Paradiso

by Syvvak

Rating: teen
Tags: Slice of Life, DJ P0N-3, Lyra, Fleur de Lis, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Romance, Octavia
Length: 34668

Octavia and Vinyl are rivals, and nopony knows why.

Octavia was always one for competition. Unless, that is, the competition is forced upon her by the mare of her nightmares. And it's not that she's ever had a problem with Canterlot nightlife; she just has a problem with ponies named Vinyl Scratch. Not that anypony knows why, though, and Octavia isn't about to share embarrassing secrets.

Story concept and first chapter by Lynked
And thanks to Noc for the editing.

Published 2013-02-20 17:10:02 UTC
Last updated 2014-12-01 20:38:24 UTC

Chapter 1

Paradiso

Chapter 1

Written by

Lynked

Story Concept by

Lynked

--------------------------------------------------

"No, I'm very serious. You're much too worked up over this."

Octavia laughed and called over the waiter for one more round of drinks, promptly ordering a slim glass of wine and flashing a confident smile; one that made Beauty Brass's frown lighten just a bit. As he left to fetch the drinks, Octavia flashed her grin to her friend instead. "Oh hush you, I'm in my element."

La Carte Exquisite was full, as usual, but talking was no hassle; most of the eloquent ponies of upper society had the decency to keep their conversations at their own tables. Waiters hurried through the swaths of red and gold tables and carpets on their way to and from the kitchens with platters of steaming food fit for a princess. Overhead hung a delicate chandelier that shimmered in the candlelight. The ambience was serene, topped off by the sweet notes of the violinist who was lost in her music on a stage pressed against the center wall.

Octavia and Beauty's booth, though, was a bit of a mess. There were the empty plates of food that told of a large meal that was waiting to be finished off by a thick creme brulee and a tall glass of wine. A few stains were splotched here and there, and Octavia had already abstractedly tossed her cloth to the tabletop.

"You always get like this," Beauty remarked as she swished around her own wineglass.

Octavia giggled. "Oh? Such as, excited?"

"No," her friend said, passing her an oblique glance. "Cocky. Overbearing. So full of yourself."

With the wave of a hoof, Octavia snorted and said, "Don't be so sardonic. I'm happy, let me have this. Join in with me! Be excited!"

Beauty Brass sighed and shook her head, a light smile tugging at her lips. "Right, right. Just mind yourself, won't you? Every once and a while you do get quite the big head."

The waiter returned and set the glass down before Octavia. She raised it for a quick inspection of the burgundy wine, before she took a quick sip that was followed by a content "Mmm". "I'll be sure to keep an eye on it."

There was a bit of silence while the two mares sipped their two drinks down.

"So then," Beauty piped up, her face alight, "it's hardly a question that I have to ask, seeing as it's almost everywhere, but..." She leaned in and passed a wry glance left and right. "A DJ? Really?"

Octavia leaned back with another of her grins. "Of course. New, I know. I hardly expected it, but... as they say, things happen."

A cough came from Beauty as she averted her eyes. "It's just so strange. I can't say I ever expected it either. Aren't you at all nervous? I surely would be."

"Ah, but dear," Octavia said, knocking off the last of her drink, "A DJ. Honestly, I can handle her. When she leaves tomorrow night, she'll not be able to think straight, that's how well I'll handle her."

Beauty Brass watched Octavia's brief crass with a grin of her own, her earlier ambitions lost in the wine she'd downed. "So long as I get my level-headed friend back when it's all said and done."

"Deal."

She let herself chuckle. Across the room, two red padded doors swung ajar as the waiter made his return again, this time with a large dish of burnt creme on a silver platter. Setting it down on the table he flashed them both an appreciative smile, which they promptly returned, until he slid them the bill and made his hasty retreat.

Carefully, Octavia slid the slice of paper towards her, around the warm bowl of creme. The instant her gaze landed on the number, she kicked the bill away and turned to her friend. "This thing was your idea you know."

Beauty gave a playful sigh. Spoon in hoof, she had begun chipping away at the caramelized dessert. "Well I will pay for it, and you the rest of the meal."

"Now you listen here--"

"Back to what I was saying," she interjected, slapping Octavia's spoon away from her bite of creme, "you and a DJ. I'd say that the whole of the Canterlot Music Society may be there to watch."

"And a few... lesser patrons," Octavia remarked objectively. "But indeed, a duel such as this... I daresay the concert hall will finally allow me my own timeslot."

Beauty and Octavia battled for a particularly sugared piece of crust, with the latter claiming victory and quickly taking it away. Beauty huffed and resigned herself to the edges. "But a music mixture such as this, I've never even heard of."

"Oh don't be ridiculous." Octavia chuckled. "It's been done much too much. Have you ever heard of 'Lyra Heartstrings’?"

Her friend rolled her eyes up in light thought. The occasional crunch and scrape from the other tables mixed with the violin in this brief pause. "No, I can't say I have. Why?"

"It's nothing much, really," Octavia said. Though, on another bite she paused, lowering the full spoon. "Well, I suppose it's more than nothing. It's a rather ghostly piece of art called 'Background Pony’. Seems that she's recently given the right to some DJ in Manehattan to do a... 'remix' of the songs." A shiver crept through her.

"You know, I think I have heard that..." Beauty, too, shuddered. "Noise. All noise."

"And here you were calling me uptight."

"No, I called you arrogant, and it was more of 'insisted' anyway." She leaned back and rubbed her full, slightly distended belly. "But that doesn't matter. What's her name? You know, the one you're to 'duel', as you said."

Octavia rubbed her chin lightly. "I can't quite call to mind her name, though it's probably the wine. I was only just told I was signed up for this yesterday."

"Or perhaps you truly have had a tad too much to drink." The cellist was content to simply roll her eyes, so Beauty sighed and inspected the bill again. "Let's be off then. I'm actually rather tired, and putting up with you isn't easy on me. I need to get you home."

Chuckling, Octavia took the last bite of her dessert. "I think I'm painted as ignorant, you know. I'm a grown mare, and I know a thing or two."

"I know, Octavia, I know."

She took a moment to adjust her pink satin bowtie while Beauty tossed out her share of bits. Octavia's followed suit. "Right then, I do need some rest for tomorrow. Come on, I'm on the verge of collapsing."

Beauty nodded, and they stood and took their leave. The triumphant grin returned to Octavia as she pushed the doors open and stepped out into the chilly autumn night.

The day was fleeting, and Octavia had gotten plenty of rest. Carefully combed, her mane fell to her side, and her coat held a certain sheen to it that was sure to luster in the hall's light. Light, she thought while it was still on her mind, that would instill awe when it shone off of her freshly polished cello. With cautious hooves she let it down into its velvet case and clicked the latches.

Then she passed a glance to her window, admiring the ephemeral streaks of pink and orange that blended to create a twilight violet aura across the sky. A brief moment of peace washed over her as she stared out the window of her modest home. Modestly large. Not the biggest on the block. Something of that sort.

It was gone in the blink of an eye, and her trademark grin returned. Calm, smooth control would return later; for now, there was a fire in her eyes. She slung the case onto her smooth, muscled back that years of abuse from the cello had given her. In a swift spin, she found herself facing her long foyer. The hollow clicks of her hooves hit the marble with an ominous echo.

Ominous for a certain somepony, anyway. Certainly, Octavia felt no ill omen in proving, once again, that she was by far one of the best musicians around. Just not too rudely, she reminded herself. Beauty Brass's words drifted through her thoughts again. Perhaps her ego did get a bit overblown at times. Not tonight, though, for there was no shame in winning a contest, especially one as easy as this. It would be fine art against a crayon scribble. Easy.

Out the door she went, being sure to securely shut it behind her, before she made her way down from her porch and onto the quiet street of her noble neighborhood. The Concert Hall was thankfully but a block away, so with the little time she had on this stroll she admired the smell of October and the colorful leaves that drifted through the streets. Every so often she'd pass a pony headed there who gave her their well-wishes and courtesy thoughts, which she took with grace.

She rounded the corner, breathing in the cool, calm night when her hooves locked. Ponies, maybe not even that, were lined against the wall of the eloquent, masterful building. A line was woven through its pillars that made it look like the Canterlot nightlife had decided to siege the building. "Not the crowd I had expected..."

Gaze glancing over the strange array of spiked manes and vibrant colors, she trotted past them all to the huge glass doors that a bouncer--yes, a bouncer--was protecting.

"Um, excuse me," she murmured as she attempted to slip past the hulking grey stallion.

He held out a hoof against which she promptly slammed. "I need your ticket, miss."

"Really? Really, you'll ask for my ticket when my face is printed on that poster there?" She thrust a hoof to the wall, where a poster of Octavia hung steadily. Cello against Computer, the annoying slogan blared.

The bouncer's berating green eyes flicked to it, then to her, then to it again before his hoof finally fell and she was permitted entrance to the hall. Snorting to the bouncer, she slipped through the doors and into the marble atrium that, too, was full of ponies wanted to see this spectacle unfold.

"Octavia!" a voice called for her. She blinked and turned to see where it had come from, though the noise echoed through the chamber so badly that the source was all but lost. The foyer was grand, with a huge chandelier hanging from the ceiling and dual stairs on either side of the rotunda to allow access to the upper balconies. It seemed that most of the ponies she would lend her company had already chosen to go here, she noted, while the other rainbow splatter of Canterlot nightlife was filing in through the ground floor doors into the main hall.

"Octavia, over here!" the voice called again. Ears flicking in response, she glared through the crowed like a hunter until her sight landed on a thin white mare who was waving her over to a door that was all the way to the right.

As she quickly trotted to her agent, questions boiling on her tongue, she noticed the mare's pink mane was a bit disheveled, and her hoof was slow. When they were face to face, the dark lines beneath her agent's eyes became noticeable as well. "Oh... oh my, Fleur, are you quite alright? You look like you haven't slept in days."

Fleur de Lis waved her hoof. "This is nothing, truly. But come, come, we must prepare you for this!" she exclaimed, as much as her soft-spoken voice would let her.

A pink hoof gripped Octavia's own and yanked her to the right-hoof backstage. "Fleur, you truly look exhausted!"

They shared a glance as they neared the stage entrance. "Yes, well I have been rather frantic about this... you see, you do not know who you face..." Her accent was rather pronounced tonight, Octavia noted.

"What do you mean?"

"DJ Pon-3, I mean. She has been set up for hours, where have you been? Your bowtie is a mess and your tail, ack! It has a leaf in it! No, no, no, non bon suite! This DJ is growing in fame, Octavia, and if she can best you, the most renown musician in Canterlot--"

"Fleur, please, you're too kind," Octavia said, waving an idle hoof.

"That is not my point! Ooh la-la!" she groaned, peeking out at the stage. "Should you let her win, then you will have been bested. this will look poor on your reputation, and only boost hers, and you must trust me when I say she is bon magnifique! Octavia, what have you gotten yourself into?"

She blinked. "What? Me? You signed me up for this two days ago! Where were you when I tried to call?"

"My phone, she is broken," Fleur admitted. "Where were you when I came to your home?"

"I've been gone all week, you knew that! That was why I was so surprised when I realized you had set me for this tonight. You're telling me that you didn't do it?"

Fleur peeked out at the stage, then looked down to Octavia, and then glanced around uncomfortably. "Me, I did not, no. I had assumed you had."

"Well, in any case..." Octavia fell to her haunches and let down her cello case. Backstage wasn't a cozy place to be, despite being well tended and with various lounging couches and cushions. She'd much rather be on the stage, but not at the behest of... well, somepony.

"There is no way for you to back out now," Fleur said, brushing down Octavia's mane one last time. The crowd outside was growing louder.

"What?" the cellist stammered. "And just why not?"

"She's right, you know," Beauty Brass said as she slipped through the backstage door and took a seat on a couch.

"And why is that?"

"Because if you back out now you'll forfeit," she said with a knowing glance. Octavia returned it with equal animosity. "I've been talking to Fleur de-Lis here over lunch. Should you choose to back out now, she, being this DJ, wins by default. What a sore shame."

"Easy for you to say, you've not been set up," Octavia retorted, taking her own peek at the stage. The once easy lights were now harsh on her eyes, much unlike the dimness of backstage. A rainbow pit was just before the stage, droning away about their clubbing, while the more refined ponies of society were sitting in the high balcony, sharing polite conversation.

The most notable part of the scene, though, was the huge turntable that had been stationed across the stage. As it was for musical duels, one side of the stage was for one contestant, and the other was reserved for, well, the other. It seemed that one side was a large mechanical box now, ready to boom out loud white noise from two large speakers. The whole thing was practically glowing, with the words DJ Pon3 emblazoned on the front.

And on her side there was a music stand. Alone.

She ducked back in. Suddenly her legs began to shake, as though they were jelly. Biting her lip she began scuffing at the floor. Beauty Brass stood and slung a foreleg over Octavia's shoulder. "Hey, it's not any different, right? Where's that bolstering mare who ate my creme brulee last night, hmm? I miss her."

The crowd was suddenly shushed, and the lights obviously dimmed. Fleur poked her head out and watched the Hall conductor step onstage to say a few words. "Octavia, you must go in a moment. Do not lose this, do you understand? It does not matter how it happened, we have no control over that. Just take control of what you can."

The conductor finished his all-to-brief speech, leaving an ocean of silence in his wake. "Okay, you are on first! Now go! Go go!" Fleur gave Octavia a heave, barely giving her time to snatch her cello.

On stage, she felt naked. With trembling legs she made her way to her music stand and began to unpack her cello, barely catching wind of the conversation she left behind.

"Why is she so..."

"I do not know, but I hope it does not do something that will hurt her performance..."

She swallowed dryly and looked out to the audience. The bottom didn't matter so much, but those on the balconies above seemed to scrutinize her movements no matter how small. Quickly, she set her cello up on her endpin and balanced herself on her hind legs with skill and poise that, despite her light trembling, never failed her.

There was silence. Unconsciously, she had already begun to replay how such a scene was to play out. First, she would be given three minutes of solo play, before her adversary would join her for another three minutes. Then, she would drop off and allow her other to finish the last three minutes given for the solo. Then it would repeat, three or four times.

Completely out of her own accord. Out of her control. She'd been pushed on stage and now that was out of hoof. Her grip on her cello's neck tightened.

Then, there were hoofsteps, hollow and loud from the opposite side of the stage. Slowly, with a stiff neck, she turned to see her opponent, and her jaw slacked the instant the mystery DJ stepped on stage.

Because of her shiny, spiked electric blue mane. Because of her thick, ruffled white coat. Because of her cutie mark of a musical note.

Octavia's voice was lost for a moment while the two shared a glance, despite the DJ's eyes being hidden behind thick, disguising purple shades.

Eventually she found her jaw could work. "Y-you... You!"

"Me?"

"Yes you, Vinyl Scratch!"

Author's Note

So, this is one of the stories of Pretty Princess Lynked's that I have taken over. This first chapter was written entirely by her, all I did was make a few corrections. If you see anything I missed, feel free to point them out (unless it's you Josh).

Chapter 2

Paradiso

Chapter 2

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

--------------------------------------------------

The sounds of the roaring crowd drifted away, leaving silence to occupy Octavia’s mind. I... I... I lost. She didn’t know what had come over her. She was like a filly with stage fright: shaky, missing notes. She couldn’t remember a time in her life, after becoming proficient with her instrument, when she had played like that bad.

She slowly turned her head to the right to look upon the face of her bane. The mare was smiling, pumping her hoof in the air and shouting to her crowd, though the cellist didn’t hear it. Octavia turned away, tears forming in her eyes, and started to pack up her cello. She gathered herself as she closed the case, slinging it over her back and walking off the stage.

She walked past Fleur who tried to initiate conversation, probably telling her that was the worst performance she had ever seen and she was dropping her as a client. She saw Beauty Brass standing with her jaw slackened, probably wondering how she had ever been friends with such a talentless hack. She passed elites staring in disbelief as she walked to the door. She knew they were talking about her, but she didn’t hear them. She saw their lips moving, but she heard no sounds.

“Octy!” The voice somehow broke through her deafness, catching her off-guard. She looked around before realizing she had already walked out the door and into the hallway. She continued walking, hoping the other pony would just leave.

“Octy, wait up!” She didn’t slow, so the persistent pony jogged to catch up with her. She turned to see who thought it necessary to bother her, hoping she was wrong. She saw a white face dominated by purple glasses, blue hair plastered to the top with sweat. A mare can dream, she thought, releasing a sigh and facing forward again.

“Go away Vinyl,” Octavia hissed crossly.

“Uh... you did good out there,” Vinyl said, unsure what to say.

Octavia continued to walk, not even turning toward Vinyl. "’Good’... Do you not understand the state of affairs? Do you not know what this will do to me?”

“So you didn’t play at your fullest tonight, so what. It’s not a big deal.”

Octavia stopped. “‘Not a big deal’? I lost to a low-class DJ, and you think it is ‘not a big deal’?” Vinyl opened her mouth to respond, affronted at being called low-class, but was cut off as Octavia continued, turning toward the DJ. “I will become a pariah in classical music. Nopony will want to hire a washout like me after this faux pas. Or, in words riffraff such as yourself would understand, a royal buck-up.”

Vinyl’s brow furrowed, her scowl hidden by her glasses. “Look, I was just tryin’ to be a good sport. There ain’t no need to go gettin’ all sniffy. I don’t see what yer problem is.”

Octavia started to seethe. “You want to know what my problem is? You. You caused me to become the laughing stock of the music industry. You took the thing I cherished most in this world. You couldn’t let sleeping dogs lie, had to ruin me for good.” Octavia had advanced with every sentence, backing Vinyl into the wall. “Well, guess what? It worked. I’m ruined. You did it again. Are you happy now?”

Octavia turned away as tears started to form in her eyes and headed for the door, leaving Vinyl to gawk at her retreating form from her seat against the wall.

“What was that all about?” Vinyl looked toward the voice to the stage to see ponies standing there, having been watching for some time. Not too far away from her, Beauty Brass and Fleur de Lis approached her, both wearing looks of concern. Beauty Brass looked at Vinyl and reiterated, “What happened?”

Vinyl sighed. “I... I don’t know,” she said, throwing one last look at the doors through which the cellist had receded. Letting out a wistful sigh, she got up and headed for the stage to begin packing her gear.

--------------------------------------------------

The door opened slowly as a grey mare passed over the threshold into her house. Head hung low, Octavia softly kicked the door shut and deposited her cello, the friend she had failed, against a small table not too far away. Walking into the parlor, she made for her favorite couch. The dark purple loveseat had a silky feel to it that was like the soft caress of a lover. As the despondent mare collapsed upon the seat, she felt the cozy cushions hug her, soothing her sore muscles.

Sighing, Octavia thought back to the events of the past two hours. She was so sure she was gonna win, so confident in her abilities. Then, she finds out that her agent didn’t set it up. Shook her a bit, some unknown pony telling her she has to play, but she could have pushed that aside. Even the imposing structure of her opponent’s gear she would have been able to brush aside, years of performing having taught her how to push visual vexations from her mind. She was not, however, able to expel the unease brought upon her by the mare who called herself ‘DJ P0N-3’.

Octavia had been through her fair share of hardships, but nothing could have prepared her for the emotional bomb she received upon seeing her opponent. The sight of the white unicorn had broken any form of emotional barriers she had in place; all the nervousness brought on in the minutes since arriving had been overshadowed by righteous indignation. She had been rendered unable to play; her mind not able to focus on her cello, only the past and the other mare occupying the stage.

“It is all her fault!” Octavia yelled, repeatedly slamming her hoof into the couch. After mauling the defenseless couch, she raised a hoof to rub the blurriness from her eyes. When she pulled it back she saw it was wet with tears. She didn’t know how long she had been crying; she didn’t even know how long she had been lying there.

She got off the couch and stretched her sore muscles. Satisfied with the simple relief it brought her, she walked into the kitchen intent on finding something to help her relax. Opening one of the cabinets, Octavia scanned the labels of the bottles. She had a wide variety of wines, but she needed something harder. Moving some bottles around, she found a bottle of rum.

“Where did this come from?” she asked herself. She didn’t even like rum. “Beauty must have got it for me at some point.”

Assuming that was where it had come from, she closed the cabinet and headed for the bathroom. Since she didn’t have anything worth drinking in the house, she would have to go to a bar. She couldn’t go out in public covered in sweat and tears, so she decided upon a nice, relaxing shower before heading out.

--------------------------------------------------

The door to the house opened again, this time with no regard for the wall behind it. Octavia stomped through the opened portal, slamming it shut with her hind leg. She stormed through the parlor and into the kitchen. Swinging open the same cabinet she had earlier, she pulled out the only bottle with amber liquid and slammed the door closed.

