//------------------------------//
// Chapter 8 - Travel 
// Story: Lyra's Ultimate Item Emporium 
// by Thunderbug80 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 8
Travel





"Isn't this so much fun? It's like we're on an adventure!" Lyra called out. She stuck her head out one of the windows of the Friendship Express, the train that was the main mode of transportation between pony cities and villages, and relished the feeling of the wind blowing through her mane.

Iron Will, whose huge frame was hunkered down in his seat to avoid hitting his head on the ceiling, was somewhat less enthusiastic. It made sense that he should assist Miss Heartstrings in her efforts to repay her debts, and while he couldn't help but feel as if he may have been suckered in somehow, that wasn't the problem. 

The real problem was that they were fast approaching Appleoosa, home of the other large, horned residents of Equestria: the buffalo.

The feud between the buffalo and the minotaurs was so intense, and had lasted for so long, that it was rumored that even the windigos had known better than to interfere, lest they incur the wrath of either species. As was usually the case with such things, however, there weren't any minotaurs or buffalo alive who could tell you what, exactly, it was that had started the feud. Rumors persisted that it had something to do with whose horns were bigger, but this was usually dismissed as conjecture. Mostly because everypony was afraid to ask for themselves.

"Lyra, any time spent with you is an adventure," Bon Bon quipped. She nudged Iron Will's arm and craned her neck to look up at him. "You know, I can't help but wonder what kind of awful things your bosses are going to do to you if the debt isn't repaid."

Iron Will looked down at Bon Bon and folded his great arms across his chest. "Iron Will would prefer not to think about it," he stated.

Bon Bon put a hoof to her chin and tilted her head in thought. "It must be pretty horrific," she wondered aloud. "Why else would you willingly get caught up in one of Lyra's schemes?"

Lyra stuck her head back inside the train carriage and spun around. "Because he's a good friend, and good friends always look out for each other!" She then turned back to the window and started humming.

The subject of one's mental health can oftentimes be a difficult one to broach, particularly when it directly relates to the sanity of a best friend. It can be even more of a sticky situation if it involves anyone else who happens to be in the room at the time, such as a large, grey minotaur who just happens to be sitting right beside you.

Somehow, that did not stop Bon Bon.

"Lyra! He's only here to take your money!" she gasped, front hooves thrust into the air. At the look Iron Will gave her, she shrugged at him and said, "Well, it's true! You wouldn't be here if you didn't have a debt to collect, now would you?"

It should be noted here that minotaurs are a fierce race. Prone to fighting and quick to anger, it is generally considered unwise to provoke, insult, annoy, harass, bite, tickle, or otherwise perform any action upon one which might cause it to tear one of your limbs off and proceed to beat you with it. This is, of course, common sense. But you wouldn't know it by the look of insult and conflict that had appeared upon Iron Will's face.

Lyra had just called him her friend, and she sounded like she meant it. Yet, the annoying pony sitting next to him had a good point. If there weren't any bits to collect, he wouldn't have shown up. He wasn't here to make friends, he was here to conduct business. It was as simple as that.

Iron Will was still trying to come up with some kind of response when the door to their carriage opened and another pony entered. She was a unicorn with a blue coat, a lighter blue, highlighted mane, and purple eyes brimming with confidence. Her eyes narrowed when she saw who was in the carriage with her.

"Well well well, if it isn't Ponyville's newest entrepreneur, Lyra Heartstrings," the unicorn said mockingly. "What are you doing here? Get run out of business already?"

Lyra brought her head back inside the carriage and looked to see who had called her name. Her golden eyes lit up when they spotted the unicorn. "Oh, hey Trixie!" she called out happily. "Enjoying the train ride?"

Trixie frowned. "Don't play dumb with Trixie! The question was a rhetorical one." She moved forward and prodded Lyra's chest accusingly with a hoof. "It is obvious that you are here in an attempt to undermine Trixie's efforts, but be assured that you won't succeed!"

"What in Equestria are you going on about?" Bon Bon demanded. She had stood from her seat and was glaring with open hostility.

Lyra, on the other hoof, was still smiling happily. "I'm not sure what's going on," she admitted, "but I promise not to undermine you!"

"Tch!" Trixie scoffed. She stepped back and looked at Lyra, Bon Bon, and Iron Will each in turn. "Why else would you be here?" she prodded. "First you decide to open an item shop on the very day that Trixie tries to get her life back together and open one herself, then you are found skulking around on the very same train headed to the very same destination as Trixie in order to try and swoop in unnoticed and obtain the best stock for yourselves!" She stomped a hoof to the ground and gritted her teeth. "Well, Trixie is being financed by none other than Filthy Rich! So go on! Go scavenge for items with whatever pittance you have earned in that run down little shop of yours! Trixie will be purchasing top-quality items that you could never even dream of affording!"

As is often the case in these kinds of situations, there was an uncomfortable silence within the carriage. Iron Will had no idea how to respond. Actually, he had never seen a pony get that angry before, except maybe back at Can't Run, Can't Hide. He found it quite fascinating. Bon Bon was too outraged to even form words for the moment. She knew, of course, that they had been attempting none of the things Trixie had accused them of, but a growing part of her wanted to see the self-obsessed unicorn fall, and fall hard.

Then there was Lyra. She had stopped smiling as she absorbed what Trixie had said, but a moment later the smile had returned.

"Oh wow, you have a shop too?" Lyra asked, grinning. "That's wonderful!  I hope you do really well." Before Trixie could react, Lyra had caught her up in a hug.

"What are you...?" Trixie sputtered. "Release the Wealthy and Corporate Trixie this very moment!"

"Lyra!" Bon Bon yelped. "Don't hug the competition!"

Lyra finished her hug and beamed at Trixie. "Make sure you try your very best," she advised. "I know you'll succeed!" 

Trixie's frown returned. "Enough of this! Trixie is leaving!" With a huff and a swish of her tail, Trixie spun around, rushed to the carriage door, and opened it. She turned around one last time before leaving. "You will regret the day you tried to make a foal out of Trixie!" With that said, she left and slammed the door shut.

Bon Bon and Iron Will looked at each other. Neither of them could think of anything to say, but Lyra broke the silence for them.

"Oh, this is going to be so much fun!" she squealed, stamping the floor with her hooves excitedly. "It looks like we get to have a little friendly competition!"