It was morning, and though she wasn’t due at Wonderbolts HQ for several hours yet, Misty Fly had woken up early to indulge in her favorite morning activity: watching Lyra get ready.
Lyra’s bedroom was flooded with sunlight. Made sense; it used to be Soarin’s apartment and he was always a morning pony. Misty - not so much. But she was disciplined enough to wake promptly when properly motivated. Like on days she was due at HQ early. Or when she wanted to peacefully ogle her girlfriend.
Girlfriend, right? She had only tried out the term a few times, including to Lyra herself, and Lyra had not protested, but neither had she used the term in return. Not that Misty knew of, anyway.
Lyra’s minty fur looked soft and pretty in the sun as she brushed her mane until it shone. As usual, however, a look of distracted concern creased her brow. She wasn’t scowling last night. Misty stretched a bit and fluffed her wings proudly. Still, morose was Lyra’s default expression. She was hardly alone in that under the circumstances. Misty had once ventured to ask Rainbow Dash if Lyra had smiled more before the war, and Rainbow had looked at her as if she were hopelessly dumb.
“You don’t have to leave with me.” Lyra was watching Misty in the mirror. “You can stay for a while, go back to sleep.”
“Looking at you, I’m wide awake now,” she rejoinded quickly. Lyra grinned but didn’t take the bait.
“Where are you flying off to this afternoon?”
“Baltimare,” Misty yawned. “There’s a modest sized nest of creatures still lingering around the city. A few of us are going to test out some new explosives Dr. Whooves came up with.”
“They had a great conservatory in Baltimare,” Lyra commented after a beat. “I spent two summers studying there.”
“Really?” Misty perked up. Details about Lyra’s life before all this were far and few between. Usually she preferred a little mystery. Actually, she preferred almost total mystery. Easy in, easy out. But with Lyra she found herself noting these odd little tidbits. Filing them away. Lyra intrigued her.
“Back then I thought I’d be….” her eyes lit briefly, then she caught herself and finished bitterly. “Well. Not a second rate nurse.”
“You’re a good nurse. First rate. I trust you with this sexy flank over any of those other hacks.” Misty tossed aside the covers to expose her lean, shapely hip, and the long, curving scar that had come dangerously close to slashing through her cutie mark. It was far less pronounced than it could have been, thanks to Lyra’s neat stitches. Just noticeable enough to look cool. Enough to show everypony she’d tangled with one of those fuckers and lived to fly another day.
Lyra’s horn illuminated and Misty felt the gentle caress of her magic tracing the scar. Her fur raised responsively. “I did do a good job with this. And it was one of my first.” That night, Misty had been more rattled by her close encounter than she’d cared to let on. Similar to many of her teammates, she compensated with a twisted combination of bravado and indifference. She had tried, out of reflex as much as anything, to flirt with Lyra, but either hadn’t gotten, or couldn’t remember, her name.
Not long after, however, Lyra had accompanied Applejack to Soarin’s birthday party. Misty remembered being pleased to see she’d brought her cute little unicorn friend with her. She’d whispered “dibs” to Rapid Fire and High Winds. Pulled out a chair for her and smiled coolly, invitingly. An hour or so later while everyone was distracted finalizing their bets as to whether the birthday colt would finally make his move on the pretty farmer / Element Bearer/ Hero of Equestria, Misty and Lyra snuck off and had their way with each other.
She also made a cool 50 bits when Soarin swooped into practice beaming and exhausted the following day. Never doubted you for a minute, Clipper. All in all, a very profitable night for everypony. She and Lyra started hooking up on the regular after that. And now? Girlfriends.
Right?
Lyra had approached the bed and was looking down at her with a softer, more relaxed expression. “I’ll be at the hospital late tonight. But maybe tomorrow night…?”
“Yeah. Cool,” Misty nodded. Lyra kissed her lingeringly, and laughed a bit when Misty flicked her tail across her nose as she turned to leave.
After a quick shower Misty decided to forego returning to her own place and head straight to Wonderbolts HQ instead, taking her time, a leisurely flight. She was coasting along above the community farm when she spotted Applejack below, nudging a basket of beets towards the greenhouse.
Applejack was not yet what you’d call heavily pregnant but she was definitely noticeably so. She looked so ridiculously adorable with a big round belly on her otherwise sculpted frame; it made Misty grin every time she saw her. Among the few things she was unabashedly sentimental about were foals. She’d been rooting for Soarin and Applejack to start a family since the day they’d married. Actually, she was told she had said so in very explicit terms during her wedding toast; that whole night was a bit of a blur though.
AJ clocked her approach and paused, smirking expectantly. “Howdy, Misty Fly!”
“Heyyyyy…. You look great, Mama!” Misty circled her appraisingly a couple times before going in for a belly pat.
“Thank you kindly.” The other ‘bolts had swiftly picked up Misty’s habit of rubbing AJ’s bump; she took it with good grace, knowing how much the new foal already meant to all of them.
“How are you feeling?”
“Fit as a fiddle,” Applejack smiled sweetly. “Looking forward to meeting this little critter soon.”
Misty rested her hoof on the basket. “Soarin would be pretty upset if I didn’t at least offer to help.”
“Duly noted.” Applejack tugged it away from her. Even now she was loathe to accept anypony trying to do things for her. Misty respected that. She liked a pony who could handle their own shit.
“Lyra said you had to give up nights at the hospital,” she mentioned sympathetically.
“Yeah,” AJ sighed. “I hated to do it but I gotta admit I’m getting tired early nowadays. Dr. Spring Flight and Lyra got things well in hoof though, I’m sure. The farm needs me more. I hope after - oh! I think somepony wants to say hi.” She grabbed Misty’s hoof and guided it to a spot on her belly where she could feel a firm, distinctive kicking.
“Wow!” Misty laughed. “She’s getting stronger.”
“Yep. She - or he - sure is.”
Misty lowered her head to address Applejack’s expansive abdomen directly. “Baby, this is your coolest Auntie speaking. Whatever Rainbow Dash may have told you, I’m the coolest. You go easy on your Mom now, okay?”
Applejack chuckled. “If you two are finished, I better get back to it.”
“Great seeing you, AJ, as always.”
“Y’all be good in Baltimare, okay Sugarcube?” That’s right; Soarin was the lead on today’s flight. Applejack’s tone was light, casual, but her green eyes when they latched onto Misty’s betrayed her real concern.
“You got it, Mrs. Clipper!” Misty gave her a snappy salute as she rose into the air, trying to give it all the assurance and confidence she (mostly) felt. AJ was a tough cookie and had had a few years to get used to it but still, any mission Soarin undertook must suck extra since her pregnancy.
Lyra never gave any indication that she thought about it. Generally this didn’t bother Misty. No one at home worrying about her meant one less thing on her mind too. The fewer distractions the better. But lately she started to wonder, was it really as easy on Lyra as she made it look? Did she really not care, or did she care more than she wanted to give in to?