Lyra is, nothing special. Well, at least, that's what she wants everypony to think. So what happens when financial problems force her to live with a pony with the same problems? Personally, I have no clue.
Lyra and Midnight are just your average ponies. Well, at least that's what want you to think. They don't even know each other, yet. Well, not personally, they were assigned to each other during high-school as pen-pals, yet they've never met face to face, they haven't even heard each-others voice or even seen a picture of the other. Midnight is a local singer in Ponyville. And, Lyra just lost her house in Canterlot due to financial reasons. From a request by his old pen-pal, Midnight decides to take the unicorn in 'till she can get back on her hooves. But what will happen when they find out they've got the same issues. Honestly, I doubt Celestia even knows.
P.S. First, I'm using this picture until I can find a better one, it doesn't mean Lyra's some wacked out ninja in the story... mostly. Also, the first chapter would've been shorter had it not been for the thousand word minimum. The chapters will usually be short. And, while it is third person, I will make each chapter follow 1 person at a time, and then make a separate chapter if they're together. Ok? constructive Criticism is welcome.
“I’m totally screwed.” A lone voice pierced through the silence that had fallen on the now empty Canterlot apartment shortly after the land-lord had cleared it out, only minutes before the owner had arrived. Who was the owner of this voice? Lyra. “I am utterly and totally screwed.” Lyra sat down on rump. “Couldn’t they have at least let me know?” She realised she had been sitting on her tail and swished it out from under her, causing a slight breeze which knocked a piece of paper off the door, which landed on her face. “Oh wait, they did tell me.” Lyra took the paper off her face and proceeded to read it: To:Ms. Heartstrings, It has come to my attention that you have failed to pay your rent for the past two months. I didn't wish to do this more than you wanted it to happen, but I had to collect your things to pay up for the debt you owe my company. I promise you that you can buy it all back when you have the money, but for now you have lost your room, please leave your keys in the room when you leave tonight...Sorry. From: I.D. P.S. I left your harp and your Lyre, I know how much they mean to you. "Well at least he left them.” Lyra got up and walked over to her room, to find her golden harp, and a small bag of bits. This made Lyra grin, she walked over to the bag, and found a note on top: “This should be enough for a train ticket. Good Luck kid.” Lyra’s smile got even bigger, “Thanks In Debt.” In Debt might be a business pony, but he’s no stuck-up prick. "I guess I should get going then." with a quick spell, her harp and her lyre became the size of a mice and tucked themselves into her saddlebag along with the bits Debt gave her, and set off.
Walking down the Canterlot roads down to the train station, Lyra bumped into the most unexpected things, there was no mistaking those eyes, Derpy. “Hey Derpy, sorry ‘bout that.” “Aw it’s no problem Lyra.” She replies before snickering a bit. “What’s so funny?” “It’s usually me apologizing, it feels nice to be on the receiving end of it for once.” Lyra rolled her eyes, “Yeah, great. Anyways, do you still run that mail service?” Derpy’s smile threatened to split her face in half at those words. “Absolutely, give me address and I’m off!” Lyra chuckled, “Well, if it would be too much to ask, could I have some paper and a pen? My landlord took mine.” A look of realization appeared on Derpy’s face, “Oh, that’s what happened, I stopped by your home earlier and ran into Dept, he wouldn’t tell me why he was there though.” Lyra cocked her head, “Why were you at my apartment Derpy?” “Oh right I forgot, I got a package for you. Wait a sec’.” Derpy’s head disappeared into her saddlebag for a moment before reappearing with a thin package, “Hay hoo ko.” “Thanks Derpy. These must be those golden strings I ordered for my harp and Lyre. Now about that paper.” Derpy grinned, “It’s under the package Lyra, along with a ball-point.” “Derpy,” said a shocked Lyra, “where in Equestria did you get a ball-point.” Ball-point pens were extremely expensive to buy, only the rich bought them, and Derpy was anything but rich, not to say she was poor, but she wasn’t rich by any stretch. “Silly Lyra, all delivery ponies get one.” Well I guess that makes sense. Lyra thought to herself as she turned the package over. Where, look at that, a piece of paper and a ball-point lay taped to the package. “Thanks Derpy, just give a sec’ to write okay?” “No problem Lyra.” Derpy then gave her a grin with her trademark eyes and sat down. Hmm. Now let me think, where am I going to go? Ponyville seemed like a quiet town last time I performed there, so I could stay there. Plus if I remember correctly, it’s right next to the Everfree Forest !BONUS! That still leaves one problem though, who am I going to stay with? “Hey, Derpy?” Said Pegasus looked up, “What’s up lyra? Ready to send the letter?” Lyra shook her head, “No. I have a question.” “Sure, ask away.” “Are there any musicians in Ponyville that I might get along with?” Derpy paused for a second and put her hoof up to her chin for a second, before responding with a grin, “Well, there’s Octavia, Oh but she’s on tour in Manehattan right now. There’s always Vinyl-” Lyra’s pupils shrunk to the size pinpricks, “Oh Celestial Goddesses No!” “But I don’t think you two will get along very well” “You think? Are there any others?” Derpy shuffled on the ground, “Well, there is another one but he’s kinda strange. He’s alwa-” “Who is it?” “Well, he’s a singer but I really don-” Lyra was losing her patience, “Who is it” “Midnight! Alright, his name is Midnight Eclipse.” Lyra stopped to think, Where have I heard that name before…Oh right. He was my pen pal in high-school, he seemed nice from the letters. And now that I think about it, he did say he was a singer…what did he say his music was again? I think it was something like tribal music and music from that company…um, Cirque du Luna I think. Well I’ve heard their music before, and I like it so it couldn’t be too bad to stay with him, right? “Derpy, can you send the letter to Midnight for me, express? I want it there by 7:25 tonight, got it?” “Well, erm, I guess I can manage that.” “Great.” Lyra smiled, “Just give me a minute will ya?” “I, uh, o…k?” Pen hovering on the paper Lyra proceeded to write. 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
She read the letter over once and gave a quick nod before rolling it up and handing it to the confused, lazy eyed mailmare. “Okay Derpy, here you go.” Derpy quickly stuffed the scroll into her bag, “Thanks, well I’ll be on my way if I want to get the scroll there on time, bye Lyra, good luck, and forget the pay, I’ll call it a favor.” And with that, she was out of earshot. Sighing, Lyra continued her walk to the Canterlot train station. “I hope I made the right decision.” Lyra thought out loud, “He seemed nice enough from the letters, let’s hope he hasn’t changed too much in a year.”
