*bzzt* Would Noteworthy please report to Two Step’s office? Thank you. *bzzt*

Noteworthy struggled to lift his head off his desk as the drone of the speaker bored into his eardrums. Silently cursing whoever it was that had installed the accursed things, he proceeded to rub the sleep out of his olive eyes, mentally preparing himself for the impending meeting.

Getting called down to the boss' office was never a good sign. The only time Two Step ever interacted with anypony besides his secretary(and possibly his wife, but even that was debatable) was if:

a. You were being fired.

b. You were in danger of being fired.

c. One of your artists just did something that could possibly alter either their career, or the reputation of the company.

And, considering none of Noteworthy’s clients had had any significant changes in at least four months, ‘c’ wasn't likely.

He attempted to make his shock of a blue mane presentable as he exited his small, white-walled office. His footsteps caused everypony within the hallway to scurry away, no doubt gossiping about the pony that had just been called down. However, Noteworthy held his head high. He wasn’t about to let these vultures get what the shame they craved. If he was going to get fired, he would do it with pride.

“H-hey, Noteworthy.”

The blue stallion turned to the source of the noise. Standing to his side was a heavenly white-furred, red-maned unicorn, diminutive in size compared to him. Her flank was adorned by a small microphone. “Oh, hello, Backbeat.” Noteworthy replied, happy to have an excuse to prolong the inevitable. “How are you?”

“Oh, uh, good, I guess...so, the boss is calling you down.” she said, trying to avoid the elephant in the room. “That must mean that Hayseed is doing well, right?”

Noteworthy chuckled. “Backbeat, you know as well as I do that Hayseed hasn’t sold more than ten records in the four years I’ve been representing him. People just don’t like banjo music anymore.” He sighed and stared straight ahead. “Face it, I’m done. Might as well clear my desk now.”

“Oh, don’t say that!” Backbeat insisted. “Yeah, sure, Hayseed might not be doing very well. And, uh, you might not have gotten a successful client in... a few years. And, uh, well, I mean...” she trailed off, rubbing one hoof on the back of her neck. “Well, we can always hope, right?”

“Yeah. I suppose we can.” Noteworthy responded with a smile. “Well, have a good day, Backbeat. Celestia knows I won’t.” He left, leaving only a speechless mare in his wake.

“You wanted to see me, Mr. Two Step?”

A gray stallion sat calmly at a large desk which occupied the back of the room. He gave an affirmative grunt. “Yes. Come in.” He adjusted the gold nameplate sitting on the desk, which read:

Noteworthy sat in a plush, comfortable chair stationed in front of his employer. However, the smooth velvet padding did little to soothe his fears of Two Step, who had fixed him with a penetrating stare. “Noteworthy.” Two Step began. “Do you know why you are here?”

“No, sir.” Noteworthy bluffed.

“Right. Of course not. Well, let me fill you in.” Two Step said as he rose from his chair, revealing his cutie mark: a simple vinyl record, befitting his position. He began to pace in front of the large, fully windowed wall behind the desk. “As I am sure you are aware of, Noteworthy, Galaxy Music Group is the largest record label in Equestria. As such, we have something of a reputation to uphold.” he said, turning to the blue stallion. “Do you see where I am going yet?”

A bead of sweat formed at the base of Noteworthy’s mane. “I...I think I have an idea.”

“If you did not know, your success rate with musicians is the lowest we have at this company. I do not think I can even remember the last time you brought in someone notable. And, again, if you did not know, these are hard times. Layoffs might be necessary soon.” Two Step stared straight into Noteworthy’s eyes. “And it would only be fair if the first to go was the one providing the least.”

“Sir, you have to understand-”

“No, I think you have to understand.” Two Step said sternly, the anger on his face betraying the icy calmness in his voice. “The next budget meeting is in fifteen days. Noteworthy, I am giving you two weeks to find me the next ‘big thing.’ Once these two weeks is up, I will test whoever you find, to see if they’re up for the job. That is if you find somepony. Do this, or I won’t hesitate to let you go. Do I make myself clear?”

Noteworthy glowered, but he nodded. “Yes, sir.”

Two Step sat back down, and spun his chair toward the window. “I wish you the best of luck. You will need it.”

