Lyra awoke the next morning feeling more rested than she had ever hoped. She would occasionally imagine what sleeping on a cloud might be like, and decided it must be something similar to the bed she was currently lay in. Bon Bon had practically shoved Lyra into her guest bedroom, while not large it was certainly inviting.
Lyra sat up in the bed, stretching her muscles as she arose. Her mind already drifting to the previous night.
The sun finished it's descent and the air had become rather chilly as the two mares approached Bon Bon's shop. If the shop had a sign indicating it's name, Lyra could not make it out through the darkness. Vision inside the shop was even more limited, with Bon Bon offering little to remedy that as she trotted up the stairwell. A small click at the top of the door gave entrance into earth pony's home. Lyra wouldn't call the house small, cozy was a more appropriate word. Despite it's size, the entire place was very alive. Even through the darkness, the bright colors and vivid hues shone brightly.
“I can give you a grand tour tomorrow if you want, you look like your about to collapse.” Bon Bon announced while placing a couple of Lyra's bags next to the door.
Lyra's professional demeanor had completely abandoned her, leaving her clueless to the proper and professional response. Was it more polite for her just comply with Bon Bon's suggestion, or to openly express her interest in her host's home? Acknowledging she was too tired to decipher her own questions revealed the answer.
“I think sleep is what I really need right now, this has been a long couple of days.” the mint green unicorn replied, finally conceding to her body's unrelenting requests for rest.
“Well in that case, lets get you settled in.” Bon Bon cheerily said while happily trotting off through the house.
Lyra wearily followed, not sharing any of the other mare's energy. A bobbing pink and blue tail the only guidance she had through the dark house. The two toned beacon offering enough to prevent Lyra from colliding with any of the room's furnishings. A short trot and Bon Bon paused next to a dimly lit room, turning around with a hoof gesturing towards the room.
“This will be your room, make yourself comfortable.” Bon Bon explained to the tired mare.
Lyra drug heavy hooves through the door, brushing past Bon Bon just slightly. First sight of the room displayed our rarely the room saw use. A dim glow from the street light right outside the window cast soft light on the area. Quite contrary to the rest of the colorful house, the room was simple and plain. She gave the room another short glace before turning to face her host.
“Thank you so much Bon Bon, I wish I could tell you how much this means to me.” Lyra said, her feeble words offering praise to the other mare.
A giggle and a wink were all Bon Bon gave response before turning away.
“Sleep well Lyra.”
Barely moments later and Lyra was comfortable in bed, drifting fast to sleep.
“What time is it?” Lyra thought quietly while attempting rub sleep from her eyes. Her memory and question quickly being sorted to the back of her mind by a lovely aroma filling her nostrils.
“Oh my, something smells delicious” she whispered to herself.
A second short stretch and another whiff of the food coming from the other room was all the coaxing Lyra needed to leave the warm blankets behind. A full nights rest had restored some of Lyra's demeanor, preventing her from exiting the bedroom in her current state. She allowed herself a few moments for composure before making for the bedroom door; opening it to a smiling Bon Bon on the other side, a hoof raised in preparation to knock.
“Oh-” Bon Bon stammered for a moment. “Good Morning! I was coming to wake you up for breakfast.”
“Thank you, but the amazing smell woke me up rather well on it's own” Lyra retorted with a giggle.
“Why just smell ti when you can eat it? Come get some!” the cream colored mare said with an excited trot towards the kitchen.
Lyra wasn't one to hesitate when it came to food, she quickly followed her gracious host. She stepped into a kitchen that was approaching blinding levels of colorful. In addition to the piles of ingredients everywhere, it smelled like heaven. Everything from sugar to flour, jams and syrups, frosting, and everything else you could imagine. It brought an image to Lyra’s mind of what Whinny Wonka's chocolate factory might be like.
A small table was placed off to the side, set for two. Lyra approached the seat opposite of Bon Bon and looked at her meal. It could have been dog food with how hungry she was, but what she gazed upon looked fit for a Princess. A delicious plate of pancakes, sided with eggs and jasmine petals.
“Sorry my kitchen is such a mess” Bon Bon apologized as they began their meal. “I work out of my house, and this is the only kitchen I have available.”
Though first tempted to try talking through the several bites she had already managed to wedge into her maw, Lyra manage to retain some dignity. She gave herself a moment to finish the portion she was currently working on before replying.
