Strings Eternalby Lunar Black
Chapters
Prologue: Legato
Prologue: Legato
It was a bright, sunny morning, in Phillydelphia. The birds were chirping, and there wasn't a single cloud in the sky. The bright morning sun beamed through the window, blanketing the pale yellow mare in its golden embrace. She slowly awoke, her eyes still closed, and smiling. She didn't dare move. She was loving the feeling. To her, it felt as though she was being cuddled by somepony. It was a nice feeling. She waited a few minutes, and stretched out, smiling happily. "Good morning to you, too, Princess." she was definitely a morning pony, unlike her brother, who she knew wouldn't be awake for at least four more hours.
That was a good thing. It gave her time to get her daily to-do list done, without having to clean around the Pegasus, who, as soon as he awoke, would probably make a mess of the kitchen, then lounge around until it was time for him to go about his day. Such was the life of the sister of Deep Bass. She knew his routine rather well. Perhaps even better than he did. He would leave for a quick practice before his show for the night, then he would go, get drunk, and play his set. After that, he would come home with a few other strange ponies, and throw his usual post-show party. Sometimes they were all mares, and sometimes it wasn't. Even so, he ended up bringing a different mare home each night. It had been this way for a few years, ever since he started dating one of her friends, a Pegasus mare named Cloudy Night. At first, Bass seemed happy, but then, she noticed him turn a complete 180, and he fell into a deep depression. Hence, she watched Deep Bass become Lunar Black, the rockpony that never knew when to stop.
Treble, however, had her own routine. Every morning, she'd wake up bright and early, make herself a quick breakfast, then leave for the market, to restock the refrigerator. Of course, she always picked herself up something to treat herself. She'd get various types of food, in hopes that the party ponies that would be at the house that night would spare something in the fridge, then, she'd purchase herself a bottle of Grey Pegasus vodka. She wasn't an alcoholic, but that didn't mean she couldn't enjoy her liquor.
After the market, she'd return home to put the food away, and stash her reward away for herself, then she'd set about making lunch for herself, knowing that her brother would be awake at any moment. And, today was no different.
As Treble walked down the sidewalk, she would receive the usual "Mornin, Treble!" or "Good morning." from the ponies who passed her on the street. Treble was a friendly mare, so she knew quite a few people. She loved the attention, and smiled happily as she would greet them back.
Once she reached the market, she casually strolled inside. It didn't take her long to pick out all the food that was on her list, and was now heading to take care of the last thing on her list. As she stepped into the liquor aisle, she was greeted by a soft, soothing, yet semi-high-pitched voice. "Oh, good morning, Treble!"
"Well, good morning to you too, Rythm. What are you doing awake so early?"
"Oh, well, I kinda slowed down with all the partying stuff, so now I can wake up early, and take care of the things I need to do." The white unicorn was smiling at Treble, almost as if she had something else on her mind.
Treble picked up on this rather quickly. "Is there… anything else you want to ask me?"
Rythm went shy, and she blushed, looking away from Treble, and dragging a hoof on the ground. "Um… how's uh… Bass doing?"
Treble smiled tenderly at Rythm. She knew that she had feelings for Bass, ever since they were foals. They had been foalhood friends, and it was obvious that over time, she had started to like him as more than just a friend, or a bandmate. "He's fine, Rythm. He's still asleep, though."
"Oh… if he doesn't slow down, he's going to overdo it one day... Well, I should go."
"Oh, okay, Rythm. Good luck tonight." Treble smiled at the Rythm, who grabbed a bottle of Buck Daniels from the shelf, and headed for the counter.
"Thanks, Treble. Tell Bass I said hi."
Treble smiled, and continued on down the aisle, grabbing her bottle of Grey Pegasus, and continued on her way. "Now why can't Bass be with a nice girl like that?"
