Chapter 1: Formative Years

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As the sun rose over Whinnyapolis, a small earth pony family – a husband, his wife, and their only daughter – gathered for breakfast.

The wife, Sugar Plum, had a mane made up of layers of amethyst and lavender hair that ended in subtle curls on both sides of her neck. From the kitchen, she carried a plate to the table in her mouth and set it before her husband. “Here you go, dear,” she said as she nudged the plate directly in front of him. It contained two eggs served sunny-side up with a slice of toast – the same breakfast he ate every morning. She went back to the kitchen to finish preparing the oatmeal that would accompany his eggs.

“Thank you,” said Straight Lace, a stallion with a neat, carefully cut, black mane. Even though he was living in Whinnyapolis, he, like his wife, did not speak with a Whinnysota accent. He wrapped his hoof around a knife and began to butter his toast.

At the other end of the rectangular table sat their six-year-old daughter, Sweetie Drops. Her coat was a cream color – darker than her mother’s ivory-colored coat but lighter than her father’s tan coat. Her naturally curled mane was divided down the middle into two sections – bright rose on one side and blueberry-colored on the other.

A bowl of cereal was in front of Sweetie Drops and a plate of freshly-baked doughnuts was off to her side. As she looked at the doughnuts, she was struck with inspiration. She reached over, picked up a doughnut in each of her forehooves, and held them in front of the bright blue plastic frame of the glasses that she had been prescribed just two weeks prior.

“Look, daddy!” she exclaimed. “I found new glasses that I can wear!” She looked through the holes of the doughnuts and beamed at her father, proud of her joke.

Straight Lace glared at her. “Sweetie Drops!” he barked. The smile fell from Sweetie Drops’ face. “Put those down right now! You know not to play with your food!” Sweetie Drops set the doughnuts down beside her cereal and looked toward the floor.

Sugar Plum carried the oatmeal in and placed it on the table. “What happened?” she asked.

“Our daughter was just being… different. We’ve taught you better than that, Sweetie Drops. Act the way other ponies expect you to act.”

Sweetie Drops looked at her mother pleadingly. Sugar Plum simply said, “Listen to your father.”

“Yes, mom. Yes, dad,” Sweetie Drops replied sadly. She picked up a doughnut and took a bite. Normally, she liked doughnuts, but now, this one didn’t taste as good.

After breakfast, Sugar Plum walked Sweetie Drops to school. Sweetie Drops was in no hurry to get there. She had only been attending for about three months, and based on the pattern her family had followed since before she could remember, she would probably only attend for two or three months more. Then her father would have to move to a new city and she would attend a new school.

Straight Lace had a job with the Administration for the Redistribution of Magical Imbalances. Sweetie Drops didn’t understand exactly what he did, but she knew it had something to do with too much magic building up in one place at a time. As her parents explained it, if too much magic got bunched up in one city, then all of the unicorn magic would go out of control. So when Canterlot received word that a city was starting to show the warning signs of a magical imbalance, they would send Straight Lace to that city where he used some special equipment to get everything back to normal.

Sweetie Drops didn’t care about the details. All she knew was that her father’s job meant she had to move to a new town two or three times each year. When she first started attending school, she had tried to make friends in the first couple of cities she lived in. But it hurt too much when her family had to move and she had to say good-bye each time, so by this point, she had given up. It took too long to try to meet new ponies when she compared it to how long she would get to be friends with them. If she kept to herself and didn’t do anything out of the ordinary, it was easier to get through the day.

Sweetie Drops, now nearly an adult, sat outside of the guidance counselor’s office at Seaddle Secondary School. While her family’s constant moves from city to city meant that she never really had any ponies her own age she could confide in, she would occasionally talk to a school’s guidance counselor when she had a question she didn’t want to discuss with her parents. And this day, she had something very important that she needed to ask.

The door to the office opened and another student walked out. Sage Insight, the guidance counselor, stuck her head out the door. “Sweetie Drops?” she asked in a professional yet kind manner. “Come on in.”

Sweetie Drops took a deep breath, exhaled, and walked into Sage Insight’s office. In her head, she had spent a lot of time going over how she was going to phrase this.

“Have a seat,” Sage Insight said, gesturing to a chair on the opposite side of her desk. Sweetie Drops did so. “It’s nice to meet you. What did you want to talk about?”

Sweetie Drops launched into the short speech she had practiced in her head. “I need your advice,” she said. “I have a secret. About myself. It’s nothing bad, nothing illegal. But it’s something that nopony else knows. And I don’t know whether I should tell anypony.” Sweetie Drops wasn’t going to tell Sage Insight what the secret was. She wasn’t ready to do that yet.

“I see,” Sage Insight said. Although Sweetie Drops didn’t realize it, Sage Insight had been a secondary school guidance counselor long enough to have a good idea what Sweetie Drops was referring to. Usually, when a student said they had a private secret that wasn’t related to the law, it meant one of two things. And since Sweetie Drops hadn’t subconsciously placed her hoof over her belly, Sage Insight was pretty sure what her secret was. But Sage Insight would never let on that she knew. That wouldn’t be fair to the student.

“You don’t have to tell me the secret if you don’t want to,” Sage Insight assured her. Sweetie Drops nodded. Sage Insight said, “Let me ask you this: Do you think it would make you feel better if you revealed this secret?”

“I’m not sure,” Sweetie Drops said. “It would depend on how the ponies I reveal it to reacted.”

Sage Insight nodded. “Unfortunately, there’s no way to be absolutely certain how somepony will react. May I ask who you were thinking of telling this secret to?”

“My parents,” Sweetie Drops said.

Sage Insight put her hoof to her chin in contemplation. Because Sweetie Drops had made an appointment, Sage Insight had already had a chance to review her file: Sweetie Drops had to frequently change schools, so it was likely she didn’t have any close friends she could confide in. And she was an only child, so it made sense that her parents would be the ponies she trusted the most. Still, at Sweetie Drops’ age, the decision whether to reveal this secret to her parents needed to be made carefully.

“Well, I can’t tell you one way or the other that you definitely should or you definitely shouldn’t tell your parents,” Sage Insight said. “I can’t promise you that they’ll react positively and I can’t warn you that they’ll react negatively. There’s just no way for me to predict that.”

Sweetie Drops gave a small, single nod of comprehension.

Sage Insight softly exhaled through her nose. “I’m afraid I can’t give you much concrete advice in this situation. All I can really help you do is consider the what-ifs. I know that it can be difficult to keep a secret bottled up inside of you. You’ll have to weigh that against how you’ll feel if your parents do react negatively to your secret. Especially since you’ll still be living with them.”

“But I’m graduating at the end of the year,” Sweetie Drops said.

“That’s true, and that’s something else for you to consider. Whether you want to place your trust in them now, or whether you want to wait until you’re out on your own.” A brief pause. “I get the feeling that being honest with them is important to you.”

“It is,” Sweetie Drops said. “I just wish I knew what was going to happen.”

“I wish I knew, too,” Sage Insight said. “There’s no one consistent way this situation plays out. I’ve seen students in the past who have had various secrets of their own. Sometimes they tell their parents, their parents are supportive, and everypony is happy. Sometimes they wait, then wish they hadn’t waited so long. But sometimes they tell their parents and their parents don’t react well.” She saw Sweetie Drops’ face fall a little. “The only advice I can offer is to tell you that all of these outcomes have happened in the past. But I can’t guarantee which outcome will happen to you.”

“I understand,” Sweetie Drops said.

“I’m really sorry that I can’t give you more help,” Sage Insight said. “Is there anything else you want to discuss? About this, or about anything?”

“No,” Sweetie Drops said as she got up from the chair. “I guess I just need to think about all of the things that might happen.”

“That’s the best advice I can give,” Sage Insight said apologetically. As Sweetie Drops was reaching for the door handle, Sage Insight added, “No matter what decision you come to – whether to keep it a secret, whether to tell somepony, however that somepony reacts if you tell them – please know that I’m always available to talk. And anything you say here will be kept confidential.”

“Thanks,” Sweetie Drops said, then left the office. Sage Insight couldn’t be sure whether the statement was genuine. She silently wished Sweetie Drops the best.

Five weeks later, Sweetie Drops made the decision to tell her parents. She felt like she wasn’t being true to herself by keeping it a secret. And although she wasn’t sure how her parents would react, she had used the intervening time to accept that it would make her feel more at peace to get it out in the open in some small way.

Plus, the timing was as good as it was going to be. Her father had recently finished his work correcting the magical imbalance in Seaddle. He had had some time to relax from the stress of his job, but he hadn’t yet become anxious that he was spending too much time at home – after a few weeks of nothing to do, he would always start to worry that there was some imbalance building up somewhere that no one knew about, and that if it went unchecked for too long, it would be too overwhelming to stop.

So that evening, after Sweetie Drops helped her mother clear the dishes from the dining room table, she sat back down. “Mom? Dad? There’s something important I want to tell you.”

Sugar Plum returned to the table and took her seat. “What is it, Sweetie?”

Sweetie Drops looked at her parents. Her plan was to cut to the chase; to promptly get it out into the open. She took a breath to steady herself. “There’s something about me that you need to know. I’m gay. I’m attracted to mares.”

Silence. A thick, uncomfortable silence.

Straight Lace’s brow furrowed. His lips curled downward.

Sugar Plum simply blinked, seemingly unable to comprehend the words.

Sweetie Drops said nothing. She fought the urge to elaborate, to fill the void with sound. There was nothing that needed further explanation.

Sugar Plum looked to Straight Lace. Then back at Sweetie Drops. Then back to Straight Lace.

Finally, Straight Lace broke the silence. His voice was even; his tone straightforward. “No you’re not.”

Sweetie Drops was stunned. She had tried to anticipate various ways her parents might react, but she hadn’t expected them to outright reject her statement. After a moment, she recovered from the shock in order to respond. Keeping her voice level, she said, “I am. I’m gay. I’m sure of it.” The tension in the air was palpable.

Sugar Plum spoke. “I know that colt in Fillydelphia who asked you out wasn’t very nice, but that’s no reason to give up on all of them.”

“No, mom, that isn’t it.” Sweetie Drops knew that she needed to keep herself calm. Raising her voice would only make the situation worse. “This isn’t something I decided to do. It’s who I am.”

Straight Lace was visibly trying to keep his emotions in check. While he didn’t slam his hoof down on the table, he did lower it with more strength than was necessary. “You don’t really feel that way. You just got the wrong idea in your head from those ponies in Maresachusetts.”

In truth, it was witnessing the love and acceptance of the Maresachusetts schoolponies which had helped Sweetie Drops build up the courage to come out in the first place. But that didn’t make what her father said any less inaccurate. “Nopony told me to be attracted to mares,” she said. “I’ve always been like this.”

“What if you joined the committee to help plan the next school dance?” Sugar Plum suggested.

“I recommend you think long and hard before you make this decision,” Straight Lace said, his voice nearly a growl.

“This isn’t a decision. It’s a statement of fact.” Sweetie Drops was growing increasingly frustrated – there were only so many different ways to say the same thing. Her parents wouldn’t even accept the basic truth of the matter.

“We’ll find a psychiatrist for you to talk to,” Sugar Plum said. “He’ll help you get over this.”

Sweetie Drops couldn’t take it anymore. She got up from the table. “I’m going to go to my room now, before I start yelling or saying something I’ll regret. However, I will say it once again: I am gay. Nothing you say or do can change that.”

Sweetie Drops turned and walked up the stairs. Her legs felt like they were going to give out at any moment.

She walked into her bedroom, closed the door – not a slam, but nearly – and collapsed onto her bed, face-down. She pressed the pillow against her face and screamed into it as forcefully as she could. That muffled scream then turned into muffled sobbing.

Sweetie Drops remained in her bedroom until the next morning. The only time either of her parents spoke to her was when her mother stated through the door, “There’s cereal on the table.”

“I’m not hungry,” Sweetie Drops said back. Her voice was raw from the night before.

Sweetie Drops stayed in her room until she had to leave. It was only then that she opened her door, walked down the stairs, and announced “I’m going to school” to the rest of the house without looking behind her. Then she left.

At school, she tried to focus on the lectures. Tried to block the events of the previous night from her head. But it was no use. She took some small comfort in the fact that because she always kept to herself in class, no one was going to ask her what was wrong. She didn’t want to talk about it.

She took her time walking home from school. But she knew she couldn’t stay away from the problem forever. She reached her house and walked inside, finding her parents in the living room. “I’m home,” she said flatly.

“Your mother and I have been talking,” Straight Lace said. “If you’re willing to apologize for what you said, we’re willing to pretend last night never happened.”

“We know you didn’t mean it,” Sugar Plum added.

Sweetie Drops couldn’t handle having this conversation again. “I have nothing to apologize for,” she said. She didn’t want the emotion to show in her voice, but she couldn’t help it. “I was telling you the truth. I was hoping you would at least believe me!”

She ran upstairs and locked herself in her room. For the second day in a row, Sweetie Drops found herself crying into her pillow.

When she stopped crying, she could faintly overhear her parents talking downstairs.

“…just trying to get attention, Sugar Plum.”

“Is it because of school? She’s never had that problem before.”

“It doesn’t matter why. She’s got to learn that acting different than everypony else isn’t the right way to go about it.”

Sweetie Drops pulled her pillow up and over her ears. She didn’t want to hear it.

Eventually, she got up and found a pair of earmuffs buried inside one of the storage bins in her closet. Combined with the door being closed, they blocked out the sound. Sweetie Drops focused on trying to complete her homework.

Because she wasn’t able to fully concentrate, it took longer than usual for her to finish her assignments. By the time she was done, it was time for dinner.

She really didn’t want to face her parents again that evening. She took off the earmuffs and stepped toward the door. Once again, she could just make out the sound of their voices.

“I should go up and tell her that dinner’s ready.”

“She knows when dinnertime is. If she wants some, she can come down here on her own.”

Sweetie Drops’ stomach growled. So far that day, she had only eaten lunch.

She decided to stay in her room.

The next morning, Sweetie Drops lay in bed, reading a biography of Calamity Mane. She had just read it the month before – even that first time, she questioned whether all of the stories were actually true. She didn’t really feel like reading the book again, but she had woken up an hour ago and there was nothing else for her to do while she confined herself to her bedroom.

There was a knock on her door. Her mother’s voice called from the other side. “Sweetie Drops? Are you okay?”

“I’m here,” Sweetie Drops answered.

“Honey, you have to eat. Please, come down and have breakfast. I promise, your father and I won’t say anything.”

Maybe it was her stomach talking, but Sweetie Drops was willing to settle for that at the moment.

After that, things returned to an altered state of normalcy. Sweetie Drops didn’t lock herself away in her bedroom. However, everyday conversations between her and her parents were much terser. Sweetie Drops didn’t bring up the subject of her sexual orientation again. Occasionally, one of her parents would make reference to a time when she would be “past this phase.” When they did, Sweetie Drops would just ignore them. It was easier than trying to convince them of something they would never accept.

As she walked from class to class through the school building, Sweetie Drops would pass by the corridor that led to Sage Insight’s office. A few times, she considered walking down there to talk about what had happened at home. But she always decided against it. Coming out had been a mistake, and she didn’t want to go through that emotional turmoil again.

Eventually, her father was relocated to Baltimare. Sweetie Drops enrolled in yet another school where she was once again the new student that no one got to know very well. That was the school from which she graduated at the end of her final year.

The day after she graduated, her parents told her that following dinner that evening, they would talk to her about what she would be doing now that she was finished with school. This was a subject that Sweetie Drops wanted to discuss with them, as well – she had long ago established that her special talent was candy making, and she was looking forward to learning the trade at one of the city’s candy stores. Getting out of the house and living on her own would be good for her, too. She was just worried about how she would find a place to live and initially make ends meet.

Dinner ended, and the family took their seats at the empty dining room table. It was the first time the three sat together for an after-dinner conversation since Sweetie Drops had come out months earlier. Even though it was the same table, the fact that it was a different house helped to defuse some of the inherent tension.

Straight Lace was the first to speak. “As you know, now that you’ve finished school, you’re expected to go out into the world and start a career.”

Sweetie Drops nodded. She was eager to start discussing plans to move out. But her father hadn’t finished speaking yet and she didn’t want to make him angry by interrupting him.

Straight Lace continued. “To that end, I’ve arranged through my contacts in Canterlot to get you a job in the Royal Guard Support Corps.”

Sweetie Drops’ chest tightened. There was a moment of silence as she processed what her father just said. Her only immediate reaction was, “…You what?”

Straight Lace ignored the question. “You won’t be serving in the Royal Guard itself. The Support Corps offers a number of programs which serve Equestria while teaching its recruits discipline and conformity. You’ll most likely be placed into the food service program. Maybe the nursing academy. The point is, they’ll be able to teach you how to behave like a proper young mare so you can move past your current lifestyle choice.”

Sweetie Drops momentarily forgot the outrageousness of her father’s initial statement to focus on the outrageousness of his last sentence. Clearly, she couldn’t ignore it any longer.

“My being gay isn’t a ‘lifestyle choice,’” she said angrily. “It isn’t something that the Royal Guard can change.”

“Please, Sweetie,” her mother said. “This is for your own good.”

“No!” Sweetie Drops shot back. “This is you two still refusing to accept who I am! How could you just sign me up for the Royal Guard without even talking to me first?”

“I’m still your father, and I still have the right to see that my daughter gets the help she needs to become a normal, productive member of society,” Straight Lace said sternly. “This decision is not negotiable. I suggest you go to your room and start packing. You’re allowed one suitcase. The charioteers will be here tomorrow morning to take you to the Support Corps headquarters in Canterlot.”

Sweetie Drops wanted to scream. She wanted to run away. She wanted to escape. But she realized she had no idea what she would do if she tried to run away from home. The only familiar place she could run to was her bedroom, and that was where her father had just told her to go.

“I’m going to my room,” she said. “But only because I don’t want to talk to you two right now. I am not packing, because I am not going anywhere.”

Sweetie Drops left the dining room. Sugar Plum looked to her husband. Straight Lace simply shook his head regretfully.

The next morning, Sweetie Drops was lying in her bed. Her sleep that night had been fitful. And she still had no idea what she was going to do.

There was a knock at her door. It was her father. “Sweetie Drops, the charioteers are here. Open the door or we’re coming in.”

Their current house had no locks on the bedroom doors. Sweetie Drops got out of bed and looked out her first-story window. She could see an ornately-decorated chariot parked outside the front of the house. It would have been beautiful if it wasn’t being used to take her someplace against her will.

Sweetie Drops really didn’t want to run away from home – she didn’t know the first thing about being a transient and she knew her father would immediately send the police after her. But she also didn’t have any other options. She began to unlock the window.

Her father opened the door. Sweetie Drops turned around and saw standing behind him two very large, very serious-looking pegasi, each wearing full armor. She knew that even if she tried to run, they’d be able to follow her.

“Did you pack?” her father asked.

“No,” she stated.

“Suit yourself,” he said. He motioned for her to follow the guards.

Sweetie Drops didn’t want to go. But she also didn’t want to be physically dragged out of her own house. In the end, she chose to maintain her dignity.

Sweetie Drops walked down the hallway, out the front door, and stepped into the chariot. Behind her, she could hear her mother crying. Sweetie Drops didn’t turn around to look.

The pegasi harnessed themselves to the chariot. Wordlessly, they took off into the air. Sweetie Drops sat facing forward the entire time. She dedicated every ounce of her concentration to maintaining the grimace on her face. She refused to let anyone see her cry.

But once the chariot was far enough away from the house, she lay down, put her head in her hooves, and quietly wept.

Chapter 2: The Agency

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The flight from Baltimare to Canterlot wasn’t very long. Before Sweetie Drops knew it, her chariot was touching down at the Royal Guard Support Corps headquarters. She quickly wiped her tears away, sat back up, then followed the guards to the recruitment building.

Regardless of what Straight Lace believed, the Royal Guard and its affiliated branches welcomed all ponies, regardless of sexual orientation. A number of same-sex and bisexual soldiers served openly and without discrimination. If Straight Lace had ever disclosed his motive for enlisting his daughter with the Royal Guard Support Corps, they would have immediately informed him of his misconception. However, the staffing officer only knew what was written on the paperwork in front of him.

“So, you’re the daughter of our chief field agent in the Administration for the Redistribution of Magical Imbalances,” he said to Sweetie Drops, who sat alone in his office. He tapped his pen against his chin. “And I take it from your name and your cutie mark that you know a thing or two about sweets?”

“Yes,” Sweetie Drops said curtly. This stallion represented everything that she hated about her father – she wasn’t going to give him any more information than what he requested.

“Mm-hmm…” the staffing officer said, deep in thought. After a few moments, he spoke. “It says here that your father was expecting you to be assigned to our food service division. However, I have another assignment which I think you may be well-suited for. I have to tell you, though, it would be working for one of our top-secret agencies – an agency that the general public doesn’t know exists. You would be sworn to secrecy both during and after your time there, and you’d be subject to severe criminal charges if you ever revealed its secrets. Not even your family would be informed of your whereabouts and duties. Would you be willing to agree to that?”

Sweetie Drops considered what the officer was saying. If she was going to be forced into serving Canterlot’s military organization in some way – and it was apparent that she was – then being ordered to break off contact with her family actually sounded like a benefit. Besides, cooking vegetables all day every day for hundreds of soldiers didn’t exactly appeal to her.

“I would agree to that,” she said, slightly less icily.

“Excellent,” the staffing officer said. “I’ll send you over to the office of Steel Poise.”

“Welcome, Miss Sweetie Drops,” said Steel Poise, an earth pony who sat behind a sturdy wooden desk. Befitting her name, her coat was a medium metallic gray color and her mane was a lustrous light blue. She spoke in a direct, no-nonsense manner, which was to be expected of a pony with a leadership position in a Canterlot military agency. But even though her voice conveyed confidence, it wasn’t intimidating – Sweetie Drops could tell that Steel Poise was treating her with respect.

“Before I tell you why you’re here, you’ll need to sign some very important paperwork swearing that you’ll never disclose any information you learn here. But before you sign that paperwork, I want you to be aware of the risks you’re agreeing to, because I know Staffing never informs cadets of everything they’re getting into before they’re sent my way.”

Sweetie Drops braced herself upon hearing the word “risks.” “Okay,” she replied, trying to sound confident.

