Thursday night was bowling night.
Bon Bon and Lyra were big fans of it. Lyra had started it some time ago, fascinated with the game for some reason, and had dragged Bon Bon along with her. Since every Thursday was half-off after 9:00PM and she had nothing to do better anyways, she hadn't protested. The result was that it had become a regular affair that the two roommates engaged in, something of a tradition. A lone constant in the ever more interesting small town.
Lyra was a little tipsy, and so was Bon Bon. Happy hour at the bowling alley had successfully parted them from a number of bits, but neither was unhappy, and now it was time to go home, hit the hay, and get ready for the weekend.
"Hey, what's that?"
Lyra pointed her hoof at something. Something floating. A glowing turquoise lantern. Something that should not normally be floating through their yard.
Bon Bon blinked.
"Did I have too much to drink?" she asked her roommate. Lyra cocked her head and squinted.
"Maaayyybbbeee," she concluded.
Then the floating lantern laughed at them. It was not a nice laugh. And began to float towards them.
Both ponies lay their ears against their skulls and began backing up slowly.
"I vote we bolt," Bon Bon whispered, her eyes wide with fear.
"That'll provoke it," Lyra hissed back.
The lantern laughed again. Both ponies whinnied in fear and turned to bolt–
A terrifying growl sounded from behind them. Before they could do more than take a step in any direction, panicked beyond any sense of reason, a black furred mass appeared out of the dark behind them. It cut right between them, fur brushing the flanks of both ponies as they parted like water, and leapt at the floating lantern with canines bared.
Bon Bon, frightened beyond belief, bolted for the nearest cover she could find, which happened to be her neighbors' yard and front door. She leapt the fence like it was a hurdle and desperately tried the door, hoping it was unlocked and finding that it unfortunately was locked and holy Celestia she could hear the growls and unnatural laughs and screams and they were right behind her oh Celestia she was going to die she was going to die she was going to die...
The growls stopped. Silence descended upon the night. Bon Bon stopped trying to claw her way through her neighbor's door and looked back.
There, standing in the pale light of the moon and the nearest street lamp, Link stood victorious over the glowing blue lantern, canines flashing in the light as he took heavy breaths. On his back, a small creature of some sort the likes of which Bon Bon had never seen smiled. Stooping his head over the bare ground, he fastened his powerful jaws about something, and pulled savagely.
It took a few tugs, but whatever Bon Bon couldn't see gave way, and he stepped back. For a moment, she could swear he glowed blue, just like the lantern...
Bon Bon blinked as Link turned in her direction, fixing her with a glare. He gave a firm nod in her direction before beginning to walk off as the little creature on his back seemed to praise him.
Bon Bon waved an uncertain hoof at him and watched them disappear into the night.
It was the second time he had saved her, and this time he may well have saved her life.
"Bon Bon!" came a shout. A moment later, Lyra rushed up and collapsed next to her.
"Bon Bon! Are you alright? He didn't get you did he or I'll–"
Bon Bon pushed the hooves off her face.
"I'm fine, Lyra. Really!" she assured her roommate. "He saved us–"
"He growled at us and scared us both half to death!"
"He fought that thing and saved us both!" Bon Bon shot back.
Her roommate wasn't in a listening mood. She could see it in her eyes– Lyra was still ready to bolt, adrenaline coursing through her veins, making her jittery. Bon Bon grabbed her friends head and forced Lyra to look into her eyes.
"Lyra. Calm. Down. We are ok. Link saved us from that... That thing. Everything is alright," she said firmly and slowly. Lyra's breathing slowed and her pupils lost their frantic edge.
Bon Bon looked around. They were alone, nopony was in sight in the dark night. Link was gone.
It was over.
Bon Bon shook her head. With the adrenaline wearing off, lethargy was spreading through her like wildfire through a forest. Fortunately, she knew exactly what to do to counter that.
"Come on, Lyra, let's go home and get to bed."