinyl nodded. "Thank you...Thank you all." she stood up. "I think I need to get some sleep." "Come back anytime hun," Sassy smiled. Vinyl nodded and walked out and to her motel. She wanted to sleep. But sitting on her beside table, was a pen and paper. Author's Note Hello y’all, Sorry it’s been a minute. I do most of my writing at work and the office was closed on Monday due to power issues and that backed up work so today I finally had time. Hopefully I can get another chapter done tomorrow. Also I forgot to mention and the Easter eggs to the music lovers out there. The past chapters haven’t had to many, this one has a few. Feel free to comment which ones you noticed. Thanks again to all of you who are reading. -Brushy Bill Is She Really Gone?The day had gone by. Octavia had sat all day outside of the coffee shop talking with Amaranth. Not wanting to dwell on her confused feelings, Octavia had asked Amaranth to explain why she left of Chicoltgo Art Institute. "Then I left and I had the adventure of a lifetime. I have no regrets about it." Amaranth smiled. "Wow, you are truly an amazing and wise pony." Octavia stared at her, eyes wide. "Well thank you dear." There was a long pause. Amaranth studied Octavia, then she remembered what she had asked right before they got off topic. "Oh I see what you did there," she chuckled. "Got an old pony to ramble on about her life, to distract her and yourself from your issues." Octavia smiled guiltily. "Don't worry about it Octavia. We all need time to think, but you did pose an interesting question earlier." "What was that?" Octavia cocked her head to the side. "How did it come to this?" Amaranth poured herself a new cup of tea. "Now I don't know the answer to that, but I think you do." Octavia sat and thought for a second. "I haven't thought about since it happened. It all happened so fast. The music swap, the audition, the fight. Her leaving." "Oh? And who is her?" the old mare looked down at her cup while adding sugar to it. "Vinyl," saying her name made her heart sink. "Uh huh." Amaranth stirred her tea. "Who is Vinyl? A friend, maybe the something more we spoke of earlier?" Octavia thought about it more. 'Was Vinyl the something more? Do I hope that since I didn't get into Braylee that I could see Vinyl again? Do...do I still love her?' Octavia heard the old mare chuckle. "You're doing it again." "Huh, oh yeah. I guess I think to much..." she trailed off. Those were the last words Vinyl spoke to her. Not in her usually playful way, in a hurtful way. "Tell me all about her." Amaranth took a sip from her cup. Octavia's flashback Not but a few days ago, Octavia woke up when the sun light shown through her window. Unlike Vinyl's room, Octavia's was very put together. Apart from a few music sheets on her desk, everything was in place. She got out of bed and wondered to the bathroom to prepare for her day. "Today is the music swap. I hope I can get that original composition by Buck." she smiled into the mirror while brushing her hair. "I'm glad Vinyl can join me," her heart fluttered. "Oh Vinyl," she chuckled. A few months back Octavia had noticed some changes in her feelings towards her best friend. They originally moved in with each other a few years back mainly to save money. Now, now she was unsure. "Come on Octavia this is Vinyl, your best friend and complete opposite." She fixed her tie. "However, they do say that opposites attract," she smiled walking out into the living room and up to Vinyl's door. She was about to knock, but stopped. 'Behind the door is Vinyl. Beautiful, sweet Vinyl. She was going to the music swap with her,' then came a thought that caused her to blush. 'Oh my goodness! Was this a date? Did Vinyl think it was a date?' Octavia's heart pounded as she raised her hoof. "Pull it together Octavia. It's just two friends going on an outing." she knocked once. From the inside she heard stirring and Vinyl grumble. She knocked three more times. "Vinyl come on! We're going to be late." She held her breath waiting to hear Vinyl's voice. "Late for what?" Vinyl called back. Octavia took a deep breath and opened the door, revealing Vinyl sitting on the edge of of her bed. Her mane was a mess and she looked half asleep. To Octavia, it was adorable and it made her giggle. "For the music swap of course. I know that one of the vendors has an original composition by Johann Sebastian Buck and I need it!" she squealed. Vinyl smiled back at her, making her heart do a flip. "Ok ok, I'm up. I'll be ready in 15." Vinyl got out of bed and stretched. "I'll be waiting outside." Octavia smiled and walked to the door. She was confused. Just from that short interaction her heart was raced. When she got outside she leaned against the door. "I don't know how much longer I can do this," she sighed. Taking a few steps forward to stand in the sun, she thought. 'When did this start?' No matter how hard she thought or tried to remember, she couldn't pick a specific point when she started feeling this way. 'Should I tell her? What would happen then? Could we still live together? Would we even still be friends? What are the consquences of each choice?' her deep thinking was interrupted by a voice. "Ready?" Shaken from her thought and startled, Octavia jumped and turned to look at Vinyl. Her hair was styled messy, and she had her signature glasses. 'She's so beautiful.' Octavia quickly regained her thought trying to avoid being awkward. "Oh goodness! Guess I was thinking to hard." she smiled trying to stay calm. Vinyl smiled and playfully pushed her. "You think too much." "And you don't think enough." she pushed back. The two started their walk to the fair grounds, where the swap was being held. Vinyl was looking all around, she appeared to appreciate everything and be a happy mood. Octavia kept her vision straight ahead and tried to avoid looking in her loves direction. She knew one look and she'd blush or make her heart race, possibly giving it away. 'I've got to say something. But what? What if I open my mouth and something that I don't want to say just comes out. Oh goodness, what if I ask if this is a date? Or worse, what if I say I love you?' Panic began to set in. 'Say something!' " "You looking for anything specific today?" Her question seemed to startle Vinyl out of her own thoughts. "Oh um not really" Vinyl responded quickly. The quickness of her response concerned Octavia. Trying to stay on the topic of music to stay away from others, she continued. "Weren't you looking for an original record of Balloon Spirit by the Horseflys?" "Oh yeah, that! Yeah it'd be great to have that one to go with my poster." Vinyl smiled. Her smile put Octavia at ease. ""What about you, going after anything besides the stuff from Buck?" Octavia thought for a second and shrugged. "If I see anything I like I'll get it, but nothing specific comes to mind." The two arrived at the fair ground. A massive crowd had gathered. Tons of ponies were milling around. Octavia had never seen so many different types of musical ponies and genres. "Oh my gosh, I hope I'm not too late." she nervously stamped the ground. She looked over at Vinyl who was smiling at her. Her smile made her heart stop, but again it put her at ease. "Go on to your place Tavi, I'll meet up with you at the center when you're done." Tavi, she loved the nickname Vinyl had given her. Her excitement boiled over and without thinking she hugged Vinyl. "Oh thank you Vinyl!" After the hug ended she raced into crowd of ponies, because of excitement, but mostly due to the huge blush on her face. Her mind raced even faster then before. 'I hugged her, I hugged her!' she blushed even more. She stopped running when she came to the booth she was originally there for. "Ok I can clear my mind and just look for the music. She walked in and found the sheets relatively quickly. While reading over them, admiring the work, she heard a voice. "Hello, I see you are a appreciator of Johan Buck." a well dressed pony smiled at her. "Oh yes, I love all of the classical composers but Buck is definitely my favorite." Octavia responded. "Do you happen to play any classical instruments?" "Yes, I play the cello." "Hmm interesting," the pony rubbed his chin. "That's not something you see an earth pony play often. But that makes it intriguing. Listen, I am a retiring professor from Braylee in Canterlot, and I think I can get you an audition." the professor smiled. Octavia's jaw dropped. "Braylee? Audition? Are you serious?" she asked getting a big smile. "Of course. I can't guarantee your admission, but I can at least get you an audition." "That would be wonderful!" she squealed. "Wonderful! How does next week sound? Say Wednesday?" Octavia nodded aggressively. The professor nodded and walked away. Octavia stood there and then turned to the vendor. "That just happened right?" The vendor nodded and then asked. "Are you going to buy that." He pointed at the sheets of music. "Oh yes." Octavia payed and began walking to the middle hill. 'Braylee is my dream. If I can get in I can travel the world. See new places, play for different crowds. Vinyl will be so excited.' The thought of Vinyl stopped her train of thought. 'What about Vinyl. Do I leave her?' She made it to the hill. 'I don't think I can just leave her. After all...' Octavia looked down at the crowd and spotted Vinyl running towards her. "I do love her," she smiled. 'Maybe she'll come with me.' When Vinyl reached her, she yelled. "Octavia!" Causing her to jump a little. "Vinyl! Look." She showed her the sheet music. "That's great Tavi, but-" without think Octavia continued. "And guess what?! While at the booth I met a professor from Braylee! They're going to get me a school audition next week. Oh just think of it Vinyl. I can play there and become well known and travel the world like I have always dream." she smiled waiting for Vinyl's response. "Braylee?" her tone threw Octavia off. "That stuck up school? You sure you want to go there? Now?" Octavia's heart sunk. "Well, yes." she frowned "Vinyl, you know it's always been my dream to attend Braylee. This is my chance." "Yeah, but it so far away, and you know who wants to be among such snobs all the time." Vinyl said with a harsh tone. Octavia couldn't believe it. She had hoped this would be a stepping stone to telling her true feelings. "I thought you would be happy for me Vinyl." Octavia could feel a tear fall down her face. "Yeah well, kind hard when you're abandoning everything that we've made together here." Vinyl responded angerly. "I am just thinking of the future Vinyl." She was hurt, and like hurt ponies do, she lashed out. "But I guess you don't think enough!" Vinyl turned to her. She could see the hurt on her face. "Well you think to much!" Octavia took a step back. Vinyl turned slowly and walked down the hill leaving her on the hill. "What just happened," asked as tears streamed down her face. She sat through the hill the rest of the day. Thinking through the events and trying to figure out when it wrong. 'Was it her fault? No, Vinyl's inability to be happy for her wasn't her fault. I guess it wouldn't have worked out.' She sighed and began her walk home when the sun had set. Octavia entered the house to find it completely empty. 