“If you join this agency, you will be sent out to potentially remote locations to do potentially dangerous work. And when I say ‘potentially dangerous,’ that includes ‘potentially life-threatening.’ We work with a scientific agency which provides us with intel that we use so we can do our jobs safely and with a minimum of risk. I’m proud to say that to date, nopony has died while serving this agency – and we’ve been around for a good number of years. However, I won’t lie to you: We have had a few close calls.

“The reason this work is potentially dangerous is because you will be encountering creatures which pose a threat to ponies’ safety. We do not deal with dragons, but since those are creatures everypony has heard of, I’ll use them for comparison. The creatures we deal with are smaller than full-grown dragons. However, some of them are still considerably larger than ponies, and like dragons, they have the ability to do ponies harm.

“If you do commendable work in the field, you will eventually be promoted to supervising positions. As a result, you won’t have to go out as often, which makes the job safer. On average, our agents receive these promotions in about three or four years. Some do it more quickly. Some quit before they have the chance to be promoted. You will always have the option to leave this agency – of course, if you do, your nondisclosure agreement will still be binding for the rest of your life.”

Steel Poise took a drink from the glass of water sitting on her desk. “So those are the risks. Do you have any questions?”

Sweetie Drops felt a little overwhelmed. “You said that I always have the option to quit if the work becomes too dangerous?” she asked.

“That’s right,” Steel Poise said. “Although you will be required to complete at least one field mission before you make that decision. We don’t have the resources to train ponies if they’re going to turn around and not serve at all.”

Sweetie Drops considered her options. She could take the dangerous, though probably not lethal, job. Or she could take the safer food service job and do exactly what her father had planned for her to do.

“I’ll join,” she said.

“Very good,” Steel Poise said. She gave Sweetie Drops a multiple-page legal form. “This is our nondisclosure agreement – it’s the thing that says you agree to never reveal what you learn here. If you do reveal something, it will be considered an act of espionage. Please read it thoroughly before you sign it.”

Sweetie Drops carefully read the document while Steel Poise kept herself busy with unrelated paperwork. Finally, Sweetie Drops picked up a pen with her teeth, initialed in the indicated spaces, and signed her name to the bottom.

Steel Poise picked up the nondisclosure agreement and gave Sweetie Drops a smile.

“Welcome to the Monster Containment Agency.”

The office space for the Monster Containment Agency wasn’t particularly large. So Steel Poise’s tour of Sweetie Drops’ new workplace was already nearing its end.

“And this is where we’ll put you for now,” she said, pointing to an empty desk in an open space containing eight desks. “When you’re not preparing for a specific mission, you’ll be expected to learn about the various monsters we’ve captured in the past, in case a similar one shows up out of nowhere. You can decorate the desk with your own mementos a little bit if you want, but keep things easy to move. Ponies will be relocated from desk to desk somewhat regularly based on who’s assigned to what at the moment.”

“How often do we get assignments?” Sweetie Drops asked.

“It depends on what’s been sighted recently,” Steel Poise said. “Being assigned to a case is more than just going to the field and stopping the monster. There’s a lot of preparation that takes place before that, so don’t expect a lot of free time. Actually, as soon as I finish showing you around, you’re going to be assigned to your first case. It looks like it’ll be a pretty easy one, so this will be a good way for you to get your hooves wet and get a feel for the agency.”

She led Sweetie Drops into a room lined with file cabinets of different sizes. “This is where we store the information on all of the monsters we’ve captured. Also the monsters which live in the wilder parts of Equestria. If they live far enough away and don’t pose a threat to ponies, we leave them be. Both because we don’t want to interfere with nature any more than necessary and because we’d rather focus our efforts on stopping the most imminent threats.”

She pulled on one of the drawer handles. The drawer didn’t budge. “You’ll notice that all of these cabinets are locked. I have the key. The information will be distributed on a need-to-know basis – either when you’re between assignments or when the information may be helpful to your current case.”

She pointed to a set of smaller cabinets. “These are the employee cabinets. One drawer will be assigned to you and you’ll be given the key. Before you leave the office each day, place any classified documents you’re using inside your drawer and lock it. Maintaining the agency’s secrecy is crucial – even the janitorial staff doesn’t have any idea what we do here.”

“Why is this a secret agency?” Sweetie Drops asked.

“It’s for the good of Equestria,” Steel Poise replied. “After you work here for a while, you’ll be surprised at how many different monsters live in this nation. And I don’t mean wild animals – I mean actual monsters. If ponies knew just how many creatures were out there that had the ability to destroy their homes or devour them whole, they’d spend all of their time panicking and no time working. Equestria’s productivity would suffer, and as a result, ponykind itself would decline. As they say, ignorance is bliss – and it’s our job to make sure ponies remain ignorant.”

She led Sweetie Drops back to the desks. “That’s about it. I’ll give you a few minutes to get settled in. The other agents here will want to say to hello to you. I’ll be back to brief you on your first assignment soon.”

Sweetie Drops sat down at her desk. She hadn’t brought any items from home, so there was nothing for her to do to settle in. After the other agents sitting nearby introduced themselves to her, Steel Poise returned and called Sweetie Drops and four other ponies to the briefing room.

In the briefing room, Steel Poise closed the blinds and turned on a slide projector. A drawing of a snake-like creature with what appeared to be small flowers on its head was displayed on the screen.

Steel Poise picked up a pointer and immediately began to speak. “This is the cerastes. It may look like just a snake in this picture, but it’s big – your average pony is only about this size compared to it.” Waving the pointer up and down, she drew an invisible vertical line in front of the creature’s mouth. The line was barely taller than its head.

Sweetie Drops was beginning to regret agreeing to this.

“Eagle Eye, please advance to the next slide,” Steel Poise said. A pegasus sitting in the back did so. The new drawing displayed on the screen provided a more detailed look at the monster’s head.

Steel Poise continued. “Take a look at the four protrusions on the top of its head, which for lack of a better term, I’ll call antennae. As you can see, they resemble daisies. This creature spends most of its time hidden just below the surface of the ground. The only parts of it that are visible are the antennae, so to the casual observer, there’s just a small bunch of flowers poking up. If an animal – or pony – gets too close, then the cerastes will lunge and try to eat them. Next slide.”

Now a map was displayed on the screen. “The cerastes was spotted in the plains near Buffalo Springs. There aren’t any major pony cities nearby, and the buffalo have been avoiding the area, so it hasn’t attracted much attention. Your job is to capture it before it does attract attention. Next slide.”

The words “LURE,” “TRANQUILIZE,” and “BAG” showed up on the screen. “The mission is simple. First, lure the cerastes out of hiding. We have dummies stuffed with hay which should do the trick. Then, when the cerastes is in the open, quickly shoot it with a tranquilizer dart. The cerastes may be large, but it’s also very slender, so it won’t take much to knock it out. It’s extremely flexible and agile, though, so watch your aim. Finally, tie it up inside the long, narrow canvas bag which you’ll be provided with. When the creature is secured, some pegasi from the Aerial Division will be by to take it to Tartarus.”

Steel Poise walked to the back of the room, turned off the slide projector, and opened the blinds. She addressed the recruits sitting in the room. “Thundershock, Panacea, Sweetie Drops: I know this is the first assignment for you three, and you’re probably a little nervous.”

Sweetie Drops felt that “a little” was an understatement.

“Don’t worry – if we thought there was a significant degree of danger, then we wouldn’t have put so many rookies on one team. Don’t do anything stupid, and you’ll be fine. Soothe Sayer, you’ll find this mission to be much simpler than your mission with the great horned mandrill. Your supervisor for this mission will be Eagle Eye. The four of you report to Eagle Eye and Eagle Eye reports to me. With that, I turn things over to Eagle Eye. Do the agency proud.”

Steel Poise saluted by means of a quick, professional nod and left the room. Eagle Eye stood up before the other four.

“I have a dossier for each of you containing the information you just saw as well as guidelines for what you’ll be doing once you’re in the field. You’ll spend the rest of the day today studying this dossier. Tomorrow, you’ll train with the equipment you’ll be using on this mission – the dummies, the tranquilizer gun, and the bag. Truthfully, the hardest part is going to be wrapping the bag around a giant unconscious snake.

“Then, you head out to Buffalo Springs and capture the cerastes. It’ll be easy to locate – just look for a patch of four daisies sitting by themselves. Now, there is a daisy field adjacent to where you’ll first be looking. Hopefully, the cerastes doesn’t decide to make its home in there. If you don’t find the cerastes anywhere else nearby, then carefully check out the daisy field. The four daisies on the cerastes’ head will be a little larger than the naturally-occurring daisies, so if you keep your eyes peeled, you’ll see it.”

Eagle Eye distributed the dossiers, then dismissed the other four ponies. The four returned to their desks, and because Eagle Eye was out of earshot, began quietly discussing the assignment among themselves.

“So, three of us have never gone out on a mission before?” asked Thundershock, a male pegasus with a light gray coat and a yellow mane. “And they’re sending us to track down a pony-eating snake? I’m not sure whether I should be flattered or terrified.”

“I’m leaning toward terrified,” Sweetie Drops said.

“Me too,” said Panacea, a unicorn whose coat was a light vanilla color. He had a muted chartreuse mane and a cutie mark of an aloe leaf dripping gel. He turned toward the other member of their group, a light lilac-colored earth pony with a pink and white mane and a cutie mark depicting a lamb. “Soothe Sayer, how many missions have you been on?”

“Just one,” she said. “I hope Steel Poise was telling the truth when she said this one is going to be easier.”

“So, she either trusts us a lot or she wants to send us to our deaths,” said Thundershock. “Did anypony check that this isn’t actually called the Monster Feeding Agency?” He tried to laugh to indicate that he was joking, but it came out as a nervous chuckle. None of the others found it particularly funny.

Sweetie Drops wished that Thundershock hadn’t planted that thought in her head. She wasn’t usually prone to paranoia, but would her parents really want to… no. That was crazy talk.

The next day, when the recruits practiced carrying the dummy and shooting the tranquilizer gun, Sweetie Drops became slightly less nervous. No one was allowed to leave until they were all completely comfortable with the plan and how to execute it, and the training was structured to promote teamwork and encouragement rather than competition.

Still, there was no mistake that they were in a military setting. When the team was dismissed for lunch, Sweetie Drops decided to lighten the mood by walking over to one of the pony-shaped burlap wrappings stuffed with hay.

“I’m headed out to lunch,” Sweetie Drops said to the dummy. “You want anything?” She paused for a moment. “Well, I don’t know if they’re serving potatoes, but I’ll certainly check.” Another pause. “Ah, I didn’t know your mother was a sack of potatoes. I thought it would be rude to ask.”

“Sweetie Drops!” snapped Eagle Eye. “You are a member of the Royal Guard now! There is no place for frivolity here! Drop the stand-up routine!”

Sweetie Drops lowered her head. “Yes, ma’am,” she said quietly.

After training, the team was encouraged to get a good night’s sleep, although dreams of a giant snake’s gaping jaws made that a difficult proposition for Sweetie Drops. Regardless, the next morning, the four new recruits traveled by train to Buffalo Springs. They were going undercover as everyday citizens – all of their gear was concealed inside ordinary-looking luggage.

From the train station, they walked outside of the city to the area where the cerastes had last been sighted. The two earth ponies and unicorn carefully walked forward while Thundershock flew ahead, scouting the surrounding land for four out-of-place daisies.

As the three gravity-bound ponies walked, Soothe Sayer, who had been assigned to the MCA because her special talent was speaking in a soothing manner that calmed both ponies and beasts alike, saw the legs of her teammates trembling. She tried to put them at ease.

“We’re all going to be fine,” she said confidently. “My last mission had a lot more variables than this one, and everypony carried out their parts perfectly – even me, and that was my first time. We know what we’re doing, and we even know what to do if something unexpected happens. Nothing is going to go wrong.”

Panacea’s legs stopped trembling. He smiled gratefully at her, and she smiled warmly in return. Sweetie Drops’ legs trembled less than before. But she was too busy nervously scanning the ground directly in front of them for overlooked daisies to be completely calmed.

After a few minutes, Thundershock returned with a smile on his face. “I found the cerastes – it’s hiding in a patch of tall grass about four hundred yards that way,” he pointed. “From above, I could even make out the bulge of its body under the ground. There’s nopony around. Let’s do this.”

Thundershock led the three to a spot in the plains where they could see the daisies but still be far enough away to be safe. There, Panacea opened the large suitcase he had been wheeling behind him and unfolded the hay-filled dummy stuffed inside. While the dummy was vaguely pony-shaped, it wasn’t at all detailed – the cerastes just needed to think there was some kind of animal nearby. He attached one end of a long rope to the dummy and the other to a pole that was to be carried by Thundershock.

Meanwhile, Soothe Sayer and Sweetie Drops were unpacking two tranquilizer guns. They loaded each with a dart containing a tranquilizer specifically formulated to knock out the cerastes. The plan was for Soothe Sayer to take the shot, with Sweetie Drops serving as backup if she missed or if the weapon failed. Extra darts were kept at the ready if they each missed their initial shots.

The two earth ponies took their stance and aimed toward the daisies. Thundershock took the pole, flew into the air, and began bouncing the dummy along the ground. Panacea watched intently – his job was to grab the dummy and manipulate it with his magic if the cerastes severed the rope. He had also been trained on how to use the tranquilizer gun, just in case.

The dummy bounced closer to the daisies. The rope was longer than the cerastes’ body, so Thundershock was out of harm’s way even if the cerastes spotted him in the air and was somehow able to stand on its tail.

When the dummy was about two body lengths away from the daisies, an enormous serpentine head erupted from the ground. Sweetie Drops almost accidentally fired her gun right then and there, the movement was so sudden. In an instant, the cerastes clamped its jaws completely around the dummy.

Everyone tried their hardest not to think about what it would be like to be in that dummy’s position.

Thundershock was tugged downward, but kept his hold on the rope. Panacea was ready to catch the pole and levitate it back up to his partner if necessary. Thundershock tugged on the rope, trying to make the dummy move inside the cerastes’ mouth. The cerastes, mistaking the rope for some kind of long tail, emerged further from the ground to try to ingest it.

More than half of the monster’s body was visible, which was good enough for Soothe Sayer. She fired her tranquilizer gun and hit the cerastes square in its side. The cerastes screamed, allowing Thundershock to pull the dummy from its mouth. Both of the dummy’s rear legs were bent at unnatural angles. The cerastes lunged and snapped its jaws, tearing the dummy apart at the waist.

Thundershock flew straight up, carrying the rest of the dummy with him. The cerastes looked up but didn’t make an attempt to pursue. This was the moment of truth – with food now in its mouth, the cerastes would try to wriggle its way back into the ground. But if the tranquilizer was effective, then it wouldn’t get very far.

With its last lunge, most of the cerastes’ body had been exposed. The remainder of its tail emerged from its hiding place. The cerastes slithered forward a little bit – to the recruits’ relief, in a direction perpendicular to where they were positioned. The cerastes stopped. It began to thrash its body in an attempt to dislodge the dart that was still impaled in its skin. Not only did the cerastes fail to remove the dart, but it used a lot of energy in the process. Soon, its eyelids closed and it was motionless.

Thundershock flew back to his teammates. They stayed silent and watched the cerastes. According to the plan, if they saw no signs of alertness in the next five minutes, they would use the dummy’s suitcase as another lure. If the cerastes didn’t respond, then they could assume it truly was knocked out cold, at which point Panacea would, from a distance, levitate the large canvas bag over the monster’s head. The team would then approach the body and finish bagging it.

Everything went according to plan. And as Eagle Eye had predicted, the most difficult part – or at least, the most physically demanding part – was trying to maneuver the tubular bag around the unconscious cerastes. Eventually, the team tied off the end of the bag, at which point Thundershock flew off toward the nearest Royal Guard outpost to alert the Aerial Division to pick it up. Sweetie Drops and the other two recruits exhaled a collective sigh of relief.

Sweetie Drops had survived her first mission.

Chapter 3: The Bugbear

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The four recruits returned to the Monster Containment Agency offices and received commendation from Steel Poise for a job well done. But as soon as they thought they’d have a chance to relax, they were called into the briefing room for their next assignment.

Once again, Eagle Eye was in the back next to the projector. Steel Poise closed the blinds and turned the projector on. The image on the screen depicted some kind of strange hybrid creature. And this time, there was no mistaking its size – a drawing of a pony had been placed next to the creature. The pony didn’t look very large by comparison.

“This is a bugbear,” Steel Poise began. “It’s exactly what it sounds like – half bug, half bear. And all very dangerous. It’s the most dangerous monster this agency has encountered in quite a few years, and is the reason a couple of you were assigned to this agency in the first place.

“Every end of this thing is to be avoided.” She used her pointer to indicate various parts of the bugbear’s anatomy. “The claws are razor-sharp. And the teeth are a carnivore’s teeth, capable of piercing and tearing apart flesh.”

Sweetie Drops came to the realization that Steel Poise didn’t mince words. She wished that her boss would sugarcoat things just a little bit.

“But that’s nothing compared to the stinger,” Steel Poise said. “Even as just a spear, it’s plenty dangerous. However, the stinger also releases venom which is fatal if it gets into your bloodstream. And unlike a bee, this stinger doesn’t come off. Whether it hits its victim or it misses and impales into a tree or a rock, it stays attached to the bugbear. And even if the stinger gets caught in something solid like rock, the bugbear is able to quickly get free. Do not underestimate this stinger.

“Part of the team for this mission has already been assembled and briefed. Eagle Eye, you did a fine job supervising the cerastes mission, but for this one, you’re back in the field. This is going to be one of the largest teams the agency has put together for one monster. The more of you we have, the higher the chance this mission succeeds with no complications. I’m glad the cerastes came up when it did, because it gave me a chance to see that all of you have what it takes. You accomplished that mission flawlessly, and I’m expecting the same here.”

Steel Poise looked at the unicorn in the room. “Panacea: I know you’ve been wondering why you were assigned to this agency.”

“Yes,” Panacea responded. “When I enlisted, I assumed I was going to be placed with the medical corps.”

“That would have been a good fit for you,” Steel Poise admitted. “But your innate ability to understand how to heal ponies could be extremely useful for this bugbear mission. While you’ll be training to physically fight the bugbear along with the other agents, you’re also going to study the bugbear’s venom. So far, we have no known antidote, and we’d like to change that. If anypony happens to get stung on this mission, we’re relying on you to do everything you can to keep them alive.”

Panacea nodded, although he looked a little overwhelmed.

Steel Poise turned her attention. “Sweetie Drops: According to your file, you know a lot about honey.”

Sweetie Drops hesitated. “Well, um, my special talent is candy making. I know about confectionery. All I know about honey is how to turn it into hard candy.”

“In your file, the staffing officer wrote that you had a special talent for honey.”

“He only asked if I knew about sweets. I never said anything about honey. He never said anything about honey.”

Steel Poise lowered her head and pressed her hoof against the upper bridge of her nose. “We really need some more intelligent ponies in the Staffing division,” she said to herself. “I’ve told them to never make assumptions.” She raised her head. “Well, you’re the closest thing we have to an expert on the subject. The bugbear gathers nectar, which it uses to create a honey that it then eats. When you’re not training to fight the bugbear, I want you to see if you can figure out how exactly it makes the honey, and whether it’s something we can synthesize. Maybe we can use it as a lure or a distraction.”

She addressed the entire room. “You’re going to spend a lot of time in the office and in training for this mission. Right now, the bugbear lives in a remote forest, and prefers to mind its own business. However, if it encounters a pony, it suddenly becomes very aggressive. And it’s constantly on the move, always looking for new territory, so sooner or later, it’s going to wander into a city and do a lot of damage unless we stop it first.”

She opened the blinds and turned off the projector. “Golden Glow is supervising this mission. She’ll introduce you to the rest of the team and get you up to speed on the details. We have the time to make sure we do this right, so let’s take advantage of it – I want you all to come back safe and sound.”

She started to leave the room. “I’ll go see where Golden Glow wants everypony to meet. Good luck.”

The next several days were a whirlwind of activity. Four earth ponies, four pegasi, and three unicorns would all be traveling to the forest, and they all needed to be taught the primary capture plan as well as secondary capture plans. Additionally, each received extensive training on how to fire a new weapon constructed specifically for the mission: A tranquilizer gun that was attached to a bazooka-sized gun that fired a large, weighted, metallic net. Ultimately, the job of firing the tranquilizer and the net was given to Soothe Sayer. Both because she had good aim and because her natural unaggressive demeanor meant that she wouldn’t pull the trigger too impulsively – while there were multiple tranquilizer darts, each gun contained only one net.

The additional research that had been assigned to Panacea and Sweetie Drops was not met with complete success. Panacea had done his best to create an antivenom for the bugbear’s sting, but the only venom sample the Royal Guard’s scientists had access to came from when the bugbear accidentally impaled a tree. Panacea had tried his hardest to separate the venom enzymes from the tree enzymes, but he wasn’t entirely positive the antivenom would work.

Sweetie Drops learned which nectar-producing flowers the bugbear seemed to especially like, but the exact process by which the bugbear turned that nectar into honey was a mystery to both her and the scientists. It likely involved a substance secreted specifically by the bugbear itself. With no access to that substance, Sweetie Drops had attempted to manufacture a honey from marjoram nectar, but even she was doubtful as to whether it would be helpful during the mission. It did taste pretty good on toast, though.

Finally, the day of the mission arrived. The bugbear had been tracked to an area of the forest that offered the MCA agents multiple means of capture. The primary plan was to wait until the bugbear gathered nectar from an open patch of lavender flowers, where the pegasi would be waiting overhead with a net. If that failed, or if the bugbear escaped before succumbing to the effects of the tranquilizer, then the unicorns would drive the bugbear back into the cave in which it was currently living. As a last resort, the team could try to force the bugbear down toward a small glen located a short distance from the cave. Sweetie Drops worried about what would happen if the team had to rely on one of the backup plans, or even worse, improvise a plan. She kept telling herself that these were just precautionary measures – after all, the mission to capture the cerastes included a number of contingency plans that hadn’t needed to be implemented.