Having paid for her ticket at 4:45 in the afternoon, Lyra was now waiting for the train to start moving. Let’s hope I can keep a lid on my condition. Lyra thought, It’s what cost me my last job. The train suddenly lurched forward signalling its movement towards its destination. With the monotonous clacking Lyra quickly realized that she hadn’t gotten much sleep. Quickly scanning the train car, Lyra found somepony who didn’t look like a Canterlot prick, he was in the seat beside her across the aisle. She tapped him on the side, “Hey, can you wake me up when the train gets to Ponyville?” “Well, I just so happen to be going there myself, Okay I’ll let you know when we get there” “M’Kay thanks.” Lyra said, ending her sentence with a yawn. Sleep quickly took her into its warm, quiet embrace, finally letting the exhausted mare get something she deserved for a while.
“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?”
“Lyra?” Said unicorn froze solid. Without even turning around, she proceeded to answer the voice from behind. “Who wants to know?” "Midnight.” Lyra turned around, only to see, what appeared to be one of the tallest ponies she had ever seen. Maybe a touch shorter than Princess Luna. She thought to herself. “Midnight?” Midnight struck a heroic pose and smirked. “In the flesh.” Lyra giggled. I think we’re going to get along fine. Good to finally see you.” She stuck out a hoof, which he hesitated to shake before doing. She cocked a brow at this, but quickly shook it off. She stepped back, allowing herself to get a good view of Midnight.
He wasn’t exactly muscular, but he certainly wasn’t fat either, you could very well see the muscle he had, especially in his legs. The fat he had gave his body a slightly feminine look to it, mostly in the flanks. He had a two coloured coat. Wow that’s pretty rare. It was a grey red blend, with black splotches all over his body. His eyes were brunette, as well as his mane. He also, Wait, is he missing part of his left ear? A second look confirmed it, his left ear appeared to have half of it bitten off by something. I’ll ask him about it later. But the really defining thing about him was his cutie mark. The best way to describe it would be if you put your hoof over your face to shade your eyes from the sun. Where have I seen that symbol before? Lyra decided to ask him later.
Her moment of thought was cut short by a tail flick and a wing movement, covering up the side of his body that was in front of her. She glanced up seeing his nervous face, ears folded back, for hoof raised as if he had broken it. “Oh, I’m sorry Midnight I just-“ She was cut off by a nod and a gulp. Those big scared eyes, it was clear that earlier spark of enthusiasm had all but burnt out. He said nothing just tilted his head and walked out of the train station. She took the invitation and walked beside him.
After leaving the station Lyra decided to break the silence. “So-so Midnight, what do you do for a living?” He looked up, “I uh, I sing and play sitar.” He mentally winced, Idiot, don’t tell her that.
She looked at him, shocked. “How in Equestria do you manage to play a unicorn instrument!?”
You see. This is why you think before you talk. “I…honestly don’t know, but I manage somehow.” He avoided her gaze, opting to look down at the ground instead.
Lyra gave him a questioning look, but didn’t press for answers. There was something he wasn’t telling her, but he obviously didn’t want to. “Well, I play the harp and the lyre, it is my special talent.” She took an over-exaggerated glance at his flank, hoping he’d catch it. He did, as a wing was quickly placed over them. “Speaking of special talents, what’s yours Midnight?” She was trying to be friendly, she really was. But he seemed pretty shy, so it wasn’t easy for her. I hope he loosens up once we get to know each other.
I hate it when people ask me that. "It, uh, means that I am very good at the performing arts, underneath is meant to be a spotlight, and it’s covered because it’s a different kind of performing arts, it’s all the backround arts, the ones that aren’t the main attraction.” Well at least this time it makes sense. he thought.
Liar, what are you hiding Midnight? “Oh, well that’s nice, maybe you can show me sometime.”
He hid behind his mane. “I-I guess we could” Why? Why did I say that? I’m such an Idiot.
Lyra grinned, “Great!” I think I’m finally getting to him. “So in my letter, I asked if you wanted to get a drink. Know any good places?”
“If you want, we could go to my place. It’s not my special talent, but I’m pretty good at brewing. Maybe you would care to sample my drinks?” Atta stallion, already inviting her to your house.”
“Uh, I guess we could do that, there would certainly be less noise.”
Midnight nodded, “I know, I can’t stand loud noises, unless it’s a good song. Then I like it loud.”
“Really? Me to. Maybe we could have a bit of a show and tell for our talents, once we get to your house?”
It couldn’t hurt could it? I do need to try to make some friends anyway. For the first time, Midnight looked her in the eye and smiled. “I’d like that very much Lyra.” His demeanor changed to sadness. “Unfortunately, the ponies here aren’t very excepting of my hobbies, nopony has even tried to talk to me besides Derpy and Zecora, and I’m really only good friends with Zecora, I only know Derpy from the time I let her stay in my house during a storm.” He sighed, “We’re friendly, but not exactly friends, not good ones anyway.”
Makes sense why he’s so withdrawn from everypony, nopony even bothered to try to befriend him. “Wait, doesn’t Pinkie Pie live here?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Well, from what I’ve heard she loves making friends.”
He snorted, “Yeah, she TRIED to, with a surprise party.” He looked down, “I understand the gesture was for good intentions, but something went wrong and it landed me in the hospital. When I left the hospital, I just went home, I want to talk to Pinkie, I really do. But I’m scared she might be upset, because I haven’t talked to her since before the accident, and that was four years ago, I avoided her throughout all of high-school.”
I guess I could understand that. “Out of curiosity, what do you for a living?”
“I help out Zecora, that’s pretty much it. She bought me the house, and pretty much supplies me.”
“That’s it?”
He nodded. “That’s it.” His wings at that moment decided that they were sore from being held so tightly in place. Taking a reluctant stretch of his wings, they stretched to full length. Lyra gaped at them. Midnight noticed this.
“What, do I have something on my wings?” He asked as casually as possible. Lyra shook her head. I THOUGHT they looked different. “N-Nothing, I just didn’t realize how big your wings were, they’re like…CELESTIA sized!”
“M-My parents were both imperial pegasi. So my wing span would be larger than your average Pegasus.”
Now it makes sense. Imperial pegasi were a distant relative to today’s modern Pegasus. They had MUCH larger wing spans, most often covering their cutie marks. The way he had his wings placed makes me think he wants to hide that fact, because I could clearly see his cutie mark earlier.
He looked to her nervously, “Why do you ask?”
She looked taken aback by the statement. “N-No reason. They just looked different. I’ve never seen wings that big before.”
He raised an eyebrow, “Well miss ‘They’re so big’. You have a large horn.” He stuck out his tongue, “So there!”
