As The Rush Comes

Well, hellooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooocowboy. I’d like to say this wasn’t supposed to take so long but god this was hard to write for whatever lameass reason. Godspeed my little tomatoes, I’ll try to keep em comin’ for ya. Enjoy the rush.

Octavia had been awake for three hours on a nervous stomach.

Her sleep had been fitful, waking up often to glance at her backpack and then struggle back to sleep. The pants were like some sort of beacon, taunting her with their disobedience. She couldn’t even begin to imagine what her mother would decide to do if she found them, or worse, found Octavia wearing them.

She sighed and sat up, rubbing her sore eyes and feeling slightly sick. Her earlier bravado was gone and her ears drooped as she searched for the courage she no longer had. It all seemed like a good plan last night. What was wrong? Getting out of bed, she went to her closet and pulled on another drab skirt and plain turtleneck. Octavia looked in her full length mirror. That was it. She was wrong. All of this was wrong. She couldn’t even do this right, she—

She turned and picked up her bag, steeling what little resolve she had left and walked into the kitchen, just like every other day. Her mother was making breakfast for the family, like always. And not one word was said to her about her outfit or what might be lodged in the depths of her backpack. She sat down and tried not to look guilty. She’d just take the pants to school, she wouldn’t put them on. It would be like a…a test. She ate the toast set in front of her, butterflies making her want to throw it right back up.

“Don’t forget to verbally practice your cello during orchestra today, Octavia,” her mother said, jerking her out of her worried thoughts. “I will want to hear what you have when you come home, and you had better be on time tonight.”

“Yes, mother,” Octavia replied, finishing off her breakfast with difficulty as her throat threatened to close around her words. She stood and put her bag over her shoulder, not missing the careful once over her mother gave her before she scurried out of the dining room and out the door, nearly running down the driveway. She power-walked down the length of her street, scared her mother would somehow have known and followed her down to drag her back. When nothing came but the sound of the early morning wind through the leaves, she let out a shaky breath and slowed to a walk.

The pants burned a hole through her bag and her knees felt like jelly as she walked to school, startling every time a car passed her. By the time she arrived, her fur stood on end and her nerves were about shot. A splash of purple caught her eye and she trotted over to where Twilight was sitting on a bench and reading a large book.

“Twilight!” She said, breathless. The purple unicorn jumped, but smiled as she saw Octavia. She set her book down and patted the open seat beside her.

“Hello, Octavia! Please, join me,” she replied. “How are you this morning?”

Octavia sat, pulling her tail primly out of the way and setting her bag on the ground. She fumbled for a moment, twisting her hands in her skirt before answering.

“I’m…I’m alright, I suppose. Shaken up a bit. I have a surprise, for lunch.”

Twilight’s eyes widened and lit up.

“A surprise! That’s always fun! I can’t wait to see!” She said, excited. “Wait, why are you all shaken up? Is everything okay?”

Octavia nodded, glancing down at her bag. It was better, now that she was so out of her mother’s sight. Having Twilight next to her felt safe. Having a friend felt safe.

“Twilight…” She paused, took a breath, then tried again. “Twilight, have you ever done something you weren’t supposed to?”

The purple unicorn gave her a strange look.

“Um, not really. I mean, I guess there was this one time, when I was being, well, a little neurotic and ah…” Twilight trailed off, laughing. “It was a mess, but it all sorted out in the end. Sometimes we make mistakes. What brought this on?”

Octavia frowned. Mistake? Is that what she was doing?

“I…What if it were something that was okay for other ponies?” She asked, her voice soft and hesitant. “But for some reason it wasn’t okay for you, and you wanted to do it anyway?”

“Why, Tavi, gotta dirty li’l secret?”

Octavia screeched and flew up from her seat, whirling around to stare wide-eyed at Vinyl, who had snuck up behind the two ponies. Twilight glared at the white unicorn.

“Vinyl, that wasn’t very nice,” she pointed out as Octavia struggled to remember how to breathe. Vinyl Scratch just shrugged and stuck her hands in her hoodie pockets.

