Fine Feathered Friend

Easy as A, B, C

With the arrival of a new instrument in the mail, Nimbus begins his foray into the world of music. He soon discovers, however, that learning to play a musical instrument takes a great deal of patience and dedication, and begins to realize that he won’t be able to accomplish this task alone. When Mecha hooks him up with a respected Ponyville musician for lessons, Nimbus finally learns what it takes to succeed, and that sometimes the best thing to have under pressure is a good friend at your side.

Nimbus was resting on his couch when he was awoken by a loud thump at the door.

“Wha-?’ he said groggily, then sprang up, suddenly alert. It was finally here! He raced to the front door and opened it. Standing there, holding a large package in her mouth by the strings, was Derpy Hooves, Ponyville’s resident mailmare.

“ackage or oo, mifur imbuf!” Derpy said cheerfully, through a mouthful of packing string.

“Thank you so much, Derpy!” Nimbus said, accepting the package and signing her clipboard. “Take care, now!”

Derpy took off and instantly crashed into Nimbus’s mailbox. The orange Pegasus winced. “Um, do you need-?”

Derpy didn’t hear him, however, and took off to finish her daily deliveries. Nimbus shook his head in amusement and took his package inside, heading straight for his couch. He sank down onto the couch and set the package in front of him, tearing the string and tape off with the primal excitement of some predator attacking its prey. When he’d finally removed the tape and string, he ripped open the box, exposing a large, black case inside. Nimbus rubbed his hooves together gleefully and unlatched the case, lifting the top up. Inside was a gleaming, copper and brass tenor saxophone.

“Wow,” Nimbus breathed, positively bedazzled by the instrument’s beautiful finish, “this is amazing!”

He began to assemble the instrument piece by piece, and had to admit that it was pretty complicated. Luckily, Twilight Sparkle had lent him a book on saxophones when he’d told her about his latest purchase, so as far as he knew, he was doing everything right so far. Finally, he pulled out a box of reeds. “Straight from Las Pegasus!” the box claimed. Nimbus slipped the reed under the mouthpiece and secured it. Finally, he adjusted the neck strap and slipped it over his neck, attaching the other end to the saxophone.

“Okay,” he said to himself, “now all I have to do is…”

He put his mouth around the mouthpiece and blew into the instrument as hard as he could.

As it turned out, Mecha was walking up to his front door at the time.

Blaat!

Mecha jumped as soon as he heard the terrible sound from Nimbus’s house. His initial thought was that he was under attack, and he got ready to fight. It took him a few moments before he realized what had actually happened. Nimbus had apparently received his saxophone. Giving himself a facehoof, Mecha walked up to Nimbus’s front door and knocked. Sure enough, Nimbus answered with his saxophone in-hoof.

“Hey, Mecha!” Nimbus said, “what’s up?”

“Just stopping by to see how you’re doing,” Mecha answered.

“Well, check this out!” Nimbus said, holding up his saxophone. The sun shone off its surface wonderfully. “It’s my new sax. Wanna hear it?”

Mecha tried to speak. “Um, well, perhaps I’d better-“

Blaat!

Mecha winced as the sound assaulted his ears. Nimbus finished and lowered the instrument, sighing. “I have no idea how I’m going to figure this thing out,” he confided. As he hung his head, Mecha couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.

“You know,” he said, “I happen to know a musician who might be able to help you…”

“Really?!” Nimbus asked, immediately perking up.

“Yeah,” Mecha said, taking his hooves off of his ears. “I’ll tell you what- why don’t you come down to Sugarcube Corner later, and I’ll introduce you. From there, you can decide if you want to go ahead with the lessons from her.”

Nimbus nodded. “That sounds reasonable. What time do you want to meet?”

“Actually,” Mecha said, “I was thinking we should meet over dinner, say around 6:00.”

“Oh, I see how it is. You trying to set up something romantic?” Nimbus teased.

Mecha laughed and shrugged. “Hey, you never know!” He turned and started heading back into town.

“See ya later, Nimbus!” he called back. Nimbus waved as his friend trotted away. Then he shut his front door and headed back inside. For the moment, he took off his neck strap and laid the saxophone down on his couch. He then sat down in his armchair and cracked open Twilight’s book on saxophones. Surely, there was something he was missing.

“Chapter 3,” he read, “starting to play the saxophone. While the saxophone may first appear easy to play, creating a sound is in fact quite challenging. The secret to an ideal tone is what musicians call an embouchure…”

“Embouchure,” he mused, “huh. That’s interesting.” He continued reading, determined to learn as much as he could before he met Mecha’s musician friend, and it wasn’t long before he fell soundly asleep.

…

Nimbus awoke with a start. The sun was setting outside, its last rays of light streaming through the window.

“Oh no!” he gasped, “what time is it? What time is it?!”

He grabbed at a nearby desktop clock and checked it. 5:50! Nimbus grabbed his house keys and saddlebag and bolted for the door, locking his house and taking off. The last thing he wanted was to be late for an appointment with a possible mentor. As soon as he left the ground, he began beating his wings as fast as possible, practically clawing for airspeed. At top speed, he banked towards Sugarcube Corner, breezing past Rainbow Dash, who was napping on her cloud.