Shortly before the sun rose, the team took their positions in the forest. The earth ponies and unicorns were scattered in a wide arc between the mouth of the cave and the lavender patch. The two earth ponies positioned nearest the cave each carried a multipurpose chain-link net as well as a spare tranquilizer/net gun. Sweetie Drops, near the middle, carried marjoram nectar grenades, honey grenades, and, if those failed, mild flashbangs to momentarily stun and disorient the bugbear. Both she and two of the unicorns were in charge of launching those projectiles. The two unicorns were also in charge of carrying lights for the cave, as well as spare tranquilizer darts, grenades, and flashbangs.

Closest to the lavender patch, Soothe Sayer was positioned with the tranquilizer/net gun mounted to her back. The sights hung down over her head so both weapons could be fired from that position. Near Soothe Sayer was Panacea, who carried the first aid kit. He was primarily there to serve as a medic should any agent be injured. Several of the other agents noted the significance of those two ponies being located near one another. During training, they seemed to be developing a special camaraderie that went beyond the informal relationship observed between ordinary coworkers.

The only agents not carrying anything on their backs were the pegasi, positioned in the tall trees high above the lavender. The four of them were going to need their full strength to hold the rope net, which had numerous heavy weights attached to the ends in order to pin the bugbear. Everyone at the agency agreed that the net ideally should also have been made of chain links, but the end result was too heavy for the pegasi to lift. As it was, they were sitting in the trees, letting the net rest on the branches and preserving their leg muscles.

The sun rose over the horizon. The waiting was interminable. The ponies who could see the cave watched its entrance intently. The only sounds to be heard were the chirping of the birds, the wind rustling the leaves, and the occasional flick of a pony’s tail to shoo away insects. All of the ponies on the ground were camouflaged in plants to avoid being seen by the bugbear. They were lying down so as not to bear the weight of their packs for an unnecessarily excessive amount of time. But as the morning wore on and the temperature increased, they were all becoming increasingly uncomfortable.

They had to be ready. As soon as the bugbear emerged, they had to be ready for anything.

Time passed slowly. The ponies desperately wanted to make conversation – anything to keep them from being alone with their thoughts. But they needed to remain silent.

Waiting.

Suddenly, the ponies closest to the cave heard a buzzing sound. The bugbear emerged soon after. It was awake, which meant it was hungry. Trying to capture the bugbear while it was hungry was especially dangerous, but it would also be the time that the bugbear was the most distracted.

One of the unicorns blew on a duck call to signal to the pegasi – who were positioned far enough away that they couldn’t see the cave – that the bugbear had emerged. That was the cue for the pegasi to pick up the net and hover over the lavender patch.

The bugbear, upon hearing the duck call, stopped flying forward and swiveled its head in the direction of the unicorn that had made the sound. Time seemed to stand still. But after a few moments, the bugbear continued on its way toward the flowers.

To the frustration of the pegasi, the bugbear took its time flying toward their section of the forest. They could only hold up the net for so long, and the harder they flapped their wings to stay aloft, the higher the chance the bugbear would notice their presence.

Finally, the bugbear reached the lavender and began to collect nectar. Eagle Eye looked down, noted the position of the bugbear, and motioned with her head to her teammates to make a slight adjustment. The four of them moved across the air.

As soon as they were in position, Eagle Eye said “Now!” – just loud enough for the other pegasi to hear. They all let go of the net at once. Because of the weights, the net hurtled toward the ground and landed almost perfectly centered around the bugbear. Startled, the bugbear roared.

On the ground, Soothe Sayer knew that she wouldn’t have much time to take her shot. But everyone had underestimated just how quickly the bugbear would make its escape. With one quick slash using just two of its six paws, the bugbear tore through the ropes and flew upward. Soothe Sayer had fired as quickly as she could, but the tranquilizer dart missed and lodged into a tree.

While escaping, the bugbear spotted the four pegasi that were the source of its momentary imprisonment. As it flew toward them, they scattered in four different directions. The bugbear picked one – Blue Skies – and flew after her.

The next phase of the plan was to lure the bugbear back into its cave. So Blue Skies, upon seeing that she was being pursued by the beast, banked through the trees and made her way in that direction. The bugbear was faster than her, so she flew around tree trunks and between branches, trying to slow it down.

Instead, the enraged bugbear simply smashed through the branches. At roughly the halfway point between the lavender patch and the cave, the bugbear swung forward at a large branch, snapping it off the tree and sending it flying toward Blue Skies. The branch connected with Blue Skies and she fell to the ground, the branch pinning her down.

The bugbear flew toward Blue Skies stinger-first. The other pegasi, as well as Soothe Sayer and Panacea, were all giving chase, but Sweetie Drops had been positioned the closest to where the bugbear now was. Uncertain of how effective the nectar and honey grenades would be, she immediately reached for one of the flashbangs and hurled it toward the bugbear. She missed the bugbear’s body, but she did hit a nearby tree. The sudden explosion of sound and light momentarily distracted the bugbear, which stopped and hovered in place, trying to locate the source of the noise.

That was enough time for Panacea to approach from behind. Yelling “Hey!” to get the bugbear’s attention, he cast the spell that the three unicorns had learned for this mission. Emerging from his horn was the translucent projection of a pair of wings, three stories tall and sticking straight up into the air.

The bugbear, seeing an animal that appeared to be larger than it, flew away from Panacea. It headed straight toward the position of one of the other unicorns, who also cast the spell, producing another pair of giant translucent wings. The bugbear angled its trajectory away from that unicorn and toward the cave.

Panacea ran to Blue Skies. The branch was too large for him to move by himself.

“I’m fine!” shouted Blue Skies, both to Panacea and to the other pegasi that were approaching. “Go after the bugbear!” The team couldn’t afford to dedicate multiple ponies to freeing Blue Skies, so they did as she said.

Between Panacea and the other two unicorns, the bugbear was forced back into its cave. All of the remaining agents converged on the cave’s entrance. Thundershock and one of the unicorns began to unpack the large chain-link net from one of the earth ponies’ packs. As they did, Eagle Eye grabbed a floodlight from one of the unicorns’ packs. Thundershock and the unicorn began to cover the mouth of the cave with the chain-link net. The gaps in the net were large enough for a pony to walk through, but small enough to hopefully discourage the bugbear from escaping. The unicorn was working as fast as she could to pound the edges of the net into the sides of the cave; however, the agents knew that it was doubtful that the nails would be able to contain the bugbear if the monster was determined to leave.

There was a second opening on the other side of the rocks. The team wasn’t sure whether the bugbear had a path inside the cave to escape through the other side, so another earth pony, pegasus, and unicorn left to attach a chain-link net over that opening. With those three ponies gone, and three ponies working to secure the net over the primary entrance, only Eagle Eye, Soothe Sayer, Sweetie Drops, and Panacea remained to pursue the bugbear into the cave.

Eagle Eye struck the flint inside her floodlight. A small fire began, which reflected off of the mirrors inside to project a beam of light into the cave. Luckily, the passage inside the cave didn’t branch off into multiple directions. The four ponies followed the passage deeper into the cave.

After a couple of turns, the mouth of the cave was no longer visible. The floodlight was the only source of illumination. The four were terrified at the prospect of trying to fight the bugbear in close quarters, so they were relieved when the passage opened up into a large chamber with stalagmites and stalactites scattered throughout. As they entered, Eagle Eye aimed the floodlight toward the other end of the chamber.

Which meant that none of the ponies saw the bugbear perched on one of the stalactites immediately above the chamber entrance, its wings still. Upon seeing the bright light, it flew directly for Eagle Eye. Before Eagle Eye could react, the bugbear swooped down, swung its claw, and connected with Eagle Eye’s left wing. Eagle Eye shouted, dropped the floodlight, and fell to the ground.

The floodlight tumbled away and shone toward the opposite end of the cave. Panacea tended to Eagle Eye in the dim light – several feathers had been torn from her wing and she was holding her rear left leg in reaction to twisting her fetlock upon hitting the uneven cave floor.

Sweetie Drops tried throwing a nectar grenade at the stalactites near the hungry bugbear to distract it. But the bugbear was too enraged to think about food. She threw a honey grenade directly at the bugbear, and while it made the bugbear’s fur sticky, it didn’t appear to slow the bugbear down at all.

The bugbear flew toward the floodlight – casting a terrifyingly large shadow over the cave walls – then flew up and around, surveying its surroundings in the process. Sweetie Drops fell back to the other side of the cave to get out of the way of Soothe Sayer’s weapon.

Soothe Sayer tried firing another shot from the tranquilizer gun, but the bugbear was flying too erratically and her shot didn’t even come close. She only had two darts left before she’d need to reload, and since all of the spare tranquilizer darts were outside of the cave, she needed to make her remaining shots count.

Sweetie Drops, knowing that her nectar and honey grenades were useless, threw her remaining flashbangs directly at the bugbear. Most of them missed, but one of them connected with the bugbear’s body. However, instead of causing the bugbear to momentarily stop moving, the sudden lights and sound caused it to roar – a roar made even louder as it echoed across the cave walls – and fly even more unpredictably.

Soothe Sayer was standing close enough to the floodlight that her light coloring made her practically glow inside the dark cave. The bugbear dove toward her, flailing its claws wildly, and slashed at her back. The tranquilizer/net gun was knocked from her back and slid across the cave floor in the direction toward Sweetie Drops. Soothe Sayer screamed in pain and collapsed onto her stomach.

“Soothe Sayer!” yelled Panacea. He jumped up from Eagle Eye’s side and ran toward the injured earth pony. Seeing the large red mark on her back, he quickly levitated the first aid kit toward him and started rummaging through its contents.

Sweetie Drops, out of flashbangs, dropped her nectar and honey grenades and ran to grab the tranquilizer/net gun. As she reached it, she saw that the bugbear had flown back to the ceiling of the cave, spun around, and was staring at the downed Soothe Sayer. It angled its stinger directly toward her.

Panacea, seeing the bugbear take its position, knew he couldn’t move Soothe Sayer out of the way in time. Without thinking, he jumped in front of her. The bugbear began to lunge.

While that was happening, Sweetie Drops had picked up the gun but didn’t have time to mount it to her back. During training, she had learned that it was next to impossible to accurately aim it at a moving target, even when the sights were properly in place. But she could also see that if she did nothing, at least one pony was going to be killed.

So she pulled the trigger to fire the one and only net the team had available inside the cave. The net launched as the bugbear started its downward trajectory.

The bugbear rapidly approached Panacea. Just before the stinger reached Panacea’s body, the net connected with the bugbear. The weights on the end of the net sent the bugbear off course, crashing against the side of some stalagmites. The net wasn’t completely covering the bugbear, but its wings and paws were ensnared. More importantly, the bugbear was far enough away from the others that it couldn’t hurt them without getting up.

As soon as Sweetie Drops saw that the bugbear was down, before she could gauge its ability to get back up, she fired one of the last tranquilizer darts. With the net bunched up around the bugbear’s torso, it was possible the dart could have ricocheted off of the narrower metallic netting or the spherical weights. However, the sudden roar from the bugbear told her that her dart had found its target.

The bugbear began thrashing, both in response to the dart and in an attempt to free itself from the net. However, the thrashing only served to entangle the bugbear’s limbs further. Sweetie Drops, seeing that the bugbear couldn’t get up and knowing that the tranquilizer would take a few minutes to knock the bugbear out, ran over to Soothe Sayer and Panacea.

“Are you all right?” she said to the two of them. Instead of responding, Panacea stood there, motionless. On his face, he had the look of a pony who had just watched his life flash before his eyes. Behind him, Soothe Sayer was staring in disbelief at everything that had just happened.

Getting no response, Sweetie Drops stepped around to look at Soothe Sayer. There was definitely blood. Sweetie Drops began to reach for the first aid kit, then realized she didn’t know how to dress a wound of that size. So she reached up, gently grabbed Panacea’s head, and turned it to look at Soothe Sayer’s back.

“Oh my— I’m sorry!” Panacea said to Soothe Sayer. He went back to getting the necessary supplies from the first aid kit. Sweetie Drops then ran over to Eagle Eye, who was lying on her right side to keep her injured wing and hoof off the ground.

“I’m okay,” Eagle Eye said before Sweetie Drops could even ask. “Nothing’s broken… I think. Go make sure the tranquilizer dart actually hit the bugbear. We can’t afford to let that thing get up.”

Even though she didn’t want to, Sweetie Drops trotted toward the bugbear, being careful not to get too close. It was still struggling to escape from the net. She looked at the bugbear’s lower abdomen, which is where she assumed the dart went. The bugbear’s fur got in the way, but after a few very long seconds, she spotted the tail end of the tranquilizer dart sticking out. A wave of relief washed over her.

Just then, the bugbear thrashed and rolled over toward Sweetie Drops. As she instinctively jumped back, she saw the bugbear stare directly at her with its cold, red eyes. The bugbear snorted. Sweetie Drops was momentarily frozen in fear. Then she noticed a strong, pungent odor, unfamiliar and distinctly different than the mustiness of the cave. It felt like it was enveloping her.

Sweetie Drops coughed. Which meant that reflexively, she needed to inhale, which just brought more of the scent into her system. She turned around and galloped toward the mouth of the cave, shouting “I need air!”

Sweetie Drops ran. Simply getting away from the apparent source of the odor helped, even before she reached the outdoors. When she saw the chain-link net over the mouth of the cave, she remembered that some of the other agents were out there.

“The bugbear’s been tranqed!” she shouted as she ran through one of the openings in the net. “Two ponies are injured. There’s some kind of awful smell. Go help them!”

The three ponies who had been setting up the net raced inside the cave. Sweetie Drops took a few deep breaths of fresh air. She didn’t feel entirely better, but she felt well enough to go back inside and help her teammates.

When she re-entered the chamber, she saw the unicorn standing near Panacea, ready to help him if he needed anything. Although it appeared that Panacea had the situation under control – Soothe Sayer’s wound was now bandaged and although she was clearly in pain, it looked like she would be all right. A few yards away, the earth pony was helping Eagle Eye stand up on her uninjured legs. Thundershock examined her wing. The light in that part of the cave wasn’t the best, but he indicated that there wasn’t any major damage.

The bugbear had quieted down. Although it was still moving, it was doing so much more slowly. The tranquilizer was taking effect. While Sweetie Drops could smell the unpleasant odor wafting through the air, it wasn’t overpowering.

“Let’s go,” Eagle Eye said to the two ponies surrounding her. “Our mission isn’t over yet. Thundershock, fly out and around to the other side of the cave. Tell the rest of the team to go free Blue Skies. While they’re doing that, go alert the Royal Guard that the mission was accomplished. There’s a cage in Tartarus with that monster’s name on it, and I myself am going to make sure it gets there.”

Limping on her three good legs, she walked over to Soothe Sayer. “How is she?” she asked Panacea.

“A significant slash across her back, but fortunately, it’s just a flesh wound. Thank goodness it didn’t reach her spine.”

Eagle Eye turned her head toward Soothe Sayer. “We’re lucky the bugbear thought that gun was part of your body. Are you good to walk?”

Soothe Sayer looked at Panacea. He nodded yes. “I think so…” she said. She slowly got up on her hooves, wincing as her back flexed from the motion. Once upright, she said, “Yes. I can walk.”

“Then let’s get out of here. I don’t know what that smell is, but I don’t want to breathe it any more than I have to.”

The other ponies followed Eagle Eye out of the cave. It wasn’t until she was outside that Sweetie Drops noticed how fast her heart was beating. She took another deep breath of the clean forest air. She had never appreciated being alive as much as she did at that moment.

As Steel Poise said during the debriefing, it wasn’t the smoothest mission the MCA had ever carried out, but at least there were no long-term injuries. Blue Skies may have been pinned under a large tree branch, but she only received minor scrapes. Eagle Eye’s wing was scratched, but it would heal and the feathers would grow back relatively soon. Her rear fetlock only suffered a sprain, and because Panacea had been there to administer the proper care, there would be no permanent damage. Soothe Sayer’s wound looked bad, but the appearance was worse than the injury actually was – it too would heal over time.

Steel Poise commended the team for a job well done, with special commendation for Sweetie Drops, whose quick action saved the lives of her teammates. And because there were no other monsters immediately threatening Equestria, Steel Poise did something she hadn’t done in years – she gave the eleven ponies who had been in the field an entire week off as a reward for their hard work and bravery.

During their time off, Panacea and Soothe Sayer took Sweetie Drops out to dinner off-base as a small gesture of their deepest gratitude. Sweetie Drops was humbled, and tried to point out that it was just a lucky shot. Maybe so, the two said, but it was a lucky shot that saved their lives.

When the team returned after the week had passed, they learned what the source of the smell was. When the bugbear saw Sweetie Drops, it had released a potent combination of pheromones meant to mark her and make her easier to follow if she ran away while the bugbear was struggling to get free. As the scientists explained, the bugbear’s keen sense of smell first picked up on her natural scent, then released the pheromones so it could later track her down. Sweetie Drops asked how easy it was to wash away pheromones – although she had already taken several hot showers during the week, she suddenly had a desire to take several more in rapid succession. The scientists couldn’t smell anything out of place on her, although they acknowledged that the bugbear’s sense of smell was exponentially more acute than a pony’s. Still, they pointed out, since the bugbear was now safely locked away in Tartarus, it didn’t matter.

A couple of weeks later, Steel Poise allowed Thundershock, Soothe Sayer, and Sweetie Drops to accompany her and Panacea on a trip to Tartarus. Like nearly all ponies in Equestria, the four newest recruits had never been there. But Steel Poise felt it was important for her agents to see the results of their hard work at least once. There was also a purpose to the visit – Panacea would be collecting a sample of pure bugbear venom for the scientists to both study and create an antivenom.

As she descended into the pit, Sweetie Drops quickly came to the conclusion that she really didn’t have any desire to ever see what Tartarus was like. Because it was deep underground, there was no sunlight – illumination came from torches and from an eerie glow created by minerals reacting to some unknown source of low-energy radioactivity. That light was not quite sufficient to reveal all of the contours of the sharp, jagged rock formations that rose up irregularly from the ground. As Sweetie Drops walked along the cold dirt of the zigzagging, winding path, she could faintly hear the sounds of animals roaring alongside otherworldly wailing.

Steel Poise led the agents to an area in Tartarus that she derisively called “the zoo.” In it were cages and enclosures containing monsters of all sizes, many of which resembled horrific versions of ordinary Equestrian wildlife. Sweetie Drops tried not to look too closely – she was still getting the occasional nightmare from her first two missions.

In the distance, she could see their destination – a relatively tall cage containing the bugbear. The rational part of Sweetie Drops’ brain tried to tell her that there was no way for the very big, very wide bugbear to escape, but the only thought on her mind was that those bars seemed like they were just a little too far apart.

As they approached, Panacea brought forward the large container that he had been carrying with his magic. It was narrower in one direction, designed to be just wide enough to slip through the bars of the cage. The plan was for him to levitate the container next to the bugbear and get the monster to sting the permeable membrane covering the top. This would give him a sample of pure bugbear venom that he could then use to create an antidote.

However, when the group was just a few yards from the cage, the bugbear suddenly began to roar angrily and repeatedly slammed its body against the bars. Most of the team flinched; Steel Poise simply stopped and looked at the bugbear.

After a few seconds of contemplation, Steel Poise said, “Sweetie Drops, stand there. Everypony else, follow me.” She led the other three ponies to the opposite side of the bugbear’s cage. The bugbear continued to try to reach Sweetie Drops, slashing at the bars with its claws, sticking its muzzle through the opening, and stabbing between the bars with its stinger. Sweetie Drops didn’t know what Steel Poise was doing, but she didn’t like it one bit. She tensed up, ready to sprint in the opposite direction if the bugbear happened to break free.

Steel Poise brought the other agents back to Sweetie Drops. “It smells you,” she explained. “And it remembers you. We’re not going to be able to collect anything with the bugbear acting like this. Come on – you’re going to wait outside while we get the venom.”

Steel Poise led everyone past all of the cages and back to the gates of Tartarus, where Sweetie Drops could wait in safety. The others then went back in. Sweetie Drops was perfectly content with not having to be inside that awful place. If anything, she wanted to be even farther away from the gates – Cerberus was standing guard just a couple dozen yards from her with no restraints. Even though Steel Poise had assured the team that Cerberus wouldn’t attack, Sweetie Drops was not comfortable standing so close to the enormous three-headed dog. She assumed that she shouldn’t make direct eye contact with it, but she also didn’t want to let it out of her sight.

But even carefully watching Cerberus wasn’t enough to distract Sweetie Drops and keep her mind from replaying the bugbear’s reaction to her presence. It remembers you.

Sweetie Drops desperately wished that she could forget.

The bugbear mission was the most harrowing of Sweetie Drops’ time at the Monster Containment Agency. Afterward, things settled into a more comfortable routine. She still had to go out into the field to capture monsters, but they were significantly less threatening. Most of them could be relocated to other parts of Equestria rather than confined to Tartarus. Her favorite mission was corralling the dragonfire salamander, which, despite its large size, moved docilely and had no desire to harm ponies. It had simply escaped from the wilderness sanctuary where others of its kind where being kept and studied. Sweetie Drops’ job was a lot more pleasant when she wasn’t in danger of being devoured.

Not surprisingly, Eagle Eye was promoted soon after the bugbear mission. And roughly a year after that bugbear mission occurred, Sweetie Drops received another commendation for her work in the field. She and some new teammates had been on a mission to relocate a giant spider, roughly twice the height of a pony, which they had nicknamed the daddy longest legs. While they were searching for the creature, the newest recruit somehow managed to stumble into the spider’s web and get thoroughly tangled up. When the daddy longest legs appeared and began wrapping the recruit in additional webbing, Sweetie Drops was able to quickly subdue the creature before it could inject the recruit with its venom.

As a result, Sweetie Drops received a promotion of her own – one of the fastest in MCA history, according to Steel Poise. She rarely had to go out on missions after that point, which suited her just fine. It was much less stressful to study monsters from afar in the safety of the MCA office.

And while she never would have chosen to do it if she hadn’t been forced into the situation by her parents, Sweetie Drops had to admit there were certain things about life at the Royal Guard Support Corps that she liked. She liked the sense of independence she received from doing her own shopping, not to mention the relatively low prices at the commissary and the exchange. She was even able to make an appointment with a unicorn eye doctor to fix her vision so she could go without glasses and thereby not stand out so much.

As an only child, Sweetie Drops wasn’t thrilled about having to share a dormitory with three other soldiers, but she did get her own bathroom and bedroom, which was where she spent most of her time. Occasionally, a roommate would leave and a new one would take her place – Sweetie Drops never really got to know any of them. Her roommates were all serving in other divisions – it wasn’t as if Sweetie Drops could talk with them about her work.

