//------------------------------// // Tears // Story: Stability // by SlightlyOnline //------------------------------// Waking up in strange places never was a good feeling for Lyra. Especially when she was awoken by the voice of a mare who was not her marefriend. “Lyra? What in Luna’s name are you doing here so early? I thought I told you to lock up last night.” The only response the mare could muster was falling off of the table she had been sleeping on. She felt the cleaning towel she had been using as a pillow fall on her face. Groggily, she threw it off of her, her eyes being met with the sight of Cinnamon Swirl towering over her body. “Well?” she said. “This isn’t a hotel for you to just waltz in and out at your own desire.” “I... I never left last night. I couldn’t. I-” she thought of making up some sort of excuse, but decided that if she was ever going to enjoy working for this mare, she would have to open up sometime. “I don’t have any other place to go.” Cinnamon seemed indifferent, but still surprised Lyra with a response. “Well I can’t have you sleeping on the job, can I? What happened?” The unicorn sighed. She really didn’t want to have this conversation, but felt that it was necessary. “My mare-” she still didn’t know how much of a bigot her boss was. The last thing she needed was being randomly fired for being a ‘fillyfooler’. “My significant other kind of kicked me out. We had a fight, and I haven’t been able to-” “I don’t care.” That illusion didn’t last long. “But I thought-” “I don’t care about your life. I do care if you can get the job done, however. Go home.” “What?” “Go home. You need some real rest. You can’t make me money like this.” “No, no. I’m fine.” To prove her point, Lyra jumped to her hooves, only to wobble and topple over. She muttered some curses on gravity under her breath. The pegasus’ gaze narrowed. “Get out of here. I can’t be paying employee medical bills.” Slowly, the unicorn brought herself back to her hooves, using a table for support. Despite her boss being absolutely selfish, she was right. After her utter exhaustion and lack of real sleep, be it in a couch fort or otherwise, there was no way she could work today. “I gotcha. I’m going.” “Good. Be back when you’re useful.” Those words hurt Lyra more than she would have at any other time. Considering how her entire relationship was falling apart, she did feel useless. It seemed like no matter what she did, everything just fell apart. She wondered why she should even try. Everything was just wrong. She exited the building, tears welling up in her eyes. As soon as she stepped out into the open air, her hooves stopped in their tracks. She knew that she had to go home, but how much of a home was the place she lived? It felt as if she was no longer welcome anywhere she went. She lifted a hoof, wiping her eyes clean. The unicorn forced her legs to move forward. It didn’t matter where she was going at this point. Bon Bon was always good at dealing with situations like this, except for when she was directly involved, of course. She was Lyra’s map, and without her, Lyra was lost in the wilderness. Her hooves had carried her to Ponyville’s market. Celestia’s sun was just beginning to rise above the horizon, and with it, shopkeepers were just setting up. Florists, potters, salesponies and the like were all preparing for a day of sales. Seeing all the businesses made Lyra worry. Bon Bon didn’t seem like she was in any position to work today, and despite the boom of customers they had on Saturday, she wouldn’t be able to make enough profit. Lyra’s ears drooped. It’s not like it mattered anymore, anyway. She found that her biggest challenge was not caring. Everywhere she turned was a reminder of the pony she used to share a bed with. The mare continued to trot through the market, stopping only whenever she saw something interesting. She was halfway through the square when something really caught her eye. The price tag was a little much, but it was something Bon Bon loved. Without second thought, she put her bits on the table. ***                        ***                        *** A massive lump was in Lyra’s throat. She was standing silently in front of Bon Bon’s bedroom, her hoof pausing just outside of knocking distance. With her magic, she clutched a bouquet of the most beautiful roses she could find as well as a large box of imported chocolates; Bon Bon’s favorite. The unicorn figured that it was worth one last shot to try to get her mare back. This was the worst she had ever seen her, and for