Chapter 1: Idle Chatter
SE Ch. 1: Idle Chatter
Treble had returned home around 10 AM, placing the groceries on the table as she walked in, and immediately began to organize them in their proper places. Her horn glowed yellow as she magically tossed a record onto the record player, and dropped the needle onto it. The music began to play, as she sang along, while organizing the groceries.
After a few minutes, she had finished, and turned her sights to the trashed living room, and she groaned. "I swear, Bass must hate the living room or something. His room never gets this messy." She then rolled her eyes, as she started cleaning the living room, singing along with her favorite record as she did so. Treble was indeed a musical pony, but not in the way her brother was. She was never much of a performer, but she loved to sing, and had even learned to play guitar. But not by magic, like most unicorns. No, she learned how to play guitar just like her dad and brother did. It was almost unheard of in the music world. A unicorn playing an instrument by hoof? Sure, Treble could easily play using her magic, but where was the challenge in that? When she played by magic, her creations shined about as bright as an old glow stick, in her own mind, simply because she was doing the same thing as everypony else. Yes, Treble was the epitome of the average pony. Everything from her "road less travelled" attitude, right down to her love life, which was mostly because she didn't have one.
About 45 minutes later, she sat, eating the sandwich that she had prepared herself for lunch, as she recollected the events that had molded her. As a little filly, she was always so shy, as was her brother. They were absolutely inseparable. They did just about everything together. The would play together every day. They were as close as a brother and sister could be. Then they started school, and Treble watched, as Bass was teased to no end. They would pick on him, using any small insecurity they could find. They called him names because of his eyes. They called him a ghost, or a little monster. The fact that he was rather small for a colt, and hadn't learned to fly yet didn't help either. Treble could still remember one day, when she tried to comfort him. She hugged him, and through his tears, he managed to say to his sister "One day, I'm gonna be the coolest pony in the world. Then they'll be sorry. They'll all be sorry."
Treble was then snapped away from her thoughts by the sound of hoofsteps on the wooden floor. She looked up, and saw her brother putting on his signature amber aviators, and smiled.
A few hours later, Bass had left for practice, then his show. Treble had never actually been to a Fasthor5 concert, mostly because she never had time... Not that she would want to go anyways. It's not that she didn't like their music, but for the sole reason that she normally spent her evenings writing to her friend, in Ponyville. As she sipped at her glass of Grey Pegasus, she read the letter to herself.
"Dear Princess Cel- Soft Treble (Sorry. Habit.):
Today was rather uneventful. My friend, Rainbow Dash nearly killed herself doing one of her insane stunts… again. She was trying to do a septuple barrel-something-or-other, and smacked into one of Applejack's trees. I hate to say it, but that was just about the high point of my day. Well, also, my other friend, Pinkie Pie decided to get too close to my friend, Rarity's cat, Opal, with her 'Party Cannon,' and Opal jumped up, and scratched Rarity's face up. I guess today is Do-Something-Stupid Day. Oh well, my friends are still one of a kind, and I wouldn't trade them for the world.
So, how are things with you? I've been hearing a lot about your brother on the radio. You must be so proud of him. Everypony in all Equestria knows who Lunar Black is.
Oh, and speaking of love and affection, how's your love life been going? I want all the details when you find that special Stallion. In fact, I may have to come out there to meet him. It would be nice to take a vacation, anyways. Well, I expect to hear back from you.
Sincerely,
Twilight Sparkle."
Treble always got a kick out of reading Twilight's letters, and listening to the stories of Twilight's friends doing such fun (or in this case, stupid) things. But the one part she hated was when Twilight talked about "That Special Stallion." She didn't like it one bit. Mostly because she was starting to get another feeling from Twilight's letters.
Now, about halfway through her glass, she turned the radio on. As usual, the local rock station was covering the Fasthor5 show. It was nice, because Treble could listen to the show, without a bunch of young mares, and teenage fillies jumping around, and screaming in her ear. The downside, however, was that she didn't get to see her brother's stage presence she'd heard so much about. She had always known her brother to get excited over his music. One day, when he had first formed his band, Treble had asked Bass if he could go watch them practice, and he practically glowed with excitement.
