The sun was setting for Ponyville, giving way to the slow rise of the moon. With the arrival of evening, many younger ponies were converging on the town hall for the single most important night for any teenager: prom.

One mare, however, was headed in the opposite direction of the others on their way to town hall. The grey pegasus was walking by herself, with only her saddlebags. She slunk to the residential area of Ponyville and approached one of the town houses, a well-styled but small home with a large front window. She knocked on the door.

Vinyl opened the door a crack, and tilted her head curiously to one side. The mare was the last pony she’d expected to see that night.

“Derpy? What are you doing here? Aren't you going to prom?”

“Aren't you?”

“Nah, I don’t care about any of that extracurricular stuff. Besides, I failed two semesters already, and at this point I’d rather just finish classes, get my diploma, and move on.” Vinyl looked at Derpy, concerned. Her friend sounded more down than usual as she mumbled her replies, avoiding eye contact. “Seriously, why are you here?”

“Can I just come in? Please?”

“Sure.” Vinyl fully opened the door, allowing Derpy to walk in. Vinyl gestured to the sofa, inviting Derpy to sit as she walked over to the kitchen.

“So, what exactly is going on?” Vinyl asked on her way to the fridge.

“It’s kind of a long story,” Derpy said, shuffling her hooves.

“We have plenty of time.” Vinyl grabbed an energy drink for herself out of the fridge and poured a glass of water. Then she walked back to the living room, passed the glass to Derpy, and took a gulp of her own drink.

“Well, it started about a month ago. I was spending extra time at the writing club with Noteworthy. We were wrapping up another article for the school paper, and I asked him if he was doing anything that evening.” Derpy held the glass in her hooves and took a big sip as Vinyl sat down next to her.

“He said no, and that his parents were away for a few days, so we had his entire house to ourselves. One thing led to another and” – Derpy gulped – “we had sex.”

“Okay, so you had a one night stand with a friend. And?”

“I found out a few days ago I’m pregnant.”

“Oh.” Vinyl tried to find the right thing to say, her mouth opening and closing several times without a word. How was Derpy supposed to deal with something like this? In the same situation, how would she handle it? What could she say to comfort her friend? “That… sucks?”

“Vinyl, I’m supposed to be going to college after I am done with school.” Derpy paused as she began to breathe heavily. “What am I going to do?”

“Get rid of it?” Vinyl shrugged.

“What?! No! You know I could never do that!” Derpy yelled, slamming her hoof on the coffee table.

“But I thought you being pregnant was bad news. We’re in high school, for Celestia’s sake. How are you supposed to be ready to be a mom?”

Derpy groaned, shaking her head slowly. “You’re right. I’m not ready for it. I’m angry, I’m scared, and I have no idea what I’m going to do, but that doesn’t mean I’m just going to go and kill my foal!”

“Okay, okay.” Vinyl raised her hooves in surrender. “You will just be going to Ponyville Community College, right?”

“Yes, and I’m already enrolled for next semester.” Derpy sighed. “I honestly don’t know how I am going to work around my schedule.”

“Well, you helped me in the past.” Vinyl hesitated for a moment. "I'm not exactly an expert on business or being a mom, but I can help you out a little with anything you need, including helping you take care of a foal."

“Thank you.” Derpy threw her forelegs around Vinyl. “You’re a good friend.”

“Are you a stallion now, like mommy said?” Dinky emerged from behind Derpy’s tail, looking up at Vinyl.

“Yeah, I think so.” Vinyl smiled, tousling Dinky’s mane with a hoof.

“Vinyl!” Derpy yelled, cutting into their conversation.

“What?”

“The executives are going to kill me when they see your hair. You know how much they hate deviating from signature appearances.”

“We’ll get through it.”

“You say that all the time.” Derpy sighed. This wasn't the first time she’d had to get Vinyl out of a bad situation with music execs.

“And we always get through it.” Vinyl smirked. In the back of his mind, however, he knew this wouldn't be something Derpy could easily slip him by.

Derpy walked into the apartment behind Dinky, and Vinyl closed the door behind them as Octavia took notice of the two.

“Oh, I didn't realize we were expecting company,” Octavia said, looking up from the counter and waving politely. “Derpy, Dinky, it’s good to see you. Vinyl, can you entertain our guests while I get dinner ready?”