Upon arriving at her usual bar, Octavia found the barmare locking it up for the night. When Octavia had asked why she was closing up, the mare told her they always closed at eleven. She then told her that there was a club just up the road and that they were throwing a big party for some DJ who had just won a big competition. When she turned to offer an apologetic smile to Octavia, she took a step back, afraid that the grey mare was going to attack her. Octavia glared at her for a few moments before heading back home, refusing to suffer the indignity of walking into a club. Especially if it was hosting the mare who just ruined her life.

As she sat down on the loveseat again, Octavia looked at the picture on the bottle: a stallion dressed in a red privateer suit, with his front hoof on a barrel lying on its side. Realizing she forgot to grab a glass and some ice, Octavia swore under her breath and got off the couch. Setting the bottle on a small table in front of her, she headed to the kitchen. She took a bowl and filled it with ice, grabbing a whiskey tumbler from a cabinet before heading back to the couch.

“Well ‘Captain’, we shall be well acquainted before the night is through,” Octavia said as she picked the bottle back up. Filling the glass with ice, she proceeded to pour the amber liquid from its confinement.

“To broken dreams,” she said, raising the glass and knocking it back. As she removed the glass from her lips, she began coughing. “Stupid rum.” Despite her distaste for the drink, she filled the glass back up. She held it before her eye, swirling it about. Sighing, she put the glass to her muzzle and tilted her head back, the liquid burning its way down her throat.

“Why did I have to agree to that stupid contest?” she said as she once again filled up the tumbler. “Why did it have to be Vinyl?” She downed the drink and filled it back up. “Why did she have to ruin my life?”

Octavia set the glass down on the table, opting for the bottle instead. She put it to her lips and took four deep swallows. Pulling the container from her mouth, she gasped for air. She sat the bottle on the table as she struggled to find her breath, not even worrying about the lid. As her breathing finally steadied, the room started to spin. She closed her eyes and tried to relax.

She didn’t know how long she had lain there, but she eventually opened her eyes. While she was looking for sleep, or at least darkness, all she found was Vinyl; her white coat and two-toned blue mane shining in the ambient lighting, her purple sunglasses twinkling.

“Why can’t she jus’ leaf me ‘lone?” Octavia slurred, ambling off the couch toward her bedroom.

Why don’t you just ask her? You have a phone, ya know.

Octavia looked around for who said that, her eyes eventually resting on the speaker. She stumbled back over to the table in front of the couch, locking eyes with the other pony. “Zee pirate-pony, I toldja we’d be good frenz before danight waz over. I may keep ya ‘roun, Cappin.”

Octavia headed over to her cello case, usually keeping her cell phone in one of the pockets. She clumsily opened it up and looked through all the pockets but didn’t find it. She looked down at the cello, its finish making it shine even in the dimly lit room.

“I’d smash you right nao if you weren’t so shiny,” she growled at the cello, glaring. Leaving the case open, she turned around and headed up the stairs and into her bedroom. Remembering that she had decided against taking it with her to the duel, her cell phone was sitting on the nightstand. Picking it up, she looked through her contacts in search of the blue-maned menace. After finally selecting, she put the phone on speaker and lay on her bed.

The phone rang. And rang. And rang. Octavia growled as she waited for the pre-recorded message to end so she could give the stupid unicorn her what for. Finally, the talking stopped and there was a sharp beep.

“You just couldin’ let it ‘lone, couldja? Jus’ hadta finish with breakin’ meh, huh? Well, ya done know it worked, so dere, ya winned. You ken stand ‘bove yer stupid fanz wid yer stupid glasses an’ yer stupid, sof’ blue mane, an’ yer smooth white fur... an’... horn... I jus’ don’ get... I jus’ wanknow... why?” Octavia’s words seemed to come easier. “Why did you have to do this to me? Why did you have to do it last time? Did I say something wrong? Was it because I was embarrassed by you? I’m sorry. I... just... I’m sorry. Please don’t hate me anymore. I miss staying up late and watching senseless television with you. I miss you being there when it storms. I miss arguing about how our own music was superior to the others. I miss... I miss the way you would tease me about everything. I miss having a friend by my side who I could tell anything... I miss... you. I don’t really hate you. I tell everypony I do, but I don’t. You were my best friend. Even after what you did. Please don’t hate me... I... stilllll...”

Octavia’s body relaxed, finally falling asleep. Her breathing slowed as she drifted deeper into unconsciousness. Her body was finally able to rest after her stressful day. No more moving. No more talking. She could finally relax. But she couldn’t stop crying.

--------------------------------------------------

“Always with the knocking,” Octavia grumbled, stepping out of the bathtub. Having woken up hungover, she decided to take a warm, relaxing shower. It was brought to an abrupt end after half an hour by a pony who was trying to murder her door with their hoof.

Grabbing a towel, Octavia dried herself off as the pony at her door continued to maul it. Make me get out of the shower, I’ll make you wait, she thought, exasperated. Throwing the wet towel in a basket, she made her way to the steps, her face set in a scowl. The pony at the door was bringing her headache back.

Finally reaching the door, she flung it open, ceasing the pony's incessant pounding. Her scowl didn’t change when she saw Fleur de Lis standing in the doorway. Octavia gave a short grunt and turned around, heading for the kitchen. Fleur stepped inside and closed the door, shifting uncomfortably. She walked over to a black chair, sitting down before speaking.

“We need to talk,” she said bluntly, trying to get the very uncomfortable subject into the air.

Octavia turned around to look at the other mare and saw the bottle of rum sitting on the table, open. She gave a small blush and focused back on the kitchen to find something to eat.

“I had a few drinks last night because I had a bad day. It is not like I have a problem.”

“Not that.” Fleur pulled out her phone and started hitting buttons. Octavia walked into the parlor carrying a try with toast and orange juice for the two of them. The sounds that started to come out of the phone caused Octavia to drop the tray.

“-ta finish with breakin’ meh, huh?”

Oh, fuck.

Author's Note

Thanks to Noc for editing. And Pretty Princess Lynked for the help she has given me.

The usual "fuck off, Josh" and "I blame the JFF's for me not working".

FOR THE NEW LYNKED REPUBLIC!!!!

Chapter 3

Paradiso

Chapter 3

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

--------------------------------------------------

Vinyl walked through the streets of Canterlot, the overhead lamps and full moon lighting her path. She looked up at the moon as it made its ever-so-slow descent to the horizon, trying to gauge the time. She eventually concluded it was well past midnight and turned her gaze back to the street.

She had just escaped the after-party for her victory over the head of classical music, Octavia. Vinyl hadn’t wanted to go, but her agent had sent her a message telling her to attend for publicity’s sake. She was barely able to keep up her facade of happiness, her mind often straying to the mare whose life she had just destroyed. She had even stayed away from the bar out of fear of becoming a sobbing drunk.

She hadn’t known it was Octavia she was going up against; she hadn’t even known she was doing it until a couple hours before it started, giving her enough time to set up. Had she known it was Octavia she was dueling, Vinyl probably would have had a panic attack. She had barely been able to keep herself together when she saw the cellist on the stage, her immaculate black mane glistening under the lights, her eyes sparkling with nervous energy.

Vinyl had never thought how she would confront Octavia, but she had always expected it to be on her terms; she didn’t think the other mare would care enough to do it herself. She always thought it would end with her apologizing and them becoming friends, not Octavia storming off telling Vinyl she hated her for ruining her life.

She didn’t even play bad, Vinyl thought, her hooves carrying her toward her destination. She was wonderful. How could she think them snobby ponies didn’t see that? How could one not-even-bad performance ruin her life?

She sighed. Maybe she would try to apologize tomorrow. Maybe she could get Lyra to put together another duel and she could throw it so Octavia could get her prestige back. This thought brought a smile to Vinyl’s face. She would get the perfect chance to fix the whole mess and apologize to Octavia. Hopefully, the grey cellist would forgive her for all she had done.

Her mind slowly backtracked to her agent. She hadn’t seen her since before the competition. She had thought Lyra would be there to take care of any agenty stuff that may have come up. Vinyl started to get worried; Lyra was never late, nor did she miss important events like the duel.

Worst case scenario in her tired mind, Vinyl picked up her pace and ran the rest of the way to the hotel, the fact that her friend had sent her a text a few hours before slipping her mind. She burst through the double-doors, running toward the stairs; the elevator would take too long to get her where she needed to be. Sprinting up five flights of steps, Vinyl finally came to the floor that her and her manager’s rooms were on. Hardly slowing her frantic pace, she came to what she prayed was the right door and started pounding on it.

Vinyl heard a pony bumping around inside, knocking over things in their haste to stop the incessant racket. The door flew open, revealing a slightly angered and confused aquamarine unicorn, the mint green of her mane messily fused with the white running up the middle. She looked around frantically, unsure of what was happening. When her sunglow eyes locked onto Vinyl, she let out a sigh that was cut off as the DJ wrapped her in a tight embrace.

“Wha-” she began, but Vinyl didn’t hear her and started to talk.

“I didn’t know if you were okay. You weren’t at the concert hall and that is something I didn’t think you would want to miss with how important it was and you haven’t contacted me since before it and now I realize just how foalish that sounds. Sorry.” She released the other unicorn and looked away sheepishly, a blush hinting at her cheeks.

Lyra chuckled. “It’s fine. Sorry I couldn’t make it. Bon Bon had called and told me that they messed up the reservations for the dinner I had with her parents and that they couldn’t reschedule it. It was really important to her that I go, so I did. I must have been so caught up in everything that I forgot to tell you. I am really sorry, Vinyl.”

“‘S okay. Kinda overreacted. Thought you were injured or something bad like that.” She gave an embarrassed chuckle. “So, how did the dinner go?”

“Eh, fine, I guess,” Lyra said with a shrug. “It was just a casual dinner. They asked me how me and Bonnie were doing, what with me on the road with you and her having to stay in Ponyville to take care of her sweets shop. Mostly just small talk. So, how’d the gig go?”

“Horrible.”

“What? How?”

“I won. Now, Octavia hates my guts,” Vinyl said, whispering “even more” so Lyra didn’t hear. “She thinks this ruined her career and blames me.”

“Vinyl, this won’t ruin her career. She just needs some time to cool down,” Lyra said soothingly, trying to calm the distraught mare.

“Why did she even agree to it if she thought that?” Vinyl didn’t hear what her manager had said, working herself to the edge of an anxiety attack. “Maybe she thought she was going to win and embarrass me in front of all those ponies. But she didn’t even seem to know it was me until she saw me. Maybe she... I... Argh!” She let out an angry growl. “Had I known it was her, I wouldn’t have done it. Why didn’t you tell me?”

Lyra jumped as the mare suddenly turned all her anger and frustration toward her. “I... it was... well...” Lyra stuttered, unable to form a coherent sentence between how tired she was and the angry mare in front of her.

“It’s your fault! My one-time closest friend hates me even more now and it’s all. Your. Fault!”

Vinyl spun around, heading for her own room across the hall. She grabbed the door handle with her magic, giving it a twist. Vinyl kept moving forward even though the door didn’t open, it being locked, harshly smashing her muzzle into it. She let out an angry growl, searching around for her key.

Lyra cringed at the state her friend was in. “Vinyl are yo-”

“FUCK OFF!” Vinyl shouted as she opened the door, walking through and slamming it shut behind her. The aquamarine unicorn just stood there staring at the door that separated the two of them. She saw a small wet spot glisten in the light. Sighing, she walked back into her room, hoping to get a bit more sleep before trying to sort things out.

--------------------------------------------------

Octavia heard her recorded voice drift to sleep before Fleur closed her phone and set it on the table. Octavia bent down to clean up the spilled food to keep herself from having to talk to Fleur, but it was all swept away by a seashell white aura. With a slight scowl, Octavia walked over and sat on her purple loveseat.

“Just because I am an earth pony does not mean I cannot clean up my own messes,” she said, trying to cover her discomfort with anger.

“Of course. I just figured you should be able to relax after such a... difficile day yesterday.” Octavia gave a huff and turned away. “You want to talk about it?” Fleur asked, her voice laced with sympathy.

“There is nothing to talk about,” Octavia said, her voice just above a whisper. “I played poorly and lost. Now I will be shunned and nopony will want to hire me.” Tears started to well up in her eyes.

“Octavia,” Fleur started with a soft, compassionate voice, “you played magnificently. The ponies were in awe. Why would you think nopony would want to hire you?” Octavia opened her mouth to respond but was cut off by a sharp wave of the other mare’s hoof. “Never mind. We will talk on that later. For now, we shall talk about that phone call I received last night.”

“It was drunken rambling, nothing more,” Octavia said, not bothering to look up. When she didn’t hear a response, she looked at Fleur. The white unicorn’s imperial purple eyes were filled with empathy, but also told Octavia that she wasn’t getting out of the conversation. She sighed, looking away. “It is none of you business.”

“Octavia, something is obviously bothering you.”

“I... I do not want to talk about it.” Octavia took a deep, calming breath before looking back to her manager. The mare was regarding the cellist. She knew Fleur was probably upset with her, but Octavia couldn’t tell her something so embarrassing and personal.

“Octavia...” Fleur began, probably preparing to push the issue. She looked around the room, trying to gather her thoughts. She finally locked eyes with Octavia. “I am famished. What say we go out for some lunch and catch up. We haven’t seen each other socially in a while.” She held the grey mare’s gaze as she flipped her cherry blossom pink mane over her shoulder.

“So long as you do not ask me about last night.”

“Magnifique. Allons-y!” Fleur said, heading for the door, a smile adorning her face.

Octavia sighed, getting off the couch and heading after Fleur. Stepping out the door, she turned around. Her eyes locked onto the royal purple loveseat. She knew she would have to tell somepony eventually. Letting out another sigh, she closed the door and followed Fleur to lunch.

--------------------------------------------------

“... and then he tried to pounce on the bird, but hit the window,” Fleur finished, laughing. Octavia gave a small, but genuine, smile and chuckled.

“Wait. When did you get a cat?” she asked, the thought just coming to her mind.

“Oh, Fancy found him as he was coming home the other day. It was raining, very badly, and he said the poor type” -- she pronounced it teep -- “was in a box on his own, so he decided we would take care of him. We put up poster in case his owners are looking for him. I kinda hope they don’t, though. I like him,” Fleur finished sheepishly.

“Well, if they do come get him, you could always get a new cat,” Octavia reasoned.

“Ah, but it would not be the same, non. It would be like trying to replace a good friend, you know?” Fleur looked down at her plate to scavenge the last bits of her meal, missing Octavia’s pained grimace. She place a hoof on the table, accidentally setting it on her plate, covering it in salad dressing. Grumbling about her misfortune, she got up.

“I will be right back, Fleur. I must rinse this off my hoof,” she said, heading toward the bathroom in the back without waiting for a response. On her way there, she almost bumped into an aquamarine unicorn. After giving a hasty apology, she stepped into the restroom and proceeded to rinse her hoof.

Turning off the water, she looked up into the mirror. She knew Fleur would try to get her to tell what that call was about, no matter how stubbornly she refused. Thinking back, she didn’t know why she had tried to call Vinyl; she didn’t even have her number. Octavia closed her eyes, let out a sigh, and hung her head in shame. “Stupid rum.”

She raised her head, looking around for a hoof dryer. She spotted it by the door and proceeded to dry her wet hooves. The warm air rushing over her hoof caused her to smile; she had always enjoyed the feeling. It seemed to raise her mood.

Octavia stepped out of the bathroom chuckling. She couldn’t help but realize how absurd this situation was, and how immaturely she had acted. Deciding that she would tell Fleur her story if she asked again, the grey mare headed back to the booth.

Just a few steps away from the booth, she paused. She heard Fleur speaking in a subdued whisper to an unknown pony. She crept closer to hear what they were saying. She quickly regretted the decision. What she heard caused her jaw to drop and mind to reel. But... why would...

She stepped in front of the table, revealing herself to the other ponies, tears welling in her eyes. She looked to see who Fleur had been talking to; it was the same mare Octavia had bumped into a couple moments ago. She looked vaguely familiar, but Octavia couldn’t put her hoof on where she had seen her before. Turning to Fleur, the pained tears started to overflow. She silently worked her mouth, unable to find words.

“Wh-why would you do that to me? You said you didn’t set it up.” Octavia’s breathing became stuttered. Hurt was evident on her face as tears streamed from her eyes.

“Octavia, I-”

“You lied to me, just like she did.” Octavia stood there for a moment, before turning around and sprinting out the door.

Author's Note

Well, here it is. Only a couple days after I said I would have it done. O vell. It isn't like you know where I live so you could all come and beat me.

Thanks to Pretty Princess Lynked (I will never stop calling you that. It is fun.), for the story idea and all the help she has given me, Noc, for being an awesome editor, and the guys at the JFF, for helping me with the random little things, helping me out of blocks, and being a great distraction when I need to work.

Hope you enjoy this shortish chapter. Please point out any mistakes Noc or I missed so Josh can make fun of me.

Chapter 4

Paradiso

Chapter 4

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

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‘Course it had to rain today, Vinyl thought, shaking some loose water from her mane as she walked up to the door. As she looked upon it, she felt as though she were standing before Nightmare Moon. Pfft, I would prefer to be in front of her. Tavi’s gonna kill me.

Continuing to stare at the barrier, she let out a sigh. “Come on,” she said aloud, hoping that hearing her voice would bolster her courage, “you gotta do this, Scratch. You have to set things straight. Let her know you didn’t know and will do anything you can to fix it. She’s always been all reasonable and level-headed. She will listen to ya. Just stay calm, respectful, and answer truthfully. And take your glasses off.”

Levitating her glasses over her horn, Vinyl raised her hoof to the door. Before it made contact, she paused, looked skyward and whispered, “Please let this work.” Gathering herself together with a deep breath, she rapped her hoof on the wooden portal and prepared herself for what was to come.

--------------------------------------------------

Neither the rain nor the speed at which Octavia was running through the near-empty streets were the sole reason everything around her seemed to be blurred. They became one with the pained tears that flew freely from her eyes. Finding out she had been betrayed by her manager had broken down the meager emotional walls she had been working to rebuild since waking up. Unable to keep it together, she ran out the door and in the direction she could only hope her home was.

In her distraught state, she had forgotten there was a downpour scheduled. It was a blessing she had not been expecting. She didn’t have to worry about bumping into ponies as she ran home to lock herself away from the world once again.

Seeing the blurred image of her house enter her view, she prayed she had left the door unlocked. She didn’t slow her sprint until she closed in on the steps to the modest porch. Stepping under the roof, she shook as much water from her coat and mane as she could. She heard a startled yelp and stopped her actions immediately. She stood with her head bowed, hoping against hope that she had been hearing things.

She heard some nervous shuffling and a throat clearing before a familiar voice spoke up. “Hello, Octavia.”

Without a second thought, she opened the door and ran into her house. “Go away, Scratch!” was shouted as she slammed the door, leaving the unicorn on the porch by herself. Not caring if the water on her coat were to ruin the fabric, Octavia threw herself onto the loveseat, cradling her head in her hooves and crying.

--------------------------------------------------

Vinyl sat on the porch, despondent. She had expected Octavia to do something like that when she had first decided to come here, but it still hurt. She knew that Octavia would be hurting and probably wouldn’t want to talk to her, but she needed to do this. Even if the cellist wouldn’t hear her out, Vinyl still needed to say it, even if it was through a door.

Gathering herself with a few deep breaths, Vinyl began to talk. “Octavia, look. We nee-”

“Go away!” the grey cellist shouted, cutting her off.

“But I just wanted to apologize and tr-” Vinyl tried again, only to be cut off again.

“I don’t care! I don’t care what you have to say. I don’t care if you are sorry. And I don’t care about you.” Vinyl could hear the hurt and anger in her words even though they were often interrupted by sobs and sniffles.

They say words can’t hurt you, but they lied. To Vinyl, the words hurt more than being thrown across a room with magic. More than watching everyone she knew abandon her. More than the cold, hard ground beneath as she tried to find sleep, until a grey mare offered her a helping hoof. Nothing could compare to the crushing agony she felt now.

“Just leave, and don’t EVER come back!” She didn’t know what she had done to deserve this. They had been great friends once, but now Octavia hated her and she didn’t know why. Head hung low, Vinyl felt tears start to fall from her face. She didn’t know what they were for. The hurt of the words? The regret of not fixing things sooner? Anger? Confusion? She didn’t know, but what she did know is what she was there for.

Resolute, she raised her head and focused her teary gaze on the door. Testing the handle with her magic, not wanting a repeat of the night before, she found that Octavia hadn’t locked it. Her mind set and her emotions frazzled, Vinyl pushed open the door and stepped into the place she had once called home.

--------------------------------------------------

Though the wet fur and the position she was lying in were uncomfortable, Octavia couldn’t bring herself to move. Maybe if she didn’t move, everything would go back to normal. She would have her monotonous life back, free of DJs. No having her life ruined by a pony she once called a friend. Maybe she could go find that stallion who was always muttering to himself about time-travel and have him make them never meet.

