You know, there was something to you. And I don't mean that just because I fell mad in love after our first talk. Or maybe I am, maybe that's why I was in love. But I feel like even the ponies which didn't look at you with sparkles in their eyes and tickles in their guts still saw it in you as well. So it was probably something more.
You had a grace when playing, the way you'd move your bow on your cello, how the world would stop for a moment, just to hear you play. Even the sun and moon seemed to freeze to listen to the things you had to say, using the best way you knew how to say them. Inspiration.
It's during those times, when your raven mane and tail swung freely under some magical wind coming from who knows where, when the air itself seemed to glitter like I was in some kind of dream, when your eyes would shine brighter than even during our most intimate times, that you defined what music truly meant. Even I, a prideful party-DJ with a tendency to overdrink and brag about her musical prowess, who had somehow caught your attention, I must admit: you'd put my crafts to shame. Though I never said it in front of you. I know you would have felt way too embarrassed about it.
She giggled for herself, looking at the ceiling far above, without seeing it.
"For crying out loud..." Octavia cursed, scrambling a sheet of paper and throwing it in the bin.
She rested her forelegs on the desk, taking her head into her hooves, pushing a deep sigh to try and calm herself. All of that under the watchful and silent gaze of a white unicorn, slouched into a nearby couch, a bottle of cheap booze right by her side.
She took the sheet by magic and brought it closer, unfolding it to read, while Octavia said with a bitter tone:
"Don't waste your time on those. They aren't any good."
But the DJ didn't listen to her, instead reading the partition from behind her fumed glasses, bobbing her head to the notes just to get a sense of how it should sound. Despite what the cellist had said, Vinyl thought that the music wasn't that bad. She raised her lower lip in an annoyed frown, not liking seeing her soulmate in that state. Even if she knew how high her expectations of herself were.
Octavia didn't see her expression, she was just mumbling, looking at a new empty sheet. Until she heard the jingling of a bottle, that is.
"Don't you dare spill some on the carpeting again!" she warned, turning to her marefriend, only to see she had brought another bottle by her side. "Oh, come on, drinking them two at a time now?"
Vinyl opened the second bottle, still holding the first one with her magic, a little smirk on her lips, knowing full well that her partner's anger wasn't really targeted at her.
So, casually, Vinyl tilted the bottles in different ways in front of her and blew on them. The sound they produced was a bit crude, but really way too harmonious for something this simple. The unicorn kept on blowing under her lover's astound face, moving the bottles around slightly to change one of the two notes being played. Until Octavia recognized that it was the music she had written.
"What are you even...?"
Vinyl's smile only got wider and filled with a kind mischief, as she kept on going. The music was flowing nicely, the roughness of the sound fading in favor of the melody itself. The cellist let her roommate carry on, listening herself to the music, her mind transported by her own composition and the undeniable attention Vinyl was paying to it. It indeed didn't sound that bad.
Octavia suddenly tensed in an anticipated revulsion, but relaxed immediately, realizing the horrible part she was expecting had been replaced. Not by much, just a tone higher for the upper note on a single beat. But that only made the gray mare frown.
"Hold on, something is wrong," she said, standing up and coming to snatch the partition from the DJ's magic, reading it thoroughly.
Vinyl kept on playing the music, quietly happy about herself and for helping her other half. She had been right to change that note.
Octavia's frown only got worse, as her eyes went wide with bafflement.
"Why did I put that here!? This is ridiculous, this isn't even close to what it sounded like in my head!"
Vinyl shrugged, giggling a bit, stopping her music to work on those bottles she now had to empty before the taste would worsen.
Octavia went back to her desk, grumbling against herself about what was, according to Vinyl's understanding, a simple writing mistake.
She adjusted the pink bow around her neck.
Those things aren't really comfortable now, aren't they? I kind of wonder why you wore them. Surely, it wasn't to look nice to others or to me, you never struck me as someone very caring about what others thought. Well, about your appearance at least. You took great care of it, but it seemed to be more for yourself than anything. Maybe that little pink bow meant something, or truly made you feel beautiful to your own eyes. Or maybe you just liked the feeling, I don't know.
I wish I had asked...
That's the thing that itches my heart the most, you know? It's like when you come back from seeing an old pal, and realize all the things you forgot to talk about. Except here, I can't really swear I'll ask you next time... Unless we do see each other again, over there. But, not to disappoint you or sound rude, I do hope it won't be before a long time.
Keep your questions warm, and I'll keep mine, alright? We'll answer them when we have time. For now, please, Tavi, listen.
A night sky, with thousands of little stars shining, glimmering, under a gentle breeze of not-so-cold summer air. Two mares, laying side by side, spirits wandering into their own artistic endeavors, drifting freely, unrestrained, towards whatever caught their attention.
