The Snow on Her Cheek

Chapter Twelve

More Than You Know

***

Octavia rolled over with a grunt. No matter how comfortable the bed was, how calming and pleasant the silence of the night was, she couldn't fall asleep without Vinyl by her side. It was strange how fast she had got used to the warmness of her lover, her gentle breath, her soothing snores... Okay, maybe not so soothing... Still-

She heard the door open ever so quietly, which caused her blood to run cold. Was Vinyl so careless as to tear apart their whole plan by sneaking into her bedroom at night? Or maybe she was in need of help? Maybe something terrible had happened to her?

Octavia jerked up in bed and relaxed slighty as she saw it not to be Vinyl but Tom. Tom? What is he doing here? She voiced her thoughts immediately.

"Tom?" she said with a hint of irritation in her voice. "What are you doing in my bedroom in the middle of the night?!"

The brown stallion chuckled and approached the window, drawing the dark red curtains. Octavia squinted her eyes as countless rays of the rising sun rushed into the room, brightening it up in every way possible.

"Rise and shine, Octavia!" he exclaimed with a smile, trotting towards the bed. "It's morning already, and breakfast will be served in half an hour."

The cellist rubbed her eyes as Tom planted a brotherly peck on her cheek. She yawned contentedly, pleased to experience this simple show of affection for the first time in many years.

"I would advise you to wake up your marefriend as well, lest she miss breakfast." He chuckled, shaking his head. "I'm sure she wouldn't forgive you that."

"Mmmhm." Octavia stretched her limbs and sat up in bed. "Sure, I'll get to Vinyl... WHAT?" She almost fell from her bed as she realised what he had just said. How did he?... How did he?...

The brown pony laughed light-heartedly. "Oh, Octavia, please! You know very well how I can see into a pony's soul." He grinned at the embarrassed mare, whose cheeks had turned a violent red. "Besides, I guess that even a blind pony would have noticed you two were in a relationship."

Octavia felt the corners of her mouth turn up in spite of herself. A blind pony, huh? Oh, you won't believe how close you are to the truth right now! she thought, remembering their encounter with Old God Coltring.

"Wait a minute..." she said, the gears in her head slowly beginning to turn around. "You know that I'm a..." She blushed before saying the word. "...filly-fooler, and you aren't angry with me?" She blinked a few times, while Tom's grin faded gradually.

"I am not," he said calmly, looking through the window. "While I do not wholly approve of the... concept, you are still family. And who am I to question the happiness of family?"

Octavia looked into his blue, serious eyes, and felt her eyes watering up. No longer to contain herself, she embraced the brown pony in a bone-shattering hug. "Thank you, Tom. Thank you," she whispered into his ear.

"You are welcome, Octavia," he replied as she let go of him. "I just hope Father will be just as accepting." He held a small pause, lost in thought. "Go. Wake up your lover." He smield warmly. "You two had a matter to discuss with Father, am I right?"

Octavia rose to her hooves, slightly shocked. How did he know? She pondered for a moment. Oh, well, he's Tom, after all, she concluded, and, tossing a smile towards the stallion, trotted out of the room.

Tom sighed and looked through the doorway.

"Sometimes I wish I were your real brother..." he whispered solemnly and left the bedroom.

***

Vinyl couldn't fall alseep. No matter how hard she tried, the emptiness in her bed told her otherwise: she couldn't sleep without Octavia by her side. And, what was worse, the side effects of abstaining were kicking in. She felt a blanket of apathy and depression covering her for hours, playing with her mind, tangling her thoughts in an imperceptible manner. She needed her mare by her side. She needed to hug her, to kiss her, to-

The door opened with a quiet screech, and Vinyl turned her head towards the source of the sound. To her surprise and unspoken joy, Octavia entered the room, a smile on her beautiful face - her perfect face. Before Vinyl could greet her or even sit up in bed, the grey mare lay on top of her, pinning her to the cosy bed, and sealed her lips in a passionate kiss. Vinyl felt a wave of bliss and happiness cover her whole, after a whole night of not sharing kisses with her marefriend.

"Rise and shine, sleepy-head!" Octavia murmured into her ear, nibbling on it gently, warming up the white mare up inside. "Of course, unless you want to skip breakfast..."

"Breakfast?!" Vinyl jumped up in bed, sending Octavia in a fit of laughter.

"Yes, with the delicious pancakes, and jam, and biscuits..." the grey mare teased her lover as the pianist rose to her hooves, over-salivating at the mentioning of all the tasty treats. By Celestia's beard, I'm hungry!

"What are we waiting for?!" Vinyl exlaimed, throwing her hoof in the air.

"Vinyl, wait." Octavia sighed as the white mare's red eyes shone with concern upon seeing her frown. "We need to tell Father. About us, I mean."