“Hi, Dash! Bye, Dash!”

“Huh?” Rainbow Dash lifted her head woozily, staring at the orange blur that passed her. “Never mind,” she mumbled, settling back down to sleep.

Nimbus spotted Sugarcube corner and dove, the wind screaming over his wings. He hurtled toward the ground, continually picking up speed…

Inside, Mecha was preparing a table with the help of Pinkie Pie. He was just setting down wineglasses when something orange impacted the ground outside at high speed. He turned just in time to see a massive cloud of dust hit the building outside of the windows.

“By Gluttony’s Deep Fat Fryer, what is that?” he asked aloud.

“They’re coming!” Pinkie squealed, grabbing Mecha in a vice-like grip. “They’re coming for me! And you! And the cupcakes!”

“Who’s coming?” Mecha asked, confused.

“I dunno,” Pinkie said, smiling cheerily, “I just wanted to say that.”

Mecha rolled his eyes and grinned. As the dust cleared, Mecha saw an orange Pegasus stagger to his feet and shake himself off.

“Actually, it seems our guest has arrived.”

…

Nimbus sneezed, exhaling a large cloud of dust as he stood up. He glanced back at the Ponyville clock tower. He’d arrived- with less than a minute to spare. Making sure he was thoroughly dusted off, he opened the door to Sugarcube Corner and stepped inside, immediately spotting Mecha at a table set for three. The black pony was grinning from ear to ear.

“What’s the joke?” Nimbus asked, sitting down.

“Nice landing, hotshot,” Mecha said, trying desperately not to laugh.

“Oh,” Nimbus said, “that. Well… I… I just was in a rush, that’s all!”

“Uh huh,” said Mecha, “sure. Well anyway, you can rest easy. My friend should be here in about a minute.”

Nimbus sighed. “Good, then I haven’t kept anypony waiting.”

“Eenope,” Mecha said. “You’re still good to go.”

Suddenly the front door opened again, and Nimbus turned as he heard the sound of hooves approaching. When he set eyes on the pony who had just entered, he was awestruck. She was bedazzlingly graceful. She had a modest, gray coat and black mane, and walked with a confident stride. Nimbus was even more surprised when she took a seat at the table with Mecha and himself.

“Nimbus,” Mecha said, “meet Octavia. She’s an old friend of mine and quite possibly the best musician in Ponyville.” He turned to Octavia. “Octavia, this is Nimbus. He’s a new friend of mine- the one who just bought the saxophone.”

“Pleased to meet you,” Octavia said, extending her hoof. Nimbus shook it.

“And you as well,” he said.

Pinkie Pie stepped out carrying a large green bottle, and approached the table.

“Hey there!” she said, setting the bottle down. “We normally don’t have this stuff out during business hours, but since it’s pretty late, I think we could make an exception.”

“Is that… Appaloosa Fire?” Mecha asked, eyeing the wine bottle.

“Sure is,” Pinkie said. “The Cakes said you guys should try it.

“Don’t mind if we do,” said Mecha, “pour it on!”

Pinkie Pie poured the dark red wine into the glasses and departed, heading into the back room to take inventory.

“So Nimbus,” Octavia said, “I understand you need some help starting with the saxophone.”

“Well,” Nimbus said, “I- yeah. Yes I do. I mean, I thought it’d be easy, like picking up a recorder or something like that. I used to play one of those when I was a colt. Turns out, though, a saxophone’s very different.”

Octavia chuckled, “yes it is. Still, I’m glad you’re taking the initiative to seek help this early. I happen to know a thing or two about a wide variety of instruments, including the saxophone. Mecha told me you’d be interested in lessons?”

“Well,” Nimbus spluttered, “I mean, if it’s not any trouble, uh, yes.”

“Splendid!” Octavia said, “why don’t we arrange to meet at my place tomorrow?”

“That would be great,” Nimbus said, “how does 10:00 in the morning sound to you?”

“Wonderful,” Octavia replied. “I’m looking forward to getting started. It sounds like you’re very committed to learning this instrument.”

“Just like I thought,” Mecha said, “you two are going to get along just fine.”

“You know, I remember the first time I played an instrument,” Octavia said, smiling. “It was in grade school, and when I went to Music class, I headed straight for the cello in the back corner of the room. Mecha, you were on mallets-“

Mecha smiled and nodded.

“-And I recall the teacher asking me if I wanted to try something a tad easier.” She smirked. “I blatantly refused. I loved that cello. I still do, in fact. I try to stop by the school as often as I can just to get a little time playing it. But I digress. Let’s eat!”

Nimbus looked up and noticed Pinkie Pie standing by the table with menus in hand. He hadn’t even noticed she was there. The ponies ordered their food and talked late into the night. When all was said and done, Nimbus felt that he’d met somepony he could truly count on. Octavia seemed to be the perfect teacher, and he couldn’t wait to begin his lessons tomorrow.

…

The following morning, Nimbus set his saxophone in its case and headed out the door, bright and early. As he still had plenty of time, he decided to walk to Octavia’s house. After all, he had directions. The kind musician had drawn him a map on a napkin during dinner.