“I live here on my knees, as I try to make you see

That you're everything I think I need, here on the ground.”

Blue Belle’s purple eyes were closed as she sang with an intensity that sent chills down the spines of everypony in the audience. She didn’t even notice the blue hair falling onto her face as she mashed keys on her grand piano, keeping in time with the violinist that accompanied her, sitting a few feet away from the spotlight.

“But you're neither friend nor foe, though I can't seem to let you go.

The one thing that I still know is that you're keeping me down!”

She held her high note on the word ‘down,’ stretching her voice across the entire crowd. Both the violin and piano made a full stop, leaving nothing but the mare’s voice to fill the void. After a few seconds, Blue Belle began to tap out a few slow notes, signaling the violinist to fade in with her. She paused for a moment, just to take a breath, but then continued, repeating the final line of the bridge with just as much passion as the first time.

Backstage, Blue Belle’s fellow contestants sat, holding their various instruments close. Even they, albeit begrudgingly, were moved by the love story being sung onstage. Some chatted about what they felt the results would be. Others shared experiences about different gigs they had taken. Others were content to simply sit alone, trying to build up their confidence.

In the back corner, slumped over on a large, wooden box, a turquoise mare attempted to check how fast her heart was beating. Unsurprisingly, it was far from normal. “Oh, come on!” Lyra thought as she strummed a few quiet notes on her lyre. “Why did I have to go first?! The judges have probably forgotten all about me by now!” It wasn’t that Lyra hadn’t done well; in fact, one might call her performance perfect. It was just that Blue Belle was so much better. As she sat in worry, Blue Belle entered the final lines of her song.

“Something always brings me back to you.

It never-”

At that moment, she hit a note on her piano about two steps higher than what was needed. Realizing her mistake, her eyes immediately flapped open and her dark-blue hackles raised as she attempted the note again, striking the right key this time. However, the damage had been done. She shakily continued.

“t-takes too lo-ong...” The music died down.

The spotlight slowly faded as silence rang out across the audience. After a moment, it was replaced by the thunderous applause of hundreds of ponies stamping their hooves. Blue Belle stood up, gave a quick bow, and walked off the stage, entering the dim light of backstage. She was greeted by a round of encouragement and praise from her peers.

Noteworthy trotted through downtown Canterlot, paying no mind to the many stores and ponies that lined the streets. What was he to do? Hayseed definitely wasn’t going anywhere, and it wasn’t likely that he’d find another successful musician anytime soon. The sun had already set, meaning he really only had thirteen days left. It wasn’t like he was going to just walk into a bunch of talented musicians!

As if on cue, his ears were flooded with the sound of stamping hooves. He quickly shook his head and looked around, only to find that he had walked right into a crowd of ponies without noticing. They were all staring at a large stage, from which two ponies were exiting. In the center was a large piano. Had the mare been playing the piano? When the applause had subsided, Noteworthy tapped a yellow unicorn mare on the shoulder. “Excuse me, what is this for?” he asked.

The mare gave him a blank expression. She blew her blue bangs out of her eyes, and responded through her gum, “This is, like, the Canterlot Village Music Festival.”

“Oh, was that tonight?” Noteworthy responded. He may not have had much success finding musicians, but it didn’t mean his cutie mark, three eighth notes, was undeserved. He quite a lot about the music world. And he definitely knew about the Canterlot Village Music Festival. Every year, at least fifteen amateur and uncontracted musicians gathered to show their stuff, and compete against each other for money, the chance to spend the day with whoever that year’s celebrity judge was, and other prizes. Of course, the greatest prize was the chance to be seen by the various talent scouts that always inhabited the crowd. More new musicians came out of this competition than any other.

That was when it hit him: he was searching for a pony with musical talent, who would be willing to sign into a record deal. And it just so happened that he had walked straight into the heart of an amateur music festival. He silently thanked Celestia as he turned back to the mare. “Thank you!” he said excitedly.

“Whatever.” the mare said, still chewing her gum with the same blank look.

Noteworthy made his way to the front of the crowd, just behind the judging table. He sat and waited patiently. If he was going to have the first pickings of whoever won this, he would have to be ready.

“Would all contestants please take the stage?”

