Eternal Loveby PacketChaptersMare of DarknessA Chance EncounterCarnival of ScreamsThe Figure on the ChandelierMare of DarknessFive years previously the Canterlot Symphony Hall burnt to the ground in mysterious circumstances… Although the culprit was suspected, no trace of them could be found… It was assumed they died in the fire. But that was not the case… The sewers of Canterlot were baron and deserted, though they were spotless, clean and free of rats unlike what the Ponies in the world above suspected. Moonlight shined through the metal drain covers in the ceiling illuminating the bricks on the walls of the tunnels at regular intervals, with all of the bricks still as smooth and flush in their mortar as the day they had been set down. Down below it was dark, safe and surprisingly warm. That was why it’s single inhabitant liked it so. Down in the darkest depths no one could find her, she was safe. The electric colours had gone from her now untidy and knotted mane, and her coat was now a dirty and grubby shade of grey compared with how much of a radiant and bright white it used to be. He face was nothing compared with how it used to be; scars, cuts and bruises now adorned it, turning what was once a beautiful and perfect face into that of a demon. The mare slowly walked into one of the many large side chambers of the sewers. Made as excess space for heavy flood water to flow, she had worked out how to operate the door controls to one of the chambers, and closed the large, rusty steel door behind as she entered the chamber. At the end of the room, sitting in the shadows, with simple silver lines showing the moonlight reflecting off some of the metal pipes, was one of the very few possessions the pony owned, a beaten, battered, unpolished and slightly rusted pipe organ. The fact as to whether the pony legally owned the instrument was debatable. Since the fire in the Symphony Hall five years ago, the remains of the building had been gradually disposed of as plans for the new building took shape. Amongst the wreckage were the remains of the giant organ that used to rise from under the stage. Under the cover of night, over several weeks the pony had sneaked from the sewer and salvaged all the parts of the organ they could find in the wreckage. Several of the pieces were damaged or destroyed, resulting in the remade organ having a ramshackle look to it, with some of the missing pipes being made from sewage pipes and the outer casing being made from old packing crates. But the mare that had rescued it had got it to work again, and that was all she cared about. Having some way to make music, and if it meant she had to do it in an unconventional way, then so be it. The pony sat on the stool in front of the great instrument and gazed up at its pipes reaching up into the darkness that was the roof of the chamber. Inspiration, that was what she needed. She held her head in her hooves as she thought hard about her music, reminded of her past by the severe battle scars on her face. Like a flash an idea came to her mind, and she grabbed a pair of tinted glassed from the music stand above the keyboard and placed them over her face. Now unable to see the organ keys in front of her, the pony relied on her mind to direct her to the right notes to play. She raised her hooves high above her head then slammed them down onto the lowest keyboard of the organ, producing a deep bass chord that almost sent her flying backwards off the stool. The pain the powerful sound waves made on her weak body wasn't important now; all that was important was that the chord sounded perfect. Motivated by the sweet sounding notes, the mare lifted her hooves off of the keyboard and repeated the action, this time striking a set of chords an octave higher than the last. Again she struck the keyboard, another octave higher. And again, even higher. As she raised her hooves to strike again she stopped suddenly, her mind filled with a memory she wanted to forget. Wanting to strike out at her subconscious she ripped the glasses from her face and threw them down cobbled floor, scattering the shards of the glass lenses across the floor of the room. She slumped down over the keyboard and buried her head in her hooves as she cried and tried to forget, causing the organ to let out a deep, powerful clash of notes. A few brief minutes passed before the mare lifted her head and looked down at the floor at her broken glasses. Just by looking at them she was filled with hate, to her they showed her what her life used to be like, full of parties, and loud music….and friendship. In one case more than just friendship, love. A love which would never die inside her heart. She used the power of her unicorn’s horn to gather the entire tiny, bead like glass fragments and glasses frame and rest them on top of her organ casing. She looked at them in disgust. It wasn't as if she was going to wear them again, she felt as if she would be hanged if anyone ever saw her again and realised who she truly was. If she was ever to venture out into daylight again she knew she’d need something that would cover her face more to hide the horrific injuries and stop drawing attention to herself. Getting down from the organ stool the thoughts of her undying love filled her mind as she walked over to a pile of rags that made a rough bed, removing a battered leather bound scrap book from underneath. Flicking through the pages she was reminded of her past, photographs of her and the friends she had made throughout her life were plastered onto the pages. As she proceeded to flick through even more of the book newspaper articles began to appear, not documenting the exploits of her though, but of another mare. She extended a hoof and gently touched one of the photos she had taken of this mare, in her simple white collar and pink bow-tie, leant up against her cello. She sobbed as she spoke to herself “My Octavia, I’ve lost you” Other photos also appeared of Octavia as the mare continued looking through the pages, far more than of any other pony in the book, proving that the mare had a strong connection to this mare, almost an obsession. The photos showed the lifestyle the two had had, even becoming flat mates in the final months they knew each other. In all that time the mare had felt wild feelings of passion for her, yet had never had the guts to admit it to her. Then, the night when she finally plucked up the courage to confess to her, it happened. The fire at the Canterlot Symphony Hall. Several cuttings in the book revealed to the mare the extent of the damage to the building and the lives lost. She felt the injuries to her face as she remembered that night in vivid detail, the surge of magic from her horn, the blazing heat, the orange flames, the screaming, Octavia screaming. She remembered how she had had no option but to run from the building, she hadn't even had the chance to rescue Octavia due to how she was cut off from her. She knew she’d hurt her face because she could feel the blood trickling down her forehead and cheek, but she felt no pain. The shock of what was happening cancelled out any pain in her body. Once outside the great building she turned back to look at the scene of destruction, just in time to see the great glass dome on top of the building collapse in on itself and into the inferno, sending embers high into the Equestrian night sky. One of the ponies in the crowd of survivors had caught sight of her and alerted the Royal Guards, who had chased her through the labyrinth of the city. It was as she’d been running that she’ noticed a drain cover, presumably opened by some curious colts and fillies. Never had she been more thankful for them as she dived down the hole an pulled down the cover after her. Now, stuck down here, her only connection with the outside world was when she would come across a discarded newspaper on one of her food scavenging hunts at night. Looking through the cuttings she had collected she had found out that Octavia had survived the fire, despite being hospitalised for several weeks due to smoke inhalation. She'd climbed the social ladder of Canterlot remarkably well with her musical talents and was now taking requests to play in venues all over Equestria. The mare turned to the final page of the book, where her most prized photograph of Octavia was kept. It was a simple shot of the both of them asleep together on the sofa of the flat they shared together, taken by their old friend Lyra, whom at the time had thought they looked adorable together. Although denying such a thing at the time, the mare couldn't keep secret the feelings she had for Octavia. Realising she had ruined any chances of living a normal life again she began to close the book up again, but paused briefly on one of the pages. On the page was a birthday card with the simple image of a double quaver, the cutie mark the mare had on her flank, or at least it was the last time she looked at it. That also reminded her of the past, and she hated it, keeping it covered with a long coat she had come across over the last five years. Opening up the card she read to herself the message inside. “To Vinyl. Have a big happy birthday you silly pony! From your best friend, Octavia” This message was enough to make Vinyl feel like she'd been stabbed right in the heart. She felt the sadness and loneliness flow through her as she placed the book back under her bed. Sobbing in the semi darkness she laid down on the rags and cried herself to sleep. She wanted Octavia back. Author's Note So, there we have it. The first chapter of my new piece. Sorry if this isn't to everyone's liking, so far the ratings seem to be portraying it as a 'Marmite' story, you either love it or you have it! :P I decided to base this story on "Love Never Dies" for a very important factor, which is keeping the story flowing. With my current other piece, "Equestritania", the plot is totally up for me to decide and whilst I have got a good idea as to where I want the story to go, I feel as though I seem to getting myself into a corner with that piece that I might not be able to get out of! Having this piece based on something means that I roughly know what the plot should be from start to finish, and makes it easier for me to write in my opinion. For those of you who are wondering this initial chapter was based on the opening song "Till I hear You Sing", Viewable here A Chance EncounterA deep tone from the ships whistle announced to the passengers that their destination was fast approaching. Several of them had come out onto the promenade deck to witness the final moments of the voyage. The shipping lane for approaching the port at Canterlot took the ship at a low height over the top of the city, before turning sharply and sailing back on itself to come into the port facing the right direction. Octavia was also one of the passengers on deck, leaning over the railings in her large green floppy hat looking down on the tiny figures in the streets below, thankful that she was to far away from them for them to make out her appearance. As much as she had enjoyed fulfilling her musical career, the popularity she had gained frustrated her at times. The attention she received from fans of her music she could deal with, it was the attention from the press that got to her the most. She felt as if they were stalking her and took every free moment she had away from them for granted. The stories that had been printed recently had almost driven her to the edge of insanity. All she done was had one drink at a bar to calm her nerves before her latest concert, and now the press seemed to making out that she was an alcoholic. This wasn’t the life she’d wanted, hiding behind oversized sun hats and always on the move, she’d wanted a simple life with her music, maybe with a thatched cottage somewhere with a roaring log fire and just the sweet sounds of her Cello filling the room. She was prepared to give anything to have that sort of life. “I didn’t expect to find you out here so early” a voice said from besides her. Octavia turned her head left to find her travelling companion besides her, Doctor Whooves. What Whooves lacked in his musical talent he made up for in his sense of geography, history and companionship. She smiled at him “I just wanted to witness my final moments of peace before we land. Even if we did book tickets on a ship that arrived at seven o’ clock in the morning, no doubt there will be somepony from the press wanting to interview me about the Symphony Hall” “Well, it’s a big thing” Whooves rested his front hooves on the railings of the ship and joined her in looking down on the streets below “The new Canterlot Symphony Hall has just been completed after five years of construction. Considering that you would have perished in the building if I hadn’t dragged your unconscious body out, it’s not surprising that the press are trying to find out what your expectations for it are” Octavia remained silent, looking down. “Sorry” Whooves said, noticing the sadness in her eyes “I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories” “No, it’s ok” Octavia sighed, flicking her long black hair behind her head “It wasn’t all bad. If it wasn’t for that fire I wouldn’t have met you” She leaned on Whooves “And neither of us would have this life we live together” Slowly, the great ship began to descend down to the port of Canterlot. Vinyl carefully shut the drain cover behind her and readjusted her black cloak and hood before setting off down the street. The pain in her stomach told her that she desperately needed something to eat, but having lived in the sewers for five years she knew that such a luxury was hard to come by on the deserted streets of Canterlot, and if it did ever come by it was hardly ever enough to satisfy her hunger. There were the occasional nights when soup kitchens and charity dinners were organised for the homeless, but even then she chose to wait till long after they had finished and raid the waste bins for any available scraps that were clean enough to eat. Her reputation had been shattered long ago, if she was to turn up publicly to such an event she was sure she would be arrested, she couldn’t risk it. It was far easier to live in the shadows and remain a mystery. Turning down one of the narrow alleyways behind a tavern, she heaved back the lid of the first dustbin she came across. All that she came across that was to her interests was the previous day’s copy of the Canterlot Herald, slightly stained, but still readable in most places. She put back the lid and sat on top of it on her haunches, flicking the paper open to see if there was anything of interest inside of it. It was still early in the morning so she didn’t have any fear of anyone disturbing her. After a short while though she became aware of somepony walking towards her and reached up, pulling the front of her hood down, making sure most of her face was hidden from this newcomer. “I’d be moving along if I was you” He said. Vinyl could tell from his gruff voice that he was obviously used to a life living on the streets. She spoke without even looking at him “Why should I, it’s not as if I'm offending anyone” No sooner had she finished saying that Vinyl felt the stallions hoof shoot out and grab her by the throat, pulling her off the bin and pinning her against the wall, but thankfully for her her eyes were still covered by her hood. The stallion spoke in anger through clenched teeth “Because this is my turf, and I don’t want to share it with anyone else!” “Y-You’ve no idea who I am, do you?” Vinyl gasped, trying to tug away his hoof with her own. “Why?” spat the stallion “Should I?” Vinyl threw her hood back and revealed her face to the stallion, her deep magenta eyes staring straight through him. Thinking this would be a major