At the office, Soothe Sayer and Panacea began dating. Even though they were coworkers, it was permissible so long as they disclosed the relationship. Eventually, they moved out of their individual dormitories and moved in together in an apartment off-base. Sweetie Drops envied the freedom they had, but even though she primarily worked at a desk, she was still considered a Royal Guard soldier, and she never moved up the ranks high enough to qualify for any off-base housing compensation. It may have been sparse, but the bedroom in her dormitory did feel like it belonged to her, so she wasn’t too upset.

Sweetie Drops’ enlistment was for four years, and she decided to stay with the MCA the entire time. It was better than any other alternatives and she had gotten pretty good at the job. Other agents came and went, although Soothe Sayer and Panacea also spent their entire four-year enlistments with the agency. Sweetie Drops never really socialized much with them outside of work, but they were casual work acquaintances. And that was better than anything Sweetie Drops had had while she was growing up and bouncing around from school to school.

Eventually, Sweetie Drops neared the end of her four-year enlistment period and had to decide what the next phase of her life would be. Soothe Sayer had already completed her four years and opted not to re-up – Panacea had proposed to her, she said yes, and they planned to move to a new town where he could get a job learning and practicing medicine.

Sweetie Drops didn’t want to commit to another four years with the MCA, and she liked the idea of finally getting out on her own. She had no idea what she would do once she left – the job skills she had developed while with the Monster Containment Agency didn’t really translate to any real-world jobs she wanted to have – but she was looking forward to finally achieving complete independence.

It was Panacea’s last week at the agency. Sweetie Drops still had a couple of weeks to go. With no advance warning, Steel Poise gathered all of the agents out by the desks to speak to them. A sense of unease filled the space – this was the first time she had ever addressed them as a group outside of the briefing room.

“I have some bad news,” she said, getting right to the point as usual. “A little under four years ago, this agency captured a monster called a bugbear.”

Upon hearing that word, Sweetie Drops’ muscles tensed.

“We’re not sure how, but recently, it managed to break free from its cage. It then escaped from Tartarus. Now nopony knows where it is.”

Sweetie Drops flashed back to her experience in Tartarus. As she vividly recalled the way the bugbear reacted to her, she sat down on the floor, her eyes staring at nothing. Panacea, who was standing next to her, placed his hoof on her shoulder in response.

“When I was informed that the bugbear escaped, I assumed we would be assigned to recapture it. However…”

The newer recruits didn’t notice it, but those who had worked under Steel Poise for years heard the faintest crack in her voice.

“…they told me that they were shutting down the agency.”

There was a small, yet audible, gasp from the agents.

“Long story short, when the bugbear escaped from Tartarus, it was spotted flying over North Pastern. One of the newspapers did some digging and somehow learned about the existence of the MCA. They haven’t been able to piece too much together yet, and before they can, the princess has ordered that all proof of this agency be destroyed. There can’t be any evidence that anything here ever existed. And that includes the agents.”

“What are you saying…?” asked one of the newer recruits, his voice tinged with suspicion and fear.

“You’re all going to have to assume new identities,” Steel Poise said. That wasn’t the conclusion the agents thought she was headed toward, but it was still pretty upsetting. “The princess wants total deniability – there can’t be a Cinnamon Stick or an Evening Dew or a Panacea to trace back to her in any way, shape, or form.

“I’ll be meeting with each of you individually by order of seniority to discuss who you’ll be and where you’ll be transferred to. Panacea, you’re up first. Please join me in my office. Everypony else, you might as well start packing up your belongings. And think about what you’d like your new name to be for the rest of your life.”

Sweetie Drops hadn’t moved. After hearing “bugbear” and “escaped,” she only picked up about half of what Steel Poise had just said. She had gathered that her entire life was about to change, but her brain hadn’t yet pieced together the specifics as to why.

“Are you okay?” Panacea asked her. Sweetie Drops nodded dumbly. Panacea wasn’t sure he believed that response, but he knew he couldn’t keep Steel Poise waiting. He left for her office.

The other agents began to murmur among themselves. After a couple of minutes, Sweetie Drops finally recovered enough to pick up from their conversations what was happening. After requesting some clarification on the portions of Steel Poise’s news that she missed, Sweetie Drops was able to join the others in their feelings of trepidation and general anxiety.

A few minutes later, Panacea returned. “You’re up next,” he said to Sweetie Drops. Sweetie Drops walked to Steel Poise’s office while Panacea began to answer the many, many questions the other agents had for him.

The door to the office was open. Sweetie Drops entered and was instructed to close the door behind her. As she sat down, she noticed a unicorn standing next to Steel Poise’s desk. She had a nondescript middle-management air about her.

“This is Carbon Copy,” Steel Poise said. “She’ll be aiding everypony in assuming their new identity.”

Carbon Copy acknowledged Sweetie Drops with a tilt of her head. “Before I begin,” she said, “I want to remind you of the penalties for saying anything to anypony about this agency or your time here. I know that you already signed the paperwork confirming that you understand this, but to reiterate: If you reveal any of the secrets of this agency, you will be charged with espionage and punished to the fullest extent of the law. And that punishment will be enacted not only upon you, but also upon the ponies to whom you reveal the information. The Corps is very serious about keeping the existence of this agency a secret, and while my superiors don’t want to have to take such extreme measures, they will if it’s necessary.”

Sweetie Drops nodded.

Carbon Copy continued. “Now, let me move on to some good news. First of all, since you only have a couple of weeks left in your enlistment, it would be wasteful to transfer you to another sector and train you only for you to immediately leave afterward. So the Corps has agreed to allow you to end your service early while still compensating you for those final weeks.”

Sweetie Drops smiled. It felt weird to smile in a situation like this, but that was indeed good news.

“Additionally,” Carbon Copy said while looking at Sweetie Drops’ file, “since you don’t have a hometown per se, we don’t have to give you an order to never visit there again. If you want to go back to where your parents are currently living, we can arrange that. Because of your father’s stellar work for the Magical Imbalances department, we can trust that your parents will only call you by your new name and not ask any questions about what you’ve been doing for the past four years.”

The smile instantly fell from Sweetie Drops’ face. One of the good things about working for a top-secret agency was that she didn’t have to worry about her parents knowing where she was or interfering with what she did. As her last day of service approached, in the back of her head, she knew that she was going to have to figure out whether her parents were going to be a part of the next phase of her life, but she had been putting off thinking about it. Every time she began to think about it, she just got angry.

It was at that moment, in Steel Poise’s office, as she began to get angry again, that it dawned on her – that was her answer. If the mere thought of it made her angry…

She looked at Carbon Copy. “No.”

Carbon Copy was slightly taken aback. “I’m sure if we tell them that it’s a matter of national security, they would understand—”

“I mean no, I’m not going back to where they are. Wherever they are.” Her tone of voice made it clear that she was not going to be told otherwise. “Don’t even tell me where that is. I’m moving on.”

Carbon Copy looked at Steel Poise. “That’s her decision,” Steel Poise told her in a similar tone of voice. Inside, Sweetie Drops smiled. Steel Poise always treated her with respect.

Steel Poise turned to Sweetie Drops. “Have you thought about where you’ll be moving to?” she asked.

“Not really, no,” Sweetie Drops said. “I thought I still had some time before I had to worry about that.”

“Then perhaps I can help,” Steel Poise said. “Even though this agency never existed as far as anypony is concerned, there are certain higher-ups who would like there to be some agents in select towns keeping an eye out for any extremely abnormal activity in the coming years. You wouldn’t be required to take any action – just report back to Canterlot if you witness any monster attack that isn’t resolved within a week. In exchange for your cooperation, you would receive a small stipend each year. Very small. So small, this might as well be a volunteer position.”

“Where would I have to live?” asked Sweetie Drops.

“I have a list of places right here,” Steel Poise said. She slid a piece of paper across the desk toward Sweetie Drops. One of the names was crossed off. “Panacea already chose South Pastern. That wouldn’t have been good for you anyway – it’s right next to Tartarus, and since the bugbear has been past that area, it might come back looking for you. The other four towns should be safe, though.”

Sweetie Drops looked at the list. While growing up, she had lived in a couple of the choices. One name in particular caught her eye.

“Ponyville?” she asked.

“A small town not too far from here,” Steel Poise said. “It’s on the list because it’s next to the Everfree – a forest filled with all sorts of abnormal creatures. Whatever dark magic is covering that forest, it seems to keep all of the monsters contained, so unless one of them wanders out, you won’t have to report anything.”

Sweetie Drops thought about it. Ponyville sounded as good as any other place to live. If she was going to have to assume a new identity, she wanted to do it in a small, out-of-the-way town where she could focus on discovering who she really was without the distractions of a big city. And from her time there as a filly, she remembered it being a pleasant little community.

“Okay, I’ll go to Ponyville,” she said.

“Great,” Steel Poise said. She took the paper back, picked up a pen with her teeth, and scratched the name off the list. “Carbon Copy?”

Carbon Copy looked down at her paperwork, then up at Sweetie Drops. “In that case, there’s only one other thing we need to discuss right now. Your new name.”

“Just my name? I don’t have to change my appearance or anything?”

“No – we’re just making sure there’s no way to connect your identity with the agency. Besides, you’d be surprised how many ponies there are in Equestria who look like one another. We can pick out a new name for you if you’d like, but if there’s something you’ve always wanted to be called, you can use that.”

Sweetie Drops put her hoof to her chin.

“I assume you’d like a name that’s candy-related, given your cutie mark,” Carbon Copy said.

Sweetie Drops thought about various types of candies. She wanted something that was a reflection of her as a pony.

After a few seconds of silence, she spoke. “What about…” she said slowly, to indicate she was still thinking. “What about… Bon Bon?”

“Bon Bon?” asked Carbon Copy.

“Yeah… Bon Bon. I think that fits me.” She thought about the way other ponies perceived her: How her classmates always made their own assumptions about the new kid. How her father always made sure she looked and behaved like a “normal” pony. How the Corps kept her from expressing her individuality. What ponies saw of her on the outside was a sort of shell that concealed who she really was on the inside. And Bon Bon was a better name than something like Bubble Gum Lollipop.

Carbon Copy made a note in her file. “Bon Bon.” She closed the folder and levitated a card toward Sweetie Drops. “Your out-processing will take place tomorrow at 1100 hours. We’ll finalize all of this, as well as your discharge from the Corps. I’ll see you then.”

Steel Poise spoke. “Thank you for your service, Sweetie Drops. I’m going to miss your exemplary work and dedication to the job.”

Sweetie Drops held her hoof to her forehead in a salute. “Thank you,” she said. “I’ve always admired the way you ran this place.”

Steel Poise accepted the compliment with a nod. “You’re dismissed – both from this meeting and from the agency. Please send in Cinnamon Stick next.”

Sweetie Drops got up and reached for the doorknob. Before she opened the door, she turned back around. “What’s going to happen to you?” she asked Steel Poise.

Steel Poise smiled. “Don’t worry about me. There’s more than one top-secret agency on this base.”

Sweetie Drops knew that that was all the answer she was going to get. She smiled at Steel Poise, opened the door, and left.

She stood on the platform of the Canterlot train station. As far as anyone else knew, her name was Bon Bon and always had been Bon Bon. She was accompanied by one large suitcase that contained the few meager possessions she had acquired during the last four years of her life – and that included a small metallic briefcase she had been given for her secret assignment as monster watchpony. It also contained the paperwork necessary for her to transfer her life’s savings, modest as they were, over to the bank at Ponyville.

Ponyville. Her new home. The place where she would experience the beginning of a life that was whatever she wanted it to be. For the first time in her life, she answered to nobody except herself.

The train for Ponyville arrived. Bon Bon stepped aboard. She took a seat by a window and watched as she headed for the place where everything was going to be new.

She was both excited and utterly terrified.

Chapter 4: New Ponies to Meet

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Lyra Heartstrings arrived at the Canterlot Outdoor Café to find her three foalhood friends already there. The four unicorns sat down at their usual table where they met for lunch every week. This week, they had something special to celebrate.

“There’s the mare of the hour!” said Minuette. Her blue eyes sparkled with life against her blue coat, framed by her two-toned blue mane. She was very blue.

“Congratulations!” said Twinkleshine. Her pink mane and tail seemed to float on her eggshell-colored coat.

“What’s next?” asked Lemon Hearts. Her lemon yellow coat was accented by a bright cerulean blue mane. Even though at first glance she resembled Twinkleshine, the two of them were unrelated.

“Jeez, guys, I just got here,” Lyra replied. She was a unicorn with an aquamarine coat. Her mane and tail were straight and slightly unkempt, primarily a muted cyan with a white accent. “There are other things we could talk about.” But it was clear that she was loving the attention.

“Sure, but what’s more interesting right now than you graduating from music school?” gushed Minuette. “How does it feel to be a full-fledged lyre…cist? Lyre-ist? Lyre player.”

“Lyrist,” said Lyra. “It feels… good, I guess? It hasn’t really sunk in yet. It feels more like I’ve just gotten a couple of days off from classes – not that I never have to go to classes ever again.”

“And now you have to join us in the real world!” exclaimed Minuette. Even when discussing the mundane, Minuette always projected a certain intense energy. To ponies who weren’t used to her, her enthusiasm levels when she found a topic she was excited to talk about could become a little uncomfortable. But her friends all understood that that was simply who she was.

“So, what are you going to do now?” asked Lemon Hearts. She was the most practical member of the group – immediately out of school, she had gotten a job working for the royal kitchen. And she was already receiving promotions to increasingly supervisory roles.

“I… haven’t figured that out yet,” admitted Lyra.

“I assumed you’d join one of the orchestras here in Canterlot,” said Twinkleshine. Of the four, she was the friendliest and the most optimistic. “Maybe not as the main…” she tried out the word “…lyrist, but as an understudy or something.”

“That’s the thing,” Lyra said. “None of the orchestras here want a pony who can play the lyre. It’s too ancient of an instrument, even for them.” She glanced down. “I’m not exactly sure what I’m going to do.”

“You could always teach music,” suggested Lemon Hearts. “You might not be able to play the other instruments, but you sure know a lot about music in general.”

Lyra scrunched up her nose at the mere idea. “Ugh. School was boring enough the first time around. Having to stand in front of a bunch of students and lecture, year after year? I spent all this extra time learning about music so I could do something with it, not just talk about it.”

“Maybe Moondancer can come up with some ideas,” Minuette said. “You are going to her party this afternoon, right?”

“Of course,” Lyra said. “Is this the first one she’s ever thrown?”

“I don’t know if it’s exactly right to say she’s throwing a party,” Lemon Hearts said. “I think it’s more of a small get-together – not a huge celebration.”

Minuette clapped her hooves together. “A celebration!” she said. “That’s what we should do! We should do something special to celebrate your graduation!”

“Like what?” asked Twinkleshine.

Minuette thought for a moment. “What about the Summer Sun Celebration? Are any of you doing anything for that?”

The other three shook their heads.

“It’s in Ponyville this year. Let’s all go down there tomorrow, stay up all night, and watch Princess Celestia raise the summer sun. It’ll be like we’re celebrating the dawn of Lyra’s new life!”

“Okay, even I think that’s cheesy,” Lyra said. “But I do like the idea. I’m in if you all are.”

“Sure, I’m in,” said Lemon Hearts.

Twinkleshine exclaimed, “Me too!”

“Perfect!” said Minuette.

The waiter, Urbane Charm, arrived with their usual drinks. After he levitated the glasses onto the table, Minuette immediately picked hers up in her magic and raised it in a toast.

“To Lyra’s future!” she said.

Lemon Hearts added, “To a new beginning!”

Twinkleshine chimed in, “To great success!”

Minuette said, “And to not being completely petrified by the increased number of decisions and endless options she faces as the result of a completely independent life!”

The other three stared at her.

“You didn’t feel that way when you first set out on your own?”

Twinkleshine and Lemon Hearts shook their heads.

Lyra said, “Way to put me at ease, Minuette.”

It had been slightly more than a year since Bon Bon moved to Ponyville. Her first couple of days had been a little overwhelming – more so than expected because immediately upon arrival, she was greeted by Pinkie Pie. After a hearty hello, the vibrantly pink earth pony had disappeared as suddenly as she had appeared. Shaken, Bon Bon went to the bank to set up an account, then found an inexpensive apartment for lease. No sooner had she done that than Pinkie Pie had reappeared and dragged her – literally, for the first few yards – to Sugarcube Corner, where a “Welcome to Ponyville” party was being held specifically for her.

Bon Bon, completely unaccustomed to having so many ponies introduce themselves to her at one time, didn’t do much socializing at the party. However, it did give her the chance to meet Mr. and Mrs. Cake, the owners of Sugarcube Corner. When they found out she was gifted at candy making, they asked if she would be able to provide them with gumdrops – Ponyville’s former resident candy maker had moved away a couple of months ago and it was taking up too much of their time and attention to make gumdrops on site. Bon Bon was thrilled that during her first day in her new home, she had already gotten work doing what she wanted to do.

Bon Bon bought the necessary ingredients and supplies and went to work. When she lived in the Royal Guard dormitory, she got to do the occasional bit of candy making in her shared kitchen, although not as much as she would have liked to have done. Gumdrops in particular were something she hadn’t attempted in a long while. But when she delivered her first batch, the Cakes were so impressed, they agreed to hire her for all of their candy needs. Soon she was supplying them with ingredients like sprinkles and chocolate chips of all sizes. She even began making individual candy treats that the Cakes bought and then resold at their shop. Bon Bon couldn’t have asked for anything more.

So Bon Bon began to settle into her new life. When she wasn’t making candy, she would walk around Ponyville, taking in the sights and activities. Throughout it all, though, she never found herself developing any close friendships with any of the other residents. Sure, she knew several of the vendors by name, and Pinkie Pie would always say hello and engage her in conversation, but it seemed to Bon Bon like most of the other ponies had one or two really close friendships that she never had.

Still, the only other time in her life she had been greeted this familiarly by this many other ponies was during her time with the MCA – and in that case, it was because they were all coworkers and didn’t have much choice. Bon Bon was content with her association with the ponies of Ponyville, even if she wasn’t the closest of friends with any of them.

It was the day leading up to the Summer Sun Celebration. Bon Bon was in her apartment, preparing to take a nap so she would be wide awake for the late-night festivities. Princess Celestia herself was coming to Ponyville to raise the summer sun, and Bon Bon was looking forward to seeing royalty with her own two eyes. It occurred to her that she should probably harbor some resentment toward the princess for forcing her to assume a brand new identity, but Bon Bon came to the conclusion that she liked her new life in Ponyville. Maybe the bugbear escaping was a blessing in disguise. It had led to her finding a job that she loved and to her surviving – nay, thriving – on her own. Plus, Ponyville was one small town within the vast expanses of Equestria. What were the odds of her seeing the bugbear ever again?

As Bon Bon started to drift off to sleep with those thoughts in her head, there was a knock at her door. Startled back to a waking state, she grumpily got up to answer it.

“Hiya, Bon Bon!” chirped Pinkie Pie. “There’s a new pony who just came to Ponyville and I’m throwing her a surprise party so she feels welcome. Be at the Golden Oak Library by 8:00 – we’ll party all night, then go watch the raising of the sun. I’ve got to go tell a couple dozen more ponies, so see you later!”

Instantaneously, she was gone. Just another typical interaction with Pinkie Pie. Bon Bon made a mental note of the time and location, then went back to her nap.

Lyra, Minuette, Lemon Hearts, and Twinkleshine got off the train at the Ponyville station in the middle of the afternoon. They had asked Moondancer if she wanted to join them, but Moondancer had seemed fairly upset by the end of her party and had declined.

“Pretty nice place,” Lyra commented as they walked into town.

“Yeah, but it’s small,” Lemon Hearts said. “I wonder why the princess would choose to raise the sun from here.”

“You know how she likes to bring attention to a new city each year,” Minuette said. “I think it’s nice that she chose such a small village. Maybe it’ll help put them on the map.”

A pink blur whizzed by the four. It came screeching to a halt, immediately reversed direction, then whizzed back to where they had stopped to stare. Suddenly, a pink pony with an unbelievably curly pink mane was standing in front of them.

“Hi – I’m Pinkie Pie!” she said. “What brings you to town?”

“We’re visiting from Canterlot to see the Summer Sun Celebration,” Twinkleshine said.

“Welcome!” said Pinkie Pie, rapidly shaking each of their hooves in turn. “Before that happens, do you want to come to this super fun surprise party I’m throwing?”

“Sure!” said Twinkleshine. The others were slowly catching up with everything that had just happened in the last fifteen seconds. Soon, they also agreed.

“Great!” Pinkie Pie said. “It’s at the Golden Oak Library – it’s a big oak tree near the middle of the town. You can’t miss it. Be there by 8:00. See you then!” With that, she turned back into a pink blur that receded off into the distance.

Minuette watched the pink blur disappear. “Well, I guess that answers what we’re going to do tonight,” she said. “Wanna go find a place to eat?”

The four Canterlot unicorn friends arrived at the Golden Oak Library around 7:00. A library inside a tree was a novel idea, and they wanted some time to explore it before the party began. Besides, after they had found a place to eat, there weren’t too many shops to visit – tourism wasn’t really a common source of revenue in Ponyville.

When they entered the tree, they were surprised to find Pinkie Pie right there in the library itself, setting up decorations. “You made it!” she said with genuine happiness in her voice. She somehow scooped all four of them at once into a hug.

“You’re the first ones here,” Pinkie said, letting them go. “Don’t worry, the other guests will start trickling in soon. Feel free to look around in the meantime. And when the other ponies arrive, say hi – everyone in Ponyville is really friendly!” She went back to hanging up streamers.

The four friends examined some of the books in the library and chatted among themselves. They weren’t sure whether they were supposed to be quiet – they were in a library after all, but Pinkie Pie had been projecting at full volume when she greeted them.

Soon, other ponies began to walk in. The four friends introduced themselves and struck up conversations. It wasn’t until Pinkie Pie finished hanging decorations and returned to talk to them that the four realized that she had been so busy, they had never introduced themselves to her. Within a half hour, the library was filled with ponies and the general din of party conversation. As the Ponyville residents found their own friends to talk to, the four Canterlot unicorns talked to themselves on one side of the room.

