- “Fuck!”
- “Shit!”
- “God damn it!”
- >You let out a series of swears as you fight to close the suitcase sitting on your bed sheets.
- >The green linens warp and crinkle as you force them down with every shove of the plastic box.
- >Maybe if ponies actually wore clothes they’d be inclined to make suitcases that can hold more than one set.
- >It would probably help if it wasn’t too early in the morning to actually fold the clothes you shoved in it.
- >You bare both your arms against the blue, pitted lid and lock your elbows.
- >Giving one last push with all your might, you hear an unsatisfying click come from the clams shaped receptacle.
- >You stand up straight and lift your fists in silent victory.
- >Left arm still raised, you lower your right and look at the watch perched on your wrist.
- >The hands in their unique semaphore inform you that it’s a quarter past seven.
- “Time to go,” you say to nopony.
- >You reach down and grab the aged handle of the suitcase.
- >The slightly bulging side rests against your leg as you begin the trek from your room to the kitchen.
- >You walk from the bed to the door and open it slightly with your free hand, rotating through the narrow gap to avoid bumping the case against the frame.
- >Completing the masculine pirouette, you grab the handle and snap the door shut once more.
- >You glance across the slightly cramped corridor at the open door across from your own.
- >It’s closed and there is a distinct lack of music emanating from it, indicating that its occupant has already departed.
- >Knowing where she’ll be, you trot down the hall to the staircase.
- >The pitter-patter of your feet on the steps alerts the white and blue mare downstairs to your approach.
- >”Hey Anon,” a slightly scratchy voice meets you on the stairs.
- “Sup Vinyl,” you respond as you reach the landing.
- >”Finally got your shit packed?” her voice echoes from the kitchen
- “Yeah,” you answer as you deposit the suitcase by the front door.
- >”Great,” she says, “Now you can finally help me pack all of our collective shit.”
- >You follow her voice into the kitchen and see your house-mate sitting on the kitchen floor.
- >She’s pushed the table to the side to make room for the mountain of gear and cases for gear dominating the center of the room.
- >Vinyl herself is sitting on the linoleum floor with a mug of coffee, magically wrapping cables and securing them with bread ties before placing them in your backpack.
- >She sets the bag down and looks at you standing in the doorway with the same grin your teachers gave you when they handed out particularly difficult assignments.
- >The striking hue of her eyes makes it a little unsettling.
- >”Now that you’re here, we can do the fun part,” she says as she levitates a check list in front of her.
- >”Samplers and power supplies,” she dead pans and motions to the heap of metal and plastic.
- >Taking this as your queue, you begin to sift through the pile of equipment until come out with three switch covered blocks and matching power supplies.
- >You hold them up and she checks them off the list.
- >”Which two’re mine?” she asks, peaking from behind the sheet of paper.
- “I think this one is mine,” you say, emphasizing the object in your right hand, “it has the big chip in the side.”
- >”Cool.”
- >You dig through the pile a bit more and find the two cases for Vinyl and your respective equipment and open them up.
- >After affixing the devices to the industrial Velcro covered bottoms of the appropriate cases.
- >”808.”
- >You dig the drum machine out of the heap and repeat the dance.
- >”Micro-verbs.”
- ~~~~~~~
- >Eventually you manage to sort through the mountain, consolidating the whole mass down to four cases and a bag: two cases for yours and Vinyl’s main rigs, one for keyboard, one for the accessory percussion you both implement during your set, and your backpack with cables and your microphones.
- >Now all that’s left is for you and Vinyl load those cases into the van you two rented.
- >Thankfully, you both resolved to carry your own equipment; Vinyl, being the DJ half of the duo, had much more, and much heavier gear in her case.
- >As the MC, you only really had to worry about one sampler, a couple pedals, and hand percussion.
- >She was loaded up with two samplers, a monolith of drum machine, some pedals, an old rack reverb, and synthesizer.
- >You slip the backpack on and lift your cases under each arm as vinyl levitates hers.
- >You both exit the kitchen and head to the front door.
- >After traversing the living room, you lift your leg and open the front door with your foot before continuing out to the van.
- >Circling around the vehicle you set one of your cases down and fling open the double doors to the main holding space.
- >You deposit one case in the bay and vinyl magics her two in as you bend down to retrieve your second.
- >Vinyl makes her way to the driver side door as you run back into the house and grab all your clothes for the one and a half month long tour you two were about to embark on.
- >You close the door and lock it.
- >Looking up at the battered face of the low rent house you and Vinyl share, you take a moment to appreciate the fact that you and Vinyl are really leaving for forty-five days to drive around Equestria and play music for Ponies that actually like it.
- >Vinyl rips you from your thoughts; leaning out the window yelling something to the tune of, “Get in the van faggot!”
- “Gladly!” you reply.
- >Rushing back to the passenger door, you pull it open and toss your suitcase over the partition to the cargo bay.
- >You drop onto the cushion that functions as the passenger seat, not even trying to operate the strange pony seatbelt.
- >You look over to Vinyl who’s already strapped in.
- >”So, where are we headed first?” she asks, looking back at you.
- >You fish a piece of paper out of your pocket and examine it.
- “The ‘Manticore’s Tail,’ 1934 Seventh Avenue, Baltimare.”
- >”Shit that’s far away! Couldn’t you have found anywhere closer?”
- “It was either there or Los Pegasis.”
- >”Fuck.”
- “I’d offer to split the driving, but I don’t think I can safely operate a vehicle designed for ponies.”
- >Vinyl offers a growl as she starts the engine and starts to drive.
- >You reach for the radio, but your hand is slapped away by Vinyl.
- >”No. I drive, I choose the music,” she scolds as she produces a cd, seemingly from nowhere, and pops it in the cd player.
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVylV-TXfTU