the sake of at least her own sanity she had to at least try. She took a gulp of air and slowly tapped the door. Immediately, she heard a startled yelp from the other side. At least she wasn’t told to go away yet. Silence soon followed, the only sound being the pounding of Lyra’s heart. She tapped the door once more. “Bon? Can I come in?” The response scared her. A painful whine came from the other side, soon accompanied by a loud sob. She couldn’t tell, but she was relatively sure that she heard “please come in.” Breaking through her hesitation, she opened the door, the flowers and candies in tow. Entering the room revealed an absolute mess. Tissues, paper and plates were strewn about, Bon Bon sitting on her bed and crying loudly. If there was anytime Lyra felt needed, it was now. Quickly, she sat next to the mare, opening her hooves. Her offer for a hug was accepted, and the earth pony was soon crying into her coat. Lyra didn’t need to know what was wrong. All she needed was to let Bon Bon know that she was there for her. She found her hoof running through the pony’s mane, doing whatever she could to comfort her. It may have been an hour or it may have been a minute, but Bon Bon’s tears eventually subsided. Soon Lyra was just holding her in her hooves. “Bon Bon,” she decided to start. “Are you...” It was fairly obvious that she was not alright. Lyra let out a breath. “What can I do?” Bon Bon looked up at her, the sight of the mare’s irritated eyes wounding the unicorn. Slowly, she looked back down. “Just... please hold me.” Lyra tightened her grip on the earth pony. “Of course.” She knew what the answer most likely was, but she still decided to ask. “Only, please tell me what’s wrong.” She couldn’t see her face, but she could feel the mare’s tears return and run across her coat. Before she could apologize, Bon Bon spoke. “It’s me. I’m an awful, awful pony.” “What?” Of all things, the unicorn hadn’t expected this. “You’re not. You’re a wonderful mare who I don’t deserve. What would make you say that?” Bon Bon broke away from her. “I did something terrible. Just terrible.” She could see the terror and sadness in her eyes. “Please, tell me what it is.” “I...” Bon Bon began. She tried to continue, but was overcome with tears once more. Lyra wrapped her hooves back around her, wanting to comfort the pony in any way she can. She didn’t deserve this. “I’m here for you, Bon Bon.” Breaking away once more, the earth pony took a deep breath. And another. Slowly, she began again. “I thought you were gone... I thought Octavia took you...” Lyra wiped the pony’s face with a tissue. “I didn’t see you on the couch and just-” She collapsed onto the unicorn. “Oh Lyra! It’s just terrible!” Lyra could but tighten her grip around the pony. “Please, tell me what’s so terrible.” Slowly, the mare reached out a hoof and pointed towards the pile of crumpled papers. They littered the floor and filled the trash bin. “I... I couldn’t stop myself. When I saw that you were gone I wrote the nastiest, most awful letter I could to Octavia... I... I’m horrible.” She collapsed into Lyra’s hooves once more. “She’ll hate us.” The unicorn silently lost herself in her own thoughts. Octavia wouldn’t hate them over a small letter, would she? Who’s to guarantee she would even read it? Lyra took less stock in the power of words than Bon Bon did. “Are you sure she would? I know that I still love you.” The cream mare looked up at her, her teary eyes shining as she spoke. “How could you still love me? I don’t deserve you.” This, as well as the whole situation, was unexpected to Lyra. She was positive that Bon Bon would remain mad at her for a long, long time; possibly eternity. Sometimes, she was glad when she was wrong. “Of course I love you. You’re a beautiful mare who always tries to do the right thing. As far as I’m concerned, you’ve done nothing wrong at all.” It was painful to say that her marefriend was right despite all she had been through, but she felt that it would help their relationship’s healing. “It’s all wrong and it’s all my fault. I probably hurt Octavia and I definitely hurt you. Please, please forgive me. I...” Another wave of tears overcame her. “I need you.” Lyra slowly began to run her hooves up the pony’s back. “I forgive you. I will always, always be here for you.” She smiled and decided to test the water. “If not just for the sex.” The moment she said it, she questioned if it was the right time to make a joke like that. Relief washed over her when Bon Bon returned a grin through her tears. “That’s