Vinyl wasn't wearing her shades, for once, exposing the red of her eyes. And a pink bow sat beside Octavia. All in the peace and quiet of a lone plain, south of Ponyville. They had lost track of how long they had been there.
"I should write a song about that moment..." the cellist suddenly thought out loud.
The white unicorn couldn't restrain herself and burst out laughing.
"What?! We're musicians! It is perfectly normal to draw inspiration from our life experiences!"
Vinyl rubbed one of her eyes to calm her laugh, sitting up to look at her lover with kind and amused eyes. Octavia blushed, her gaze shyly fleeing away.
"I-I know it's quite cliché, but still... Being by your side, sharing those times together, it has a certain effect on my heart and my mind, you know? And those are the ones I use t-"
She was interrupted by a white hoof landing on her muzzle, inviting her to stay quiet, Vinyl's gaze becoming understanding, yet still filled with emotions. Octavia's own face couldn't hold back a little tender smile, even when the hoof was removed.
"You know it's cheating when you look at me with those eyes..." she said in a low yet loving voice.
Vinyl waggled her eyebrows and she took the shades by magic, only to lay them on her partner's muzzle, while sticking her tongue out.
Octavia giggled, in a way Vinyl found adorable.
"Yes, if we are talking about your eyes, I guess it doesn't matter who's wearing them to hide the color."
The unicorn rubbed her chin, thinking, unsure if she was appreciating her soulmate's new look. Something felt off, and Octavia caught that.
"If you want me to wear them, I should change my mane style as well. Otherwise, it would look off, like you putting on my bow."
Just to add to her words, Octavia sat up as well, grabbing the little piece of clothing and putting it around Vinyl's neck, before moving her head back to get a better look. And while her partner had a little dumb smile on her face, Octavia fell silent. She had to remove the shades just to be sure, her face becoming mute with shock as she stared at her soulmate for a good few seconds, before saying in disbelief:
"Oh my..."
It was Vinyl's turn to blush, but she used this occasion to straighten up a bit, putting her torso forward to look proud and impressive, though that only made Octavia chuckle.
"Wow, you only need a nice costume and that would be perfect," she said. "You don't even need to change your mane."
Vinyl bobbed her head left to right, unsure if she would really put on fancy stuff like that. Maybe to please her... But only if she'd ask. Even the bow was getting a bit scratchy, so she gave it back to its owner, and the shades returned to her.
"I guess you learn about the ones you love everyday," Octavia said, still enjoying her time with her marefriend. "Maybe I'll mention that in the music."
Against the background of the stars, her smile stood out even more. Thankfully for Vinyl's heart, the beautiful cellist turned around to look at the stars again, her mind probably wandering off to her music.
"Do you know what I would want one day?" she whispered with sparkles in her eyes.
Vinyl tilted her head, awaiting an answer.
"That one day, the music I'll write about this moment with you will be played in front of a crowd... Somewhere grand, where people can hear the passion of our moments spent together. Not at a gala or anything of the sort, but in a space solely dedicated to sound."
She turned again to face her lover, her grand amethyst eyes reflecting an excitement, a hopeful wish from a bright mare, that Vinyl only knew too well. That cheerful attitude towards music, sharing, that desire to just show the world what she felt, but with notes. To scream it in the way that suited her: through her cello.
"A great theater where people can hear all my love for you."
Silence was made in the room. Vinyl was standing on her two hind legs, holding the cello firmly with one hoof. She would not use magic for this. This wouldn't have been the proper way. Same went for the bow used to play.
The lights focused on her, in her fancy black costume, a solemn expression on her shadesless face. She only gave a brief glance at the crowd, the hundred of ponies sitting in their chairs, all staring at her with an expectation higher than anything she'd ever felt from her usual fans.
But it wasn't as high as what she expected from herself, right now. She looked up, towards the ceiling of the theater, taking in a deep breath, lifting her bow to rest against the chords.
A moment went by, and the music began.
You wrote it in one night, right after we came home. I remember waking up in the morning, and seeing you collapsed on your desk, something that normally happens to me, not you.
And during months, you tried to have it played outside of the little representations you usually gave in Ponyville. You wanted a big stage, you wanted a crowd, ponies that could appreciate all its refinements, all the hidden details you had put in it. Where your notes would take center stage.
They all listened, as the white unicorn was putting to use years of practice, time that had been necessary to come here, the music swirling with undeniable passion.
It's ironic, isn't it? I thought you always wrote pieces for two or more, "a sucker for harmonies" as I used to call you. But this one, this is one of the few where it was a solo for a cello. Just as your music was before meeting me. Sorry, I went through your old notes and read all your embarrassing first compositions.
Vinyl had to keep a stern look, to be sure it wouldn't impact her play. But, internally, she was chuckling, just like during that night.
You wanted this one to be played by one person. By you. To me. But instead, I am playing it to you. To them. I am showing them all the love you had for me. All the care, all the talent, all those wonderful things that my marefriend had. And how much she wanted to share them with the world.