Lyra let herself be immersed in the crowd of ponies who were now taking the stage. Her heart beat hadn’t slowed at all since her performance ended. “Come on, Lyra. You didn’t come all the way to Canterlot for nothing. You didn’t practice your piece every day for the past six months to lose here. You will win this... I hope.” Lyra thought as she stepped into her place on the stage, sandwiched between a large, crimson stallion and a mulberry mare. The two judges stared at everypony on stage with cold, calculating eyes.

The pony on the left was named Five Star. Five Star was notorious throughout Equestria for being one of the most critical unicorns to ever live. His cutie mark matched his name: a large, golden star, the only color in a sea of white fur. His mane, greyed by age, only showed a few streaks of yellow. Every few seconds, he would put his head down to scribble something on the clipboard in front of him.

Sitting next to him was the biggest reason Lyra had even cared about this competition. The celebrity judge: Octavia. Known throughout Equestria as the greatest earth pony to ever play a string instrument, she was Lyra’s idol. Lyra could only imagine how much money was spent to secure Octavia as a judge. Unlike Five Star, Octavia simply scanned the contestants, a small smile betraying the look her purple eyes were giving. Lyra took in a deep breath. She was not about to blow her one chance to meet Octavia.

"We'd like to thank you all for being here." Octavia began, her voice as melodic as the cello she played. "Music is a wonderful thing, and you should all feel proud that you have been given the ability to share it with others. I can assure you all of one thing: you all deserve to be here tonight. Starting from twentieth place, Five Star and I shall count down the places until we have reached the final three, who shall be receiving prizes for their efforts.”

Five Star levitated his clipboard in front of him and cleared his throat. “When you are called, please walk and remain in the backstage area.” he boomed, obviously using a spell to enhance his volume. If Octavia’s voice was like silk, then Five Star’s voice was like rusty metal. “In twentieth place, hailing from Trottingham, is Giselle.” A round of applause accompanied the announcement. A blue mare, who Lyra assumed was Giselle, stepped out of the lineup, took a quick bow, and left the stage, all the while wearing a dejected look.

Octavia took the next name, then it went back to Five Star, and so on, until there were only three ponies left on stage. Lyra, who was doing all she could not to simply pass out from nervousness. Blue Belle, who was trying to summon all the poise she could into a graceful, eloquent pose. And finally, on the far left, was a cream-colored pegasus stallion named Cool Star. Despite his high ranking, he stood with a stoic expression, only raising a hoof every few moments to brush a lock of red hair off his forehead. The only part of his performance Lyra remembered was that he played the bongos.

“When I announce the third place pony, he or she should come to the judges table, receive their trophy, and proceed backstage.” Octavia said. She was eyeing each contestant equally, letting no hint of who had made it across. Lyra’s heart fluttered for a moment as she made eye contact with the gray mare. “And, in third place, receiving a plaque and a cash prize of 200 bits, hailing from Cloudsdale, is Cool Star.”

Cool Star, taking advantage of his extra appendages, simply jumped to the judges table. He calmly shook hooves with both judges, grabbed the trophy in his teeth, gave a small nod, and flew backstage. A small amount of cheering could be heard from behind the curtain. Once again, Five Star cleared his throat.

“Right. Now, that brings us to our final two ponies. From Ponyville, Lyra. From Canterlot, Blue Belle.” he said, igniting a round of applause.

Blue Belle turned, and outstretched a hoof to Lyra. “May the best pony win.” she said. Lyra stared at the dark blue hoof being offered to her. Everypony already knew that Blue Belle was going to win this; why pretend? Her performance had been near perfect! But yet, Blue Belle’s expression was not that of one who knew they were better than everyone else. On the contrary, she looked almost sad, like she had given up. Lyra opened her mouth to say something, but stopped abruptly when she realized: everypony in the crowd was staring at her, waiting for her to accept Blue Belle’s sign of sportsmanship. Swallowing her words, Lyra slowly nodded and returned the gesture, giving a reassuring smile as she went.

All the while, Noteworthy charted out what the quickest route backstage from his seat would be.