She flinched at the statement. He panicked a bit, Oh, crap I’ve ruined it. “Lyra, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to insult you.”
Lyra looked at him, “It’s okay, you didn’t know, I never mentioned it in any of our letters. I was bullied a lot in school for my horn size of all things, and it really got to me.” She sighed, “I guess it’s made me a bit self-conscious as well.”
An awkward silence followed shortly after Lyra’s little explanation. Midnight decided to break it. “So-so why is your horn bigger than average?” he asked.
“Well, my parents are both imperials, so I guess I got it from them.”
“You’re imperial too?” He asked.
She shrugged, “I never thought of it that big a deal. Why?”
He looked shocked, How could she not know? “Imperials are royal, especially pure ones like us.”
Lyra blinked, “Really?”
“Yes really. That’s why I was so surprised that you took the news of me being imperial so easily. Most ponies around here who know my backround are scared of it. One of the reasons I have no friends here.” He sighed.
“Oh…I didn’t know. And it explains a few things about my childhood as well. One of them being how I was pampered at home. Hmmm.” Lyra drifted off into thought.
Midnight gave a slight cough, causing her to break out of her trance. “So anyways,” he started, “my house is about another five minutes away. Anything else you want to talk about?”
Lyra grinned, “Not without a glass of wine.”
Midnight chuckled. “I can arrange that, come on.” He led the way out of town down a small dirt road.
“How far exactly are you from town?”
Midnight looked back, “Hmm? Oh, about three minutes out.”
“Really? That’s awfully close to the forest.” She said as she eyed its dark outline in the near distance.
He shrugged, “Well, keep in mind that I DO work in the forest, so it would make sense that I live near it. Plus it’s has some nice places to relax if you know the forest and its dangers. Really the forest isn’t that dangerous for somepony like me who works in it.”
Lyra processed what had been given to her, “I guess that makes sense.” She looked at the forest again. “Still…”
It had been about two minutes after they left town and Midnights house could easily be seen from where they were. Nothing special about it really, it looked like Fluttershy’s cottage, it even had a small natural bridge leading over a stream, probably the same stream Fluttershy had in her front yard. The only big difference was no animals or animal feeders.
Cozy. Lyra thought to herself. And continued her walk.
They had just arrived at Midnights house. And the owner, who was currently bouncing like a certain pink mare for currently unknown reasons, was bounding towards it with his less enthusiastic follower following closely behind him. Upon entering his front yard however, Lyra became quite bouncy as well, why? She couldn’t tell, but it just felt right.
Midnight spoke up once he reached the front door, “You’ll have to excuse that little bounce we just had, I’ve been working with various jumping beans, they’re cousins to poison joke. And well, I think the name tells you what just happened.” He chuckled.
Lyra giggled, “I have a few guesses. How long do the effects last?”
“Normally about five minutes after initial contact, but I’ve got an enchantment on the fence around the place and my house. So it’ll wear off when you enter the house, or go past the main gate.”
“Okay.”
He grinned, “Great!” he unlocked the door to his house and pushed the door open. “Please forgive the slight mess, I haven’t had time to clean up. Oh and uh…” he paused, “Please don’t be too loud, my pets are sleeping. Or at least a few of them are.” He stepped inside and then moved over to allow her room to enter. “You may enter.”
Lyra smiled, “Thank you” As she entered, a thought crossed through her mind. Wow, it’s dark in here.
As if reading her mind, Midnight responded, “I do hope you’ll forgive how dark it is. But you’re a unicorn, just make a small orb of magic, to illuminate the place. Just remember,” his tone turned serious, “no brighter than a candle at any time.” Lyra blinked, “O…kay?” Then she lit a magical orb, about as bright as a candle. She quickly realized why he asked to keep the light low. Bats. And we’re not talking tiny bats that always make roosts in old buildings, well okay there were a few of those. But what really caught her attention was the big one.
Ears flat against her head, Lyra’s thoughts were wild. That thing’s HUGE, I mean it’s gotta be at least three feet long! How can he call that thing a pet?! That’s not a pet it’s a mutation gone wrong. She quickly shook her head. Get ahold of yourself, this thing is-is-is not a monster…m-maybe it’s his mother, a-and she has a really bad skin condition. Y-yeah that’s it! THEN WHY IS SHE HANGING UPSIDE DOWN FROM THE CEILING?! She didn’t realize it but she had started to hyperventilate.
Midnight facehooved, “I was afraid if this,” he prodded the gaint bat beside him that was causing Lyra a panic attack at the moment, who looked to him curiously. “Lumina could you get me the calming herbs from the back room please?” The bat shrugged its shoulders, “Use your best judgement.” It nodded and flew off from its upside down perch to the back of the house. In the meantime, Midnight had to calm down a certain somepony.
“Lyra? She’s gone, you can calm down now. She’s not gonna hurt you.” He slowly eased his way over to her side and sat her down.
Lyra looked to him with scared eyes, “W-What was t-that?”
Midnight sighed, “That is one of the other reasons that I have no friends, I do take care of animals, but not the kind that Fluttershy takes care of.” He looked at the other slumbering bats. “I take care of the animals that nopony wants, a lot of them have magical properties and should be cared for just like your average day kitten.” He sighed, “Sadly, nopony seems to think about them the way I do, so I’ve become their caretaker in a way. I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you in our letters, it’s a new thing that happened shortly after 11th grade so. I just never thought of it worth mentioning other than maybe saying, I take care of animals.”
His little talk had managed to bring Lyra off the side of her mental bridge and back onto the solid surface of said proverbial bridge. Allowing her to think a bit more clearly. Okay Lyra think, if he’s not running and screaming, then it’s probably NOT a problem, so just calm down. And maybe apologize for freaking out. Lyra took a breath, “It’s okay, just startled me is all, I wasn’t expecting something like that when I walked in. I’m sorry for freaking out like that.”
Midnight smiled, “That’s okay, Lumina can be a little scary, even for me at times. Speaking of Lumina, she should be back right about-” A quiet thud was heard from directly behind Midnight. “now.” He got up and turned around. The bat was currently holding a basket in its mouth, containing various herbs and spices. Lyra looked confused.
Midnight looks to her, “You were having a major panic attack, and these are herbs that are known to calm the mind.” He then looked back in the basket, then to the bat holding it. Said bat appeared to be quite nervous.