'Had Vinyl not come home yet?' she wondered as she walked in. Once in the living room she noticed a note on the table. It read, "Gone to live my dream in Las Pegasus, Goodbye Tavi." Octavia sat hard onto the couch. "She's gone." she silently cried. Back to the coffee shop "That's how it came to this." Octavia sighed. Amaranth nodded her head. "Hm is she really gone?" the old mare asked. Octavia looked up from her tea cup. "I mean yes, she never came home. I was home for a few day before coming here and-" Amaranth held her hove up to stop Octavia's current pessimistic train. "No dearie. Is she really gone?" Octavia sat back in her chair confused. "Octavia, we always tell ourselves that no one is ever really gone, as long as we keep them in our hearts. Now tell me." Amaranth pointed to Octavia's heart. "Is she really gone?" Octavia sat in shocked silence. This hold time she tried to keep Vinyl off her mind, as not to distract her. "Maybe, I'm relieved about Braylee, because in my heart...my dream isn't here...it's with Vinyl." Amaranth nodded in agreement. "I think you're on the right track. Also something in that note of yours tells me that your not really gone from her heart either." Amaranth smiled as she finished her tea. "Thank you miss Fil- Amaranth." Octavia smiled. "What should I do now. I doubt she's back home." Amaranth gave a smile. "In true classical form, write her a letter. The pegasus will find her." They finished their tea as Octavia began to think of to say in her letter. Author's Note Hello y'all, I was able to get this one done today. Hope you enjoy. Thanks to all who are reading! -Brushy Bill I've Had All Of This Life I Can HandleIt was the morning after Octavia's conversation with Amaranth. She sat in her hotel room, staring at her 5th blank piece of paper. Next to her was a broken pencil and 4 balled up papers. Octavia sighed "Where do I start? I haven't even got past how to address her. Dear Vinyl? Hello friend? Dearest Vinyl? I'm sorry? I love you?" She looked out her window at the wide sky. "I miss the sky over Ponyville." Octavia got up and walked to look out. Looking at the sky she thought about her hometown. "These big building block the view, back home there's nothing to diminish the beauty." she then looked down at the ponies walking the streets. "Nopony seems to listen to the music of the world, not like Vinyl does, and no one ever smiles." Something sparked in her. Octavia turned and looked at the paper. "I think I know what to say." Las Pegasus Vinyl was still staring at the same pen and paper the from the night before. She hadn't even touched them yet, wanting to make sure she had all the words in her head first. "I don't even know where to begin." she groaned. "How do I put into words all that happened and what I want to tell her." There was then a knock on her door. "Now what?" she rolled her eyes and opened the door, revealing a pegaus with a letter in hoof. "Letter for Vinyl Scratch." they handed it over and took off. Vinyl closed the door and looked down at the letter. The envelope read, 'From Octavia Melody,' in a flowing penmanship. Her hooves began to shake. "Calm down Vinyl, it's probably just a postcard from her first stop with the Braylee Orchestra." Her hooves steadied and prepared she opened the envelope. To her surprise there was no post card, but a written letter, and it was definitely Octavia's writing. Shocked, but excited Vinyl sat on her bed and began reading the letter. "Hello Vinyl, I hope this letter finds you well and all your dreams have come true. I know it's only been a week or so, but I know how fast and hard you work. Even though you may have found all you ever wanted, I haven't. I didn't get into Braylee, but it's ok. It made me realize it wasn't my true dream. You know I have composed several pieces my self, and honestly so many were inspired by you. Whenever we were together I heard music. I came here hoping that I could share that music with others and hear there own interpretations of it. But it seems that nobody hears it or takes the time to listen. Not like you, you took time and listened, always with a smile. No one smiles here the way you do. So I guess you'll never see me in the Orchestra. But like I said, I don't think it was ever truly my dream. I'd give it all just to see you once more. It is all so hard to put into words, but I do have a question for you." Vinyl's heart was beating rapidly, the words she had just read echoed in her head. She flipped to the back of the page. "Will you meet me in Ponyville? I want to see the green hills in your eyes. I think I have had quite enough of this life, and I want to see you under that beautiful Ponyville sky. There is so much more I want to say, but I want, no I need to say in person. I am leaving for Ponyville on tonights train. I hope to see you at our home. Yours forever, Octavia Melody." Vinyl read it ten more times before finally looking up. Tears were streaming down her face, but this time it wasn't from sadness. "She wrote me. She...she wants to see me..." Vinyl smiled her biggest smile since coming to Las Pegasus. She looked over at her pen and paper. "Inspiring as always Tavi. I know what to say now." Canterlot Octavia had stayed in her room all day. She continuously thought over the letter she had sent off. "Did I properly convey my feelings? I know I didn't say I love you, but that's something I need to say in person. I hope she gets it in time." Just then there was a knock on her door. Jumping off the bed she scrambled to the door opened it quickly. There stood a pegasus. "Letter for Octavia Melody," they handed over a letter and walked away. Octavia closed the door slowly and walked to her bed staring at the envelope. The back of it read DJ P0N-3 in Vinyl's typical way of signing her autographs. Octavia sighed. "I guess she made it." She opened the envelope and read. "I am sorry..." Octavia's heart sunk at those first words. "She'll probably say she found her dream and won't be coming." she looked back at the letter and continued. "Let me start over... Dear Tavi." Octavia's heart soared. "She wrote Tavi. There's hope yet." "...Dear, dear Tavi, Where do I begin? Your letter found me, but I don't know how well. We may have last seen each other only a week or so ago, but it has felt like years since then. When I came here I thought I was following my dream, that all I ever wanted was to live it up as a famous DJ. But I don't think that's true anymore. It's been hard. When I left home for Las Pegasus maybe I was looking for a new part to play, since another didn't end like I wanted." At part to play, that sounds familiar to Octavia. She smiled thinking of her older friend. "She may have a point." "You always said I didn't think enough, I guess that's true but no one here thinks the way you do. I am sorry you didn't get into Braylee, but you'll always be a musical star to me. Now I guess it's time I let go of my crazy dreams here. I don't know what else to say. The words won't come to me, but I want to meet you Ponyville. I want to see the music in your eyes. I've had all of this life I can handle. I want to walk with you underneath that Ponyville sky. I don't want to be stuck her in this city that they call home. Tavi back home with you is where I want to be. Always Yours, Vinyl Scratch." Octavia read the final words and hugged the letter. "Goodness I need to pack." she scrambled gathering all her belongings and raced to the train station. "When I see her. I am going to tell her." Las Pegasus Vinyl didn't have much to pack. As soon as she had sent her letter off, she packed and was waiting for the night train to Ponyville. "When I see her. I am going to tell her." Author's Note Hello y'all, Well our story is coming to a close. The next chapter should be the last one. Thank you all to have read and are still reading. A big thanks to the person who gave me my first dislike. I hope to improve as I write more. -Brushy Bill The EndVinyl was sitting in a train car, staring out the window. On the seat next to her was the letter from Octavia. She had read it so many times she had lost count, but no matter the amount it made her heart flutter every time. The train was about half way back to Ponyville when Vinyl's thoughts finally caught up with her heart. "I know I said I'd tell her as soon as I saw her, but is that too fast? Should I start with I'm sorry or ask how she is?" Vinyl began to panic. "I am totally not prepared for this." She continued in rapid thought until one thought in particular made her stop dead and blush. "I...could...k-kiss...her." All other ideas had left her head. "Would that be ok?" Vinyl looked at the window to see her reflection. "No, that will come later. I have to tell her I am sorry first." Train from Canterlot Octavia was sitting in a train car fiddling with her cello. "I have got to keep my mind off of her. I have already decided what I am going to do and I am not thinking anymore about it. I'll get there first since Canterlot is closer to Ponyville than Las Pegasus, so I'll go directly home. I will sit on the couch and the moment she walks through the door...I..." she stopped and looked at her reflection in the window. She had only read Vinyl's letter once, but she remembered every word. "No stop thinking too much. I will walk up to her and I WILL kiss her, and I WILL tell her that I love her." she nodded to her reflection and returned to her cello. Train from Las Pegasus The train pulled slowly into the station, far to slow for Vinyl. "Come on, come on." She paced in place in front of the train doors. "Last stop Ponyville," the conductor called and the doors opened. Vinyl rushed off and onto the platform. She began looking around for either for a gray mare or a large cello case. She saw neither. "Maybe I beat her here?" Vinyl walked off the platform and in the direction of her house. "That's good. It means I can get home and prepare more," she smiled. It was late at night in Ponyville. The moon was high and the stars sparkled. The perfect night for a reunion. Vinyl got into town, still deep in thought. "Ok, so I can't get flowers or cake, but I could put on one of her favorites symphonies. Maybe do my hair a little, get prettied up?" She was so deep in thought she did not notice the lights on in her house. Octavia was sitting on the couch, waiting patiently, focusing on the ticking of the clock. She perked up at the sound of the door knob turning. The gray mare looked over to the door and watched as the white mare entered the house. Vinyl noticed her instantly. They stared at each other for a second. Octavia stood up from the couch. 'Ok,' she assured herself and began walk towards Vinyl. Vinyl was startled by Octavia's sudden move and began to stutter. "I uh T-T-Tavi, I...I am so sorry, I-" Vinyl was cutoff by Octavia leaning in and kissing her. Shocked at first, Vinyl leaned into the kiss and held Octavia's face. Octavia pulled away and looked at Vinyl. "I love you, Vinyl," she smiled with a tear streaming down her face. Vinyl stared at Octavia, shocked by both the kiss and her confession. "I love you too, Tavi." The two hugged each other tight. "I was trying to think of the best way to start." Vinyl said tears falling down her face. Octavia held Vinyl at legs length and smiled mischievously. "You thought too much." Vinyl smiled back at her, realizing how the tables had turned. The whole time on the train and the walk to the house, she had only been thinking. But Octavia just acted on her feelings. "You thought just enough." Vinyl kissed Octavia. They were home together once again underneath the Ponyville sky. -The End Author's Note Hello y'all, Well here we are at the end. My first published work. I am quite happy with how it turned out. I thought of ways to make this last chapter longer, but then I realized it doesn't need to be. Sometimes love can be long and complicated, and sometimes it just happens, short sweet and to the point. I hope you enjoyed it. Look forward to more stories from Ol' Brushy Bill. Thank you all who read. -Brushy Bill