“I would not even imagine of judging the home of a Pony who offered me a warm bed for the night.” Lyra said, trying to reassure the other mare. “Besides, it looks fine! You clearly have some organization and seem to be doing well for such an upcoming businessmare. It appears like your business is really kicking off the ground”
A soft pink hue adorned Bon Bon's cheeks at hearing the compliment.
“Why, thank you. I assure you it didn't start out that way.” the earth pony began.
“You see, this business was kinda a spur of the moment thing. I was in the middle of a run-of-the-mill job and got bored, plus a little fed up with having to listen to other ponies. So I quit, grabbed some money and opened my own business.”
Bon Bon paused to take a drink before licking her lips to start again.
“I didn't exactly have a plan... at all. It was a stupid and spontaneous action that could have landed me in a lot of trouble. It was a certainly rough start when I realized that I had essentially zero knowledge of how a business was supposed to be operated. It took me a long time to get this place into any sort of order. But by some stroke of luck I actually began to turn a small profit, although it wasn't until after I had coated the entire house in sugar, flour, and food coloring.”
“Is that where the current style of the house originated?” Lyra inquired, still struggling to refrain from turning her mouth into a food vacuum.
Bon Bon giggled as she looked about the room.
“A little, I grew up here and my parents always kept it pretty plain. After opening the store and wrecking the place a time or two, I became accustomed to the bright chaos of colors. They suit the shop and they match me pretty well too, don'tcha think?
Lyra choked a little on her current forkful of pancake after hearing the question. She had barely known the other mare for twelve hours, she didn't have a clue what Bon Bon was truly like. How was she supposed to answer that question? She didn't want to overdo it and sound like a brown noser, but she didn't want to sound to unimpressed and offend her either.
“Um, well-” Lyra paused to take another glance around the room. The bright colors and sweet scents still threatening to overwhelm her senses.
“Yeah, all of this is pretty wonderful.” Lyra answered with a weak smile.
“I am glad you think I am wonderful Miss Heartstrings.” Bon Bon replied with a sly wink.
“Wait- whu.. I just- um..” Lyra stammered while heat flooded her cheeks. A wave of laughter barraging her from across the table.
“Loosen up Lyra, you aren't going to upset me. Just chill, Okay?” Bon Bon assured the unicorn with calming soft smile.
“I'm sorry, you have already been so gracious to me, I just don't want to do anything wrong.” Lyra explained, trying to regain some of her professionalism.
Having finished her meal amazingly between sentences, Bon Bon rose from the table. She placed her glass and dinnerware on the plate before balancing all of it precariously on her muzzle.
“You don't come across as a mare that would do something wrong Lyra, not intentionally anyways.”
Lyra didn't fully comprehend the compliment, instead being entranced by the grace of the earth pony who was managing to balance a complete set of dinnerware on her muzzle, while talking and traversing the room. Lyra had never even attempted such a task, she would have just used magic.
She tried to remember possibly seeing Octavia perform such a feat, but the high class mare always assistance. Unicorns magicked her bags or removed her finished courses. Lyra admitted that the action was probably all around her, but she was too focused on work to notice.
“How do you do that?!” The mint unicorn blurted out.
Bon Bon paused for a moment.
“Do what?” She asked back in genuine confusion.
“Balance all of that stuff, and move around. I have some poise, but I could never manage something like that.”
Bon Bon just giggled at the question.
“Us Earth Ponies don't have your Unicorn Magic. We have to learn to get by through other means. We can't just will the dishes into the sink. It is just part of being me.” She explained with pride as she carefully slid the dishes off her snout and into the sink. She began to giggle one again at the expression of amazement still plastered on Lyra's face.
“Jeez, we are going to have to get you out more. But if it is that intriguing to you, you could always try it you know” The Earth Pony finished while gesturing towards the plate in front of Lyra, a small grin across her lips.
Lyra's gaze lowered to the empty plate in front of her. It had always been so easy for her to just will her magic to lift the plate into the air and move it over to the sink. She wouldn't even have to move from her seat. Some ponies saw it as rude and lazy for a Unicorn to perform such tasks without any movement, thus why most unicorns walked beside whatever they were levitating.
“Um, I am not completely sure. I don't entirely believe that I can.”
Bon Bon responded with another tiny chortle before moving back across the room. She came up beside Lyra and bumped flanks with the sitting Unicorn.
“Come on! You can just catch it with with your magic if anything goes wrong. I can twist your hoof if you need the motivation.” Bon Bon announced while giggling further.
“Heh, no. You don't have to do that.” Lyra replied, a quiver in her voice.