deterrent for her enemy Vinyl was caught completely off guard as she felt a mighty punch strike her face and knock her to the floor. She blacked out. Octavia and Whooves had both been surprised to find one of the cafes opened at a surprisingly early time in Canterlot. Securing themselves a table out in front of the building they slowly drank their tea together as they witnessed the sun rise up and the town wake with it. All the time Octavia seemed to be looking over her shoulder, as if she was expecting somepony to be there. “Relax Octavia” Whooves said, raising his cup “It’s early in the morning, you can take off that hat of yours, it’s not as if there’s anypony around at this time who could bother you to much” “yes, but if I do take it off no doubt the press will be all over us as soon as they know that I’m here, trying to make out that us drinking tea at this café is both of us practising playing ‘happy families’” she raised her hooves and made imitation quotation marks in the air, emphasising her disgust “What they think goes on behind closed doors of certain ponies homes astounds me sometimes!” “Well, if that’s what they want to think, then let them think it” Whooves swirled the tea leaves in his cup before gulping them down “It’s not as if they have any hard evidence that could prove it” “But that’s just it Whooves, they don’t need it. The name ‘Canterlot Herald’ is enough to convince anypony these days!” She gave a deep sigh then returned to her drink before continuing. Whooves extended a hoof and patted Octavia’s hoof on the table “Don’t worry, some other story will come up and they’ll loose all interest in you” Snap! A photographer on the other side of the square caught a photograph of both of them just as Whooves rested his hoof on Octavia’s. Not doubting that he would get good money for such an image, he disappeared into the down the narrow alleyway he had come from and back to the head office of the Canterlot Herald. A throbbing pain filled Vinyl’s head as slowly she began to come round. Waking up on the floor of the cobbled alleyway confused her and she pulled her hood over her eyes as she replayed what she could remember in her mind before she blacked out. The dustbin, the newspaper, the stallion… ah, yes, the stallion. The pain of her fresh injures began to intensify as steadying herself with the wall, she dragged herself upright. Looking about she suddenly realised how late in the morning it was, the sun of Celestia was already raised high into the sky lighting up everything it could. She rubbed her aching temples as the nearby clock tower struck the hour. Nine o’ clock. Vinyl’s eyes bulged in their sockets. In all the years she’d been living down in the sewers she’d never dared to stay above ground for this long into the morning, she had to return down below, quickly. Noticing a nearby drain cover she gave a great heave. A sickening clang of metal against metal told her it was locked. Realising that a cloaked figure checking all the drain covers one by one would raise to much suspicion if she was spotted, she carefully thought out where the nearest cover would be that she knew would always be open. Vinyl clapped her hooves together as the location came to her, behind the Café in the town square. She made sure her hood was pulled down over her head as much as it would go and her body was covered with her cape as much as it could be, she knew she’d only get one chance at making it there. Vinyl broke out into a run as she shot out from the alleyway. She didn’t even want to contemplate what would happen if she didn’t make it back there. “But going back to what you said earlier, I suppose your right Whooves” Octavia pushed her empty cup to the centre of the table “The sooner I stop hiding behind these wide brimmed hats will probably be for the better. Let’s go to the house, I’ll drop off this hat, and then maybe we can actually enjoy ourselves before the concert in a few days time” They both stood up from the table and turned down now busy the street to leave. But as Octavia turned she felt something large collide with her and fall to the floor, knocking her hat off her head as it did so. Taking a few seconds to recover Octavia looked down on the pony she’d just knocked over, seeing their faded white fur laying back on the thick black cloak they were wearing. Octavia’s hat had landed on their face when they fell, hiding it from view. Octavia leaned down and gently shook the pony with her hoof “Hello? Are you ok?” The white front hooves of the pony reached up and pressed Octavia’s hat to its face “Don’t look at me!” she screamed. The figure briefly peeled away part of the hat from her face revealing a large magenta eye to both Octavia and Whooves, before quickly masking it behind the hat again when she realised they were both still there. She got up rather unsteadily off of the ground and disappeared into the small crowd that had gathered around them. Both Octavia and Whooves stared at eachother in disbelief, but Octavia began to think more about the pony she’d just encountered. Those piercing magenta eyes seemed all too familiar to her. “It couldn’t be, could it?” she thought to herself. Noticing a few reporters trotting towards them from down the street both Octavia and Whooves walked away from the café in the opposite direction. Vinyl slammed the drain cover shut and immediately laid down on the floor of the sewer, panting and gasping for breath, had she really just seen who she thought she had? Was Octavia really back here in Canterlot? She was still clinging onto the green floppy hat and frantically flipped it over, looking at the inside brim. Her suspicions were confirmed by a small label sewn into the hat, a small label that simply read ‘Octavia’ with a purple treble clef next to it. The simple piece of clothing now felt like a holy grail in Vinyl’s hooves. It felt almost like a passport that enabled her the right to be amongst the ponies in the world on top. She knew she just had to meet Octavia again, but how to do it when the world was against her? The thought suddenly came to her. A disguise! A mask! That way she would be able to move freely amongst the Canterlot Civilians. Pulling own her hood and placing Octavia’s hat on her head, she slowly trotted off into the darkness and towards her chamber. Although she knew the risks involved, she decided that now she would finish what she intended to achieve five years ago, she would confess her love to Octavia. Nothing could possibly stop her this time. “But I’m telling you Whooves, those eyes, that face. I’ve seen them somewhere before, I just can’t think where” “I’m sure there’s some reasonable explanation Octavia. Forget about it. It was just a common beggar pony, you see them everywhere, maybe that’s where you’ve seen that face before” Whooves pressed the doorbell to the tall terrace house once more, admiring the neat, curved hand writing in the nametag above it, ‘L. Heartstrings & Bon Bon’. “Do you reckon he’ll still recognise us?” Octavia asked. “Of course he will, he’d recognise you anywhere!” Both of them could hear a fumbling at the doorknob on the other side of the door and with a faint click, it unlocked and began to slowly swing backwards, inch by inch. A tiny light grey colt with short untidy black hair struggled to open the door. His coat had a slight tinge of brown to it and he’d had to stand right up on his hind legs and stretch out his front hooves in order to reach the door handle. His face lit up when he saw the two of them stood out on the doorstep. “Mother!” he almost squeaked as he ran out the door and straight into Octavia’s front hooves, giving her a great big hug, clinging tightly to her. Octavia hugged her son in return, before lifting his head to look at her “Treble, aren’t you forgetting someone?” The tiny colt looked across at Whooves “Father!” he ran across and they hugged each other, sharing a brief moment together. “Hello Treble” Whooves smiled as he ruffled his hair. “Have you had a nice time staying at Aunt Lyra an Bon Bon’s?” Octavia asked. Treble nodded “It’s been great!” He almost squeaked again, bouncing up and down as he did so “They’re waiting for you both inside” he turned around and almost galloped back into the house. Whooves turned to Octavia “See, I told you he’d remember you. And since he came to you first that further more backs up my theory that he’s a ‘mummy’s’ boy” He grinned at Octavia. Octavia said nothing, but just gave Whooves a playful shove as she carried her small luggage case into the house. Author's Note In my hand scrawled notes besides my laptop I've Octavia & Whooves son labelled down as "Treble Clef". I know that name sounded familiar with ponies but I couldn't find anything suggesting that it was an actual character, whether cannon or not. However, the main reason I honestley went for it was the slight pun in Whooves saying "Hello Treble" since when my father used to greet me he'd always say "Hello trouble!" Those of you who know the story of "Love Never Dies" will know that I've deviated from the plot quite a bit with this chapter and the original draft of this chapter did follow the musical more faithfully, but the problem was that it didn't really flow all to well with the last chapter, so I had to adapt quite a bit. I also liked this change more as it kind of leaves some of the readers guessing as to how far along Whooves and Octavia are with the relationship, revealing all right at the end. I will get the plotline more back on track and like the original over the next few chapters though, I wouldn't miss Vinyl parodying the Phantom's brilliant entrance through that set of double doors for the world! Carnival of ScreamsOnce again Vinyl was sat on an Organ stool in the dark, though not in the sewers which she had grown to call home. The organ she was in front of was also vastly different from her own hoofbuilt one. The sparkling white ivory keys were set into a dark varnished case, there were no long metal pipes attached to the organ, they were stored just in front of the small platform on which the instrument sat, ready to burst into life. Vinyl squirmed in the long black topcoat she was wearing, it was far too big on her thin body, but it hid most of her appearance from view. Sweeping a hoof through her hair she pulled it back and tied all the strands together, making her faded hair take on a sleek new appearance. She reached into the pocket of the coat and brought out the finishing touch to her look, a simple black ballroom mask. She stared at it in her hoof, wishing she didn't always have to hide, but she knew what the consequences would be if she didn't. A noise like thunder erupted from above her interrupting her thoughts. Looking upwards at the thin wooden roof above she sighed slightly, it was noise she had heard far too often over the past two years, an applause. Being presumed dead had had its advantages for Vinyl in some cases. She’d been able to reinvent herself to a certain degree, and with a little help from the only two mares who still knew of her existence, had found a new way of making her musical soul speak to the crowds. Overhead she could hear the booming voice of a stallion, “Fillies and Gentlecolts! Welcome to The Carnival of Screams!” A freak show. That was where she worked. She heaved a heavy sigh as she attached the mask to her face and placed her hooves gently on the ivory keys, ready to push down and play the first notes as the stallion above finished his speech. The thought of earlier that day entered her head. Octavia? Back in Canterlot? It couldn’t be? But it had to be, no one else could look as naturally beautiful as that she thought to herself. Her thoughts were interrupted as the stallion above addressed the audience again. “Coming up next, a pony who remains as mysterious as her ability to produce sweet sounding music with bass notes. May I present to you all, Miss Linyv Scrape” How some ponies couldn’t see past a simple false name amused her greatly, and a great smirk appeared across her face. She pressed down on the organ keys as the roof above her opened up and the platform began to rise up and out onto the stage. The darkness of the night had taken Canterlot in its grasp as Octavia, Lyra and Bon Bon sat in the small living room of the apartment. Despite its size Lyra and Bon Bon had still managed to fit two reasonably sized sofas into the room, along with the other necessities such as a coffee table and book shelves. All three were sipping the contents of one of Bon Bon’s wine bottles. "So" Lyra swirled the contents of her glass "I take it that the latest concert went well?" “Far better than expected” Octavia smiled “But now it’s just nice to be ble to have a small rest before the next one. Having to many concerts in a short space of time sure does take it out of you” “Tell me about it” Bon Bon chuckled “There are times when I’ve come downstairs in the morning to find Lyra asleep on the sofa; she doesn’t even have the energy to climb the stairs!” Lyra rolled her eyes disapprovingly as Whooves came down the stairs and took a seat next to Octavia. “Trebles sound asleep now” he smiled “I doubt we’ll here from him again tonight” Octavia yawned “Speaking of sleeping, I think I might just turn in for night myself, I’ve hardly got any energy left” “You’ll need it for tomorrow, what with the masked ball in the evening” Whooves chuckled. Octavia gave him a quick kiss on the cheek “Goodnight dear” Whooves waited until she was at the top of the stairs before turning to Lyra and Bon Bon, seeming to produce a pack of cards out of nowhere. “Could I interest either of you two ladies in a game?” Vinyl had finished her set piece for the show, and was now having a few minutes of peace to herself backstage, sat on one of the many packing cases that were stacked up underneath the tiered seating, dimly illuminated by the faint light of an antique oil lamp. She’d still kept her hair tied back and her mask on. She was actually beginning to like it in that style and did consider keeping it like that. The sound of hoof steps approaching caused her to let out a heavy sigh, and she frowned and closed her eyelids as she saw one of the young stage-hands approaching her. He was a youngish stallion with a cream coat and golden brown man and tail. Vinyl had distaste for how eager this particular stage-hand was. His thirst for knowledge on how to play the organ like her was all he seemed to talk about whenever he was near her, and no doubt tonight wouldn't be any different. “That was another amazing performance Miss Scrape” Vinyl just tensed her lips slightly to show that she acknowledged him. “I-If you don't mind me asking” the stage-hand stuttered, cautiously taking another step closer to her "Why exactly do you wear that mask?" Vinyl’s eyes shot open, the sharpness of her pupils causing the stage-hand to freeze on the spot "To retain a little mystery? Show business isn't what it used to be" She paused slightly, before pointing to her mask, still on her face “Do you think that you could get one of these masks in white?” “I-I-I'm sure that we've probably got one somewhere” The stallion trembled. Vinyl gave a smirk in the golden light and leant over to the lamp, quickly blowing out the flame. Darkness swallowed both of them up, causing the stage-hand to panic even more. He could sense Vinyl was still there, but couldn't work out where. Then without any warning, he could feel her breathing into his ear. “Then get to it” she whispered, teasingly. The stallion jumped, banging into one of the seating supports in the darkness “Miss Scrape? Miss Scrape?” He fumbled about in the darkness, trying to make out objects with his sense of touch. A packing case, a packaging label, the lamp! Ah, the lamp! Now he felt as if he was getting