"Huh?" Vinyl raised her brown questioningly. "Didn't you say, he was, like, all conservative and stuff?"

"I know, Vinyl." Octavia sighed again and shook her head. "But I can't keep secrets from family. If we want him to help us with your... our problem..." Octavia's expression melted a little as she reminded herself that it was their problem, that they would overcome it side by side, together. "We need to be honest with him, Vinyl. He appreciates honesty."

The pianist nodded seriously. If Octavia said that they needed to do so, they would do so. Whatever the consequences.

"So... breakfast it is, then?" Octavia smiled a little at her mare, whose face once more lit up.

"To the kitchen!" Vinyl exclaimed and broke into a gallop, followed by a laughing Octavia.

***

This wasn't a kitchen. No, far, far from it. Vinyl glanced around the spacious dining hall, her gaze focusing on Octavia, who was sitting on her left, and Tom, who had occupied the place on her right. Alexandro was sitting at the head of the long table, which, to Vinyl's mind, was carved out of the finest wood that Equestria had ever seen. The bronze plate, from which they had been consuming their food for almost half an hour, added to the impression.

Alexandro lit a long cigar just as one of the strange black-suited ponies brought tea. Vinyl was stuffed already, and so was Octavia, so they politely refused the drink, their eyes meeting for a second, exchanging It is time glances.

Octavia coughed, drawing her father's attention. "Father..." she began carefully, trying to form her thoughts correctly. "There is something I need to tell you."

Alexandro looked at his daughter in his usual relaxed manner and nodded. "Octavia, dear, I am all ears."

"You see, Vinyl and I..." she paused and gulped, feeling Vinyl's supportive hoof on top of hers under the table. "We are already sharing a flat, but..." She closed her eyes, unable to bring herself to see her father's reaction. "We are more than that. We are dating."

Several seconds - or were they minutes? - had passed in silence until Octavia finally managed to make herself open her eyes again. What she saw slightly surprised her. Her father's face was just as calm and tranquil as it had been all that time, the cigar hanging from his mouth.

"Father?" Octavia asked hesitanly. Vinyl gulped, afraid of what might come. After all, they say that the fear of the unknown is the greatest fear... the pianist mused philosophically.

Alexandro took another puff of his cigar, taking a sip of tea. He finally sighed and put the cup back on the table. "I see," he said. The silence stung; the silence hurt; it was teasing and rolling about the whole room. "Welcome to the family, Vinyl," he said finally.

Octavia's mouth fell agape; so did Vinyl's. Even Tom, as it seemed, was a little shocked. The cellist tried to form some decent thoughts, but they avoided her completely.

"T-thank you, senor Philarmonico..." Vinyl stammered, astonished and perplexed.

"Just Alexandro, please," the unicorn replied, waving a hoof in the air. "You are family now, after all."

"I... I don't understand, Father..." Octavia mumbled, looking at her marefriend, then at Tom, who by now had dealt with his amazement. "I thought you were opposed to... um... single-sex relationships..."

Alexandro smiled warmly, and that smile, coming all the way from her foalhood, immediately put her to ease.

"Octavia, there is a difference between your general views and views regarding family," he explained. Huh? Vinyl blinked, unable to predict where the grey-maned wise unicorn's trail of thought was going. "You can disapprove of something, as long as it doesn't concern your family. For example," he pointed his cigar at Tom, who was listening attentively, "Tom disapproves of smoking; but he is quite tolerant towards my smoking, simply because we are family." The brown stallion nodded in agreement. "You are right: I do disapprove of same-gender relationships, but what I want to see most..." He pointed his free hoof at Octavia, who was finally catching her father's drift. "...is for you to be happy, be it with a stallion or a mare," he concluded and leaned back in his chair.

The next several minutes were spent in countless expressions of gratitude towards Alexandro from the two mares, and tears of joy, and embraces.

"There, there," Alexandro finally said as Vinyl and Octavia hugged him from both sides. "I'm very happy for the two of you. I am sure you will make a perfect couple." He smiled and watched the two marefriends let go of him.

"Thank you!" The musical ponies exclaimed in unison for the last time, occupying their respective seats, this time holding hooves freely, not afraid of showing their affection.

"And I think I might tell my colts to bring another bed into your room, Octavia," he said with a wink, making Octavia blush and Vinyl grin from ear to ear. "Now, Tom has informed me that there is a matter you two wanted to discuss with me. Aside from coming out, I mean."

"Yes, Father..." Octavia started to feel nervous again, not sure if confessing her love for a mare and instantly revealing that she was a drug user was a good course of action.