The front door closing caused her to start. She could have sworn she had shut it when she ran inside. Must not have closed it all the way and the wind got it, she rationalized, not raising her head. Tears still pouring onto her leg, she let out a choked sob.

A small shuffling in front of her caused her to freeze. She didn’t move, hoping she had just imagined it. This thought was quickly refuted as a small cough came from the direction the shuffling had settled.

“Octavia. We need to talk.” She should have known who it would be. She dug her face further into her leg, hoping to make it all go away.

“Leave me alone, Vinyl,” she sobbed, hoping the unicorn would listen to her for once.

There was silence, followed by slight shuffling. For a moment, she thought Vinyl was actually leaving. She wasn’t sure if that thought made her happy or sad. Her thoughts were broken a moment later when Vinyl spoke again, though she was still unsure how it made her feel.

“No,” Vinyl said, her tone soft, but determined. “I... I came here to do something, and I refuse to leave until I am done.”

“What, you come to make fun of the pony you humiliated?” she asked, her head still not leaving its resting place. “Come to finish messing with my emotions so I won’t be able to play anymore and challenge your ‘greatness’?”

Vinyl released a sigh, steadying her shaky voice. “No, I came to apologize and try to help you in any way I can. I didn’t want to ruin your career, you’ve done too much for me. I didn’t even know it was you until I saw you on stage. Hell, I didn’t even know I had the thing till shortly before. If I had known, I’d’ve declined.” Vinyl paused, seeming to be thinking of what to say. “I didn’t want to hurt you...”

“‘Didn’t want to hurt me’?” Octavia whispered, looking up at the distraught unicorn. “I took you in, gave you shelter, fed you, heck, I practically gave you the job you have, and you just up and leave without a word, but you ‘didn’t want to hurt me’?”

“Octavia, I-” Vinyl was cut off as Octavia stood up, quickly closing the distance to stand face-to-face with the other mare. The fur on Octavia’s face was matted down with tears. Her eyes were bloodshot and still watering. Vinyl had two rivers start flowing down either side of her face, not able to hold her emotions back any longer.

“I sat up that night. Did you know that?” Octavia asked quietly. “I sat up, waiting for you to get home. I needed to talk to you, so I sat up. You didn’t get home around your normal time, so I figured you had got one of your ‘gigs’. But then you didn’t come home at the time you normally do for one of them.” Octavia took a quick pause to steady her voice. Her tears still flowed freely, but Vinyl’s did, too. Vinyl didn’t even try to interrupt, figuring Octavia had been holding this in ever since it happened.

“I figured maybe it was just a really good ‘gig’ this time and maybe you were asked to play longer than normal, so I sat up. I sat up because I really needed to talk to you, but you seemed to be running late. I made coffee, because I started to feel sleepy. I sat there, waiting. I thought maybe you had just got exhausted and fell asleep at the bar. Or maybe you were drunk and passed out in an alley. But you were a big pony, and you can make big pony decisions.

“I fell asleep waiting. I woke up late in the afternoon, having been up all night. I went up to your room, expecting to find you passed out in your bed, but it hadn’t been slept in. Maybe you had just went to a friend's house because it was closer and you were exhausted. I wasn’t too worried.” She paused as she tried to wipe some of the tears from her eyes. “But then you still didn’t come home. I started to think you had maybe got hurt. Maybe you were in the hospital. But the next day, as I was getting groceries, I heard some ponies talking about the ‘show Vinyl Scratch played at last night in Ponyville’.

“I ran home without even completing my shopping. I collapsed on the first piece of furniture I came across and cried. I cried for hours. I called in sick the next day and cried some more. One of the few ponies I had called my friend had just up and left. She had been using me. I had a place I was willing to share with her, food I was happy to give her, and plenty of contacts in the musical industry I was glad to introduce her to. But she left when she got the chance. And I had thought we were friends.” She stopped and looked intently into Vinyl’s eyes before whispering, “I thought you cared.”

Vinyl tried to work her mouth, but she couldn’t seem to get anything to come out. She hadn’t known how bad her leaving had hurt Octavia. “I didn’t want to leave so abruptly, but they needed me right then. Then, from there, I had gotten some job offers. I kept trying to get back to Canterlot to drop in on ya, but I couldn’t seem to get any shows up here and I wasn’t able to get time off. I’m really sorry, Tavi.”

“But you still didn’t tell me!” Octavia shouted. “No call, no text, no email, not even a damn letter!”

“I wanted to call you to tell you the news, but I had left my phone here and, ah, hehe, we both know I was never good with remembering phone numbers.” She sheepishly scratched the back of her head as she finished.

“But you still could have written me or found out my number.”

“I did write you a letter! I had Lyxer drop it off at the Ponyville post office for me while I was preparing for the fashion show,” Vinyl said despairingly, hoping Octavia would believe her. “And I did try to call you. It took me about a week before I was able to get enough time to find your number, but I called. You just never picked up or called me back.”

“Because I thought... you... I was mad. I never got your letter and I thought you didn’t care anymore.” Octavia was starting to calm down. She realized how foalish she had been acting these past months, holding onto misplaced hate. She looked into Vinyl’s ruby eyes for the first time not without some amount anger, but with understanding. As she prepared to try to make amends, a thought came to her. “Wait, who’s ‘Lyxer’?”

“Oh, my old manager, Lyrical Mixer. It was shorter and bugged her for a while, but eventually stuck. Why?” Vinyl asked, unsure of what she had to do with anything.

“So, correct me if I’m wrong; you gave your letter for me to your manager, who didn’t seem to like how much time we spent together?”

“You don’t think she would do that, do you?” Vinyl asked, confused. “How would she get anything from us no longer being friends?”

Octavia’s anger was starting to resurface, but was directed at a different mare than the one standing in front of her. Her tears came to a stop and her breathing stopped hitching. “Because, with me out of the picture, you would not have anything keeping you from wanting to go on long tours to make her more money.”

Vinyl looked to the ground. It all made sense. That was why she had always kept her away from Canterlot. She hadn’t wanted her to reconcile with Octavia so she could keep her touring. Vinyl now felt what Octavia must have felt when she left. Betrayed by someone she trusted.

She looked up to the grey cellist with hurt in her eyes. “Why?”

All the anger left Octavia, replace with sorrow. Seeing Vinyl like that reminded her of herself when the unicorn left. Hurt. Confused. Alone. Tears started to flow down her face again as she embraced the white mare. They cried into each others shoulder for a few minutes.

Finally, Octavia spoke up. “I’m sorry I acted so abhorrently toward you. I jumped to conclusions and it was uncalled for,” she managed, her voice cracking, not moving her head from Vinyl’s shoulder.

“And I’m sorry I made you feel as though I didn’t care about you. I should have tried harder to get ahold of you.” She tightened her hold on the mare who meant the most to her, tears flowing freely.

Both mares’ reveries were shattered by a frantic pounding at the door, followed by shouting. “Octavia! Octavia, I don’t know what you heard, but you probably have it all wrong.”

Octavia didn’t want to deal with Fleur at the moment. She ignored her, hoping she would go away, holding onto Vinyl as though she could make her problem disappear.

“Octavia, please! Let me explain.” Fleur sounded dejected. The long nights of work and the fact that one of her friends thought she had done something to ruin her were seeming to take their toll.

“Go away!” Octavia cried.

“Please! It’s not what you think.”

“Octavia,” Vinyl said quietly from her side. “You should give her a chance.”

“But she lied to me,” Octavia whispered. “She..”

Vinyl held Octavia at legs length and looked her in the eye. “Maybe it was just another misunderstanding.” Octavia looked looked away. Vinyl pushed her face back so she could look into Octavia’s teary amethyst eyes. She wiped a few tears from the grey mare’s cheek before continuing. “She sounds like she is hurting. Talk to her. You don’t want to lose her as a friend, do you?”

Octavia gave a small nod of acknowledgement, hugging Vinyl once more, before standing up and walking to the door. She looked back and saw that Vinyl was walking toward the loveseat. As she lay down, Octavia could no longer see her. Turning back to the door, she cracked it open and stuck her head out.

She saw Fleur sitting just outside the door. Her cherry blossom mane was matted down with rain. Her eyeliner was running down her face, either from the rain or tears, Octavia didn’t know. Behind her was the unicorn Fleur had been talking with at the restaurant. The mare saw Octavia looking at her and looked away.

“Octavia...” Fleur began, her eyes watering. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

“I... I know.” Octavia’s voice was laced with understanding.

“I can explain it all to you. Please.”

“I... not right now.” Octavia looked away.

“Please, I’m sorry.”

“I know, Fleur. I... just need some time to think some things over. I will stop by your office tomorrow. BOTH of you can explain it then. Okay?” Octavia said, trying to get her tears under control.

“Okay,” Fleur said. The green unicorn gave a small nod. As the two walked off the porch, Fleur turned around and said, “I’m really sorry.”

Octavia stepped back into the house, closing and locking the door. She took a deep breath, then walked over to the loveseat upon which Vinyl lay. She lay down on the cushion next to her and embraced her again. The unicorn was quick to return it.

“I missed you so much,” Octavia whispered. Her eyes started to droop. She was emotionally spent and the warmth from Vinyl was making it even harder for her to stay awake. Before her eyes closed for a nice, restful sleep, she heard Vinyl respond.

“I missed you, too.”

Author's Note

YAY! I finally finished it. Sorry to the people I told it would be done about two weeks ago. I kept getting distracted. Whatever.

Thanks to Noc for being an awesome editor (much like myself, so I am told) and Pretty Princess Lynked (you said it and I will never let you live it down). And thanks to Josh for helping me out of a rut, and the guys (and girl) on the JFF chat for being...

And this chapter goes out to a friend who is a bit down at the moment. They will (better) know who I am talking about through this picture. I hope you get feeling better soon.

Chapter 5

Paradiso

Chapter 5

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

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The sun shone down on the two mares, warming their backs. They were heading to Fleur's office, though neither really wanted to face their respective managers; they had conspired behind their backs and caused trouble, albeit unintentionally. They knew they had to, though. Had to get it all sorted out.

Octavia thought back on the events leading up to then. In just two days, her life had made a dramatic shift; she was at risk of losing everything she had worked for, she had been thrown into emotional turmoil, and she had her best friend back. She snuck a glance at Vinyl, who appeared to be deep in thought, her face scrunched up cutely.

Waking up that morning in her embrace had been a dream come true. Not just because of her feelings for Vinyl, but because she no longer felt abandoned and alone. She had lain there for what she believed was a few hours basking in the combined feelings. She had apparently fallen asleep again, only to be gently awoken by Vinyl. She hadn’t made any lewd remarks or said anything sarcastic, she had just gently shaken her while quietly whispering “Wake up, Tavi”.

Upon waking, Octavia had been greeted with Vinyl’s face adorned with a gentle smile, her eyes bright. After a quick hug, Octavia had gotten up and headed for the kitchen. They had eaten, then gotten freshened up, knowing what had to happen. She had decided that, no matter how things turned out, if she lost her renown, if she became blacklisted, if Fleur didn’t have a good answer, she would still be happy; she had Vinyl back. That was all that mattered. She also decided she was going to tell Vinyl what she wanted to before she left, no matter what.

“So,” Vinyl began, breaking Octavia out of her musings, “what are we gonna tell them? About me coming in with you, I mean.”

“Nothing. It is none of their business, especially after what they have done,” Octavia said, her voice full of resolve. Vinyl nodded, going back into silent thinking. “So, uh, when’s your next show?”

“I don’t have one.” Vinyl caught Octavia’s confused look and explained. “This was my last one before I went on vacation.”

“Oh.” Octavia let that hang in the air for a few moments. “What are you planning to do while on vacation?” Vinyl took a while to respond, staring at the ground. “You don’t have to tell me it you don’t want.”

“No, I... It’s fine. I didn’t really have any plans. I had a few things I wanted to try doing, but I’ve already done one.” She looked over to Octavia and gave her a warm smile, which Octavia returned.

“So, who were you gonna stay with? Family? I don’t think you have ever told me about your family.”

“No, I’m not staying with family,” Vinyl said, not giving any more.

“Well,” Octavia began apprehensively, “you could stay with me.”

“I’d like that. Thanks,” Vinyl said, unable to keep a happy tone from her voice.

They travelled the last few blocks in a content silence, both mares happy with how things were going, hoping it would stay that way. As they approached the building, neither mare took it in, their mood becoming anxious. Octavia set a slight scowl as they passed through the glass doors. She ignored the receptionist, heading straight for the elevator, Vinyl close behind. Pressing the button to take them to the sixth floor, Octavia let out a deep breath.

“Vinyl,” she said, turning to face the mare, “no matter what happens, I want you to know that I am glad you are back.”

“I am too, Tavi.” Vinyl gave the cellist a quick hug.

Octavia pulled away, pushed up Vinyl’s glasses so she could look directly into her eyes. “But if you ever leave me like that again, I will find you, and I will kill you.” She flicked the glasses back down over Vinyl’s widened eyes, bopped her lightly on the nose, and pulled her into another hug. “But we won’t ever have to worry about that, will we?”

“No. No we won’t,” Vinyl said, returning the hug. “Especially after that. Now, every time I leave the house, I am gonna be plagued with visions of you charging after me with your cello, preparing to beat me to a pulp.” Octavia gently pushed off of her. She couldn’t hold back a chuckle while shaking her head, a smirk lining her face.

Neither mare had noticed the doors had opened, leaving them facing an empty hallway. They shared a quick look before stepping out. As they were walking through the seemingly endless hallway, Octavia caught movement out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head to see Vinyl looking over her shoulder every few seconds.

“What are you doing, Vinyl?” she asked, coming to a stop. Vinyl stopped as well, looking at Octavia with a very scared expression.

“Even though you are standing next to me, I keep thinking you are gonna come charging up behind me on your hind legs, your cello held in your front two like a bat, foam flying from your mouth, your eyes filled with hate.” They stood there staring at each other, Vinyl’s frightened expression meeting Octavia’s incredulous one. Vinyl, having trouble keeping up the scared look while looking at Octavia, started to chuckle, her composure cracking. She broke into a full laugh, causing Octavia to scowl.

“That’s not funny, Vinyl,” she said, looking on as the unicorn laughed. It eventually became contagious and Octavia started to chuckle. She closed the small distance between them and smacked Vinyl in the back of the head, causing her to give a startled yelp. “Careful,” she said in mock-seriousness, “or it may not wait until you leave.”

“You can beat me anytime you want,” Vinyl said seductively, causing Octavia to blush. She was about to say something when she heard hoofsteps coming around the corner. Quickly putting a scowl back on, she looked up, hoping the blush faded away.

“Oh, hello, Octavia. Didn’t know you were gonna be in this mornin’,” said a young earth pony colt pushing a mop bucket.

“Good morning, Behmen,” Octavia said, her face softening. “How is that project coming?”

“Meh, it’s coming.”

“Well, if you need a little information to help, Vinyl or I could probably help,” she said, as she motioned to herself and the aforementioned unicorn. “Oh, Behmen, this is Vinyl Scratch. She is an old friend of mine. Vinyl, this is Behmen von Bleibuck. He is Fleur’s cousin and currently going to college to be a sound technician.”

“Nice ta meet ya, Behmen,” Vinyl said, holding out her hoof for him to shake.

“Likewise. My friends call me Beebe,” he said, shaking her hoof.

“Oh, so I take it you and Tavi ain’t friends,” she said with a smirk.

“No, ‘Tavi’ just likes to use proper names,” Behmen said, glancing at Octavia, whose face was a mixture of disbelief, anger, and embarrassment. “But I gotta get goin’, work an’ all. Nice to see you again, Octavia. Pleasure to meet you, Vinyl.”

Octavia gave Vinyl another smack to the back of the head as the elevator doors shut and it started to descend. The white mare was still chuckling. “Are you going to keep embarrassing me?”

Vinyl took off her glasses to wipe a tear from her eyes. She took a step closer to Octavia, putting on what she hoped was a seductive glare, and lowered her voice. “Are you gonna keep smacking me for being a bad filly if I do?”

Octavia blushed again and turned away. She wasn’t able to tell if Vinyl was just messing with her or flirting. “Come on. Let’s get this over with,” she said as she resumed walking. Vinyl ceased her chuckling as they reached the door. They shared one last look before walking into the room, faces set, Vinyl’s once again obscured by her glasses.

“Octavia! You’re here.” Fleur’s voice cracked as she looked up from her desk to face the door. Octavia felt a pang of regret at seeing the mare’s face; she looked as though she hadn’t slept in days. Just looking at her made Octavia feel dreary. Sitting next to her was the green unicorn Octavia had seen at the restaurant; she felt as though she knew who it was, but her mind just couldn’t pull it together.

“Vinyl!” the green unicorn shouted, getting up to embrace the DJ, held back only by a glare from Octavia. “Wh-where have you been? I’ve been trying to get ahold of you since yesterday. You weren’t at your room, you didn’t pick up your phone or return my texts. What are you doing here?”

Vinyl opened her mouth to respond, when the other unicorn suddenly sat down, looking embarrassed. She turned to Octavia to see her scowling at the poor mare. “Tavi-” she started to whisper, but was cut off.

“Explain,” was all Octavia said as she sat on a seat in front of the desk. Vinyl followed her lead and sat next to her.

Fleur, realizing it would be better to just get things out of the way, nodded and tried to fix the trouble she had inadvertently caused with the truth. “While I was in Manehatten on a working vacation, I was approached by Ms. Heartstrings.” That is why I knew who she was, Octavia thought, fighting the urge to facehoof. “She told me she was the manager for an old musician friend of yours, and she asked me if I would like to help her set up a... concert for the two of you to get reacquainted.

“I had assumed it was an orchestrational friend, not a DJ. I didn’t think you were one to keep company with those types of ponies. No offense, Ms. Scratch,” she added quickly. Vinyl only gave a grunt of acknowledgement, so Fleur continued. “I told I was too busy to set it up, but she said she could do it on her own. I told her I would think about it, and we exchanged details. I looked into who Mrs. Heartstrings was, and thought she would be capable of handling it herself, so I allowed it. She told me it would be one of the biggest events of the year.

“I had no intentions of hurting you, ma chère. I guess if I had helped set it up, things may not have happened like this. Or had I asked who your friend was. Or even had I talked with you about it. I am really sorry, Octavia.” By the end of her explanation, Fleur had her head hung low with tears building in her eyes.

“I... It’s fine. I guess we have all made a hasty decision or two without really thinking it through,” Octavia said, with a nigh-imperceptible glance at Vinyl, who gave a slight blush and turned her head. “And I apologize for how I reacted. Towards all of you. It was uncalled for and, even though I was... distressed at the time, I should not have said some of the things I did. It was uncalled for, and, for that, I am sorry.”

Although it was somewhat true for everyone in the room, she had directed her apology at Vinyl, who seemed to have caught that and gave a soft smile. The smile swiftly dropped, and Vinyl raised her head to look at Lyra.

“You never told us why you set it up like you did. It really made no sense. With our music being so different, as with our crowds, they would be hard to compare in a way like that and get a fair adjudication. The only way we would get that is in front of a group of musical experts from all walks, not fans. Fans are too... discriminating.”

All eyes in the room went wide. Octavia was the first to recover. She put on a slight smirk and said, “That is some fancy talk coming from somepony such as yourself, Ms. Scratch.”

“Eh, I’ve been around this snooty earth pony too much. Musta rubbed a bit off on me.” Octavia just kept smirking and gave a slight chuckle. “So?” she asked, directing the question at Lyra.

“Um, well,” Lyra began nervously, “you see, when I was writing up the form to reserve the space, it was really late and it had been a long day helping Bonnie in the shop. I had filled it out wrong, there was another one I was working on for another show around the same time. I had meant for it to just be a collaboration event, seeing as Vinyl had done so well with my own music, I figured the two of you could do it even better. But I had filled it out as a duel, that is what I was working on before, and sent it out as so.

“When I realized it, I immediately went to fix it, but they told me it had been too long and they couldn’t change it. I just rolled with it, hoping for the best.” Lyra scratched the back of her head sheepishly. “Not my brightest idea. Oh, Bonnie’s gonna kill me for this. She told me not to do important stuff late.”

“Wait, so am I gonna be collabing with some DJ now, instead of dueling them?” Vinyl asked.

“No! No, that one was filled out fine. I just filled out Octavia’s as though it were that one. Sorry.” She looked at Octavia, afraid of what the mare was gonna do. She was sitting there with her eyes closed, breathing slowly, rhythmically. She knew everyone was looking at her, expecting her to do something. What? That was up to them. She knew there was only one thing she could do after all this.