somewhere. Unsure as to whether or not she was still there, he called out again. “Miss Scrape?” Nothing. More fumbling in the darkness led him to find a box of matches. He struck one, producing a tiny flame. Carefully lighting the lamp back up he slowly brought the flame to a greater size. Satisfied that he could now see properly the stage-hand picked up the lamp with one of his hooves and turned round to the great expanse of the wooden supports and packing cases. “Miss Scrape?” But Vinyl had fled long ago in the darkness, simply leaving her black mask on the floor in front of the stallion. He picked it up and looked at it, before looking off to where she had disappeared. “How does she do that?” Bon Bon gently placed the tray of empty wine glasses down on top of her kitchen counter next to the sink and turned on the water. She rested her head on her front hooves as she looked out of the kitchen window at the stars lighting the night sky. She closed her eyes as she turned off the tap, opening them again her eyes widened in shock and she jumped backwards, knocking the tray on the counter but preventing it from falling. There on the other side of the glass, with her face pressed up against the window, was Vinyl. The light reflecting through the glass making her scarred face look more menacing. “Careful Bon Bon, You’ve not even had a quarter of a bottle!” Lyra shouted from the lounge. Bon Bon poked her head round the doorway “Very funny Lyra” she paused awkwardly “Excuse me for one moment” Shutting the door to the lounge Bon Bon quickly went to the back door on the other side of the kitchen and began to open it, no sooner was there a tiny gap Vinyl darted through the door. “Bon Bon, I…” “Shhh” Bon Bon’s tone of voice was now one of slight frustration “Quiet, we have company in the next room” “Is she here?” “Is who here?” “Dammit Bon Bon, you know who I mean! Is Octavia here?” The veins in Vinyl’s head seemed to bulge slightly. Taking a moment to imagine what the consequences of her telling Vinyl might be, Bon Bon slowly nodded. “I’ve got to see her” Vinyl advanced towards the door, but Bon Bon blocked her path. “Vinyl, please, hear me out. Me and Lyra have helped you out as best we could over the past few years that you’ve been living in the dark, even managing to get you that small job” Vinyl shot her a glare “I don’t know how you can class playing music in a freak show as a job!” She spat “And either way, what little pay I get from it goes straight to you and Lyra. It’s not as if I could spend it in person” “Vinyl, that’s only because you're paranoid that you'd be caught. Everypony thinks that you died when the Symphony Hall burnt down, so it's not as if they'd be looking out for you. And even if they were, you've changed so much over the past few years, you've begun to take for granted what you had. You’ve changed so much from what you once were" Vinyl almost spoke a response, but when she opened her mouth no words came out as she thought over what Bon Bon had just said, long and hard. She simply looked down at ground and began to faintly sob. The tears running down her cheeks and dripping onto the polished wood floor. She felt the warmth of Bon Bon's body as she embraced her and after a slight pause Vinyl did likewise, continuing to sob into Bon Bon's shoulder. “I need to see her Bon Bon” Bon Bon drew back “As much as it pains me to say this Vinyl, I can’t let you. Octavia is one of the ones who still believe you died. Can you imagine what she would think if you just simply waltzed up to her?” Vinyl eyes pierced Bon Bon’s “Well it’s going to happen anyway” she freed herself from the embrace “So why not get it over with!” Bon Bon could see the anger swelling up inside of Vinyl “Don’t make me use force Vinyl” “You’ve got all the strength of a week filly Bon Bon!” Vinyl scoffed “Fine then, have it your way!” Vinyl turned and flung the outside door open, running back out into the night as the rain began to fall and the distant lightning flashed. The door behind Bon Bon creaked open slightly. “Bon Bon?” Lyra asked “Are you going to join us for some….” She paused when she saw her staring out of the open door “Bon Bon?” When Bon Bon slowly turned her head round Lyra could see the terror in her eyes, it could only mean one thing. “Was it Vinyl?” Lyra whispered. Bon Bon nodded “And she knows Octavia’s here” “What? How?!” “I sort of…told her without really thinking what could happen” Bon Bon bit her lower lip as Lyra shut the door with her magic. “Then one thing’s for certain” Lyra said “We’ll need to keep closer tabs on Vinyl” They both moved back into the living room where Whooves was finishing shuffling the cards “So, what game will it be?” A tiny high pitched scream sounded from above them, quickly followed by Octavia calling down. “Don’t worry, I’ve got it” Whooves chuckled slightly “Treble and his nightmares again!” Treble was pulling down his bed covers over his eyes. “Treble?” Octavia asked, sitting down on the end of his bed “Treble, what is it?” Treble peaked out from under his covers as Octavia put a hoof round him and hugged him “T-T-There was somepony a-at the window. It was a unicorn, and they looked horrible!” Despite only being four years old Treble could speak quite fluently, it was one of the things Octavia was most proud of her son for, his ability to learn quickly. She knew it was only a matter of time before he began learning music by heart and hoped of the possibility that it could be in the Cello. Octavia looked down on him “Do you want me to look for you and make sure they’ve gone?” Treble nodded, and clung to Octavia, hiding his face in her hair as she picked him up in one of her forehooves and walked over to the window. She chuckled slightly “There’s no one out there Treble” she looked at him, pulling the individual stands of hair apart in front of his eyes so he could peer out. “B-but there was someone there mother, I know there was” Treble protested as Octavia began to tuck him back into bed “They were a sort of whitish colour and had lots of cuts down their face" Octavia yawned. As much as she loved her son there were times when he could tire her out with little effort, this was one of them “Maybe it was just a shadow Treble, darling. You’ve mistaken shadows for ponies before” Treble thought about this quickly, pulling a thinking expression that Octavia found adorable, before letting out a tiny sigh “I guess you’re right” He snuggled down underneath his bed as Octavia put his rag pony doll under the covers with him. “Goodnight Treble” “Goodnight mother” She kissed him on the forehead and left the room. In the darkness Treble looked up at the window, tensing in fear as a black shadow swept across the light coming in. He clung tighter to his rag pony as he tried to get to sleep. Octavia gently opened the music box she had placed on her dressing table in her bedroom, it clicked into life and began playing its simple repetitive melody as she picked up a brush and started brushing her mane. On the inside of the lid of the box was one of her most prized photographs. It had been taken only a few hours after she had given birth to Treble Clef, and was of her holding him from her hospital bed, with Whooves stood behind them. Their first family photo. Refilled with happy memories of that day she finished her brushing and picked up her white porcelain ballroom mask, putting it to her face and admiring herself in the mirror before standing up and pirouetting a couple of times into the middle of the room, stopping to admire herself in her mask in the large mirror that hung above the small, ornate fireplace. Satisfied with her appearance she walked towards the closed French doors that lead onto the small balcony, ready to shut the curtains to her room. The lightning flashed outside her window, causing Octavia to pause and squint her eyes, staring deep into the darkness beyond her window. She was sure she could have seen a figure standing out there in the darkness. The heavy raindrops continued to pelt down from the sky, hitting the glass like a round of bullets before slowly trickling down to the balcony floor. Octavia rubbed her eyes and yawned “It’s been a long day” she muttered to herself, walking back towards the double bed on the other side of the room. In her slightly blurred vision the bed looked more inviting than ever. The quilt looked so thick and luxurious; the pillows looked as if your head would sink into them. Octavia pulled back the covers and gave her body one last stretch as she prepared to put down her ballroom mask. The lightning flashed outside again and this time, she was certain she could have made out a faint silhouette projected through the curtains in the corner of her eye. She stared at them, trying to work out if it was her imagination. When the lighting ceased to flash she decided to cautiously take a step over towards the windows, edging ever closer, and closer, still clutching her mask. She was just within five hoofsteps of the windows when, CRASH! The windows blew open inwards, sweeping the curtains aside as they did so. Stumbling backwards in shock and bumping into the end of the bed, Octavia's eyes were immediately drawn to the figure now stood impressive on the balcony outside, the pelting rain seeming to have no effect on them. The lightning crashed once more, lighting the figure up like the explosion of a firework, making their appearance instantly recognisable to Octavia. It was the Vinyl, a much shabbier, rugged, scarred, and demonic Vinyl, but there was no doubt that it was her. Octavia opened her mouth to scream, but no words came out as she frantically clawed at her surroundings with her hooves, trying to get as far away from her as she could as Vinyl strode into the room out of the rain, the marks on her face appearing now more predominately before Octavia's eyes. Overcome with emotion and fear, Octavia fainted into a heap on the floor, Vinyl running over to her and immediately cradled her body in her forehooves. She simply sat there, holding her for a few moments as she gazed upon Octavia's face. So simple, yet so beautiful, even more so with her eyes closed. “Oh Octavia” a weak smile came to Vinyl’s face as tears began to form in her eyes “I’ve missed you so much” Vinyl picked up the mask that Octavia had dropped on the floor besides her, admiring the craftsman ship of it. It was the type of mask Vinyl longed for to hide her hideous face. Beginning to come round, Octavia’s eyelids slowly fluttered open. It took a while for her eyes to focus on the figure holding her. When at last they did focus, her eyes almost popped out of their sockets at who she saw looking down on her. What she had seen hadn’t been a dream. This time she didn’t hold back, she screamed at the top of her lungs. Octavia’s scream had echoed throughout the house, and the sound of rapid hoof steps coming towards the room could be heard almost instantly. Realising there was little time to escape Vinyl instantly darted from the room through the French windows and slid down the drain pipe at the side of the balcony. Once firmly on the ground she quickly glanced up at the balcony to make sure she wasn't being watched. Seeing the coast was clear she ran off into the darkness of the night, still clutching Octavia’s porcelain ballroom mask. Whooves had ran to the bedroom as soon as he heard the scream. He burst into the room, almost taking the door off of its hinges. “Octavia?!” He ran over to her, cradling her shaking body in his forehooves “Octavia? Darling? What happened?” Octavia stared up at him, still trembling, before breaking down into tears and burying her head in his neck, sobbing loudly as Lyra and Bon Bon appeared in the doorway. Drained of all the energy in her body, Octavia soon fell asleep in Whoove’s hooves. “What is it?” Bon Bon asked curiously. Whooves shook his head “She won’t say. Though I’ve hardly ever seen her like this. Whatever it is that’s spooked her, it must have been something pretty disturbing” “Is there anything we can do?” Lyra asked, shutting the French windows with her magic. Whooves shook his head again “Thank you, but no. It’s been a long day, I think its best we try and get some sleep, then talk about it in the morning” Bon Bon nodded in agreement. “Bon Bon?” Lyra asked, taking her hoof in her own “Can I talk with you for a minute?” she dragged her out into the corridor. Octavia squirmed slightly. Convinced she was probably having a small flashback to what had scared her in her sleep Whooves began rocking her gently and stroking her long black hair, slowly making her calm down and sleep peacefully once more. Whooves sat there, staring out of the open window into the night, trying to work out what exactly had caused Octavia to be like this. Then he saw it. Damp patches on the carpet running from the windows to just in front of where he and Octavia were. Someone had been there. Lyra pressed Bon Bon up against the wall of the hallway “You just had to do it, didn’t you?” “Do what?” Bon Bon asked. “Tell Vinyl that Octavia was staying here with us, I told you she’d try to get at her. There’s no way that Vinyl would give up that easily” “But she was convincing when I talked to her earlier” Bon Bon paused “It’s not as she’s going to be coming back here to see Octavia though, is it?” “But she could try and see her again out on the streets, even though that would be far too dangerous. Even though everypony thinks she’s dead, half of them still talk badly of her” “Yes” protested Bon Bon “But what about the other half, the half that see her as a hero? The evidence that proved that was overwhelming” Lyra shook her head “Most ponies ignore the evidence if it contradicts their opinions. But mark my words Bon Bon, she’ll try to contact Octavia again. We haven’t heard the last of this” Author's Note You wouldn't believe how long it took me to get my ideas together for this chapter, what with suffering a small nervous breakdown in the past month. But thankfully, slowly chipping away at this chapter for half an hour, night after night, has actually helped to relax and calm my mind somewhat. Slowly but surely, I'm beginning to add more and more themes from the story of "Love Never Dies" into this. Sure there are going to be some obvious changes, but as long as I try and get the atmosphere of the piece right, I'd be pretty happy with that. Fun Fact: There are two references to Gerry Anderson's "The Secret Service" in this chapter. The first is Vinyl switching the first and last letter of her name round to create her alter ego, in the style of Herr Sakov in episode 8 'The Cure', and the second is that Vinyl and the stage-hand's conversation references one between two characters in episode 4 'The Feathered Spies': "Why do you choose to have these meetings at such an ungodly hour?" "To retain a little mystery? Espionage isn't what it used to be!" The Figure on the ChandelierOctavia used to be an early riser, but since she had married she’d grown more accustomed to dozing in the warmth of the morning sun, feeling the warm breath of Whooves as they snuggled each other under the covers. She slowly opened her eyelids as she roused from a deep sleep to find Whooves’ big blue eyes softly looking back at her. He gently pulled back some of her mane that had swept across her face “Morning” Whooves smiled. “Morning” Octavia yawned “And just how long have you been awake?” “Long enough to see you sleeping like a filly” Whooves gently pecked her on the end of her nuzzle. “Well, I think I’ll probably be sleeping like that for a little while longer” Octavia pulled herself closer to Whooves and rested her head on his chest as he wrapped a forehoof round her, gently rubbing her back. Both of them intending just to blink their eyelids, they fell back to sleep in their