Life in Las PegasusWell she did it. They Vinyl was. Finally in the great party city of Las Pegasus. She had only just arrived and was awestruck and the sheer size of the city. 'I'm not in Ponyville anymore,' she thought to herself. Las Pegasus was indeed a sight to behold. It was like no other place in Equestria. Full of lights, music, ponies, and debauchery. Not a place that a small town pony like Vinyl was prepared for. She wandered from the train station to the most famous part of Las Pegasus known as the strip. There were many casinos and bars, all full of ponies looking to win big, get lucky with another pony, or drown their sorrows in a deep mug of cider. Vinyl wandered it one with techno music pulsing, her kind of music. The neon sign on the outside showed a rainbow colored horseshoe flashing with the name under it "Neon Horseshoe" flashing twice as fast. Vinyl pulled out a flyer she had made to promote her self. It was a picture of her on her turn table, words at the top read, "DJ P0N-3 ready to take the town." The bottom read "Available for hire, at reasonable rates." Vinyl looked up from her flyer, "I can do this, get ready Las Pegasus here comes DJ P0N-3" The next day Vinyl had spent her first few nights handing out flyers to any club that would take them and even handing some out to people out the strip that didn't look too under the influence. Some places said they would consider her, others just tossed her flyer back at her. 'Boy Octavia would sure be mad at me for this' she laughed to herself. She stopped mid-step at that thought. "Octavia," Vinyl said aloud. How was her friend or...was she more. Vinyl shook her head, 'No don't think about it, that is the whole reason I am here after all. A new start' After being out for several nights Vinyl decided she needed to secure some type of housing arrangement. She saw a flyer for a property management place called Fishy Places. It wasn't much but it was her only lead. She made her way through the town trying to reach the address on the flyer. As she continued the area slowly got more and more detreated, less and less green, and very dark. She finally came to a small gray building. The blinds were closed but very bent and out of place making it easy to see light inside. Where once there was letters on the building were now just the shadows of ishy ces, leaving just F Pla. The door was an old storm door with the white coating peeled off in big strips, and a blackened door knob. "I guess this is the place" Vinyl muttered to herself as she reached for the door knob. The knob creaked and squeaked, even getting stuck at one point making Vinyl think it was locked before it suddenly clicked. The door opened with a creak louder than the knob. On the inside was a small poorly stained desk with an obvious cardboard back to it. Papers were all over the desk, some with coffee stains. Over in the corner was a large lamp with dim yellow light that flickered with every step Vinyl took. It was the only light in the building apart from the few rays of the sun that peeked throw the broken blinds. Behind the desk was a door that probably led to back of the building. "Helloooo?" she called out. Then came a loud crash from behind the door. "Ah pony feathers!" somepony yelled followed by another loud crash "For the love of Celestia!" The door knob started jiggling, "Come on you-" the door flew open and a flat turquoise, middle age, short, round, pony tumbled into the main office. "Son of a-" he stopped when he noticed the young mare with wild blue hair staring down at him. "Are you Fishy?" she asked raising her glasses. The stallion stood up fast sending papers flying. "Oh! Yes, welcome to Fishy Places, they call me Fishy Deal, but uh you can call me Fishy," he smiled. Vinyl raised an eyebrow and observed the pony in front of her. He was short and round, had obviously missed a few a few spots shaving, and had an obvious comb over, if not a toupee. "Uh-huh" she responded. "So uh Mr. Deal-" "Fishy please" he interrupted. "Fishy" she said with a sneer, "I am looking to secure some housing." "Of course! Why else would you be here," Fishy Deal laughed a little to loudly. "Now! What you need is a great big penthouse in Uptown. That is where all the performers are at." Fishy began to rummage through the massive pile of papers. "How did you know I was a performer?" "Oh please young one!" Fishy laughed again "No one just moves to Las Pegasus because they can. To move here is to be a performer, and performers only get the best from me." he continued to through the papers until he pulled out a flyer for new high rises. "Ah! Here it is." Vinyl took the flyer from the sweaty pony. It showed a massive high rise just above the Las Pegasus strip. "Wow this is amazing, but I'm sure it is way out of my budget," Vinyl tried to return the flyer. Fishy Deal began waiving his hooves wildly side to side. "Oh no not at all, in fact these are very affordable! Only requires a 1,500 bits down payment for me to secure it and from there I believe you can negotiate with the building manager what the monthly rate." he leaned in closer and put his hoof to his mouth "I heard someone once negotiated too 100 bits a month," he whispered. "Well...I don't know," Vinyl looked around the office. "Hey, come on trust old Fishy, I got Sapphire Shores her first penthouse in Las Pegasus" the middle aged pony boasted. Vinyl though carefully. '1,500 bits just for this guy to secure a place seemed like a lot. She only brought 3,000 with her and who knows when she'd start making good money. But the place was nice and if rent was negotiable it may be her best option. What would Octavia think?' She got mad at her self for thinking of that. "Ok Fishy, you got yourself a deal" "Wonderful! I will just need to bits to secure it and come tomorrow you will be living it up. HA! You will be living it up in Uptown" Fishy Deal laughed hard as Vinyl went into her saddle bag to dig out the amount needed. She placed two pouches onto the desk. "Thank you Fishy Deal." Vinyl walked out, leaving Fishy grinning at the two pouches on his desk. When the door closed with another loud creak, Fishy Deal walked over and locked it behind her. Turning back to the pouches he smiled even bigger then before. "Oh no Vinyl Scratch...thank you" Author's Note Hello y'all Brushy Bill here. I have written several personal stories before but this is my first one I am putting out there. I am open to whatever you may say, just keep it civil. Hope you enjoy this story and all future ones.
Life in Canterlot"Thank you very much Miss Melody," One of the three music professors spoke up. Octavia stood on stage in the concert hall of one of the most prestigious music schools in Equestria, Braylee College of Music. She had just given an audition to be able to attend the famous school. "Thank you very much for this opportunity," Octavia bowed and began to relax. "Come back tomorrow and we'll have a decision made" the professor at the of the table said. Octavia nodded and took her cello offstage. Once out of sight of the professor's she couldn't help but smile. 'Oh my gosh!' she screamed in her head. 'I just performed in front of three professors for Braylee, BRAYLEE!' She could barley contain her excitement. 'Calm down Octavia, remain professional. Act like you've been places.' She straightened up, placed her cello in its case and exited the concert hall. While making her way in Canterlot she took in the sights. The streets were bustling with high society ponies. Ponies that Octavia was used to being around with her career, but had never lived among them, did she belong. She shook the thought from her and continued to her hotel. After dropping her cell off in her room, Octavia returned outside to see what she could. Canterlot, quite the opposite of Las Pegasus. Fancy building yes, but no high rises, and there was culture in all of them. As she walked she could pick out the architecture styles, seeing Queen Celestia style, popular in Canterlot a few decades ago. Even older how ever were the Gothic buildings, her favorite style. It was much like her, subtle, yet a very complicated style once a closer look was taken. There were a few shingle style shops, and many more modern buildings with the changing of time. 'Vinyl would hate this' she smiled to herself. Her smile immediately fell with her second thought "Vinyl," she said aloud. She deeply thought about her friend from Ponyville. Her friend...that word didn't sound right. She looked around at the busy ponies, all of them having some where to be but her. She continued her walk through the capital city trying to keep her mind off of Vinyl but failing. 'Was this a mistake?' she asked herself 'No, this is my dream, I always wanted to attend Braylee. This is what is going to make me happy.' She smiled and then noticed a coffee shop in front of her. The sign read Moca Joes. "A latte does sound nice." The inside of the shop was unique. It appeared to have been two separate shops at one time or another. The counter was directly in front of her and on her left was pillars which help of the ceiling where originally there would've been a wall. On the other side of the pillar was a sitting area for customers. There were comfortable arm chairs with the daily newspaper set on an table next to it. Further back in the shop were tables that ponies were seated at tables, one of which had a chess board on it. The walls were covered with sheet rock with intentional breaks in it which exposed the deep red bricks of the original building. Octavia walked up to the counter. "What can get you miss?" Asked a pale yellow barista with a long curly mane. "What would you recommend?" "Well today's special is our honey pot, its a latte with honey in it," the barista smiled "Sounds good, I'll have it, and one of your blueberry muffins please," Octavia could never turn down and muffin once she had seen on. "Of course, that'll be 12 bits" Octavia handed her the bits and went to go sit in one of the arm chairs. She shook her head, '12 bits, back home that would've been 6 or 7 bits. Canterlot sure is expensive.' Once again her thoughts dwelled where she rather they did not. 'Home,' she began to think about the little home her and Vinyl shared, not far from Sugarcube corner. How her and Vinyl would walk there on Friday mornings to have a celebratory 'we made it through the week' treats. 'Vinyl.' She didn't have long to delve on that before the barista called her name. Octavia got her coffee and returned to her seat to find an older mare seated in the other arm chair. She hesitated for a moment, contemplating changing seats, but not want to be rude, went back to her arm chair. The old mare looked up and gave a smile that Octavia returned. "Hello there, I'm Amaranth Filbert," smiled the old rose colored mare. "Hello, my name is Octavia Melody" she returned the pleasantry. "Oh Octavia, so am I right in assuming that you are a musician?" asked the old mare. "Yes, I play the cello." "Ah, the cello, such an under used and often misused instrument. I am happy someone as young as you is interested in it." "Thank you Mz. Filbert, am I correct in assuming you are an artist?" "Oh used to be dear, my old bones don't care for it much anymore but I used to be quite well known in Canterlot and Chicoltgo. In fact I attended the art institute there." the old mare smiled reminiscing. "Where did you attend?" "Um, not where yet, but I just auditioned for Braylee." "Impressive, well I hope the professors there appreciate the use of cello as much as I do. I think you'll make it" Amaranth stood up shakily. "Thank you for the chat dearie. I do appreciate it." With that the old mare walked out into the busy streets of Canterlot. Octavia smiled and began to enjoy her coffee and muffin. When she left the coffee shop it was late afternoon early evening. The little shop had helped her get her mind of waiting for tomorrow but she still had a whole night to get through. 'Maybe I should go back to my room, order some dinner and sleep. Hopefully that will make the time go by faster.' Unfortunately for Octavia this was not the case. After a small salad, she lay wide awake in her hotel bed. Many things could've been occupying her thoughts, keeping her awake. Her conversation with Amaranth Filbert, waiting for the news about her admission into Braylee, her plans if she got in or not. But there was only one thing on her mind this night "Vinyl," she whispered into the darkness.
