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// Why Here? (Midnight) 
// Story: We're Not Ponies 
// by Total Hound 
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“Ah, what a nice day to enjoy the wonders of the Everfree, at such a nice time of year to, the poison joke is just lovely today.”

Wait...is he serious? What kind of wingnut am I following right now?

“Ah Midnight, you couldn’t have picked a better day to visit Zecora, you have truly outdone yourself.” 

Is he talking to himself?

“Zecora will be so happy to try this new potion I made. Maybe she will finally accept me as an apprentice.” Midnight (as he said his name earlier), was now wearing a determined face as he trotted past the poison joke towards Zecora’s hut. Which by now was about three minutes away and within view.

Midnight’s ears perked up, thinking that they heard his name being called, he turned around, and spotted a grey Pegasus floating beside the first shadow that the forest cast.

“Midnight!” He heard it again, this time sure of his ears and eyes, he galloped over to the grey Pegasus, who was about a hundred meters (yes I’m Canadian) behind him. 

By the time he got back to the Pegasus, he was slightly panting from the sudden physical exertion. “Derpy? What are you doing here?” He was always happy to see Derpy, she always had a bubbly personality so it was hard not to enjoy seeing her, and the fact that she had a lazy eye make her all the more lovable to him.

Currently neither spoke after that, Midnight was catching his breath. Meanwhile, Derpy was freaking out, Why!? Why Here? Why did Midnight just have to go into the Everfree forest today of all days?” She looked up to see Midnight smiling at her kindly, with no hint of fear in his expressions whatsoever. How is he so Calm!? Does he not realize where we are? She returned the grin, albeit a bit nervously. 

“Well, I have a letter for you from Canterlot, rush delivered. So please rush and take it so I can leave this p-place.” 
Midnight raised a brow, “Canterlot, who do I know in Canterlot. Hmm.” He closed his eyes and thought for a moment, while Derpy was trotting in place, he found that the noise helped him think strangely enough. Still, nopony he could think of that he personally knew lived in Canterlot. He opened his eyes again and settled them on the fidgety mare, “Who sent it Derpy?” he asked.
“L-Lyra sent it, Lyra H-Heartstrings.”
That name, it sounds familiar to me. Midnight thought, Lyra, Lyra, Lyraha! Lyra, my old pen-pal from last year. I wonder what she wants. He realized that he hadn’t even gotten the letter yet. “Yeah, I know Lyra. Can I have the-” a scroll was quickly shoved in his face, when he pulled the scroll away from his face Derpy was nowhere to be seen. Haha. The forest isn’t for everypony he remembered. Chuckling to himself he undid the scroll with his hooves and proceeded to read:
Dear Midnight Eclipse,
How’s it been lately? I know my life’s been decent up until now, which is the reason I’m writing this letter in the first place. I’m going to be in Ponyville for a while and thought you might want to finally meet your high school pen pal, even thought that was a year ago, I still wouldn’t mind catching up in person, maybe get a drink? Have a conversation without having to wait two weeks before one of us replies to what you said? Regardless of whether or not you want to see me I’m coming anyways. If you want to hang out a bit while I’m in town, meet me at the train station today at 8:00 tonight, ‘cause that’s when my train’s pulling in.

Yours Truly: Lyra Heartstrings

“So Lyra wants to meet up again? I guess I can spare some time for my favourite pen-pal, and I’ve certainly got the bits to cover for it.” He looked up to the sky, then sat down wide eyed, “I gotta go now if I’m gonna make it to station on time. It’s 7:30!” He started bolting down the trail back to Ponyville. When he realized that if somepony came barreling down the path to the Everfree, everypony was going to freak, and they were all a bit nervous around him as it was. That now in mind, he went from a mad gallop to a slow canter, his preferred speed. Everypony found it strange that even though he was as tall as Princess Luna and had wings (He is a Pegasus after all), he preferred to canter at a speed that most ponies can easily trot, albeit a little faster than the average trot, it was still pretty slow for a canter. 

Having arrived at the train station just in time to see the train unloading its first passengers. Midnight realized that he didn’t know what Lyra looked like, Well crap. He thought, then started wracking his brain for details on what she said to him about herself in the letters. Umm. I think she said that she played the harp, so maybe her cutie mark is something like that. Yeah, great plan, way to go me, staring at every female flank that comes off that train doesn’t sound creepy at all He looked into the train car to see that everyone had gotten off, How long was I thinking!? Focus had always been an issue for him, and these were one of the times where it really interfered with his everyday life. Sighing, he turned around to see an aquamarine mare turning her head around the corner, swinging her flank to the side as she rounded the corner, Midnight had a clear view of her cutie mark (what did you think I was going to say), a golden lyre.
Wait a minute “Lyra?”