“Why does this scare me so much” she thought nervously to herself. “It is just a plate, come on you filly”
“Lyra, you alright?” Bon Bon asked, a small bit of concern in her face.
“Huh- oh yeah. I'm fine. I was just concentrating on how to approach this” Lyra explained.
Bon Bon let out another small chuckle.
“Is it really that daunting of a task?” the Earth Pony inquired, trying to calm herself.
Lyra inhaled deeply while moving towards the plate.
“It isn't exactly daunting, it is just something I have never done before. I don't really know how to go about doing this.”
Lyra lifted a hoof to slide the plate onto her snout. In order to get close enough she had to lower her head to the table. She scooted the plate over to her face and tried to place her nose in the direct center of the plate. The cool touch of the ceramic gave her a good measuring point, and she felt confident in it's placement.
After feeling more of the plates weight on the tip of her muzzle rather than on the table. She tried to slowly lift her head. Barely and inch off the surface and it began to wobble, Lyra immediately began to ready her magic. Just when she thought she was gonna have to grab it, it managed to balance itself. Just a few moments more and she was standing upright, a plate on her face.
“There ya go, you made it up! That is a start, now to get over to the sink.” Bon Bon cheered encouragingly.
Lyra smiled for a moment before realizing that her changed facial expression adjusted the plate's stance. Feeling the weight shift made her a bit uneasy, so she quickly set her face back to the blank determination she had before. The concept of not moving her head while attempting to walk seemed silly. Still, she stretched out and took a single step. Success
“That's one, now just a few more!” Bon Bon applauded.
Another step and the unicorn was moving slowly across the kitchen. It truly was a simple task, but accomplishing it brought her an immense amount of self satisfaction. It was nothing like music, she knew she could play any piece, she just had to perfect it. This was something brand new to her, and she loved it. A small giggle of her own escaped her lips, causing her to close her eyes for just a moment. The wrong moment.
Lyra's hoof snagged one of the bags of flour placed about the room, offsetting her balance. The plate weight shifted and slid straight off her muzzle, diving for the floor. Too distracted by her previous success, Lyra dove to catch it. Imagining a miraculous save, the green unicorn instead flopped clumsily to the floor. A deafening crash sounded as the plate met the floor was accompanied by a face full of flour.
A defeated Lyra lay on the floor, a large bag of flour impaled on her horn. Much like the rest of the room, she was covered head to hoof in the white powder.
Not but a moment later, laughter billowed throughout the house.
Bon Bon sprawled around on the ground, clutching her stomach in pain. Her unrelenting laughter muffled by her body forcing her to breathe. Every short breath immediately released another wave of her loud cackle.
A torrential rain of shame washed over Lyra. She pounded her head with her hoof before softly dropping it to the ground in defeat.
'I had it for Celestia's sake.' Lyra began in her head. 'I just had to go and mess that up, I had it in the bag!. I couldn't just stay focused on the task at hand. If I didn't look stupid enough before, now I am a total disgrace. Ugh, I don't want to even think about what I might have damaged.'
Lyra took a moment to look about the room. There was flour absolutely everywhere, coating the bright colors and candies. Once looking closer she could see the small shards of the plate. The room was a total disaster, with Bon Bon rolling in the midst of it all. She was laughing, obviously at the total flop that had become Lyra.
“I am so sorry Bon Bon. I got excited and distracted, and now... Oh your kitchen, I am so sorry.” Lyra quickly rattled off, continuing on with more apologies.
Bon Bon had managed to stop laughing long enough to stand up, only before having to stifle another giggle at sight of Lyra.
The mint green unicorn was hardly green anymore. She was peppered in flour, turning her coat white with a very soft hint of green. She still had pieces of the flour sac on her horn, a few other pieces snagged on her hoof.
“Oh my-” Bon Bon let out with a snicker. “I have made bigger messes in my kitchen before. I will say that given the amount of flour on the walls, this is one of the more impressive ones I have seen.” She finished while glancing around the room.
Lyra curled into herself, trying to disappear from all existence. Being in the middle of the room and the mess made the task a bit more difficult to manage.
“I am really am sorry! I will start cleaning it up right away, and I still have a little money left to replace your plate.” Lyra apologized again.
Bon Bon's face went from entertained to confused. She took a few steps towards Lyra and placed a hoof on her shoulder.
“Lyra, don't worry about the plate. It was just a plate, I HAVE more you know. It isn't THAT big of a deal.”
“But Bon Bon, look at this place. You let me stay here one night and I have already wrecked the place.” Lyra said with a gesture of her hoof.