Bon Bon arrived at the library at 7:45. She knew that unlike most parties, you were expected to show up at a Pinkie Pie party before the stated arrival time. But she was terrible at small talk and never had much to say to the other Ponyville residents in these types of social situations. She usually wound up keeping to herself while the ponies around her chatted, and she wanted to keep the amount of time she spent doing that to a minimum.

As the sun began to set, the four friends from Canterlot were trying to determine what time it was, as there were no clocks visible in the library. They were also speculating on what kind of pony warranted a surprise party. They had learned from the other guests that the party was to welcome someone who was new to town, but no one knew who that pony was. The four unicorns from Canterlot assumed that it must be someone pretty important if the entire town was gathering together to welcome them, but the other guests were acting like this party was no big deal.

Their speculation was cut short at the sudden sound of “EVERYPONY QUIET!” The entire library quickly fell still and all eyes turned to Pinkie, who was standing in the center of the room, mane vibrating. “She’s almost here!” Pinkie squealed. She went to turn off the lights, and the entire library went dark. “When I turn on the lights, we all yell ‘Surprise!’ Nopony make a peep until then, starting… now.”

The four visitors were amazed at how silent everything became. They could barely hear anyone breathe. Lyra began to wonder whether the entire town had somehow been able to evacuate the library, leaving her and her friends alone in the dark. She put her hoof up to where Lemon Hearts had been standing, just to be sure she wasn’t alone.

Soon, they could hear the faint sounds of conversation outside the door, although it was impossible to make out what was being said. Not too long after that, the door opened, then slammed shut.

“Huh. Rude much?” said a young voice. Lyra swiveled her ear. That sounded like…

“Sorry, Spike,” said a female voice. Lyra raised her eyebrows in surprise – not that anyone could see her. Twilight Sparkle and Spike were the ones visiting Ponyville? Lyra felt one of her friends attempt to nudge her shoulder as a means of soundlessly conveying their recognition.

In the dark, Lyra heard the mare complaining about needing some time alone to study. That was Twilight Sparkle, all right.

The lights turned on. “Surprise!” yelled all of the ponies. Lyra and her friends all looked at each other, trying to determine whether any of them knew that Twilight was visiting Ponyville, too.

Pinkie Pie immediately jumped in front of Twilight and began talking. Twilight reacted exactly the way the four Canterlot friends expected her to react – by trying to walk away from the barrage of friendship. Before any of the four even had a chance to discuss whether they should go say hi, Twilight accidentally drank some hot sauce, ran upstairs, and shut herself in the bedroom.

After Pinkie Pie welcomed Spike to Ponyville and the party got back underway, the four walked over to the baby dragon.

“Spike!” greeted Minuette. “What brings you here?”

Spike was happy to see faces he recognized, yet also confused. “What brings you here?” he replied.

“We asked you first!”

“Oh. Right. Well, Princess Celestia assigned Twilight to oversee the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration tonight,” he said. “And I’ve been helping!” He puffed out his chest.

“No wonder she couldn’t make it to Moondancer’s party,” Lemon Hearts said.

“Well, she…” said Spike, but decided it was better not to explain. “How did it go?”

The four unicorns looked uneasily at one another. “We had… fun,” Twinkleshine said.

“Anyway,” Minuette jumped in, changing the subject, “we’re here to celebrate Lyra finally graduating from music school.”

It took half a second for the look of recollection to appear on Spike’s face. “Oh, yeah!” he said. “Congratulations!”

“Thanks,” Lyra said.

“So, what do you think of Ponyville?” Spike asked the group.

“We like what we’ve seen so far,” Twinkleshine said.

“Although we haven’t gotten to see too much,” Lemon Hearts added. “We just arrived earlier this afternoon.”

“Well, I think this place is great,” Spike said. “Everypony we’ve talked to has been so friendly – this might be the friendliest place in all of Equestria. I’ll have to try to convince Twilight to come visit here again on her next break.”

“When’s that?” asked Minuette.

“With the way Twilight studies?” Spike said. “Probably five years from now.”

“Only five years?” Lyra said. “She must be slowing down as she gets older.”

Bon Bon had been at the party for an hour and a half, and her boredom was overwhelming. She had long ago walked the perimeter of the library, saying hello to all of her casual acquaintances. With no real topics for conversation after “hello,” Bon Bon had left them to continue her circuit of the room. Now she was just strolling purposefully from spot to spot, trying to make it look like she had a destination in mind – she didn’t want the other ponies to see her just standing around by herself. Even though that was exactly what she was doing. Bon Bon knew she was supposed to stay up for the entire night leading up to the raising of the summer sun, but she wondered whether anyone would notice if she slipped out and did so from the seclusion of her apartment.

With nothing else to do, Bon Bon decided that she would go examine the snack table again. Pinkie had brought out another tray of cupcakes a few minutes before – maybe she could pick something up and start eating. That would make her look busy. Plus, the table was on the other side of the room, so she could take her time meandering over there.

Bon Bon looked over toward the snack table. Standing on one side of it were four unicorns she didn’t recognize, all talking to one another. She elected to wait until they left before walking over. As she waited and watched, she idly noted that the green one and the blue one were both pretty cute.

As the four continued to chat around the snack table, Bon Bon could see that they were all friends. She quietly envied the way they were able to just talk and generally have a good time in the others’ company.

As three of them turned to walk away with their glasses of punch, the green one picked up two cupcakes with her magic. Each cupcake was finished with vanilla icing, on top of which lay a ring-shaped slice of pineapple. In the center of each pineapple ring was a single blueberry.

The unicorn tilted the cupcakes ninety degrees in the air so the tops were perpendicular to the floor, then placed the bottoms of the cupcakes against her closed eyes. Calling to her friends, she slowly moved the cupcakes in and out in front of her face, acting as if the cupcakes were her eyes bugging out. Her friends all rolled their eyes and acted embarrassed at her behavior, although it was also clear that they were used to it.

Bon Bon stared. An unfamiliar sensation, similar to yearning, took hold of her. It was a feeling that she had never experienced before in her life. She tried to rationalize it as something else – tried to find some other explanation. But even though she had never felt it before, instinctively, she knew there was only one thing it could be. Is this… is this a… crush? she thought to herself. Okay. So this is what it feels like to have a crush on somepony. I mean, I’ve been attracted to mares before, but never like this. This is what an actual crush feels like.

The rational part of her brain tried to regain control. Calm down, Bon Bon. Yes, she’s cute. Yes, she’s fun. But you don’t know anything about her. You don’t know whether she’s taken. You don’t even know whether she’s gay or straight. It’s way too early for you to have a crush.

Bon Bon’s emotional side had spent years being repressed. Now, it wouldn’t be quieted so easily. Yes, but this is how I feel. So what do I do?

Bon Bon’s mind went silent for a moment. I’m not sure.

She watched as the unicorns slipped back into the sea of party guests. She decided to stick to her original plan for the moment and slowly made her way over to the snack table.

Then, for the next couple of hours, Bon Bon stayed about half a room’s length away from the unicorns, splitting her attention between looking preoccupied and stealing glances at the green one in order to get more information about her. It had finally occurred to Bon Bon that because she was in a library, she could pretend to examine the bookshelves – that way, it wouldn’t look unusual that she was spending long stretches of time by herself in one place.

Observing an unfamiliar pony while that pony made conversation didn’t yield much information when the dull roar of party noise made it impossible to know what she was saying. All that Bon Bon was really able to gather was that the unicorn had some kind of stringed musical instrument for a cutie mark and that she seemed to smile a lot.

Since the party was scheduled to last all night, Pinkie Pie would occasionally introduce activities to keep the guests entertained. It was during those activities that Bon Bon got to observe the unicorn in slightly different circumstances, and in each one, Bon Bon became more and more smitten. The unicorn did all of the sorts of things that Bon Bon wished her inhibitions would allow her to do. When the conga line started, the unicorn was one of the first ponies to join in. She readily volunteered to be one of the ponyquins for the toilet paper mummy race. And even though she really couldn’t carry a tune, the enthusiasm she displayed during the informal singing talent show just made her even more adorable.

Bon Bon had to know more. So between activities, she turned to the one pony who she knew could give her answers.

As Pinkie Pie was restocking the snack table with a tray of sugar cookies that she somehow had found the time to freshly bake, Bon Bon walked up to her. “Say, Pinkie…” she said, discreetly pointing across the room. “Do you know those four unicorns over there?” She asked about all four so her intentions wouldn’t be obvious.

“Of course!” Pinkie replied. “Their names are Twinkleshine, Minuette, Lyra Heartstrings, and Lemon Hearts. They’re visiting from Canterlot to see the princess raise the sun. You should go over and say hi. They’re loads of fun!”

“Thanks,” Bon Bon said. She turned around and began to walk, as if she intended to do just that. Instead, she slipped back into the crowd and took refuge by a bookshelf – the agriculture section, if she remembered correctly from her previous time there that night.

Okay, so that must mean her name is Lyra Heartstrings, she thought to herself. That’s what that instrument is – a lyre. Or is it a lute? I don’t remember what a lute is. Did Pinkie say one of their names was Minuet? What if she’s Minuet?

Bon Bon wondered whether she should go find a book on musical instruments. But she didn’t want another pony to catch her and ask her what she was reading – she couldn’t think of a good excuse as to what she’d need a music book for. She decided to go back to secretly watching the unicorn until she thought of a new plan.

Another hour or so passed. Bon Bon figured that it had to be around 1:30… although since there were no clocks in the library, she couldn’t be completely certain. All she knew was that when she had stepped outside a little earlier as another means of looking preoccupied, the moon had already traveled past its peak in the sky.

Maybe it was because she was fed up with doing nothing all night. Maybe it was because the lack of sleep had lowered her inhibitions the tiniest bit. But Bon Bon decided she was just going to go ahead and make a move – she was going to walk up to those unicorns and introduce herself.

Bon Bon stood rooted to the floor, petrified.

Chapter 5: Connection

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Bon Bon stared across the library at the four unicorns from Canterlot. She knew that the only way to learn more about the green one was to walk over there and say hello.

You can do this, she told herself. You’ve introduced yourself to other ponies plenty of times in the past.

Yeah, but never just out of the blue like this. What am I even going to say? “Hello, I’m Bon Bon,” and then what?

Talk about the song they sang.

An hour and a half ago?

Do you want to talk to her or not?

I don’t want to look stupid in front of her.

Look, she’s visiting from Canterlot, right? So even if you screw up, she won’t be hanging around town to make things awkward.

Yes. Logical. I have nothing to lose.

Of course, that also means this probably won’t result in anything.

…Yes. That’s logical. As well.

Just go do it.

Okay. Going. Go.

Go.

Bon Bon forced her hooves in front of one another. She walked up to the four unicorns, who were all laughing about something. They turned to look at her. No turning back now.

“Hi,” she said, doing her best to sound casual. “I’m Bon Bon.”

“Nice to meet you, Bon Bon,” said the blue one. “I’m Minuette.”

“Twinkleshine.”

“Lyra Heartstrings.”

“Lemon Hearts.”

Yes – Lyra Heartstrings. You were right.

The four unicorns looked at her.

Keep talking!

“I, uh, really liked the way you all sang ‘Paint the Town’ a while back,” Bon Bon said. She made a conscious effort to look at all four of them in turn.

“Really?” Lyra said. “Because none of us can carry a tune to save our lives.” She smiled and quietly chuckled to indicate that she was just stating a truth that they all already knew.

“Oh, you know…” Bon Bon said, trying to agree without sounding like she was insulting their singing ability. “The energy you all displayed. The song’s about having fun, and you all looked like you were having fun, so that’s the point, right?”

“Right!” said Minuette.

The momentary pause in the conversation that followed felt like an eternity to Bon Bon. She started to rack her brain, unsure of what to say next. Luckily, she was saved by Pinkie Pie, who had been setting up tables on one side of the library.

“Who’s ready for bingo?!” she called.

“Wanna play?” Twinkleshine said to the other unicorns. They all nodded. “Are you playing?” she asked Bon Bon.

“Sure,” Bon Bon replied. Unlike the last game Pinkie had introduced – charades – bingo didn’t require her to make a fool of herself in front of the other party guests.

There were no chairs – the four unicorns simply walked toward an open stretch of table near the center and sat down on the floor next to one another. Bon Bon had stayed one step behind to see where Lyra would end up. She felt a small rush of excitement when Lyra sat down at the far left of the group. Bon Bon quickly (yet casually) walked over to take a seat directly to Lyra’s left.

When all of the ponies who wanted to play were situated, Pinkie passed out a reusable bingo card and a small pile of round wooden chips to each participant. She then stood on a makeshift platform she had set up in the library’s entranceway next to a large hopper filled with bingo balls.

Pinkie gave the hopper a few spins, then released the first ball. “I-29!” she called.

There were a few murmurs of happiness as some of the ponies placed chips on their cards.

Pinkie drew another ball. “G-54! Does anypony have bingo yet?”

The players all looked at her with confused expressions.

“Just making sure you’re all being honest!” she said. She spun the hopper again.

The game continued for several more draws until a pegasus in the front row achieved a bingo. After Pinkie verified the numbers, she presented the winner with her prize: An oversized chocolate cupcake with caramel frosting.

“Oh, we’re playing for desserts?” Lyra said to her friends. “Game on!” A determined grimace appeared on her face, as if she was now going to start playing bingo with increased focus.

“Lyra, we’ve been eating desserts at the snack table all night,” Lemon Hearts said from the other end of the group.

“Yeah, but not those desserts. They will be mine!” Lyra proclaimed, theatrically raising her front hoof in the air.

Pinkie displayed the next prize up for grabs: A strawberry custard crepe. Lyra licked her lips. After the first three draws, Bon Bon was proud of the diagonal she was working on with three markers in a row. Granted, one of the markers had been covering the free space, but she was still pleased with it.

“Oh, you’d better look out,” she said with a smile, playfully taunting Lyra. “I’m coming after your crepe.”

“N-37!” Pinkie called. Lyra placed a third chip on the top row of her card.

“Oh no you don’t!” Lyra said, taunting Bon Bon back.

In the end, the crepe went to a unicorn seated directly behind Minuette. Lyra shook her hoof in mock frustration.

“Eh, it’s just a thin pancake,” Bon Bon said, then gestured toward the front of the game area. Pinkie was holding up two chocolate chip cookies surrounding a vanilla cream filling. Lyra lifted her hoof, pointed it at her eyes, then pointed it at the cookie sandwich. Bon Bon chuckled.

After eleven draws, no one at Bon Bon’s table had made much progress. Pinkie drew another ball and announced “I-19!”

Lyra placed a chip near the top of her card, away from the other chips. “This is all part of my plan,” she said. “I just wanted to stage the most spectacular come-from-behind victory any of you have ever seen.”

Bon Bon looked at her own progress. “This is the round where in order to win, you have to form a shapeless blob in the lower left corner of your card, right?”

Lyra looked at Bon Bon’s card. “Look at it this way: You’re only three numbers away from winning in six different directions.”

None of the five won the cookie sandwich. Nor did they win any of the four desserts that followed. Through it all, Bon Bon subconsciously marveled at how at ease she felt. This was the most talkative she had been with another pony for as long as she could remember. She tried not to think too hard about it – she didn’t want to ruin a good thing while it was happening.

During one game, Lyra and Bon Bon spontaneously started quietly adding comments to each number Pinkie announced. Lyra had the best quip when she sang, “O-65, the pipes, the pipes are calling.” Although Bon Bon was proud of the laugh she got out of Lyra when, after Pinkie shouted “B-1!”, she casually remarked, “…with nature.” Lyra made playing bingo more fun than it had any right to be.

As the players were clearing their cards for the seventh time, Pinkie made an announcement. “All right everypony, this is the last round. But I’ve saved the best prize for last: An entire red velvet cake!”

Pinkie lifted it up for all to see. There were a few “ooh”s from the players as they looked at the full-size double-layer cake completely covered in cream cheese frosting. One of those “ooh”s came from Lyra.

“Now, if you want to win the biggest prize, you’ll have to work for it. This is the cover-all round. The first pony to cover all 25 spaces on their card wins the cake!”

Pinkie began to call numbers and ponies began to gradually cover their cards with markers. Early on, Lyra arranged most of her markers on the table into a two-dimensional shape – a rectangle four markers long by three markers high. Centered above the rectangle, she placed two pairs of markers vertically.

Bon Bon looked at the shape. “It’s a cake,” Lyra explained. “Those are the candles. Eyes on the prize.”

Bon Bon smirked. As Pinkie continued to call numbers, Bon Bon arranged most of her markers in the shape of a fork over Lyra’s cake.

As the round progressed, Lyra and Bon Bon’s bingo chip creations became more and more unrecognizable as the two filled their cards. Eventually, Lyra had just one number remaining: G-51. It appeared that a few other ponies were waiting for one number, as well.

Pinkie took the next ball from the hopper. She had begun to read them slowly for dramatic effect. “G…”

Lyra leaned forward an inch.

“48!”

Lyra quietly grunted in frustration. None of the other players yelled that they had a bingo.

“B…”

Lyra quietly grunted in frustration again.

“14!” Bon Bon slid another marker onto her card – she now had two numbers to go. Still no bingo in the room.

“G…”

Bon Bon, whose G column was already covered, looked at Lyra. Lyra was trying to see what was on the ball, even though it was too far away and obscured by Pinkie’s hoof.

“51!”

“BINGO!” Lyra shouted at the top of her lungs. Twinkleshine, who was sitting directly to the right of Lyra, rubbed her ear. A few of the other players groaned.

Pinkie Pie grinned. “What was that…?” she asked playfully.

“BINGO!” Lyra shouted again, equally as loudly as before. She raised her hoof into the air.

“I think I heard something…”

“BINGO! RIGHT HERE! BINGO!” Lyra placed both of her front hooves up on the table and stood on her hind legs. She picked up her bingo card, complete with markers, in her magic and started waving it in the air.

“It looks like there’s a bingo!” Pinkie Pie said. She verified all of the numbers. “Fillies and gentlecolts, we have a winner!” Some of the other players applauded. Lyra walked up to Pinkie, who placed the cake into a cardboard cake box and presented it to her. Lyra took the box with her hoof and lifted it into the air triumphantly.

“Thanks for playing, everypony!” Pinkie Pie said. “I’ll be back with the next game soon!” The other ponies went back to mingling on the other side of the room while Pinkie gathered up all of the bingo supplies.

Lyra brought her cake over to the other three unicorns and Bon Bon. Twinkleshine telekinetically lifted the lid of the box. “That looks delicious,” she said. “Are you going to share?”

“I don’t know…” Lyra said with false indecision. “Seems like someone thought it wasn’t important.” She looked at Lemon Hearts.

“Hey, if you want to keep it as your trophy, I won’t stop you,” Lemon Hearts said. “I’m going to go get some more punch.” She left for the snack table.

Lyra turned to Bon Bon. “Judging by your cutie mark, I’d guess you’re the expert on desserts in this town,” she said. She showed Bon Bon the open box. “So, what do you think? Is this a good cake?”

“Well, my special talent is more about candy than all desserts,” Bon Bon said. “Still, I’m assuming that Pinkie Pie baked this cake herself, so it should be delicious. The real experts are Mr. and Mrs. Cake, who run Sugarcube Corner. But Pinkie works for them, and she comes up with some amazing pastries.”

“That’s good enough for me,” Lyra said. She closed the lid. “So, you know all about candy?”

“I mean, not everything, but… yeah.”

“Okay, I have a question. A couple weeks ago, I tried to take a chocolate bar and a jar of peanut butter to make my own peanut butter cups. I formed the chocolate into a little cup shape and filled it with peanut butter, but why didn’t it taste the same as the ones I get from the candy store?”

“Well, without knowing what the ones from the candy store were like, my guess is that it’s because the peanut butter in a peanut butter cup usually has powdered sugar added to it to make it taste sweeter. And butter, too. Chocolate and peanut butter go well together, but when you add sugar and more butter, it becomes even more addictive.”

“Of course…” Lyra said. Bon Bon could practically see her forming the mental note Add powdered sugar.

“So, about your cutie mark,” Bon Bon said. “Is that a lyre?”

“Yep!” Lyra responded proudly. “Good eye – not everypony knows what a lyre is.”

“Well, I kind of guessed based on your name,” Bon Bon admitted. “If you asked me what a lyre was before I saw that, I probably wouldn’t remember.”

“Still, to even make that connection is farther than some ponies get.”

“I take it you play?”

Lyra nodded.

“What kind of music?”

“I like the bright, cheerful sound of the higher notes, so I usually improvise tunes up there. There’s no particular genre that I specialize in – I can make the lyre work well enough with pretty much any style of music if the other musicians are open-minded about it. Actually, right now, I’m looking for an ensemble that’s willing to take on a lyrist.”

Bon Bon thought for a moment. “I wish I could help you, but Ponyville doesn’t really have a thriving music scene. Sorry.”

“It’s all right. I just graduated from Canterlot Music Academy this week, and they weren’t able to help me find anything, either. Speaking of Ponyville, what do you do for fun here? My friends and I just arrived this past afternoon, but if it hadn’t been for this party, we wouldn’t have had anything to do. I’m sure we missed something, but what?” Lyra didn’t notice that while she had been talking about the lyre, Minuette and Twinkleshine had also quietly stepped away.

Bon Bon explained to Lyra that Ponyville didn’t have a lot of recurring activities or regularly scheduled performances, but there always seemed to be something interesting to see or do during most weeks – the rest of the time, the citizens simply worked or relaxed with one another. This led to Lyra admitting that she didn’t do most of the touristy things in Canterlot, which led to a discussion of Canterlot’s parks, which led to a discussion of Ponyville’s lakes, which led to stories from when each of them was learning to swim.

The conversation flowed easily and consistently, and neither Bon Bon nor Lyra noticed how much time had passed until Pinkie was announcing the next game. The tables were still set up, but now they were arranged in one long row that curved around the library.

“It’s time for ice water flip cup!” Pinkie declared. Ponies began to line up on either side of the tables.

Lyra began to walk over. Bon Bon didn’t move.

“Come on!” Lyra said. “We’ve got to be on the same team.”

Bon Bon hesitated. “I… well… I don’t know how good I’d be. What if I don’t do it right?”