embrace. The door to Octavia & Whooves’ room was quite heavy, but with a lot of effort the tiny figure managed to force open a gap just big enough for them to squeeze through. They silently slipped through the gap and continued to stalk their victims; they could see them both now, oblivious to the figures presence as they circled round them. The figure waited till they were in a position that left them directly between the two ponies for when they approached them. Their dark blue eyes narrowed with concentration as they crouched down, ready to pounce up onto the higher level that it needed to get to its target. They counted down silently in their head. 3, 2, 1… Springing from the floor, Treble landed with a soft thud on the bed, bouncing up and down repeatedly on the sprung mattress and causing Octavia to wake with a start as he continued to jump up and down. “Mother! Dad! Wake up!” he almost squeaked “The princess’ sun is already in the sky!” Octavia yawned as she reached out with her fore-hooves and brought her son in for a tight hug, burying her muzzle in his black crop of hair and giving him a kiss on his head, before turning him to face her. “You’ve obviously gotten your knack to wake up early from me” she chuckled. “Early?” Treble tilted his head sideways “Mother, its half past nine!” Octavia immediately threw a glance to her beside clock. Treble was indeed correct; it was half past nine in the morning. She looked back at him “And it seems you’ve got the time keeping skills of your dad!” Treble just grinned at Octavia before they both turned to look at Whooves, who was sprawled out on his back with this head poking out from under the bed sheets, his mouth agape with tongue lolling at the side. “Should I wake dad up?” Treble asked. Octavia thought about this, recounting the events that she could remember of the previous night she realised she would need a private word with Whooves. “Um, no dear” she picked Treble up in her forehooves and put him in a sitting position on her belly “But I’m sure Aunt Lyra and Bon Bon aren’t up yet, I think they’d like it if you woke them” “Ok, but…” “But what Treble?” “Well…” Treble twiddled his right forehoof on the bed covers, a sign Octavia had picked up showing that he was thinking about something “Why do Aunt Lyra and Bon Bon sleep in the same bed together?” Octavia’s eyes bulged in their sockets; she certainly hadn’t expected this question from her son, especially at his age! “H-How do you know they…” Octavia began, giving him a quizzical look. Treble let out a tiny sigh, which Octavia had to hold back from chuckling at. She always found it adorable when he tried to act like a fully grown stallion. “One night when you were away I needed a glass of water after I’d gone to bed. I went to go and get Aunt Lyra or Bon Bon from their room, but when I knocked on the door they didn’t answer, so I went in to their room and they were both asleep in bed cuddling each other. Mother?” Octavia hadn’t been listening to any of this, she been racking her brain for a simple explanation that would satisfy Treble. One suddenly came to mind. “Well Treble, you know how when you used to be scared of the dark you used to climb into bed next to me” “Yes” “Well…..” Octavia stumbled as she lost her train of thought “…well Aunt Lyra’s afraid of the dark, so she sleeps in the same bed as Aunt Bon Bon so she won’t be as scared” She was mentally kicking herself at how cheesy this lie sounded in her head. “Oh” Treble smiled. Octavia pulled him in closer and whipered in his ear “In fact, why don’t you go and wake her up and tell her how big ponies aren’t scared of the dark” Treble instantly leapt of the bed and ran for the door “Ok!” Octavia chuckled to herself as she watched Treble squeeze his body back through the small gap in the doorway, before leaning over Whooves and giving him a kiss on the cheek. Whooves slowly batted his eyelids open to find Octavia looking down on him. “Still as beautiful as the day I first met you” he smiled. “I highly doubt that dear” Octavia rolled her eyes “The first time you met me I’d passed out from smoke inhalation, or so you say anyway” They both shared a kiss before Octavia rolled back onto her back, looking up at the ceiling, Whooves choosing to roll onto his side and rest his head on one of his forehooves. Octavia let out a sigh “Whooves, about last night…” Whooves put a hoof to her lips “I don’t want you to go into it to much if you don’t want to, but there’s one thing that played on my mind all night. Who or what could cause you to have a nervous breakdown like you did last night” Octavia became very quiet, staring off into space towards the French Windows on the other side of the room “I know this is going to sound crazy, but it was a mare…and looked exactly like Vinyl” Whooves scoffed “Now you know as well as I do that there is no way that it could have been. It’s now been just over five years since the fire at the Symphony Hall, and since then I’ve haven’t heard of any unicorn mastering a resurrection spell!” “Whooves!” Octavia narrowed her eyes as she crossed her forehooves. Whooves backed down, and wrapped one of his forehooves round Octavia’s waist, pulling her closer to him “I’m sorry” he gently began to rub her belly with one of his hooves “I know how closer friend she was to you. You’ve kept telling me recently how tired you’re tending to get, perhaps you mistokk the figure of some common thief pony hoping the room would be empty so they could steal a few items” Octavia relaxed her muscles as Whooves’ rubbing continued, her head sinking back into the pillow slightly more and unfolding her forehooves as she felt at peace once more. “So what did you have planned for today?” Whooves asked, changing the subject to fit the more calmer mood. “Well, I’m booked in at the Symphony Hall for a practice session to get used to the acoustics of the hall this afternoon, so how about me, you and Treble go and take a slow walk along the old Canterlot Canal towards the hall and grab some brunch on the way. No doubt Treble will want to see the exterior of the Symphony Hall before I go and practice” she grinned “I think that shows he’s going to make a fine musician of himself” Whooves sniffed, getting the hint that she was teasing him “That’s the strangest pronunciation of the word ‘Doctor’ I’ve ever heard!” “How about we just meet halfway and say he’ll be a doctor of music?” Whooves pondered on this “Sounds reasonable. Where is he anyway, knowing him he should be wide awake by now” As if on queue Treble’s high pitched scream was heard from down the hallway. Not two seconds had passed before he frantically squeezed his way through the doorway and pounced onto the bed once more, his eyes widened in panic. Before either Whooves or Octavia could ask him what had happened the door to the room was flung open, revealing the imposing figure of Lyra framed in the doorway, a large brown fluffy dressing gown clinging to her body. “Afraid of the dark my flank, Octavia!” Completely dumbfounded by the situation Whooves turned to look at Octavia, who just grinned as her cheeks blushed a deep red. “Wow” Treble’s jaw dropped as he gazed upon the façade of the Symphony Hall. The white marble used in its construction almost glowing in the afternoon sunlight as the golden statures of pegasi, unicorns and earth ponies positioned round the roof shined like mirrors, reflecting the suns rays down onto the open market square just outside its entrance. Octavia, Whooves and Treble were standing just a few yards back from the steps leading up to the oak doors of the Hall, it towering impressively over them and dwarfing them. Octavia sat down on the ground, resting her heavy cello case she had been carrying on the ground next to her, with it’s strap still wrapped round her. She glanced at the clock tower at the other end of the square “Well, it’s almost time for me to begin with my practice” She leant down on her forhooves and gave Treble one last hug, before standing up to look at Whooves “I’ll see you both later then” “I would say good luck” chuckled Whooves “But I know for a fact you won’t need it” They rubbed noses with each other, and with one final smile Whooves and Treble set out into the town. Octavia clambered up the stairs to the foyer of the hall with her cello case, turning round to catch on last glimpse of her husband and son. Spotting in them in the small crowd, Treble had now climbed up onto Whooves back and was standing on his hind legs, drooping his body and forelegs over the top of his head. She smiled to herself as she turned and opened one of the large wooden doors with one of her forehooves. As much as she knew he never liked to show it in public, Whooves was certainly overjoyed at being a father. Treble clung onto Whooves mane as he walked down one of the streets branching off the market square. “So Treble” Whooves stopped walking in order to gain a greater sense of balance “Mother’s going to be an hour in the Symphony Hall at least, so where do you want to go first?” “The park” Treble clung onto Whooves mane tighter, causing him to wince. “The park it is then” Having realised that making his balance perfect was now out of the question, Whooves set off down the street once more with Treble. Neither of them noticing the unicorn leant up against a lamppost and reading a newspaper near to where they had been stood. The mare’s faded blue mane was tied back into a small but neat ponytail, making it take on a sleek appearance, but the most noticeable thing about her was the white porcelain ballroom mask, however it wasn’t noticeable until up close due to how it blended with her white coat, which was mostly covered up in a black cloak, draping down to the ground. Watching them walk off, the figure folded up their paper and began to walk in the direction of the Symphony Hall. “Once again, may I say what an honour this is, Mrs Whooves” Octavia rolled her eyes as one of the managers complimented her for the umpteenth time as he held open the door for her. He was a rather young cream coloured pony with a rather untidy cut of golden hair. A red cotton waistcoat tightly encased his white shirt and black bowtie, whilst a rather ill fitting grey overcoat hung off his thin body. Stepping through into the stalls the mass cavern of the auditorium enveloped them, almost making the interior of the building look bigger on the inside. Craning her neck to look around the lavish interior took Octavia’s breath away. Every red felt cushion on the seats was still plump and padded, every brass railing gleamed from hours of rigorous polishing and all the bulbs in the light fixtures were still glowing at the same level of brightness. “They certainly spared no level of detail when they rebult the hall” Octavia remarked as they ascended a small wooden staircase up onto the stage. “No Mrs Whooves” the manager replied “Truth be told this whole redesign of the hal was inevitable though, as it turns out after the last performance that was given in the old hall the building was to be gutted internally and rebuilt” “And why was that?” “Well, apparently there was to much timber used in the construction of the old hall. Several ponies feared that with the heat of the lamps it could cause the place to turn into an inferno should a fire arise. There’s no doubt the fire that destroyed the old hall proved that theory correct” Taking her cello case off her back and setting it down on the stage Octavia clicked back the catches and lifted the lid to reveal her highly polished instrument, taking a few moments to admire it. Oh, if only it could retell the musical journey it had been on with her, she thought, thinking back to when she had first received it from her parents on Hearth’s Warming several years ago up until this point in time. Her thoughts were interrupted by a cough from the stage manager. “If there’s anything you require, I’ll just be out in my ticket office in the foyer” “Thank you” Octavia smiled, lugging her cello out of its case and positioning herself on her hind legs as she prepared to practice. The manager walked out into the gleaming foyer, looking down at the polished marble floor and grinning at his reflection in its shine before continuing to walk onwards. He was surprised though when he came across a red notebook thrown on the floor just outside the booking office. Picking up and examining it he found it was the log for who was going to be practising in the auditorium at what time and date, left open on todays date. He looked about the empty foyer, finding it devoid of any life. Casually shrugging it off he carried the notebook back to the booking office, not noticing the cloaked figure slipping through the auditorium doors. With one final sweep of the bow across the strings, Octavia finished playing. Allowing herself to reflect on her playing, she rested against her cello and closed her eyes as she began to gather her thoughts, until… Clap. Clap. Clap. Octavia snapped out of her thoughts and looked out into the stalls where the sound had come from from. There was no one there. “Bravo Madam!” The voice of a mare came from the domed roof and echoed throughout the auditorium “Just as good as when I last heard you play” Octavia could feel the fear beginning to well inside her, she turned round and found herself looking at the back wall of the stage, with several stepladders and stage pulleys in front of it. She turned round and clung onto her cello ever more tightly as the mare spoke again “It’s funny isn’t it, this isn’t the first time we’ve met recently yet you still can’t tell who it is. I would have thought you would have recognised a voice like mine, you always commented on how nice it could sound when I spoke softly” Octavia simply stood in the silence, still resting up against her Cello, looking around and trying to pin point where the voice was coming from. She looked out into the mass cavern of the concert hall; just in time to see an indistinguishable cloaked figure sitting atop of the chandelier disappear in a red flash of magic. She could still sense somepony was there though, watching her from the shadows. Nervously, she flicked her hair back as she prepared to begin playing again. Her bow was about to touch the strings of her cello when she felt a hoof tap her back. She froze, not knowing if she should turn to look round or not. The only noise that now echoed through the auditorium was the sounds of Octavia and the mystery pony breathing. Slowly Octavia stepped down off of her hind legs onto all fours and laid her cello down on the stage floor, taking extra care to make sure it was firmly on the ground. Resting the bow on top she took a deep breath as she prepared to face her mystery stalker. The pony tapped her back once more “Octy?” “Octy?” Octavia swung round sharply. She found herself staring straight into the eyes of Vinyl Scratch, framed in the eye holes of her white porcelain ballroom mask. Author's Note So much for the couple of weeks deadline for an update I originally posted in the comments, eh? :P This chapter was stuck on roughly 700 words for a good chunk of the time, mainly due to me not being able to finish certain scenes in the chapter the way I wanted to. That seems to be a bit of a recurring theme for me, I'll be able to get a scene started and then I can keep adding to it and adding to perfectly OK, but then I just don't seem to be able to stop! Also, during writing this chapter I suddenly realised where I'd heard the name 'Treble' before in ponies. It's the name of the Theatre Owner in episode three of Midnight Magic Productions Doctor Whooves Advntures! Those of you who have seen/listened to "Love Never Dies" will probably have guessed that the next chapter will be the "Beneath a Moonless Sky" style one, and being a pivotal point as such I'll take longer writing it,to get it just right.