“Hey, you guys should pay more attention, I don’t exactly have twinkle hooves,” she replied. Her outfit was more modest today, which wasn’t saying much in Octavia’s opinion, because her shorts were still very short, but at least the red hoodie covered her arms and chest. The white unicorn sat in Octavia’s spot, her eyes invisible behind the purple sunglasses. “But I’m sorry, that was my bad. You okay, Tavi?”

Octavia took a calming breath and nodded slightly, stepping forward a bit to sit back down, when she realized there was no room left on the bench. She huffed, putting her hands on her hips.

“Vinyl Scratch, you are in my seat,” she clipped out, not really annoyed, but feeling the need to tease in return for such a rude hello. The white unicorn smirked and leaned back on the bench, laying her arms across the back of it.

“Yeah? What’re ya gonna do about it?” She replied sassily, her smirk widening. Octavia balked just a moment, thrown suddenly by the husky tone Vinyl had taken on, a combination of daring and just waking up. She shook out her mane, re-gathering her thoughts.

“I’m not going to let you see the surprise I have for lunch,” Octavia teased, cocking her hip out as daringly as Vinyl’s voice and feeling instantly silly for such a pose. Her mother would have a fit, screaming about whores and sluts and fillies straight on their way to hell…but the slack jawed look on Vinyl’s face canceled those voices out, somehow louder than her mother’s teachings.

“You’ve got a surprise?” She asked excitedly, sitting up and pushing her sunglasses onto her head, her eyes still slightly puffy from sleep. Octavia rolled her eyes.

“Maybe I do. And maybe you’re still in my seat,” she replied pointedly.

“Vinyl, stop being rude and give Octavia her seat back!” Twilight said, looking like she was about to use her magic to help Vinyl help herself. Vinyl just laughed and leaned back again, patting her thighs.

“She can take her seat back, but I’m not going anywhere,” she said, giving Octavia a wink. Octavia felt like she was going to melt down, her blush was so deep. She stared at the white unicorn in shock, all of her teasing feelings gone. Sit on her lap? She couldn’t. That was going too far. She wouldn’t. She…Octavia swallowed thickly, very aware of the awkward stare she was getting from Twilight and the expectant stare she was getting from Vinyl Scratch. She wanted to sit on her lap.

“I can’t possibly…I…I’m too big,” she said finally, defeated. The voice of her mother crowed in her head, making her feel sick for an entirely different reason. “I’d crush you.”

“Pshaw, you are like, not even pudgy, just come here already,” Vinyl said, reaching forward and grabbing Octavia’s wrists, pulling her down into her lap. Octavia tumbled onto the white unicorn, squeaking, trying to keep her balance and not kill Vinyl with her butt all at once. She ended up with Vinyl’s knees jabbing into the back of hers, the bones of the unicorn’s thighs digging into her backside. Vinyl wrapped her arms around Octavia’s waist and squeezed gently, earning her another squeak from the earth pony.

“See? Totally fine,” she said, her voice very close to Octavia’s neck. Octavia’s mind had gone blank except for one thing.

“You…are so bony,” she gasped out, trying not to sound like an idiot. “How are you this skinny?”

Vinyl laughed against her back, making Octavia blush at the slight bounce underneath her.

“I dance more than I eat, I guess,” she explained, leaning her head against Octavia’s shoulderblades. “Not like Bubble Butt over here, who reads about as much as she eats.”

Twilight snapped the book shut she’d been reading to avoid their antics, her horn glowing menacingly.

“I do NOT have a bubble butt!” She growled, shoving the book in her bag and crossing her arms. Vinyl just pinched her cheek, getting swatted away.

“Aww, come on, Sparks, it’s cute on you! Everybody likes a little cushion for the pushin’…”

Twilight’s face turned bright red.

“I can’t believe you just said that,” she replied, giving up as a small smile spread on her face. “You are insufferable.”

“What? Me?” Vinyl blinked innocently.

With a frustrated sigh, Twilight stood, shouldering her bag.

“Well, as, erm, lovely as it’s been to converse with you, Vinyl, I have to meet a teacher,” she said. “I can’t wait to see what you’ve got in store for us at lunch Octavia!”