She looked up, locking eyes with Lyra. “It’s fine. I’m over it.” All three of the unicorns stared at her incredulously, none of them expecting her to say that. “I will just do what I need to make it obsolete. That is all I can do, unless I found a magical blue box that can take me back in time to stop it, but where’s the fun in that?” All of the mares shared a laugh at that, glad that the situation was finally defused.

“So, Lyra, how did you find out about me and Vinyl?” she asked, mostly wanting to make friendly conversation, though she was somewhat interested.

“Well, we went out on my birthday and had a few too many. We were sitting on my couch when it somehow got brought up, like something only can when you’re drunk. She told me how you helped her out when she graduated from boarding school, giving her a place to stay and helping her get on her hooves. She told me how you introduced her to some ponies, and she ended up getting some work thanks to it.

“She told me you were mad at her, though she wouldn’t say why. I decided I would try to fix it, since she didn’t seem to think she was able to, so I set up the concert, and here we are.” Lyra finished with a big smile on her face, waving her arms to encompass the room. Octavia gave her a confused look.

“I didn’t help her when she graduated boarding school, I helped her when her apartment building was closed down and she had nowhere else to go.” Both mares turned their gazes to Vinyl, who was shifting nervously. Fleur just sat behind her desk twiddling her hooves, unsure of what to do.

“Vinyl...” Octavia said gently, but firmly, letting the mare know she wanted answers.

“I... I don’t want to talk about it right now. It...” Vinyl trailed off, leaving the room silent other than the ticking of a clock.

“Sorry to cut this short, but I have a meeting I must get to shortly,” Fleur said, breaking the tension. “Maybe we could grab lunch tomorrow and get acquainted under better circumstances, non?”

“Sure,” Octavia said, the other two just nodding. “I’ll see you then.” She stood up and walked out of the room, the other two close behind. They silently walked to the elevator and out of the building. As they stepped outside, Lyra turned to face Vinyl and Octavia.

“I gotta go. Got some managery stuff to do, then gotta call Bons, make sure she hasn’t burned down the house,” she said with a chuckle, trying to lighten the mood. “Nice to officially meet you, Octavia. See ya soon, Scratch.”

“Goodbye, Ms. Heartstrings. It was a pleasure to meet you, as well.” Octavia gave her a polite smile.

“Bye,” Vinyl said, not really paying much attention. Both mares looked at her, before Lyra turned and left.

“Come on, Vinyl. I’ll make us some lunch.” Both mares turned in the direction of Octavia’s house and started walking. Neither spoke as they walked, both lost in thought.

They made it to the house a short while later. Vinyl sat on the loveseat, while Octavia went straight to the kitchen to make a light lunch. She came out a few minutes later with two salads and two cups of tea. She put them both down on the table and gave Vinyl a small smile, which she returned as she thanked her.

They ate in silence, both still wrapped up in thought. When they finished, Octavia took the dishes to the kitchen, rinsed them off, then sat beside Vinyl on the loveseat. She leaned into Vinyl, basking in her presence. Vinyl leaned back, before she began to talk.

“I’m sorry,” she said quietly.

“For what?” Octavia didn’t move, but thought she felt something hit her hair.

“For lying to you. I guess I thought that I could forget about it if I didn’t tell anyone.” Octavia shifted, embracing the now crying unicorn in a tender hug.

“Shh. It’s okay,” she whispered, trying to comfort the distraught unicorn, who returned the hug. When her breathing started to return to normal, Octavia continued. “Do you want to tell me about it? You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

Vinyl held onto her for a few moments before pulling away and removing her glasses, wiping her eyes. “Okay.”

Author's Note

HUZZAH! (I have said that like seven times today... huh) After a month and a half, I finally started working on it. Here it is.

Thanks to Pretty Princess Lynked for being awesome and letting me steal this from her and giving me all the help she has given me. Thanks to Noc for being awesome and editing and catching my fuck ups. Thanks to Simply and S.S. Brony for giving me a quick opinion when I needed it. And thanks to Ruirik for being an amazing distraction (he is the best one I have gotten so far). Oh, and Acreu for being a good distraction.

Oh, and I blame Toni and her damn prompts for delaying this a few days(I was all pumped and ready to write, then she posted that fucking prompt thing and I HAD to participate).

Oh, and point out errors, give thoughts, all that jazz.

Chapter 6

Paradiso

Chapter 6

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

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“I grew up not knowing my father,” Vinyl began tentatively, sipping on tea Octavia had brought. “Well, my biological father. When I was about five, my mom had went out with this one stallion. Now, he wasn’t the first one. The others never seemed to come by more than once. I think it was cuz they usually saw me when they came to pick Mom up.” Sighing, she scooted closer to Octavia and leaned her head against the cellist’s. Octavia blushed lightly at the contact, taking a sip of her own tea and waited for Vinyl to continue.

“But this one, he was different.” Vinyl gave a loving smile as she reminisced. “When he came to get my mom, we were sitting outside. When he saw me, he smiled at me. Not the ‘oh shit, she has a kid, gotta act like I don’t mind it’ kinda smile, but just a friendly smile. I don’t know. But as Mom told me she would be home in a few hours, he asked if I wanted to go to the park with them for a picnic. Oh Luna, I was so happy. I got to get out of the house for something other than school.”

“Why was that?” Octavia asked, before quickly raising a hoof to her mouth and blushed. “Sorry.”

Vinyl gave a little chuckle. “It’s cool. Mom worked a lot. She had two jobs, but neither paid too well. We would go out from time to time, but, as a kid, it didn’t seem like enough. And she was always going on dates. Well, it seemed like it was always; I was a kid. She always brought me something back, though.” Octavia leaned into to show her support. Vinyl leaned back before continuing.

“Well, Mom said yes, and we went and had a great time. At least, I know I did. It happened a few more times. He would invite me on some of their dates, but some of them just the two of them went. She always brought something back for me saying he wanted me to have something, too.

“He was around a lot after a few months. Sometimes, he would stay with me while Mom had to work and help me with my homework. He would put me to bed, make sure I got a bath, cook me dinner. When he started stay overnight, he would make breakfast for me and Mom and help me get around for school.

“I remember, one night, I woke up and had to go to the bathroom. I heard them talking in the kitchen as I passed, and I stopped to listen. He said a bunch of mushy stuff, then asked her to marry him. I had never wanted to her my mom say yes more in my whole life.” Vinyl gave a light chuckle, closing her eyes to fully embrace the memory.

“When she finally did, I couldn’t move. I finally had a dad. After a moment of standing there like a statue, I ran into the kitchen and jumped at him. I wrapped him in the tightest hug my little legs would let me and cried into his shoulder. I guess I ended up falling asleep, cuz I woke up the next morning in my bed without remembering going back.” Both mares chuckled lightly.

“But life was great. They got married, he moved in, since our house was bigger than his was, and life went on. He was a great father figure for me; he always helped me if I needed it, almost always supported me, though, if he didn’t, he would make sure I knew and knew why, and he was there for me.

“I felt as though I could tell him just about anything, and I did, and he always gave me great advice on how to deal with it. I told him if I was having trouble with friends, teachers, people bothering me cuzza my eyes. He was the one who got me my first pair of shades. He even got a doctor friend of his to write the teacher a note saying they were prescription so I could wear them in class. I even talked to him about my first crush. I don’t know why I went to him, but I did. And he didn’t even get all weirded out when he realized it was on a filly.

“But I ruined all of that.” Vinyl opened her eyes, hoping that seeing the room around them would minimize the effects of the memory. “It was just a few days before I met you. I had went to a graduation party with some friends. I ended up seeing my fillyfriend with another mare. When I said something to her, she... said hurtful things to me. She said some... private things I had told her. Everyone started laughing, even my ‘friends’. The only pony who didn’t laugh was the mare she was with. She was furious. She walked up to her, smacked her in the face, then grabbed me and walked me out of the house.

“She apologized to me, saying she didn’t know, and that what my ex (since it was obvious we weren’t together anymore) did was wrong. She tried to make me feel better, but I couldn’t. We talked for a bit, but she had to be home, saying something about having to work in the morning. She told me I should stop by in the morning, and gave me a business card.

“I walked around for a while, trying to calm myself down and clear my mind and whatnot. When I eventually walked home, he was sitting in the kitchen, waiting. He told me Mom was worried sick cuz I said I was gonna be back a few hours earlier. I ignored him, but he stopped me from going to my room. He saw the tear stains and asked if I was ok. I told him it was none of his business. He asked if I wanted to talk about it, and I blew up. I cussed and screamed, eventually waking my mom up. They tried to calm me down, but... I couldn’t. I was really hurting; I thought she was the one, ya know? But I eventually said I hated them both, and he wasn’t my father and should stop trying to act like it.

“I packed a bag with essentials and left. No note, no goodbye. Just... left. I went by the address I was given the next morning. I told her I was moving and thanked her for her support the night before. She gave me her number and address and said to keep in contact and maybe drop by and say hi sometime.

“I didn’t mean what I had said to them, but I couldn’t face them. I knew I should’ve gone back and apologize, but... I was scared. So, I got a train to Canterlot, hoping to find some work. I had been here a day when you found me. You saw me and offered me company. I was homeless, jobless, and had no prospects for the future when you showed up. I lied to you because I didn’t want to admit what I had done, hoping it would go away. I’m really sorry.”

Vinyl began to sob uncontrollably, tears flowing steadily down her face. Octavia turned to embrace her, her own tears trailing down her cheeks. She let Vinyl cry into her shoulder again, hoping being there would do something for the distraught mare.

“I am going to guess you still haven’t told them,” Octavia said after Vinyl calmed down. She felt the unicorn shake her head into her shoulder. “You know you need to, right?” Vinyl nodded. “Would you like me to go with you?” At this, Vinyl removed herself from the grey mare’s embrace, looking her in the eye.

“You would do that for me?” she croaked, her red eyes lit up with hope.

“Vinyl, for you, I would do anything.” Vinyl wrapped her hooves around Octavia, squeezing her tight as she kept thanking her. Octavia returned the hug with a smile adorning her face.

After a while of sitting like that, Octavia pulled away. She tried to look Vinyl in the eye, but couldn’t seem to bring herself to do it. She eventually locked her eyes onto the white mare’s shoulder before speaking.

“Hey, I, uh, I know this may not be the best time to say this, especially with what has been going on, but I don’t know if I will ever be able to bring myself this close again.” Vinyl scrunched her face up in confusion, waiting for the cellist to continue. “I was going to say it when you came home that night you didn’t, but you never came home.” Vinyl looked away in shame and whispered a quick apology.

“I... uh. I don’t know how to go about it. I didn’t really know how to go about it then. But, um... well.” Octavia tried to speak coherently, but her nerves were getting the better of her. She kept glancing at Vinyl, only to look away after their eyes met. “I... well. I wanted...” Before she knew it, she leaned forward, locking her lips with Vinyl’s. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see what she feared; Vinyl’s face contorting in anger.

She couldn’t describe how she felt. Her heart was beating faster than she could ever remember and her head felt light, though from nerves or bliss she wasn’t sure. She was unsure how long she held the kiss, though the eternity was probably just a few seconds.

When she finally pulled away, she didn’t look at Vinyl. She felt her face light up as she looked around the room, trying to find something to distract her. Neither mare spoke, Vinyl still a little shocked and Octavia embarrassed. The grey mare’s lavender eyes eventually locked onto a clock.

“Oh, look at the time. I’m going to go start dinner.” She quickly picked up the teapot and cups without looking at Vinyl and hurried into the kitchen. She dumped out the cold tea, placing the utensils in the sink. She walked over to her refrigerator, hoping she had something that she could take awhile to make so she had time to clear her head. She pulled bundles of different vegetables, deciding on soup.

Placing the vegetables on the counter, she searched for a large pot. She hummed a song, singing along in her head, to keep her mind off the fact that she had just kissed her best friend. She filled the pot with water and seasoning before placing it on the stove. And just after we made up. She turned to the counter to prepare the vegetables. I haven’t heard the door, so at least she hasn’t left... yet.

She lifted the cutting board in her mouth and scraped the cubes off of it and into the boiling broth. She stood there watching the little cubes float around. She could still feel Vinyl’s lips on hers. She could feel where the tears had dried in her fur. She could feel the fear of being alone again.

She heard a timer go off that she didn’t remind setting. She turned off the flame, moving the pan to island in the middle of the kitchen. She pulled two bowls out of a cupboard and set the on a tray. After ladling soup into each, she took a deep breath, steeling herself for what may happen next.

She walked into the living room, still avoiding eye contact with Vinyl, who seemed to be watching her every move. She sat the tray on the table in front of the loveseat, took her bowl, and sat on the couch beside it. She sat her soup on an end table and began eating, watching her soup as it swirled within the confines of the bowl.

She didn’t look up when she felt Vinyl sit down next to her. Nor did she look up when she felt Vinyl scoot closer to her, causing them to sit flank to flank. Both mares ate in silence.

Shortly after her own bowl went dry, she heard Vinyl’s being sat back on the table. She just sat there looking into it, unsure of what to do.

“The soup was great, Tavi. Thanks,” Vinyl said, finally breaking the silence. Octavia sat in silence. “Uh, is there any more?” The question sounded sheepish; Octavia just nodded. “Sweet. You want some more, too?”

“Sure,” Octavia responded quietly, preparing to get up to refill their bowls. She stopped when Vinyl held her hoof in front of her.

“You cooked and brought the first round, so I’ll get the second.” She leaned over to grab Octavia’s empty bowl with her hoof. Doing this caused her to brush up against the earth pony. As she pulled back, she gave Octavia a fleeting kiss on the cheek.

Octavia felt her heart flutter. Maybe she hadn’t ruined everything. I should probably say something about it, though.

Vinyl came back, holding the two bowls in her blue aura. She placed Octavia’s back on her little table before sitting down, still holding hers in her magic.

“Thanks,” the grey mare said before she started to eat.

“Anytime, Tavi.” The two mares ate in silence again. When they finished, Octavia decided to speak up.

“Vinyl?”

“Yeah.”

“Sorry for kissing you like that. I should have said something or found out how you felt before I did.” She finally looked at the unicorn, hoping she wasn’t mad.

“Hey, I know not many can resist my charms, especially in close proximity like that with no other ponies around.” She gave the cellist a slight smirk. “And it’s not the first time a pony couldn’t resist me.” Octavia’s eyes widened slightly at this. Vinyl leaned in close and lowered her voice. “Though, it is the first time any of them got a positive response.” Octavia blushed again.

Before she pulled away, Vinyl placed her lips on Octavia’s, both mares losing themselves in the touch. As she pulled away, she smiled brightly. Octavia returned the smile. “So, does this mean...” She trailed off, unable to finish the thought.

“Yes, we’re together now.”

Octavia launched herself into Vinyl, embracing her in a loving embrace. They sat in each other's embrace for the third time that day, though it was the first time as a couple. After a few minutes, Vinyl pulled away.

“Um, do you mind if I grab a quick shower? I haven’t had one in, like, three days and now I’m all covered in your tears,” Vinyl said, looking down at herself in mock-disgust.

“Yeah. Same place as before you left.” Octavia let out a light chuckle.

“Would you care to join me?” Vinyl asked, as she got off the couch and headed for the stairs. Octavia blushed and struggled for words.

“No- I, uh. I’m gonna clean up dinner. You go ahead.” Vinyl laughed heartily at the flustered mare as she walked up the stairs and around the corner.

Octavia got off the couch and headed into the kitchen, shaking her head. She put the remaining soup in the fridge for later and the dirtied dishes in the sink. Deciding she also needed a shower, she went upstairs. She paused by the bathroom door, contemplating on joining Vinyl. Deciding against it, she started to walk into her own private bathroom, but not before Vinyl started belting out the chorus toIn My Dreams, causing the earth pony to chuckle.

--------------------------------------------------

After drying herself off from the always refreshing shower, Octavia headed back downstairs. Vinyl was sitting on the loveseat humming the same song from the shower. When she heard Octavia on the steps, she looked up, flashing her her brightest smile, which the grey earth pony returned.

“So,” Vinyl began as Octavia sat beside her, “how was your shower?”

“Well, I was going to join you, but I was unsure how long I would be able to keep my sanity with you singing, so I opted for a solo shower.” Octavia smirked at Vinyl as she blushed, not having realized she was singing loud enough to be heard. Vinyl quickly perked up, grinning seductively at her marefriend.

“But if you had joined me, you woulda been the one singing.” Vinyl laughed again as Octavia blushed, having taken a moment to realize what was being implied, receiving a hoof to the shoulder in response.

The two mares sat there for the next few hours joking, catching up, telling stories, and, above all, enjoying each other’s company. After a particularly long yawn, Octavia looked at the clock, which read one in the morning.

“Well, as fun as this has been, I think we should call it a night.” Octavia got off the loveseat, smiling at her marefriend. Mmm. Marefriend.

“Fiiiiiine,” Vinyl drawled. “I’ll go to bed early this time. Don’t expect it very often.”

“Well, if you are going to be staying up late a lot, I guess you will have to be showering late, too, which means alone.” Octavia walked past Vinyl as she talked, bumping her with her flank, causing her to stumble backwards. Glancing back, she saw a blush hinting at Vinyl’s cheeks.

Vinyl rushed to walk beside her as she approached the stairs. They traversed the stairs and hallway together, but, as they came to Octavia’s room, Vinyl split off, heading to the guest room.

As she opened the door, Octavia realized Vinyl was no longer next to her. She turned and saw Vinyl opening the door to her extra room. Hesitating slightly, she spoke up.

“Hey, Vinyl.”

“Yeah.”

“Would, uh... Would you like to sleep with me tonight?” Octavia asked sheepishly, kicking her hoof and not making eye contact. She heard the other door close followed by hoofsteps coming towards her.

“I would love to,” Vinyl said, deciding against saying something sexual, realizing how hard it must have been for Octavia to ask that. She gave her a quick kiss on the forehead before walking past her and into the bedroom. She stopped at the foot of the bed to look around.

“Nice room ya got here. Really cozy.”

“Thank you,” Octavia replied, as she climbed into the bed, pulling the covers over herself. After a moment, she felt Vinyl climb in behind her. She felt the bed sink down then shake as she scooted closer. She draped a hoof over Octavia and planted a small kiss on the back of her head.

“Goodnight, Octavia.”

“Goodnight, Vinyl.”

Both mares relaxed in the other’s embrace, sleep quickly overcoming their exhausted minds. Dreams of the two of them together graced both mares, promising a bright future.

Author's Note

What is this sorcery? A new chapter already. Eh, it was done yesterday, but I forgot to upload it before turning my laptop off so... yeah. Well, I sat there for four hours, didn't get up, didn't eat (usually makes me not want to work, don't know why), and only busted out in song 2-3 times. But, here it is.

Thanks to Lynked for what help she has given me and Noc for editing.

Oh, almost forgot. While this song didn't really change what I was planning, it solidified it and made it easier for me to write.
He Didn't Have To Be by Brad Paisely

Chapter 7

Paradiso

Chapter 7

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

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Trees passed by in a blur. The steady rumble of the train speeding across the track lulled Vinyl into a daze, along with the seemingly endless smear of green and grey against the orange and purple canvas of the rising sun. Thoughts of the near future and recent past played through her mind. Some of the scenarios of her upcoming encounter threatened to throw her into an emotional mess, but were quickly soothed by the set events of the past. But thinking on what had happened recently caused her to worry, despite the conversation the day before with Fleur de Lis.

“But Octavia-”
“Vinyl,” Fleur said quickly, cutting the DJ off, “my husband and I are two of the most influential ponies in Canterlot, if not Equestria. Unless the Princesses stated that Octavia was a terrible cellist, we can get her back to how she was before this little faux pas. Her taking a few days to herself will not hurt anything.
“Besides, she doesn’t even have any work set for almost a month, so she won’t be missing anything important.” The white unicorn gave a reassuring smile, hoping to quell any fears Vinyl may have.
"And it will give you two some time to catch up, too," Lyra chirped.
"I... Fine. We'll do that."
"Trust me, ma chère, we will fix this. I promise." Fleur gave the most sincere smile to the musical duo she could.
"Yeah. Besides, it kinda IS our fault in the first place, so it is only right." A guilty frown briefly grace Lyra's lips, but was quickly wiped away. "So, I see you two don't seem to want to strangle each other anymore... well, Octavia doesn't want to strangle Vinyl anymore, at least. That's good."

The rest of the lunch was just idle chit-chat. Upon leaving, Vinyl and Octavia went to the train station to find a train heading to Marechester. Deciding the next morning was the best time, they returned to Octavia's home. Neither mare talked much. The upcoming events were nerve wracking for Vinyl. Octavia noticed this and offered her presence as support.

The two had sat on the loveseat for hours after packing, lost in thought. Small bits of conversation would happen from time to time, but nothing lasting. Dinner passed mostly the same, though Octavia was able to get Vinyl to talk a bit more over the leftover soup.