“You put in a few herbs that are much too strong for the occasion, other than that you have chosen excellently Lumina.” Lyra wasn’t sure but she could’ve sworn she saw the bat smile. “Now, our guest has stopped panicking so we don’t need these anymore, could you be a dear and put them back for me?” The bat nodded its head and began to take off again before Midnights voice stopped her mid-flap. “Perhaps you could get some special herbs from my personal cabinet? I think tonight warrants them.” The bat nodded. He opened a wing and pulled out a silver key, “Here’s the key.” The bat looked at him and shrugged. “Surprise me.” She nodded, took the key and flew off into the back room for a few moments, before flying up the stairs.
Lyra decided now was a perfect time to ask him a question, “What are, special herbs, Midnight?”
Midnight looked to her, “Well, they’re not really special, I just call them that. My special herbs are all the really high-strength ones. Not drugs mind you. But strong nonetheless, some are just extremely powerful, ones that should only be used in certain situations. While others are like catnip to a cat, not bad for you, yet highly addictive. So I keep them locked up. Lumina’s unable to smell so she isn’t affected by them as much.”
Lyra nodded, “I see. So these special herbs, what are we using tonight?”
Midnights answer was a shrug, “I asked her to surprise me.” Another soft thud behind Midnight could be heard as Lumina landed. “Time to find out what are lovely connoisseur has brought us tonight.” Midnight said as he took the basket from the large bat, and set it down on the table. “Let’s see, Oh my! A handful of vintage 1280’s red vine leaves, with an 1160’s original sugarplum vine.” He looked to the bat in amazement. “You’re very good. Excellent choice Lumina, in fact you can leave early if you wish.” Lumina looked as she was about to fly without her wings. Suddenly she opened her wings and embraced Midnight in a hug, before shooting out the front door.
Once she was out of sight Midnight sighed, and walked over to the door, “I just wish she didn’t go so far back in time to get the ingredients.” He closed the door, and looked back to Lyra with a smile, “Oh well, we’re in for a treat tonight.”
Lyra cocked her head, “Why’s that?”
Midnight looked at her confused, “Do you still want a drink? ‘Cause these are the ingredients.”
Lyra looked at him funny, “When you said brewing I thought you meant wine or beer or something like that.”
Midnight laughed, “This IS something like that.”
“Explain yourself” Lyra demanded, this was getting annoying.
“For starters, the vintage red vine leaves secrete alcohol when boiled, and so do the sugarplum vines. They create a wine of sorts. You grew up in Canterlot correct?”
“Yes.”
“Well, did your parents ever drink something from a gold tinted bottle, and they said it was really expensive and that’s why you couldn’t have any, even though you were above legal drinking age?”
“Yes actually they did, at pretty much every party they had they served that stuff.”
Midnight put on a smug look, “Well guess what? This is how they make that stuff, and this batch is gonna be good.”
Lyra was shocked at hearing this. She always thought her parents had some sort of vintage wine. Not fancy tea! “H-How do you know how to make this?”
Midnight shrugged, “My dad owns the only place that makes it. So I picked up a few things. Plus that, and the fact that my job requires me to boil thing in pots all the time.”
Lyra went slack jawed, she just remembered where she had seen his cutie mark. Oh. My. Goddesses. “Eclipse brand! That’s where I’ve seen your cutie-mark! On the bottle!”
“Yeah, it used to be a different name, but dad changed it when I was born, he said I have to take over the business when he retires.” He sighed, “Truth be old though I don’t want to. But, what are you gonna do?” He walked over to the stove where a pot of boiling water had already been placed on the stove. Midnight sniffed it then chuckled. “You’ve been planning this for a while now haven’t you Lumina? This pot’s been boiling since this morning.” He sighed as he dropped the herbs into the pot and closed the lid. He then walked back over to the couch and sat down beside Lyra. “We’ve got a few minutes for the herbs to steep, do you want me to show you where everything is in the house?”
Lyra thought for a moment before nodding, “Yes, I’d like that thanks.”
Midnight grinned, “No problem. Okay, now obviously this is the main room where I do most of my…well, everything. If you’ll follow me up the stairs I’ll show you you’re room so you can set your saddlebags down…”
“…and that’s pretty much all there is in my house.” Midnight finished just as a loud shriek reminded him of something. “And just in time, the Wine’s done cooking.” He turned to Lyra, “Would you like to see how we make it?”
Lyra nodded, “Sure, why not. I am a little excited to finally try the one thing my parents let me try.” Midnight smiled, “Alright then, here we go.” He said as he pulled a lever on the side of the wall, which brought up a large, steaming cauldron. That was covered in, frost?
Lyra gave him a questioning look, to which he answered, “The Wine needs to be flash cooled.” He pointed a hoof to the cauldron, “This cauldron, is so cold that it steams.” He then flew up and over to the stove and picked up three chains. One linked to the bottom of the cauldron while the other two connected at the top. Carefully, Midnight lifted the lid back and hoisted the pot into the air, directly over the cauldron, he then yanked the bottom chain, causing the pot to tip upside down, which allowed its contents to spill into the freezing cauldron below. Quickly after this, he set the pot down on the stove again, and rushed over to the switch, flipping it so it was in the center. The cauldron lowered to the point where the top of it was at level with the floor.
“Well that was eventful.” Lyra pointed out.
Midnight panted, “And tiring.”
“Well I could’ve helped, but you never asked.”
“There was a reason for that. This Wine, nopony knows why, but when you expose it to magic, it tastes very horrible and vile. That’s why only dad makes it anymore, it requires the strength of imperial pegasi to do, and most of them are too lazy and uptight. And magic makes it taste horrible. Earth ponies would burn themselves if they tried to. But it’s all worth it.”
“I see.”
“Hey, could you grab me that ladle on the wall there?” He asked as he pointed to said ladle. “No magic.”
Lyra smiled, “I can do that.”
Midnight chuckled, “That’s great, and while you’re at it, maybe you could grab those two wine glasses on the table?”
Lyra looked at him, “No magic?”
Midnight gave her a hammy grin, “Now you’re getting the hang of it.”
Lyra laughed. Then got the desired items and balanced them on her back.
“It looks like you’ve done this before.” Midnight grinned.
“Ha ha ha. Just hurry up, I wanna try this stuff.”
“Okay, okay, Mrs. Pushy Pants.” He said as he took the ladle in his mouth and brought up a bit of the golden liquid. “Tho gwass.”
“Oh right.” Lyra positioned the glasses on the floor in front of her and took a slight step back.
Midnight carefully poured the liquid into the glasses, before setting the ladle back on the wall and picking up the two glasses. He then proceeded to walk to the living room. Upon arrival, he immediately set the glasses down on the coffee table. “Well, her you go.” He pushed one of the glasses over to Lyra. Who awkwardly picked it up in her hooves, before taking a hesitant sip of the surprisingly cold liquid. It was HEAVEN, that’s what her first sip tasted like, absolute heaven in a cup, but it was real, Oh so real. The flavours mingled perfectly with each other, creating the perfect blend of bite and sweetness.