As Nimbus stepped off his front porch, he breathed in the fresh, clean morning air. There was no sound, save for the twitterings of waking birds, and there was a cool, crisp, fall breeze blowing, which sent pleasant shivers down his spine. He positively lived for fall. There was no season he enjoyed more. He crossed his lawn, through the dew-covered grass, and headed for the road into Ponyville. When he finally reached it, Ponyville was just starting to come alive for the morning. Shops were opening, ponies were bustling to and from their duties, and above it all, Nimbus could hear the faint sound of a cello playing.

“That’s where I need to go,” he said to himself. He followed the music until he reached a relatively normal-looking house near Twilight Sparkle’s library. Hesitantly, he knocked on the door. A small peephole opened up in the door’s center.

“Who’re you?”

“I’m, uh, Nimbus,” Nimbus replied, “Octavia and I were supposed to meet today?”

“Oh yeah, that’s you.” The voice was silent for a few seconds. “Yeah, you look cool enough. Come on in!”

The door opened up and Nimbus was greeted by a white pony wearing large, circular sunglasses.

“Name’s Vinyl Scratch,” she said. “Welcome to my humble abode!”

“Is this the right place?” Nimbus asked, hesitantly, “I’m looking for Octav-“

“This is it!” Vinyl said, shoving Nimbus headlong through the door. “Make yourself at home. Octavia’s my roommate. I think she’s upstairs on the cello right now, but I’ll go get her!”

Vinyl shoved Nimbus into what was most likely the living room, walked up to the house’s staircase and yelled up it.

“Hey Octy! Someone’s here to see ya!”

The cello music ceased, and Nimbus could hear the sound off hoofsteps on the second floor and descending the stairs.

“He’s in the living room,” Vinyl said.

Octavia walked into the room Nimbus was in, carrying a black folder with a treble clef stamped on the front. “Hello, Nimbus,” she said cheerfully, “ready to begin?”

“Yeah,” he said as Octavia grabbed a black bag from the corner of the room and passed it to him. He unzipped it and began assembling a music stand, which was inside.

“So, you have a roommate?”

“Yes,” Octavia said. “Vinyl’s quite an… interesting pony, and she makes a rather strong first impression, but don’t worry- she’s really great once you get to know her. She’s a musician, too, you know- a DJ.”

“Neat,” said Nimbus. He finished setting up the stand and brought out his saxophone. Octavia marveled at the instrument.

“That’s a very fine instrument, Nimbus,” she said, “may I see it?”

Nimbus handed the horn to her and Octavia began to look it over from top to bottom, testing the keys and examining every aspect of it. “Hmm… copper finish. That’s very good for a nice, warm tone. Your keys seem to move effortlessly. This is really a beautiful piece of work. I see you chose a tenor?”

Nimbus nodded.

“Any particular reason why?”

“Well,” Nimbus said, “I heard one play recently in Ponyville. There was a pony playing it in the town square for bits. I donated a few, of course, but I couldn’t forget that sound. It was really… something.”

“Yes it is,” Octavia agreed, “I’ve often believed that the tenor is the best-sounding member of the saxophone family. Have you managed to make a sound on it yet?”

“Er, well… kind of.”

“Well,” said Octavia, “let’s hear it.”

Nimbus hesitantly raised the mouthpiece to his mouth and prepared to play. He drew in an intake of breath, and-

Blaat!

Octavia cringed, and Nimbus immediately blushed. “Sorry about that. I have a long way to go before I really know what I’m doing.”

“Well that’s fine,” said Octavia, “at least you managed to make some kind of noise. That means the reed’s vibrating. That’s what creates the sound, you know.”

“I didn’t know that,” Nimbus confessed.

“What it sounds like you need to work on is your embouchure.”

“You mean the shape of my mouth?” Nimbus asked, recalling Twilight’s book.

“Exactly!” said Octavia. “What you need to do is tuck your bottom lip under the reed, and bite down on the top of the mouthpiece with your teeth.”

“That’s kinda… weird,” Nimbus said, trying to adjust his mouth.

“It will make more sense when your mouth is on the mouthpiece. Try it.”

Nimbus put his mouth around the mouthpiece again, this time following Octavia’s instructions. She was right. It did make more sense now. Cautiously, he forced air through the instrument, and to his surprise, a wavering but clear note came out. His eyes widened in surprise.

“Did I just-?”

“Yes you did,” said Octavia with a smile. “That’s the first step. Now, let’s focus on the notes…”

…

After two weeks of dedicated practice, Nimbus was finally playing some basic melodies. After one particular lesson, he was handed a flyer by Octavia.

“You should consider this, Nimbus,” she said.

Nimbus read the flyer. “Ponyville Amateur Musician Concert. Sign up at the Mayor’s office.” He looked up. “Um, are you sure I’m ready for this?”

Octavia shrugged. “I don’t know. You tell me.”

“Well,” Nimbus said, “I can play scales, and I know all the notes. I have a few little ditties down now, too, but nothing that would really impress a crowd.”

“That’s the second thing I wanted to talk to you about,” Octavia said, folding up Nimbus’s music stand. “I think it’s time you chose what path of music you want to follow.”