Lyra waved her hoof dismissively. “It’s a party. So long as you’re having fun, you’re doing it right.”

“Yeah, but I don’t want to get up there and embarrass myself and have everypony else be mad at me for making them lose.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Lyra said. “It’s just flip cup. Nopony cares if they win or lose – we all just want to have a good time together. And we can’t do that if you’re sitting on the sidelines.”

Bon Bon looked at Lyra. Lyra looked like her feelings were going to be hurt if Bon Bon didn’t participate. And Bon Bon really was curious to give it a try.

Bon Bon mentally shoved her self-consciousness aside. “Okay,” she said. “But you’re going before me.”

Bon Bon and Lyra took their positions near the middle of the line. Lemon Hearts, Twinkleshine, and Minuette reappeared and stood directly before Lyra.

Pinkie Pie explained the rules. As she did, a light fuchsia unicorn with a purple mane and three diamonds on her flank passed out cylindrical cups that got slightly wider at the top. A pegasus with a rainbow-colored mane flew overhead and filled each cup halfway with ice water from a large pitcher.

The object of the game was for the ponies on each side of the table to, in turn, drink the super-chilled ice water as quickly as possible, then place the cup over the edge of the table, narrow side down, and flick a hoof upward to flip the cup over and cause it to rest on its wider top. If the cup fell over sideways, the pony would have to pick it up with their mouth, put it back on the edge of the table, and try again. The challenge came from the fact that by drinking the ice-cold water so quickly, each player would likely experience a brief moment of brain freeze. Plus, the water temporarily numbed the mouth, making it more difficult to pick up the cup on a failed attempt.

Once all of the cups were filled, the pegasus took her place at the beginning of the line, opposite an earth pony wearing a western hat. Pinkie took her position second in the line, next to the pegasus.

“On your mark… get set… go!” Pinkie sliced her hoof downward through the air.

The first two ponies lifted their cups with their mouths, downed the water in one quick gulp, then, while wincing in pain, placed the cups on the edge of the table. At practically the same time, they flicked their hooves upward. Both cups neatly came to rest upside down.

The next two ponies drank their ice water. Pinkie let out an overexaggerated scream of pain before flipping her cup over.

The game continued, with most of the players succeeding in flipping their cups within four tries – the average seemed to be three. Soon, the turn reached the cluster of friends from Canterlot. Minuette accomplished the task quickly. Twinkleshine and Lemon Hearts each took a couple of tries before getting their cups to stay upright.

Lyra drank her ice water, emitted a noise that sounded like “annrgh,” then knocked her cup onto its side with her first attempt. She reset, then successfully flipped the cup over on her second try. She pumped her hoof and exclaimed “Yes!”, then grabbed her head as she continued to fight off the effects of the momentary brain freeze.

Which meant it was Bon Bon’s turn. She grabbed the rim of the cup in her mouth, tilted her head back, and swallowed the ice water. It was colder than she had anticipated, and she dropped the cup onto the table as she became overwhelmed by the stabbing pain in her forehead. She struggled a bit to set the cup upright – partially because of her numbed mouth, but mostly because she was trying to see through squinted eyes.

Bon Bon flicked her hoof upward, but much too hard – the cup spun through the air and nearly landed upright again before falling over. Bon Bon’s second attempt was both a little too hard and off-center, causing the cup to roll to the side.

As Bon Bon set the cup up again, she heard Lyra giving her words of encouragement. “You can do it, Bon Bon! Stay focused.”

Bon Bon took a brief moment before flicking her hoof upward again. The cup turned 180 degrees in the air, landed on the edge of its rim, and nearly tipped over. However, its center of gravity was just low enough to instead bring the cup to rest on its opening.

“Hey!” Bon Bon said proudly. It hadn’t taken her too many tries and her side of the table was still in the lead. Lyra held up her foreleg, and she and Bon Bon exchanged a hoof bump.

Lyra had been right – none of the ponies were concerned with how well anybody did. And no one slowed their line down significantly. Even the pegasus named Derpy – who, on her first attempt, smashed her hoof against the underside of the table instead of tapping the cup – succeeded on her fifth try.

Bon Bon’s side of the table finished first, but all of the ponies continued to cheer on the last few players on the other side of the table as they flipped their cups. When the last pony finished, everyone cheered at having completed the game.

“What did I tell you?” Lyra said to Bon Bon as the rainbow-maned pony began to refill all of the cups to the halfway mark. This time, she filled her cup and the cup of her opponent all the way to the top.

“You were right,” Bon Bon admitted. “I’m having fun.”

The group played two more rounds, at which point most everyone present agreed that that was enough brain freeze for one night. The party guests resumed their mingling. Once again, Lyra failed to notice that she had been left alone with Bon Bon.

“So, what are your plans while you look for somepony to hire you?” Bon Bon asked Lyra.

“My immediate goal is to find a place to live. I’m just worried about getting stuck with a roommate I don’t get along with – even the apartments in Canterlot aren’t cheap, and I can’t afford to live by myself.”

Bon Bon nodded. Back at the agency, she had talked with Soothe Sayer and Panacea about the costs of moving off the base, so she knew just how expensive Canterlot apartments were.

“Does it have to be in Canterlot?” Bon Bon suggested. “You could move someplace smaller. The one-bedroom apartment I have here in Ponyville is cheaper than even a studio apartment in Canterlot. Uh, probably,” she hastened to add. She wasn’t supposed to reveal that she had lived in Canterlot for four years.

“Really?” Lyra said. “What do you pay? If you don’t mind me asking.” Bon Bon told her, and Lyra let out a low whistle. “That’s a lot more affordable. Maybe I should move here for the time being – it isn’t too far away from home.”

“I know there’s a vacancy just a couple doors down from me,” Bon Bon said. Her eyes went wide as she realized what she was suggesting. That hadn’t been her intention at all! Though she wouldn’t object to it if that happened…

“I’ll keep it in mind,” Lyra said. After a momentary pause in the conversation, she smacked her lips together. “I think the numbness is gone from my mouth.”

Bon Bon did the same. “Mine too,” she said.

“I think it’s about time I have some of my victory cake. Do you want some?”

“Sure!”

“I’ll go get some plates,” Lyra said. She looked around – it was only then that she realized that her other friends were nowhere to be seen. With a small shrug, she walked over to the snack table to get two plates.

Pinkie Pie had recently stocked the snack table with assorted cream pies, so plates and knives were plentiful. Lyra used her magic to pick up two plates and a knife to cut the cake with. As she did, she looked across the room to where Bon Bon was standing. When Bon Bon saw Lyra turn her head toward her, she quickly looked away.

Lyra slowly tilted her head in thought. It had only then occurred to her that she had spent the last couple of hours talking exclusively to Bon Bon. And they seemed to get along really well. And they had been having a lot of fun together. And she was certainly attractive.

Lyra had been so busy with her last year of studies that she hadn’t been putting a lot of effort into her dating life, let alone looking for a potential marefriend. It certainly hadn’t been on her mind when she visited Ponyville. But now she wondered…

“Slow down, Lyra,” she said to herself. Jumping to conclusions had ended badly for her in the past. Besides, Spike had said that everyone in Ponyville was really friendly. Maybe that’s all it was.

Lyra carried the plates back to Bon Bon, then the two of them walked over to one of the tables that Pinkie had left standing. Lyra levitated the cake box toward them from where she had stored it up on one of the library’s shelves. She cut two generous slices, placed one on each of their plates, and the two ponies leaned in to take a bite.

“Mmm,” Lyra said approvingly, then swallowed. “Yep, this is a good cake.”

Bon Bon nodded as she swallowed her bite. “I’ve always felt that red velvet cake lives or dies by its frosting. And this frosting is delicious.” She took a small, careful bite. “Even the cake by itself is good. That’s rare. Like I said, Pinkie does some good work.”

While they were eating, Lyra reflected back on the night so far and couldn’t help but wonder: Was she sensing some kind of spark between them? Or was she letting her imagination get away from her again? When they finished eating, Lyra levitated the box back up onto the shelf. She decided to try a little flirting to see what would happen.

“I love how you keep the colors of your mane separate like that,” she said. “Even though it’s curly. That must be a lot of work in the morning.”

“Oh, actually, it pretty much sits like this,” Bon Bon said. “If I sleep on it really badly, maybe it’ll get a little tangled, but it doesn’t take too much combing to get it back in order. It’s my tail that annoys me.” She flicked her tail, which was predominantly pink with a curl of blue on either side. “I wish it didn’t branch off in three directions like that.”

“No, it looks good,” Lyra said. Bon Bon just looked backward at her tail. “So… have you lived in Ponyville all your life?”

Bon Bon stiffened up a little bit. “No… I moved around a lot when I was younger. I just moved to Ponyville about a year ago.”

Lyra opened her mouth to ask what brought Bon Bon to the town. But before she could say anything, Bon Bon quickly jumped in.

“So! How about that…” her eyes darted around the room “…punch?” It was the first clumsy segue in their conversation all night.

Lyra looked over toward the snack table. “Do you want some punch?”

“…Yeah! Let’s get some punch. That cake made me kind of thirsty.”

The two walked over to the snack table and each took a cup of punch. Bon Bon quickly drank hers.

“There we go,” she said. “Uh… sorry about that.”

“That’s all right,” Lyra said. “So… what’s your favorite type of candy?”

Bon Bon seemed to relax again. “Oh… it’s so hard to choose just one,” she said. “I mean, chocolate is always a classic, but I like chocolate that’s been combined with other ingredients. I guess if I had my choice, I’d tend to pick a darker chocolate. But then combine it with something really sweet to contrast the bitterness. Like an apple dipped in dark chocolate. That tastes really good.”

“And here I thought you were just going to say bonbons.”

“Well, I have been trying to figure out how to make an apple bonbon. But I haven’t been able to get the filling quite right yet.”

Lyra giggled. “Maybe on Nightmare Night, instead of candy apples, you could do dark chocolate-covered apples.”

Bon Bon seemed momentarily lost in thought. “Candy apples… maybe if I flipped it – if I put an apple-flavored coating around a chocolate center. Ooh, I’ll have to remember to try that tomorrow.”

Lyra was glad that their conversation was back on track. “I don’t understand how a pony whose special talent is making candy can stay so thin,” she said.

“I’m not that thin,” Bon Bon said. She angled her body slightly so the underside of her barrel would be hidden behind her forelegs. “But so far, I’ve had pretty good metabolism. I guess I’m just lucky.”

Lyra mirrored Bon Bon’s position to stand the same way – as a result, the two were directly facing one another.

Spike, now wearing a lampshade on his head, walked up between them, grabbed a cup of punch, then walked back toward the crowd.

Bon Bon watched him walk away. She leaned in toward Lyra. “Can I ask you something?” she said in a low voice.

“Sure,” Lyra said, wondering whether it was time to get her hopes up.

“Am I the only one who’s a little uneasy about the fact that there’s a dragon here?”

Lyra’s hopes stayed right where they were.

“I mean, I know he hasn’t done anything bad, but he’s a dragon. But nopony else seems worried. Is it just me?”

Lyra mentally collected herself. “That’s just Spike,” she said nonchalantly. “He’s Twilight Sparkle’s… well, assistant, I guess. He wouldn’t hurt a fly. I see him around Canterlot all the time.”

“Oh, you know him?” Bon Bon said. She looked away to her left, down toward the floor. “I’m so sorry. You must think I’m awful.”

“No, it’s all right,” Lyra said. She put her hoof up on Bon Bon’s right shoulder. “I can see how it’d be easy to think that. To be honest, I’m so used to seeing him around, I kind of forget that he is a dragon.”

Bon Bon looked up toward Lyra apologetically. Then she glanced over at Lyra’s hoof on her shoulder. Lyra pulled it away, a nervous grin on her face.

“I’m sorry,” Bon Bon said. “I’ve had some, uh, bad experiences with other types of creatures in my past. I don’t want to go into it. And I’ve never encountered a dragon before. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Lyra said. “I totally understand.”

“Let’s talk about something else,” Bon Bon said. She looked around. “This dance music that’s playing… could you make a lyre work with that?”

Lyra began to talk about how she would probably play rhythmic staccato notes to accompany the pulsating bass line of the music. As she did, she felt frustrated that her attempts at flirting hadn’t produced any meaningful results. All she had really accomplished were a couple of instances of somehow throwing a wrench into the conversation. Well, maybe one of those instances was Spike’s fault. At any rate, Lyra decided to not worry about flirting for a while and just let the conversation happen naturally, as before.

The two continued to talk and play party games until 5:00 in the morning, at which point Pinkie announced it was time for everyone to head to town hall for the official raising of the sun.

“Already?” Lyra said. There had been a couple of bumps a couple of hours ago, but since then, her time with Bon Bon seemed to go by almost too quickly. They both began to walk toward the door together – neither had to ask the other whether she wanted to walk with her.

Bon Bon took the long way to town hall so she could show Lyra some of the things that the citizens of Ponyville did for fun.

“…and over that way is the day spa,” she said. “I’ll tell you, I never realized how much I liked getting a facial until Aloe and Lotus Blossom showed me what they can do. I don’t go to them for any mane or tail work, but I’ve been told that they’re great at that, too.”

“You can see my mane and tail,” Lyra said. “I don’t put much effort into them. So… are the facials really that great?”

“Have you ever had one before?”

“Not professionally.”

“You wouldn’t believe how rejuvenating it can be. It’s weird that having your face covered in paste can actually make you feel relaxed, but it’s true.” Bon Bon smiled as she thought about it. “You’ve got to come back here and visit sometime when the spa is open – you’ll see.”

Once again, Lyra found herself wondering whether she had done more than just make a friend at a party. After all, you don’t spend the entire night talking to one single pony – let alone give them their own little private tour of the town – unless something is clicking. And even though she still wasn’t positive where exactly she stood with Bon Bon, Lyra had pretty much made up her mind where she wanted to go now that she was finished with school.

“About coming back…” Lyra said. “I’ve been thinking about what you said about the apartments. If I came back here, say, the Monday after next, do you think that apartment would still be available? To look at?”

The smile on Bon Bon’s face grew twice as large. “Yeah! I mean, it should be. There’s another one available even if that one gets claimed. But it probably won’t. You should definitely come look.”

“I think I will,” Lyra said. “I’d ask you to show me where the building is right now” – she looked up toward the moon – “but I don’t want you to miss the raising of the sun because of me.”

“Oh, yeah,” Bon Bon said. “Afterward. Town hall’s this way.”

Bon Bon turned around and led the way over to town hall. Lyra stayed by her side and consciously began to step in time to Bon Bon’s steps.

“Town hall is a good space for all kinds of events,” Bon Bon said as they approached the large circular building. It looked to be three stories tall, although one of those stories was itself about two stories tall. “Parties, weddings… it gets a lot of use. You could probably fit every pony in Ponyville in there if you needed to. Or if we have a town meeting, we all just gather outside in this big open area.”

Lyra was glad for the big open area, as her attention was focused not on looking forward, but on staying in step with Bon Bon and looking her in the eye. “It sounds like you really like this town,” she said.

“I know it doesn’t seem like much compared to Canterlot, but we’re all really happy here. It really feels like home. I hope the apartment works for you. I think you’d like it here.”

Lyra nearly didn’t notice as they approached the steps. Luckily, she made it onto the first step before she tripped and embarrassed herself. The two walked through the door into the large, three-story-tall open room inside. Many, many ponies had already gathered around. Even though the space was considerably larger than the library, it felt just as crowded.

“Wow,” Lyra said. “I think every pony in Ponyville is in here.”

“It looks that way,” Bon Bon said, slightly awed. She led Lyra around to one side of the room. “Then again, I suppose a chance to see the princess is a pretty big deal. Do you ever get to see her as you wander around Canterlot?”

“Not as I wander around,” Lyra said. “She’ll address the citizens from her balcony from time to time, so I’ve seen her from a distance. Never as close as being in the same room with her like this, though.” She gestured outward toward the rest of the room.

Bon Bon looked around. “They decorated the place really nicely for her visit. Not too flashy, but classy enough to be fitting of royalty. Even in the moonlight like this. I bet this is Rarity’s work.”

Lyra decided to make one last attempt. She turned, looked into Bon Bon’s eyes, and smiled. “You have a good eye for detail,” she said. She flipped her mane back with her hoof.

Bon Bon looked back up and around the room. “No, I’m just noticing because usually it’s a lot emptier and more open. Although maybe all of the ponies flying around are drawing my attention to the decorations.”

Lyra sighed – quietly enough so the noise in the room would prevent Bon Bon from hearing her – and looked up. She decided to just be in the moment. The decorations did look nice.

“How do you score one of those great spots on the balconies?” she wondered.

“Get here early, I guess,” Bon Bon said.

Lyra considered that for a moment. “Not worth it. I had too much fun at the party.”

“Me too.”

Just then, a small collection of songbirds began to whistle a fanfare. A spotlight lowered toward a platform raised one step off the ground, where an official-looking pony was standing.

“Fillies and gentlecolts,” she said, “as mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration.”

The entire assemblage of ponies, including Lyra and Bon Bon, erupted into cheering.

The mayor continued with her speech. “And now, it is my great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land…”

Lyra started to get excited. She could see the same expression in Bon Bon’s face.

“…the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria: Princess Celestia!”

On the balcony above the stage, the curtains opened. The songbirds sang once again. But no pony emerged.

The crowd of ponies began to murmur to one another. Bon Bon turned to Lyra. “Is this normal?” she whispered. “Does she usually make a surprise entrance?”

“I don’t think so…” Lyra replied. “This doesn’t seem like it was supposed to go this way.”

As the mayor urged everyone to remain calm, a unicorn walked to the front of the balcony. With a concerned look on her face, she said, “She’s gone!”

The crowd gasped. The only thing Lyra could think to do was to stare at the balcony, as if perhaps that would lead her to figure out what was wrong. Bon Bon did the same.

As they stared, a mysterious cloud of blue smoke began to form on the balcony. It twinkled with tiny stars, almost as if it was made of the night sky itself. Abruptly, the smoke parted to reveal a jet-black alicorn. Her mane and tail appeared to be made of the same ethereal blue vapor.

“Oh, my beloved subjects,” she said. “It’s been so long since I’ve seen your precious little sun-loving faces.” Her voice was dripping with a confident malevolence.

Lyra wanted to run. But with everyone else in the room remaining perfectly still, she didn’t want to call attention to herself. Instead, she subconsciously leaned toward Bon Bon. Bon Bon leaned toward Lyra.

The alicorn taunted the ponies near her, implying that they should know who she was. “Did you not recall the legend? Did you not see the signs?” she said.

“I did,” replied a unicorn standing near the center of the room. Lyra was surprised to see it was Twilight Sparkle – Lyra had assumed she was still keeping to herself in the library.

“And I know who you are,” Twilight continued. “You’re the mare in the moon: Nightmare Moon.”

Lyra, along with the rest of room, gasped. Nightmare Moon was just a made-up legend, there to make Nightmare Night more fun. She wasn’t supposed to be real. The revelation was too overwhelming to process. All Lyra could do was continue to stare.

“Then you also know why I’m here,” Nightmare Moon said.

“You’re here to… to…” Twilight said. She gulped, unable to finish the sentence. Lyra’s mouth was bone dry.

Nightmare Moon chuckled. “Remember this day, little ponies, for it was your last. From this moment forth, the night will last forever!” As Nightmare Moon began to laugh maniacally, the blue haze that was her mane rose up and filled the hall in a swirling vortex. Lightning flashed from within.

Lyra’s brain told her that she should run. But her body was frozen in fear. The pegasi of the Royal Guard flew toward Nightmare Moon. As they approached, she summoned more lightning, knocking them to the ground. A swirl of smoke enveloped Nightmare Moon, removing her from sight. The smoke then shot through the crowd of ponies, who split down the middle to avoid being touched by it. In what felt like an instant, the smoke was through the doors and gone.

The sudden motion of the crowd kicked Lyra’s muscles back into gear. Lyra’s brain impressed upon her a single word: Escape.

A pegasus flew out of the hall, trying to chase the smoke. Soon after, Twilight Sparkle was galloping away with Spike on her back. Meanwhile, Lyra tried to make her way through the mass of ponies. They were running in every direction possible, uncertain of whether to remain in the room where the evil thing had just been or to go outside where the evil thing might now be.

“Everypony, please remain calm!” the mayor yelled over the sounds of panic. “Please return to your homes in an orderly manner! The Royal Guard will find Princess Celestia and stop Nightmare Moon! I repeat: Return to your homes!”

That was enough to persuade the crowd, which began to pour out of town hall and into the streets of Ponyville. Lyra switched from trying to work her way around the mass of ponies to trying not to get trampled by them.

Before she knew it, Lyra had been swept outside and found herself standing in the big open area in front of town hall as the citizens of Ponyville continued to flee around her. The mayor had said to return home, but Lyra’s home was in Canterlot with her parents. A new wave of fear washed over Lyra as she worried for her parents’ safety.

As Lyra stood there, trying to think of what she should do, she thought she heard her name amid the screams of the townsponies.

“Lyra!”

That was her name. Lyra turned her head toward the sound. Through a steady stream of escaping ponies, she saw Lemon Hearts, Twinkleshine, and Minuette. Lemon Hearts waved to get her attention.

“Come on, Lyra!”

Lyra clumsily ran around the other ponies and reached her friends. They all began to run toward the train station.

“The engineers don’t know what’s happened yet!” Lemon Hearts yelled. “We’ve got to get back to Canterlot before they shut everything down!”

As luck would have it, the early-morning train to Canterlot was boarding as the four reached the station. They quickly bought their tickets and jumped into the nearest passenger car. It looked as though they were the only ones aboard who knew what had just occurred. The four quietly glanced at one another and around the car. They didn’t want to send the other passengers into a panic.

Soon, the train left the station. The four unicorns breathed a collective sigh of relief.

“We go home and we stay safe,” Lemon Hearts said under her breath to the others. “Princess Celestia will take care of this. We just have to keep away from Nightmare Moon until this is all over.”

The other three agreed. There was nothing left to do but wait for the train to reach Canterlot. The adrenaline from their escape now spent, and the effects of staying awake for the entire night now catching up to them, the four unicorns slept for the entire trip.

Chapter 6: Establishing the Relationship

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Because the train had to travel up the mountain, the trip from Ponyville to Canterlot took longer than the journey in the opposite direction. For the four friends, that just meant more time to sleep.