Some Dreams Aren't Meant To BeVinyl had found a cheap motel to stay while waiting for Fishy Deal to get her new place. She woke up when the sun hit her face and practically jumped out of bed. 'I gotta get to Fishy's, hopefully he has my place' Vinyl jumped around excitedly before grabbing her headphones and leaving the motel room. Her door opened directly onto the strip and she ran down it to get to the property management office. Like before the area got worse and worse, but she didn't care. Vinyl was ready to start living like a famous DJ. She got to the building and tried to opening the door. The knob didn't turn. Thinking it was just stuck like before she turn it harder. Still it didn't move. When she stopped trying she finally noticed something...fishy. The letters on the outside of the building were now all gone. Not even the F was left. The blinds were still busted but she could see no light inside like before. Vinyl finally looked at the door which had a piece of yellow note book paper taped to it. She got closer to read it. "Hello all loyal customers, After 2 years in the property management business I have decided to close up shop and move down south for the sake of health and sanity. All security payments are non-refundable. I am sorry about the inconvenience this may cause. If you have any complaints or questions please direct them towards the HR director. Goodbye Las Pegasus." At the bottom of the page was an arrow which point to the right side of the building for the HR director. Vinyl couldn't believe what she had just read. "Complaints?!" she shrieked "Of course I am going to complain! You took my 1,500 bits and split!" She followed the arrow "I am going to complain so-" She stopped when she realized the arrow was pointing at a dumpster. She wanted to yell, scream cry, but what good would that do. She hung her head and slowly made her way back to her motel room. Vinyl sat on her bed, she had been there all day. "I could call the cops, but what good would that do. Fishy is probably long gone, and when I tell them 'Hey I'm stupid and gave a dude 1,500 and he took it and ran,' that isn't much to go on. I should've made a contract, that's what Octavia would've done." There it was again. The thought of Octavia. "Was it a mistake coming here?" she asked tears streaming down her face. "No, this is what is going to make me. Octavia made her choice and I made mine." She looked at the clock on the wall. It was near dinner time. She wiped face and shook her head to rid the thought of Octavia. But it stuck around. 'What was she doing right now? Was she living it up, or was she sad too. Maybe I should write her.' Vinyl shook her head again. "I've gotta to get out of this room. She grabbed her headphones and walked out the door. The sidewalks were packed with everypony else trying to find dinner. 'I better go somewhere to eat before they all fill up,' she thought as she threw on here headphones. Wandering the strip the past few nights had been very eventful, it was full of street performers all trying to show off their skills in hope to be noticed and maybe perform in the most famous venues in Las Pegasus. Vinyl laughed to herself, 'No way am I starting here on the streets, I'm sure my rep will be enough to at least start in a club if not bigger.' She continued down the strip looking for somewhere to eat. While staring at a few signs, trying to decide what sounded good, Vinyl bumped into a tall stallion. He had a gold earring, wore a suit jacket and sun glasses. "Oh I'm sorry, guess I was lost in-" She stopped talking when the stallion turn around revealing he had one of her flyers in his hooves. "Ah I found you! Are you DJ P0N-3?" he asked in a thick accent that Vinyl couldn't quite pin down. "Uh yes I am." She smiled "Wonderful!" boomed the pony "I found your flyer early this morning and have been searching since." He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a business card. "The names Sly Alley, I own Sly's Place her in Las Pegasus." Sly boasted as he handed Vinyl his card, "I'm sure you've heard of it." "Of course!" Vinyl lied behind a polite smile. "Anypony who is anypony goes to my place, and I think you could be somepony." Sly pointed aggressively at her. "How would you like to perform tonight at the club?" Behind her glasses Vinyl's eyes widened. "Really? Yeah, yes definitely!" Vinyl was so excited she kind of yelled. "Wonderful, the address is on the card. I'll schedule a set for you around 10 tonight. How does that sound?" "Sounds great," She almost yelled again. "I'll be there." Sly nodded and walked the up the strip as Vinyl skipped down it. Things were looking up for her. Sure she was robbed 1,500 bits, but hey if this gig goes well, she'll earn that back in a night. Now she was really hungry. She eventually found a quieter restaurant modeled after diner's that were popular 70 years ago. "This will do." The inside the diner was exactly what she expected. The floor was in a black and white checkered even in the kitchen. There was a bar with swiveling stools, 5 along the front and two on the end. They had a chrome outer and the cushion was covered in a deep red leather. No chairs, just booths with the same leather cushions. The bright lights bounced of the chrome and white tiles making the diner very bright despite night falling outside. The diner was packed minus a single bar stool and the end. Vinyl walked up and sat. An older waitress walked over to Vinyl and poured her a cup of coffee. "Hello, my name is Sassy Broad, welcome to S&S's diner," the mare said in a tired monotone voice. "Thank you, uh what does the S and S stand for?" Vinyl questioned. "Short and Sassy's Diner" the mare responded flatly. Vinyl couldn't help but chuckle to herself. "But you're not short," the old mare sigh before hollering. "Short!" The door to the kitchen swung open revealing a short old colt in a cook's apron. "Quiet down! I'm busy!" the stallion yelled before closing the door again. "That's my husband, Short Order." "Gotcha," Vinyl chuckled again. Sassy began to smile and placed a order pad on the counter. "What'll you have young one?" "Um what would you recommend?" Vinyl asked hoping for some more fun banter. However, before Sassy could respond an older voice came from the right. "I would recommend the green chili omelet." Vinyl turned to the pony seated on the stool next to her. He was dark green with a long white mane, with a beard to go with it. He wore a red bandana around his forehead and had a guitar strapped to his back. "It has a spicy kick and wakes you up for the night." He smiled at her. "Ok, miss Sassy I'll have the green chili omelet." Vinyl nodded to the old stallion. "Hash browns or fruit?" Sassy scribbled illegibly on her pad. "Hash Browns" "Biscuit or toast?" "Uhh biscuit," Sassy stopped her writing and took the ticket to the window to the kitchen. "Short! I need a green bomb with potato hay and a rock!" She shouted. "I hear ya Sassy!" Short yelled back. Vinyl giggled and turned to the old pony next to her. "Thank you for the recommendation Mr. uh?" she asked him as he sipped his coffee. "Nelson," he took another sip of his coffee, "Whinny Nelson." Vinyl's jaw dropped and she raised her glasses. "Whinny Nelson? Like THE Whinny Nelson," she asked. "I don't know of to many others," Whinny chuckled. "What's someone like you doing here? Shouldn't you be in a fancy restaurant, or getting ready for a show at Luna's palace?" Whinny took another sip of coffee. "Nah, I'm too old for those places anymore." "Whinny Nelson is never too old, you're timeless." Whinny smiled. "Thanks kid, but I much prefer these quieter places now. You know the first place I performed in Las Pegasus was here at S&S's." Vinyl's jaw dropped again. "This place is special. I realized what I wanted to do here." He smiled and turned to Vinyl "Now what are you doing here uh?" Whinny asked. "Oh um I'm Vinyl Scrath." she answered, "And I am here to become a famous DJ." "Interesting, you performing soon?" "Yes actually," Vinyl bounced excitedly "I'm performing at Sly's place tonight." Whinny just nodded slowly and returned to his coffee. Soon Sassy returned with her order. "Hear you are hun" "Thank you," Vinyl started in on her dinner, hurrying a little hoping to make it to her gig on time. Sassy filled Whinny's cup and went back to the other customers. The omelet was delicious. 'Octavia would love this,' she stopped before taking another bite. Whinny took notice. "Sorry if you don't like it kid. It warms my old bones and reminds me of home." "Oh no!" Vinyl waved her hooves back and forth frantically. "The omelet is wonderful." her gaze fell to the flow. Whinny chuckled. "Oh I see, girl troubles." he set his cup down. Vinyl's head shot up. "How did you figure that?" "Kid, I'm 89 years old. I've seen it all. Now I know it ain't boy troubles because boy troubles often mean going somewhere loud with lots of people. It's not parent problems, that involves running to nature or a close friend, and I know its not friendship problems because then the princess would show up or something crazy like that. Girl troubles on the other hand, often entail a quiet diner with a cup of coffee." Whinny laughed. Vinyl smiled at the old stallions laughter. "Thank you Whinny, just you noticing helps a lot." "I ain't going to bug ya about, one because not my place, but also," he looked up at the clock. "I do believe you have somewhere to be." Vinyl looked up at the clock. "Oh my gosh!" she gasped. Quickly she got up and starting looking for bits. "Don't worry about in Vinyl. It's on me. But before you go, just let me tell you, girl troubles can often be fixed with just a talk," Whinny winked at her. "Thank you Mr. Nelson. I'll pay you back." She called as she ran out of the door. Vinyl was in a full gallop on her way to Sly's Place. With all the ponies on the strip at the time it proved difficult, but her excitement helped her manage. A big clock on the outside of a building titled Time Zone showed it was 9:40. "I have to get there at least by 9:50 if I want to be professionally on time." She began running again. Eventually she made it to the address. The building looked like it may have been a theatre at one time, but now it had flashing neon lights dancing all over the outside. A big red vertical sign read Sly's Place. She went into the building and found the front to be an open casino floor with the club to the left. She could hear the ponies cheering to the music and pulsing of the bass from the massive speakers. As she walked to club she saw Sly Alley by the door. "Hello Sly, I'm here for my set." she said with a big smile. "Huh?" Sly turned around and saw Vinyl, "Oh, oh yeah uh DJ P0N-3. Um listen kid, tonight's not good. You see I've got a huge crowd tonight and I really don't need an amatuer going in there tonight. Gotta keep the crowd happy you know," he chuckled to himself. Vinyl's smile slowly faded. "Amatuer? I was the biggest name in my home town." she explained. "Yes I'm sure you were" Sly rolled his eyes, "But I am running a business here. It's just good business to have a more experienced and talented to run in these situations. Come back in a month when we're in a lull." Vinyl was furious, first her money was stolen and this guy was stopping her from her lifetime goal. She got on the train all the way from Ponyville to get here only for everything to go wrong. It all started with Octavia, 'Octavia,' that thought angered her even more. "But this is my dream!" she screamed. "Some dreams aren't meant to be" Sly spat back. She took a step back. "That's the truth kid, don't blame me." Sly straightened up. "Now Miss P0N-3" he said in a condescending way "You can either join the crowd in there or get out of my club." And with that Sly turned and walked into the club followed by two large bodyguards. Vinyl didn't know what to do. She just stood there. Unable to think or move. Slowly she slouched. "This isn't how it was suppose to be." Tears began to stream down her face. "How did it come to this."