Mare of DarknessFive years previously the Canterlot Symphony Hall burnt to the ground in mysterious circumstances… Although the culprit was suspected, no trace of them could be found… It was assumed they died in the fire. But that was not the case… The sewers of Canterlot were baron and deserted, though they were spotless, clean and free of rats unlike what the Ponies in the world above suspected. Moonlight shined through the metal drain covers in the ceiling illuminating the bricks on the walls of the tunnels at regular intervals, with all of the bricks still as smooth and flush in their mortar as the day they had been set down. Down below it was dark, safe and surprisingly warm. That was why it’s single inhabitant liked it so. Down in the darkest depths no one could find her, she was safe. The electric colours had gone from her now untidy and knotted mane, and her coat was now a dirty and grubby shade of grey compared with how much of a radiant and bright white it used to be. He face was nothing compared with how it used to be; scars, cuts and bruises now adorned it, turning what was once a beautiful and perfect face into that of a demon. The mare slowly walked into one of the many large side chambers of the sewers. Made as excess space for heavy flood water to flow, she had worked out how to operate the door controls to one of the chambers, and closed the large, rusty steel door behind as she entered the chamber. At the end of the room, sitting in the shadows, with simple silver lines showing the moonlight reflecting off some of the metal pipes, was one of the very few possessions the pony owned, a beaten, battered, unpolished and slightly rusted pipe organ. The fact as to whether the pony legally owned the instrument was debatable. Since the fire in the Symphony Hall five years ago, the remains of the building had been gradually disposed of as plans for the new building took shape. Amongst the wreckage were the remains of the giant organ that used to rise from under the stage. Under the cover of night, over several weeks the pony had sneaked from the sewer and salvaged all the parts of the organ they could find in the wreckage. Several of the pieces were damaged or destroyed, resulting in the remade organ having a ramshackle look to it, with some of the missing pipes being made from sewage pipes and the outer casing being made from old packing crates. But the mare that had rescued it had got it to work again, and that was all she cared about. Having some way to make music, and if it meant she had to do it in an unconventional way, then so be it. The pony sat on the stool in front of the great instrument and gazed up at its pipes reaching up into the darkness that was the roof of the chamber. Inspiration, that was what she needed. She held her head in her hooves as she thought hard about her music, reminded of her past by the severe battle scars on her face. Like a flash an idea came to her mind, and she grabbed a pair of tinted glassed from the music stand above the keyboard and placed them over her face. Now unable to see the organ keys in front of her, the pony relied on her mind to direct her to the right notes to play. She raised her hooves high above her head then slammed them down onto the lowest keyboard of the organ, producing a deep bass chord that almost sent her flying backwards off the stool. The pain the powerful sound waves made on her weak body wasn't important now; all that was important was that the chord sounded perfect. Motivated by the sweet sounding notes, the mare lifted her hooves off of the keyboard and repeated the action, this time striking a set of chords an octave higher than the last. Again she struck the keyboard, another octave higher. And again, even higher. As she raised her hooves to strike again she stopped suddenly, her mind filled with a memory she wanted to forget. Wanting to strike out at her subconscious she ripped the glasses from her face and threw them down cobbled floor, scattering the shards of the glass lenses across the floor of the room. She slumped down over the keyboard and buried her head in her hooves as she cried and tried to forget, causing the organ to let out a deep, powerful clash of notes. A few brief minutes passed before the mare lifted her head and looked down at the floor at her broken glasses. Just by looking at them she was filled with hate, to her they showed her what her life used to be like, full of parties, and loud music….and friendship. In one case more than just friendship, love. A love which would never die inside her heart. She used the power of her unicorn’s horn to gather the entire tiny, bead like glass fragments and glasses frame and rest them on top of her organ casing. She looked at them in disgust. It wasn't as if she was going to wear them again, she felt as if she would be hanged if anyone ever saw her again and realised who she truly was. If she was ever to venture out into daylight again she knew she’d need something that would cover her face more to hide the horrific injuries and stop drawing attention to herself. Getting down from the organ stool the thoughts of her undying love filled her mind as she walked over to a pile of rags that made a rough bed, removing a battered leather bound scrap book from underneath. Flicking through the pages she was reminded of her past, photographs of her and the friends she had made throughout her life were plastered onto the pages. As she proceeded to flick through even more of the book newspaper articles began to appear, not documenting the exploits of her though, but of another mare. She extended a hoof and gently touched one of the photos she had taken of this mare, in her simple white collar and pink bow-tie, leant up against her cello. She sobbed as she spoke to herself “My Octavia, I’ve lost you” Other photos also appeared of Octavia as the mare continued looking through the pages, far more than of any other pony in the book, proving that the mare had a strong connection to this mare, almost an obsession. The photos showed the lifestyle the two had had, even becoming flat mates in the final months they knew each other. In all that time the mare had felt wild feelings of passion for her, yet had never had the guts to admit it to her. Then, the night when she finally plucked up the courage to confess to her, it happened. The fire at the Canterlot Symphony Hall. Several cuttings in the book revealed to the mare the extent of the damage to the building and the lives lost. She felt the injuries to her face as she remembered that night in vivid detail, the surge of magic from her horn, the blazing heat, the orange flames, the screaming, Octavia screaming. She remembered how she had had no option but to run from the building, she hadn't even had the chance to rescue Octavia due to how she was cut off from her. She knew she’d hurt her face because she could feel the blood trickling down her forehead and cheek, but she felt no pain. The shock of what was happening cancelled out any pain in her body. Once outside the great building she turned back to look at the scene of destruction, just in time to see the great glass dome on top of the building collapse in on itself and into the inferno, sending embers high into the Equestrian night sky. One of the ponies in the crowd of survivors had caught sight of her and alerted the Royal Guards, who had chased her through the labyrinth of the city. It was as she’d been running that she’ noticed a drain cover, presumably opened by some curious colts and fillies. Never had she been more thankful for them as she dived down the hole an pulled down the cover after her. Now, stuck down here, her only connection with the outside world was when she would come across a discarded newspaper on one of her food scavenging hunts at night. Looking through the cuttings she had collected she had found out that Octavia had survived the fire, despite being hospitalised for several weeks due to smoke inhalation. She'd climbed the social ladder of Canterlot remarkably well with her musical talents and was now taking requests to play in venues all over Equestria. The mare turned to the final page of the book, where her most prized photograph of Octavia was kept. It was a simple shot of the both of them asleep together on the sofa of the flat they shared together, taken by their old friend Lyra, whom at the time had thought they looked adorable together. Although denying such a thing at the time, the mare couldn't keep secret the feelings she had for Octavia. Realising she had ruined any chances of living a normal life again she began to close the book up again, but paused briefly on one of the pages. On the page was a birthday card with the simple image of a double quaver, the cutie mark the mare had on her flank, or at least it was the last time she looked at it. That also reminded her of the past, and she hated it, keeping it covered with a long coat she had come across over the last five years. Opening up the card she read to herself the message inside. “To Vinyl. Have a big happy birthday you silly pony! From your best friend, Octavia” This message was enough to make Vinyl feel like she'd been stabbed right in the heart. She felt the sadness and loneliness flow through her as she placed the book back under her bed. Sobbing in the semi darkness she laid down on the rags and cried herself to sleep. She wanted Octavia back. Author's Note So, there we have it. The first chapter of my new piece. Sorry if this isn't to everyone's liking, so far the ratings seem to be portraying it as a 'Marmite' story, you either love it or you have it! :P I decided to base this story on "Love Never Dies" for a very important factor, which is keeping the story flowing. With my current other piece, "Equestritania", the plot is totally up for me to decide and whilst I have got a good idea as to where I want the story to go, I feel as though I seem to getting myself into a corner with that piece that I might not be able to get out of! Having this piece based on something means that I roughly know what the plot should be from start to finish, and makes it easier for me to write in my opinion. For those of you who are wondering this initial chapter was based on the opening song "Till I hear You Sing", Viewable here
A Chance EncounterA deep tone from the ships whistle announced to the passengers that their destination was fast approaching. Several of them had come out onto the promenade deck to witness the final moments of the voyage. The shipping lane for approaching the port at Canterlot took the ship at a low height over the top of the city, before turning sharply and sailing back on itself to come into the port facing the right direction. Octavia was also one of the passengers on deck, leaning over the railings in her large green floppy hat looking down on the tiny figures in the streets below, thankful that she was to far away from them for them to make out her appearance. As much as she had enjoyed fulfilling her musical career, the popularity she had gained frustrated her at times. The attention she received from fans of her music she could deal with, it was the attention from the press that got to her the most. She felt as if they were stalking her and took every free moment she had away from them for granted. The stories that had been printed recently had almost driven her to the edge of insanity. All she done was had one drink at a bar to calm her nerves before her latest concert, and now the press seemed to making out that she was an alcoholic. This wasn’t the life she’d wanted, hiding behind oversized sun hats and always on the move, she’d wanted a simple life with her music, maybe with a thatched cottage somewhere with a roaring log fire and just the sweet sounds of her Cello filling the room. She was prepared to give anything to have that sort of life. “I didn’t expect to find you out here so early” a voice said from besides her. Octavia turned her head left to find her travelling companion besides her, Doctor Whooves. What Whooves lacked in his musical talent he made up for in his sense of geography, history and companionship. She smiled at him “I just wanted to witness my final moments of peace before we land. Even if we did book tickets on a ship that arrived at seven o’ clock in the morning, no doubt there will be somepony from the press wanting to interview me about the Symphony Hall” “Well, it’s a big thing” Whooves rested his front hooves on the railings of the ship and joined her in looking down on the streets below “The new Canterlot Symphony Hall has just been completed after five years of construction. Considering that you would have perished in the building if I hadn’t dragged your unconscious body out, it’s not surprising that the press are trying to find out what your expectations for it are” Octavia remained silent, looking down. “Sorry” Whooves said, noticing the sadness in her eyes “I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories” “No, it’s ok” Octavia sighed, flicking her long black hair behind her head “It wasn’t all bad. If it wasn’t for that fire I wouldn’t have met you” She leaned on Whooves “And neither of us would have this life we live together” Slowly, the great ship began to descend down to the port of Canterlot. Vinyl carefully shut the drain cover behind her and readjusted her black cloak and hood before setting off down the street. The pain in her stomach told her that she desperately needed something to eat, but having lived in the sewers for five years she knew that such a luxury was hard to come by on the deserted streets of Canterlot, and if it did ever come by it was hardly ever enough to satisfy her hunger. There were the occasional nights when soup kitchens and charity dinners were organised for the homeless, but even then she chose to wait till long after they had finished and raid the waste bins for any available scraps that were clean enough to eat. Her reputation had been shattered long ago, if she was to turn up publicly to such an event she was sure she would be arrested, she couldn’t risk it. It was far easier to live in the shadows and remain a mystery. Turning down one of the narrow alleyways behind a tavern, she heaved back the lid of the first dustbin she came across. All that she came across that was to her interests was the previous day’s copy of the Canterlot Herald, slightly stained, but still readable in most places. She put back the lid and sat on top of it on her haunches, flicking the paper open to see if there was anything of interest inside of it. It was still early in the morning so she didn’t have any fear of anyone disturbing her. After a short while though she became aware of somepony walking towards her and reached up, pulling the front of her hood down, making sure most of her face was hidden from this newcomer. “I’d be moving along if I was you” He said. Vinyl could tell from his gruff voice that he was obviously used to a life living on the streets. She spoke without even looking at him “Why should I, it’s not as if I'm offending anyone” No sooner had she finished saying that Vinyl felt the stallions hoof shoot out and grab her by the throat, pulling her off the bin and pinning her against the wall, but thankfully for her her eyes were still covered by her hood. The stallion spoke in anger through clenched teeth “Because this is my turf, and I don’t want to share it with anyone else!” “Y-You’ve no idea who I am, do you?” Vinyl gasped, trying to tug away his hoof with her own. “Why?” spat the stallion “Should I?” Vinyl threw her hood back and revealed her face to the stallion, her deep magenta eyes staring straight through him. Thinking this would be a major deterrent for her enemy Vinyl was caught completely