Octavia waved as Twilight walked into the school, almost able to ignore the fact that there was an empty seat on the bench now. She squirmed slightly, making as if to slide off of Vinyl’s lap and into the space, but the arms around her stomach tightened.

“Hey there, squirmy wormy, where d’you think you’re goin’?” Vinyl teased, her breath warm through Octavia’s turtleneck sweater. Octavia flapped her hands at the space helplessly.

“I was going to go sit in the empty seat,” she replied. “Don’t you want me to? I’m heavy.”

“Nah, I’m good. Comfy as a bug in a rug.”

Octavia rubbed at her cheeks, seeing if she could get her blush to leave that way. Friends certainly didn’t do this sort of thing.

“…What if someone sees?” She admitted finally, a very real fear presenting itself now that she realized any one pony in the school could see and tell a teacher, who could tell her mother, who would break her already broken cello over her head if she knew. Vinyl shifted underneath her, withdrawing her hands and letting Octavia slide off her lap and onto the empty seat next to her.

“Sorry,” Vinyl said softly, putting her sunglasses back over her eyes. “I forget your mom’s a psycho. Are you embarrassed?”

Octavia’s eyes widened and she fidgeted with her skirt. Was she embarrassed? It was certainly awkward, but…it hadn’t been horrible.

“No,” she said. “I didn’t…I didn’t mind. I just. If someone sees, really, you don’t understand, I—“

“So what’s this about a surprise?” Vinyl interrupted, her voice back up to its cheery state. Octavia assumed she was looking at her, it was hard to tell with those dark glasses.

“Oh! Well, it’s a surprise,” she explained. “You’ll have to wait until lunchtime. Which means you can’t get in trouble until after lunch!”

Vinyl laughed, leaning her head over the back of the bench and crossing her legs, making her shorts ride up ever so slightly. Octavia blinked and looked at the ground, trying not to think about that little detail.

“Oh man, I dunno if I can do that!” The unicorn crowed. “Trouble is my middle name.”

Octavia whirled on her, poking a finger into her side and making Vinyl double over with a giggle.

“I mean it, Vinyl Scratch! This surprise…I think it’s worth it. Please behave, just until then?” She pleaded, wondering why it meant so much to her that Vinyl saw the jeans. And not just the jeans, but the jeans on her.

It confused her and caused the butterflies in her stomach to flail.

The bell rang and Vinyl sighed, standing up.

“Okay, Tavi,” she said, grinning. “I promise on my horn that I’ll keep outta trouble ‘til then. But it better be a damn good surprise, you hear?”

Octavia gave her a small smile in return, grabbing her bag and standing.

“Excellent. Then I shall see you at lunch!” She said, feeling the flutter all the way up into her throat as she turned and walked inside.
x x x

Octavia felt like she was going to fall through the floor.

Fourth period had gone by in a flash, propelling her straight into a state of panic that she swallowed all the way to the bathroom. Standing in a stall and holding the jeans in her hands, the panic bubbled back up and she struggled not to hyperventilate too loudly. Lunch had started five minutes ago and she couldn’t seem to make her muscles work.

Everybody was waiting for her. Twilight would have told them there was surprise, if Vinyl hadn’t already.

Oh, for the love of the sun. Vinyl was waiting for her. The unicorn was probably vibrating out of her seat by now with impatience.

Taking a shaky breath that did nothing to calm her nerves, Octavia hung the jeans on the stall door hook and slipped out of her long skirt. She folded it up as nicely as she could so it wouldn’t wrinkle and tucked it into her bag. Standing in only her turtleneck sweater and panties, she stared at the jeans like they were going to bite her, feeling more anxious by the minute.

She could do this. She had to do this. If not for herself, then for her friends.

Closing her eyes, Octavia sighed, a tiny smile breaking through the nervousness. Friends. She had friends. For the first time in her life, she had what she’d only read about, only dreamt about. Friends who forgave her, friends who shared with her, friends who weren’t going to judge her on the clothes she wore because that had never even come up in conversation.

As quick as she could, she snatched the jeans from the hook and yanked them on, giving herself no time to hesitate. She buttoned the button, zipped up the fly, and adjusted her tail and sweater. Eight minutes into lunch; she needed to hurry.