Looking For A Part to PlayDespite her thoughts the night prior, Octavia managed to fall asleep. The alarm clock in her hotel rom went off, emitting an obnoxious ring. Octavia lazily rolled over and silenced the clock. She was typically an early riser, and wanted to get up early to prepare for her next meeting with the Braylee Professors, but she felt drained. "I guess I was just too excited yesterday." she sighed to herself. Slowly she rolled out of bed and into the bathroom to prepare herself. Her alarm was set for 6:30, and she wanted to be back at the school by 8. By the time she had fixed her hair, put on her tie, and grabbed some breakfast, it was 7:30. Octavia stepped out of her hotel and onto the streets of Canterlot. Even this early the streets were busy. Mostly ponies on their way to the day jobs, not to many fancy ones out at this time. She joined the commuting crowd and made her way to the Braylee campus. 'Ok, I am going to get in, and this will all be worth it,' she thought, 'I'll live on campus for a little, just to get established, then maybe I'll find a place to rent. Maybe Braylee will help me with outside housing.' Octavia continued on her path, passing by the coffee shop. Amaranth Filbert was seated outside and saw Octavia. The old mare gave her a wave, but it seemed Octavia was too deep in thought. Amaranth smiled and shook her head. "Oh to be young, she has quite a journey ahead of her." she took a sip of her coffee. Octavia continued her thinking right up until she realized she was on the school campus. Like most campuses there was a large clock tower. The hands shown that it was 5 till 8. Octavia hurried her pace to get to the concert hall. Excitement and dread slowly crept in with every step. 'Why dread?' She thought to herself, 'Of course I am going to get in. No reason to worry.' Octavia smiled confidently as she entered the concert hall. Like the day before, it was completely empty apart from the three professors sitting upfront, and a pony up on stage. "Congratulations, Miss Breve, you have been accepted in Braylee, please proceed to the advisors office to get your semester setup." The mare onstage bowed, thanked the professors and walked off stage. "Octavia Melody," one of the professors called. Slowly Octavia made her way to the stage. She stood in the middle of it while the three professor looked over their papers and quietly deliberated. The suspense was killing her. 'Why are they talking so much? Did I walk up here wrong, did I walk off wrong yesterday, I don't think I missed a note, oh Celestia was my cello off-tune?' Octavia thought a panicked spree. "Miss Melody," she snapped out of it and looked at the professors. "Yes sir?" The professor in the middle stoop up. "Unfortunately, after your audition and our deliberation, we have come to the conclusion that while you are undeniably talented with the cello, you're are not quite what we are looking here at Braylee." All of Octavia's thought came to a hard stop. "Pardon me?" she asked quietly yet wide eyed. "We are not accepting your admission here. I am sorry," the professor to her left said. Octavia opened and closed her mouth a few times no words came out. Finally she was able to ask, "May I know why?" "Miss Melody, the professor to her right stood. "Here at Braylee, we are extremely dedicated to classical music and the traditional ways it is played. The cello is traditionally not an earth pony's instrument, it was originally played by unicorns. For the sake of tradition and this school's traditions. We are not accepting you." Octavia didn't say anything, she couldn't. She left Ponyville to pursue this dream, left it all behind, left Vinyl. Vinyl, she's the reason she was here, on this stage. She smiled and looked at the three professors. "Thank you for your consideration." She trotted off stage, to the confusion of them. Once outside she ran off the campus. Every emotion possible hit her the moment she was off the campus. Disappointment, anger, sadness, happiness, excitement, for the school yes, but also for herself but why? She couldn't quite figure it out. While deep in thought about her emotions, she again passed by the coffee shop. While slowly walking by she heard a sweet voice. "You're quite deep in thought today dear." Octavia looked over and saw Amaranth sitting outside with a cup of tea. "You didn't notice me this morning and now you seem even deeper." Amaranth chuckled. "Hello Miss Filbert. Yeah, I am pretty confused." Octavia gave a small smile. The old mare pulled out the chair next to her and gestured to it. Octavia walked slowly over to it. Once she sat Amaranth spoke. "It seems to me Octavia, that there is more on your mind than just your audition." Octavia laughed. "That's completely off my mind. They denied me." Amaranth studied the young mare before her. "That emotion you are feeling now, that's relief, and maybe something more" the old mare smiled. Octavia hung her head. "Are you sure, how do you know?" Octavia looked up. Amaranth smiled sweetly are her. "Because I felt the same way when I left the Art Institute Of Chicoltgo" "You left?" Amaranth nodded. "Why?" Amaranth looked up the sky "All of us are looking for a part to play. I realized my part wasn't there. Now I don't have all the answers, but maybe you are realizing the part you play isn't here." "All my live, I always wanted to attend that school, become a famous cellist and travel the world. Perform for large crowds. Now, now I don't know. What's the something more?" Amaranth looked back down at the gray mare. "That's for you to decide" Even though Octavia now knew her what emotion was, she still didn't understand it or what the something more Amaranth spoke of was. "How did it come to this?' Author's Note Hell y'all Sorry for the shorter chapter. I don't think I set up Octavia's struggles to well. But here we are. Look for a new chapter to be posted on Monday. Thank you to all who have been reading -Brushy Bill
Why Are You Here?The small clock tower in the middle of the strip began to chime. "10" Vinyl sighed, "10 rings, I thought I wouldn't hear those till at least 2am in not 10am." A tear fell down her face. She was wandering down the strip, her thoughts still on Sly's words. "Some dreams aren't meant to be." She looked up and saw that she was back at S&S's diner. "I've got nothing better to do," Vinyl said with a bitterness in her tone. The little bell on the door rung when she walked in. Unlike earlier it was dead inside. No pony at booth or the bar. The door closed behind and she made her way to the bar stool she was sat on early that night. The door from the kitchen swung open. "Welcome to S&S's what can I-" Sassy Broad stopped when she saw the blue maned mare with her head on the counter. "Well Vinyl you're back, I thought you had a gig to get to," the waitress chuckled as she made her way over. Vinyl looked up and simply shook her head. Sassy could tell that she had been crying. "Oh hun," she raced around the counter and gave her a hug. "I'm sorry." Vinyl leaned into Sassy's hug. The whole time she was in Las Pegasus, these were the nicest ponies to her. Sassy picked Vinyl's head up. "How about about a slice of pie and a cup of coffee, on the house." she smiled and made her way to the kitchen. In the sweetest way Vinyl had ever heard Sassy talk to Short Order, Sassy called "Love, we have an achy one." "Uh oh." Short Order poked his head out from the window to the kitchen. "Understood ma'am." He went back in and came out with a steaming slice of pie. "Fresh out of the oven and full of lovin." the older stallion smiled as he placed in front of Vinyl. She slowly began to eat it while Sassy poured her some coffee. "Can I have a cup?" The three turned and saw Whinny Nelson walking in. Sassy got another cup as Whinny sat next to Vinyl. "Well looks like you had rough night." Whinny grabbed his cup. Vinyl just nodded as she continued to slowly eat the pie. "Why don't you tell us hun." Sassy pulled out a stool from behind the counter. "Yeah, whose head do I need to knock." Short Order smacked his spatula on the counter. Vinyl let a giggle escape her. "Ok" she sighed. Vinyl then recounted the whole story to the three older ponies. From when she first met Sly Alley, up until he told her to leave. "And now we're here." she finished the last bite. Whinny shook his head and sighed. "That sounds like Las Pegasus now. No pony cares for talent as long as somepony is making them money." "That does it, I am putting up a 'No Sly Alley' sign on the window." Short Order grumbled. Sassy patted her husband's head. "Oh yeah that'll show him." She rolled her eyes. Sassy then looked back an Vinyl. "I think there is more to your issue than just Sly." Vinyl looked up at her. "I agree," Whinny chimed in. "I am beginning to think your decision to come out here was rushed and reckless." he looked over at Vinyl. "And I'll betcha it has to do with your girl problems," he gave a warm smile. Vinyl opened her mouth to deny it, but nothing came out. "Ah ha." "What was her name kid?" Short asked. Vinyl looked around her, the old ponies waiting patiently for her response. After a few seconds she realized that maybe they were right. They had years on her and looking back on it maybe. "Octavia," she whispered. Whinny put his coffee down, and put all his attention on Vinyl. "And who is this Miss Octavia." "Tav- Octavia is or was, I don't know, my f-f-friend." Vinyl struggled to say the word. It didn't sound right. All three of the old folks noticed her hesitancy to say friend, though none pointed it out. "Vinyl, why are you here," Sassy asked. Vinyl sighed. She began to think back. "It was only a few days ago." Vinyl's flashback Back in Ponyville, Vinyl was fast asleep in her bed. Her room was dark. Records were all over the place. Some still in their sleeves, and some just out and about. Posters of famous bands adorned her walls, The Horseflys, The Hooves, even a Whinny Nelson one. There was a knock on her door. Vinyl grumbled and rolled over. Three more knocks came and then a voice. "Vinyl come on! We're going to be late," Octavia called from behind the door. Her voice made Vinyl's heart tingle despite being half asleep. Slowly she sat up. "Late for what?" her door opened revealing the gray mare. Her hair was already fixed and she had her signature tie, well tied. Octavia giggled. "For the music swap of course. I know that one of the vendors has an original composition by Johann Sebastian Buck and I need it!" she squealed. Vinyl smiled at her excited friend. 