A Canterlot Ghost Tale

by volrathxp

Chapter Six: Night Twenty

A Canterlot Ghost Tale

Chapter Six: Night Twenty

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Ten Days Later...

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“So since that night there has been no further activity?”

“That's right.”

“Strange. Very strange. That's not like it at all...” Archibald mused. Bon Bon sat across from the unicorn stallion's desk. She had shown up out of the blue and asked to talk to him after a class.

“What do you mean?” Bon Bon asked. “That's good right? That means it's gone?”

“No, my dear,” Archibald replied, adjusting his glasses. “That means that it's planning. But that isn't like it. It's not like it at all. It doesn't plan. That would suggest that there's a form of... intelligence there that simply doesn't exist.” Bon Bon frowned. “How is your dear Lyra handling this?”

“Lyra? She's just fine,” the cream-colored mare said. “Her next performance is next week, and she's been practicing pretty much nonstop for it. She thinks that maybe somepony was messing with us, and that they found out we were on to them.”

“And what do you think, my dear Bon Bon?” Archibald said, raising an eyebrow.

“I think... I think there's more going on than that,” Bon Bon replied. “I also... I also feel like it's targeting me.” Archibald nodded.

“Indeed. That is well within the research I've been able to gather on this thing,” he said. “It seems to attach itself to a single member of the household, preying on that member. But I've never heard of it just... stopping.” Bon Bon slumped in her chair.

“I can't convince Lyra to leave. She likes it here,” she said, frowning. “She's been all... clingy lately too. Like wanting to help out with all the chores and stuff in addition to her practices. She even cooked for me, and I don't normally let her in the kitchen!”

“Interesting...” Archibald said. “Sudden shift in spousal personality... Something to add to my research books.”

“What do you mean?” Bon Bon asked, raising her eyebrows.

“It could be nothing,” the professor replied, sighing. “Sometimes if there is a significant other involved, the spouse can dramatically shift their personality to fit closer to the other in a stressful situation such as this.” Bon Bon stared at him blankly. “I did take psychology too, of course. It means this is just Lyra's way of reacting to the situation. She's most likely feeling like this is her fault for you being here, and she's trying to make up for it by changing her attitudes towards you.”

“But it could be something else?” Bon Bon said. Archibald shrugged.

“It's doubtful it's anything else, really. Give her some time and try to approach things logically with her,” he said. “And keep me updated on what happens in that house. If the activity has truly stopped, then maybe... maybe it's gone for good.”

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Lyra pushed open the door to the house, closing it quietly behind her. She trotted to the stairs, making her way up to the bedroom. She stopped and stared at the wall. Her eyes glowed a sickly green.

“I've been keeping quiet,” she said to the air. There was no response. “I know. She doesn't suspect anything. No. She'll play her part. Don't worry.” A door opening downstairs drew her attention away from the wall. Her eyes stopped glowing.

“Lyra?” She heard Bon Bon call up the stairs. “Are you home?”

“Yeah,” Lyra called back. “I'm here. Was thinking about taking a shower. Long day of practice. Are you alright?”

“Yeah I'm fine,” Bon Bon replied after a short moment of pause. “Go ahead, I'm just going to go read in the living room.” Lyra waited until she heard the mare shuffle off the stairs and looked back at the wall.

“See? It's fine. I've got this taken care of,” she muttered. She trotted out of the bedroom and down the hall to the bathroom. Meanwhile, Bon Bon made her way to the living room and grabbed her reading material. It was a compilation of all the reports made about the house back to the dorm fire. A few more trips down to Public Records while shopping had managed to fill a binder's worth of material. Not even Lyra knew she had this.

She narrowed her gaze at where she'd left off. It was two years after the house was built on the site, and a happy earth pony couple had moved in. Flash forward two months, and the Royal Guard found the house completely empty after neighbors reported that they hadn't seen the couple in weeks. Bon Bon grimaced, trying to make sense of her readings. Every owner of the house since the dorm fire had been predominantly a couple. Is there some sort of connection between them all? Bon Bon thought to herself as she read on.

The cream-colored mare heard hoof steps coming down the stairs. Bon Bon hastily marked her place in the binder and shoved it into the bookshelf next to a few encyclopedias, books she knew Lyra would never glance at. Lyra trotted into the living room, smiling. She gave her wife a peck on the cheek and settled into the couch next to her.

“Long day?” Bon Bon asked. Lyra nodded.

“Yeah. Practice was pretty brutal. Frederick is really riding us hard for this performance,” she said.