“Sure.” Satisfied, Octavia nodded and began cutting vegetables. Vinyl ushered Derpy into the living room, while Dinky ran over to the kitchen.

“I wanna help!” Dinky grabbed a stool and set it next to Octavia to be at her height. “Mommy’s work can be so boring,” she said. Octavia smiled at her and beeped her nose.

“I know the feeling. Sometimes when Vinyl’s immersed in his work, I just have to find things to do on my own. But still, I wouldn't trade him for the world. Now then, let’s get this finished.”

In the living room, Vinyl sat down on the sofa, opposite Derpy.

“So, I’m guessing you got my message.”

“Yeah. From your tone, it sounded like it didn't go well.” Derpy looked over to the kitchen, where Octavia and Dinky were working together on dinner. She was surprised to see Octavia acting so casually so soon – Vinyl’s secret had been no small affair. “But, it seems like things between you and Octavia are fine. What happened?”

“Just some tension. I mean, it was hard and she needed some space for a while, but I think she's over the shock of it. If it's bothering her, she's not letting it show." Vinyl slouched against the back of the sofa, trying to make himself relax. “It’s going to take time for both of us to adjust, but I think we’ll be fine.”

“Glad to hear it.” Derpy smiled.

“Octavia even took me to her stylist and helped me with my new hair,” Vinyl said, pointing to his newly cut mane. “But honestly, we don’t know what we’re supposed to do next.”

“I got that covered.” Derpy pulled out her saddle bag from the side and pulled out a folder setting it on the coffee table. “There is a clinic here in Manehattan that can help you move forward.”

Vinyl picked up the folder and opened it to find a few info documents and forms, looking through the contents. One pamphlet contained information on ponies like Vinyl, while another outlined medical procedures which might help. It was all new to him, but he committed himself to memorizing every word.

“The clinic I went to was confused at first by my request, but soon found what I was looking for and gave me what is in that folder. I also asked them if they had any free appointments tomorrow morning, and they said they had a few slots still open. I think you should go.”

“I’ll call them first thing tomorrow.” Vinyl placed the folder onto the coffee table. “Anything else?”

“We have a meeting with the higher-ups next week, and…”

“And?”

“They want a sample of your next project that day, too.”

“Already?!” Vinyl knew he would have to work on something sooner or later, but this took him by surprise.

“It doesn't have to be finished, but they want something that continues in the vein of your recent successes, with broad appeal to maximize profits from your burgeoning fanbase.” Derpy lowered her ears; she knew Vinyl didn't want to hear more of the executives’ orders.

“Typical,” Vinyl sighed. He wanted to make music for himself, not the company. It seemed like every year, the label kept pushing him to sell out, away from actually putting his talents to use.

“Sorry to be a bother,” Octavia said, stepping in from the kitchen. “Dinky and I are almost done with the salad. Can you help us set the table?”

“Sure.” The two got up and trotted into the kitchen to join Octavia and Dinky in helping set up dinner. Though Vinyl chipped in with a smile and hummed as they worked, in the back of his mind he had more on his plate than ever. Not only did he have to think about moving forward with his transition and how Octavia might react at each step, but work was tightening the screws as well.

“Thanks again for dinner, Octavia, but it’s getting late and we need to get going,” Derpy said, gathering her things. She quickly flicked a wingtip, signaling to Dinky that it was time to leave.

“It was nothing. I always like having guests over,” Octavia said, opening the door for the two. Before stepping out, Derpy turned to face Vinyl, who had returned to the living room and was looking over the folder she had left for him.

“Hey, Vinyl,” Derpy said, breaking Vinyl’s concentration. “Good luck.”

“Thanks, stay safe.” He smiled.

With that, Derpy and Dinky walked out of the apartment, and Octavia closed the door.

“You didn't ask her how she knew about me earlier,” Vinyl said.

“It’s in the past. Right now, we need to focus on the present.”

“Yeah...” Vinyl kept his eyes on the forms within the folder.

“What’s in there?” Octavia looked over his shoulder.

“Mainly info pamphlets, and forms I can submit to the clinic when I go there for an appointment.”