Shortly after dinner, the two mares decided to retire. After making sure they had everything set for the trip the next day, they went to Octavia's bedroom. Tucked under the blankets with the lights off, Octavia embraced Vinyl. The moonlight that drifted into the window framed the unicorn, giving her an ethereal glow. Smiling, Octavia looked her marefriend in the eye and said, "Everything will go fine tomorrow, Vinyl. I promise. They're family. They'll forgive you."

Vinyl looked down at the grey mare sleeping against her. The same mare who embraced her as she cried herself to sleep the night before. Though she was still unsure of what caused her tears, be it the fears of rejection and anger from her parents or Octavia's loving words of encouragement, she was grateful the cellist was there for her.

She stroked the earth pony's black mane and gave her a slight squeeze, inadvertently causing the mare to awaken from her slumber. Rubbing her lavender eyes, Octavia looked up at Vinyl and smiled. Vinyl smiled back.

"Mornin', sleepy-head." She leaned over and pecked the mare on the forehead.

"Are we almost there?" Octavia asked, still dreary from sleep.

"Tavi, we left the station twenty-seven minutes ago," Vinyl replied, a slight laugh in her voice.

"It felt like I have been asleep longer." The cellist scooted closer to her white counterpart.

"You have." When she didn't continue, Octavia looked up at her, frowning. "We sat at the station for a half an hour. You dozed off before we left."

"Oh."

Vinyl sat there for a moment, unsure of what to do as Octavia placed her head back on her side. Eventually, she spoke up. "Hey, Tavi? Thanks."

"Hm?" the waking mare responded.

"For last night. I don't know what came over me. I don't know and, quite frankly, I don't care, but you were there for me. Thank you."

Octavia gave the unicorn a slight squeeze. "Of course I was there for you. I'm your marefriend. It's in my job description now. 'Lie there for hours as Vinyl rests on your chest, causing you to go numb all over, and cries into your mane.' It's all emboldened, italicized, six sizes bigger than everything else, and written in the seventeen most common languages. And it is the most gorgeous shade of red, much like your eyes."

Vinyl gave a blush as Octavia chuckled. "I don't see how I missed it," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm, but was laced with mirth. "Wait, I kept you up all night?"

Octavia stopped laughing. "I, uh, didn't mean to say that."

"I'm sorry."

"Hey," Octavia said, pulling away and looking into Vinyl's ruby eyes, "don't be. I don't think I would have slept much anyways. Just... everything that has been going on, everything that is going to be happening soon, it's all running around in my mind like... like that time you were running around the house with my aunt's cat attached to your face."

"TAAAVI!" Vinyl groaned, blushing as Octavia erupted in laughter. "I thought we weren't going to talk about that? Especially in public. You promised."

Octavia's laughter quickly died down. "I did. I'm sorry. I... it was just so funny. And it was pretty cute." She let out a light giggle as Vinyl's blush deepened. "Besides, we're all alone here. Nopony else is in our car."

Vinyl took a quick look around the cabin, her eyes meeting empty seats everywhere she looked. "Oh. Well, I guess I will let you slide this time, but please don't tell anyone else. It's embarrassing."

Octavia wrapped her hooves around the still-blushing mare. "I'll try, but I won't promise. I'm your marefriend now. I have to embarrass you sometimes."

Vinyl just sighed and returned the embrace, her gaze shifting back to the window. After a few minutes of staring out at the landscape as it sped past, she began to laugh. Slowly, she started to get louder, causing Octavia to pull away.

"And just what do you find so funny? Are there some chipmunks arguing over a coconut?"

"What?" Vinyl said, calming herself down. "Oh, sorry. I just remembered the second time we went out drinking."

Octavia scrunched her face up as she tried to remember what Vinyl was. "I seem to be drawing a blank. Would you mind refreshing my memory?"

Vinyl turned slowly, trying to keep her face straight. Slowly, her lips started to tremble. Biting her bottom lip, she took a deep breath.

"You don't remember?"

"Isn't that what 'drawing a blank' generally means?"

Vinyl chuckled. "Fine, fine. I'll tell you a story, my little filly. Get comfortable, 'cause this one's a doozy." Octavia rolled her eyes, but snuggled up against Vinyl.

"As I said, it was the second time we went out drinking after we met. Nothing much happened while we were out on the town. We got kicked out of a few clubs, all me, by the way, and we got pretty drunk. You were pretty funny. You're a funny drunk." Octavia let out a low growl, causing Vinyl to laugh before continuing.

"Well, when we got back you talked. A lot. You're a talkative drunk, too. At least you aren't a mopey drunk." A quick jab to the ribs caused Vinyl to continue. "Well, you got to telling me about when you were a filly. I don't remember much, but one thing has never left me.

"You told me you use to go around everywhere with a pillowcase on your head calling yourself 'Bloopermare', the greatest superhero to ever live. You said you would go to school with it, the market, outside to play. Everywhere. After you finished telling me, you ran, well, stumbled, upstairs, brought a pillowcase back down, and proceeded to cut holes in it an put it on your head! You then ran around the house accosting the furniture for... I don’t remember, but it was pretty funny, and probably kinda cute, too."

Vinyl sat there laughing, causing both mares to shake. Octavia was mortified. She couldn't believe she had told another living being about that, especially one she had barely known. Slowly, she pulled away from Vinyl.

"Vinyl," she said quietly. Calming down, Vinyl turned to her marefriend, a smile lighting her face. As she looked upon the grey mare, her smile faltered slightly.

"Yes, Octavia?"

"Could you not tell anypony about that?"

"But 'I'm your marefriend. I'm suppose to embarrass you sometimes'," Vinyl replied, smirking.

"Well, this is different. I... that was a hard time for me."

Vinyl looked at Octavia. The cellist's eyes were slightly moistened and looking everywhere but Vinyl. "Alright," Vinyl said, pulling her into a hug.

"Thank you." Vinyl held the hug for a few minutes before speaking up again.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked softly.

Octavia just sat there, relishing the feel of Vinyl's fur against hers. Eventually, she spoke up. "I would love to, dear, just... not right now. We already have plenty going on. And I would rather talk about it at home, not on a train."

Octavia felt a hoof brush across her mane. "Okay, Octavia. Just know I'm ready whenever you are. I'm here for you whenever you need me." She just nodded into her DJ's white chest, unable to express herself with words.

After an amount of time neither mare could guess, a gentle male voice came over the intercom. "Arriving in Marechester in fifteen minutes. I hope the ride was smooth for all y'all and that you enjoy your stay. If you go out for ice cream, might I suggest The Parlor. A good friend of mine owns the joint and they have some of the BEST homemade ice cream I have EVER tasted. And I have tasted a lot of ice cream, believe you me. And no, I wasn't paid to say that. I was actually told by him and the conductor not to say that, but they're not the boss of me... well, one is, but... meh. Oh, here he comes. Ooh, he does NOT look happy. Stop talking? Okay. Welp, hope you all enjoy... is that a whip? No! I won't do it again, just not the whip! Help! RAPE! *bzzzzzzt*”

Vinyl sat in stunned silence. Slowly, she leaned back to look at Octavia, who looked as shocked as she. She smiled and shook her head slowly with a chuckle. Eventually, both mares were laughing, holding onto each other for support. They quieted down when they heard the intercom crackle to life again.

"I apologize for that. Somepony doesn't know when to stop talking. Yes, you! But, there is no whip, there was no rape, and The Parlor does have some good ice cream. Again, I apologize for that. We should arrive shortly. Remember to grab all- put that down! Do you want me to tell your mother? I- *bzzzzzt*”

The musical duo were laying on the ground laughing, unable to keep seated as their laughter wracked their frames. It took a few minutes, but they were able to push it down to chuckles. Until they heard the conductor shouting at his assistant, causing the mares to lose any composure they had gathered.

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Vinyl and Octavia walked down the streets of Marechester, the occasional chuckle escaping, the argument from the train still fresh on their minds. Their luggage was being carried in Vinyl's crystalline blue aura while Octavia carried her cello, despite Vinyl's offer to carry it as well.

Octavia was glad for the little 'mishap' on the train. It had seemed to help take Vinyl's mind off all the fears she had of the upcoming visit. Hopefully, her good mood would last. After a few blocks, Vinyl spoke up.

"Hey, Tavi. Should, um, should we tell them about us? I mean, they know I'm gay, but if it makes you uncomfortable..."

"Vinyl." Octavia slowed her pace, as not to stumble as she turned to look at the unicorn. "This is your family. If you want them to know about us, then so be it. If you don't, that's fine."

"But it's 'us'. It would be rude if I were to start telling everypony I know that we were together if you were still a bit uncomfortable with others knowing it. I mean, you didn't even tell Fleur, and you two are, like, best buds."

Octavia continued walking in silence. "It's not that I'm embarrassed about it, or embarrassed by you, I just... I don't know. I guess I just don't know how to go about it. I'm also a bit shy, if you haven't noticed."

Vinyl sidled up to the grey mare and nuzzled her neck. "Well, I will tell my parents, how about that? Then, I can help you figure out how to tell your friends later, if you want."

Octavia gave her a quick peck on the cheek. "That would be fantastic."

They walked like that for a while, until Vinyl sighed and stopped. Octavia hadn't even noticed the change in the scenery. Where before they were in a somewhat busy city surrounded by buildings and ponies scurrying about, they now stood on a calm, almost tranquil, street. The road was packed dirt, not the cobblestone of the rest of the city. The houses on both sides had fair sized yards, some with a few trees. Most had some kind of a garden, whether flowers or vegetables.

"Wow. This place is... fantastic. Which house is yours?" Octavia looked around in wonderment, having rarely been out of a big city.

"Heh, you'll know it when you see it." Vinyl resumed walking as she spoke. "Unless they fixed it."

Octavia didn't know what she heard in her marefriends voice -- fear? Sadness? Anger? -- but she knew it wasn't good. She quickly closed the distance and gave Vinyl a quick nuzzle. "I love you, Vinyl. Even if they don't want anything to do with you, I will still be here, and I will still love you."

Vinyl huffed and gave a slight smirk. "You know just what to say to make a mare feel better, Tavi."

Running her words through her head, Octavia realised how that may have come off. "Vinyl, I-"

"Vinyl Scratch? Is that you?" Both mares turned to see an elderly mare walking out of one of the houses wearing a cooking bib.

"Mrs. Motherbee? Oh my gosh! How are you doing?" Vinyl placed the luggage on the ground and embraced the caramel colored mare.

"Wonderful, wonderful. The kids say you're a big hotshot musician now."

"Heh, I guess so. Still baking your special bread for the neighborhood?" Vinyl asked as she released the mare.

"But of course! These ponies couldn't get by for a week if I didn't feed them." Both mares gave a laugh. "You know, a lot of them were hurt when you left. None more than you mother." Vinyl looked down in shame.

"I know, Mrs. Motherbee."

"No note. No letters saying where you went or that you were okay. You had us all worried sick."

"I know, Mrs. Motherbee. I'm sorry."

"Ah, but the past is the past, and this is the present. You're here now, that counts for something, right?" The elder mare ran a hoof through her greyed mane.

"I hope so. I don't know if others feel the same," Vinyl said sadly.

"Welp, hope for the best. I've known your mother since she was a filly. She has always been quick to forgive." She gave Vinyl a gentle smile, before looking behind her to Octavia. "And just who might this be? You look familiar."

Octavia took a few steps forward as Vinyl introduced her. "This is Oct-"

"Gramma! Tree took my teddy!"

"My name's not Tree!"

"Sorry, Branch!"

"My name is Forest, Sunny!"

"My name's not Sunny, Fartest!"

"Sonata! Forest! Stop bickering! I'm sorry, dears. Younguns’ to deal with. We should catch up later." At that, the elderly mare turned toward the house and shouting children, adding her voice to the cacophony.

Vinyl chuckled as she picked up the luggage. "I missed this place. Come on, Tavi." As they walked, both mares looked around, taking everything in. Vinyl was coming to realize how much she missed this little street. While they had never had a lot of extra money, her and her mother never lacked anything. If they needed a bit of food, a neighbor was always glad to give something, or invite them to dinner. If Vinyl needed a foalsitter, plenty of ponies were available, though she would try to go to Mrs. Motherbee's, since she always had delicious homemade breads.

Vinyl heard a chuckle from beside her. "Am I to assume that is your house?" Despite knowing what she was pointing at and what she would see, Vinyl looked to where Octavia was pointing. Fourth house from the pond at the end of the road on the right side. In the front yard, next to the walkway leading to the house, was a mailbox. Ordinary, except it was painted like one of Vinyl's amplifiers and on top of it stood a miniature statue of Vinyl, pointing forward. As they approached, Octavia saw writing on the front of the mailbox. It was small and crude, but legible. 'Place any mail for Vinyl Scratch (or any others she allows to live at this address) within, or be blasted by my BASS CANNON! And have a nice day:)’

Seeing the whole thing made Octavia chuckle. "And why would they fix this? This is absolutely adorable!"

"Hardy-har-har. That's not what I was talking about. That is," she said, pointing at the house. Octavia followed her hoof, eyes resting on a second-story window. She looked between the window and the mare beside her, a smile slowly forming. She eventually started to laugh.

"So, heh, what happened there? Trying to tell some lucky mare where you lived so you could have a little fun?"

Vinyl looked up at her bedroom window with a smile. 'Vinyl Scratch Resides X', it read, with the 'X' going across her window. "No. When I was about eight, I put that there. Don't remember why. Maybe I put it there so people knew where I lived when I became famous, maybe I put it there so my friends could find my house easier when they came over, maybe a bit of both.

"Mom was furious at first. Desecrating her house, using up so much paint. But Dad came home shortly after it started. Don't remember what he said, but he convinced her it was a good thing. I think he said something to me about letting everyone know where I live when I became famous when Mom finally left. 'Course, he gave me a bunch of other chores, since I had used Mom's paint without permission and painted on the house."

Octavia gave a smile and turned to the reminiscing unicorn. "So, are you ready?"

"If I said no, could we go back home and cuddle?" Vinyl gave the most pleading look she could muster. Octavia just sighed.

"Vinyl..."

"*sigh* I know. I didn't really mean it." She turned towards the door, waving a hoof. "Ladies first."

"Vinyl, we're both mares."

"But you're a lady, I'm not."

"Vinyl," Octavia growled.

"Fine, grumpy. See if I'm ever courteous to you again. I guess chivalry is dead." Vinyl continued grumbling incoherently to herself as they approached the door. Octavia just sighed and shook her head. Pausing as she went to knock on the door, Vinyl turned to Octavia. "Thank you. For everything."

Octavia just smiled and nodded. Vinyl took a deep breath, raised her hoof, and let it rap on the door five times before returning it to the ground. After a minute without an answer, she turned to Octavia. "Maybe they're not home?" she asked, sounding somewhat hopeful.

Octavia just sighed and approached the door. She proceeded to knock on it seven times before stepping back. Soon thereafter, they heard scuffling from inside. She turned to face Vinyl with a smirk on her face, which was met with a scowl. They turned back to the door just as it was flung open.

"Stop that incessant pounding!" a copper colored earth pony hissed. "You'll wake the ba... Vinyl?"

Vinyl looked up at the stallion, her eyes hidden behind the glasses Octavia didn't even notice her put on. "Hi."

The stallion rushed forward and wrapped Vinyl up in a bone-shattering hug, which the mare returned after a few seconds.

"Where have you been?! You left without saying anything to anyone. No letters to let us know you were okay. We only found out you were still alive when we heard about your performances a few months ago. We were so worried. What were you thinking?" Octavia could hear the stallion holding back his tears.

"I'm so sorry, Daddy." Tears fell freely from Vinyl's eyes into the stallions dark red mane. "I- I- didn't-"

"Shhh. It's okay. You don't have to explain right now." Octavia saw some tears slip from the stallion's eyes, as she felt some slip from hers. "You're here now, right? That has to count for something."

They stood there for a few minutes, crying into each other's shoulders. Eventually, they separated. Vinyl removed her glasses to wipe her eyes. Upon seeing this, the stallion chuckled as he wiped his own moist eyes. "I have never understood why you insist on wearing those abominable things everywhere. All they serve to do is hide your gorgeous eyes."

"That is what I have always said," Octavia chuckled, causing the stallion to turn and face her.

"I must apologize. I didn't see you there, Miss. It has just been so long since I have seen my daughter."

"It's fine. I have went through much of the same thing recently, with the same mare, in fact. I understand completely."

"Oh yes, let's all pick on little ol' Vinyl since she seems to cause trouble with the ponies she cares about," Vinyl scoffed as she returned her glasses to their perch upon her muzzle.

"Vinyl, come now. Don't be like that." The stallion stepped forward to nuzzle the unicorn. "How about some introductions."

"Fine. Octavia, meet my father, Copper Girder. Dad, meet my marefriend, Octavia Philharmonica."

Copper smiled at Octavia and extended a hoof. "Pleasure to meet the mare who could capture my daughter's heart."

"And you. Vinyl hasn't said much about you, but from what she has said, you seem very important to her." At this, Copper turned to Vinyl and smirked.

"Oh, really? She said nice things about me?." He turned back to Octavia with a sly grin. "So, Miss Philharmonica, did my dearest daughter tell you the story behind her window?"

Octavia turned to see Vinyl's face pale, causing her to raise an eyebrow. "She said-"

"Mom will probably be happy to see me!" Vinyl shouted, cutting the cellist off. "Let's get this over with. My hearing isn't what it use to be. It's better now. Let's change that, shall we?" At that, Vinyl pushed past Copper Girder and walked into the house. Both earth ponies smiled before following her.

As Copper closed the door, Vinyl looked around, losing herself to memories. "You two go sit on the couch. I'll see if your mother is awake, Vinyl," Copper said, walking up a flight of steps off to the left of the entrance to the living room as the mares sat their luggage out of the way.

When they sat down, Octavia turned and kissed Vinyl. Pulling away after a few seconds, she spoke. "See, I told you it wouldn't be that bad." Vinyl just chuckled and continued looking around. After a few minutes, they heard two sets of hoofsteps coming down the steps.

In the front was Copper Girder, a smile still gracing his lips. As he stepped away, the pony Octavia assumed was Vinyl's mother came into view. Her ruffled red mane matched Vinyl's eyes in intensity. Though, it probably looks better when it is brushed, Octavia mused. Her robin's-egg blue coat was also slightly ruffled, signifying she had just woken up. Her eyes, though they were quickly filling with tears, were the clearest blue Octavia had ever seen.

Taking a few steps forward, the mare raised a hoof to her mouth. "Vinyl? Is it really you?"

Vinyl rose to her hooves and ran over to embrace her mother in a hug as tears began to fall from both of their eyes. "I'm sorry, Momma! I shouldn't have left like that. I'm so, so sorry!" Vinyl sobbed.

"No, you shouldn't have," she said sternly, but not angrily. "But you're home now. I missed you so much."

"I missed you, too."

Octavia wiped more tears from her eyes. She stole a glance at Copper Girder and saw him doing the same thing. As she lowered her hoof, she saw something on Copper's back. Leaning over, she saw a little filly who couldn't be more than a year old. She gasped as she saw her climb atop her father's head and point at Vinyl.

"Sissy?" she said.

"Yes, that's Sissy," Copper said, causing Vinyl to look at him. When she saw her, she gasped, her eyes going wide. Turning to her mother, Vinyl attempted to say something, but couldn't seem to find any words.

"Sissy home!"

Author's Note

Welp, another chapter. Yep. Wrote it in one night (except for the first few paragraphs. Wrote them back in... June, I think). I wrote it on wordpad. Was weird. The colors of the side filler stuff was different from GDocs, and it bugged me. Don't rightly know why. Huh. And I didn't have any form of spellcheck or anything. Didn't really bother me (other than a few words I can never seem to spell right). Then when I copied it to GDocs it changed all of my italics to normal... feggot. And when I would try to make some of the edits from my phone, it wouldn't want to get a signal and wouldn't save anything I did, so I am going to have to run up to the library, make my edits, then post it (I haven't even left my house yet. Typing this up so I don't have to in that hot ass piece of shit car).

Well, thanks to Pretty Princess Lynked for the story and all the help she has given me with it, and Noc for... nothing this chapter. He was... AFK so I had to get three other douchebags (whom (I wonder if I used that right) I shall not name (YA HEAR THAT JOSH, SIMPLY, AND SCRIBLLESCRIPT (I am gonna start calling you 'Scrib', like the little white bugs of the same name from Morrowing... I hate them things. Always with the sneaking up on you while you're in a fight and paralyzing... little fuckers piss me off... but that isn't why I am calling you that...) NO CREDIT FOR YOU!!)) to fill in for him (I picked them cuz I knew they would be there on such short notice).