“I can't wait to hear it,” Bon Bon replied. “I'm sure it will be absolutely lovely.”

“Oh, I hope so,” Lyra said, sighing. “Frederick keeps hinting that somepony really important is going to be there, so it needs to be perfect.”

“I'm sure you'll be just fine,” Bon Bon said, leaning in and giving her love a kiss. “Are you hungry? I was thinking maybe we could go out tonight for dinner.”

“Go out?” Lyra said, raising an eyebrow. “Like to a restaurant? You know how my manners are, Bonnie.”

“I know, but we've been here a few weeks now. I feel like we should celebrate a bit,” Bon Bon said. “Come on, it'll be nice. We'll even go to one of those weird Neighponese places you like so much. I've been craving that for days.” She chuckled.

“I dunno... Can't we just order in takeout? I don't really feel like going out,” Lyra replied apprehensively.

“That's usually my line, you know. Just trust me, would ya? Please? For me?” Bon Bon said, giving the best puppy dog eyes she could. Lyra sighed.

“Alright, alright, fine. Stop giving me the eyes,” she said, grinning. “Get your coat.”

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The two mares trotted happily down the lane to their home. It was late, and the moon was high over the suburbs of Old Canterlot. Lyra rustled the keys out of her bags with her magic, unlocking the door with a soft click.

“I am officially a stuffed potato,” Bon Bon said as she made her way into the house behind Lyra. She pushed the door closed and sighed. “I ate way too much.”

“Hah, you and me both,” Lyra replied. She stopped for a second. “Bonnie, thanks for getting me out of the house for the night. I guess I needed it.”

“It's alright, love,” Bon Bon said, smiling. She yawned loudly. “I think perhaps it's time we get to bed, though.” Lyra chuckled.

“Agreed,” she said. The two mares quietly made their way up the stairs, heading towards their bedroom. Bon Bon shuffled under the sheets, smiling softly. Her eyes closed and she bade Lyra good night.

Bon Bon's eyes opened wide. Her forehoof slid over curiously, feeling nothing there. She turned over so she could see. Lyra wasn't in bed. A glance at the alarm clock revealed that she had been sleeping for four hours. Movement out of the corner of her eyes drew her attention to the wall. Standing in front of it was Lyra. She was just... standing there.

“Lyra?” Bon Bon ventured. Lyra said nothing in response. Bon Bon pushed off the bed. “Lyra? Can you hear me?” She cautiously stepped closer to the catatonic mare. Bon Bon's steps grew uneasy as she neared her wife. Lyra was standing straight, facing the wall. Her eyes were wide open, but unresponsive. Bon Bon waved a hoof in front of her. Nothing. Bon Bon frowned.

“This isn't funny, Lyra. Come on, snap out of it,” she said, reaching out and placing her hoof on Lyra's shoulder. The mare's coat was cold as ice. She didn't move. Bon Bon tried shaking her, but found she couldn't make her move at all. It was like she was frozen.

*SLAM*

The bedroom door slammed shut, snapping Bon Bon's attention away from her wife. A roar erupted from the window beyond, indicating the beginnings of a thunderstorm. Rain began to slam against the side of the house out of nowhere, followed by the flashing of lightning.

“But... it's not supposed to,” Bon Bon said, before something latched onto one of her rear legs and pulled her to the floor. The mare grunted loudly as she landed on her side, and a sharp pain lanced up her hock to her hip. She looked back, seeing nothing there, and yet... there was something. Something still had a hold on her leg. It yanked hard once, dragging the mare across the room towards the bedroom door.

Bon Bon screamed, her cries muffled by the thunderous wrath of the storm taking place outside. She called out for Lyra as the door began to creak open. Lyra turned, her eyes glowing a sickly green. Her expression remained vacant.

“Lyra!!!” Bon Bon shouted, tears filling her eyes. “Lyra, please!!! Please help me!!!” The pressure lifted off of her leg, and she found that she could move forward. She tried to push herself up, her back leg giving out underneath the weight. More pain arced up her back. It's broken, Bon Bon thought to herself as she started crawling towards the closet door. It was the only place she could think of to escape to.

The force latched onto her leg again, pinning her to the ground. Bon Bon flailed with her other rear leg, but to no avail. It wouldn't let her go. Bon Bon cried and screamed, trying to find purchase on the wooden flooring with her forelegs. Again, as if by luck itself, the force released her leg and she was able to move again. Lyra stood impassively still, a malevolent grin forming on her lips. Bon Bon's eyes went wide.