Nimbus thought about her statement. There were so many different types of music out there, but one stood out among the rest. When he’d met the pony in the square playing the saxophone, the pony had been playing jazz, and Nimbus had instantly become intrigued by the music’s flowing, carefree style. He knew exactly what he wanted to study.

“Jazz,” he said, finally.

Octavia raised an eyebrow. “Jazz? That’s a pretty challenging field. You’ll need much more practice before you can perform in front of an audience.”

“Well, jazz is what I’d like to do,” Nimbus replied, “and if it means I’ll have to practice more, then I’m ready.”

“Nimbus,” Octavia said, putting a hoof on his shoulder, “that is exactly what I wanted to hear.” She trotted over to a bookshelf and pulled out a blue book, flipping through it. “Here we go,” she said, stopping on a page. “I’d like you to give this chart a try, if you don’t mind staying a bit late.”

“Chart?” Nimbus said, “I thought these were songs.”

“Well, if you’re going to enter the jazz world, you’ll have to speak the jazz language. A ‘chart’ is just another way of saying ‘song.’ Now if you’d like to get started…” she flipped the book over and placed it in front of Nimbus. The song was called “Trottin’ in Blue,” and Nimbus’s eyes were all over the paper, picking out notes and key changes everywhere. The entire paper just looked like a jumbled mess.

“Well, Octavia,” he said, “I think I might have just changed my mind.”

“Oh, come on now, Nimbus,” Octavia said, stepping to Nimbus’s side, “your first choice is always your true choice. You can’t give up on what you want the most. This just looks confusing because you haven’t done anything like it before. Just take it one note at a time.”

“Okay,” said Nimbus, raising the saxophone to his mouth, “I’ll try.”

Nimbus began to play through the chart note-by-note. He hit every one accurately, but his progression to each note was choppy, and awkward- nothing like the finesse he’d witnessed that day in the town square. When he was finally done, he hung his head.

“I… am not a jazz musician,” he said.

“Hey,” said Octavia, “you did great for a first time. Now jazz isn’t my area of utmost expertise, but I know a thing or two about it. You have the determination it takes to figure this out. I can see it. You just have to… sort of feel the music. Don’t think. Just let your hooves do the playing for you.”

After three more tries, Nimbus finally had the tune down.

“Great,” said Octavia. “See? I knew you could do it. But now, it’s time for the next step. Jazz is almost never played alone. You need an accompaniment.”

She trotted over to the stairs and called out. “Vinyl Scratch, would you please come down with your keyboard for a moment?”

Nimbus heard a tremendous crash, followed by some muffled swearing as Octavia’s roommate made her way downstairs.

“What’s up?” Vinyl asked.

“We need someone on keyboard as accompaniment,” Octavia replied.

“Oh, you mean for this cool cat?” Vinyl said, pointing at Nimbus. “Sure, I’d love to lay down some rhythm.”

Nimbus gulped. He didn’t consider himself to be a “cool cat.” At least, not yet. Vinyl took a look at the chart, then sunk down on her couch with her keyboard.

“You know,” she said to Nimbus, “I started my career on this thing. I still love it. I always figured that a DJ needs some experience on an instrument, so I picked up the keyboard.” She stretched and cracked her hooves like an expert. “Ready when you are,” she said, turning to Nimbus.

Nimbus nodded once and Vinyl Scratch started the countdown.

“A-one, a-two, a-one, two, three, four!”

Vinyl Scratch immediately went to town on the keyboard, pouring out a relaxed chord progression. Nimbus, on the other hand, struggled at first to keep up. However, after the first few measures, he began to get into the rhythm, and his notes came much smoother. Soon, he was playing along with the Vinyl seemingly without effort.

“There you go, Nimbus!” Octavia said. “That’s the spirit. Now improvise!”

Nimbus’s sax squawked. “Improvise? What’s that supposed to mean?”

Vinyl stopped her playing. “Improv is, like, when you do your own thing. I lay down a rhythm for you, and you stick to the chord progressions and make your own melodies up.”

“Oh no,” said Nimbus, “I can’t do that. Not today, anyway.”

“Do you have to leave?” Octavia asked.

“Yeah,” said Nimbus, “I just realized that I left some… uh… bananas in the oven. Gotta go! Thanks for today’s lesson!”

Nimbus was out the door before either of the two mares could get another word out.

“He seemed a bit... off just now,” Octavia said.

“Yeah,” Vinyl agreed, “I mean who puts bananas in the oven?!”

“No, no, no,” Octavia said. “That was probably just a slip of the tongue. It seems to me like perhaps he’s experiencing an attack of low confidence.”

“Ooooh,” said Vinyl, “I get it.”

“Which means we’ll have to get him to come out of his shell. Vinyl, are you busy this week?”

“No,” Vinyl said, “do you need me?”

“Yes,” Octavia said, “between the two of us, we’ll have Nimbus doing improvisation by the end of the week.”

…

Nimbus bolted inside his house and shut the front door, panting. He dropped his saxophone case onto the floor and immediately collapsed onto his couch. Learning jazz had been fun, but improv?

“Can’t do it,” he said, “that’s that. Improvisation is just way too hard.”

He got up and walked into the kitchen, pouring himself a glass of apple juice. As he finished his juice, he found himself staring at his reflection in his kitchen mirror.