So, yeah. Sorry for how long it took. Haven't had internets since June 21 and kinda lost motivation (not like I had much before that, but still). I apologize for any... errors or inconsistencies me and the Three Musketqueers may have missed. I wrote it between 10 PM and 5 AM (my mind functions best then, but my hands don't like to listen as well... asshats). Aaaaand I rambled. Next chapter is already in the works... if I can think of these names I need (still haven't came up with the names of a few characters (remember, I haven't left to make my edits yet)).

PS - I bought this blueberry cheddar cheese the other day. Don't really like cheese unless it is melted or on a burger, and this was not much different. Though, it did tasted damned good melted on crackers.

There was something else too. Can't remember what... huh. O vell. OH! I REMEMBERED! I put a reference in here (two, but one is an inside joke about my uncle). It is ICP, all I be saying, ninjas.

Catch anything, lemme know.

Chapter 9

Paradiso

Chapter 9

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

"Vinyl! What are you doing back here?" Mrs. Motherbee asked as she opened the door.

"Mom said Breezey had an appointment and Dad had to get to work, so I decided we would make rounds and say hi," the white unicorn replied with a broad smile.

"Of course. So," Mrs. Motherbee said, waving Vinyl and Octavia inside, "are you going to introduce me to your friend, Vinyl?"

"Again? You're a hassle, filly." Octavia shot a glare at the DJ. "Fine. Octavia, this is Mrs. Motherbee. She's pretty much our resident wisemare. Ooh, and bread-maker... pony. Yeah... Mrs. Motherbee, this is Octavia. She's my marefriend."

The elderly caramel-colored mare looked Octavia over for a few moments, making both musicians uncomfortable. Eventually, Mrs. Motherbee smiled. "A pleasure to finally meet you, my dear. I must apologize for the mess," she said, looking around the room at random scattered debris. "I have been watching some of the grandfoals and we all know how they love cleaning up after themselves."

"Nice to meet you, too," Octavia said, shaking the mare's proffered hoof. "And fret not about the mess. I have grown accustomed to it."

"Ah, yes. You are Vinyl's marefriend. Of course you'd be use to a messy household." The two mares turned to Vinyl, whose mouth was agape, closing from time to time, like a fish out of water.

"I see how it is," the DJ said as the other mares started laughing. "Make me the butt of all your jokes. Fine." She turned towards what Octavia assumed led to the kitchen. "I'll just go eat all the bread while you make fun of me."

"Oh, yes. The bread. You should bring me and your marefriend some as well, please," Mrs. Motherbee said as Vinyl walked away.

"Maybe I will, maybe I won't," was all she said.

Octavia worriedly watched after the seemingly angered mare. "Should we go apologize to her? She seemed upset."

"She's just being melodramatic, Octavia. Trust me, I've known her since she was a filly," the elderly mare said with a loving smile.

"It's just... this has happened a lot recently and I am afraid it may be starting to bother her." Octavia continued to stare at the doorway Vinyl walked through, her brow creased with worry.

Mrs. Motherbee pursed her lips as she thought. "Well, it may be best if you talked to her about it if you believe that is so," she said after a moment. "You may want to give her some time to simmer down, in case she really is upset."

Octavia turned to face the mare, giving her a slight smile. "Okay. I'll wait till we leave. Thanks."

"Think nothing of it. 'Tis what I do. Now, come along. No point standing here all day." She turned and started walking towards the back of the house, which could be seen from where they stood. "Vinyl! We'll be out back when you're done." No response.

As they walked, Octavia took everything in. The house had a comforting feel about it. Pictures were hanging on the cream colored walls. Trophies, more pictures, and assorted trinkets sat on shelves and stands. One pony in some of the pictures looked familiar, but she didn't stop long enough to figure it out.

When they stepped onto the porch, Octavia looked around. A small picket fence surrounded the yard, with baskets of flowers hanging at seemingly-random intervals. Flowers were planted all around: a rose bush in the far corner, some gardenias close to the porch, snapdragons, forget-me-nots, and other flowers she couldn't name framed the majority of the fence. A small pond surrounded by stone benches sat near the middle, right beneath a tree that Octavia believed was holding pears.

"It's beautiful," Octavia said in awe, sitting at a picnic table just off the porch.

"Thank you. It took me a while to get everything right, as well as plenty of hard work." Both mares sat in silence for a few moments, before Mrs. Motherbee spoke up.

"I thought I recognized you when I first saw you, but wasn't entirely sure. Now, I have no doubt." Octavia sat in silence, unsure of what the mare was talking about. "My daughter told me a lot about you. It seemed as though every letter she sent me was mostly about you."

"I'm sorry," Octavia said, "but I seem to have missed something. Who's your daughter?"

Mrs. Motherbee turned toward the cellist. Seeing confusion plain on her face, she chuckled. "I apologize. Sometimes I speak ahead of myself. Hold on a second," she said, rising from her seat. "Let me go get something."

Octavia just nodded as she walked away. The grey mare just sat there, trying to figure out who the caramel mare could be. She heard Vinyl talking loudly, though she couldn't quite make out what she was saying. She heard an excited filly say something when Vinyl stopped talking.

"I apologize for taking so long," Octavia heard Mrs. Motherbee say from behind her. Turning around, she saw the mare walking towards her, ruffling her wings, the apron the baker normally wore no longer covering them for the first time since Octavia had seen her. "The youngers got me that cooking apron, so I always wear it while I cook when they're around. It's nice and all, but it cramps up my wings. Could always cut holes for 'em, but I don't want to ruin it."

Sitting across from Octavia, Mrs. Motherbee placed a picture frame upon the table and pushed it toward her. "Took me a minute to find. Somepony moved it."

Octavia looked at the picture within the ornate wooden frame. It was slightly worn with age, but she had no trouble making it out. In the picture were eight ponies sitting under a tree. On the right, five unicorn foals, whose ages appeared to vary between five and eight, were beaming at the camera. On the left, a white pegasus mare with a brown mane, the only adult, stood above two earth pony fillies with a smile on her face.

The youngest of the two earth ponies, about six months old, was leaning up against the older, who was almost ten. Neither was paying attention to the camera. The younger, with a deep grey coat and a striking silver mane, was looking at something on the ground while the older, with a grey coat, black mane, and lavender eyes, was watching the filly.

A caterpillar, Octavia thought. It was an orange and black caterpillar she was looking at. I almost thought she would try to eat it. The memory brought a smile to her lips, as well as feelings of guilt and remorse to her heart. Looking back up at the elderly pegasus, she saw a soft smile.

"Caring Wing is my youngest daughter. She moved to Canterlot, oh, about twenty-three years ago, I think. Her older brother, whose foals are inside, told her about a job he heard about while travelling that he thought might interest her, since he knew she loved working with foals." Mrs. Motherbee let out a chuckle. "Oh, and it did. Took the first train out of town she could. As you know, she got it."

The caramel pegasus' face dropped a bit. "She loved her job, as you probably know," --Octavia smiled and nodded-- "but she barely had any time to herself. She was barely ever able to visit or make a social life. I stopped by from time to time, but even that could be hard." The elder mare ran a hoof through her greyed mane and sighed. "But she wrote, told me what was going on, how everypony was doing, and always mentioned you." Octavia blushed.

"When she sent that picture, she told me how you had taken to that filly like a bee to honey. Barely left her side, even tried to convince Carrie that you didn't need to go to school anymore so you could stay with her. Raised her like she was your sister." Mrs. Motherbee stopped talking for a moment when she saw tears in Octavia's eyes.

The cellist felt regret building up in her chest as the tears began to pour over. Looking back at the picture, she tried to rationalize what she did. Everything she thought of fell flat as tears dropped on the glass.

She felt a weight beside her as a wing pulled her close. The motherly embrace helped calm her. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath to help gain some composure. When she exhaled, she heard Mrs. Motherbee begin to speak again, though with a softer voice.

"When you left, she wrote me a letter. She told me how she was so proud of you, but was sad to see you go. She said they all were, especially that little filly," she said, nodding at the picture. Octavia felt another wave of guilt. "All of her letters since have been... She doesn't write me as much anymore."

Both mares sat in silence. Octavia stared into the pond as her mind raced. When she finally composed herself, she wiped her eyes and asked a question she was unsure if she wanted to know the answer to. "Is... do you know if she is still there?"

"I-" Mrs. Motherbee began, but was cut off by Vinyl.

"You guys want some butter?" she yelled from the kitchen.

Mrs. Motherbee looked at Octavia, who shook her head, before shouting back. "No thank you."

"'Kay."

Turning back to the grey earth pony, she gave her a slight squeeze with her wing. "The last letter I got said she was." Octavia felt a glimmer of hope at the words. "That was almost two months ago, though. I think it was after she got her Cutie Mark."

Octavia sighed. Unsure of what to say, she laid her head on the pegasus' shoulder and whispered, "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Octavia. Now," Mrs. Motherbee said after a brief pause, removing her wing from Octavia's side as the grey mare pulled away, "I do believe my granddaughter is a fan of your music, and she is an inquisitive one, so-"

"Taaaaviiii~," Vinyl said in a sing-song voice. She was carrying a tray with five plates, an equal number of cups, three loaves of bread, and two pitchers; one with orange juice and one with water. Beside her was a young pegasus colt with a dark brown coat and dark green mane. Peeking out from behind the unicorn, Octavia saw a caramel colored unicorn filly with a silver mane. When the filly noticed her looking, she hid behind Vinyl.

Placing the tray on the table, Vinyl used her magic to pull the shy filly out in front of Octavia, causing the filly to vainly yelp in protest. "You have a fan."

"Hey, Octavia?" Vinyl said. They were walking back to the house her parents lived in, having finally finished saying hello to her old neighbors and friends. Most meetings were short, since they had stayed at Mrs. Motherbee's house for far longer than either mare had anticipated and they didn't want to intrude on anyone’s evening plans.

"Yes, Vinyl?" Octavia leaned into the unicorn, causing her to have to sidestep to avoid tumbling over from the unexpected weight.

"Why were you crying?" The question caught Octavia off-guard. She slowed her pace and looked at her hooves.

"If I told you I don't know what you're talking about, would you believe me?" she asked.

"If I said I didn't, would you tell me?"

"If I said I don't want to talk about it right now, would you drop it?"

"If I said I would, would you know that I am here for you and am willing to listen to you ramble about your problems and feelings, no matter how small and insignificant you believe them to be?" Vinyl replied softly after a brief pause, during which she entwined her tail with the distraught cellist's.

Octavia turned her head to see Vinyl smiling at her. She smiled back and gave her a lingering kiss. Pulling away, she said, "Yes."

The mares continued on in a content silence. Upon reaching the door, Octavia stopped. "How did you know I was crying?" she inquired.

"Your cheeks were still wet when I got outside," Vinyl stated simply with a slight shrug of her shoulders. "I didn't want to say anything about it there, so it wouldn't draw attention to you."

"Even when doing something nice, she does it so it benefits her. She did it so I didn't get attention," Octavia said exasperatedly, opening the door and entering the house.

"Hey! That is not what I meant!" Vinyl shouted, following the grey mare into the house.

"Sure, sure. Keep telling yourself that. Whatever helps you sleep at night," Octavia replied with a smirk, walking into the living room.

Sidling up beside her, Vinyl whispered breathily into her ear. "I can think of something that would help me sleep at night."

Octavia’s cheeks were warmed by the sudden influx of blood in them. Slightly turning her head, she whispered back. "Vinyl! Your family is sitting not five steps away and you say something like that?"

"Firstly," Vinyl began, still whispering, "I whispered so they didn't hear me. Secondly, I was referring to a warm glass of milk and you rubbing my tummy while singing to me. I don't know what you were tal- OCTAVIA!" The sudden shout caused the other four ponies to start. "How could you insinuate something like that?! My family is right there!"

Octavia stood unmoving, her mouth agape and eyes wide with utter disbelief. Her blush intensified. "You- I- You... Hello Copper. Ruby. Stormy. How was your day?" she asked, strain evident in her voice.

"Work," Copper said, his tone so serious, it was as though he were a doctor telling a patient there was nothing that could be done to help them with a life-threatening condition, or a general telling his subordinates a massive attack force was coming their way and they would all die.

"Well," Ruby said, leaning away from Copper and giving him a wary glance, "me and Breezey went to the dentist, then went shopping."

"Toy!" Octavia heard the aforementioned filly squeel with delight. From her spot on the floor, Stormy Breeze lifted a little toy dinosaur above her head with both hooves. Suddenly, the toy was encased in a golden aura, floating just above the little filly's hooves and rotating slowly.

All five ponies looked on in awe; four reminded of games Vinyl liked to play, one entranced by her toy, which was now floating away. Giving a little grunt, Stormy Breeze reached for the toy. When she realized she was unable to get it back, her eyes started to tear up and her bottom lip quivered.

Before the dams broke and the wails came, the golden aura was replaced by a blue, which floated the toy back to the filly's grasping hooves. Releasing the magic, Vinyl walked over and sat before the filly.

"That's a mighty fine toy ya got," she said with a smile. They filly responded by waving the dinosaur around and saying words nobody understood. "Can I play with it?"

The filly looked at Vinyl's outstretched hoof warrily, pulling the toy closer to herself. Looking down at the toy, she slowly nodded and gave it to her older sister. The other three ponies looked upon the sweet scene, though it also brought an ache to Octavia's heart.

"I-" She cleared her throat when she felt her voice crack. "I'm going to get something to drink. Would anybody else like anything?"

"Water," was all Copper said, followed by a "thank you".

"Duice!" Stormy Breeze said after Vinyl asked her in simpler terms.

"Pop!" Vinyl said, imitating the filly.

"No," Octavia said. She walked out of the room, Vinyl staring after her in disbelief. Copper looked at Ruby and nodded toward the kitchen. Knowing what he meant, she stood up and followed the cellist.

"So, not even going to see if I wanted anything?" she asked when she made it into the kitchen. Octavia, preparing to open a cabinet, started when she heard the other mare's voice. Turning around, she blushed.

"I'm sorry. I- Busy day. And I couldn't give Vinyl a chance to respond. Would you like anything to drink, Ruby?" she asked, turning back to the cabinet.

"No, Dear. Thank you though." She stood in the doorway as Octavia placed four cups, one a sippie-cup, on a tray and walked to the fridge. When Ruby noticed her hesitate, she spoke up. "Silver label."

"Ah, thank you." The cellist pulled out a bottle with a silver label that was filled with a light-orange juice. Pouring some into the cup, she heard Vinyl making what she assumed were dinosaur noises, making Stormy laugh. "They get along so well. You're lucky to have such wonderful daughters."

"Thank you, Octavia. I always imagined they would, but I was unsure if it was just wishful thinking. I didn't know how Vinyl would react." She let out a sigh, looking into the living room at her daughters. "We found out the day she left. It's why I was still awake when she got home. I wanted to tell her as soon as I could. I thought it would make her so happy."

Octavia didn't say anything. She was unsure of what to say, so she continued getting drinks. Replacing the juice, she grabbed a two-liter bottle that said 'Rock & Rye!', which she recalled Vinyl raving about. She also pulled out a pitcher labeled 'tea'. As she poured the liquids into cups, she heard Ruby speak again.

"Do you have any siblings, Octavia?"

"I-" Octavia stopped. She placed the tea back on the table and stared into the swirling liquid. "A sister."

"Older or younger?"

"Younger. She... she'll turn eleven in a few months."

"I thought so." At Octavia's questioning glance, Ruby elaborated. "The way you were looking at Vinyl and Stormy, I figured you probably had a sister."

Octavia felt tears well in her eyes. "I haven't seen her for a few years. I- I moved out when I turned eighteen and I... haven't made time to see her." She let her head hang as the tears fell again.

Ruby sidled up beside her, wrapping her in a warm hug, which she was quick to return. Not letting go, Ruby spoke. "You told me this morning you were on vacation. Why not go visit her when you leave here?"

It wasn't the first time she had thought about it. When Vinyl had told her about leaving her family, she remembered leaving her own. She wanted to say something to Vinyl, but she didn't want to add another problem to their ever-increasing list. After visiting Mrs. Motherbee, she had decided she would tell her when they left, as she had promised with the 'Bloopermare' incident.

Octavia just nodded into the blue unicorn's shoulder. Pulling away after a minute, she wiped her eyes. Ruby gave her a soft smile as her horn lit up with magic and floated the beverages back to the refrigerator. As Octavia went to fill the last glass up with water, she heard Ruby speak.

"Octavia, I have a favor to ask of you."

Turning around when the cup was full, she smiled. "Yes?"

"I know it is sudden, so I don't want you to feel obligated or anything," Ruby began. “When I was out the other day, I ran into a friend. We haven't seen each other in a few years, so she invited me and Copper to dinner, to catch up and all. I told her yes and she has reservations for tonight.

"I know Vinyl will probably say yes without a second thought," the mare continued with a chuckle, "but I don't know if she knows how to properly take care of Stormy, even for just a few hours, so I wanted to check with you first. Since you said you have a sister, I assume you know how to take care of a foal?" Octavia gave a nod. "Now, if you don't feel comfortable, Mrs. Motherbee was originally going to watch her and I’m sure she still will, but I figured Vinyl would enjoy spending some time with her, especially since you're only here for a few days."

Octavia smiled. "If Vinyl wants to, I will gladly help."

"Thank you, Dear. I will go ask her, though she will probably say yes." As she walked toward the doorway, Ruby turned back towards Octavia. "Oh, and you may want to refill that cup."

As she heard Ruby begin talking to Vinyl, Octavia looked at the cup; she had drank the water without realizing it. Chuckling to herself, the cellist turned around and let the glass fill back up with water. As she place it back on the tray, she heard Vinyl say, "I'll have to ask Octavia, but I would love to."

Turning around, Octavia heard "Okay", followed by what sounded like Copper and Ruby expressing their surprise at Vinyl’s response, as hoofsteps approached. Vinyl walked into the kitchen with a grin on her face. "Hey, Babe," she said, approaching Octavia and pecking her on the lips.

"Hello."

"So, Mom and Dad were wanting to go to dinner and asked if I wanted to watch Breezey while they were out," Vinyl began, kicking a hoof. "I didn't want to say yes if you didn't want to watch her." She looked away bashfully.

"Are you asking me permission?" Octavia asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I- I was wondering if you would help me," Vinyl said with a blush. "I've never taken care of a foal before and was hoping you would be willing to help me."

"I would love to."

"Sweet! Thanks, Tavi." Vinyl gave her another brief kiss, causing Octavia to smile. "Wait. Do you even know how to take care of a foal, or are we both going into this blind?"

Octavia turned around and placed the tray upon her back. "I do."

"Really? Since when?"

"Later," was all Octavia said as she left the kitchen. Shrugging, Vinyl followed her.

"She said yes," Vinyl said as Octavia sat the tray on the coffee table in the middle of the room and passed Copper his water.

"Thank you," he said with a smile.

She smiled back and gave Stormy her cup.

"Fank oo, Tabi," the filly said, quickly putting the cup to her lips.

"You're welcome, Stormy." As she turned back to the tray, she saw Vinyl's aura surround the cup of Rock & Rye. Placing a hoof over the cup, she said, "That one is mine, Dear."

Vinyl tilted her head and scrunched her face in confusion. "But it's pop. I asked for pop."

"And I said 'no'. I got you tea," the cellist said, raising the cup to her lips. She heard Copper start snickering.

"But-"

"You had plenty of pop while we were at Mrs. Motherbee's. Drinking something else won't kill you."

Copper kept snickering while Vinyl grabbed the tea with her magic, grumbling all the while. When she took a sip, her face lit up. "Dad's Southern Sweet Tea!"

Octavia sighed and hung her head as Copper Girder let out a hearty laugh.

"It's even sweeter than pop. Thanks, Tavi!"

"It still isn't pop," Octavia said after a moment, smirking, "so I still win."

Vinyl's face dropped as Copper laughed even harder and her mother let out a chuckle.

Author's Note

(Anything in red is just me rambling. Feel free to skip it)

So, one day turned into one week… I blame Metal Gear Rising: Revengance. It is amazing stress relief. I mean, come on. Chopping people into hundreds of pieces with a sword? Hell yeah. And the end-game fight was worthy of the title (unlike Fable 2…). First time took me a good two hours. Second time took me like ten minutes. Awesome game. Oh, and The Bureau: XCOM Declassified. Was actually able to step away from that one for a few though to get work done.

Also, in story related news, after the next chapter this story will be going on hiatus. Now, this doesn’t mean my life is too busy to be writing (typing, technically) or I am out of ideas (I actually have probably the rest of the story mentally planned) so it won’t have a snowball’s chance in hell (unless we’re talking Hell, MI) to update. It just means that this story is no longer my main focus when it comes to fic writing (typing). It’ll probably still update on the same basis (every month or so, unless you get lucky), I just want to focus on getting some of these one-shots out of my brainy parts (one of which is already written here [if I remember to add the link]) to try and help clear my mind so I can focus (and maybe even get some sleep).