alright with me.” Lyra was soon met with the kiss that she had so missed. It wholly made her feel better. Moments slowly passed after the mare broke away. The unicorn continued to stare into her eyes, searching to find any way to comfort her. She decided to just ask. “What can I do for you? How can I help?” She watched the mare close her eyes. “Just... please hold me.” Without hesitation, she tightly wrapped her hooves around her marefriend. Lyra could feel her ragged breath against her fur, the mare’s breathing slowly returning to normal as her crying subsided. Before she became too comfortable on her fur, the unicorn decided to interrupt their cuddling, her horn glowing. “I almost forgot,” she said quietly, levitating over the flowers and box of chocolate. “I picked these up for you. I know it’s expensive, but I also know it’s your favorite.” She opened the box to reveal splendid candies of different fillings and coatings, each one a piece of art within itself. At the same time, she brought up the flowers and presented them to Bon Bon. The earth pony sniffed the flowers deeply. “They’re beautiful, Lyra. I... I don’t know what to say.” “You don’t need to say anything. Seeing your smile is enough for me.” The mint colored pony dropped the bouquet into what was probably a half-drank water glass, picking out the prettiest rose of the bundle and offering it to her marefriend. “Thank you, thank you so much. It means the world that you would do this for me.” She wrapped her hooves around the box of chocolate, returning the flower to Lyra and falling to her back on the bed with an exhausted thump. The unicorn placed the flower with the others and quickly let herself fall beside the mare, tightly embracing her and staring into her eyes. She watched as those beautiful blue eyes slowly closed, Bon Bon’s cute snoring soon following. It always made Lyra smile to see how beautifully adorable her mare, because she was her mare once more, could be. Overall, she was just happy to be back. She was glad to see that her long term relationship wouldn’t crumble and fall away. Although she may never be able to look Octavia in the eye again, at least the pony she truly loved returned her affection still. Despite the turbulence, she felt like she belonged. Her eyes danced across the face of the sleeping mare, taking in her beauty one more time. You know what? she thought to herself. Sleep sounds fantastic right now. She was too tired for it to matter if it was day or night. She was just happy that the last thing she gazed upon before she slept was the face of her marefriend. ***                        ***                        *** “Why do we have to?” “I need to make things right, and this may be my only chance.” “But why do I have to?” Lyra’s pleading was met by a stern glare from Bon Bon. “Because I love you enough and you’re as much a part of this as I am.” Bon Bon was preparing to visit Octavia and Vinyl’s apartment. She had found their address when she had mailed the letter, and figured that visiting and apologizing was the only way to make things right. Lyra disagreed, but also didn’t want to risk upsetting Bon Bon once more. “Can’t we eat more or something? How about that chocolate? Still need to eat that chocolate. Are you feeling sexy? Because I’m feeling pretty darn sexy.” Lyra was saying everything she could to keep herself from going, or at least to slow her down. Her marefriend kissed her on the cheek. “No.” The unicorn had expected this. Redeeming herself had been all Bon Bon had talked about all morning and through lunch, which they had eaten laying in each other’s arms not long before. Lyra still didn’t think it was too big of a deal. Sure, they wouldn’t be able to talk to those ponies again, but that was a relatively small sacrifice compared to the embarrassment of actually visiting their apartment and apologizing. “Don’t worry, Lyra. I’ll make it worth your while afterwards, but for now we definitely have more important matters.” Lyra smiled, thinking of all the possibilities, many of them being belly rubs. “I suppose I could be convinced to go along.” “Good. Are you ready to go?” The unicorn thought for a moment. “Hold on. You need one more thing.” She levitated up the pretty rose she had set aside, checking it for thorns. Deeming it safe, she gently tucked it behind Bon Bon’s ear. “There. Now we’re ready.” She watched the mare smile, internally boasting at how thoughtful and romantic she always was. As a reward, she received a nice little kiss. The pair trotted down the