'She's so cute when she's excited.' "Ok ok, I'm up. I'll be ready in 15." Vinyl got out of bed and stretched. "I'll be waiting outside." Octavia walked outside of the house leaving Vinyl's door open. She stared after Octavia until she was out of view. When she looked away, she noticed her heart racing. "Keep it together Vinyl." she whispered to herself. Vinyl had no idea when she started feeling something for Octavia but it was getting stronger. For a few months now she felt nervous about being in the same room with Octavia, but she played it cool as possible to not make the living arrangement awkward. "I am going to have to tell her eventually. I don't know how much longer I can hide it." She wandered to the bathroom, styled her hair, brushed he teeth, and threw on her sun glasses. "Looking good Dj P0N-3," she winked at herself. Vinyl walked out of the little house and saw Octavia standing in the sun light. 'She's beautiful,' Vinyl's jaw dropped. Shaking her head and hitting her self she walked up to Octavia. "Ready?" Octavia seemed surprised and jumped at Vinyl's words. "Oh goodness" she chuckled. "Guess I was thinking to hard." Vinyl laughed and playfully pushed her. "You think too much." "And you don't think enough." Octavia pushed back. They began walking to the fair grounds where the music swap was being held. Vinyl was looking around the town and glancing at Octavia while doing so. Everything about the mare in front of her was enamoring. Her gentle steps, her little pink tie, her beautiful purple eyes and gorgeous black mane. "You looking for anything specific today?" Octavia asked, startling Vinyl out of her thoughts. "Oh um not really." she said panicking a little and caught off guard. 'Had she noticed me looking at her?' "Weren't you looking for an original record of Balloon Spirit by the Horseflys?" "Oh yeah, that! Yeah it'd be great to have that one to go with my poster." Vinyl smiled calming down. "What about you, going after anything besides the stuff from Buck?" "If I see anything I like I'll get it, but nothing specific comes to mind." They continued till they got to the fair grounds. Almost all of Ponyville had shown up. "Oh my gosh, I hope I'm not too late." Octavia nervously tapped her hooves. "Go on to your place Tavi, I'll meet up with you at the center when you're done." "Oh thank you Vinyl!" Octavia gave Vinyl a hug and raced off into the crowd. Vinyl stood stiff watching Octavia disappear into the crowd. Her heart was racing even faster than this morning. "That was awesome," she smiled to herself. After a while Vinyl regained her ability to move and starting looking through all the different booths. However, she was unable to focus. 'Do I love her? No that's ridiculous. Octavia is my oldest friend. She gets me. Its just over familiarity that's all'. She shook her head and began looking through a box of classic rock. "Ooo, The Horseflys album Help?," She flipped it over reading all the songs on the back and stopped when she saw the 4th song. "I Need You," she whispered to herself. Her eyes widened and once again she shook her head. "I am way to influenced by music." She chuckled and continued to look through the box. "Wow, a Trotten album, Back For The Attack." she read the songs on the back once again coming to a song that seemed to try to convince her of something. "Heaven Sent," she chuckled "Whatever." she stopped once again at another song. "Stop Fighting The Love," she said flatly. "Ok we can stop now," She laughed and read the next song. "Jaded Heart." She furrowed her eyebrows and frowned. "Where's 'It's Not Love' by Trotten when I need it." she grumbled. "Oh sorry ma'am I just sold my only single of that." The vendor pointed at a pony walking away. "Oh never mind." Vinyl put the records down and walked away. As she wandered through the festival her mind raced with thoughts. 'I always trusted music. Maybe it's trying to tell me something. No no, that's ridiculous.' She stopped in the middle of walking when she heard a song over the speakers, "We've always been the best of friends, no secrets and no demands. But suddenly from somewhere out of the blue I see a different light around you." "Deana Cart, 'How Do I Get There." Vinyl smiled "A about a friend falling for a friend." "One thing I haven't told you, I just wanna hold you never let go, I need to know...' The song continued. It dawned on Vinyl then. "I do love her." she whispered. Vinyl looked up and the the hill in the center. Octavia was sitting on top of it waiting for Vinyl. Vinyl smiled and raced for the hill. "I have to tell her." She made it to the top. "Octavia!" she said a little to loudly. Octavia jumped. "Vinyl! Look." She showed her the sheet music from Buck. "That's great Tavi, but-" he huffed but was cut off. "And guess what?! While at the booth I met a professor from Braylee!" Octavia squealed. "They got me a school audition next week." Vinyl's heart sunk. "Oh just think of it Vinyl. I can play there and become well known and travel the world like I have always dream." "Braylee? That stuck up school? You sure you want to go there? Now?" Vinyl asked with some distain. Octavia's smiled dropped. "Well, yes." she was confused "Vinyl, you know it's always been my dream to attend Braylee. This is my chance." "Yeah, but it so far away, and you know who wants to be among such snobs all the time." "I thought you would be happy for me Vinyl." Octavia whimpered with a tear falling. "Yeah well, kind hard when you're abandoning everything that we've made together here." Vinyl said her anger rising. "I am just thinking of the future Vinyl. But I guess you don't think enough!" Octavia spat. Vinyl turned to her, hurt by her words. "Well you think to much!" Vinyl spat back. Octavia shared the same hurt expression. Vinyl walked away and down the hill, leaving Octavia there. Slowly she made her way home and sat in her room. Tears streamed how her face, "How could she do this to me. We're happy here why would she want to leave,” she cried. Vinyl looked up and saw travel poster of Las Pegasus. "If Octavia is abandoning this place for her dream. Then so am I." Quickly she filled her saddle bag with all she could. She walked out of her room. Octavia wasn't home. "She's not home." Vinyl's heart hurt. "Good! She can't yell at me now." She went for the door. "Maybe I should leave a note. Just incase she calls me in as missing. " Vinyl got a pencil and paper and wrote 'Gone to live my dream in Las Pegasus, Goodbye Tavi.' Back to the Diner "And that's it. I over reacted, ruined a good thing and came here. Now I have nothing. Not even a crummy night club wants me." the old ponies all nodded in understanding. "I didn't even say a proper goodbye." she sniffled. There was a long pause of silence. Then Whinny spoke up. "Vinyl, why are you here?" asking the same question as Sassy. Vinyl looked over to him. "I just told you." she said confused. he laughed and shook his head. "I think what he means kid is, what are you doing here?" Short asked. Vinyl looked over to Sassy for clarification. She just smiled "I was here to live my dream, now I don't know." "And?" Whinny raised an eyebrow. Vinyl was very confused. The old country star sighed. "It’s obvious. You are running away." the DJ looked over at Whinny in shock. He laughed. "Don't look at me like that. Look kid, you are in love. Emotions are high. You made a mistake in anger. But something tells, tells all of us that you haven't completely given up on Octavia." the two owners of the diner nodded. "What?" Vinyl asked. "Hun, in your note you wrote Tavi, not Octavia. I think we all can agree when the love is gone, so are the nicknames." Sassy Broad smiled. Short Order nodded. "Vinyl, remember I told you I realized what I wanted to do in this place?" Whinny asked. She nodded. "I wasn't talking about music." He smiled. Vinyl looked confused. "It was here, after being denied a show, that I realized, I want to go home and I wanted apologize to my girl. Without her, I couldn't have done anything." Vinyl looked around at the three ponies. "What should I do?" "Well whenever I make Sassy mad, I write her a note." Short Order smiled. "In your case, you might want to go with a letter." Vinyl nodded. "Thank you...Thank you all." she stood up. "I think I need to get some sleep." "Come back anytime hun," Sassy smiled. Vinyl nodded and walked out and to her motel. She wanted to sleep. But sitting on her beside table, was a pen and paper. Author's Note Hello y’all, Sorry it’s been a minute. I do most of my writing at work and the office was closed on Monday due to power issues and that backed up work so today I finally had time. Hopefully I can get another chapter done tomorrow. Also I forgot to mention and the Easter eggs to the music lovers out there. The past chapters haven’t had to many, this one has a few. Feel free to comment which ones you noticed. Thanks again to all of you who are reading. -Brushy Bill