"Ah, the good old days," she thought to herself, as she leaned back on the couch, sipping her Vodka, which she had mixed with a half glass of ginger beer, deciding that she was going to try to be a "bad filly." She sank into the couch, listening to the broadcaster rant about rumors about the show, and interview random ponies from the crowd.
"Alright, this is Rock Talker from K-PNY, the Boulder, and we're here with a pony who came here all the way from Ponyville to see this show. Tell us how you're feelin' tonight!"
"It's gonna be so AWESOME!" The mare on the radio sounded absolutely giddy, which made Treble giggle ever so slightly.
"That sounds pretty rad. Anypony you'd like to send a shout out to back in Ponyville… Rainbow, was it?"
"Definitely, Rock! I wanna say hey to all my friends back in Ponyville! AJ, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Egghead!"
"Well, that's awesome. Well the show's gonna start soon, so before that, we're gonna treat you to some new rock! This one's 'Misery Business' by the up and coming band, Paramare, whose lead singer goes by Silver Sky! And let me tell you, she's got a killer set of pipes, and the looks to match. Paramare. 'Misery Business.'"
Treble sat patiently, and listened to the song, picking out every little flaw in the music. From the guitars being a hair out of tune to the drums being one forty-eight of a beat of tempo. She always did this, and would continue to do so up to half way through the song, when she realized that she was in no place to judge, when she had never even submitted a demo to a record company.
When the song ended, and the jockey came back on, Treble went out of critic mode.
"Alright, Rock Talker back with the Fasthor5 show. The band is coming on stage, now, and-" Treble giggled, as the crowd began to roar, and drowned out the incompetent radio host. She smiled, as she heard Bass's voice, as he talked to the audience. Of course, she could hear the slight quality of a tipsy pony in his voice, but that was the case for every show she had listened to. Then the band erupted into their first song, which was Treble's favorite, "Ghost Town."
She sat, and bobbed her head to the track, as it went, and sang the parts that Rythm was singing at the show. She liked to sing along to her brother's songs, because she felt like she was there. Although, when she would snap back to reality, she would realize that it was just an unfulfilled dream. She'd never get to play with her brother, and she knew it.
"Alright, ponies, I know you liked that track. Now le-" The crowd drowned him out once again, and Bass started talking. Treble became slightly concerned, as she heard the slurring in her brother's voice. Due to the fact that she absolutely hated to hear him like that, she changed the station, landing the dial perfectly on the smooth jazz station. "Now this, I like!" Treble then sank back into the couch, and sipped down the rest of her concoction, and drifting into a calm sleep… for the moment.
Chapter 2: Harsh Notes
SE Ch. 2: Harsh Notes
It was a mostly quiet night, and smooth jazz in the background could've put anypony to sleep. Thankfully, Treble had fallen asleep an hour ago. In her dreams, she was on stage, just her and her guitar, an adoring crowd shouting her name. She began strumming her guitar, only to be played over by a strange sound. She stopped strumming, and looked around, only to see nopony else on stage. Oddly enough, the sound stopped at the same time she did. The crowd continued cheering her name, so she started strumming again. She heard the sound again. "Now, who the hay could be playing that damned Cello?" she thought, but continued strumming. It was a haunting melody, that strangely matched her strumming perfectly. She stopped once more, as she noticed a hole form at the front of the crowd, as a long note rang out. Then she saw a single pony standing in the open, slowly moving a bow across the stringed instrument. She moved to the microphone, and called out a challenge. "Alright, Miss Cello. If you think you're better than me, why don't you come up here and prove it?"
