One Shot: The Way You Look Tonight
(Would you kindly play this at the start of Octavia's performance)
The buzz of the crowd outside her dressing room filled the grey pony with nervous energy. She could not stay still for longer than a few seconds before finding herself pacing back and forth in the small room. After years of playing cello with the Royal Orchestra, she no longer had a problem with nerves; rather, she would transfer that energy into her playing, creating beautiful pieces of music for her audience. But for some reason, her heart beat rapidly and her mind raced. Perhaps it is because she will be watching, a quiet voice in her head remarked.
For the thousandth time in the last hour she checked her makeup in the mirror and adjusted the pink bowtie around her neck. “Okay,” she said to her reflection again for the thousandth time, “You can do this. You can do this.”
She brushed her dark mane with a hoof and sucked in a deep breath to slow her rapidly beating heart, before pressing her forehead to the cool wood desk and groaning loudly. She ran her hooves down the sides of her slim black cocktail dress and smoothed out the wrinkles, going over the song once again in her head, fearful of forgetting mid-performance. She closed her eyes and took another deep breath, feeling her chest rise and fall.
Slowly she began to hum, warming up her vocal chords. Her voice began to climb up and down the scales when a harsh knock on her door brought her out of her rehearsal.
“Octavia are you ready?”
“Yes, I’ll be out in a minute!” she replied. She opened the door to a grinning cream-colored unicorn in a dark red dress. Octavia paused and took in every detail of the beautiful mare. Her messy electric blue hair that made most stylists cringe, framed the mare’s face perfectly. The grey mare tugged at the unicorn’s trademark rose glasses to reveal the deep ruby eyes she loved.
“Hey sexy,” Vinyl Scratch grinned.
“Hey yourself,” Octavia replied. Vinyl visibly shivered as her marefriend’s Canterlot accent reached her ears. She hardly noticed how close Octavia had gotten before the mare’s lips pressed against her own in a passionate kiss. Vinyl felt her eyes slip closed as brain shut off completely.
As Octavia pulled away, Vinyl swayed slightly before her senses came back online. She opened her eyes to see her very beautiful, blushing mate, looking back at her. “I guess that means you’re ready huh?”
Octavia sighed and gave her a small smile, “Ready as I will ever be, I suppose.” The two mares walked out of the hallway and up a short flight of stairs towards the stage.
“Ladies and gentlecolts,” they heard the maestro say, “we have a very special treat for you this evening. Opening for us tonight are two of Manehatten’s most talented musicians.” Vinyl and Octavia made their way to the edge of stage to await their introductions. The unicorn draped a foreleg over the earth pony’s shoulder.
“I am still unsure how you managed to convince me to go along with this,” Octavia whispered to Vinyl.
“It’s because I know you have one hell of a voice Octy,” Vinyl whispered back. “Besides, it sucks that I’m the only one who gets to hear those beautiful pipes of yours.” The grey pony could feel every bit of blood in her body rush to her cheeks at Vinyl’s compliment.
“Now please give a huge welcome to Ms. Vinyl Scratch!” The white unicorn brushed past Octavia, trailing her tail along the grey pony’s treble clef cutie mark as she took the stage to rousing cheers for the audience. Vinyl sauntered up to the grand piano, bowed, and nodded at the announcer to continue.
“And now, for the first time ever, from the Royal Canterlot Orchestra, Ms. Octavia Philharmonica!” Octavia stepped onto the stage to thunderous applause and was instantly blinded by the hot white light from the rafters. She approached the waiting microphone with all the ease of a seasoned performer; while inside, her heart raced like mad. The venue was much more intimate than the large concert halls she was used to, with only room enough for a hundred ponies, their eyes all on her.
Octavia rose to her rear hooves, a feat made easy by years of playing her cello, and took hold of the microphone. She tapped the head to test it and was greeted with a short burst of feedback. Clearing her throat, she leaned close and looked out across the sea of eager faces before nodding at Vinyl.
Vinyl grinned and let her hooves float across the keys. Light staccato notes took to the air as the smooth sound of jazz began to fill the room. Octavia watched her marefriend out of the corner of her eye as she began to sing their song.
Some day, when I’m awfully low,
When the world is cold,
I will feel a glow just thinking of you
And the way you look tonight
In the background, the drummer gently kept time while the band bassist plucked at his strings, adding an extra layer onto the already intoxicating sounds of Vinyl’s playing. Octavia could feel the music flowing through her, moving her, and she smiled knowing that Vinyl was just like her music, unpredictable, gentle, and all encompassing.
Yes you’re lovely, with your smile so warm
And your cheeks so soft,
There is nothing for me but to love you,
And the way you look tonight
Octavia began to sway in time with the music, cradling the microphone in her hooves, as she thought about the mare behind her on the piano. She closed her eyes and began to remove the audience in her mind, one by one, until only Vinyl was left in front of her.
With each word your tenderness grows,
Tearing my fear apart
And that laugh that wrinkles your nose,
It touches my foalish heart
The grey mare imagined that it was just Vinyl and herself in the room alone. Her song was being dedicated to an audience of one. The white mare that often times got on her nerves, made a mess of things, and generally drove her crazy, was also the funniest, most honest, and most kind hearted pony she had ever met.
Lovely, never, ever change
Keep that breathless charm
Won’t you please arrange it?
Cause I love you, just the way you look tonight
With the last of Octavia’s words, Vinyl launched into an elaborate improvisation. Her hooves danced across the keys with a dexterity few could match. Octavia watched as Vinyl lost herself in the music and played from her heart. All the laughter and magic that she shared with Octavia poured out of her soul and into the music.
Lovely, never, ever change
Keep that breathless charm
Won’t you please arrange it?
Cause I love you, just the way you look tonight
Mm, mm, mm, mm,
Just the way you look-to-night
As the last of Octavia’s words faded with Vinyl’s playing, the crowd lept to their hooves and began to applaud loudly. Cheers filled the small venue as Vinyl joined Octavia. Both mares bowed low to cries of “Encore!” and “Bravo!”
Vinyl had a huge grin on her face as she turned to Octavia and whispered, “I told you they’d love you.” The singer couldn’t help but agree.
“I love you,” she said to the unicorn with a smile.
“I love you too.”