“Eh, It's been worse. Besides, You should be more worried about getting that flour out of your coat rather than cleaning this room.” The cream pony said while brushing her hoof through Lyra's coat, small clouds of flour puffed into the air.
Lyra took a moment to look down on herself. The expected well groomed soft green coat was now replaced with mangled clumps of flower. It hadn't occurred to her that the flour around the room meant that is was covering her as well.
“I look ridiculous don't I?” She asked very pointedly.
Bon Bon stifled another giggle.
“Well... Yeah.” She replied bluntly.
“It is gonna take a while to get out too. You can't shower otherwise you will turn into a giant ball of bread dough”
Lyra eyes grew larger at the thought of becoming a something resembling the Fillybury Dough Pony.
“That sounds absolutely mortifying.” Lyra proclaimed with a dumbfounded look on her face.
Bon Bon took a few steps back from the flour coated mare before replying.
“I can imagine why you might not like the thought of being a walking bird treat. No worries though, I get flour in my coat all the time. Now, start by shaking as much of it out and then we will have to grab a fine brush to get the rest”
“But won't shaking just get flour everywhere?” Lyra asked looking around the room.
Bon Bon deadpanned.
“Do you really think that matters now?”
If not for the flour, a soft blush could be seen on Lyra's cheeks. She lifted a a hoof and scratched the back of her head.
“I guess it IS still possible for me to make a further fool of myself isn't it.”
Bon Bon let out quiet sigh before shaking her head.
“Oh Lyra, what am I going to do with you.”
Lyra answered with a small giggle while beginning to shake. She shook her head while shivering the muscles in her neck. A few shakes, stomps, and jumps later led to an explosion of flour.
“WOW!” Bon Bon exclaimed while backing further away from the room.
Lyra's only response was a rough cough. The small white powder had formed a thick fog in the kitchen, it was choking and blinding. Attempting to make her way out of the kitchen, Lyra directed herself towards Bon Bon's voice.
After managing to escape the rampaging storm of baking ingredients, Lyra's eyes fell upon the cream colored mare who was intently sitting on her haunches watching her. A fast toss sent a brush hurdling towards Lyra, who quickly snagged the brush in her magical grasp.
“Sure, I can catch that” Lyra said grudgingly to herself while beginning to brush smaller bits of flour out of her coat.
“Oh stop being so hard on yourself Lyra.” Bon Bon started while beginning a trot towards the kitchen, pausing to bump flanks with the other mare.
“If it is any constellation, it was one of the most comical displays I have seen in months. Now, you clean up yourself and I will begin on this, um- task.” She finished with a small chuckle, making for a broom.
Lyra continued to brush her coat, trying to limit the amount of flour that spread around the cleaner parts of the room. Using her magic for simple acts such as brushing did little to occupy Lyra's brain, so she found herself staring at Bon Bon while she worked.
The soft yellow Earth Pony was hard at work clearing away the flour. She was humming an upbeat tune with her eyes closed, making her way through the room by memory. She had a strong smile plastered on her face, and seemed perfectly content.
'She seems so happy, so upbeat. As a guest I have done little past be in the way and wreck her kitchen. How does she manage it, I would have completely exploded by now.' Lyra thought quietly while mindlessly brushing herself.
“How do you do that?” Lyra asked quietly, a bit louder than she intended.
Bon Bon paused, dropping back to all four hooves and leaning the broom against her. A smirk growing on her face.
“If you are talking about how I operate a broom with my hooves, then you are a more desperate cause then I thought.” She laughed blatantly in response.
“Don't worry, you can try it. But maybe we should try it outside this time, if you promise to try to not wreck the cobblestone. Golden Harvest's carrot patch might need to watch out though.” She finished with a sly grin and a quick wink.
'When did you lose all forms of professional conversation Lyra, that question was wide open to anything' Lyra thought to herself, bringing a hoof to her face.
“I guess I walked into that one a bit didn't I” Lyra grumbled out, with Bon Bon displaying her tongue proudly before restarting her task.
“I meant how are you not angry with me? How do you still keep your peppy and joy filled attitude? How do you... Just how?” Lyra asked with a bit of worry in her voice.
Bon Bon dropped again and took a few steps towards Lyra. Her face softening and her smile weakening just a little. She paused for a moment to gaze upon Lyra, before closing the rest of the distance.
A moment of silence before Bon Bon raised a hoof and took the brush out of Lyra's magic. A shift to the side and she rested back on her haunches raising her hooves in the air.