“Hey there, old buddy,” he said to his reflection, “what do you think about this whole situation?”

Nimbus briefly wondered if talking to oneself in a mirror constituted being crazy before he answered himself.

“Honestly, I can’t believe you. You just walked out on Octavia’s lesson without even trying to improvise.”

“I couldn’t help it! There’s no way I’d be able to improvise right! I’d just make a fool of myself.”

“That may be, but it’s the mistakes we make that make us stronger. Isn’t that what they said back at the EAF

Academy?”

“Well, yeah, but-“

“No ‘buts’! You are going to go sign up for that Amateur Musician Concert tomorrow and you are going to learn as much as you can from Octavia. She won’t care if you mess up. All she wants to do is help you.”

“Okay,” Nimbus sighed, “I’ll see what I can do…”

And with that, he crawled upstairs and into bed, falling soundly asleep.

…

The next morning, Nimbus was at Octavia’s door with the concert flyer. He knocked twice, and Octavia answered almost immediately.

“Hello, Nimbus,” she said, “I see you’ve-“

“Octavia,” Nimbus said, clearing his throat and drawing in a breath, “I want to apologize for yesterday. I gave up on you and Vinyl before you two even got the chance to teach me. I’ve thought about what I did for a long time, and…”

Octavia waited with baited breath for Nimbus’s answer.

“I’ve decided that I’m ready. I’m not going to run away again. I’ll give whatever you want to teach me a try.”

“Excellent,” Octavia said. She then noticed the flyer Nimbus was carrying. “I think, however, that we need to start today’s lesson a bit… differently. Come on.”

Nimbus turned to follow Octavia as she walked out of the house and out into the street. “Where are we headed?” he asked.

“Well, it seems like you’ve decided to sign up for the Amateur Musicians concert, am I correct? Or do you just like carrying flyers around?”

“Oh, right,” Nimbus said, grinning as he followed the gray Earth Pony downtown to the Mayor’s office.

“You know,” Octavia said as they walked, “I knew you’d come back today.”

“Oh?” Nimbus said, “how could you have known?”

“Well, if there’s one thing I’ve ever noticed about musicians, it’s that they hate leaving something unfinished. I think that’s why you came back. You’re a musician, now. There’s no changing that. I know what you’re feeling right now, and it’s a lot like what I felt when I started my career as a musician. It’s stage fright, and it affects everypony. It’s your job as a musician to conquer that fear, and beat it back into submission. You have only one duty on stage- to entertain others. As soon as you realize that, I guarantee your fear will be gone.”

“Wow,” Nimbus said as they approached the Mayor’s office, “really?”

“Absolutely,” Octavia said, pushing open the Mayor’s door. “Ms. Mayor?”

The tan mare peered out from behind a stack of papers almost as tall as the ceiling. “Octavia!” she said, “such a nice surprise.” She turned to Nimbus. “And you are… wait, don’t tell me. It’s right on the tip of my tongue… Nimbus, correct?”

“That’s right,” Nimbus said.

“Well, welcome to Ponyville, Nimbus. Is there anything I can help you two with?”

“Yes,” Nimbus said, stepping forward, “I’d like to sign up for the Amateur Musician concert.”

“…Oh,” the Mayor said, hesitantly. “Okay, then. I just feel you should know, though, that you will probably the only adult there.”

“What do you mean?” Nimbus asked.

“Well, pretty much all of our other entries are under the age of ten.”

“Does it matter?” Octavia asked. “There’s no rule stating that a pony can’t learn to play an instrument whenever he wants to.”

“I understand,” the Mayor said, “I just wanted to make it clear that it might be a bit uncomfortable for Nimbus.”

Nimbus shook his head. “I’ll do it.”

“Very well, then,” the Mayor said, pushing a clipboard towards Nimbus, “sign your name and write down what instrument you play. I would also like you to mail me your song of choice, and the sheet music for it later.”

Nimbus nodded, scrawling his signature in the space reserved for it.

“You have a nice day, now!” the Mayor called out as the two turned to leave.

“Thank you,” Octavia said, “you too!”

They headed back to Octavia’s house, and all the way, Nimbus was pondering over how he could learn to improvise. He was still pondering when he walked inside Octavia’s house, but stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the practice room.

“Whoa,” he breathed. The room had been changed completely. A piano was sitting in one corner, and two microphones were set up where Nimbus usually stood. Behind one of the microphones was a giant upright bass.

“You like it?” Octavia asked,” Vinyl and I are going to be your accompaniment. I’ll admit it’s been a while since I’ve played the bass, but I’ll pick it up quickly.” She stepped over to the bass just as Vinyl Scratch came down the stairs.

“Hey, Nimbus!” she said, “we thought you’d be back. Ready to jam?”

“I guess,” Nimbus said, assembling his sax and heading over to his microphone. Vinyl Scratch took a seat at the piano and played a few scales to warm up.

“Ready when you are,” she said to Nimbus and Octavia. The two nodded.

“Okay,” Vinyl said, “a-one, a-two, a-one, two, three, four!”

The music flowed from Nimbus’s instrument with much less effort this time. As he played through “Trottin’ in Blue,” he began to relax and enjoy the moment. Almost instantly, he noticed that he was playing better than before.