stairs, heading for their home’s exit. They were greeted with clear and pretty skies on a warm day and began to trot down the street. Her flank rubbing against Bon Bon’s as they walked, Lyra spoke up. “Where do they live anyway?” She realized that she had no idea where they were going. “The apartments on eastern Ponyville. I was actually surprised when I found that out. I was positive that Octavia would live somewhere in Canterlot with a bunch of...” Lyra was sure she was trying to stop herself from calling her a cheating mare-stealer. “With a bunch of her Canterlot types.” The gravel path crunched as they walked. “Well I’d guess that she’s probably staying at Vinyl’s place. Like a bachelorette pad or something.” The unicorn thought of all that Vinyl had told her about Octavia and her relationship. “Although it being a bachelorette pad wouldn’t be the case.” “Yeah,” Bon Bon agreed. “She was a strange mare.” She seemed to chew on the words. “Who, Vinyl?” Bon Bon nodded. “She seemed pretty cool to me. Party all night and sleep all day. Sounds like my kind of time.” Lyra wasn’t surprised when the earth pony rolled her eyes. She knew that that wasn’t her kind of time at all. “It was nice talking with her, though.” “I’m glad it stopped at talking.” The unicorn was reminded that she still wasn’t in completely safe territory yet; she still didn’t want to risk upsetting Bon Bon by saying something absolutely stupid. Lyra coughed, searching for some reason to change the subject from other mares. Now was not the time to risk undoing all the comforting she had done the previous night. She looked at the mare next to her, scanning her familiar and comfortable features that she so loved. “You know, you look very pretty today.” To the unicorn’s relief, the pony’s gaze softened. “Thanks.” The mint pony wished she had said more, but just continued to stare at her. She really did look rather beautiful; more so than she would on another afternoon. It may have been the flower behind her ear, or it may just be the determined look on her face. Lyra always thought she looked cute when she set her mind to something. She felt like she could just lean up and kiss that mare right at that moment, and she probably would have if Bon Bon didn’t stop abruptly. “We’re here.” They came upon a medium-sized apartment complex, somewhat less elegant than Lyra expected. They didn’t travel to this area of Ponyville very often, as they had no business there. Of course, the building wasn’t as large as one would be in a city like Canterlot, but it was still the biggest in their town. Lyra looked to Bon Bon to see that she was standing still, just staring at the building. “Are we going in?” The mare snapped out of her trance. “Yes, of course.” Lyra could hear the mare swallow hard. Of course she’s nervous, Lyra thought. Apparently she wrote the nastiest, meanest, most dream crushing letter feasible and she’s about to see the mare who she wrote it to. She stared at the pony. Of course, this is Bon Bon. Her level of nasty is probably calling Octavia a glue stick. Her eyes continued to trace the outline of the pony. She almost shrugged, trotting forward and planting a deep, comforting and passionate kiss on the lips of her marefriend. However short it was, it was no less meaningful. She broke away, looking into her eyes. “Come on,” she told her. “Let’s go in.” Without hesitation, the pair moved forward, entering the apartment complex with confidence. Not speaking a word to any of the ponies inside as to where they were going, they trotted to the elevator, immediately hopping inside. It didn’t take long for them to arrive at the fourth floor. “Well, here we are,” Bon Bon muttered nervously. Lyra could tell that her nerves were back. “Might as well get it over with.” “Don’t worry about a thing. She’ll accept your apology and we’ll all be friends again.” If anypony knew about Bon Bon’s apology, it was Lyra. She had been practicing it all morning until she could speak every word with poise and dignity. It was apparent the the unicorn that she took this rather seriously. “Which room are they in?” “That one,” the earth pony said immediately, gesturing to a door at the end of the hall. Lyra assumed that she had spent a considerable amount of time trying to find their exact place of residence. Sending an insulting letter to the wrong house by mistake would not have ended well, especially when there was such a thing as a return address. Lyra began to lead the pony to the door, her front hoof purposely placed on her flank to push her