"I am a junkie," Vinyl suddenly said, her red eyes piercing Alexandro. "I used to be a buck addict, before I met Octavia," she carried on, resolving to tell all the truth. "I don't want to make excuses, but I have had quite a hard time living in the streets, and well..." She chuckled sadly. "You get used to what most bums do, eventually."

"I see..." Alexandro said, not a frown crossing his face, smoke  enveloping his face, hiding his true thoughts. "And what made you live in the streets, may I ask?"

"Sure." Vinyl nodded. "My folks kicked me out," she said with a shrug, forgetting all the made-up politeness and manners. "Couldn't accept me for who I was."

"That is... terrible to hear." Alexandro took a puff and shook his head in genuine sympathy. "Without the support of family, the world truly becomes a dreary place. Have you given up the habit?" he wondered.

"Yes, she has," Octavia answered for her marefriend. "She has even burned down her drug stash, and I have already arranged for her to undergo a treatment in a local Manehattan clinic." She smiled at her mare, who blushed slightly.

"Still, the withdrawal is killing me..." Vinyl muttered under her breath; yet, loud enough for Alexandro to hear.

"Ah... withdrawal, yes..." The black unicorn rubbed his chin. "Well, until you start your treatment, I have a special horn ointment that will help reduce the effects of withdrawal." His horn lit up and a tube appeared right before the white mare, being held in place by Alexandro's telekinesis. Wow... Teleporting objects? That's some high-grade spellcasting! "Appoint twice a day," he added, waiting for Vinyl to take it.

She looked into Octavia's eyes reluctantly. "All the ingredients are natural, Vinyl," Octavia said. "It's not a drug or medicine."

Vinyl nodded and took the tube in her telekinetic grip. "Thank you, Alexandro," she said with a slight bow of her head.

"You are welcome, Vinyl. Family helps family, after all." The stallion glanced at his daughter, who was still shifting uneasily. "Octavia?"

"Yes, Father. The problem is..." She took a deep breath. "While Vinyl and I want to start a new life... together..." She felt Vinyl's hoof squeeze hers, and felt a smidgeon of confidence building inside her. "There are certain circumstances that prevent us from doing so. In particular..." She looked into her father's eyes firmly. "Vinyl's dealer is a police officer at the Manehattan hub. And he can cause us trouble, our being... filly-foolers and all..."

Alexandro frowned and extinguished his cigar, putting the butt in the silver ashtray. Silver ashtray! Vinyl exclaimed mentally. Pure silver! "Black unicorn? Red mane?" he asked sharply, receiving a nod from Vinyl to both questions. "He's gone too far..." he muttered under his breath; but in a moment, he smiled again, his face once more calm. "Don't worry, Octavia, Vinyl; nopony will trouble you from this day on, especially he."

"Thank you, Father!" Octavia exclaimed, running towards the black stallion and wrapping her hooves around his neck.

"Thanks, Alexandro!" Vinyl cheered, throwing her hooves in the air.

"Now, now. Just forget your troubles. When you arrive in Manehattan tomorrow, you will find your problem... solved," Alexandro concluded, planting a peck on Octavia's forehead. "As for now..." He smiled. "I thought you two had some... matters to attend to?"

Seeing the mares' dumbfounded expression, he specified, "The walls in Octavia's room are soundproof."

"Oh. Oh." Vinyl blushed, realising the implication. "Shall we, Tavi?" she mumbled to the embarrassed grey mare, who nodded, her own cheeks red as well.

The two ponies trotted side by side, out of the room, eagerly anticipating some matters they wanted to attend to so badly.

As they left, Alexandro motioned for Tom to come closer. "I need that bastard to be disposed of until tomorrow. Take as many ponies as you need to cover it up," the black stallion said, emphasising each word. "Anypony who crosses my daughter's lover, be it a mare, or a stallion..." He raised his hoof and tapped it against his throat.

A nod from the brown pony showed that they were understood. "He will be dead by dusk, Alexandro," Tom promised. "By the way..." He pondered for a moment. "Did you give her marefriend the real cure or-"

Suddenly, Tom felt a hoof slapped across his face. For the first time in his life, he had been shocked to see Alexandro furious. And he was furious indeed.

"How could you think otherwise?" he hissed, blood rushing to his face. "You thought I gave her a fake... or maybe another drug?!" He spat in disdain, facing away from the confused brown stallion. "If my daughter loves Vinyl, I will embrace her with all of my heart, as I have embraced you, if you remember." He lowered his head. "Sometimes I think that all this law and business has ripped you of compassion. That you can't feel anymore." With that, he took his leave, not turning around, contempt visible on his face.

Tom rubbed his cheek. "I can, Alexandro," he whispered, looking at the spot where the black unicorn had just been standing. "I just didn't realise you could."