“That’s it, Nimbus,” Octavia said, “just relax.”

“Okay!” Vinyl called out over the piano, “here comes the improv!”

Nimbus winced.

“Just stick to the chords and you’ll be alright,” Octavia reassured him. She and Vinyl then dropped to a background rhythm.

“Take it away, Nimbus!” Vinyl said. Nimbus closed his eyes and began to play, sticking to the chords. He was amazed at how fun this was. Nimbus wove intricate melodies with the chords, and let the rhythm flow over the room.

“There you go, Nimbus!” Octavia said, “now open your eyes!”

Nimbus opened his eyes, and almost immediately caused his saxophone to squeak. It felt different to realize that he was being watched.

“Just concentrate and relax,” Octavia said, “beat that stage fright.”

Heeding her advice, Nimbus went back into his routine hesitantly, but with growing confidence. Before long, he was playing just as he had been earlier. The sound of cascading scales and swirling phrases filled the room. Finally, Octavia signaled for the end of the improvisation session, and Nimbus joined her and Vinyl in finishing the song.

“That was… really fun!” he said when they finished.

“Toldja,” Vinyl said, hopping up from the piano. “Jazz rocks!”

“You did wonderfully,” Octavia added. “I’m very impressed.” She trotted over to her shelf of music books and took down the blue book of jazz charts.

“I think it’s time you picked a song for the concert,” she said, “so we can get some practice.”

“We?” Nimbus said, confused.

“That’s right,” Vinyl said, “Octavia and I are accompanying you onstage. That is, if you don’t mind.”

“Not at all,” Nimbus said, flipping through the book, “but why?”

Vinyl shrugged. “Well, I’m sure there’s some kind of self-confidence booster thing in there, but I really just want to play some jazz. I think Octy’s the same. It’s kind of fun to get off of our usual schedule.”

“I guess so,” Nimbus said, stopping on a song.

“How about this one?” he asked Octavia, pointing to the chart. Octavia took one look and froze.

“You want to try that? That’s' Mr. EQ', by John Colttrane. It’s pretty tough.”

“Looks fun to me,” said Nimbus, “I’m willing to try it.”

“Fair enough,” Octavia said, “then let’s get started.”

…

A week passed, over which Nimbus spent hours at Octavia’s house, preparing. “Mr. EQ” was difficult. Vinyl Scratch gave Nimbus a demonstration of the background, and the tempo turned out to be extremely fast. Nevertheless, Nimbus swore he would figure the song out. What followed was a long period of trial and error. Nimbus had his share of ups and downs, but Octavia was there to support him every time he stumbled. Finally, it was the day of the concert. Nimbus arrived at Octavia’s house in a black blazer and maroon tie, supplied by Rarity. He’d even shined his horseshoes up for the big night. When he knocked, Octavia answered the door. She was wearing a bowtie, and had combed her mane to perfection.

“You look sharp, Nimbus,” she commented.

“Thanks,” Nimbus said, “you don’t look so bad yourself… for a teacher.”

Octavia hit Nimbus with a pillow from behind the door. “Okay!” Nimbus yelled, laughing, “I give up! I take it back!”

“You’d better,” Octavia joked, dragging Nimbus inside. “Come on, Vinyl’s almost ready.”

She led Nimbus into the kitchen, where Nimbus instantly caught a whiff of a delicious scent.

“Wow,” he said, “something smells incredible!”

“Oh yes,” Octavia said, “I’ve been baking a cherry pie, to eat after the concert. Consider it your reward.”

“That’s a pretty good incentive,” Nimbus said, licking his lips.

“Wassup?!”

Nimbus turned and saw Vinyl Scratch enter the kitchen. His jaw dropped when he saw her outfit. Vinyl had her traditional sunglasses on, but was dressed in a matching black overcoat and fedora.

“I’m living the jazz style!” Vinyl exclaimed, twirling around.

“Alright, Vinyl,” said Octavia, chuckling, “we need to get going. We don’t want our student to miss his very first performance, after all!”

“That’s cool with me,” Vinyl scratch said, sidling out the kitchen and the front door, with Nimbus and Octavia close behind, “follow me, and let’s slide on down and see what’s cookin’.”

Nimbus and Octavia shared a glance and rolled their eyes, laughing. Ahead, there was a large crowd gathered in front of Ponyville’s auditorium- the location for tonight’s performance. Octavia quickly spotted the back door, where the musicians were entering.

“Come on,” she said, “let’s get inside and tune up.”

Inside, the building was no quieter than on the outside. Little colts and fillies were running around everywhere, preparing for their debut performances. Some looked at Nimbus questioningly. The Pegasus just smiled back sheepishly. After setting up his saxophone, Nimbus went to the stage curtain and peered out.

A large crowd had already gathered, and even more ponies were pouring through the doors by the second. Nimbus scanned the crowd, looking for familiar faces. He quickly spotted Mecha, and then caught a glimpse of Rainbow Dash, Twilight, and Rarity. Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and the entire Apple family were returning with refreshments from the lobby. Nimbus closed the curtain tighter as the lights went down and the Mayor appeared on stage.