forward. It took longer than the unicorn would have thought to get to the end of the hall because of the lethargic pace of her marefriend, but they made it all the same. Bon Bon just stared at the door. Slowly, the earth pony lifted her hoof, hesitating and mentally debating. She gave the door some quick successive taps and waited. Nothing. Time seemed to stand still as absolute silence engulfed them. Lyra mentally joked that Octavia was sharpening her assassination weapons. Again, Bon Bon tapped on the door, and again she was met with silence. The unicorn suddenly worried for her; if the couple wasn’t home, that would be absolutely devastating. It was by the third succession, however, that the door swung open. “Octavia, I’m so, so sorry about that letter I sent,” Bon Bon began to sputter. This wasn’t as graceful as she had practiced at all. “Please forgive me for all the pain I must have caused you and-” She was interrupted by the yawning of a white unicorn. It wasn’t Octavia on the other side of the door, but Vinyl. The mare smacked her lips, looking exhausted. “What?” Lyra watched a deep red glow on Bon Bon’s face. “Oh, I’m sorry. I was hoping Octavia would answer the door.” Vinyl stared at her for a moment. “Well, if you’re here for a foursome, I’m the one to see.” The mint pony laughed, only to receive a disapprove glare from her marefriend, reminding her why they were there in the first place. Of course, the unicorn wasn’t opposed to the idea. “No,” Bon Bon spoke up, not wanting to delay any longer. “We’re here to see Octavia.” The DJ responded by dozing off while standing. Her head started to fall, jolting her awake. “What?” She shook her head, her beadhead mane falling over her face. “Oh, I’m sorry. I just got out of bed.” The mare yawned and stretched. “That knocking was loud.” “At two in the afternoon?” The earth pony looked visibly concerned. “Is it that early? Dang. I could have gotten a few more hours.” She looked like she could collapse at any moment. Her eyes, lacking both their glasses and possibly coffee-fueled perkiness, just aimlessly wandered the doorway. “You said you wanted Octavia, right?” “That’s right.” “No can do. She’s been in her room crying all night and,” she looked back at the clock on the back wall. “And apparently morning.” Lyra watched Bon Bon’s expression turn to one of shock. “What? Is she alright?” The white unicorn shook her head. “No idea. I’m the one who’s really been suffering here, though.” The mare yawned once more. “I had a cool thing planned out. Got some lingerie, some fancy booze that she likes and all that good stuff. That all went to the moon the moment she checked her mail.” The candy maker’s face lost all of it’s color. “Oh... that’s not good at all...” “It’s alright. I have a refrigerator.” “No, I mean about Octavia. It’s all my fault...” Vinyl shrugged. “Pretty much, yeah.” If there was anything that the DJ was, it was blunt. Seeing the sorrow in Bon Bon’s eyes, Lyra silently wrapped her hooves around her. She hated seeing her marefriend like this. Especially when she almost felt like it was her fault. The mare looked as if she could break down in tears again. No tears came, however. The earth pony spoke up. “I need to see her.” “Go on ahead. Good luck getting her out, though. The only time I’ve even gotten to talk to her was when she asked for another box of tissues.” Lyra cringed at how painfully familiar the situation was. Slowly, she followed Bon Bon inside. It was a medium, two bedroom room apartment, although Lyra assumed that only one of the rooms was usually used. There were three pizza boxes piled up in front of the couch, assumed to be Vinyl’s dinner from the previous night. The unicorn doubted Octavia would stand for such things. The room itself was rather modest, save for a couple corners, one of them solely dedicated to classical instruments and composition. Papers were strewn all about, dotted with unfinished musical pieces. It reminded Lyra of back when she had a dream of becoming a concert lyrist. In another corner, large speakers towered over the ponies, almost touching the ceiling. Turntables and stacks of vinyl records as well as a mixing board and old radio were all piled up in front of them. A keyboard along with an electric drum kit were also found, somewhat hiding behind the turntables. The piles of electronics made the apartment feel cramped, and made Lyra feel jealous. Bon Bon never would let her buy something so awesome. It was blatantly obvious which side of the apartment belonged to who. The unicorn