Lyra started to lean back and just enjoy the sensation, when it wore off due to the fact that she only took a sip.
“So I take it you like?” Midnight asked, clearly having more experience with handling the flavour, but still in a bit of a happy place.
He must’ve taken a bigger drink of it than me. “Yes,” Lyra grinned, “me like very much.”
“I can probably give you what’s left of the batch in some bottles, I’m sure I have a few around here.”
Lyra started to tear up, “You’d do that? For me?”
Midnight shrugged, “Sure why not? I mean I can make the stuff whenever I feel like it, and you are a houseguest. So I guess I could send you off with a bottle when you leave.”
Lyra couldn’t take her feelings anymore, she had to say something to him, all the pressure she was feeling was tearing her apart, he had been so kind to her at a moments notice, she came to get away from it all, and keeping it balled up inside her wasn’t helping her at all. Carefully, she set the glass down. “Midnight, I feel like I should tell you the real reason why I’m here.”
Midnight glanced up from his glass, “I’m all ears Lyra.”
Lyra took a breath, this wasn’t gonna be easy. “I…left Canterlot, because my landlord kicked me out of my house.”
A gasp came from Midnight.
Lyra continued before he could speak. “It’s not what you think. I went out with my marefriend and she got into a fight, broke a lot of things, some of those things were in the stallion. Anyways he sued, even though he started the fight, and she only fought back I self-defense. And she was charged, I offered to help her with the fine.” She paused, “But it turns out that she was completely out of money, so I ended up paying the whole fine, it set my pay back three weeks, and my paycheck for that month was a week late. I would’ve asked her to pay me back when she could but she…” She trailed off, not knowing how to say it.
“She what? What did she do Lyra?” Midnight asked, fearing the answer was what he assumed.
“She…Took the easy way out.” A tear rolled down her cheek at the scene she remembered. “I walked in her apartment just before she jumped.” She swallowed. “It didn’t work out the way she planned, the rope flexed an-” She couldn’t hold back any longer, she hurled her-self at Midnight. Burying her face into his chest, then the floodgates opened fullforce.
Midnight, for his credit, was just sitting there with a shocked look on his face. Before realization dawned on him that she wanted -no, NEEDED- a hug, even a calming gesture would do for her right now. Remembering how his sister helped him calm down, he wrapped his large, imperial wings around her, and nuzzled her neck.
An intimate gesture normally, but it gave great comfort for the pony at the receiving end, and he figured it was the best thing he could do for her.
Lyra was still bawling her eyes out, having not yet noticed her friends return of her un-intentioned embrace. “H-How could she DO that to me?! I-I had to watch her die, flailing about from the ceiling by her neck. A-And I could’ve done something, I could’ve stopped her, I could’ve saved her. But I DIDN’T, I just stood there and watched her die. D-Do you know how it feels to have the pony who meant the most to you, die in front of your eyes?!”
Midnight stopped nuzzling Lyra’s neck. And looked at her. “All too well Lyra. All too well.” He continued his nuzzling.
Lyra crying slowed after a little while, slowly fading into light sobs, then finally light snores. She had cried herself to sleep. Midnight sighed. I might as well get some blankets…Or, should I? She’s asleep so she would never know it happened, and I have to use it more often. I’m out of practice.
Finally deciding on his answer, he concentrated hard, and something under his forelock began to glow a dull silver…
Lyra awoke to a comfortable bed, and the lovely smell of cooking eggs and meat.
wait......MEAT!!! She quickly scrambled out of bed and bounced down the stairs, landing on the bottom with a small thud. ".......ow" She sat up and rubbed her muzzle with her hoof. Missed that last step. She opened her eyes and found that she was being stared at by another set of them. She yelped and backpedaled against a nearby wall.
Lumina, who was the one watching her, simply cocked her head to the side and waddled back into the kitchen. Lyra sighed in relief that it was just her and followed her into the kitchen, where she was greeted by the sight of Midnight on his hind legs over a stove. He turned to see who came in and smiled when he saw her. "Have a pleasant sleep?"
Lyra yawned, "It was fine.......what is that smell?" She asked, the scent of meat strong in the air.
"Oh....some of the animals I take care of are carnivores. Sometimes I spoil them by cooking. Are you okay with the smell?" He asked, "I can set up a table outside if it bugs you too much?"
Lyra shook her head, "No it's okay. I don't mind it." But if you have any extra, I'll gladly take it.
"Huh...It bothers most ponies....." he pondered while flipping some meat.
"....so when's breakfast?" She asked.
"As soon as I've finished these." He stated. And poked one lightly with the spatula. "Aaaand done!"
"Great!" She replied with a grin, "So what now?"
You're a little too excited around meat.... He thought. "Now, we feed them to the animals." Midnight started taking off the meat and placing them on a tray beside the stove.
"What kind of animals are they for?" Asked Lyra.
"Let me think...." Midnight paused for a few seconds, "Well....one of them is for a bear that's been coming in lately. And the other one is going to be made into treats, and the third one is in case he wants extra."
".....A bear's coming here?"
"Well, yeah. He's coming around lunch time." He said as he walked over to a door and opened it, a cold breeze coming out.
"We don't need to be here when he comes though. Normally I just leave it out for him."
"Oh." She replied, somewhat grateful that she wouldn't have to meet a huge bear.
Midnight set the tray on a shelf, and closed the door. "Anything you'd like to do today?"
Lyra thought for a moment, "Well...I wouldn't mind seeing Ponyville. A tour maybe?"
Midnight's smile took on a slight nervous edge to it, "Hehehe......funny story I should've told you earlier...."
"What?"
He swallowed the lump in his throat, "Well...I....in a way....haven't been in, Ponyville for a little over a year now.."
Lyra raised an eyebrow, "How'd you manage that?"
He chuckled nervously. She's living with you. It's not gonna be a secret much longer. Besides, better you tell her than have her find out herself. "Well....the thing is......" He took a breath, "......You know what it would be better to just show you. " And with that, he ran upstairs. A door closing could be heard, along with frantic scrambling.
Lyra looked to Lumina with a questioning look, while the bat just gave a knowing grin.
*Upstairs* Midnight rummaged through his room, searching high and low for his things. "Oooohh where is it?!" he groaned and sat down in a corner, hoping to see it from a new perspective, "OW!" He jumped up, and looked underneath him to see what he sat on, ".....That's......surprisingly convenient." He grinned and picked up the box, "Time to get to work" *Downstairs*
What is he DOING?! It's been... She checked the clock, Half an hour! She sighed and showed her cards, a Flush, "Alright, let's see what you've got."