So now, Tavi, do tell me.
The music went stronger, as Vinyl's heart began to shake.
Does it suit me? Does it suit you? Are you happy, listening to it and realizing how much what you wrote sounds good?
Because I am. I am more than I have been the past few years without you. I feel like this is bringing you back. It is you. It is a part of your soul, a part of who we were, that you managed to capture and put into that piece. The only reason I'm able to play it, to play your cello, is because all the notes flow as easily as any bit of my own songs. You knew me so well that, in addition to stealing my heart, you took part of my music-making soul and made it your own.
You had no bounds, in your composing and in your love. And I'm showing them all, Tavi. I'm sorry it took so much time, but I want you to know. I want you to hear, wherever you might be now, that this other part of you, that love you put in me, is still there, singing your praises, loving you and loving myself.
She felt her throat tightening, as her eyes became moist. But she didn't need any of those to play. To send to the world the piece her soulmate had written all those years ago.
The vision blurred, reflecting the light from the projectors and covering her world in little glitters, just like that one night under the stars.
She saw her face, her smile, the great cellist looking down at her with pride and joy, thankfulness and overwhelmed passion.
I love you, and always will.
"Me too, Vinyl..."
The unicorn closed her eyes, letting the tears flow on her cheeks, while still focusing on their music. What they shared, what united them throughout the years.
As she played on, hooves seemed to land on hers, guiding her bow. Something snuggled against her back, and a chin landed on her shoulder, whispering against her cheek with a soft smile in her tone:
"Your grip on my bow is too stiff... Hold it like you would hold my hoof."
Vinyl swallowed with great difficulty, yet her legs stayed busy, despite the shakiness in her heart. She could feel her, right here, by her side in front of that crowd, listening to what she had made, her hooves resting on Vinyl's, softening the tone of her music, making it more profound.
"There... Perfect."
You should have come to my rehearsals to help me. I wondered if you were watching.
This was a plea, not a reproach. This moment, this delicate contact was something she had yearned for years now, going as far as to forget how it felt. But this one was it, the real thing, as caring and loving as it was back then. A soft embrace she had lost so long ago.
"You didn't ask me, during your rehearsals. And looks like I didn't need to come... You play well..."
Only because you wrote it...
She heard a chuckle, ethereal, coming from another place yet so close. No answer came, but the embrace stayed.
They both enjoyed this moment of tumultuous emotions, brought by a solo played by two, their souls united for one last time, vibrating and echoing, a resonance of passion. Vinyl sensed a gentle muzzle rubbing in her neck with tenderness, and she could only lean slowly against it, losing herself in the music and the feeling. Finding back a bit of what had been gone.
"We should have tried to play like that before..."
The tone was calm, yet shaded with slight regrets. The unicorn could feel it, she was thinking about all the things she could have achieved. With her, but also by her music. So many ideas that would never be. Vinyl didn't want for her to be sad at what might have been, her own heart was already broken enough.
Listening to you was better... Plus, I feel like I would not have made justice to your cello. That's why I never tried it.
The voice grew kinder, gentler and smiling again, speaking as if they were alone, back at their home.
"You would have, simply by the fact that it was you... Look at yourself, you are doing it right now. I could never ask for more than seeing you try my cello with such brilliance. Playing our piece in front of an audience, like I dreamed of."
Vinyl's heart grew stronger and prouder, taking in a slow but deep breath. There were no other words she would ever need now.
Then just enjoy it...
The hooves laid over hers only grew kinder, tenderer, silently agreeing to her proposal. They played, for who knows how long together, carried by the sounds echoing through the theater. Sharing a last moment they had been robbed of. But as with every Melody, there comes a time at which it has to stop. The notes have to fade, the music has to be over.
As the last notes were coming, as the pace slowed down, a little kiss fell on Vinyl's cheek.
"Thank you..." she heard kindly whispered.
The embrace ceased, vanishing around her. When she opened her tearful eyes, she was still alone on the stage, facing a mute crowd.
Slowly, the music was more echoes of what it previously was than new notes being played. Inevitably, the very last one of them resounded, itself gently dying in the air, vanishing forever.
A moment of silence.
Then, a thunder of applause.
Vinyl tried to keep a straight face, but it inevitably collapsed. She let her leg holding the bow down slowly, shaking, clenching her teeth, her heart torn by something that could not be described by happiness or sorrow, yet was both of those. She let her tears run wild.
She had done it.
Until the next movement, Tavi...
Author's Note
+10 internet points to you if you get why she left before the last notes were played.
Also holy mother of sadfic, I think this is the first time where I had to stop writing to not make myself cry. And everytime I re-read it, my throat got tight. That's my usual metric to know if a sadfic does its job at being sad.
The musics really helped with those. PTOS, Return of Harmony and Luan's Detemination more than the three others.