Octavia steeled herself and shouldered her bag, opening the stall door and going over to the full length mirror to make sure she looked alright. She stared at her reflection, speechless.

Her cutie mark was bright against her fur, a sweet purple that matched her eyes. Pride welled up inside of her as she swiveled her hips a bit, her tail swinging gracefully behind her now that it wasn’t so pinched by her stuffy skirt. It didn’t matter what she looked like. She could see her special talent and now, so could everyone else.

It was a sin to believe one was special, but all Octavia could think of was how excited she was to show Vinyl her cutie mark. Her mother be damned, she would deal with the guilt later as she trotted out of the bathroom and down the hallway to the cafeteria. It took a moment to find their table amidst the rainbow of ponies in the room, but it became hard to miss as Pinkie Pie opened her lunchbox, shooting confetti everywhere.

Octavia hurried over, feeling self-conscious as she tried not to look at the other ponies. She was sure she could feel eyes following her and didn’t know if she thought that was good or bad.

The table was in its normal chaos, with confetti scattered over the surface and Rainbow Dash in a heated argument with Vinyl Scratch. Twilight had her nose stuck in a book as her fork kept missing her mouth and Rarity was lining up her wheat crackers with ruler precision. Fluttershy stared worriedly at Pinkie Pie as the pink pony shoved two cupcakes in her mouth at once, and Applejack was trying to wrestle open a bottle of cider.

Applejack spotted her first, a grin spreading over her face as she waved.

“Hoo-wee, sugarplum, when Twi said yah had a surprise, I didn’t expect somethin’ so…different,” she said. There was an immediate pause that descended over the table and Octavia felt her heart stop as the rest of the group looked up.

“Do…you like it?” She breathed, trying not to squeak. Her eyes were trained on Vinyl, searching for something, anything that said that this was okay, that she’d made a good decision. The white unicorn gaped at her, mouth open and eyes wide, unspeaking.

“Hell yeah, we like it!” Rainbow said, elbowing Vinyl in the side. “Right, Scratch? Way to rebel, Tavi, I didn’t think you had it in ya!”

Octavia blushed, smiling sheepishly as Vinyl smacked Rainbow Dash on the shoulder.

“I think you look nice, Octavia,” Twilight said, scooting over so she could sit next to her. “I’m glad I finally get to see what your cutie mark looks like!”

“Oh, well, I’ve spent so long covering it up…” Octavia explained, “it feels so strange to have it out in the open.”

“You really shouldn’t, it’s just the loveliest shade of purple,” Rarity said, preening her own purple locks. “And so simple. Quite fashionable lately, to have simple cutie marks.”

Octavia’s smile grew wider and she sat down next to Twilight, pulling out her lunchbox. She started to open it, jumping when Pinkie Pie reached over and slammed her hand down on the top, effectively smashing whatever was inside.

“No way, horse hay!” The pink pony shouted. “This is a special day! We’ve got to celebrate! And we are not going to celebrate with soggy sandwiches!”

Pinkie Pie scooted the squashed lunchbox into Octavia’s lap and replaced it with a cupcake wrapped in bright yellow paper. The blue sprinkles matched the pink pony’s cutie mark, and Octavia just sighed, picking it up happily.

“Thank you, Pinkie Pie,” she said, her mood dipping slightly as she realized Vinyl hadn’t said anything about her new look yet. “But I have to eat more than just sugar, or I’ll get fat.”

Pinkie Pie puffed out her cheeks and opened a bag of candy, setting a few pieces in front of everyone at the table.

“Just exercise! That’s what I do,” she said, shoving a handful of candy in her mouth and mixing it with grape soda. Rainbow Dash gave her a withering look.

“You don’t exercise, Pink, you just never stop moving,” the blue pegasus corrected, throwing a piece of candy at Vinyl, who glared at her over an energy drink. “Why the locked lips, Scratch? You think Tavi’s new look is ugly or somethin’?”

Vinyl choked on her drink, earning a glare from Rarity and Twilight as she half spit over her lap.

“No, ugh, you made me spit everywhere,” she retorted once the coughing stopped, wiping her mouth on her hoodie sleeve. “I, uh. You look…really fantastic, Tavi. Blew my socks right off.”