“Citizens of Ponyville,” the Mayor began, launching into her speech, “tonight we are…”

“Excuse me,” a voice said behind Nimbus. In the dark, Nimbus couldn’t make out who it was, but he stepped aside to make way for the newcomer. When the pony had passed, Nimbus went back to his vantage point.

“… and it gives me great pleasure to announce our distinguished visitor tonight- Princess Celestia!”

Nimbus squinted as the stage lights turned on Princess Celestia herself, walking on stage. He almost fainted. The owner of the voice that had spoken to him was Celestia! As the bright lights shone off of her gleaming coat, Celestia began to talk.

“Citizens and fellow Ponies, tonight we are going to recognize the talent and dedication of Ponyville’s newest musicians. You will all be treated to a wide variety of music, played by Ponies who have worked hard to be where they are today. These are your newest musicians- Ponyville’s shining stars. Please join me in welcoming our first musician tonight, Ms. Butternote.”

The crowd applauded as a small, golden Earth Pony filly wheeled a piano on stage. Celestia bent down to her and whispered a few words of encouragement, then left the stage. At the same time, the filly began to play Neightoven’s 5th symphony, and very well, Nimbus noted.

Suddenly, Nimbus collapsed and sat down, shaking. Not only was he seriously outclassed by the other musicians, it seemed, but Celestia was here! Of all of the ponies to show up, it just had to be her! Nimbus raced over to Octavia, who was setting up her bass.

“Octavia!” he said, “you’ve got to help me! I’m doomed!”

“Huh?” she said, “what is it?”

“The show can’t go on- not for me at least.”

“What do you mean?” Octavia asked, getting a bit miffed, “you signed the paperwork saying you wanted to do this. Am I just supposed to assume all of those lessons were for nothing?”

“I know,” Nimbus said, “and I’m sorry. But Celestia’s out there, and I just saw a little filly less than half my age playing Neightoven’s 5th flawlessly. I can’t top that!”

“Nimbus, you don’t have to top that! Just do what you came here to do.”

“I can’t do what I came here to do. Right now, all it looks like I came here for is to make a fool of myself.”

“Stop it,” Octavia said, glaring, “that’s the fear talking again. Don’t forget what I said. If you want to perform out there, you can’t let that fear control you.”

“I’m sorry,” Nimbus mumbled, disassembling his sax, “but I just can’t do this. I apologize for wasting your time.”

Octavia looked at her pupil silently for a moment, then sat down next to him. As Nimbus was about to place his saxophone in his case, she stopped him gently with a hoof.

“Just hear me out one last time, then- as a friend.”

Nimbus looked up. “Okay,” he whispered.

“I didn’t initially agree to teach you. The thing is- I’ve taught my share of quitters over the course of my life, so when Mecha came and said you wanted lessons, I was hesitant. I didn’t want to go through the same thing I’ve been through before. Not long ago, I taught somepony a lot like you. He wanted to play the French Horn, and I was more than happy to give him lessons. Three days in, he quit and never came back. I didn’t want to see that happen again, so I refused. Mecha still pressed me, though. He told me you weren’t a quitter. In fact, he had nothing but good things to say about you. I eventually agreed, and you know what I found out? Mecha was right. You aren’t a quitter. The way you are right now- it’s not you. And I know that deep down, you feel exactly the same way I do about this. Some small part of you doesn’t want to pack up that saxophone and walk out the door, and I think that’s the part you need to listen to.”

Octavia paused briefly, then removed her hoof from Nimbus’s saxophone case, allowing him room to put it in. Nimbus looked at the instrument in his hand, then at the case, and finally at Octavia. Finally, his hoof moved, but not to put away his instrument. Instead, he began reassembling it.

“You know what, Octavia?” Nimbus asked, “you’re right. I told myself last time this happened that I wouldn’t let my fear get the best of me, but I did anyway. Whatever just came over me, you can rest assured, won’t happen again. Let’s get out there and play some jazz!”

Octavia smiled. It was a faint smile, but in it Nimbus could read pride and happiness. “I couldn’t agree with you more, Nimbus. You’ve become my ideal student after all.”

Just then, Vinyl Scratch walked in, rolling the piano. “Hey,” she said, “What’re you two doing sitting over there on the floor?! We’re the last act, and we’re going on now!”

“Oh, right!” Nimbus said, hastily putting his saxophone back together. Octavia leaped to her hooves and headed to the other side of the stage, presumably to get her bass.

“You psyched for this, Nimbus?” Vinyl asked.

“I am now,” Nimbus said, “thanks to a little help from a friend.” He trotted over to the curtain again. Two colts- one with a tuba and the other with a trumpet- were leaving the stage. The Mayor trotted onstage after them.

“Fillies and Gentlecolts, I would like to thank you all for coming this evening.”

Applause roared throughout the theater. When it had sufficiently died down, the Mayor continued.

“Now before we wrap things up, we have one more performance tonight- one that I think you all will enjoy. But don’t take my word for it- listen to what one of the performers has to say!”

A spotlight shone onto the opposite side of the stage, framing none other than Octavia herself. The gray mare took center stage with her bass.