probably would have asked to play with the equipment if Bon Bon hadn’t started tapping the door that Octavia was presumably in. She was sure that she could hear light sobbing from the other side. It looked like it could be awhile before her marefriend could coax the pony out. In this time, she decided to trot over to Vinyl, curious as to how she was taking it all. She found the pony levitating an energy drink and was impressed with how fast she could chug it. That type of speed takes practice. Seeing the pony come up for air, she decided to ask what was on her mind. “So I’m guessing Octavia told you what happened between... us?” “Kinda.” The mare sipped out the last little bit of liquid from the can, crushing it and throwing it behind her. “She was really depressed for the past couple of days. I eventually got out of her that she had some ‘unresolved issues’, as she called them. It wasn’t until I read that letter ‘Tavi was crying over that I really found out.” “Oh...” It made Lyra curious as to what exactly was in the letter. “Yeah. That marefriend of yours has some colorful vocabulary.” Lyra smiled. “Believe me, that’s not a bad thing.” She shot the mare her best ‘if you know what I mean face’. The pair shared a good laugh. “I gotcha. Octavia says some crazy things as well.” She smiled. “It lets me know that I’m doing something right.” Vinyl seemed to have a way of making a foursome not only desirable, but seemingly possible. Lyra chuckled once more. She looked over to see that Bon Bon was still trying to get Octavia out of her room. “Although she has requested some weird things,” the DJ continued. “This one time, she asked if she could rub my tummy. That was pretty unexpected. I mean, I was up for it and all, but it was kind of weird for ‘Tavi to say that, y’know?” Luckily the DJ seemed too distracted by opening another can of an energy drink to notice the light blush that appeared on the mint unicorn’s face. She decided to steer the conversation away from uncomfortable territory. “Uh, yeah.” She quickly found a new subject that was another question that had been bugging her. “So you’re alright with... with what happened?” She watched the mare shrug. “It’s whatever. I mean, I’ve kissed my fair share of mares. And stallions. I never did learn some of their names...” Vinyl seemed lost in thought for a moment. “Anyway, yeah, it’s cool. I’m just mad that she didn’t share.” It wasn’t until she caught the wink that Lyra suddenly felt genuinely uncomfortable. She didn’t think that the DJ was that... promiscuous was the nicest word she could think of. “I... uh...” Vinyl bust out in laughter. “I’m just messing with you. ‘Tavi’s the mare for me.” The flustered unicorn breathed a sigh of relief. Before she could think of a response that wouldn’t make her look like a fool, she heard the click of a bedroom door. Octavia emerged from the depths of her room. Tears stained her coat, and her eyes inflamed an irritated red. Her eyes followed the room, immediately welling up once more when they came upon Bon Bon. The air was thick with discomfort. “Listen, Octavia...” Bon Bon started, wanting to get her apology over with. “I wanted to-” She was interrupted by the gray mare wrapping her hooves around her, almost falling upon her. Lyra watched the mare dig her face into her marefriend’s coat, sobbing loudly. “I’m so sorry,” Octavia said, looking up at her before plunging back into her fur. Recovering from her shock, Bon Bon patted her on the back. “It’s okay. I think we’ve both done things that we regret.” “But it’s not okay!” The classical musician pushed her away, raising her voice. “There’s nothing okay about anything I did! I just ruined everything!” She let her rump fall to the ground, hanging her head low. Bon Bon just stared at the mare, seemingly unsure of what to say to her. “You- you didn’t ruin everything.” “But I did! I acted like a stupid schoolfilly with her first crush! I felt so much remorse the moment I did it, and your letter brought it to life for me. I’m an awful, awful pony.” The similarities were eerie to Lyra. This was something she did not like reliving twice. She watched Bon Bon just stand motionless. She herself felt no desire to move as she watched the mare’s breakdown. “A terrible pony like me doesn’t deserve anything I have,” Octavia continued. “I don’t deserve the cello; I don’t deserve music; and I definitely don’t deserve Vinyl. Vinyl...” she looked up at the white unicorn. “I know I’ve hurt you. I’m sorry.” The DJ didn’t look all that hurt. From what she said, she