Oh, and, um… I made an uh-oh. As I said, life has convinced me to lock myself in my room and rarely leave, which will give me plenty of time to work. Well, that is still technically true. BUT! Yesterday, I bought the Elder Scrolls Anthology (all five games along with all expansions for Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim and the construction set for Morrowind). If you know anything about these games, especially Morrowind, you know why that is bad. If not, I’ll tell ya. Morrowind and Oblivion (don’t know about Arena and Daggerfall since I haven’t played them yet) have AMAZING replay value, especially if you download mods (but ElricM, the best Morrowind mod-site, was shut down about a year ago, so the searching will be harder) or even learn to script and model and make your own (landmass, creature, weapon, character, guild, etc.). Skyrim sucked and the only reason I will even play it again is because I want to check out the Dragonborn DLC and return to Solstheim (that is where Morrowind’s expansion Bloodmoon takes place and was the first place you could become a werewolf, so Skyrim didn’t even have that going for it (as a new thing, I mean. They improved on it, that’s it) or dragons, since they were complete bitches (all it had was good graphics, which I can EASILY go without. I will cut my rant short here)). So yeah, that long-ass paragraph explains life.

TL:DR
Video games delayed this chapter, story will go on hiatus after the next chapter (paragraph two explains that it doesn’t mean it won’t update), and The Elder Scrolls series is preparing to steal thousands more hours of my life… AND I DON’T CARE! Oh, and Skyrim sucks. Oh, and did the offline update so some errors may be there.

Thanks to Pwetty Pwincess Lynked for the story, Joshy-boy for givin’ ‘er a once-over, Simply for letting me stab people with his shin bone, Ball for being Canada-ian, you people for reading my story and giving me feed-back to help me improve (always appreciated, even if it is just a ‘good job, Kody’ or ‘this story sucks. You should go hang yourself with razorwire’ or even something in-depth that explains why what I am doing is good or bad or how it is wrong), and R.A. Salvatore for creating the most awesome fantasy character in the whole of time and space. (Yes, I speak of Drizzt Do’Urden) Oh, and Linkin Park and any groups any member has been in (which now includes Stone Temple Pilots, which Chester Bennington is fronting for some reason which I don’t care about (unless you know it, in which case, please tell me)) for their awesome music.

Wow. That’s a lot of rambling. Ooh, ooh. Maybe I should Ramble On because I’m a Ramblin’ Man! HA! Sorry, couldn’t help it.

Chapter 10

Paradiso

Chapter 10

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

Octavia’s ears perked up at the sound of a door closing. She turned from her cello to see Vinyl and Stormy Breeze walking down the stairs, both still slightly wet from the shower. As they neared the bottom, Octavia lay her cello aside and approached the sisters with a smile.

“So,” she said, planting a kiss on each unicorn’s forehead, “do you feel better now that you are all cleaned up?”

“Baph!” Stormy said with glee, bringing a smile to the cellist’s lips.

Vinyl looked at the grey mare with a seductive smirk. “Yes, I feel better now that I have gotten all wet, just like you wanted.”

Octavia looked at the mare incredulously with a blush. She wanted to hit her, but with Stormy sitting atop her head, she knew she couldn't. Turning away, she sighed.

“So, I changed your diaper, you got a shower, and you have a bottle of milk,” Octavia said, pointing at a bottle filled with milk on the coffee table. “I guess you’re all ready for bed, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, ready to go nigh-night?” Vinyl said, floating a yawning Stormy to the couch along with the milk..

“Oh, I was talking about you, Vinyl. Though, I guess she should probably go to bed, too.”

“Oh, Tabi thinks she’s funny.” Vinyl looked down at her sister, who gave a sleepy smile around the nipple of her bottle. “I guess she’s right. Come on, Sis. Time for bed.”

Vinyl stood from the couch, floating Stormy Breeze and her bottle onto her back. She approached Octavia and placed her lips upon the cellist’s. Walking past her a little, she said, “Give Tabi a good-night kiss.” The sleepy filly opened her mouth in a big ‘O’ and placed it on Octavia’s cheek.

“Goodnight, girls.” Octavia reached for her cello and bow as the sisters walked past. Biting her lip gently, she said, “Would you like to hear me play before going to bed?”

Vinyl stopped and turned to face the cellist, raising an eyebrow. “What makes you think I was going to bed?”

Octavia looked away. “You've just had a long day today, not to mention the past few days. I would understand if you fell asleep as soon as you lay down or just wanted to go to bed early. And we’ll probably have a busy day tomorrow.”

Vinyl smiled. Without a word, she lay upon the couch, an almost asleep Stormy Breeze curled up beside her. “We would love that.”

Octavia looked up happily. Standing on her hind legs, she pulled her cello and bow into position. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, and pulled the bow across the strings. As she played, she thought. She thought about when she met Vinyl, all the fun they had together. She thought about when she realized she had a crush on the same mare, and how torn she was when she left. She thought about how happy and angry she was when she saw Vinyl again. The raging emotions when she came to apologize. The joy when she kissed her back.

Octavia thought about everything leading up to where she was. And where she was needing to go. Most importantly, she thought of the little filly she needed to apologize to. The filly she had abandoned. The filly she had promised she would visit, but hadn’t seen in years.

Feeling tears in her eyes, Octavia finished playing. She looked up to see the unicorn sisters sleeping, Stormy Breeze wrapped in Vinyl’s legs, a smile upon both of their faces. Placing her cello in its case, Octavia took the blanket from the back of the couch and draped it over the sisters. Kissing both unicorns on the forehead, she turned towards the kitchen.

“That was beautiful, Octavia.” The cellist jumped. Looking around, her eyes finally spotted the speaker at the stairs: Copper Girder. He sat, leaned against the wall, with Ruby leaning against him, her eyes closed. Both were smiling. “Vinyl was right, y’are very talented.”

Octavia blushed, trying to hold back a large smile. “Thank you very much.” Octavia just stood for a moment, unsure of what to do. “Do you have any tea?”

“Third drawer down, far right of the sink,” Ruby said, eyes remaining closed.

“Okay, thank you.” As Octavia walked towards the kitchen, she turned back and said, “Are you going to join me?”

“Of course we are, Dear,” Ruby said, standing up to follow the mare. Copper trailed behind.

Sitting at the kitchen table, Octavia, Ruby, and Copper sipped on cups of tea.

“So,” Octavia began, “how was your dinner?”

Ruby looked up. “Oh, it was nice. Seeing old friends always is.” Octavia just nodded. “And yours?”

Octavia stared at the table with a smile. “It was wonderful. I got to see a whole new side off Vinyl, and I loved it.” Her thoughts went to earlier that evening. Watching the sisters bond was one of the most heartwarming things she could remember. And it was even more touching when Stormy Breeze insisted upon her joining them.

Octavia, Ruby, and Copper sat around the table talking on inconsequential subjects for a few minutes. When they paused to refill their cups, Octavia’s mind began to wander.

“Would you mind if I asked a very personal question?” Octavia questioned, staring into her steaming cup of tea.

Ruby and Copper looked at each other questioningly. Copper shrugged, letting Ruby know he was okay with it. “Of course, Octavia. Ask us whatever you are comfortable with,” Ruby said, gently.

Taking a deep breath, Octavia asked a question that had been bothering her since before her and Vinyl had arrived. “Were you upset with Vinyl when she ran away?” Both ponies were taken by surprise.

“Of course we were,” Ruby began. “Well, at least, I was. She came home the night before, screaming at us for no reason, then ran off. It was hard not to be a little upset.”

“Are you still upset with her?” Octavia still couldn’t bring herself to look at them.

The older ponies sat in contemplation. Copper was the first to speak up. “I’m not. I mean, I was a bit hurt that she thought that was the best to do was leave, but she was never one for facing her problems. You probably know that.”

Octavia nodded and took a sip of her tea, waiting for Ruby to talk. “I… I don’t know. I’m upset that she did it, and I’m glad she’s finally come to visit us, despite how long it took her, but I don’t know if I’m upset with her anymore. I know she must have wanted time to herself after what happened, but she could have told us. We would have helped her.” Ruby leaned against Copper, tears in her eyes.

“I’m really sorry,” Octavia said, looking back into her cup.

“For what, Dear?” Ruby asked, leaning away from Copper.

“For bringing up something so… emotional.” Octavia released a sigh.

“Someone had to do it, Babe.” The ponies at the table turned to see Vinyl standing in the doorway with a sleeping Stormy Breeze on her back. She walked over to Octavia and kissed her before sitting down, cradling the filly against her chest.

Everypony just looked at Vinyl. “No need to stop talking because I’m here. Converse.” She began gently rocking Stormy. “Oh, and don’t worry about catching me up. I’ve heard everything.”

“Would you like some tea?” Octavia asked, not really comfortable for some reason.

“No. But a glass of water would be nice,” Vinyl said with a smile.

“So,” Ruby said as Octavia filled up a glass, “is there anything you want to say or ask?” She wiped some stray tears from her eyes.

“Actually, yes. How did you know what happened that night?”

Ruby straightened up and took a deep breath. “After we realized you had… left, we went and looked for you. We asked your friends, went to your favorite places, but couldn’t find anything.” Ruby sniffled. “We stopped to get some lunch and were talking when this young mare approached us.

“She apologized for listening to our conversation, and asked if we were looking for Vinyl Scratch. We told her we were and explained what had happened. We told her how we had looked all over for you, but nopony knew anything. Then she sat down and told us what had happened at the party the night before. She told us that you told her you were moving.”

Vinyl was biting her lip and looking at the table. Her glass sat empty and she was no longer rocking Stormy. She felt Octavia’s hoof begin rubbing her back comfortingly. She looked up to realize her mother had stopped talking. She nodded, letting them know she was listening, as Octavia sidled closer to her.

“She said she gave you her number and asked if we wanted her to tell us if she found anything out,” Copper said. “We told her only if it seemed like you needed help. We had decided you were old enough to go be your own mare and realized you may want some time alone. To help get your thoughts in order. We knew you would come home if things got too bad, but we also knew they probably wouldn’t.

“And look at you now,” he said, a little too loud, earning a jab from Ruby. “Sorry.” He looked over to Vinyl, who went back to rocking a waking Stormy.

Copper stood up and walked over to Vinyl. He wrapped her in a gentle hug and whispered, “I couldn’t be prouder.” Vinyl nuzzled into his shoulder, tears pouring from her eyes. Octavia and Ruby couldn’t help from letting some tears fall as well.

As he pulled away, Copper felt a slight tugging around his neck. Stormy Breeze had wrapped her hooves around his neck. He pulled her to him and said, “I think we should go to bed. We have a big day tomorrow.” Everypony nodded in agreement.

Octavia carried the cups to the sink as the others went upstairs. As she made it to the top of the stairs, she saw Vinyl and Ruby hugging as Copper turned into a room. As she approached, she heard faint “I love you” followed by “I love you, too, Mom”. As they pulled away, Ruby turned to the room Copper had entered.

“Goodnight, Octavia,” she said.

“Goodnight, Ruby.” Octavia turned to see Vinyl walking up the hallway. Turning to the door at the far right, she pushed it open and waved Octavia in. Too tired to look around, Octavia headed straight for the bed. Curling up under the covers, she sighed in relief. Feeling Vinyl crawl in beside her, she wrapped her in a loving embrace.

“Goodnight, Octavia. I love you,” Vinyl said, letting sleep take her in its hold.

“I love you, too, Vinyl.” Octavia smiled into her marefriend's mane as she fell asleep.

Author's Note

So, not entirely satisfied with bits of this chapter, but, then again, when are we? So, thanks to Pretty Princess Lynked (I wish I didn't have to copy and paste linked stuff for the author's note. Get's anoyinng) for the story, and Joshy-boy and Leonofsweden (especially him. He helped me a lot) for pre-reading this for me.

I apologize for how long this took to get up. I just... couldn't seem to get around to it.

In other news, I have this awesome Pikachu theme for Google Chrome.

[The usual 'find an error, point it out, please' and 'I enjoy reading your thoughts about this chapter/story, so feel free to leave them' goes here]

Chapter 11

Paradiso

Chapter 11

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

Vinyl stretched, the light of the morning sun warming her face. She rolled over, reaching for her marefriend. Her hooves met the soft, smooth texture of her blanket. With a sigh, she rolled out of the bed, deciding it was better to get up than lie alone.

After using the facilities, she trotted down the stairs, the smell of waffles guiding her. As she reached the bottom of the stairs, she turned to see Octavia and Stormy Breeze playing on the living room floor. Despite her churning stomach, she went to tell the mares good morning.

“Mornin’, Tav,” she said, kissing the back of the cellist’s head. “Mornin’, Sis.” She ruffled the filly’s mane as she walked past.

“Good morning, Vinyl. Sleep well?” The earth pony turned slightly to face Vinyl as she spoke.

“Good enough. I’mma grab some grub.” She began walking towards the kitchen when she heard Stormy Breeze speak up.

“Kitty,” the little filly squealed.

“What?” Vinyl questioned, puzzled. She turned back to see Octavia and Stormy laughing. Her confusion was quickly replaced with anger. “You said you wouldn’t tell anypony!”

“Oh, come on, Vinyl. She’s just a filly. Besides,” Octavia said, standing and turning towards the distraught unicorn, Stormy Breeze upon her back, “she made me think of that day.”

“How does Stormy remind you of me being viciously mauled by a cat?” the DJ said with a scowl.

“Not Stormy, silly filly. Her cat.” Stormy stood up on her hind legs and presented a thing of Vinyl’s nightmares: a creamy white feline with chocolate brown ears and circles around its eyes, as well as a few lighter brown patches throughout her body. Most of its tail was also brown. The color of DEMONS! And its face seemed to be set in a permanent scowl.

“AHHHH! Get it away from me!” Vinyl began to backpedal as she screamed, her eyes not leaving the ball of evil.

“Aww, is Vinyl afwaid of the wittle kitty?”

The unicorn looked to Octavia, her mouth open to respond. When her eyes met the cellist face, she froze.

“What’s wrong dear?”

“Sissy?” Vinyl looked to the little filly. She screamed.

“What’s wrong?! Are you alright?” Copper said, having crashed through Vinyl’s bedroom door. He saw Octavia holding a crying Vinyl. Octavia looked up to him and nodded.

“She just had a bad dream and fell out of bed. She’ll be okay.” She gave him a little smile.

“Oh, okay. Uh, sorry for bursting in here like that,” Copper said, a sheepish smile on his face, rubbing his eyes. He looked to his crying daughter. “I heard her scream and…” He trailed off.

“I understand, Copper. It is fine.”

Copper nodded. “Good night, girls.” He began to leave the room.

“Good night, Copper,” he heard Octavia say.

“Night, Daddy. Love you.” Copper felt his heart twinge as he closed the door.

“I love you, too, Vinyl,” he whispered as he walked back to his room. As he walked through the door, closing it behind him, he saw Ruby laying there, having gotten Stormy Breeze back to sleep, a smirk lining her face. “What?”

“So…?” she said, her eyes not leaving the stallion, as he climbed into the bed with her.

“She’s fine. She just had a bad dream.” Copper raised an eyebrow when Ruby began snickering.

“S-so, uh.” Ruby cleared her throat, trying to hold back her laughter. “It, uh, didn’t once cross your mind, as you rushed into our daughter’s room in the middle of the night, she might be a, uh… screamer?” As Copper’s face dropped, Ruby burst out in laughter.

“RUBY! That’s our daughter!” Copper said, his face a mix of embarrassment and indignation.

“But you could have just walked in on her having sex!”

“I was concerned for her safety! She screamed and there was a thump,” Copper stated, trying to defend what he did, a blush adorning his cheeks.

“She was in her BEDROOM with her MAREFRIEND! She screamed while ALONE with her LOVER! Did that not cross your mind?” Ruby continued to laugh.

“NO! I was concerned for my daughter’s safety,” Copper said through gritted teeth, his tone leaving no room for misinterpretation. Ruby’s laughter stopped. “I heard her scream and feared she was in trouble, so I went to help, as I will do every time I think my daughter is in danger.”

A tense silence hung in the air. Copper glared at Ruby. Ruby straightened up on the bed and reached out to her husband.

“Copper…” Ruby tried, and failed, to calm the upset stallion.

“I’m sleeping on the couch. Good night.” At that, Copper left the room, leaving a shameful Ruby alone in bed, her mind eventually drifting towards her returned daughter before returning to a restless sleep.

Octavia held the weeping mare as Copper closed the door. Stroking Vinyl’s mane, she whispered sweet nothings into her ear, hoping to help calm the mare. They sat in each other’s embrace while they heard Copper and Ruby arguing. Eventually, it quieted and she heard hoofsteps going down the stairs.

“Vinyl,” she said, not releasing the mare, “are you okay?” She felt Vinyl shake her head into her shoulder. “Are you going to tell me about it?” Another shake. “If you will not tell me, Vinyl, neither of us will be going back to sleep.”

Vinyl pulled the concerned cellist closer. “But you’ll laugh at me. You’ll think I was being stupid.”

“Vinyl, I think you are being stupid fairly often--” she felt the mare slacken her embrace “--but I don’t think you are right now. But how am I supposed to help you if you won’t tell me anything?” Octavia rubbed the mare’s back while she waited for a response.

“Okay,” Vinyl whispered. She began scooting back, so she could look at Octavia while she talked, but was held firmly in place by the strong earth pony.

“No. You will stay right here while you tell me,” the cellist said, nuzzling the DJ’s neck.

Vinyl hugged Octavia tighter. “Okay,” she said, and began explaining her dream. Octavia stroked her blue mane, listening intently.

“...and then you chased me upstairs into my room. As soon as I walked in, I was chained to the bed and there were bars over the windows and door.” Vinyl sniffled and hugged Octavia tighter. “Mom and Dad came to the doorway when I screamed for help. Mom smiled and said it was what I get for running away and they weren’t gonna let me leave again.”

Octavia didn’t let go of the distraught mare, just continued her sweet caressing as the mare’s crying began again. “So you’re afraid that they are angry that you left and will try to keep you from leaving? And maybe that me and your sister will agree with them?”

Vinyl nodded and sniffled. “Do you think they’re mad at me, Octavia?”

She squeezed Vinyl tighter and nuzzled her neck. “I can’t tell you if they are upset with you or not. I can tell you that they love you and that, if they are still upset about you leaving, they will forgive you.”

Vinyl buried her face deeper into the grey cellist’s shoulder. “Thank you, Octavia,” she whispered. “It sounds better when you say it.” Pulling away, she kissed the mare.

Octavia smiled into the kiss. “You’re welcome. Now,” she said, looking at her now content lover, “I think we should try to get some more sleep. We will probably have a lot to do tomorrow.”

Author's Note

Thanks to Pretty Princess Lynked for the story, and Joshy-boy and Leonofsweden for pre-reading this for me.

Not really much to say. I have found a song that has stuck in my brain and is pure beauty: Cradle to the Grave by Five Finger Death Punch (if the link goes to a deleted vid, let me know. I won't be surprised if it is deleted soon). Oh, and the Doctor Who 50th was cool. Watching Tennant and Smith acting side-by-side, it was easy to tell who was the better Doctor (hint: ALLONS-Y).

Oh, and this was originally gonna be a bullshit comedy chapter, but someone said something that made that change.

[The usual 'find an error, point it out, please' and 'I enjoy reading your thoughts about this chapter/story, so feel free to leave them' goes here]

Chapter 12

Paradiso

Chapter 12

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

The sky above Octavia was perfect: a soft-blue canvas speckled with white. She saw two unidentifiable birds flitting around a bush, their song bringing a smile to her lips. The grass felt smooth beneath her and a gentle breeze ruffled her coat, whispering sweet nothings into her ears as it passed.

Octavia couldn't help but smile. The day was great: birds were chirping, the sun was shining, she had recently found love, and foals were playing and laughing. Octavia sat up, inhaling deeply to take in the scents on the wind. After a long, steady exhale, she looked down to the playground at the foot of her hill.

She saw a green pegasus fly up to catch a Frisbee thrown by a white unicorn, who laughed as a bird swooped in to steal the toy. A shout drew Octavia's attention to a table where five other foals sat. Well, four sat. The fifth was standing on the table shouting emphatically. A gust of wind set the pony's crystalline-blue mane and purple cape whipping dramatically.

Octavia couldn't suppress a laugh when the exuberant pony was unbalanced by the bird with the Frisbee, causing her to shriek and cover her head. After a few moments, she looked up. Seeing the danger was passed, she straightened the starry hat on her head, used her magic to pick up a piece of cardboard and unfold it in front of a smiling unicorn wearing a medieval helmet, and returned to her seat.