“Oh. What does ‘info’ include?” Octavia said, glancing over one of the packets Vinyl had opened.

“My next step, apparently. I just need approval from a physician at this clinic and I should be able to get on some medication that will help me out with my transition.”

“Transition?”

“Yeah. You know, from mare to stallion.”

“Okay.” Octavia honestly didn't know what to say to that word - ‘transition.’ She had a general idea what Vinyl was going to do, but thinking further ahead, she knew her partner was going to change. “I am going to do some reading and head to bed. Do you want to join me?”

“In an hour, maybe. Derpy said I need to have a sample track ready by the end of the week. I’ll be there when I get some ideas out of my head.”

“All right. You know where I’ll be if you need anything,” Octavia said, and headed to the bedroom.

Vinyl got up from the sofa and walked into the studio, seating himself at his main setup. He switched on his keyboard, poking idly at the synthetic sound keys while glancing over the stacks of audio equipment.

Producing music had once been a fun activity for Vinyl. He had made music for himself first and foremost, putting love into the sound he produced. After a while, however, he realized he’d begun to make music for his label instead. The executives only wanted to sell more records, and he no longer did more than follow their instructions like a good, money-making puppet.

Mashing a few keys down and groaning, Vinyl flipped a switch along the top of the keyboard to turn off the synth sound. Once, he’d loved it, but that night it was only giving him a headache. Vinyl struck another key and a low piano note rang out. He slowly worked his way up the keyboard. “Do, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti, do…”

In Ponyville, it was a sunny afternoon, and a young filly was sitting in front of a piano with her mother.

“Okay, let’s begin our first lesson,” the mare said tenderly. Her coat was the same off-white as the filly sitting next to her, but she had a long straight mane that was red like wine to matched her bright red eyes. A piano key cutie mark adorned her flank.

“Where do I start?” Vinyl asked, hitting a key with one of her hooves. The grand piano had so many keys - how was she supposed to know which ones to play?

“You need to use your magic first, hun. Keep your magic focused on four keys right now.”

“Any of them?”

“Any of them,” she assured.

Following the simple instructions, Vinyl’s horn glowed a small blue aura as she began to focus her magic on the piano. After a few moments, she was able to play four adjacent notes at once.

“Now try adding four more. Take your time, and add sets of four until you can control all of the keys at once. Just try to control all of the keys at the moment, don’t worry about actually playing anything yet.”

“Okay, mom,” Vinyl said. Slowly, she brought all the keys under her control, managing to manipulate every one without causing a chaotic mess. Her mother smiled.

“Now, let’s play a basic song.”

Vinyl pressed one last key as his melody came to an end, and stopped the recorder. It was not an electronic sound, but it was the start of something, and it was his own.

“I’ll get back to this tomorrow,” Vinyl told himself, shutting down his gear and walking out of the studio to the bedroom. Octavia was curled up in bed, with her nose in a book as usual. She looked up at Vinyl as he entered.

“Done for the night?”

“Yeah,” Vinyl said, taking off his glasses and lying in bed next to Octavia.

“You've only worked for an hour. Did you get anything done?” Octavia set her book off to the side and turned off her bedside lamp.

“I got a little done. It’s enough for now.” Vinyl rolled onto his side, with his back facing Octavia in the darkness.

“Can I ask you something?” Octavia asked softly, wrapping herself around Vinyl from behind.

“Sure.”

“How far are you planning to go with this... transition?” Octavia lowered her hooves around Vinyl.

“I don’t plan on anything extreme, I guess. I just want to get on that medication.” He was sure his fiancée had to feel at least a little conflicted about his changes down the line.

“So…”

“Surgery has not come to mind.”

“Okay.” Octavia raised her legs and wrapped herself around Vinyl. She didn't know how to feel. Vinyl identified as a stallion, but still planned on keeping his original anatomy. She did her best understand him, but this only confused her more.

“Are you worried I’ll become something else?” Vinyl asked. He could hear the quaver in Octavia's voice that she only got when she was worrying.

“Just please be my Vinyl,” she whispered back.

“I always will be.”

The two held onto each other for the rest of the night, knowing this would be a long journey not just for Vinyl, but for the both of them and everyone around them.