The train pulled up to the platform. “Canterlot Station!” announced the conductor, waking them all up. “I believe this is your stop?”

The four slowly got to their hooves. Lyra rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Her vision gradually focused as her eyes adjusted to the daylight.

…The daylight?

Lyra snapped to attention and looked out the window. Sure enough, the sun was in the sky, right where it usually was.

“The sun came up?” Lemon Hearts remarked toward the general direction of the conductor.

“About three hours later than usual, by my watch,” he replied. “There must’ve been some sort of hang-up during the Summer Sun Celebration. Have to admit, I was getting a little worried – I’ve never heard of Princess Celestia ever being late to raise the sun before. First time for everything, I guess.”

The four unicorns looked at one another, relieved smiles spreading across their faces. They eagerly left the train and stood on the platform, staring at the sky.

“She beat Nightmare Moon,” Lemon Hearts said.

“That was fast,” Twinkleshine noted.

Lyra yawned. “I don’t know about you three, but I am exhausted.”

Minuette nodded. “After all that, I just want to curl up in my bed for a good, long while.”

The others agreed.

They exited the train station and left for home. Lyra turned left, Lemon Hearts went straight ahead, and Minuette and Twinkleshine started off to the right. They decided that because the danger had passed, they’d wait and go over everything during their next weekly lunch.

“Happy graduation, Lyra!” Minuette called out as she walked away.

Lyra snorted in laughter. “Thanks for the experience, guys.”

When Lyra returned home, the first thing she did was give her parents a big hug and tell them about Nightmare Moon. She then excused herself to her bedroom so she could catch up on her sleep.

As Lyra crawled under her covers and closed her eyes, she thought about Bon Bon. She felt bad about just running away like that. She assured herself that Bon Bon would have run straight for her apartment and would have stayed safe for the short time that Nightmare Moon did whatever she was doing to Ponyville.

Lyra’s last thoughts before she fell asleep were of Ponyville, apartments, and Bon Bon.

Bon Bon had spent the additional hours of night locked in her apartment while sitting backward on her loveseat, looking over the backrest and out the window located on the adjacent wall. When the mass panic had broken out in town hall, she had lost sight of Lyra almost immediately. Once she had made it outside, it was impossible to pick Lyra out of the swarm of multicolored ponies galloping everywhere. When the crowd thinned out, Lyra was nowhere to be found. Bon Bon then thought about staying to help battle Nightmare Moon, but the mayor had made it clear that everyone was supposed to go home. Besides, it had been a while since she had been on one of her field missions and even then, those were against mindless monsters – not an evil supernatural force.

However, once Bon Bon was safely inside, she tried to keep vigil from her living room window. It was unlikely that wherever Lyra went, she would wind up passing by Bon Bon’s apartment building, but on the off chance it happened, Bon Bon didn’t want to fail to help her.

The streets, though, were empty the entire time. Bon Bon drifted in and out of consciousness as she stared out the window at nothing. Eventually, the sun rose abruptly, signaling Princess Celestia’s victory. Relieved that Nightmare Moon was no longer a threat, and knowing that whatever Lyra’s location, she was now safe, Bon Bon went to bed.

Several hours later, she woke up, still a little tired from the long night before, but awake enough to finish off what was remaining of the day. As she prepared breakfast – or more accurately, breakfast foods that she was about to eat in the middle of the afternoon – she thought about Lyra.

Bon Bon still didn’t know whether Lyra was looking for a relationship. Let alone with a mare. Let alone with her. Regardless, it was undeniable that she and Lyra had made some kind of connection during the party the previous night. Bon Bon had gone her entire life without having a really close friend. And now that Lyra would be returning to Ponyville in a little over a week, it seemed like she was about to get one. Bon Bon wanted a pony who she could laugh with, who she could do things with, who simply enjoyed sharing her company. She knew it was unlikely that Lyra would ever be her marefriend. But even if Lyra was just willing to be a good friend, Bon Bon would be happy.

Still, she couldn’t help but daydream. Maybe the fact that she met Lyra at that party was some kind of positive omen. After the night she had come out to her parents, Bon Bon hadn’t revealed her sexuality to anyone else – she didn’t want to go through that kind of drama and heartache again. Besides, no other ponies – mares or stallions – had expressed any interest in her romantically, so it didn’t much matter.

But maybe it was fate that she met Lyra. In just one night, Lyra had helped Bon Bon discover a fun-loving part of herself that she had forgotten she had. Maybe, Bon Bon thought, she and Lyra were truly meant for one another. Bon Bon liked who she was when she was around Lyra – maybe Lyra was the one who could find the real Bon Bon beneath her outer shell.

Bon Bon looked at her calendar. It was going to be a long week. The Monday after next couldn’t come quickly enough. Whether it would be as best friends or as marefriends, she knew that she and Lyra were meant to be together.

Lyra wasn’t late for the weekly lunch at the Canterlot Outdoor Café, but when she arrived, her other three friends were already there. The waiter had just brought the four their usual drinks.

“Did you read the news?” Minuette said to Lyra, levitating a newspaper practically into Lyra’s face as she sat down.

“Everypony’s read the news,” Lyra said, gently pushing the newspaper down with her hoof. “I still can’t figure out which thing I’m more shocked by – that Princess Celestia really does have a sister or that Twilight Sparkle is so powerful, she could defeat Nightmare Moon.”

“No wonder she kept to herself,” Twinkleshine said. “She probably had to do a lot of studying to find out what she needed to do to defeat her.”

“I’m more shocked at the ‘Princess Celestia really does have a sister’ thing,” Lemon Hearts said. “This has been a crazy week for us. Not only having to suddenly prepare multiple celebratory feasts, but learning the likes and dislikes of a brand new member of royalty. And not just any new member of royalty – the actual biological sister of Princess Celestia.”

“Why did Twilight have to go to Ponyville to find friends to control the Elements of Harmony?” Twinkleshine said. “She already knew us. Can you imagine – saving all of Equestria from eternal night? All the perks that would bring?”

Minuette put away the newspaper. “So much for trying to get her to hang out with us. It was hard enough to get her to break away from her studies before she became the hero of Equestria.”

“Plus, she’s living in Ponyville now,” said Twinkleshine. “I’d say we should go congratulate her, but she probably doesn’t even remember our names.”

Lyra saw the opportunity to reveal her news. “Well, I could find out for you in a couple of days if you want.”

The other three looked at her.

“I’m moving to Ponyville.”

Lyra’s three friends turned to one another, smiles on their faces. They all spoke at once: “I knew it!” “You were right!” “I’m not surprised.”

Lyra looked at them quizzically.

“Did you ask her out or did she ask you out?” Twinkleshine said.

Lyra nearly choked on her drink. “What? Who?” she sputtered.

“Bon Bon, of course,” Lemon Hearts said. “It was obvious that you two were into each other at the party.”

“Neither of us asked the other anything,” Lyra protested. “I don’t even know if she swings that way.”

“What?” Minuette exclaimed. “You two were alone together for the entire night!”

“I didn’t want to be too forward,” Lyra said. “That’s backfired on me before. And besides, you know that earth ponies are the least likely to be tolerant of same-sex relationships.”

“Lyra,” Lemon Hearts said with a hint of scolding in her voice, “you’ve gone out with lesbian earth ponies before.”

“Yeah,” Lyra countered, “and some of the most hurtful things that have ever been said to me have come from other earth ponies.”

“She looked friendly and tolerant enough to me,” Minuette said.

“So did Rosette, that guitarist from the academy,” Lyra said. “But when I told her during our first conversation that I was into her, she suddenly had to be somewhere else. And then things were awkward between us for the rest of the semester.”

Lemon Hearts placed her hoof on the table. “Lyra, that was just one pony.”

“But I don’t want that to happen again,” Lyra said. “Look, I just want to get a better feel for what she’s like first. What Ponyville is like.”

“What Ponyville is like?” Twinkleshine asked.

“It is a small town founded by earth ponies,” Lyra explained.

Lemon Hearts raised one eyebrow slightly. “If you’re so worried about Ponyville not even accepting you, then why would you move there in the first place?”

Lyra’s eyes briefly glazed over as she stared into the distance.

“Oh, Lyra,” Lemon Hearts said. The other two “mm”ed their mutual concern. “You’ve really fallen for her.”

Lyra broke from her reverie. “There are other reasons to move there!” she said. “For one thing, it isn’t too far away from Canterlot, but still far enough away that I can be on my own. And the cost of living is a lot lower – I can get a one-bedroom apartment all to myself there for half the price of a tiny studio apartment here. I won’t even have to get a roommate.”

Minuette smirked. “Plus, Bon Bon is there.”

Lyra opened her mouth to object, but then just sighed. “I hate that you three know me so well.”

Lemon Hearts looked Lyra directly in the eyes. “You’ve got to find out if she likes you back.” The other two nodded in agreement.

“That’s why I’m moving there!”

“So does this mean this is your last lunch with us?” Twinkleshine asked.

“Well, I’ll come back and visit occasionally,” Lyra said. “Ponyville isn’t that far away. But yeah… it is.”

“Then we have to celebrate!” Minuette said. She stopped to think. “Even though this’ll be the second week in a row we’ve done that. You’re lucky we like you so much.”

“I’m going to miss this,” Lyra said, gesturing around the table.

“Urbane!” Minuette said, calling to the waiter. “Bring Lyra here a chocolate lava cake!”

“I’m really going to miss this,” Lyra said.

It was early Monday afternoon. Lyra stared out the window of the train – the faint outline of Ponyville was beginning to come into view. This was real. She was actually moving to a new town.

And why? she thought to herself. This is all because of one pony. One pony who single-hoofedly convinced me that this is the right town to move to.

Well, there’s more than that. For instance, Spike said that everypony in Ponyville is really friendly. And the cost of living is lower here. If I’m going to be unemployed, I might as well do it in a town where I won’t be out on the street in a month. See? There are other reasons I’m moving here besides Bon Bon.

…I can’t lie to myself. This is primarily because of Bon Bon. This is crazy. I barely know anything about her. All I know is that we get along really, really well.

Well, that’s good enough. No matter what, I’m moving to this town knowing that if nothing else, Bon Bon and I are going to be very good friends.

And if I’m really lucky, maybe more.

The train pulled into the Ponyville train station. Lyra dragged her luggage out of the passenger car and then went around back to pick up her dresser, her bed, and a couple of cardboard boxes that had been shipped on a freight car the day before. Her parents, although they didn’t know all of the reasons Lyra was doing it, were supportive of her move to Ponyville. Still, they recommended not taking everything right away, just in case.

Soon, two muscular earth ponies from the moving company arrived and took Lyra’s belongings to Beech Tree Apartments. She had never found out where Bon Bon was living before the Summer Sun Celebration abruptly ended, but the moving ponies told Lyra that that was the only apartment complex in Ponyville.

As Lyra followed them to the address, she grew a little worried. Even though she had already decided that she wanted to move in near Bon Bon, she wasn’t so completely set on the idea that she’d do it no matter what the condition of the apartment was. She really hoped there weren’t any cockroaches running around or mildew stains, because she had no backup plan.

When the moving ponies arrived at the apartment complex, Lyra began to feel better. If the outside was anything to go by, she wasn’t going to have anything to worry about. The building’s exterior was well-maintained and done in the same two-story thatched-roof style as the majority of the residences in Ponyville; however, it was considerably longer and slightly curved. It also branched off at both ends and extended away from the street. From above, it was shaped similarly to a horseshoe.

As the moving ponies unloaded the cart, Lyra asked them how she should get ahold of them once she decided whether to take the apartment. They told her that they didn’t have any other business scheduled for the day, so they’d be happy to wait for her so she wouldn’t have to worry about moving her things, no matter what her decision. Lyra, who had grown up in Canterlot, really was amazed at how nice the ponies in Ponyville seemed to be.

Lyra walked through a small archway that passed through the center of the building and admired the courtyard. A tall beech tree rose from the center, providing shade to four benches distributed among neatly-trimmed bushes. The open side of the complex faced the river. Lyra worried that Bon Bon might have quoted the wrong rent – in Canterlot, an apartment like this would have been completely out of her price range.

Lyra began to look for where the property manager’s office might be. Before she had made much progress, an excited voice got her attention. “Lyra!”

Lyra turned around and saw Bon Bon descending a staircase from the second floor. Lyra ran over, met Bon Bon at the bottom, and gave her a friendly hug. Bon Bon seemed a little surprised at the gesture.

“Bon Bon! It’s so good to see you again!”

“You too! And I see you found the place okay. After Nightmare Moon was defeated, I realized I never told you where it was.”

“Yeah, sorry about running away like that. I sort of panicked.”

“I completely understand. Where did you hide?”

“Actually, we immediately jumped on the train back to Canterlot.”

Bon Bon laughed. “Smart move.”

“Say, do you know where the property manager’s office is?”

“Oh, of course! You’re in luck – the apartment near mine is still available. I think you’ll like it.”

Bon Bon showed Lyra to the property manager’s office and asked her to show Lyra the empty unit near hers. When Lyra stepped inside the apartment, it exceeded all of her expectations. The carpet had just been cleaned and the walls were freshly painted. For a one-bedroom apartment, it was larger than Lyra was expecting – her two pieces of furniture would easily fit in the bedroom with space to spare. There was a modestly-sized kitchen and a living room that was surprisingly spacious. It was going to feel especially open since Lyra hadn’t brought any living room furniture.

Lyra asked the property manager about the price, dreading a number significantly higher than what Bon Bon had told her during their prior conversation. When the property manager confirmed that the price was as low as Bon Bon had said, Lyra accepted right then and there. The property manager went downstairs to draw up the paperwork.

Bon Bon had a huge smile on her face. “I’m so excited you’re moving here! I can’t wait to show you around town. Do you have some time to do that now before you head back?”

“Actually,” Lyra said, “I was pretty sure I was going to move to Ponyville, so I already brought my stuff with me. Let me go tell the moving ponies to start bringing it up here.”

“That’s great!” Bon Bon said, and it was clear in her voice that she really thought it was. “I’ve got just the thing to celebrate. I’ll be back as soon as you finish signing the contract.” She trotted across the walkway and went inside her apartment, which was just two doors down. Lyra was all smiles as she walked downstairs to begin the process of officially moving in.

With only two pieces of furniture, some boxes, and a few pieces of luggage to carry, the movers were finished well before Lyra had completed all of the paperwork. They patiently waited until Lyra returned back upstairs, then, so she wouldn’t have to struggle to do it herself, reassembled her bed exactly where she wanted it in her bedroom. Lyra thanked them for being so nice and gave them a generous tip. They left and she looked around at her new living space.

Before long, there was a knock at the door. Lyra opened it to find Bon Bon holding a large plate wrapped in aluminum foil.

“I was going to give you this as a ‘come back soon’ present, but it works even better as a housewarming gift.”

Lyra picked up the plate with her magic, carried it across the empty living room, and set it on the kitchen counter. She removed the aluminum foil to find a large stack of chocolate candies sitting in paper shells.

“They’re peanut butter cups,” Bon Bon explained. “I wanted to see if this is more what you were thinking of.”

Using her magic, Lyra picked one up, removed the paper, and took a bite. “Mmm, yes,” she said before swallowing. “That’s exactly what I was thinking of.” She popped the rest of the peanut butter cup into her mouth. “Actually, this is even better than what I was thinking of.”

“Thanks,” Bon Bon said. “Now, if you’re going to be living in Ponyville, then you need to know where everything is. Especially during the daylight, when you can actually see it all. And… did you not bring a table to eat at?”

Lyra blushed a little bit. “I… may not have thought about that. Although it’s not like I could have taken my parents’ table anyway.” She eagerly picked up another peanut butter cup.

“Then I’ll show you where you can get a table, too. Let’s go!”

“You’ll find plenty of stalls open in the marketplace every day of the week,” Bon Bon explained. “But Saturday is when all of the merchants are here – and as a result, it’s also the day things are the busiest.”

“Check,” Lyra said. “Hey, speaking of food, how did the reverse apple bonbons go?”

“Oh yeah, those,” Bon Bon said. “Well, they tasted really good. But what I didn’t realize until I made them was that a bright red coating with a dark brown filling looked way too much like a rotten apple. I don’t think they’d sell very well.”

“That’s too bad,” Lyra said with sympathy in her voice.

“It’s no big deal. It’s all part of the creative process. Not everything is going to work the way you want it to.”

“Tell me about it,” Lyra said. “Sometimes, I’ll think I have this amazing idea for a song, but when I start strumming the notes, I’ll find out it just isn’t going the direction I hoped. Or that I’ve accidentally written a song that already exists.”

“I know what you mean,” Bon Bon said as she led Lyra over a bridge. “One time, I thought I’d make something brand new by combining chocolate, nuts, and cinnamon with peppers to give it a unique kick. It wasn’t until I was three days in that I figured out I was just working my way toward a weird, chewy, bite-size version of mole sauce.”

Lyra laughed. “Hey, maybe you’ve got something there. You just have to market it to campers for when they’re out in the wilderness. Just melt a few over the campfire, and boom! Instant sauce!”

Bon Bon laughed back. The day couldn’t have been going any better for her. Not only had Lyra decided to make the move to Ponyville, but she had already officially moved in. And even though Bon Bon had never doubted it, it was evident that the night of the party hadn’t been a fluke – they still had the same rapport with one another. As a result, Bon Bon, for the first time in her life, was doing something around town with a friend. She tried not to act too excited about it, but she was sure she probably had a little more spring in her step than usual.

“And over there is the library. Obviously, you’ve been in there. If we go this way, we’ll pass by Suitcases and Dining Sets – that’ll be the best place for you to get a table.”

“Oh, I almost forgot about that,” Lyra said. “Hold on – let me get a quick idea of what they have available. I’ll be right back.”

Bon Bon watched Lyra enter the store. Which gave her mind an opportunity to wander. Okay… at this point, it’s clear that Lyra and I would be great friends, she thought. But is there more? How do I find out whether she’d be interested in me romantically without ruining that friendship?

Bon Bon sighed. The other ponies make dating seem so easy. I wish I knew how to flirt so she’d know I was interested. Life was easier before I went and got this crush.

Don’t rush this, she cautioned herself. Remember, this is only the second time you’ve talked to her. Maybe you just need to wait for the right moment.

Lyra walked back out of the store. “Those tables are all really nice,” she said, “and really pricey. Maybe I’ll just eat off of the counter until I know what kind of job I can find around here.”

“I can’t have you doing that,” Bon Bon said. “We’ll find something else for you. But for now, come on – I want to show you Sugarcube Corner.”

Bon Bon led Lyra to a relatively large building near the center of town. The roof looked like it was made of gingerbread and drizzled in icing, although Lyra knew that that couldn’t actually be possible.

“If you’re craving baked goods, this is the place,” Bon Bon said as she opened the door for Lyra. “Check it out.”

Lyra stepped inside and was immediately taken by the inviting aroma of freshly-baked cake. As she looked around, she saw baked goods of all kinds displayed on tables and shelves. A small seating area was set up in front of a wall lined with additional sweets.

Bon Bon pointed to the wall behind the seating area. “See all those candies?”

Lyra looked at the array of lollipops, gumballs, peppermint sticks, and other sugary treats.

“Those are mine,” Bon Bon said proudly. “The Cakes sell them on my behalf. That way, I don’t have to worry about operating my own storefront and the Cakes don’t lose any business. Yeah, I’d make more profit if I sold them directly myself, but with all the time and stress it would take to run my own store, it isn’t worth it to me. I’m still making enough money to support myself, and this way, we don’t have to compete with one another.”

Bon Bon stepped up to the counter and rang the bell. After a moment, a blue, slightly plump earth pony came out from the kitchen. “Hello, Bon Bon!” she said warmly.

“Hi, Mrs. Cake!” Bon Bon replied. “This is Lyra – she just moved to Ponyville.”

“Why, hello there, dearie,” Mrs. Cake said to Lyra. “It’s always wonderful to see a new face around town.”

“We’ll have two slices of apple cake, please,” Bon Bon said.

“Right away!” Mrs. Cake said. She disappeared into the kitchen.

“You’re going to love this cake,” Bon Bon said. “Ponyville has the best apples.”

In no time, Mrs. Cake came back, balancing two small plates across her foreleg. She placed them on the counter, Bon Bon gave her some bits, and Bon Bon and Lyra each took a slice of cake over to one of the tables in the seating area.

As they began to eat their cake – which was just as delicious as Bon Bon had promised – Lyra couldn’t help but wonder: Did this just turn into a date? Or was her imagination running wild again?

After all, Lyra still didn’t know whether Bon Bon could even be interested in her as a marefriend. Contrary to what some of Equestria’s pulp fiction writers liked to imply, only about 4% of the kingdom’s ponies were in same-sex relationships. Mathematically speaking, the odds were that Bon Bon was just being friendly.

Still, Lyra had to try and find out. But she didn’t want to be too overt, just in case she was jumping to conclusions. She chose her words carefully. “So, Bon Bon… is there any stallion you’re seeing right now?” She put a subtle emphasis on the word stallion.

Bon Bon had just taken a bite of her cake. For a moment, she stopped chewing. The motion of eating concealed it, but she couldn’t help but frown. She knew it had been too good to be true. Based on the way Lyra had phrased the question, Bon Bon had her answer: Lyra was straight.

Straight ponies always automatically assumed that everyone else they talked to was also straight. Bon Bon knew they didn’t mean any offense by it, and during her time in Ponyville, she had gotten used to it. But this time, it stung. Badly. Lyra had assumed that Bon Bon would be going out with a stallion. Lyra was straight.

Bon Bon resumed chewing. So much for fate, she thought, trying not to let the disappointment show on her face.

Before she swallowed, she mentally composed herself. So she’ll never be your marefriend. You knew that was a long shot anyway. She’s still a really good friend. And you don’t want to mess that up.

She swallowed, then quickly said, “No, there’s nopony I’m seeing.” There was no reason to elaborate. There was never any reason to elaborate.

Bon Bon turned her head, looking for an excuse to change the subject. To her relief, it was at that moment that Pinkie Pie walked in the door, having just returned from a delivery.

“Pinkie Pie!” Bon Bon called. Pinkie hopped over to the table.

“Hiya, Bon Bon!”

“Pinkie, you remember Lyra from the Summer Sun party?”

“Of course I remember Lyra! It’s great to see you again!”