“Remember, first prize, along with the 1000 bits and trophy, is the chance to spend one day with Octavia.” Five Star said, motioning to the mare next to him. Lyra began to systematically wring her hooves. She knew it probably didn’t look very good, but right now, she was too anxious to care. “And the winner is...” Five Star trailed off, leaving a deafening silence in the area. Having been a professional judge all his life, he was well tuned to the art of suspense.

“GET ON WITH IT!” a voice from the crowd screeched, sparking a chorus of agreement within the crowd.

Five Star turned around and stared into the audience, searching for the pony who had interrupted him. Having no luck finding the troublemaker, eventually he relented and settled in his seat once again. Octavia covered her mouth with a hoof, trying not to giggle. Five Star grumbled and lifted up a small, gold-lined paper. “As I was saying... the winner of the Canterlot Village Music Festival is...Lyra!”

As if the crowd was simply a bomb waiting for its spark, the dozens of ponies gathered in front of the stage immediately broke out into thunderous stamping and cheering. Blue Belle smiled a wistful smile. She began to turn, planning to congratulate the victor, but was interrupted as Lyra, engrossed in both the joy of winning and the spirit of competition, embraced her in a fierce hug. Before the blue mare could react, Lyra was already galloping down to the judges table, basking in the frenzy of roses being thrown at her. She heartily shook both judge’s hooves, lingering on Octavia’s grasp. Octavia didn’t resist; she only gave an amused smile. After a few moments, Blue Belle walked up beside the turquoise unicorn. She too shook hooves with the judges, albeit more calmly than Lyra.different.

Noteworthy bolted from his seat, pushing through ponies and galloping around the stage until he reached a sturdy red door labeled ‘backstage.’ As he proceeded inside, he ignored everypony giving him strange looks, and simply waited by the stage entrance.

Back outside, Lyra had just finished talking to Octavia about their day together. Despite Lyra’s insistence that it be coordinated down to the minute, Octavia only gave the simple assurance that everything would be alright, and not to worry about it. Either way, she still had to check her schedule to see when she would be free, so they would have to organize it later. Even though she was just the least bit disappointed, Lyra agreed, gave Octavia one last hoofshake, and bid farewell.

By now, most of the crowd had cleared out. A few admires crowded around Octavia as she cantered confidently away. Some competitors talked with each other, no doubt sharing tips and tricks or organizing times they could practice together. Others walked with their family or friends. Lyra had come alone, so she figured that she might as well head back to the airport.

As soon as she had passed through the curtain that led backstage, Lyra received a tap upon her shoulder. She turned to see who it had come from: a large, blue stallion, with a cutie mark revealing he had something to do with music. “Yes? Can I help you?” she asked.

Noteworthy smiled. Step one, actually approach the pony, was complete. Now it was time for step two: reel it in. At Galaxy, the first thing you learned was how to sell. Not only records, but the company, its artists, and yourself. Most at the company would call it charm. Noteworthy just called it sleaze. He hated tricking ponies like this, but right now, he had no choice “Lyra, was it? My name is Noteworthy. I’m a record producer representing Galaxy Music Group. Perhaps you’ve heard of us?” he asked, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. He suppressed a groan at his own joke.

Lyra’s eyes lit up. “Well, of course I’ve heard of you guys! You’re only the biggest record company in Equestria!” She shook his hoof enthusiastically. “But what do you need from me?”

“Well, I heard your music out there.” he bluffed. Sure, he hadn’t actually heard her. But, considering she won, she couldn’t have been too shabby. “And I would like to make you a deal. How would you feel about becoming an artist for our company?”

Lyra’s jaw dropped. Her? Performing for Galaxy Music Group?! This was like a dream come true! She could see it now...

The cheering of ponies completely overcame whatever other sounds were attempting to be heard. And who were they all cheering for? Why the limousine coming down the block, of course. It came to a halt at the beginning of a long, red, silk carpet. The door opened, and out came the mare of the century: Lyra. Dressed in only the finest Canterlot fashions, the unicorn walked gracefully across the carpet, giving her adoring fans glances so seductive that they would faint within seconds.

Up ahead, three ponies lined the ground. The first was a small, brown unicorn stallion, the image of a book on his flank. Lyra recognized him as Bold Text, headmaster of Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. He lamely groveled at Lyra’s hooves. “Oh, please, please, Miss Lyra!” he begged. “Please, grace our school with your presence!”