Despite all the noise, the laughter and shouts of foals at play mixing with the gentle melody of nature, everything fell dead on Octavia's ears when her eyes fell on the slide. More precisely, when her eyes fell on the little grey filly under the slide. Though she was so far away, Octavia knew the filly was holding onto a stuffed dog, crying.

Octavia heard a shout and she turned to see most of the foals running towards a smiling pegasus, saying goodbye to the friends who were staying as they went. She turned back to the slide, but only saw the filly's silver tail as she walked away. Standing up, she started to run, having to catch up to the filly, but she tripped after passing the slide.

As she fell, she looked to see what she tripped over and gasped, tears welling up in her eyes: she had tripped over the filly's stuffed dog.

"Tavi. Tavi. Tavi. Tavi. Taaaavi. Octavia. Octavia... Oc-tavia, Oc-tavia, you are sleeping so sweetly. But I am hungry, so I will wake thee, even though you may kill me." Vinyl gave a gasp of... inspiration?

That thought made Octavia sigh. Realizing she wouldn't be getting back to sleep, she rolled over as Vinyl began clearing her throat as though preparing to give a speech. In a reflex-driven attempt of prevention, she quickly closed the few inches of empty space between them and pressed her lips to Vinyl's.

The sudden movement from her thought-to-be-sleeping marefriend startled Vinyl, causing her to lean backwards with a gasp of surprise...

..and fall to the floor with a grunt of pain.

She laid there with a groan of embarrassment as Octavia laughed.

"I must apologize, Dear," Octavia said in fits and starts, unable to control her laughter, "for I only meant to keep you from singing another verse."

Vinyl harrumphed as she rose. She walked to her beanbag and plopped down, filling the room with a noticeable 'fwoosh'. She just sat there, scowling at the evil earth pony she was kind enough to let sleep in her bed.

"Can we get breakfast now that you're up?" Vinyl asked innocently, the scowl fading from her face.

"Why did you wake me up to eat breakfast?" Vinyl opened her mouth to speak, but Octavia cut her off with "If you turn that into an innuendo, you'd better hope you can outrun me."

"Well I never!" Vinyl shouted, trying to put on an insulted expression, but she failed and started laughing. After regaining her composure, she smiled. "I can't eat your birthday breakfast on my own. That would just be rude, even by my standards. Which I have."

Octavia sat on the bed, unmoving. After a few moments, when Vinyl started to fidget under her unblinking stare, she rose. "Fine. Let me get around."

As she walked to the bedroom door, Vinyl leapt from her seat to engulf Octavia in a hug. "Happy birthday, Octavia."

"Thank you," Octavia said, smiling as the unicorn let go and went back to the bed, humming.

“So you’re saying that really expensive coffee is fed to animals then pulled out of their poop?” Vinyl repeated sceptically as she kicked a pebble down the sidewalk, her hunger sated by pancakes and coffee.

“Yes. Fancy told me about it. He said some stallion from some place I don’t remember came to him asking for a partnership. Fancy hasn’t decided yet, but the fellow gave him a sample and he shared it with Fleur and I. I thought it was rather delicious.” Octavia closed her eyes and pursed her lips, preparing for Vinyl’s childish outburst.

“Well, I don’t see how it would be much different than how they do it normally. It all gets covered in stuff we don’t want to eat and washed, so I don’t think it would be much different.” Vinyl sighed as her pebble fell down a drain. “Besides, there would have to be a bunch of tests they would have to do to make sure it would be safe for ponies to drink, so I wouldn’t care. I eat plenty of stuff I shouldn’t, so eh.”

“Woah.” Octavia stood in awe, her mind no longer able to control her hooves.

“Hmm?” Vinyl turned around.

“I never expected you to use such a reasonable explanation. I assumed you would mock me for liking ‘crappuccino’.”

Vinyl just chuckled and resumed walking back to her parent’s house. “Octavia. When you assume, you make an ass out of you and me. I am a mature mare and would never mock somepony for because of something they like.”

“I’ll… just let you have this one, Dear,” Octavia said with a smirk.

“How very mature of you.” Vinyl stepped up to the door and opened it with her magic, saying “Ladies first.”

Octavia kissed Vinyl on the forehead and said “And here I was told chivalry was dead” as she entered the house.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!”

A sudden influx of light blinded the poor earth pony. When her vision finally returned, Octavia saw the living room filled with smiling ponies, friends of Vinyl’s she had met the day before. A banner with ‘Happy Birthday, Octavia!’ written in crayon was hung on the door to the kitchen, from where Sonata came barrelling towards the stunned mare.

“Surprise,” she heard whispered from behind her as she was gently prodded forward into the leaping grasp of Sonata.

Author's Note

*sigh* I typed all this up, hit save, and it didn't save. I shall try again.

After a year of not liking the four attempts at this chapter, I decided to post this one before I could dislike it anymore (I like this wording more than last time). I had the first attempt done before Christmas last year, I just... didn't like it. So I tried again after a few months of forgetting. Same. Then again. Then I got a message from ShadowblazeCR asking me about the story, so I tried again. I... struggled, to say the least. I still don't really like it (no clue why (not because I don't like my own work, it isn't that)). I probably should have taken more time on it (HA!), but I feared I wouldn't post for the same reason as before, so...

Anywho, next chapter shouldn't take as long (I do have one story I promised to do first, so it may take an extra week or two). I apologize if it is a shitty chapter and for the loooooong wait (which I have no good reason for, only poor excuses). The chapter was actually going to be half-again as long, but I decided to just put it in the next chapter.

Thanks to Lynked for the story.

I know I left something important out...

[Feel free to post any errors and thoughts on the chapter or story in general]

EDIT: Feel free to look at the first attempt. Most of it, anyways (removed a bit cuzza spoilers).

Chapter 8

Paradiso

Chapter 8

Written by

Syvvak

Story Concept by

Lynked

Octavia rose from the couch and walked over to Vinyl, who was staring at the little green unicorn filly straddling her father's head. Glancing at Copper, Octavia saw the filly sitting with her front hooves in the air and a Cheshire smile, not unlike the ones Vinyl often showed, adorning her lips. The filly let out a giggle, bringing a smile to the cellist's face.

When she reached the stunned DJ, Octavia nuzzled her neck and whispered, "Come sit down, Dear," as she began to lead her to the couch. The white unicorn gave no resistance, following Octavia's guiding hoof without thought, her mind still focused on the filly. She felt the stress on her legs relieve as she sat down, as well as soothing warmth as Octavia sat beside her.

Feeling a nudge on her shoulder, Vinyl turned to her left. When she turned, Octavia gave her a sweet smile and motioned in front of them with her head. Wordlessly looking ahead, she saw the little green filly floating in an orange aura reaching her hooves out toward her. Looking past her to her mother, whose blue horn was alight with magic, Vinyl's eyes met hers, silently asking a dozen questions.

When the elder mare smiled and nodded, Vinyl hesitantly whispered, “Okay.” As the foal floated toward her, she raised her right foreleg to hold her. When she was close enough, the green filly wrapped her hooves around Vinyl's neck. Vinyl wrapped her hoof around the filly as their mother released her magic.

Unsure of what to do, she just held onto the filly as her mind raced. She felt the filly start to squirm and adjusted her grip so she could lean back. When the filly stopped moving, she was looking up at Vinyl, who gave her a once--over. Her coat was a green similar to Lyra’s but slightly darker. Her mane, still messy from a long night's sleep, was similar to Vinyl's but shades of purple instead of blue. Her eager eyes were blue, just like her mother's.

"Hi, Sissy," the filly said, her voice as happy as any Vinyl had ever heard.

"Hello," she responded, a smile slowly forming on her face.

"She's gorgeous," she heard Octavia comment from beside her. "What's her name?"

"Stormy Breeze," Copper Girder said, smiling as he saw the aforementioned filly climb over her older sister's shoulder and atop her head, both of his daughters giggling all the while.

Everypony just sat there for a few minutes. Nopony spoke as they basked in the happiness that was present, thinking. None of them wanted to start the conversation they all knew was going to happen eventually. Except Stormy. She was too young to know what was going to happen, or what exactly would be said. She was just content to lay atop her sissy's head and chew on her mane. At least, until Vinyl realised what she was doing.

"Ewwwww, she's getting drool all over me," Vinyl whined when she felt the drool coalescing on her head start to dribble down her face.

Octavia raised a hoof to her mouth to try and stifle her laughter, while Copper just let out a hearty guffaw. Vinyl's mother let out a light laugh as she rose to her hooves.

"Stormy, Sissy's mane isn't food," she said as she lifted the filly from her sister's slobbery head, causing the little unicorn to start giggling.

"*sigh* I am going to assume that that was a clue for me to get started on breakfast," Copper said, looking completely downtrodden.

"That would be lovely, Dear. Now, let's get you two slobber covered fillies all sparkly clean." Vinyl sighed as she rose from her seat to follow her mother up the stairs.

Octavia sat for a moment, unsure of what to do. Copper let out a sigh and rose out of his chair.

"Welp, might as well get on that food," he said, turning towards what Octavia assumed was the kitchen.

"If you would like, I could help you," Octavia offered. Copper turned around to face her and smiled.

"That'd be awesome. Thanks."

Vinyl sat beside the bathtub, her mane wet from a quick rinse, as Stormy Breeze splashed around in the water. Vinyl used her magic to rinse the filly's coat, causing her to giggle. I can't believe I have a sister, she thought. I've always wanted a sibling... But, now I live so far away. I won't really get to be around her much.

"So, who was that mare with you?" Vinyl heard her mother ask from the doorway. Turning her head, she saw the older mare entering the room with a brush running through her mane. "I got so caught up in everything I seem to have forgotten to introduce myself."

Turning back to the tub, Vinyl continued to rinse Stormy's coat, much to the filly's delight. "That was my marefriend, Octavia," she said, her voice even. Satisfied with rinsing the filly’s mane, tail, and coat, Vinyl lifted her from the water and pulled the plug to drain the tub.

As she turned around to grab a towel, she saw one float past her, enshrouded in her mother's orange aura. As she dropped the towel atop the happy filly's head, the older mare spoke again. "She's very pretty."

Sitting the filly on the sink, Vinyl used her magic to dry her off with the towel, using the opportunity to tickle Stormy, causing the filly to shriek with laughter. "Yeah, she is," she finally said with a smile, lifting the filly from the sink top.

Placing Stormy Breeze upon her back, Vinyl turned towards the door. "Let us break fast, mother," she said, mimicking a Canterlotian accent, before quickly dropping it. "I can't have Dad corrupting Tavi's poor, innocent mind."

"Why you-" she heard Octavia shout from downstairs.

"Damn it."

Her mane plastered to her head with a mixture of pancake batter and orange juice, Octavia hid behind a chair to avoid being splattered with anything else. Looking around, she saw a small pile of batter. Scooping it up in her hoof, she peeked around the chair, looking for her target. Spotting Copper crouched behind another chair, she stood up, took aim, an-

"Daddy!"

The filly's shrill voice caused Octavia to freeze and her eyes to widen. Dropping back to all fours, she spun around, coming face-to-face with the three unicorn mares, a fierce blush blooming on her cheeks. The eldest of the three's face was unreadable, a stoic mask of stoicism. The youngest was happy, always happy. And why not? Octavia mused. She's young, healthy, and has a great family. But the middle? Vinyl's face was an odd mixture of disbelief, anger, and mockery.

"Um, I- EEP!" Octavia began, trying to explaining herself, but was cut off by a blob of batter hitting her in the back of the head. She quickly dived behind Vinyl as she heard Copper shout in victory.

"That'll teach you to mess with me, Missy!"

"Just what do you think you’re doing?!" Octavia heard Vinyl's mother shout. "Look at the kitchen. It's a mess! WHY?!"

"She started it!" Copper Girder called out indignantly.

"I did not!" Octavia shouted back, not moving from behind Vinyl lest she risk being pelted with more batter.

"Did so! You spilt juice on me!"

"I spilled the juice because you tripped me!"

"I didn't trip you, you weren't watching where you were walking!"

"I thought you were more mature than to stick your hoof out in front of me as I walked past!"

"You have a lot to learn," Vinyl chuckled to herself.

"I did no such thing!" Copper cried. "I stretched my leg to release the tension that was building in my knee. It's no fault of mine you decided to see if you had the ability to become incorporeal and attempted to walk through it!"

"ENOUGH!" the matron of the household shouted. Octavia peeked around Vinyl to see Copper glaring at her. She proceeded to stick her tongue out and blow a raspberry at him. "You two are arguing like a couple of school foals."

"Yeah," Vinyl said. "I leave you two alone for all of ten minutes and look what you did. You trashed the kitchen, didn't even get food started, and you corrupted Tavi! Look! She's using the mare she supposedly loves and a defenseless filly as flesh shields and making fart sounds with her mouth.

"I... I don't think I can handle this. Is the room spinning?" Vinyl said as she lifted Stormy Breeze off her back, rose to her hind legs and spun around a few times. After a few rotations, she fell backwards, smiling as she heard a satisfying yelp and felt Octavia underneath her. Raising a giggling Stormy Breeze in front of her face, she sighed dramatically.

"What will I do if everyone finds out I was raised by a hoodlum and am dating another, Sis? My career would be ruined! I would be a pariah in the music industry! I wouldn't be able to get any gigs, so I wouldn't be able to make any money. Tavi would have to support me an-"

"Vinyl," Octavia said vehemently. "Get. Off. Me."

"But you're so comfy," the DJ replied, floating a cooing Stormy Breeze around in invisible patterns.

"Now."

"Fiiiine, Grump," Vinyl said, rolling off the grey mare and onto her hooves, depositing the floating filly on her head. "Hear that, Stormy? Tavi's a grump. Don't you ever forget that."

"Tabi grumb," the filly mimicked. Vinyl smiled, her eyes lighting up.

"Yes, Tabi grumb."

"Octavia, dear, could you come over here please?" Octavia sighed and hung her head in shame as she approached the blue unicorn.

"Ooh, Tabi in twouble."

"Vinyl."

"Sorry, Mom." Vinyl walked to the table and pulled out a chair to sit in and sat Stormy Breeze on the table to play.

"So, Octavia, I am Ruby. Obviously, I am Vinyl Scratch's mother."At the mention of her name, Vinyl smiled and waved. "Now, seeing as you helped make this mess, I am going to ask you to help clean it up while I get food cooking, since somepony can't seem to do that right."

"Octavia," Copper said, looking at the aforementioned mare out the corner of his eye.

"Shut it. Now, Copper will show you where everything is and the two of you can get started."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have let things get out of control like they did. I won't let it happen again," Octavia said, her head hung low.

"Oh, Dear, it's not a big deal," Ruby said, wrapping the cellist in a quick hug. "I'm used tod to it, anyways. When you live with two ponies who act like your marefriend," --she motioned at Vinyl, who was making faces at Stormy Breeze to make her laugh-- "you have to be. Maybe you can get her to start acting like an adult, or at least a bit less eccentric. Luna knows I haven't been able to get either to."

"But their eccentricities are why we love them. To change that, to any degree, would change who they are. If we did that, would we be able to love them the same?"

Ruby looked Octavia over. "Pretty, well mannered, and smart," she said, causing Octavia to blush. "You'll be a good influence on my beloved daughter."

"You forgot talented," Vinyl chimed without turning her attention from Stormy Breeze, causing Octavia's blush to deepen.

"Talented, too? My, my. And you fell for Vinyl?"

"Hey!" Vinyl said, affronted. "Not cool!"

"Eat!" Stormy Breeze chirped, looking at her mother.

"I know, Honey. I'm sorry. Mommy'll get food started soon," Ruby said with a smile. She turned back to where Copper Girder had been sitting quietly. "Copper, get the st- Goddamnit, Copper! Get your ass back here!" The outburst caused Octavia and Vinyl to jump, and the former mare to cringe in pain due to her close proximity.

"Ruby, language. There is a foal present." Copper came around the corner behind Octavia carrying a bucket filled with water, along with some rags and a mop. "Ya see that, Octavia? I go to do something nice and I got yelled at for it. Nice ponies like us can't seem to win, eh?"

Ruby sighed, shaking her head as she walked over to her daughters. "You want some help with the cooking, Ma?" Vinyl asked.

"No, just keep an eye on your sister. Thanks though," she said, nuzzling the white unicorns cheek. "And foals are very impressionable, so watch what you say around her, and what you tell her to say. She may repeat rude things or act rudely towards a pony if she sees you do it, okay?"

"Alright, Mom." Vinyl turned back to Stormy Breeze as her mother started preparing more pancake batter. Vinyl noticed Octavia cleaning a splotch of batter off the table near her and pointed at her. "See that, Breezey? Tabi not a grumb no more. Tabi happy!"

Stormy Breeze swivelled on her rump to face Octavia, who had a small smile on her face. "Tabi habby!" she crowed with delight, flinging her front hooves to the sky.

"Yes. Now, give Tabi a hug," Vinyl said, lifting the filly in her aura and floating her to the startled cellist.

"Hi, Tabi," Octavia heard from her neck, as Stormy wrapped her little hooves around it, burying her muzzle into her coat.

"He-hello," she stuttered, her lips slowly slipping into a half-smile.

"Alrighty. 'Nough pleasantries," Vinyl said, pulling the filly away, much to Octavia's dismay. "Tabi has to work. Can't be bothering her. Let's go into the other room, shall we?"

Vinyl rose from her seat and placed Stormy Breeze upon her back. Turning towards the living room, Vinyl side-stepped and turned her head, placing a fleeting kiss upon Octavia's lips. Giving the stunned cellist a wink, she left the room. Slowly gathering herself, Octavia returned to cleaning.

"Hey, Octavia?" she heard Copper say from behind her. Turning around to face him, she smiled.

"Yes, Copper?"

"I'm sorry I got you into this. Things kinda... escalated. Didn't mean to."

"It's fine. It was pretty fun. Besides," the grey mare said, turning back to the table to clean, "it's not like this is the first time I have had to clean food from every surface of a kitchen."

Copper smiled and also went back to cleaning. "Heh, me either, Octavia."

Author's Note

So, it’s done. Well, it has been 99% done for about a month/month and a half. Just had to make a few small adjustments (not even required) and add Vinyl’s mother’s name (yes. That is what has been holding this chapter up. I have sat here for a good hour trying to think of one (again, this Author’s Note is prewritten. It is currently 9:44 P.M. EST 9/18/13), which I finally did. Funny thing. While I was thinking, Rosie popped into my head. I realized this wouldn’t work because I would start thinking of A Whole Lotta Rosie by AC/DC everytime I typed her name. Just after deciding on Ruby and adding it, the song on the radio ended (pretty sure it was Duality by Slipknot (great song)). I shit you not, A Whole Lotta Rosie came on next. I was in awe. I mean... damn. Talk about fuckin’ timing).

I found this chapter hard to go back and work on. I am pretty sure it is because I have the next one partially typed up (possibly. It could be fully done, just in need of a read. There is one more scene, but I don’t know if I want to add it to that chapter or give it it’s own. It will be the whole big talk that has to happen . Chappie’s already almost 4K, and the conversation will probably be 2K (excluding a little thingy before hand)). I have learned to NEVER do that again.

So as stated, next chapter shall be soon. The one after probably quick to follow (depending on work and games). After that... I’m not sure. I had this story idea smash into my brainy parts the other month (I saw the thing that brewed it a few days ago and it refreshed the thought) that I may FINALLY start on. And a different one hit me yesterday. This other one I am... two ways on. It’s a winter story, so mayhap I should wait until... well, winter to post it (maybe even throw it into a contest or some shit). But I don’t frankly care for contests or what season it is, soooooo... yeah. I’ll let y’all know... maybe.

So thanks to Pwetty Pwincess Lynked for the story idea and Josh for looking over this for me, like, a month ago. So, give me your thoughts and point out anymore mistakes (like the half-sentence in the last chapter. Fixed it, by the way... unless I forget to fix it on FIM, too.)

P.S. If you recall, I said something about an ICP reference in the last chapter. Well, I shall tell you what it is. Mrs. Motherbee. Here is a link to the song (go to about 2:44 for the reference bit (the lyrics in the video are wrong. He says, "friendly Mrs. Witherbee in her cooking bib") WARNING!!! If you know anything about ICP, you know what you are getting into. If not, I shall tell you, they have some fucked up shit. And the reference is NO exception. If you don’t want a character to be ruined (imagine how I feel), don’t click the link. I almost feel ashamed for it. ALMOST. I tell you this because she will be in the next chapter a fair amount and you should know.

Apologies for the rambling. It is only 10:11 EST, but I am catching up on lost sleep still (and the sleep I get is shitty anyways, so it takes a while to catch up), so this is kinda late-ish for me.

Also, there may be some extra errors. Worked on the chapter in offline mode for a while and some things may have messed up and I don't have time to check and make sure. Sorry.