Then it hit her. The force picked her up, lifting her entire body into the air. She went soaring towards the closet, slamming into the door hard. Pain lanced all up and down her body, and the last thing that Bon Bon remembered before passing out was hearing hideous laughter coming from Lyra's mouth.

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Bon Bon's eyes fluttered open to a sea of white. She heard beeping coming from somewhere above her. Briefly the mare wondered if she had died, and this was the Summer Lands. Her vision began to coalesce into what appeared to be a hospital room. She was lying on a bed, her back leg strung up in a cast and bandages all over her body.

The cream-colored mare sighed loudly, feeling pain as she did so. She racked her mind, trying to remember what had happened the night before. She had gone to bed and then... Lyra! Lyra was standing in front of the wall... and then something had attacked her. Lyra had just watched, she was possessed! Bon Bon's mind began to run a mile a minute as her eyes focused on the other occupant of the room – Lyra herself.

The unicorn mare looked unkempt. She was sleeping, but her mane was in tatters and she appeared as if she hadn't showered. The edges of her eyelids were red with puffiness, indicating prolonged crying. At the sound of Bon Bon's stirring, she awoke. She tried to smile.

“Bonnie?” She said meekly. Bon Bon glared at her as Lyra began to approach the bed.

“Lyra, stop,” she said forcefully. “Stay away from me.” Lyra's eyes widened.

“Bonnie, wait. I can explain everything,” she said. Bon Bon grimaced.

“Just... go away, Lyra,” she said.

“No,” Lyra replied. “Whatever you think happened, isn't what happened. You had an episode, Bonnie. You got out of bed and you tried to kill yourself.” Bon Bon's eyes widened this time.

“What?” She said. “I saw you Lyra. I felt it grab onto me. That wasn't all in my head. You were there. You did nothing to stop it. You... weren't you.”

“That's not true, Bonnie. The doctor referred to it as a stress disorder brought on by the pregnancy. You're inventing things that aren't there because it makes sense rather than dealing with the real problem,” Lyra replied, tears filling her eyes as she began to break down. “This is all my fault. I never should have accepted that job.”

“What... what about the foal?” Bon Bon asked curtly.

“Everything is fine,” Lyra said sullenly, more to herself then anything. “You know how we didn't want to know what it was? Well, guess what... we're having a unicorn. The doctor said that sometimes unicorn foals can bring on this stress disorder after a particularly large change in the life of the mother. Guess what change that was?”

“You're telling me I invented the whole thing? The ghost?”

“The doctor believes that you finally broke last night when you tried to harm yourself,” Lyra said, nodding. “You've been asleep for several days now.”

“But... I couldn't have... Professor Archibald, the records I have... I didn't invent that! There's something in that house!” Bon Bon argued vehemently. Lyra frowned.

“Bon Bon,” she said softly. The cream-colored mare stopped talking. Lyra never called her by her full name unless she meant it. “I hate to tell you this... there is no Professor Archibald. He doesn't exist. He never existed.”

“But... but you saw him! You talked to him!” Bon Bon said angrily.

“Bonnie, I went along with it because the doctor told us that he thought it would help you to play it out a bit. When we first moved, you had some issues with depression. We saw Doctor Care about it, and he suggested going through the motions. I guess it didn't work,” Lyra replied, sighing. “Please, Bonnie. You have to believe me. I'll even go get the doctor, if you want.” Bon Bon narrowed her gaze at her wife and glared at her for several long minutes of awkward silence.

“Fine. I want to talk to this 'Doctor Care',” she said finally. Lyra nodded, moving to the hospital room door. She pushed it open and muttered under her breath to somepony in the hall. After several agonizing minutes alone, the door opened again and a unicorn stallion trotted inside.

“Ms. Bon Bon, I'm glad you're awake, we need to discuss your situation.”

Bon Bon's eyes widened. The stallion was older, his coat the same dull grey color, his mane the same wizened white, the same voice. He wore horn-rimmed glasses and a doctor's uniform, but it was the same stallion.

Doctor Care was Professor Archibald.

Comments

[Unfoundedfall]

This was overall an enjoyable story. It falls into one of my favorite Fimfiction sub genres - Lyra and Bon Bon move into a haunted house.

I enjoyed this one, keep up the good work.

[volrathxp]

4659301

Thanks! It certainly has been interesting to write. It's not over yet, though.

[Unfoundedfall]

4660692

OH! I totally thought it was over. I could have sworn I had read "Complete" on it. Well I'm looking forward to the next chapter.

[Brody Deitrick]

somethings fish here and it's not the blue fin tuna in my vest (this time)