The silhouette pony with the cello smiled, and walked toward the stage. As she climbed up, into the light, Treble saw a grey mare with long, straight black hair, pink eyes, a matching bowtie, and a purple Treble Clef cutie mark, almost exactly like her own. She stood her cello up, and leaned against it, setting her bow on the strings, as Treble stomped on her distortion pedal. Her left hoof moved quickly up and down the neck, as she started a screaming melodic solo. She played the progression for about ten seconds, then ended it on an open low note. "Match that!"
The grey mare grinned, as she matched the solo with her own melodic playing, letting the last note flaunt itself, just as Treble did. Treble glared, and begin playing again. This time, faster, and more powerful. She didn't plan on letting up, and had been playing the solo for a few seconds, only to hear the cello begin, and blend itself with her playing. She decided it was time to pull out all the stops. She started going faster, almost breaking a sweat, as she pulled out super speed scales, arpeggios, and even a technique she called "hooftapping." But, even with all this, the cellist didn't let up.
Treble noticed the Cellist start to sweat, when she heard a loud knocking. She quickly shot up from the couch, shooting from her odd dream, and back to reality. The knocking g continued, and she could hear somepony calling her name.
"Treble! Treeeeble!"
Treble slowly peeled herself from the couch, not even bothering to look at the clock, and trudged tiredly to the door, slowly opening it. "Who is i- Rythm? What are you doing here, this late? Shouldn't you be in bed? Why are you crying?"
The white mare tried to muster words, only managing to let out a few between her deep, exhausted breaths. "Treble… Bass… Bad fall... Hospital..."
Apparently, that's all Treble needed to hear, because she was instantly out the door, Rythm close on her tail.
It didn't take long for them to reach the hospital, with the adrenaline, and all. As the two mares reached the counter, the receptionist instantly spoke. "Room 23C."
The two continued down the hallway, counting each room as they passed it. They had to slow down, however, with the place being a hospital, and all. As the two trotted, at a hurried pace down the hall, they stopped in front of the last room, as a doctor was coming out. The doctor looked at the two mares. "I'm sorry ladies… we did all we could.…"
Treble started bawling, without even thinking about it. The thought of losing her only living family member made her want to roll over and die. Rythm was crying, too, as she wrapped her front legs around Treble, and buried her face into Treble's fur.
Little did they know that the doctor was now looking at them with a look of extreme confusion. He was about to walk back into the room, when a dark grey stallion with a black mohawk walked out of the room, and looked at the two mares, and cleared his throat. The two mares looked at him, now only sobbing softly. "What seems to be the problem, here, ladies?"
Treble looked at the stallion, and burst to hysterical tears. "Bass is… Bass is…"
The doctor chuckled. "If you would've let me finish, I would've told you that we did all we could, but he's going to need to rest a few days."
The two mares looked at each other, and blushed, realizing just how much of a scene they had caused. "Sorry, Doc… I just couldn't stand the thought of losing my brother."
The doctor chuckled. "I understand completely. Now, you three are welcome to stay with him until he wakes up, if you'd like."
The next couple of days went by slowly, as the two mares waited for Bass to wake up. Treble rarely left the room, except to get something to eat, while Rythm only left once, to have a band meeting with Major Chords, the band's guitarist. Apparently, it wasn't a very happy conversation, because Rythm came back in looking rather distraught.
Treble sat silently, and thought to herself. "Well, I hope this changes Bass for the better. Who knows, maybe he'll finally sober up enough to see that he and Rythm are perfect for each other." She smiled sweetly, as she saw Rythm lean over, and plant a kiss on Bass's forehead. It was the cutest thing she'd ever seen. She was so happy thinking these two ponies could find love together, not to mention that she would hopefully have time during her busy day to go out more. Treble giggled at the thought that she, of all ponies, would have free time. And while she was on the thought, she realized that she hadn't been home to receive any of Twilight's letters. Then the thought came together. "Who knows, if everything works out, I could just move to Ponyville, and never have to write another letter in my life."
Just when she thought that everything was going to be better, Bass woke up… and all hell broke loose.