off guard as she felt a mighty punch strike her face and knock her to the floor. She blacked out. Octavia and Whooves had both been surprised to find one of the cafes opened at a surprisingly early time in Canterlot. Securing themselves a table out in front of the building they slowly drank their tea together as they witnessed the sun rise up and the town wake with it. All the time Octavia seemed to be looking over her shoulder, as if she was expecting somepony to be there. “Relax Octavia” Whooves said, raising his cup “It’s early in the morning, you can take off that hat of yours, it’s not as if there’s anypony around at this time who could bother you to much” “yes, but if I do take it off no doubt the press will be all over us as soon as they know that I’m here, trying to make out that us drinking tea at this café is both of us practising playing ‘happy families’” she raised her hooves and made imitation quotation marks in the air, emphasising her disgust “What they think goes on behind closed doors of certain ponies homes astounds me sometimes!” “Well, if that’s what they want to think, then let them think it” Whooves swirled the tea leaves in his cup before gulping them down “It’s not as if they have any hard evidence that could prove it” “But that’s just it Whooves, they don’t need it. The name ‘Canterlot Herald’ is enough to convince anypony these days!” She gave a deep sigh then returned to her drink before continuing. Whooves extended a hoof and patted Octavia’s hoof on the table “Don’t worry, some other story will come up and they’ll loose all interest in you” Snap! A photographer on the other side of the square caught a photograph of both of them just as Whooves rested his hoof on Octavia’s. Not doubting that he would get good money for such an image, he disappeared into the down the narrow alleyway he had come from and back to the head office of the Canterlot Herald. A throbbing pain filled Vinyl’s head as slowly she began to come round. Waking up on the floor of the cobbled alleyway confused her and she pulled her hood over her eyes as she replayed what she could remember in her mind before she blacked out. The dustbin, the newspaper, the stallion… ah, yes, the stallion. The pain of her fresh injures began to intensify as steadying herself with the wall, she dragged herself upright. Looking about she suddenly realised how late in the morning it was, the sun of Celestia was already raised high into the sky lighting up everything it could. She rubbed her aching temples as the nearby clock tower struck the hour. Nine o’ clock. Vinyl’s eyes bulged in their sockets. In all the years she’d been living down in the sewers she’d never dared to stay above ground for this long into the morning, she had to return down below, quickly. Noticing a nearby drain cover she gave a great heave. A sickening clang of metal against metal told her it was locked. Realising that a cloaked figure checking all the drain covers one by one would raise to much suspicion if she was spotted, she carefully thought out where the nearest cover would be that she knew would always be open. Vinyl clapped her hooves together as the location came to her, behind the Café in the town square. She made sure her hood was pulled down over her head as much as it would go and her body was covered with her cape as much as it could be, she knew she’d only get one chance at making it there. Vinyl broke out into a run as she shot out from the alleyway. She didn’t even want to contemplate what would happen if she didn’t make it back there. “But going back to what you said earlier, I suppose your right Whooves” Octavia pushed her empty cup to the centre of the table “The sooner I stop hiding behind these wide brimmed hats will probably be for the better. Let’s go to the house, I’ll drop off this hat, and then maybe we can actually enjoy ourselves before the concert in a few days time” They both stood up from the table and turned down now busy the street to leave. But as Octavia turned she felt something large collide with her and fall to the floor, knocking her hat off her head as it did so. Taking a few seconds to recover Octavia looked down on the pony she’d just knocked over, seeing their faded white fur laying back on the thick black cloak they were wearing. Octavia’s hat had landed on their face when they fell, hiding it from view. Octavia leaned down and gently shook the pony with her hoof “Hello? Are you ok?” The white front hooves of the pony reached up and pressed Octavia’s hat to its face “Don’t look at me!” she screamed. The figure briefly peeled away part of the hat from her face revealing a large magenta eye to both Octavia and Whooves, before quickly masking it behind the hat again when she realised they were both still there. She got up rather unsteadily off of the ground and disappeared into the small crowd that had gathered around them. Both Octavia and Whooves stared at eachother in disbelief, but Octavia began to think more about the pony she’d just encountered. Those piercing magenta eyes seemed all too familiar to her. “It couldn’t be, could it?” she thought to herself. Noticing a few reporters trotting towards them from down the street both Octavia and Whooves walked away from the café in the opposite direction. Vinyl slammed the drain cover shut and immediately laid down on the floor of the sewer, panting and gasping for breath, had she really just seen who she thought she had? Was Octavia really back here in Canterlot? She was still clinging onto the green floppy hat and frantically flipped it over, looking at the inside brim. Her suspicions were confirmed by a small label sewn into the hat, a small label that simply read ‘Octavia’ with a purple treble clef next to it. The simple piece of clothing now felt like a holy grail in Vinyl’s hooves. It felt almost like a passport that enabled her the right to be amongst the ponies in the world on top. She knew she just had to meet Octavia again, but how to do it when the world was against her? The thought suddenly came to her. A disguise! A mask! That way she would be able to move freely amongst the Canterlot Civilians. Pulling own her hood and placing Octavia’s hat on her head, she slowly trotted off into the darkness and towards her chamber. Although she knew the risks involved, she decided that now she would finish what she intended to achieve five years ago, she would confess her love to Octavia. Nothing could possibly stop her this time. “But I’m telling you Whooves, those eyes, that face. I’ve seen them somewhere before, I just can’t think where” “I’m sure there’s some reasonable explanation Octavia. Forget about it. It was just a common beggar pony, you see them everywhere, maybe that’s where you’ve seen that face before” Whooves pressed the doorbell to the tall terrace house once more, admiring the neat, curved hand writing in the nametag above it, ‘L. Heartstrings & Bon Bon’. “Do you reckon he’ll still recognise us?” Octavia asked. “Of course he will, he’d recognise you anywhere!” Both of them could hear a fumbling at the doorknob on the other side of the door and with a faint click, it unlocked and began to slowly swing backwards, inch by inch. A tiny light grey colt with short untidy black hair struggled to open the door. His coat had a slight tinge of brown to it and he’d had to stand right up on his hind legs and stretch out his front hooves in order to reach the door handle. His face lit up when he saw the two of them stood out on the doorstep. “Mother!” he almost squeaked as he ran out the door and straight into Octavia’s front hooves, giving her a great big hug, clinging tightly to her. Octavia hugged her son in return, before lifting his head to look at her “Treble, aren’t you forgetting someone?” The tiny colt looked across at Whooves “Father!” he ran across and they hugged each other, sharing a brief moment together. “Hello Treble” Whooves smiled as he ruffled his hair. “Have you had a nice time staying at Aunt Lyra an Bon Bon’s?” Octavia asked. Treble nodded “It’s been great!” He almost squeaked again, bouncing up and down as he did so “They’re waiting for you both inside” he turned around and almost galloped back into the house. Whooves turned to Octavia “See, I told you he’d remember you. And since he came to you first that further more backs up my theory that he’s a ‘mummy’s’ boy” He grinned at Octavia. Octavia said nothing, but just gave Whooves a playful shove as she carried her small luggage case into the house. Author's Note In my hand scrawled notes besides my laptop I've Octavia & Whooves son labelled down as "Treble Clef". I know that name sounded familiar with ponies but I couldn't find anything suggesting that it was an actual character, whether cannon or not. However, the main reason I honestley went for it was the slight pun in Whooves saying "Hello Treble" since when my father used to greet me he'd always say "Hello trouble!" Those of you who know the story of "Love Never Dies" will know that I've deviated from the plot quite a bit with this chapter and the original draft of this chapter did follow the musical more faithfully, but the problem was that it didn't really flow all to well with the last chapter, so I had to adapt quite a bit. I also liked this change more as it kind of leaves some of the readers guessing as to how far along Whooves and Octavia are with the relationship, revealing all right at the end. I will get the plotline more back on track and like the original over the next few chapters though, I wouldn't miss Vinyl parodying the Phantom's brilliant entrance through that set of double doors for the world!
Carnival of ScreamsOnce again Vinyl was sat on an Organ stool in the dark, though not in the sewers which she had grown to call home. The organ she was in front of was also vastly different from her own hoofbuilt one. The sparkling white ivory keys were set into a dark varnished case, there were no long metal pipes attached to the organ, they were stored just in front of the small platform on which the instrument sat, ready to burst into life. Vinyl squirmed in the long black topcoat she was wearing, it was far too big on her thin body, but it hid most of her appearance from view. Sweeping a hoof through her hair she pulled it back and tied all the strands together, making her faded hair take on a sleek new appearance. She reached into the pocket of the coat and brought out the finishing touch to her look, a simple black ballroom mask. She stared at it in her hoof, wishing she didn't always have to hide, but she knew what the consequences would be if she didn't. A noise like thunder erupted from above her interrupting her thoughts. Looking upwards at the thin wooden roof above she sighed slightly, it was noise she had heard far too often over the past two years, an applause. Being presumed dead had had its advantages for Vinyl in some cases. She’d been able to reinvent herself to a certain degree, and with a little help from the only two mares who still knew of her existence, had found a new way of making her musical soul speak to the crowds. Overhead she could hear the booming voice of a stallion, “Fillies and Gentlecolts! Welcome to The Carnival of Screams!” A freak show. That was where she worked. She heaved a heavy sigh as she attached the mask to her face and placed her hooves gently on the ivory keys, ready to push down and play the first notes as the stallion above finished his speech. The thought of earlier that day entered her head. Octavia? Back in Canterlot? It couldn’t be? But it had to be, no one else could look as naturally beautiful as that she thought to herself. Her thoughts were interrupted as the stallion above addressed the audience again. “Coming up next, a pony who remains as mysterious as her ability to produce sweet sounding music with bass notes. May I present to you all, Miss Linyv Scrape” How some ponies couldn’t see past a simple false name amused her greatly, and a great smirk appeared across her face. She pressed down on the organ keys as the roof above her opened up and the platform began to rise up and out onto the stage. The darkness of the night had taken Canterlot in its grasp as Octavia, Lyra and Bon Bon sat in the small living room of the apartment. Despite its size Lyra and Bon Bon had still managed to fit two reasonably sized sofas into the room, along with the other necessities such as a coffee table and book shelves. All three were sipping the contents of one of Bon Bon’s wine bottles. "So" Lyra swirled the contents of her glass "I take it that the latest concert went well?" “Far better than expected” Octavia smiled “But now it’s just nice to be ble to have a small rest before the next one. Having to many concerts in a short space of time sure does take it out of you” “Tell me about it” Bon Bon chuckled “There are times when I’ve come downstairs in the morning to find Lyra asleep on the sofa; she doesn’t even have the energy to climb the stairs!” Lyra rolled her eyes disapprovingly as Whooves came down the stairs and took a seat next to Octavia. “Trebles sound asleep now” he smiled “I doubt we’ll here from him again tonight” Octavia yawned “Speaking of sleeping, I think I might just turn in for night myself, I’ve hardly got any energy left” “You’ll need it for tomorrow, what with the masked ball in the evening” Whooves chuckled. Octavia gave him a quick kiss on the cheek “Goodnight dear” Whooves waited until she was at the top of the stairs before turning to Lyra and Bon Bon, seeming to produce a pack of cards out of nowhere. “Could I interest either of you two ladies in a game?” Vinyl had finished her set piece for the show, and was now having a few minutes of peace to herself backstage, sat on one of the many packing cases that were stacked up underneath the tiered seating, dimly illuminated by the faint light of an antique oil lamp. She’d still kept her hair tied back and her mask on. She was actually beginning to like it in that style and did consider keeping it like that. The sound of hoof steps approaching caused her to let out a heavy sigh, and she frowned and closed her eyelids as she saw one of the young stage-hands approaching her. He was a youngish stallion with a cream coat and golden brown man and tail. Vinyl had distaste for how eager this particular stage-hand was. His thirst for knowledge on how to play the organ like her was all he seemed to talk about whenever he was near her, and no doubt tonight wouldn't be any different. “That was another amazing performance Miss Scrape” Vinyl just tensed her lips slightly to show that she acknowledged him. “I-If you don't mind me asking” the stage-hand stuttered, cautiously taking another step closer to her "Why exactly do you wear that mask?" Vinyl’s eyes shot open, the sharpness of her pupils causing the stage-hand to freeze on the spot "To retain a little mystery? Show business isn't what it used to be" She paused slightly, before pointing to her mask, still on her face “Do you think that you could get one of these masks in white?” “I-I-I'm sure that we've probably got one somewhere” The stallion trembled. Vinyl gave a smirk in the golden light and leant over to the lamp, quickly blowing out the flame. Darkness swallowed both of them up, causing the stage-hand to panic even more. He could sense Vinyl was still there, but couldn't work out where. Then without any warning, he could feel her breathing into his ear. “Then get to it” she whispered, teasingly. The stallion jumped, banging into one of the seating supports in the darkness “Miss Scrape? Miss Scrape?” He fumbled about in the darkness, trying to make out objects with his sense of touch. A packing case, a packaging label, the lamp! Ah, the lamp! Now he felt as if he was getting somewhere. Unsure as to whether or not she was still there, he