Is She Really Gone?The day had gone by. Octavia had sat all day outside of the coffee shop talking with Amaranth. Not wanting to dwell on her confused feelings, Octavia had asked Amaranth to explain why she left of Chicoltgo Art Institute. "Then I left and I had the adventure of a lifetime. I have no regrets about it." Amaranth smiled. "Wow, you are truly an amazing and wise pony." Octavia stared at her, eyes wide. "Well thank you dear." There was a long pause. Amaranth studied Octavia, then she remembered what she had asked right before they got off topic. "Oh I see what you did there," she chuckled. "Got an old pony to ramble on about her life, to distract her and yourself from your issues." Octavia smiled guiltily. "Don't worry about it Octavia. We all need time to think, but you did pose an interesting question earlier." "What was that?" Octavia cocked her head to the side. "How did it come to this?" Amaranth poured herself a new cup of tea. "Now I don't know the answer to that, but I think you do." Octavia sat and thought for a second. "I haven't thought about since it happened. It all happened so fast. The music swap, the audition, the fight. Her leaving." "Oh? And who is her?" the old mare looked down at her cup while adding sugar to it. "Vinyl," saying her name made her heart sink. "Uh huh." Amaranth stirred her tea. "Who is Vinyl? A friend, maybe the something more we spoke of earlier?" Octavia thought about it more. 'Was Vinyl the something more? Do I hope that since I didn't get into Braylee that I could see Vinyl again? Do...do I still love her?' Octavia heard the old mare chuckle. "You're doing it again." "Huh, oh yeah. I guess I think to much..." she trailed off. Those were the last words Vinyl spoke to her. Not in her usually playful way, in a hurtful way. "Tell me all about her." Amaranth took a sip from her cup. Octavia's flashback Not but a few days ago, Octavia woke up when the sun light shown through her window. Unlike Vinyl's room, Octavia's was very put together. Apart from a few music sheets on her desk, everything was in place. She got out of bed and wondered to the bathroom to prepare for her day. "Today is the music swap. I hope I can get that original composition by Buck." she smiled into the mirror while brushing her hair. "I'm glad Vinyl can join me," her heart fluttered. "Oh Vinyl," she chuckled. A few months back Octavia had noticed some changes in her feelings towards her best friend. They originally moved in with each other a few years back mainly to save money. Now, now she was unsure. "Come on Octavia this is Vinyl, your best friend and complete opposite." She fixed her tie. "However, they do say that opposites attract," she smiled walking out into the living room and up to Vinyl's door. She was about to knock, but stopped. 'Behind the door is Vinyl. Beautiful, sweet Vinyl. She was going to the music swap with her,' then came a thought that caused her to blush. 'Oh my goodness! Was this a date? Did Vinyl think it was a date?' Octavia's heart pounded as she raised her hoof. "Pull it together Octavia. It's just two friends going on an outing." she knocked once. From the inside she heard stirring and Vinyl grumble. She knocked three more times. "Vinyl come on! We're going to be late." She held her breath waiting to hear Vinyl's voice. "Late for what?" Vinyl called back. Octavia took a deep breath and opened the door, revealing Vinyl sitting on the edge of of her bed. Her mane was a mess and she looked half asleep. To Octavia, it was adorable and it made her giggle. "For the music swap of course. I know that one of the vendors has an original composition by Johann Sebastian Buck and I need it!" she squealed. Vinyl smiled back at her, making her heart do a flip. "Ok ok, I'm up. I'll be ready in 15." Vinyl got out of bed and stretched. "I'll be waiting outside." Octavia smiled and walked to the door. She was confused. Just from that short interaction her heart was raced. When she got outside she leaned against the door. "I don't know how much longer I can do this," she sighed. Taking a few steps forward to stand in the sun, she thought. 'When did this start?' No matter how hard she thought or tried to remember, she couldn't pick a specific point when she started feeling this way. 'Should I tell her? What would happen then? Could we still live together? Would we even still be friends? What are the consquences of each choice?' her deep thinking was interrupted by a voice. "Ready?" Shaken from her thought and startled, Octavia jumped and turned to look at Vinyl. Her hair was styled messy, and she had her signature glasses. 'She's so beautiful.' Octavia quickly regained her thought trying to avoid being awkward. "Oh goodness! Guess I was thinking to hard." she smiled trying to stay calm. Vinyl smiled and playfully pushed her. "You think too much." "And you don't think enough." she pushed back. The two started their walk to the fair grounds, where the swap was being held. Vinyl was looking all around, she appeared to appreciate everything and be a happy mood. Octavia kept her vision straight ahead and tried to avoid looking in her loves direction. She knew one look and she'd blush or make her heart race, possibly giving it away. 'I've got to say something. But what? What if I open my mouth and something that I don't want to say just comes out. Oh goodness, what if I ask if this is a date? Or worse, what if I say I love you?' Panic began to set in. 'Say something!' " "You looking for anything specific today?" Her question seemed to startle Vinyl out of her own thoughts. "Oh um not really" Vinyl responded quickly. The quickness of her response concerned Octavia. Trying to stay on the topic of music to stay away from others, she continued. "Weren't you looking for an original record of Balloon Spirit by the Horseflys?" "Oh yeah, that! Yeah it'd be great to have that one to go with my poster." Vinyl smiled. Her smile put Octavia at ease. ""What about you, going after anything besides the stuff from Buck?" Octavia thought for a second and shrugged. "If I see anything I like I'll get it, but nothing specific comes to mind." The two arrived at the fair ground. A massive crowd had gathered. Tons of ponies were milling around. Octavia had never seen so many different types of musical ponies and genres. "Oh my gosh, I hope I'm not too late." she nervously stamped the ground. She looked over at Vinyl who was smiling at her. Her smile made her heart stop, but again it put her at ease. "Go on to your place Tavi, I'll meet up with you at the center when you're done." Tavi, she loved the nickname Vinyl had given her. Her excitement boiled over and without thinking she hugged Vinyl. "Oh thank you Vinyl!" After the hug ended she raced into crowd of ponies, because of excitement, but mostly due to the huge blush on her face. Her mind raced even faster then before. 'I hugged her, I hugged her!' she blushed even more. She stopped running when she came to the booth she was originally there for. "Ok I can clear my mind and just look for the music. She walked in and found the sheets relatively quickly. While reading over them, admiring the work, she heard a voice. "Hello, I see you are a appreciator of Johan Buck." a well dressed pony smiled at her. "Oh yes, I love all of the classical composers but Buck is definitely my favorite." Octavia responded. "Do you happen to play any classical instruments?" "Yes, I play the cello." "Hmm interesting," the pony rubbed his chin. "That's not something you see an earth pony play often. But that makes it intriguing. Listen, I am a retiring professor from Braylee in Canterlot, and I think I can get you an audition." the professor smiled. Octavia's jaw dropped. "Braylee? Audition? Are you serious?" she asked getting a big smile. "Of course. I can't guarantee your admission, but I can at least get you an audition." "That would be wonderful!" she squealed. "Wonderful! How does next week sound? Say Wednesday?" Octavia nodded aggressively. The professor nodded and walked away. Octavia stood there and then turned to the vendor. "That just happened right?" The vendor nodded and then asked. "Are you going to buy that." He pointed at the sheets of music. "Oh yes." Octavia payed and began walking to the middle hill. 'Braylee is my dream. If I can get in I can travel the world. See new places, play for different crowds. Vinyl will be so excited.' The thought of Vinyl stopped her train of thought. 'What about Vinyl. Do I leave her?' She made it to the hill. 'I don't think I can just leave her. After all...' Octavia looked down at the crowd and spotted Vinyl running towards her. "I do love her," she smiled. 'Maybe she'll come with me.' When Vinyl reached her, she yelled. "Octavia!" Causing her to jump a little. "Vinyl! Look." She showed her the sheet music. "That's great Tavi, but-" without think Octavia continued. "And guess what?! While at the booth I met a professor from Braylee! They're going to get me a school audition next week. Oh just think of it Vinyl. I can play there and become well known and travel the world like I have always dream." she smiled waiting for Vinyl's response. "Braylee?" her tone threw Octavia off. "That stuck up school? You sure you want to go there? Now?" Octavia's heart sunk. "Well, yes." she frowned "Vinyl, you know it's always been my dream to attend Braylee. This is my chance." "Yeah, but it so far away, and you know who wants to be among such snobs all the time." Vinyl said with a harsh tone. Octavia couldn't believe it. She had hoped this would be a stepping stone to telling her true feelings. "I thought you would be happy for me Vinyl." Octavia could feel a tear fall down her face. "Yeah well, kind hard when you're abandoning everything that we've made together here." Vinyl responded angerly. "I am just thinking of the future Vinyl." She was hurt, and like hurt ponies do, she lashed out. "But I guess you don't think enough!" Vinyl turned to her. She could see the hurt on her face. "Well you think to much!" Octavia took a step back. Vinyl turned slowly and walked down the hill leaving her on the hill. "What just happened," asked as tears streamed down her face. She sat through the hill the rest of the day. Thinking through the events and trying to figure out when it wrong. 'Was it her fault? No, Vinyl's inability to be happy for her wasn't her fault. I guess it wouldn't have worked out.' She sighed and began her walk home when the sun had set. Octavia entered the house to find it completely empty. 'Had Vinyl not come home yet?' she wondered as she walked in. Once in the living room she noticed a note on the table. It read, "Gone to live my dream in Las Pegasus, Goodbye Tavi." Octavia sat hard onto the couch. "She's gone." she silently cried. Back to the coffee shop "That's how it came to this." Octavia sighed. Amaranth nodded her head. "Hm is she really gone?" the old mare asked. Octavia looked up from her tea cup. "I mean yes, she never came home. I was home for a few day before coming here and-" Amaranth held her hove up to stop Octavia's current pessimistic train. "No dearie. Is she really gone?" Octavia sat back in her chair confused. "Octavia, we always tell ourselves that no one is ever really gone, as long as we keep them in our hearts. Now tell me." Amaranth pointed to Octavia's heart. "Is she really gone?" Octavia sat in shocked silence. This hold time she tried to keep Vinyl off her mind, as not to distract her. "Maybe, I'm relieved about Braylee, because in my heart...my dream isn't here...it's with Vinyl." Amaranth nodded in agreement. "I think you're on the right track. Also something in that note of yours tells me that your not really gone from her heart either." Amaranth smiled as she finished her tea. "Thank you miss Fil- Amaranth." Octavia smiled. "What should I do now. I doubt she's back home." Amaranth gave a smile. "In true classical form, write her a letter. The pegasus will find her." They finished their tea as Octavia began to think of to say in her letter. Author's Note Hello y'all, I was able to get this one done today. Hope you enjoy. Thanks to all who are reading! -Brushy Bill