seemed to be more surprised than anything else. She didn’t seem like the type who would hold a grudge over a silly mistake that a pony made. "I... I'm not helping anypony am I? I must look like an utter fool..." Octavia just fell to the ground, flat on her stomach. She buried her head in her hooves. It hurt Lyra to see her like this; it hurt her to the point where she trotted over to her, laying on the ground next to the pony. "Listen, Octavia. You don't have to be sorry. It's okay." The musician looked back up at her. “But I must have hurt you most of all! I drove a spike into your relationship without even thinking. I’m... I’m so sorry.” Lyra found herself leaning into the mare, tightly hugging her, not letting up until she felt Octavia relax in her arms. “Listen to me, Octavia,” she said quietly to her, almost whispering into her ear. “It’s alright. You’re not a horrible pony or anything like that. You did one thing wrong and that’s all. Me and Bon Bon are fine. We’re still together.” “But it’s not alright!” It was clear to Lyra that the mare wasn’t going to give up on her self-hate. “I owe you a dinner- a thousand dinners! Anything! I just want to fix all the damage I’ve caused.” It was Vinyl’s turn to speak up. She used a more serious tone than anypony would have expected. “‘Tavi, that’s enough.” “I just need to-” “No. You don’t. They forgive you.” She trotted over to her marefriend. “I forgive you. Everypony forgives you. Don’t tell yourself what you don’t deserve. Sure, you made a mistake. Whatever. You’ve apologized, she’s apoligized, blah blah blah. This whole room is a big cesspool of pointless apologies that leave us running in circles. You can stop.” Lyra was surprised that Vinyl was actually being the voice of reason. “But...” In a quick motion, the white unicorn picked her up from the floor. “Shut up. I love you.” She planted her lips upon the mare. Lyra was glad she wasn’t a pegasus, because this was really hot. Slowly, they broke away from each other. Octavia began to gather herself. Her tears subsided and her expression crawled back to its neutral state. She took a deep breath, and then jumped upon Vinyl with a hug. “I... thank you.” “Your mouth is salty.” Even Octavia laughed. It made Lyra happy to see that somepony could get through to her. She trotted over to Bon Bon’s side, turning to her. “Well, it looks like we did what we came here to do.” “I suppose.” The pair watched the couple in front of them sharing their loving embrace. It seemed like everything was finally falling into line, however crooked the line may be. Lyra watched Octavia slowly break away from Vinyl. She trotted over to their kitchen, returning with a tear-stained piece of paper in her muzzle. “Here,” she offered to Bon Bon. “You can have this back.” Now the mint unicorn was started to get excited. She may finally get to read the letter and all the nasty things that Bon Bon had put in it. For that reason, she felt like she had just been stabbed when her marefriend ripped it up. “Thank you,” was the earth pony’s reply. The gray mare stuck out her hoof. “Friends?” It was accepted, Bon Bon shaking it lightly. “Friends.” They stared at each other, both earth ponies with comfortable smiles on their faces. “I need to thank you for stopping by,” Octavia said, sniffling on last time. “If you didn’t come here... I don’t know where I would be.” “Oh, it’s no problem. I was in a pretty bad place as well. If it wasn’t for Lyra, I’d probably be lost in a sea of tissues.” She turned to her marefriend, nuzzling her. “I just did what anypony would do. Plus, I wanted to sleep in your bed again,” came the unicorn’s reply. “Well don’t worry. You’ll get to soon enough.” She shot her a loving smile. “Maybe very soon.” She kissed the mare on the cheek. Lyra almost jumped with excitement, turning to the other couple in the room. “I think that means we have to go.” She didn’t normally want to take a hasty leave, but this seemed to be an important enough reason. Besides, Octavia was all better now. Hopefully. Luckily, the gray mare seemed to catch what she was implying. “Ah, yes. I understand. I must thank you, both of you, again for stopping by. It really means a lot to me.” She thought for a moment. “And I am serious about that dinner. I owe you big time. More than I could ever hope to repay.” The two couples said their goodbyes to each other. Lyra and Bon Bon, both emotionally exhausted, made their way to the door of the apartment. They were stopped just short by Vinyl’s voice. “So... is that a no to the foursome?”