Lumina grinned and set her cards down, a Royal Flush.
Lyra sat there slack jawed, "......" she pushed four bits to Lumina, who slipped them into a pouch that was strapped to her side.
Her ears twitched as she heard the sound of the door opening upstairs, followed by the sound of hoofsteps leading down.
"Finally" She said, "What were you doing that took so long?"
"Sorry. Some of the stuff takes a while to work." A voice said from the stairs. (Just a heads up. I am Red Green Colour blind, so forgive me if my descriptions are off. I'll include a picture at the end of the chapter.)
Lyra stood up quickly and bolted over to the stairs, to find a Pure White mare, with a Dark Purple mane, and Gold eyes, walking down the stairs, "......Hi."
"Hi." The mare smiled lightly as she continued down the stairs. At the bottom, she turned and faced Lyra, "I suppose you're wondering who I am?"
Lyra nodded, "Yeah. Midnight said he lived alone out here. But I guess he lied. Are you his little sister?"
The Mare giggled, "That's what I tell most ponies. If you want the truth though...." The mare motioned to her left ear, which looked like something had chewed it up.
Just like Midni-... "..........Midnight?...."
The Mare Struck a heroic pose, "The one and only." The newly discovered Midnight turned back to Lyra, "Though I prefer to be called Dream Weaver when I'm swapped."
Lyra instantly realized what he meant when he said he, "in a way" hadn't been to Ponyville for a year. "B-But...how?"
Dream giggled, "When one works in the Everfree, one learns a few tricks."
Lyra stared at her for a second before realizing something. She didn't care. "Okay. You could make a fortune off that."
She raised an eyebrow at Lyra, "You don't care that I'm now a mare?"
Lyra shook her head, "Nope. But seriously, how'd you change your whole appearance like that?"
"Oh, well first off, the body shape, I was born with that, the colour just makes it stand out more. The voice requires some training on my part. The strut comes naturally to me. The mane and tail styles...." She shuddered, "trial and error with a curling and flat iron...and many burns."
Lyra winced, she knew how those felt.
She continued, "The eye colour is courtesy of Poison Joke eye drops that I made to change your eyes the same colour every time. And the main and tail colours are simple dyes from plants in the forest. As for my cutie mark," She winked, "that's my little secret."
*A/N: This Chapter and the next one are not to be taken seriously, please don't leave and/or downvote because of them.As they are both simply....how should I put this.....stupid. Nonetheless, they're not horrible so read if you want to. If you don't read this one or the next don't worry, it will all be explained in later chapters and Author's Notes. I would recommend reading the Author's Note for this chapter regardless of whether or not you read the chapter. ______________________________________________________________________________
"...thought Poison Joke was completely random?"
Dream shook her head, "No no, see there's actually a pattern in the plant that you can detect on the leaves and the flower itself."
"Okay...But I still don't understand how you managed to plant a whole field of the exact same prank!"
Dream sighed, "That stuff isn't true Poison Joke. That's specially altered Poison Joke. It took me a year or two to figure out."
Lyra looked at her, "How do you alter Poison Joke?"
"Since I know the patterns. I go out into the Everfree and search for the same patterns, or close to the same patterns of Poison Joke. And I'd put them in an enclosed space, and well......" She blushed lightly, "magic happens."
Lyra understood what she meant and nodded, "So....selective breeding?"
She thought for a moment, "In a sense yes."
"Ah. Makes sense. Are there any side effects?"
Dream thought for moment, "...other than sudden cravings for Pie and rain tasting like chocolate milk no."
Lyra put a hoof to her mouth...but she couldn't help it, she burst out laughing with her hooves up in the air, "T-That is hilarious!hahaha" she gasped for air, "Did you- Did you just come up with that one?!"
Dream continued her deadpan look. Lyra had stopped laughing, though she was still on her back, "You- You are joking right?"
A raised eyebrow was her answer, "........Joking?"
Lyra gulped, and got back on her hooves,".........."
"........"
".......So about that whole global warming to enslave equanity thing I think we'll be okay if we....."
Dream decided it was now her turn to fall over laughing. ______________________________________________________________________________
"...and that means that magically tuning an instrument actually lessons the percussive force of it, causing a much duller and boring sound."
Dream thought about it for a second before nodding, "Makes sense...What would happen if you used a different material for the strings?"
"Well...I guess it depends on what you're using." Lyra responded.
"I was thinking, not of price mind you, but I was thinking about that new type of crystal they found that behaves like metal. I wonder what kind of sound that would make.....?"
Lyra snorted, "You're right, you didn't even consider price, I'm surprised you don't have to pay the company from saying the name of the product."
"......actually."
Lyra stopped, "You-...You're serious? You're not kidding me right now?"
She shook her head.
"......Crystal Steel." Just then, a silver stallion flew down from the sky.
"Pay up."
"........" She looked to Dream in shock, and absentmindedly handed over a bit.
"Thank you." And with that, he flew off.
Dream walked by Lyra, flicking her under the chin with her tail, "Told you."
Lyra managed to pick her jaw up off the ground and followed her again.
Dream looked at her, "So...how does it feel to get Steeled up?"
A groan was her answer. Dream grinned. ______________________________________________________________________________
"...So the point at which terminal velocity is reached, the air around your body is actually forced in and out of your lungs, removing the need to worry about breathing."
Lyra thought for a second, ".....agreed....what's your point?"
"There's no point I just saw Rainbow Dash fly past us."
"...so essentially, bucking could be turned into beautiful music."
Dream thought about it for a second, "....Agreed. We should try it sometime."
Lyra stopped and looked her in the eyes, "How about now?" She motioned to a private spot in the trees.
Dream grinned and began walking over, "I like the way you think."
Lyra followed her, giddy with excitement, "We should probably ask the pony who owns this place though. We are doing it on their property after all."
Dream waved a hoof in her direction, "Please, a little excessive noise won't bug these guys. Trust me. A lot of groups do this. The owners don't care as long as you don't steal anything. They even join in sometimes."
Lyra stopped, "Maybe we should come back later, you know, in the evening. It's a better atmosphere for it. Plus, if we start we won't have time to see Ponyville. And I don't really care if they join in...I just don't want too many around for it...This is a little embarrassing you have to admit. "
She thought for a moment, then sighed, "I guess you're right." They both turned back to the road and continued their walk to Ponyville.
Lyra looked at Dream, "We're still going to do it tonight though, right?"
