Vinyl Woke Up

Vinyl woke up.

Bleary crimson eyes peered into the grey morning light that filtered into the bedroom through the curtains over the window. It was early, but she was always an early riser. Unlike the other pony in the bed.

Blinking away the crust, Vinyl sat up. Stretched. Looked down at her companion, one Octavia Melody. Her mane was a mess, tousled, bangs astray, and she was snoring ever so slightly.

Vinyl smiled. Then she slipped from under the covers and went to go make coffee.

They'd been living together for a few years now, her and Octavia, and this was the routine: Vinyl would wake up first and silently (as was her general manner, these days) creep down into the kitchen to put the coffee pot on. They were both avid drinkers of the stuff, Vinyl because it made the long nights feel shorter and Octavia because sometimes it seemed like it was the only thing keeping her sane. That was how they'd met, actually; they'd both known each other vaguely from working in related fields, but they'd actually met in person for the first time in a coffee shop in Canterlot. Octavia had said "Hi", Vinyl had replied with an easygoing "Yo". Just random happenstance. A lucky break; they'd both been looking for roommates.

That had been before the accident had robbed Vinyl of her voice.

Arriving in the kitchen, she walked over to their little coffee pot. She fished out a paper filter from the packet that leaned against the edge of the counter, popped the compartment on the machine open, and stuck it in. Next came the coffee itself. Just pre-ground stuff; they weren't snobs, although Octavia sometimes pretended to be. She measured it out in a spoon, just eyeballing it, and dropped it into the filter. Last was the water, but that was easy; just get it from the tap. Again; they weren't snobs. Into the little reservoir it went.

Button pushed; now to wait. It took a little while, on their machine, but there was no rush; Octavia wouldn't be up for a while yet.

...Or, actually, maybe not, because Vinyl could hear her coming down the stairs. She glanced at the clock; 6:34 AM. That was strange, Octy didn't usually get up for another hour.

Vinyl shot a strange look the grey mare's way as Octavia dragged herself into the kitchen. She looked... 'unrested' was what came to Vinyl's mind, although she was pretty sure it wasn't a real word.

Octavia let out a yawn, then saw Vinyl's look. "Oh, good morning. You're probably wondering why I'm up so early."

Vinyl nodded.

"Well, so am I," Octavia said. She walked over to their kitchen table and sat down. "No idea what happened. Bloody inconvenient, whatever it was. I feel like a wreck. Is that coffee brewing? Excellent."

She yawned again. "You didn't, erm... hear anything, no? Just a minute ago?"

Vinyl shook her head.

"Hm. Maybe it was a dream then." Octavia let out a groan. "I'm going to be absolutely ruined the rest of the day now. How much longer on the coffee?"

Glancing at the pot, Vinyl bit her lip and shrugged.

"Did you just put it on?"

Vinyl nodded.

Octavia groaned again. "Can't come soon enough."

Vinyl smiled at her, walked over, and patted her on the shoulder. Then, she headed for the front door. Opening it, she retrieved the newspaper on the front step in her magic and stepped back inside. She glanced at the front page, at the headline. "Twilight Sparkle Passes New Tax Code Revisions". Nothing for her, then, but Octavia would no doubt be interested.

The newspaper was quickly passed into Octavia's groggy but eager hooves. "Thanks." She did, indeed, seem interested in Twilight Sparkle's new tax whatevers.

They settled into an easy silence for a while, Octavia scanning the paper and Vinyl looking out the window, until the coffee maker dinged. Vinyl grabbed the now-full pot out from the bottom of the machine, floated over two mugs, and poured a good amount into each of them. To Octavia's she added cream and sugar; usually Octavia would drink hers cold, after the pot had long cooled, so this was a small consolation. To hers she added nothing; Vinyl enjoyed her coffee black.

Octavia's mug was passed to the mare in question. She took a sip. Let out a relieved sigh.

"Thanks, Vinyl," she said.

Vinyl smiled back and took a drink of her own. Bitter. Just as she liked it.

Theirs wasn't a very exciting routine, but it was theirs, and in that way it was as unique as it was universal. Eventually Octavia would go upstairs to work on her compositions, and Vinyl would go to her workstation in the basement to work on hers. They'd meet up again for lunch, then maybe go out somewhere in the afternoon if they felt up to it. That was how it had been for years, and that was how it would hopefully continue for more years.

And Vinyl was happy. She got enough excitement at her job. Let the rest of her days be easygoing.

From now until forever.