called out again. “Miss Scrape?” Nothing. More fumbling in the darkness led him to find a box of matches. He struck one, producing a tiny flame. Carefully lighting the lamp back up he slowly brought the flame to a greater size. Satisfied that he could now see properly the stage-hand picked up the lamp with one of his hooves and turned round to the great expanse of the wooden supports and packing cases. “Miss Scrape?” But Vinyl had fled long ago in the darkness, simply leaving her black mask on the floor in front of the stallion. He picked it up and looked at it, before looking off to where she had disappeared. “How does she do that?” Bon Bon gently placed the tray of empty wine glasses down on top of her kitchen counter next to the sink and turned on the water. She rested her head on her front hooves as she looked out of the kitchen window at the stars lighting the night sky. She closed her eyes as she turned off the tap, opening them again her eyes widened in shock and she jumped backwards, knocking the tray on the counter but preventing it from falling. There on the other side of the glass, with her face pressed up against the window, was Vinyl. The light reflecting through the glass making her scarred face look more menacing. “Careful Bon Bon, You’ve not even had a quarter of a bottle!” Lyra shouted from the lounge. Bon Bon poked her head round the doorway “Very funny Lyra” she paused awkwardly “Excuse me for one moment” Shutting the door to the lounge Bon Bon quickly went to the back door on the other side of the kitchen and began to open it, no sooner was there a tiny gap Vinyl darted through the door. “Bon Bon, I…” “Shhh” Bon Bon’s tone of voice was now one of slight frustration “Quiet, we have company in the next room” “Is she here?” “Is who here?” “Dammit Bon Bon, you know who I mean! Is Octavia here?” The veins in Vinyl’s head seemed to bulge slightly. Taking a moment to imagine what the consequences of her telling Vinyl might be, Bon Bon slowly nodded. “I’ve got to see her” Vinyl advanced towards the door, but Bon Bon blocked her path. “Vinyl, please, hear me out. Me and Lyra have helped you out as best we could over the past few years that you’ve been living in the dark, even managing to get you that small job” Vinyl shot her a glare “I don’t know how you can class playing music in a freak show as a job!” She spat “And either way, what little pay I get from it goes straight to you and Lyra. It’s not as if I could spend it in person” “Vinyl, that’s only because you're paranoid that you'd be caught. Everypony thinks that you died when the Symphony Hall burnt down, so it's not as if they'd be looking out for you. And even if they were, you've changed so much over the past few years, you've begun to take for granted what you had. You’ve changed so much from what you once were" Vinyl almost spoke a response, but when she opened her mouth no words came out as she thought over what Bon Bon had just said, long and hard. She simply looked down at ground and began to faintly sob. The tears running down her cheeks and dripping onto the polished wood floor. She felt the warmth of Bon Bon's body as she embraced her and after a slight pause Vinyl did likewise, continuing to sob into Bon Bon's shoulder. “I need to see her Bon Bon” Bon Bon drew back “As much as it pains me to say this Vinyl, I can’t let you. Octavia is one of the ones who still believe you died. Can you imagine what she would think if you just simply waltzed up to her?” Vinyl eyes pierced Bon Bon’s “Well it’s going to happen anyway” she freed herself from the embrace “So why not get it over with!” Bon Bon could see the anger swelling up inside of Vinyl “Don’t make me use force Vinyl” “You’ve got all the strength of a week filly Bon Bon!” Vinyl scoffed “Fine then, have it your way!” Vinyl turned and flung the outside door open, running back out into the night as the rain began to fall and the distant lightning flashed. The door behind Bon Bon creaked open slightly. “Bon Bon?” Lyra asked “Are you going to join us for some….” She paused when she saw her staring out of the open door “Bon Bon?” When Bon Bon slowly turned her head round Lyra could see the terror in her eyes, it could only mean one thing. “Was it Vinyl?” Lyra whispered. Bon Bon nodded “And she knows Octavia’s here” “What? How?!” “I sort of…told her without really thinking what could happen” Bon Bon bit her lower lip as Lyra shut the door with her magic. “Then one thing’s for certain” Lyra said “We’ll need to keep closer tabs on Vinyl” They both moved back into the living room where Whooves was finishing shuffling the cards “So, what game will it be?” A tiny high pitched scream sounded from above them, quickly followed by Octavia calling down. “Don’t worry, I’ve got it” Whooves chuckled slightly “Treble and his nightmares again!” Treble was pulling down his bed covers over his eyes. “Treble?” Octavia asked, sitting down on the end of his bed “Treble, what is it?” Treble peaked out from under his covers as Octavia put a hoof round him and hugged him “T-T-There was somepony a-at the window. It was a unicorn, and they looked horrible!” Despite only being four years old Treble could speak quite fluently, it was one of the things Octavia was most proud of her son for, his ability to learn quickly. She knew it was only a matter of time before he began learning music by heart and hoped of the possibility that it could be in the Cello. Octavia looked down on him “Do you want me to look for you and make sure they’ve gone?” Treble nodded, and clung to Octavia, hiding his face in her hair as she picked him up in one of her forehooves and walked over to the window. She chuckled slightly “There’s no one out there Treble” she looked at him, pulling the individual stands of hair apart in front of his eyes so he could peer out. “B-but there was someone there mother, I know there was” Treble protested as Octavia began to tuck him back into bed “They were a sort of whitish colour and had lots of cuts down their face" Octavia yawned. As much as she loved her son there were times when he could tire her out with little effort, this was one of them “Maybe it was just a shadow Treble, darling. You’ve mistaken shadows for ponies before” Treble thought about this quickly, pulling a thinking expression that Octavia found adorable, before letting out a tiny sigh “I guess you’re right” He snuggled down underneath his bed as Octavia put his rag pony doll under the covers with him. “Goodnight Treble” “Goodnight mother” She kissed him on the forehead and left the room. In the darkness Treble looked up at the window, tensing in fear as a black shadow swept across the light coming in. He clung tighter to his rag pony as he tried to get to sleep. Octavia gently opened the music box she had placed on her dressing table in her bedroom, it clicked into life and began playing its simple repetitive melody as she picked up a brush and started brushing her mane. On the inside of the lid of the box was one of her most prized photographs. It had been taken only a few hours after she had given birth to Treble Clef, and was of her holding him from her hospital bed, with Whooves stood behind them. Their first family photo. Refilled with happy memories of that day she finished her brushing and picked up her white porcelain ballroom mask, putting it to her face and admiring herself in the mirror before standing up and pirouetting a couple of times into the middle of the room, stopping to admire herself in her mask in the large mirror that hung above the small, ornate fireplace. Satisfied with her appearance she walked towards the closed French doors that lead onto the small balcony, ready to shut the curtains to her room. The lightning flashed outside her window, causing Octavia to pause and squint her eyes, staring deep into the darkness beyond her window. She was sure she could have seen a figure standing out there in the darkness. The heavy raindrops continued to pelt down from the sky, hitting the glass like a round of bullets before slowly trickling down to the balcony floor. Octavia rubbed her eyes and yawned “It’s been a long day” she muttered to herself, walking back towards the double bed on the other side of the room. In her slightly blurred vision the bed looked more inviting than ever. The quilt looked so thick and luxurious; the pillows looked as if your head would sink into them. Octavia pulled back the covers and gave her body one last stretch as she prepared to put down her ballroom mask. The lightning flashed outside again and this time, she was certain she could have made out a faint silhouette projected through the curtains in the corner of her eye. She stared at them, trying to work out if it was her imagination. When the lighting ceased to flash she decided to cautiously take a step over towards the windows, edging ever closer, and closer, still clutching her mask. She was just within five hoofsteps of the windows when, CRASH! The windows blew open inwards, sweeping the curtains aside as they did so. Stumbling backwards in shock and bumping into the end of the bed, Octavia's eyes were immediately drawn to the figure now stood impressive on the balcony outside, the pelting rain seeming to have no effect on them. The lightning crashed once more, lighting the figure up like the explosion of a firework, making their appearance instantly recognisable to Octavia. It was the Vinyl, a much shabbier, rugged, scarred, and demonic Vinyl, but there was no doubt that it was her. Octavia opened her mouth to scream, but no words came out as she frantically clawed at her surroundings with her hooves, trying to get as far away from her as she could as Vinyl strode into the room out of the rain, the marks on her face appearing now more predominately before Octavia's eyes. Overcome with emotion and fear, Octavia fainted into a heap on the floor, Vinyl running over to her and immediately cradled her body in her forehooves. She simply sat there, holding her for a few moments as she gazed upon Octavia's face. So simple, yet so beautiful, even more so with her eyes closed. “Oh Octavia” a weak smile came to Vinyl’s face as tears began to form in her eyes “I’ve missed you so much” Vinyl picked up the mask that Octavia had dropped on the floor besides her, admiring the craftsman ship of it. It was the type of mask Vinyl longed for to hide her hideous face. Beginning to come round, Octavia’s eyelids slowly fluttered open. It took a while for her eyes to focus on the figure holding her. When at last they did focus, her eyes almost popped out of their sockets at who she saw looking down on her. What she had seen hadn’t been a dream. This time she didn’t hold back, she screamed at the top of her lungs. Octavia’s scream had echoed throughout the house, and the sound of rapid hoof steps coming towards the room could be heard almost instantly. Realising there was little time to escape Vinyl instantly darted from the room through the French windows and slid down the drain pipe at the side of the balcony. Once firmly on the ground she quickly glanced up at the balcony to make sure she wasn't being watched. Seeing the coast was clear she ran off into the darkness of the night, still clutching Octavia’s porcelain ballroom mask. Whooves had ran to the bedroom as soon as he heard the scream. He burst into the room, almost taking the door off of its hinges. “Octavia?!” He ran over to her, cradling her shaking body in his forehooves “Octavia? Darling? What happened?” Octavia stared up at him, still trembling, before breaking down into tears and burying her head in his neck, sobbing loudly as Lyra and Bon Bon appeared in the doorway. Drained of all the energy in her body, Octavia soon fell asleep in Whoove’s hooves. “What is it?” Bon Bon asked curiously. Whooves shook his head “She won’t say. Though I’ve hardly ever seen her like this. Whatever it is that’s spooked her, it must have been something pretty disturbing” “Is there anything we can do?” Lyra asked, shutting the French windows with her magic. Whooves shook his head again “Thank you, but no. It’s been a long day, I think its best we try and get some sleep, then talk about it in the morning” Bon Bon nodded in agreement. “Bon Bon?” Lyra asked, taking her hoof in her own “Can I talk with you for a minute?” she dragged her out into the corridor. Octavia squirmed slightly. Convinced she was probably having a small flashback to what had scared her in her sleep Whooves began rocking her gently and stroking her long black hair, slowly making her calm down and sleep peacefully once more. Whooves sat there, staring out of the open window into the night, trying to work out what exactly had caused Octavia to be like this. Then he saw it. Damp patches on the carpet running from the windows to just in front of where he and Octavia were. Someone had been there. Lyra pressed Bon Bon up against the wall of the hallway “You just had to do it, didn’t you?” “Do what?” Bon Bon asked. “Tell Vinyl that Octavia was staying here with us, I told you she’d try to get at her. There’s no way that Vinyl would give up that easily” “But she was convincing when I talked to her earlier” Bon Bon paused “It’s not as she’s going to be coming back here to see Octavia though, is it?” “But she could try and see her again out on the streets, even though that would be far too dangerous. Even though everypony thinks she’s dead, half of them still talk badly of her” “Yes” protested Bon Bon “But what about the other half, the half that see her as a hero? The evidence that proved that was overwhelming” Lyra shook her head “Most ponies ignore the evidence if it contradicts their opinions. But mark my words Bon Bon, she’ll try to contact Octavia again. We haven’t heard the last of this” Author's Note You wouldn't believe how long it took me to get my ideas together for this chapter, what with suffering a small nervous breakdown in the past month. But thankfully, slowly chipping away at this chapter for half an hour, night after night, has actually helped to relax and calm my mind somewhat. Slowly but surely, I'm beginning to add more and more themes from the story of "Love Never Dies" into this. Sure there are going to be some obvious changes, but as long as I try and get the atmosphere of the piece right, I'd be pretty happy with that. Fun Fact: There are two references to Gerry Anderson's "The Secret Service" in this chapter. The first is Vinyl switching the first and last letter of her name round to create her alter ego, in the style of Herr Sakov in episode 8 'The Cure', and the second is that Vinyl and the stage-hand's conversation references one between two characters in episode 4 'The Feathered Spies': "Why do you choose to have these meetings at such an ungodly hour?" "To retain a little mystery? Espionage isn't what it used to be!"