Dream smiled, "Of course we are, don't worry. And if it bothers you that much, we can ask them, but you don't have much to worry about. Applejack has never said no to free labour." ______________________________________________________________________________
".....it'd be possible to creaste music through the weather?"
Dream turned her head Lyra's way, "....I suppose it would be possible to shape the clouds so when the wind, or rain, hit them, they would create a purccussive force that could, in theory, be fine tuned and placed in a creative order to create a sound that some ponies would deem attractive."
"....." Lyra blinked, "If I'd known that would be your response I would've told you the way I'd first thought of it."
"And how did you first think of it?"
Lyra cleared her throat, "Given the somewhat sturdy nature of clouds when in contact with pegasi or not, and given the pegasi's magical ability to manipulate the clouds to their will. Would it be posssible to manipualte the clouds so that they would react to outside stimuly by producing a percussive sound that the average pony could deem attractive?"
Dream gaped at her, ".......We HAVE to continue this conversation."
Lyra grinned, "You actually like my idea?"
She nodded, "Very much. So the first thing we'd need to figure out is which mollecular structure of cloud works to the highest degree?"
"It depends on what you would deem desirable qualities in a cloud."
Dream thought for a moment, "Range, the harmonic sound, and how well it would work with other clouds and various forms of outside stimuli."
Lyra continued, "Also the resonance, it may not vibrate long enough to create a workable note. We should also factor in what kind of sound we're going for."
"Hmmm...I hadn't thought of that.." She pondered for a moment, "I think the best sound for a cloud would be very natural sounding, an example would be a wooden flute or panflutes, as well as..."
Unbeknownst to them they had just crossed Nurse Redheart, on her way to get check up on Big Macintosh, who had missed a tree from their Bucking conversation earlier that day, ".......Maybe I should be checking up on them instead of Big Macintosh...." She pondered for a moment, "Crazy?....Or injured?........" A stupid grin formed on her muzzle as she figured out the answer, "Injured's hotter." And with that, she continued on her way to the farm.
A/N: !!ATTENTION!! This chapter contains gross amounts of Pinkie Pie talking/rambling! !!PLEASE PROCEED WITH CAUTION!!
After the walk to Ponyville, they both made a silent agreement to stop for something to drink. Which leads us to where we are now, a female and a fe/male, sitting in Sugarcube corner, sharing a giant Chocolate milkshake... Why were they sharing? Dream ordered a Milkshake and Pinkie thought they were dating...you get the idea.
"....So the harmonic resonance of the rain could effect the pitch and tune of the storm cloud depending on the rain outlet, and if it's charged?"
Lyra nodded, "Yes."
"I see." She paused to take a sip. "......is it wrong that I just realized where we are?"
Lyra frowned slightly, "What do me-....oh....when did we get here?" She looked around.
Suddenly, a blur of pink rushed in betweent them, "Well that's silly how could you NOT know where you are? If you didn't where you were then how did you know where the counter was or the straw or the milkshake? Well this one time actually I forgot where I was in a room and then these really nice guys helped me find the exit! It was so embarrassing having forgotten where I was but it was also so awesome because that's how I met one of my best friends! Well actually everypony in Ponyville's my best friend so that would make her my besty bestest best friend!" She raised a hoof to her chin and looked down sadly, "No wait the girls are my besty bestest best friends...." She immediately perked back up again, "I guess that makes her my very bestest best friend! Hey Dream have I ever told you about my very bestest best friend!? Huh?! huh?! huh?! Have I?! Have I?! Have I?!"
Dream started to speak but was cut off by another loud gasp, this time in Lyra's direction.
"Ohmygosh are you new here you must be new otherwise I would have seen you before and since I've never seen you before, and I know everybody and I mean everybody in Ponyville! And since I've never seen you before that means you must be new and if you're new here that means you haven't met anyone yet! Well I guess you've met Midnight's sister because you two are on a date right now which means you must also know Midnight!"
Another loud gasp, "But what if you don't know Midnight that means you're dating his sister without his permission and that means that you two might not last very long if he finds out! But don't worry I won't tell anypony because you two make such a cute couple! Even though all you were talking about is Loco in the Coco but I'm not here to judge especially since you both looked so cute doing it! But anyways you don't have to worry about me telling anyone about you two dating because I would hate to be the one who spilled the beans and alerted Midnight that his little sister was dating somepony he didn't even know which would be bad for you because I don't know how he would react to this kind of thing! But if I told him after what I did to him last time he came here we would BOTH be in HUGE TROUBLE"
The still yet to be named mare then Grabbed Lyra's cheecks and pressed her forehead against her's. "HUGE TROUBLE!!!"
She then gasped and released Lyra, "Ohmygosh I just remembered that I've never seen you before and since I've never seen you before that means you must be new!" The colour then paled from her face, and she bolted out of the front door leaving nothing but Lyra's sore cheeks as proof of her ever being there, "MAKE WAY!!! I NEED MY WELCOME WAGON!!!!"
Dream was the one to break the silence, "......So yeah. That's Pinkie Pie." She casually took another sip of the Milkshake.
"......"Lyra's eye twitched, then she fainted with a groan. While Dream took another sip of the Milkshake.
The trip to the library took longer than Dream first thought, given that she was carrying an unconscious Lyra on her back. The looks were a little unnerving, but all she had to say was, "Pinkie." and that put an end to the looks.
Dream knocked on the library door, which was met with an annoyed Spike from the other side, "What part of "Public Library" don't you understand?! Just come in!"
"Spike!"
The door was opened moments later by a lavender unicorn, "Oh hello Dream it's nice to see you again...Who's on your back?"
Dream motioned to Lyra, "This is Lyra Heartstrings."
"Oh...why is she-"
Dream cut her off, "Pinkie Pie."
"Ahh." A look of realization appeared on her face, "Taking her here for a quiet spot?"
Dream nodded. The unicorn sighed, "Come in, I'll get a cushion from the back room." She walked back inside, Dream following behind her.
"So Dream, how's your brother doing?" Twilight asked from the back room.
"He's been doing okay, given the seclusion..."
Twilight returned with the pillow on her back. Dream noted without using her magic, which she thought was a little strange.
"He does know that we don't hold it against him right? And Pinkie feels horrible about what she did."
Dream nodded, she was used to referring to her Male self in third tense, "He does. I keep trying to get him to take a foal step, but he's so stubborn. He's either wandering around the Everfree, or getting a lesson from Zecora."
Twilight flipped the cushion on the ground and walked over to Dream, "He's taking lessons from Zecora?"