Octavia bristled, setting her cupcake paper on the table delicately. Applejack gave her a wink and set an opened bottle of cider in front of her.

“Oh yeah, Vinyl, blew ‘em right off into yer mouth,” the orange pony joked. “Ah believe, and I ain’t no smart pony, but ah I believe the term we’d use here is, ah, speechless?”

There were titters around the group as Vinyl’s face turned as red as her hoodie and she hid behind her sunglasses, pouting into her energy drink.

“Yeah, you’d know all about that, wouldn’t you?” Vinyl said, sneering. “You’re not hiding the way you stare at Dash’s butt in gym class very well.”

The giggles grew louder as it was Applejack’s turn to blush, glaring at Vinyl who simply grinned coolly, blush fading to a light pink. Octavia couldn’t help but grin at their antics, taking a sip of the bubbly apple drink in front of her. If she’d known her fashion choice would cause this much of a riot, she would have done this the first day of school.

Then again, maybe not.

“Alright girls, that’s enough,” Twilight scolded, pushing half of her daisy sandwich at Octavia absently. “Let’s try to keep the embarrassment to a minimum. Besides, we all know who’s the true lucky one in the group. Right, Fluttershy? Where’s Discord today?”

A giggle broke from Octavia, joining the rest of the table as they laughed, watching Fluttershy sink beneath the table. Pinkie Pie dived under to join her, almost knocking her lunch off the table with her tail.

“Oh come on, Fluttershy! Twilight just means you’re totally getting laid more than the rest of us!” Her voice shrilled out, followed by Fluttershy’s indignant squeaking.

“Alright, alright, leave her alone,” Twilight chastised gently, nudging Pinkie Pie with her hoof. “Well, Octavia, I’m very pleased you’re branching out with your clothing choices. Though, I still prefer skirts myself.”

“Mama’s pony,” Vinyl sniffed absently, playing with the tab on her energy drink can. “Oh, Tavi, that totally reminds me, I brought my cello. It’s in the band room.”

“Oh! Right, thank you,” Octavia said, picking up the half of Twilight’s sandwich and taking a bite. She hadn’t had daisies in years, not since her mother had read on article on the caloric content and forbade them as an ingredient. “I am so glad you were kind enough to let me borrow it, I shudder to think of vocal practice…”

Vinyl pulled the tab off her can and tossed it at Rainbow Dash, winking at Octavia.

“Hey, don’t knock it til you try it, am I right, RD?” She ribbed, her grin turning lewd. Rainbow Dash waggled her eyebrows in response, her eyes glancing at Applejack just briefly, who was too engrossed in her cider to notice.

“Come on, haul your cutie mark along, I wanna show it to you,” Vinyl continued, dropping her empty can into Rainbow’s lunch, avoiding the punch that almost landed. Octavia looked at her, clutching her sandwich nervously.

“But…I just sat down!” She protested, already hearing her stomach growl at the sandwich in her hands and not feeling brave enough to stand up in her new jeans again just yet. Vinyl just rolled her eyes and made her way around the table, slinging her arms over Octavia’s shoulders in a loose hug. Octavia froze, feeling Vinyl’s warm breath ghost over the fur on her neck, ruffling it and sending shivers down her spine.

“Take your food with you, I promise it’s worth the walk,” the white unicorn nearly purred, making Octavia’s ears tingle. “Besides, with that cutie mark, don’t you wanna show it off?”

Octavia glanced around the table, seeking some kind of reason to stay, unsure of why she was nervous to be alone with Vinyl all of a sudden. Pinkie Pie gave her a wink and a thumbs up, but everyone else was engrossed in their own lunch or conversation. Octavia sighed, swinging her legs over the bench in a way that would give her mother a heart attack and wagged her sandwich at Vinyl Scratch.

“Okay, but if this wasn’t worth getting up for, then you owe me,” she said sternly, only met with a sassy smirk and an arm wound through hers. Vinyl began leading her out of the lunchroom, sneering at any of the ponies who dared to stare as Octavia tried to hide behind bread and daisies.

“Believe me, Tavi, it’s worth it.”