The Figure on the ChandelierOctavia used to be an early riser, but since she had married she’d grown more accustomed to dozing in the warmth of the morning sun, feeling the warm breath of Whooves as they snuggled each other under the covers. She slowly opened her eyelids as she roused from a deep sleep to find Whooves’ big blue eyes softly looking back at her. He gently pulled back some of her mane that had swept across her face “Morning” Whooves smiled. “Morning” Octavia yawned “And just how long have you been awake?” “Long enough to see you sleeping like a filly” Whooves gently pecked her on the end of her nuzzle. “Well, I think I’ll probably be sleeping like that for a little while longer” Octavia pulled herself closer to Whooves and rested her head on his chest as he wrapped a forehoof round her, gently rubbing her back. Both of them intending just to blink their eyelids, they fell back to sleep in their embrace. The door to Octavia & Whooves’ room was quite heavy, but with a lot of effort the tiny figure managed to force open a gap just big enough for them to squeeze through. They silently slipped through the gap and continued to stalk their victims; they could see them both now, oblivious to the figures presence as they circled round them. The figure waited till they were in a position that left them directly between the two ponies for when they approached them. Their dark blue eyes narrowed with concentration as they crouched down, ready to pounce up onto the higher level that it needed to get to its target. They counted down silently in their head. 3, 2, 1… Springing from the floor, Treble landed with a soft thud on the bed, bouncing up and down repeatedly on the sprung mattress and causing Octavia to wake with a start as he continued to jump up and down. “Mother! Dad! Wake up!” he almost squeaked “The princess’ sun is already in the sky!” Octavia yawned as she reached out with her fore-hooves and brought her son in for a tight hug, burying her muzzle in his black crop of hair and giving him a kiss on his head, before turning him to face her. “You’ve obviously gotten your knack to wake up early from me” she chuckled. “Early?” Treble tilted his head sideways “Mother, its half past nine!” Octavia immediately threw a glance to her beside clock. Treble was indeed correct; it was half past nine in the morning. She looked back at him “And it seems you’ve got the time keeping skills of your dad!” Treble just grinned at Octavia before they both turned to look at Whooves, who was sprawled out on his back with this head poking out from under the bed sheets, his mouth agape with tongue lolling at the side. “Should I wake dad up?” Treble asked. Octavia thought about this, recounting the events that she could remember of the previous night she realised she would need a private word with Whooves. “Um, no dear” she picked Treble up in her forehooves and put him in a sitting position on her belly “But I’m sure Aunt Lyra and Bon Bon aren’t up yet, I think they’d like it if you woke them” “Ok, but…” “But what Treble?” “Well…” Treble twiddled his right forehoof on the bed covers, a sign Octavia had picked up showing that he was thinking about something “Why do Aunt Lyra and Bon Bon sleep in the same bed together?” Octavia’s eyes bulged in their sockets; she certainly hadn’t expected this question from her son, especially at his age! “H-How do you know they…” Octavia began, giving him a quizzical look. Treble let out a tiny sigh, which Octavia had to hold back from chuckling at. She always found it adorable when he tried to act like a fully grown stallion. “One night when you were away I needed a glass of water after I’d gone to bed. I went to go and get Aunt Lyra or Bon Bon from their room, but when I knocked on the door they didn’t answer, so I went in to their room and they were both asleep in bed cuddling each other. Mother?” Octavia hadn’t been listening to any of this, she been racking her brain for a simple explanation that would satisfy Treble. One suddenly came to mind. “Well Treble, you know how when you used to be scared of the dark you used to climb into bed next to me” “Yes” “Well…..” Octavia stumbled as she lost her train of thought “…well Aunt Lyra’s afraid of the dark, so she sleeps in the same bed as Aunt Bon Bon so she won’t be as scared” She was mentally kicking herself at how cheesy this lie sounded in her head. “Oh” Treble smiled. Octavia pulled him in closer and whipered in his ear “In fact, why don’t you go and wake her up and tell her how big ponies aren’t scared of the dark” Treble instantly leapt of the bed and ran for the door “Ok!” Octavia chuckled to herself as she watched Treble squeeze his body back through the small gap in the doorway, before leaning over Whooves and giving him a kiss on the cheek. Whooves slowly batted his eyelids open to find Octavia looking down on him. “Still as beautiful as the day I first met you” he smiled. “I highly doubt that dear” Octavia rolled her eyes “The first time you met me I’d passed out from smoke inhalation, or so you say anyway” They both shared a kiss before Octavia rolled back onto her back, looking up at the ceiling, Whooves choosing to roll onto his side and rest his head on one of his forehooves. Octavia let out a sigh “Whooves, about last night…” Whooves put a hoof to her lips “I don’t want you to go into it to much if you don’t want to, but there’s one thing that played on my mind all night. Who or what could cause you to have a nervous breakdown like you did last night” Octavia became very quiet, staring off into space towards the French Windows on the other side of the room “I know this is going to sound crazy, but it was a mare…and looked exactly like Vinyl” Whooves scoffed “Now you know as well as I do that there is no way that it could have been. It’s now been just over five years since the fire at the Symphony Hall, and since then I’ve haven’t heard of any unicorn mastering a resurrection spell!” “Whooves!” Octavia narrowed her eyes as she crossed her forehooves. Whooves backed down, and wrapped one of his forehooves round Octavia’s waist, pulling her closer to him “I’m sorry” he gently began to rub her belly with one of his hooves “I know how closer friend she was to you. You’ve kept telling me recently how tired you’re tending to get, perhaps you mistokk the figure of some common thief pony hoping the room would be empty so they could steal a few items” Octavia relaxed her muscles as Whooves’ rubbing continued, her head sinking back into the pillow slightly more and unfolding her forehooves as she felt at peace once more. “So what did you have planned for today?” Whooves asked, changing the subject to fit the more calmer mood. “Well, I’m booked in at the Symphony Hall for a practice session to get used to the acoustics of the hall this afternoon, so how about me, you and Treble go and take a slow walk along the old Canterlot Canal towards the hall and grab some brunch on the way. No doubt Treble will want to see the exterior of the Symphony Hall before I go and practice” she grinned “I think that shows he’s going to make a fine musician of himself” Whooves sniffed, getting the hint that she was teasing him “That’s the strangest pronunciation of the word ‘Doctor’ I’ve ever heard!” “How about we just meet halfway and say he’ll be a doctor of music?” Whooves pondered on this “Sounds reasonable. Where is he anyway, knowing him he should be wide awake by now” As if on queue Treble’s high pitched scream was heard from down the hallway. Not two seconds had passed before he frantically squeezed his way through the doorway and pounced onto the bed once more, his eyes widened in panic. Before either Whooves or Octavia could ask him what had happened the door to the room was flung open, revealing the imposing figure of Lyra framed in the doorway, a large brown fluffy dressing gown clinging to her body. “Afraid of the dark my flank, Octavia!” Completely dumbfounded by the situation Whooves turned to look at Octavia, who just grinned as her cheeks blushed a deep red. “Wow” Treble’s jaw dropped as he gazed upon the façade of the Symphony Hall. The white marble used in its construction almost glowing in the afternoon sunlight as the golden statures of pegasi, unicorns and earth ponies positioned round the roof shined like mirrors, reflecting the suns rays down onto the open market square just outside its entrance. Octavia, Whooves and Treble were standing just a few yards back from the steps leading up to the oak doors of the Hall, it towering impressively over them and dwarfing them. Octavia sat down on the ground, resting her heavy cello case she had been carrying on the ground next to her, with it’s strap still wrapped round her. She glanced at the clock tower at the other end of the square “Well, it’s almost time for me to begin with my practice” She leant down on her forhooves and gave Treble one last hug, before standing up to look at Whooves “I’ll see you both later then” “I would say good luck” chuckled Whooves “But I know for a fact you won’t need it” They rubbed noses with each other, and with one final smile Whooves and Treble set out into the town. Octavia clambered up the stairs to the foyer of the hall with her cello case, turning round to catch on last glimpse of her husband and son. Spotting in them in the small crowd, Treble had now climbed up onto Whooves back and was standing on his hind legs, drooping his body and forelegs over the top of his head. She smiled to herself as she turned and opened one of the large wooden doors with one of her forehooves. As much as she knew he never liked to show it in public, Whooves was certainly overjoyed at being a father. Treble clung onto Whooves mane as he walked down one of the streets branching off the market square. “So Treble” Whooves stopped walking in order to gain a greater sense of balance “Mother’s going to be an hour in the Symphony Hall at least, so where do you want to go first?” “The park” Treble clung onto Whooves mane tighter, causing him to wince. “The park it is then” Having realised that making his balance perfect was now out of the question, Whooves set off down the street once more with Treble. Neither of them noticing the unicorn leant up against a lamppost and reading a newspaper near to where they had been stood. The mare’s faded blue mane was tied back into a small but neat ponytail, making it take on a sleek appearance, but the most noticeable thing about her was the white porcelain ballroom mask, however it wasn’t noticeable until up close due to how it blended with her white coat, which was mostly covered up in a black cloak, draping down to the ground. Watching them walk off, the figure folded up their paper and began to walk in the direction of the Symphony Hall. “Once again, may I say what an honour this is, Mrs Whooves” Octavia rolled her eyes as one of the managers complimented her for the umpteenth time as he held open the door for her. He was a rather young cream coloured pony with a rather untidy cut of golden hair. A red cotton waistcoat tightly encased his white shirt and black bowtie, whilst a rather ill fitting grey overcoat hung off his thin body. Stepping through into the stalls the mass cavern of the auditorium enveloped them, almost making the interior of the building look bigger on the inside. Craning her neck to look around the lavish interior took Octavia’s breath away. Every red felt cushion on the seats was still plump and padded, every brass railing gleamed from hours of rigorous polishing and all the bulbs in the light fixtures were still glowing at the same level of brightness. “They certainly spared no level of detail when they rebult the hall” Octavia remarked as they ascended a small wooden staircase up onto the stage. “No Mrs Whooves” the manager replied “Truth be told this whole redesign of the hal was inevitable though, as it turns out after the last performance that was given in the old hall the building was to be gutted internally and rebuilt” “And why was that?” “Well, apparently there was to much timber used in the construction of the old hall. Several ponies feared that with the heat of the lamps it could cause the place to turn into an inferno should a fire arise. There’s no doubt the fire that destroyed the old hall proved that theory correct” Taking her cello case off her back and setting it down on the stage Octavia clicked back the catches and lifted the lid to reveal her highly polished instrument, taking a few moments to admire it. Oh, if only it could retell the musical journey it had been on with her, she thought, thinking back to when she had first received it from her parents on Hearth’s Warming several years ago up until this point in time. Her thoughts were interrupted by a cough from the stage manager. “If there’s anything you require, I’ll just be out in my ticket office in the foyer” “Thank you” Octavia smiled, lugging her cello out of its case and positioning herself on her hind legs as she prepared to practice. The manager walked out into the gleaming foyer, looking down at the polished marble floor and grinning at his reflection in its shine before continuing to walk onwards. He was surprised though when he came across a red notebook thrown on the floor just outside the booking office. Picking up and examining it he found it was the log for who was going to be practising in the auditorium at what time and date, left open on todays date. He looked about the empty foyer, finding it devoid of any life. Casually shrugging it off he carried the notebook back to the booking office, not noticing the cloaked figure slipping through the auditorium doors. With one final sweep of the bow across the strings, Octavia finished playing. Allowing herself to reflect on her playing, she rested against her cello and closed her eyes as she began to gather her thoughts, until… Clap. Clap. Clap. Octavia snapped out of her thoughts and looked out into the stalls where the sound had come from from. There was no one there. “Bravo Madam!” The voice of a mare came from the domed roof and echoed throughout the auditorium “Just as good as when I last heard you play” Octavia could feel the fear beginning to well inside her, she turned round and found herself looking at the back wall of the stage, with several stepladders and stage pulleys in front of it. She turned round and clung onto her cello ever more tightly as the mare spoke again “It’s funny isn’t it, this isn’t the first time we’ve met recently yet you still can’t tell who it is. I would have thought you would have recognised a voice like mine, you always commented on how nice it could sound when I spoke softly” Octavia simply stood in the silence, still resting up against her Cello, looking around and trying to pin point where the voice was coming from. She looked out into the mass cavern of the concert hall; just in time to see an indistinguishable cloaked figure sitting atop of the chandelier disappear in a red flash of magic. She could still sense somepony was there though, watching her from the shadows. Nervously, she flicked her hair back as she prepared to begin playing again. Her bow was about to touch the strings of her cello when she felt a hoof tap her back. She froze, not knowing if she should turn to look round or not. The only noise that now echoed through the auditorium was the sounds of Octavia and the mystery pony breathing. Slowly Octavia stepped down off of her hind legs onto all fours and laid her cello down on the stage floor, taking extra care to make sure it was firmly on the ground. Resting the bow on top she took a deep breath as she prepared to face her mystery stalker. The pony tapped her back once more “Octy?” “Octy?” Octavia swung round sharply. She found herself staring straight into the eyes of Vinyl Scratch, framed in the eye holes of her white porcelain ballroom mask. Author's Note So much for the couple of weeks deadline for an update I originally posted in the comments, eh? :P This chapter was stuck on roughly 700 words for a good chunk of the time, mainly due to me not being able to finish certain scenes in the chapter the way I wanted to. That seems to be a bit of a recurring theme for me, I'll be able to get a scene started and then I can keep adding to it and adding to perfectly OK, but then I just don't seem to be able to stop! Also, during writing this chapter I suddenly realised where I'd heard the name 'Treble' before in ponies. It's the name of the Theatre Owner in episode three of Midnight Magic Productions Doctor Whooves Advntures! Those of you who have seen/listened to "Love Never Dies" will probably have guessed that the next chapter will be the "Beneath a Moonless Sky" style one, and being a pivotal point as such I'll take longer writing it,to get it just right.