Dream nodded and started to lift Lyra off her back with her wings. It always amazed Twilight how strong her wings were, and how big they were compared to how they looked folded up the few times she spread them.
"Yeah. Why do you ask?"
"Last time I talked with Zecora she was speaking very fondly of her new apprentice."
"Huh." Dream said as she set Lyra down on the cushion, "I am worried for his mental health though, all that seclusion can't be good for it..."
Twilight nodded, "You're right. What kind of baby steps are you asking him to take?"
Dream thought for a second, "Well...I've been asking him if he would just you know, stop by at the Library or something with me, or even just walk into Ponyville or go to the apple farm, but nope. He doesn't want to go."
"I see..." Twilight looked down for a second before looking back up at Dream, "Tell you what? I'll let you two come to the library tonight, around nine how about?"
Dream thought for a second.
I really need to drop the disguise soon... I guess Twilight would be a good first pony to re-integrate back into Ponyville. Since Lyra's living with me...I have to face the fact that she might find out my secret, and it's not that I don't trust her not to say anything, it's just I know from experience on what slips out of your mouth without meaning to... I guess I'll go.
"Sure." She finally said, "If I can get him to come, we will."
Twilight smiled, "Oh good, I was planning on stopping by later today to see if he was okay."
Dream's eyes widened very slightly.
They're THAT worried about me? I don't understand....
"You seem pretty worried about him for some reason... why?"
"Why?" Twilight looked shocked, "We scared him so badly last time he was here that he's pretty much dropped off the face of Equis. Of course I'm worried for him!" She looked down, "Me and the girls feel awful for our first reactions to him when he first came here... We just want to apologize and make things right." She finished.
I had no idea....
"I'll be sure to mention that to him..." Dream said uneasily.
"It would be appreciated."
Dream smiled slightly, to which Twilight responded with her own. __________________________________________________________________________________
"So what you're saying is that you need help to find the harmonic resonance of the cloud?"
Dream nodded, "Yep. But we need an extra set of hooves..."
Twilight nodded, "I guess you would... I can ask a friend or two of mine to help you out?"
"That's be great. Who are they?"
The one most likely to help you would be-"Twilight was cut short by a groan from Lyra.
"I think she's coming to."
Twilight sighed in relief, "Oh good, any longer and I might've had to get Nurse Redheart."
"Ugh...where am I?" Lyra groaned.
"The Golden Oaks Library. Uh I know it's a lot to ask Twilight, but could we have some tea please?"
Twilight nodded in understanding and went off to the kitchen to go and prepare some.
Lyra struggled to sit up, "Tea would be nice...thank you. Why are we in the Library?"
"I figured it would be the best place for you to recover."
Lyra shook her head lightly in an attempt to clear her head, "Recover...from what?"
"Pinkie overwhelmed you. You passed out." Dream explained.
"Is that why my head hurts so bad?"
"No I" Dream chuckled nervously, "I uh, accidentally whacked your head on the front door of the bakery.......ehhhsorry.."
Lyra smiled lightly at her, "It's okay. Thank for bringing me here. I don't want to think about what would've happened if we stayed..." She shuddered.
A smirk developed on Dream's face, "You'd have to pay for your half of the Milkshake."
Lyra giggled. Twilight re-entered with a tray of tea balanced on her back, "I hope you both don't mind Chamomile."
Dream shook her head, "Not at all."
Lyra had similar thoughts on Twilight's choice, "It's one of my favourites." She then realized something, "Hey, you're a Unicorn. Why aren't you using your magic for anything?"
Dream had noticed this earlier and was looking for a good time to make a statement, "Yeah, I noticed it earlier. But you normally use magic for everything. Is something wrong?"
Twilight set the tray down between the three of them and shook her head, "No. I'm fine. But back when I lived in Canterlot, I heard a lot of stuck up ponies talking about how Unicorns were superior. I hated the way they referred to the other races. So, I decided the best way not to become one of them was to go at least one week every month without magic."
Lyra, who was poring a cup of tea for herself with her magic, quickly set the pot back down, and picked up her mug in her hooves with a sheepish grin, "Yeah. I hated ponies like that, it really irked me, seeing as how my Dad is an accomplished musician and he's an earth pony."
"Who is your Dad anyway?" Dream took a sip of her tea.
"It's Low Chord."
"The Bass player?" Twilight asked.
She nodded, "That's him."
"I heard his duet with Octavia, it was beautiful." Dream commented.
It was at that point Spike walked by, "...Huh...Mares." And continued to the front door, "Hey Twilight I'm gonna head out for a bit."
"Okay Spike......Tell Rarity I said hello."
Spike turned around with a lock of shock on his face, "How did you?!-....Ugh nevermind." He closed the door.
Twilight giggled, "Oh Spike." she took a sip of her tea, "So Lyra. Dream was telling me about your Cloud Music idea, and I have to say it's really interesting."
Lyra looked at her, "You think so?"
She nodded, "MmHm. In fact I'd love to help out if you need it."
Lyra thought for a second, "Well we do need an extra pair of hooves."
Twilight nodded, "That's what Dream was telling me earlier. I was going to ask some of my friends if they wanted to help out.....Maybe you could visit one of them for me?"
Dream thought for a moment, "I...guess we could, if Lyra's okay with it." She looked to Lyra.
Lyra nodded, "I don't see why not. Just give us the address and we'll go ask her."
Twilight smiled, "Thank you. Her name is Fluttershy and she lives at the west edge of town near the Everfree."
Dream thought for a second, "...Is it that cottage with all the animals around it?"
She nodded, "Yes it is."
"I know where it is. Thanks."
Twilight smiled, "You're welcome, though you should leave now if you want to get back here in time to look around more while everypony's still out and about."
Lyra looked confused, "Why it's only..." She looked at the clock in the corner, "Four O'clock?!" She looked back at them,
"How long was I out?!"
Dream thought for a second, "About...four hours maybe."
"About that yeah." Twilight agreed.
"Oh wow.... Let's go." Lyra got up.
"Probably a good idea." Dream got up along with Twilight, "Thank you for the tea Twilight."
Twilight smiled, "Anytime Dream, it was good hearing from you. And a pleasure meeting you Lyra."
Lyra smiled back, "A pleasure meeting you as well Twilight. I think I'm going to like Ponyville."
They started making their way to the door.
"I'm glad. It's a nice little community." Twilight said.
"I agree," Dream stated, "After the initial Pinkie Pie." She opened the door.
Twilight giggled and turned left while Dream and Lyra turned right.
"I'll ask Rainbow Dash. We'll meet back up at the Library at nine Dream, with or without your brother."