“Lyra.” She began softly, taking Lyra's soft blue mane in her hooves. She raised the brush and started slowly filtering out trapped clumps of flour.
“Your high class life, fancy parties, and stuck up cohorts have really done a number on your outlook on life.” Bon Bon commenced, letting the initial statement linger while struggling with a larger patch of flour.
“You worry too much and look too far into things. I am not upset because I have no reason to be, it was an accident. It wasn't your fault and thankfully you weren't hurt. I am happy because regardless of what happens, it will be a memory and a story that we can both tell for years. A memory that I hope YOU will smile about, instead of being the worrywart that you are now. Learn to enjoy life a little more and maybe laugh a bit, everything isn't a performance or an audition ya know. There is no one here that is going to judge you or tell you that you are not worthy.”
The words pounded into Lyra's head like a nail, only to be soothed by the soft tug on her mane. Bon Bon was right, in every way. Her brain was still locked into the belief of her life as an upcoming performer. She was so worried of Bon Bon's expectations that she was missing out on an exhilarating experience in life. That failure felt like a huge mistake, but her real mistake was not joining Bon Bon in her enjoyment of it.
“I'm sorry Bon Bon, I have been rather foolish. I might as well be a little filly.” Lyra weakly admitted in a soft voice. She pawed slowly at the wooden floor with a hoof.
“Hey, no big! Nopony is perfect, we all fall short at some time or another.” Bon Bon replied, her chipper tone returning. She offered Lyra a large smile while releasing her now flour free mane.
“Thank you, we should get started on that kitchen.” Lyra announced with a trot towards the kitchen, floating a dust pan to start collecting the piles.
Bon Bon happily followed, returning to her broom. Enthusiastic to start up conversation to help time pass, she opened with a question.
“So have you thought about what you are going to do?”
Lyra's magic hesitated in it's task as her mind formed it's answer.
“Well, I thought I would go sell a couple of my performance gowns and use the money to buy a ticket out to Manehatten tonight. It isn't ideal, but my parents are there at least.
Bon Bon stopped in her chore for a moment to look at Lyra with a worried and confused face.
“Ok. My turn to be a worrywart. Do you not feel welcome here?” She asks as sincerely as possible.
Lyra attempted to quickly stutter out a response.
“Wha-oh-no... I am sorry... I feel most welcome, you are a wonderful host. I had just assumed that my stay here was for one night and that I would be needing new plans by the end of the day.”
Bon Bon dropped from her broom abruptly, the wooden handle clocking loudly on the tiles.
“Lyra Heartstrings! I would never dream of sending you back out on the streets. What sort of pony would I be? If Manehatten is not where you wish to go and you find yourself more comfortable here, I strongly encourage you to stay.” She retorted in an almost assertive tone.
“But I have no way to pay my way here, I have nothing to offer you.” Lyra replied in an almost desperate voice.
“I never asked for anything now did I, and I don't expect anything either. You are good pony Lyra who has had some bad luck befall upon you. I meant it when I said that hearing you play was payment enough for me letting you stay, and that has not changed since yesterday.” Bon Bon countered, her voice softening once again into it's higher pitch.
Lyra tried to calm herself and rose up just a bit from the floor, she took a cooling breath before speaking.
“I guess I got ahead of myself. I just don't feel right imposing on you like this.”
Bon Bon's face softened immensely.
“Lyra, you're not.”
Lyra twitched and fidgeting in her own skin.
“If you are sure, I would like to stay here longer. But I have to do something, I could try to go find a job. I could help you around the store, hopefully without destroying. Or, maybe I could play for you again?”
Bon Bon simply smiled and picked her broom back up.
“I would be honored if you would stay. As for helping out, how about we first deal with this flour apocalypse.” She said with a gesture of her hoof.
Lyra nodded excitedly before reinforcing the magic grip on her cleaning tools. With new energy she began to restore the kitchen to it's previous state, one that was primed for baking instead of being baked. A song came to mind that she began to happily sing, the notes flowing from her mouth with more ease then she ever had before.
Lyra felt happy, she was beginning to feel more and more comfortable. The stress and worry slowly melting away, and with it the ease of her music began to rise.
Bon Bon listened intently, secretly admiring the other mare's natural talent. Even without her lyre, the unicorns hymn was captivating. She had a beautiful voice that filled the room, bringing a new life to the bright colors. The notes brought a new smile to Bon Bon's lips, a bright warm smile she couldn't hide if she tried. A small thought shot through her mind.
'Thank you.'