Lyra laughed. “Yeah, I bet you wish I hadn’t dropped out now!” She moved onto the next ponies: her own parents.

Her father, a blue unicorn held his hooves together, as if praying. “Oh, sweet daughter, can you ever forgive us? We’re sorry for trying to force you to become a doctor!”

Lyra just shook her head and walked on. She had only made it a few feet, before a new sight came into view; only this time, she liked it. It was the most handsome, eligible unicorn stallion in Canterlot. Princess Celestia’s own nephew. Prince Blueblood. He held a snow white hoof out to her. Lyra took it in her own. They walked down the carpet, happily ever after...

Noteworthy waved a hoof in front of Lyra’s face. “Uh...you okay?” Lyra shook her head, trying to free herself from the stupor she had fallen into. “No? You’re not okay?”

“No, no! I am, trust me.” Lyra assured him, chuckling. “Just spaced out for a second there. So...” She leaned in close to Noteworthy. “When can I start?”

“Hold up there.” Noteworthy said hastily, taking a small step away from the enthusiastic mare. “It’s not that simple. First you’ve got to sign a contract.”

“Oh. So, do you have one?”

Noteworthy laughed. “No, sorry. But, I can have one ready for you right away.” He quickly grabbed a conveniently placed pen and paper off a table near them. He scribbled a note down and handed it to Lyra. “Here you are.”

Lyra stared at the piece of paper. All it said was:

“This is my contract?” Lyra asked, one eyebrow raised. Just what was this guy trying to pull?

“Oh, no, no. I can’t just write one up for you right now. This is where you can find me during the day. Tomorrow morning, come on down and I’ll have it ready for you.”

Lyra’s heart sank. “Tomorrow? Like, tomorrow tomorrow?”

Noteworthy nodded, more than a bit confused. “Yeah. That’s usually what’s meant by ‘tomorrow.’”

“Oh...you see, I actually have a flight back to Ponyville tonight.”

“A flight? Can’t you cancel it?”

“I would, but I don’t have the money for it. It would cost at least 200 bits.”

“But you just won 1000 bits, didn’t you? It’s more than enough to cover the expenses.”

Lyra sighed. “Yeah, I know. But apparently the money comes in a check, and I won’t actually be able to cash it until I get back home. Until then, I’m pretty much broke.”

Noteworthy sighed in turn. What now? “Oh, I know! I could use my budget money to... No, that wouldn’t work. She isn’t on contract yet, it’s against the rules. And I only have two weeks...” Noteworthy took a quick glance at Lyra. And at that moment, his heart broke. Lyra simply stared at her hooves, shuffling them on the wooden floor. She just looked so disappointed. Once again, Noteworthy gave a long sigh.

“How about this, Lyra?” he said, causing the turquoise mare to perk her head up. “I’ll give you...an extension, of sorts. How long do you think it’ll take you to get home, get your money, and come back?”

Lyra thought for a moment, one hoof raised to her chin. “I’m not sure. Maybe a week or so? Flights between Canterlot and Ponyville don’t come around very often.”

Noteworthy gulped. A week?! That would only give him about six days to get her in shape for whatever Two Step had planned. He couldn’t give her that much time...but, then again, when was he going to get another opportunity like this? Hesitantly, he lifted a blue hoof up to Lyra. “That’s fine, I guess. Just...don’t get here too late, okay?”

Lyra nodded, exuberant. “You can count on me!”

“Good. Here, why don’t I walk you out?”

“Okay. Just let me get my lyre.” Lyra responded, trotting away from the producer.

Noteworthy made a mental note. “Okay, she plays the lyre...I guess I should have figured, from her cutie mark. A bit classical, but I can probably make it work.”

As Lyra and Noteworthy walked away from the performance area, and out into the dimly lit streets, Noteworthy recounted stories of his many clients(he paid special care to make just the right amount of corny jokes). Even if Lyra could tell which stories were true and which were false, she didn’t give any indication. She simply let herself be immersed in his voice, in the crowd, and in her dreams.

(Note: The song Blue Belle was singing is "Gravity" by Sara Bareilles)