//------------------------------//
// Sweet Duet 
// Story: Brass Button's Musical Emporium 
// by trombrony98 
//------------------------------//

Brass Button stared longingly out the window of his shop. Rain had been pouring down afternoon, so he hadn't had a customer since this morning. In the street, ponies were rushing from one place to another, trying to avoid getting drenched.

A few minutes later, he heard a loud knock on the door. Curious, he opened the door to find Derpy Hooves with a letter in her mouth. Taking the letter, he asked, "Is this for me?"

"Muffin." She blanked for a second, then turned around and went out the door.

Brass Button stood there, perplexed by her response. Given the situation, he figured she must have meant yes, so he took the letter and went to the desk. 

He took a letter opener and quickly opened the letter. The message was written on a piece of parchment with a floral print border, a signature style of his friend Lyra.

'What could she want with me? I haven't heard from her in a while,' he thought excitedly as he read the letter.

Dear Brassy,

It's been a while since we've talked, hasn't it? I'm sorry it's been that long, but a lot has been going on in my life. I've been trying to save up to buy my own house, but my skills don't pay much and I've been working overtime at a candy store to make some extra bits.

Since it's been such a long time, I was wondering if you would like to join me for dinner tonight. I'm bringing a friend if' you don't mind. She's very friendly, and once you get to know her, I'm sure you'll get along great. I'll be waiting for you at the Taste of Bitaly restaurant at 7 p.m.
Your Friend,
Lyra Heartstrings

Brass Button looked at the clock. He had a good hour and a half until he needed to be at the restaurant. He certainly could get ready by then. But who was this friend of hers? He pondered this question as he went upstairs to get ready.

He quickly grabbed a dark green coat out of his closet. He did a once over of his hair, making sure that it looked as nice as possible. He certainly didn't want to look sloppy at a place like Taste of Bitaly.

Once he was ready, he grabbed an umbrella and headed out the door. Rain poured down all around him, obscuring his vision and creating puddles everywhere, soaking his hooves.  The street was abandoned, leaving him alone as he rushed to the restaurant.

 He arrived with ten minutes to spare. He wiped his hooves off on the doormat and walked up to the maître. The place was quiet; other than about a dozen ponies, the main dining dining room was empty.

The maître d' spoke up. "Are you Brass Button?"

Brass Button nodded. The maître d' gestured and led Brass Button to the rear dining room. He finally stopped at the booth where Lyra and a strange mare with a blue and pink mane sat. Brass Button sat down opposite them. 

As the maître d' left, Lyra started a conversation. "Hey, Brassy! Nice to see you. Let me introduce you to my friend. Brassy, this is Bon-Bon."

Her friend spoke up shyly. "Hello."

Lyra continued. "We met about a month ago when I was looking for work. She runs the candy store downtown with help from her niece, Twist. She offered me a job, and I've been working with her ever since."

Brass Button nodded, content with her story. It answered his questions about what had been going on with Lyra, and he couldn't think of anything else he wanted to ask. He picked up a menu from the table and browsed the menu.

While he looked over the salad selection, Bon-Bon spoke up. "I've heard a lot about you from Lyra. It seems you two are very close." She leaned across the table and whispered in his ear. "Have you ever considered, umm, . . . asking her out?"

Brass let out a little chuckle. He gave Bon-Bon a pat on the back, and assured her, "Don't be ridiculous. I've known Lyra for many, many years now. I'm fairly certain that if I had those kinds of feelings for her, she would have known a while ago."

Bon-Bon blushed. She was slightly embarrassed by her actions, but managed to get a nervous smile out. 'Interesting,' Brass Button thought as he made his final decision on his dinner.

The rest of dinner went by uneventfully. Lyra shared a few stories about her first couple of days at Bon-Bon's store, while Brass Button told his stories about how business was going. Bon-Bon proved to be a quick wit, often whipping out puns at the most interesting times.

As they walked out the restaurant, Brass noticed that the rain had stopped. He started to walk away from the other two, when he remembered something. He went over to Bon-Bon and asked, "Do you mind if I talk to you for a minute?"

Bon-Bon gave him a quizzical look, but followed him to the side of the restaurant. Brass Button took a quick glance to make sure Lyra wasn't watching, then started to speak. "I saw your smile earlier."

Bon-Bon turned bright pink. Hers eyes darted, and she gave a small gasp before responding nervously. "I'm not in love with you, I swear!"

Brass Button rolled his eyes. "As if that weren't obvious."

She gave a sigh of relief. "I only asked that question earlier since I . . ., well, I have a crush on her."

Brass Button was stunned. He had thought this might have been the reason for her smile earlier, but dismissed it as his imagination. He stood there, dumbfounded until Bon-Bon spoke up.

"I know, this sounds absolutely crazy, but it's true. In fact, that's why I came to dinner tonight. I wanted to know if anything was going on between the two of you before I asked her out.

"I'm sorry if this is all so sudden, but I didn't want you to be suspicious. Just promise me one thing: you won't tell about this."

Brass Button gave her a reassuring smile. She gave him a hug, then went off to join Lyra. He, on the other hand, started cantering off in the other direction toward his house. Today had been a long day, and he needed some time to think it over.