I've Had All Of This Life I Can HandleIt was the morning after Octavia's conversation with Amaranth. She sat in her hotel room, staring at her 5th blank piece of paper. Next to her was a broken pencil and 4 balled up papers. Octavia sighed "Where do I start? I haven't even got past how to address her. Dear Vinyl? Hello friend? Dearest Vinyl? I'm sorry? I love you?" She looked out her window at the wide sky. "I miss the sky over Ponyville." Octavia got up and walked to look out. Looking at the sky she thought about her hometown. "These big building block the view, back home there's nothing to diminish the beauty." she then looked down at the ponies walking the streets. "Nopony seems to listen to the music of the world, not like Vinyl does, and no one ever smiles." Something sparked in her. Octavia turned and looked at the paper. "I think I know what to say." Las Pegasus Vinyl was still staring at the same pen and paper the from the night before. She hadn't even touched them yet, wanting to make sure she had all the words in her head first. "I don't even know where to begin." she groaned. "How do I put into words all that happened and what I want to tell her." There was then a knock on her door. "Now what?" she rolled her eyes and opened the door, revealing a pegaus with a letter in hoof. "Letter for Vinyl Scratch." they handed it over and took off. Vinyl closed the door and looked down at the letter. The envelope read, 'From Octavia Melody,' in a flowing penmanship. Her hooves began to shake. "Calm down Vinyl, it's probably just a postcard from her first stop with the Braylee Orchestra." Her hooves steadied and prepared she opened the envelope. To her surprise there was no post card, but a written letter, and it was definitely Octavia's writing. Shocked, but excited Vinyl sat on her bed and began reading the letter. "Hello Vinyl, I hope this letter finds you well and all your dreams have come true. I know it's only been a week or so, but I know how fast and hard you work. Even though you may have found all you ever wanted, I haven't. I didn't get into Braylee, but it's ok. It made me realize it wasn't my true dream. You know I have composed several pieces my self, and honestly so many were inspired by you. Whenever we were together I heard music. I came here hoping that I could share that music with others and hear there own interpretations of it. But it seems that nobody hears it or takes the time to listen. Not like you, you took time and listened, always with a smile. No one smiles here the way you do. So I guess you'll never see me in the Orchestra. But like I said, I don't think it was ever truly my dream. I'd give it all just to see you once more. It is all so hard to put into words, but I do have a question for you." Vinyl's heart was beating rapidly, the words she had just read echoed in her head. She flipped to the back of the page. "Will you meet me in Ponyville? I want to see the green hills in your eyes. I think I have had quite enough of this life, and I want to see you under that beautiful Ponyville sky. There is so much more I want to say, but I want, no I need to say in person. I am leaving for Ponyville on tonights train. I hope to see you at our home. Yours forever, Octavia Melody." Vinyl read it ten more times before finally looking up. Tears were streaming down her face, but this time it wasn't from sadness. "She wrote me. She...she wants to see me..." Vinyl smiled her biggest smile since coming to Las Pegasus. She looked over at her pen and paper. "Inspiring as always Tavi. I know what to say now." Canterlot Octavia had stayed in her room all day. She continuously thought over the letter she had sent off. "Did I properly convey my feelings? I know I didn't say I love you, but that's something I need to say in person. I hope she gets it in time." Just then there was a knock on her door. Jumping off the bed she scrambled to the door opened it quickly. There stood a pegasus. "Letter for Octavia Melody," they handed over a letter and walked away. Octavia closed the door slowly and walked to her bed staring at the envelope. The back of it read DJ P0N-3 in Vinyl's typical way of signing her autographs. Octavia sighed. "I guess she made it." She opened the envelope and read. "I am sorry..." Octavia's heart sunk at those first words. "She'll probably say she found her dream and won't be coming." she looked back at the letter and continued. "Let me start over... Dear Tavi." Octavia's heart soared. "She wrote Tavi. There's hope yet." "...Dear, dear Tavi, Where do I begin? Your letter found me, but I don't know how well. We may have last seen each other only a week or so ago, but it has felt like years since then. When I came here I thought I was following my dream, that all I ever wanted was to live it up as a famous DJ. But I don't think that's true anymore. It's been hard. When I left home for Las Pegasus maybe I was looking for a new part to play, since another didn't end like I wanted." At part to play, that sounds familiar to Octavia. She smiled thinking of her older friend. "She may have a point." "You always said I didn't think enough, I guess that's true but no one here thinks the way you do. I am sorry you didn't get into Braylee, but you'll always be a musical star to me. Now I guess it's time I let go of my crazy dreams here. I don't know what else to say. The words won't come to me, but I want to meet you Ponyville. I want to see the music in your eyes. I've had all of this life I can handle. I want to walk with you underneath that Ponyville sky. I don't want to be stuck her in this city that they call home. Tavi back home with you is where I want to be. Always Yours, Vinyl Scratch." Octavia read the final words and hugged the letter. "Goodness I need to pack." she scrambled gathering all her belongings and raced to the train station. "When I see her. I am going to tell her." Las Pegasus Vinyl didn't have much to pack. As soon as she had sent her letter off, she packed and was waiting for the night train to Ponyville. "When I see her. I am going to tell her." Author's Note Hello y'all, Well our story is coming to a close. The next chapter should be the last one. Thank you all to have read and are still reading. A big thanks to the person who gave me my first dislike. I hope to improve as I write more. -Brushy Bill
The EndVinyl was sitting in a train car, staring out the window. On the seat next to her was the letter from Octavia. She had read it so many times she had lost count, but no matter the amount it made her heart flutter every time. The train was about half way back to Ponyville when Vinyl's thoughts finally caught up with her heart. "I know I said I'd tell her as soon as I saw her, but is that too fast? Should I start with I'm sorry or ask how she is?" Vinyl began to panic. "I am totally not prepared for this." She continued in rapid thought until one thought in particular made her stop dead and blush. "I...could...k-kiss...her." All other ideas had left her head. "Would that be ok?" Vinyl looked at the window to see her reflection. "No, that will come later. I have to tell her I am sorry first." Train from Canterlot Octavia was sitting in a train car fiddling with her cello. "I have got to keep my mind off of her. I have already decided what I am going to do and I am not thinking anymore about it. I'll get there first since Canterlot is closer to Ponyville than Las Pegasus, so I'll go directly home. I will sit on the couch and the moment she walks through the door...I..." she stopped and looked at her reflection in the window. She had only read Vinyl's letter once, but she remembered every word. "No stop thinking too much. I will walk up to her and I WILL kiss her, and I WILL tell her that I love her." she nodded to her reflection and returned to her cello. Train from Las Pegasus The train pulled slowly into the station, far to slow for Vinyl. "Come on, come on." She paced in place in front of the train doors. "Last stop Ponyville," the conductor called and the doors opened. Vinyl rushed off and onto the platform. She began looking around for either for a gray mare or a large cello case. She saw neither. "Maybe I beat her here?" Vinyl walked off the platform and in the direction of her house. "That's good. It means I can get home and prepare more," she smiled. It was late at night in Ponyville. The moon was high and the stars sparkled. The perfect night for a reunion. Vinyl got into town, still deep in thought. "Ok, so I can't get flowers or cake, but I could put on one of her favorites symphonies. Maybe do my hair a little, get prettied up?" She was so deep in thought she did not notice the lights on in her house. Octavia was sitting on the couch, waiting patiently, focusing on the ticking of the clock. She perked up at the sound of the door knob turning. The gray mare looked over to the door and watched as the white mare entered the house. Vinyl noticed her instantly. They stared at each other for a second. Octavia stood up from the couch. 'Ok,' she assured herself and began walk towards Vinyl. Vinyl was startled by Octavia's sudden move and began to stutter. "I uh T-T-Tavi, I...I am so sorry, I-" Vinyl was cutoff by Octavia leaning in and kissing her. Shocked at first, Vinyl leaned into the kiss and held Octavia's face. Octavia pulled away and looked at Vinyl. "I love you, Vinyl," she smiled with a tear streaming down her face. Vinyl stared at Octavia, shocked by both the kiss and her confession. "I love you too, Tavi." The two hugged each other tight. "I was trying to think of the best way to start." Vinyl said tears falling down her face. Octavia held Vinyl at legs length and smiled mischievously. "You thought too much." Vinyl smiled back at her, realizing how the tables had turned. The whole time on the train and the walk to the house, she had only been thinking. But Octavia just acted on her feelings. "You thought just enough." Vinyl kissed Octavia. They were home together once again underneath the Ponyville sky. -The End Author's Note Hello y'all, Well here we are at the end. My first published work. I am quite happy with how it turned out. I thought of ways to make this last chapter longer, but then I realized it doesn't need to be. Sometimes love can be long and complicated, and sometimes it just happens, short sweet and to the point. I hope you enjoyed it. Look forward to more stories from Ol' Brushy Bill. Thank you all who read. -Brushy Bill
