Practice Session

by MidnightConcerto

Rating: teen
Tags: Slice of Life, DJ P0N-3, Sad, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Octavia
Length: 1329

A vent piece: Vinyl lets loose the emotions she's been building up.

Octavia hears somepony practicing piano, and learns more about her friend's insecurities.

A vent piece, just something to get off my chest. Part of a bigger story, but that's a project for another time.

Published 2024-06-14 23:50:01 UTC
Last updated 2024-06-14 23:50:01 UTC

Practice Session

The cellist's ears perked up as the soft melody of a piano drifted down the corridor. Figuring it was likely coming from one of the nearby practice rooms, she trotted towards the source, the sound slowly getting louder with each step. Most likely, somepony had just forgotten to close the door before they began their practice session. It probably wouldn't be the first time to happen, she assumed. It took her a moment to identify which of the rooms it was coming from, spotting it from the door being slightly cracked open. She stepped up, intending to close it, but looking through the glass pane on the door caused her to pause as she saw who was inside.

Of course she also plays piano. Octavia mused.

The mare's alabaster hooves gently danced along the keys, playing the first movement of Beethoofen's Moonlight Sonata. Surprisingly, Vinyl was playing with only her hooves, without the aid of her magic. Most unicorn students tended to be excellent pianists, on account that magic made it much simpler for them to play the instrument than pegasi or earth ponies. Yet here she was, not a single spark of magic to be seen, drawing out the beautiful melody from within the instrument. Unable to help herself, Octavia slipped into the room and shut the door silently behind her, her curiosity having overtaken her.

The unicorn was completely enraptured in her performance, having no reaction to the unexpected company that had joined her. The gentle melody caressed the pair, and sense of time seemed to slip away as Vinyl played on. Each note was impeccably timed as her hooves continued their dance across the keys, even though her eyes remained shut. At first glance her face was relaxed, serene, which wasn't a shock given the mood of the piece she was playing. But looking a little closer, Octavia could see the signs of tension across her muzzle, almost as if Vinyl was trying to force herself to appear at ease. But why? Octavia thought to herself. Why, if no one else was around, would she feel the need to put on the act?

The music began to quietly drift away into silence, long before the movement was supposed to end, causing the cellist to tilt her head in curiosity. That's when she noticed the shaking, starting in Vinyl's hooves and spreading up her forelegs, until it overtook her whole body. It was the kind of shiver Octavia had only seen with intense, overwhelming emotions. Should I say something? Before she could move, the unicorn whispered, her voice filled with rage.

“Buck... all of you.”

Her hooves crashed down against the piano, as she dove into the third movement with ferocity.

Practically everypony was familiar with Moonlight Sonata, especially the final movement. Even ponies who never took a single course in music were familiar with the piece, and likely every single pianist in the damn building knew how to play it. Often, they did so as proof of their skills to anypony in the vicinity. One could practically hear the ego dripping off every note when those ponies would play, to the point Octavia would shudder whenever it was performed at the school.

This... was a beast of an entirely different nature.

Gone was the calm, the serenity, the gentle caress of notes and melody and harmony. Gone was the feeling of gentle wind carrying the music across the room to her. What replaced them was an icy gale, a frozen hurricane that threatened to rip away any peace and safety she had ever dared to feel. The unicorn's hooves were a blur along the keys as she tore through the melody like a wild animal, the fires of rage and fury pouring out like an inferno from Tartarus itself.

"You don't know me." Vinyl's voice was a bit louder now, and Octavia couldn't tell which held more unrestrained anger:

The music, or her voice.

"Tellin' me what to do, putting me in a BUCKING box, pretendin' if I don't act like everypony else I won't matter, that no one will know me or my talent." Her hooves slammed against the piano harder, Octavia was shocked she hadn't snapped a string or broken the instrument with the rage she played with.

Vinyls' voice continued to grow louder, yelling into the void of the empty room around her. "I'm not my brother, I'm not my Luna-damned parents, I'm ME! I'm VINYL BUCKING SCRATCH!"

The unicorn plunged in once again.

Vinyl's breathing grew ragged, becoming more akin to a drowning mare gasping for air. The shaking across her entire body was ferocious, yet somehow it never hindered her play. Every time her hooves pounded a chord the piano she played on shook, threatening to come apart at not just the power of her playing but the overwhelming raw fury of emotions pouring out of the piece.

"Oh it's not real music, it won't matter in a few years, you'll never make a living, no pony will respect you. WELL NO PONY RESPECTS ME NOW, BUCKERS." Tears began to slowly drip down her muzzle. "Claimin' what I do, the work I put in, the sleepless nights, the passion, the love and motherbucking soul doesn't mean shit just because we won't pretend t' conform!? BUCK YOU ALL!!" She screamed, diving into the final ostinata.

Octavia was shocked beyond any reaction, watching one of the most stoic friends she'd ever had unleashing a hail of torment and anguish upon the instrument in front of her. A veritable firestorm flew from Vinyl's hooves, so powerful it sounded as though the piano would be engulfed and reduced to nothing but ash beneath her playing. The melody so brutal it felt like she would be blown away if not for the confines of the room they were in.

As the piece came to a resounding, crashing close, the unicorn's hooves fell to her sides, her posture slumped and shivering. Her breaths were ragged, broken, dancing on the line somewhere between gasps and sobs. Sweat and tears mingled on her muzzle, running down her cheeks, the silence that filled the room somehow even more deafening than the crescendo that had just ended.

For her part, Octavia didn't dare to move or make a sound, waiting to see what the beast unleashed within Vinyl would do next. She briefly considered going to embrace her friend, but decided to stay where she stood until the other mare reacted. Somehow, despite her silence, the unicorn's ears flicked in her direction. Her head turned slightly towards the cellist.

"How long..." She said, her voice barely a whisper.

With a quiet sigh, Octavia looked at the ground. "Long enough... you uhm, you left the door open." Silence. "I'm sorry, I should have just shut it and walked away, but the first movement was so enrapturing..."

Letting out a deep breath, Vinyl gave no response as she got up, trotting to the door and opening it.

"For what it's worth," Octavia continued, her eyes moving back up to her friend's purple shades. "I thought your set at Turntable was brilliant. I may not know much about your type of music, but even I can feel the energy and joy you find in making and playing it." She reached out, but faltered before she actually touched her friend's shoulder. "Your passion shines brighter than most in this place. No matter what the stuck up elite might say, I truly believe you'll carve out a life with what you love."

Pausing in the threshold, Vinyl turned to stare at the cellist for several long moments, as if expecting to find sarcasm or deceit etched onto her face. After a long moment, her expression softened and she leaned forward, gently rubbing her cheek against Octavia's extended hoof.

"Thanks, Tav."

And with that, she slipped out the door and disappeared.

Author's Note

Just something I needed to vent.

Love y'all <3