“A few weeks ago, a friend asked me if I would teach his friend how to play the saxophone,” she said. Cheering erupted from Nimbus’s friends. “When he told me about how badly he wanted to learn, I said ‘okay.’ After all, what could be the harm in trying? Turns out, even though he’s been practicing for less than a month, he’s well and truly figured out how to play the sax. When he entered this competition, it was hard to get over the fact that he’s the oldest artist here. I mean, he’s employed for goodness sake!” Laughter erupted from the audience. “But I think he represents what this night stands for very well. He’s a newcomer to the world of music, and certainly an older one at that, but that’s what this concert is all about. He’s shown heart and dedication to his studies, and now tonight he has a real treat for all of you- a little tune by John Colttrane entitled “Mr. EQ.” Fillies and Gentlecolts, I give you… Nimbus!”

The cheers crashed down on Nimbus like a tidal wave as he trotted onstage, taking position behind a microphone. Behind him, Vinyl Scratch wheeled her piano into place and took a seat. Nimbus raised his instrument to his mouth, and the crowd fell silent. He looked back to Vinyl Scratch. The white pony nodded her head four times in rhythm, and on the fourth, the group launched into song. Nimbus was on the verge of tensing up, but recalled his early jazz lessons. Slowly, he relaxed and let the music flow. When the song came to the improvisation section, he mesmerized the crowd with a five minute long solo. One could almost feel the music in the air itself, so smooth was his rhythm. As he rounded out his solo section, the crowd began to cheer again, and when the song was finally over, Nimbus felt he’d never experienced so much applause in his life. He nodded to Vinyl Scratch and Octavia, and they stepped up on either side of him. Together, the three of them bowed, and as Nimbus walked offstage, he could swear he saw Celestia, Princess of just about everything, it seemed, wink at him. It truly had been a good night.

…

“Hey, Nimbus!” Twilight Sparkle called out as Nimbus exited the back door of the auditorium, “you were great out there!”

“Thanks,” Nimbus said, blushing.

“Shucks, I cain’t say ah’ve ever seen a pony play the sax like that!” Applejack agreed. “Come ta think of it,” she added, scratching her head, “Ah don’t think ah’ve ever seen anypony play the sax before either. Congrats on being the first I’ve seen!”

Nimbus chuckled. “Oh, please. It wasn’t really that-“

“What are you talking about?” Octavia said, patting Nimbus on the back from behind, “you were wonderful out there!”

“Yeah?” Nimbus asked, “you mean it?’

“Of course,” said Octavia. “I’d say you’re ready to strike out on your own in the music world, but-“

“But?”

“But if you’re willing, I would be happy to take you further into your studies.”

“You mean… I’d get to learn how to play like a professional?”

“Correction,” Octavia said, “you’d learn to play as a professional.”

“Wow!” Nimbus whooped, soaring into the air, flipping, and coming back down, “this is great! Thank you so much, Octavia!”

“Tomorrow, then?” Octavia said, heading back towards her house, “at the usual time?”

“Tomorrow,” Nimbus said. “I’ll be there.”

“And don’t forget,” Octavia called back, “there’s a pie in my kitchen with your name on it. That is, if Vinyl doesn’t eat it all first.”

“Okay,” Nimbus said, “I’ll be right there.”

Nimbus was about to follow Octavia when he heard his name called from behind.

“Nimbus, wait.”

Nimbus froze. He knew that voice all too well. He turned around and came face-to-face with none other than Princess Celestia.

“Your Highness!” Nimbus said, “I wasn’t expecting- I mean I was just- uh…”

“Nimbus,” the Princess said, “I was backstage after the show, thanking all of the ponies who performed, but somepony wasn’t there.”

Nimbus gulped as his life flashed before his eyes.

“So I made it my goal to speak with you before you left.”

“You- you did?” Nimbus asked, shaking like a leaf. Celestia nodded.

“Twilight Sparkle and her friends have been writing me letters detailing what they’ve learned on the subject of friendship, and it’s come to my attention that you might have learned a lesson tonight as well.”

Nimbus thought about this for a moment. “Yeah, I guess I have.”

“Would you mind sharing it?”

“Of course,” Nimbus said, “while I was receiving lessons from Octavia, I learned two things. The first was that you can’t give up on yourself. No matter how hard something might seem, you can accomplish anything you set your mind to, which leads me to my second point. There is no better way to get through a challenge than getting through it with a friend beside you. Octavia was there for me every step of the way, and no matter what I said, she stuck by me and urged me to continue. I wouldn’t be here tonight if it wasn’t for her friendship, and that’s the truth.”

Celestia smiled. “Then it seems you’ve learned a very valuable lesson, Nimbus.”

She turned to go, but turned back to Nimbus one more time. “Oh, and one more thing- can you write what you just told me down as a letter? It would help greatly if we kept that tradition alive.”

“Of course,” Nimbus said, “I’ll get right on it.”

As he turned and headed for Octavia’s house, Nimbus glanced down at his saxophone case. Learning how to play the sax, and especially jazz, had been a challenge without a doubt, but through it all, he’d gained a new friend and a new skill. All in all, he thought, picking up the saxophone had been one of the best decisions of his life, and meeting Octavia had only made it better.

Nimbus’s stomach growled.

“But now,” he said aloud, “it’s time to head for Octavia’s house. I can’t wait to try that pie!”