Lyra opened her mouth to respond, but her air was cut off as Pinkie Pie compressed her in a hug.

“Lyra just officially moved to Ponyville,” Bon Bon said. “So you know what that means.”

Pinkie Pie released Lyra from the hug, drawing back while inhaling abnormally deeply.

“You need a ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party!” she said, pointing at Lyra. “I’m on it!” In an instant, she was gone.

Lyra struggled to regain her breath. As she did, she came to the conclusion that this wasn’t a date – this really was Bon Bon simply showing her around town.

After the two finished their cake, Bon Bon took Lyra to a few other Ponyville locations of note. Eventually, they found themselves back at Beech Tree Apartments.

“Oh, I almost forgot,” Bon Bon said as the two made their way up the stairs. “You head to your place – I have to get something.”

As Bon Bon entered her unit, Lyra walked two doors down and opened the door to hers. Lyra stepped inside. She still didn’t quite believe that this was her new home. Her eyes scanned the completely empty living room. She realized that she still needed to get a table.

Bon Bon walked in through the still-open door carrying a box on her back. “After the Nightmare Moon thing happened, I realized you left your red velvet cake behind,” she said, “so I went and got it for you and kept it in my icebox. The sides where you cut a piece might be a little too dry now, but the rest should still be good to eat.”

Lyra was touched. “You didn’t have to do that,” she said, picking up the box with her magic and placing it in the kitchen.

“It was no problem,” Bon Bon said. “Your friend Spike was happy to get it for me. Although the unicorn – Twilight, I think it was? – was really upset at the idea of ponies storing food in a library.”

Lyra laughed. “That’s Twilight Sparkle for you. She really loves books.”

“From the way she was ranting, I gathered that,” Bon Bon said. “Well, I should let you get settled in. If you have any questions, or if you need to borrow anything, don’t hesitate to come over and ask.”

“Thanks, Bon Bon,” Lyra said. “This has been really nice of you. Thank you for all of your help.”

Lyra lifted her foreleg, then realized that she wasn’t sure whether she should give Bon Bon a hoofshake or a full hug. Bon Bon shifted in a similarly uncertain manner.

Lyra decided to go with her gut and gave Bon Bon a hug. They were friends, after all. Bon Bon hugged Lyra back. On the whole, the exchange wasn’t carried out as awkwardly as it could have been.

Bon Bon left Lyra’s apartment, closing the door behind her. Lyra went into her bedroom and began to open the few boxes that she had brought. One of the boxes contained a few plates and other items for the kitchen. Lyra used her magic to carry the box into the other room and place its contents in the cupboards. Doing so made her realize that she still needed to go grocery shopping.

Just as Lyra closed her kitchen cupboards, there was a rapid knocking at her door. Lyra walked over to open it.

As soon as she did, she found herself inside a shower of confetti. At the door stood Pinkie Pie.

“Welcome to Ponyville, Lyra Heartstrings!” Pinkie Pie shouted. Lyra worried that the residents of the other apartments were going to complain about the noise. “Actually, I can’t give you a proper welcome here, so come with me to Sugarcube Corner! It’s time to party!”

Lyra had to maintain a brisk trot in order to keep up with Pinkie Pie. In no time, she was back at Sugarcube Corner. Although the building had been relatively empty a couple of hours ago, it was now crowded with streamers and ponies, all of whom cheered when Lyra walked in the door. Confetti fell from above.

It was a surprise, but not so overwhelming that Lyra couldn’t handle it. “Thanks for the great welcome, everypony,” she said to the room.

“Thank you for moving here!” Pinkie Pie said, positioning herself directly in front of Lyra’s face. “Now let’s party!”

Another explosion of confetti went off and music filled the room. As the party guests began to mingle, Lyra walked over to Bon Bon, who was standing near the front of the group.

“So, every new resident gets a ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party,” Lyra concluded.

“Yep. Ideally, Pinkie likes it to be a surprise,” Bon Bon explained, “but since you were at the last one, that wasn’t possible. You’ll get used to attending these as new ponies come to town. Now come on – a lot of ponies want to meet you.”

Bon Bon stood to Lyra’s side as pony after pony greeted Lyra and welcomed her to Ponyville. Lyra realized that it was going to take a while to learn the names of so many friendly faces. She looked around for Twilight, but Spike, who was at the party, told Lyra that Twilight was over at an apple farm, trying to help out.

It had been a while since Lyra had had a conversation of any length with Twilight, but still, that didn’t sound like the Twilight she knew. Lyra accepted that Twilight had found a new identity in Ponyville and that they had simply grown apart. Besides, there were plenty of new friends for Lyra to focus her attention on.

She looked over toward where her first Ponyville friend had been standing, but Bon Bon had stepped away to talk to Pinkie Pie. After a minute, she returned.

“Pinkie says that Cherry Berry just redid her house,” Bon Bon said. “Maybe she could sell you her old dining table.”

The two walked over to Cherry Berry, who was more than happy to find a buyer for her table. After the party, Bon Bon helped Lyra pick up the table and move it upstairs into her apartment. She then offered to accompany Lyra as Lyra bought some groceries so she would have something to eat the next day besides red velvet cake and peanut butter cups.

If it had been any other pony, Lyra would have felt uncomfortable with all of the attention. But Lyra was really enjoying spending time with Bon Bon. At the end of the long day, Lyra went to bed and for the first time, fully realized that she was on her own, alone.

But she felt a lot less alone when she realized that Bon Bon was just two apartments away. Lyra smiled as she drifted off to sleep.

It had only been a little over a week since Lyra had moved to Ponyville, but she had already embraced the small town as her new home. Canterlot may have been bigger and busier, but Ponyville was much more pleasant. And Bon Bon had been right – even though there weren’t as many choices of things to do, there was always something to do if you looked for it.

With the exception of one day early on, Lyra had seen Bon Bon every day since she moved to town. Bon Bon was often busy making candy, so Lyra didn’t always see her for long each day, but Bon Bon had been exceedingly helpful in helping Lyra out with whatever she needed to get acclimated. At one point, Lyra asked whether she was being too imposing, but Bon Bon assured Lyra that she truly enjoyed spending time with her. Lyra was glad to hear it – she truly enjoyed spending time with Bon Bon, too.

On this day, the two were strolling through town, looking for something to do. Bon Bon didn’t have any orders to fulfill, so Lyra was accompanying her on her day off. As they walked around aimlessly, they passed by the bowling alley.

“Ooh, bowling,” Lyra said. “Wanna do that?”

Bon Bon didn’t immediately respond. “I don’t know… I can’t even remember the last time I’ve been bowling. I wouldn’t be very good.”

“That’s the great thing about bowling,” Lyra said. “Most ponies aren’t very good at it, so no one cares how well you do.”

“The regulars there are practically professionals,” Bon Bon said. “I’m going to look like an idiot in front of them.”

Lyra stepped in front of Bon Bon. “We’re not bowling against them,” she said. “The only other pony who’s going to be on your lane is me, and I haven’t gone bowling in a while, either. We’ll be terrible together. I promise – it’ll be fun.”

Bon Bon thought about it for a moment. “All right, I’m in.”

“Great!”

The two stepped inside. While it wasn’t particularly busy, there was still a decent amount of activity for it being the middle of the day. Roughly a third of the lanes – mostly on the far side – were being used by ponies wearing custom bowling shirts. The sound of bowling balls crashing into pins filled the space. In the back, a small concession stand was selling greasy snack foods.

Lyra and Bon Bon walked up to the counter, paid their money, and were assigned to one of the empty lanes closer to the entrance, away from the regulars.

Bon Bon stared at the heavy, colorful balls lined up in a row near the lane. “I don’t even remember how you’re supposed to aim these at the pins,” she said.

Lyra examined the balls. “If I remember correctly, different leagues have different methods,” she said. “The unicorn league uses magic and the earth pony league bucks the ball. But ponies in the mixed league do something with their front hooves.” She looked across the lanes at the regulars, then picked up a ball with her magic and rested it in her upturned hoof. “Yeah,” she said, judging the weight of the ball, “I can balance this from here to the throwing line.”

Bon Bon used her muzzle to nudge a ball onto her hoof. “Well, I’m not very good at bucking, so I might as well try it this way,” she said.

They each returned their balls to the rack. “So, who goes first?” Bon Bon asked.

“I’ll give it a shot,” Lyra said. She lined herself up with the lane, placed a ball in her hoof, then walked forward on three legs. As she approached the foul line, she lowered her hoof while simultaneously thrusting it forward. The ball fell from her hoof onto the wood and rolled in a diagonal line down the lane. Roughly three quarters of the way down, it fell into a gutter.

Lyra snorted with amusement. “Zero,” she announced. “Make sure you get that right.”

Bon Bon, standing at the scoring desk, smirked. She picked up a pencil with her teeth and wrote a zero on the scorecard. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I haven’t shortchanged you any of the points you’ve earned so far.”

“You’d better not,” Lyra said. She picked up another ball, took a step to the left to compensate for the angle of her previous throw, and heaved it down the lane. This time, she knocked over the 6 and 10 pins.

“Oh yeah,” Lyra said, performing an exaggerated victory strut. “I’m unstoppable. Good luck trying to beat that.”

Bon Bon wrote a two on the scorecard, then stepped over and took a ball. She carried it toward the foul line, but stepped forward onto her other foreleg while she was still trying to release the ball. As a result, she stumbled forward and her ball promptly fell into a gutter.

Bon Bon looked over to see if any of the regulars had seen that, but they were all too engrossed in their own games to pay any attention to her. She turned her attention to Lyra, who was already writing a zero on the scorecard. “You wish you could be as graceful as that,” she said.

“I can honestly say that I’ve never seen anypony throw the ball quite like that before,” Lyra said. “As of the first half of the first frame, we’re tied.”

Bon Bon took another ball. This time, she walked all the way up to the foul line, then stopped. While standing in one place, she focused all of her attention on releasing the ball. As a result, the ball didn’t travel down the lane as quickly, but it moved more accurately. It gently knocked over three pins.

“The game ends after one frame, right?” Bon Bon said. “That means I win?”

“Yuh-huh, nice try,” Lyra said, writing a three on the scorecard. “If you’re so confident you can keep up this hot streak, why don’t we make things more interesting? Loser pays for lunch. And winner decides what we’re eating.”

Bon Bon looked at Lyra. “You’re hustling me, aren’t you?” she said. “You’re secretly an expert bowler and you want me to pay for your lunch.”

“If I was going to hustle somepony, I’d do it for a lot more than lunch,” Lyra said. “It looks like we’re pretty evenly matched. You game?”

“Oh, what the heck. You’ve already got me bowling in the first place. You’re on.” They shook hooves.

As the game progressed, it became evident that Lyra was not a hustler. Still, she kept refining her approach and was beginning to hit the pins more reliably, even if she was never able to knock them all over. Bon Bon stuck with her strategy of standing at the edge of the lane and throwing the ball from one spot. She was more consistent than Lyra, but also wasn’t able to knock down all ten pins. After five frames, Bon Bon led by a score of 27 to 24.

Lyra placed a ball in her hoof. “Let me try something,” she said. She reared up onto her hind legs and walked two-legged toward the line. To Bon Bon’s surprise, Lyra was able to maintain the stance pretty well… until it came time to release the ball. As Lyra swung her foreleg, it threw her too far off balance and she flopped down onto her belly.

Still, the extra momentum from Lyra’s fall propelled the ball more quickly than Lyra had thrown it before. And it stayed on course long enough to strike the pins near the center of the grouping, knocking down eight of them. Only the 1 and 3 pins remained.

“Ow,” Lyra said as she got up. She examined the two pins left standing. “…Not worth the pain,” she decided.

“I’d give you bonus points for style,” Bon Bon said, “but there’s lunch at stake.”

Lyra picked up a ball and went back to her three-legged stance. She carefully lined herself up. Then she walked forward and released the ball with a little more attention to accuracy and a less attention to power.

The ball rolled through both of the remaining pins.

“Yes!” Lyra exclaimed, pumping her hoof.

“Sure, that’s great for you,” Bon Bon said, drawing a slash on the scorecard. “But now I have to go find out how you’re supposed to score a spare.”

Entirely because of that spare, Lyra took the lead and held it for the remainder of the game, finishing with a score of 64. Bon Bon entered the final frame with 51.

“So I have to get a strike or a spare to even have a shot at this,” Bon Bon said. “No pressure.”

“I know it’s rude to gloat,” Lyra said, “but should I go place our lunch order now?”

“You do realize you’re bragging about a 64.”

“When else am I going to get to brag about a 64?”

Bon Bon smiled, rolled her eyes, and stepped up to the line. She heaved the ball down the lane and knocked over the 1, 2, 3, 4, and 8 pins.

“Are you ready to see an amazing comeback?” Bon Bon asked. “Then I suggest you go watch one of those other lanes over there.”

Bon Bon threw her final ball, but not accurately enough. She knocked over three pins, giving her a final total of 59. “Good game,” she said to Lyra.

“Great game,” Lyra replied. “Are you hungry? I’m hungry. Let’s go eat.”

“Okay, okay,” Bon Bon said good-naturedly. She was, in fact, hungry – she just wanted to let Lyra enjoy her win.

Lyra led Bon Bon over to the concession stand. “You know, I could have forced you to buy me a thick, juicy portobello steak,” she said. “You’re lucky I’m picking something cheap.”

“So, what are we having?” Bon Bon asked.

Lyra got the attention of the stallion behind the counter. “Garçon! I will have an oatburger with a large side of hay fries,” she said, acting as though she was ordering off the menu at a five-star restaurant. “And my friend here will have…” Lyra scanned the counter. Her eyes stopped on a flat metal grill with rollers.

“…a carrot dog.”

Bon Bon’s eyes registered the tiniest amount of fear. “You wouldn’t,” she said. “Nopony actually eats those things. I’ve always assumed they were just for show.”

“One carrot dog, my good sir,” Lyra said with a mischievous smile. She turned to Bon Bon. “I’ll even be nice and let you decide what goes on it.”

The tint of Bon Bon’s face changed slightly. “Ketchup and mustard,” she said. “Lots of ketchup and mustard.”

“And two root beers,” Lyra concluded. After Bon Bon paid for their food, Lyra carried the tray over to a small table, where they sat on opposite sides.

“Mmm, this is delicious,” Lyra said, telekinetically lifting her burger and taking a bite. “Thank you very much, Bon Bon.”

“It’s a bowling alley oatburger,” Bon Bon said. “It can’t be that delicious.”

“It’s delicious because I won it,” Lyra explained. “That makes all food taste better. Go on – enjoy your carrot dog.”

Bon Bon looked at her lunch. She liked carrot dogs as much as the next pony – but only when they were grilled properly. Not when they had spent who-knows-how-long rotating on a greasy metal plate.

Bon Bon leaned down and took a tentative bite. The ketchup and mustard masked the flavor of the carrot, but not its texture, which was mushy on the outside. Yet the center had just the wrong amount of give to it – it was no longer crisp, but not really cooked, either. The closest thing Bon Bon could compare it to was biting into a really thick strand of moderately cooked pasta.

“I am never taking another bet against you ever again,” Bon Bon said.

“Come on,” Lyra said. “It’s a carrot. It’s good for you.”

Bon Bon frowned at Lyra. “There is nothing about this carrot that could possibly be good for me.”

Lyra tried to suppress her laughter. “If you eat the whole thing, I’ll let you have some of my fries.”

“If I eat the whole thing, I won’t live long enough to have some of your fries.”

Lyra levitated a fry over toward the carrot dog and dragged it across the top. “Hurry up,” she said with a smile, “or I’m going to take away all of your ketchup and mustard.” She popped the fry into her mouth.

Bon Bon responded with an insincere glare.

In the end, Bon Bon finished the carrot dog, primarily to prove that she wouldn’t back down from the challenge. The hay fries were a much-needed palate cleanser.

“You know I was always going to share, right?” Lyra said. “I wouldn’t actually order that many fries all for myself.”

“I know,” Bon Bon said. “But just because you beat me at bowling doesn’t mean I was going to let you beat me at lunch, too.”

“I just made you eat an entire greasy carrot dog,” Lyra said. “I think I did beat you at lunch.”

Bon Bon threw a fry at Lyra.

The two of them finished eating and continued to chat about whatever topics came to mind.

“I’m still not completely convinced you didn’t just hustle me,” Bon Bon said. “When was the last time you went bowling?”

“Not since my first year at the music academy,” Lyra said. “A bunch of us went bowling as kind of a combined celebration of midterms being over, slash singles party. But you can’t say that that helped me win here – we were all unicorns, so we used magic to throw the ball.”

Bon Bon pretended to be skeptical. “A likely story. How well did you do?”

“Terrible all around. I only scored eighty-some points and I didn’t meet anypony.”

Bon Bon laughed. She then realized that while she knew a lot about Lyra’s past at the music academy, she didn’t know whether Lyra was currently in a relationship or whether she was looking. Since there was no chance of Lyra ever dating her, Bon Bon figured it wouldn’t be out of line to ask. After all, friends were supposed to help one another with that type of thing, right?

“You asked me once, but I never asked you,” Bon Bon said. “Are you seeing anypony right now?”

Lyra, who was sucking up the last drops of root beer through her straw, stopped short. She still wasn’t certain how Bon Bon felt about same-sex relationships. She had tried a couple of times during the week to find out, but Bon Bon’s responses to her subtly-worded questions had never led her to a definitive conclusion one way or the other.

She decided to play it safe. “For the past year, I was focusing too hard on my studies to have much of a dating life,” she said honestly. “The last pony I went out with for any length of time was a bass clarinetist named Cosmic Dust, during my junior year.” Lyra omitted the fact that Cosmic Dust was female. “But after a couple of months, I realized we weren’t really right for one another.”

“What did he do?” Bon Bon asked.

Lyra deflated a little. Well, at least now I know she’s straight, she thought to herself. Because I definitely didn’t say “he.” So much for ever asking her out. I bet we would have made a really good couple.

“It wasn’t anything either of us did,” Lyra said in response to Bon Bon’s question. “It felt more like our classmates were expecting us to date each other just because we were both… musicians. Who, um, sat near each other. But we just never were a really good fit together.”

“That’s too bad,” Bon Bon said. “I’m sure there’s somepony perfect for you out there.”

“It’s all right. Being single for the past year has been good for me. It’s made me realize that I shouldn’t focus so much… on whether somepony would want to go out with me.” She cleared her throat. “So… what about you? Who was the last pony you dated?”

Bon Bon looked down at her empty plate. She shifted in her seat. “Oh… um…” she said. She looked up at Lyra. “Promise you won’t think I’m weird?”

“I’ve got no problem with weird,” Lyra said. “You can tell me… who was it?”

“That’s the thing,” Bon Bon said. “I’ve never really been in a relationship with anypony.”

Lyra was surprised, but she kept her facial expression in check. She didn’t want to make Bon Bon feel any more uncomfortable than she had just become.

“That doesn’t make you weird,” Lyra said. “Maybe it’s a little different than the average pony, but that doesn’t make it a bad thing. I am a little surprised, though – is there a reason? Are you just not looking?”

“Well, when I was growing up, my parents moved around too often for me to date any of the other students at the secondary schools I went to. So by the time I got out of school, I already felt like I was behind the curve. Then I never met anypony that I thought I could ask out. And now I’m too old to have never been on a first date. It’s just embarrassing.” Bon Bon couldn’t even look Lyra in the eye as she confessed it.

Lyra wanted to take Bon Bon’s hoof in hers to show her that it was okay, but Bon Bon had both of her forelegs on her seat. All Lyra could do was hope that her tone of voice was sympathetic enough. “Don’t be embarrassed, Bon Bon,” she said. Bon Bon still didn’t look up.

Lyra looked around the bowling alley. “If I knew anyone in town well enough, I’d find somepony for you who wouldn’t judge you just because you’ve never been on a date before. Have you tried asking any of your Ponyville friends to set you up?”

Bon Bon started to lift her head toward Lyra, but then went back to looking at the floor. “I… don’t really know anypony in Ponyville well enough for that. To be honest, you’re the first really good friend I’ve ever had.” She winced. “And now I wish I hadn’t just told you that. Because I just realized how sad that makes me sound.”

Lyra looked at Bon Bon. She got out of her seat, walked around the table, and put her hoof on Bon Bon’s shoulder. “Bon Bon,” she said. Bon Bon turned her head to look at Lyra. Lyra could see that Bon Bon’s eyes were beginning to water. “It’s awful that you haven’t had the chance to make friends before now. But that doesn’t change the fact that you’re a great pony. Just because you didn’t have any close friends before doesn’t make you sad.” She looked at Bon Bon’s eyes. “I mean, sad meaning ‘pathetic.’ You’re not sad that way. Are you sad meaning ‘unhappy’?”

Bon Bon picked up a napkin and dabbed at her eyes. “Not about the no friends thing. I’m an only child – I’m used to being alone. To be honest, now I’m worried you’re not going to want to hang around with me now that I admitted this.”

Lyra gave Bon Bon a reassuring smile. “I like you too much for that to happen. You’re not going to get rid of me that easily.”

Bon Bon gave Lyra a small smile back.

“Come on, let’s get out of here,” Lyra said. “It’s a nice day outside – I think we should go to the park again.”

Lyra and Bon Bon spent the rest of the afternoon in the park, chatting idly, pony-watching, and sometimes just sitting quietly and enjoying the weather.

As the sun began to set, Lyra turned to Bon Bon. “Feeling better?” she asked.

“I’m sorry about that back at the bowling alley. I shouldn’t have put you in that position.”

“You said you’ve never had a real friend before me?” Lyra said. “Well, guess what – friends help each other with that kind of thing. You need me; I’m there for you. I’m not going to let a friend who’s as great as you feel bad about herself.”

Bon Bon had a grateful smile on her face. “Thanks, Lyra.”

“Any time, Bon Bon. I mean it – you’re a lot of fun to be with.”

As the two watched the setting sun, they each had the same thought on their minds: So what if I can’t date her. I’m glad she’s my friend.

Chapter 7: Spending Time

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A few weeks later – in total, six weeks after she had moved to Ponyville – Lyra met with her friends in Canterlot at their usual weekly lunch spot. Lyra barely had time to greet each of them with a hug before Minuette asked the question on all of their minds.

“So?” she prompted.

Lyra knew what Minuette was asking about. “She’s straight,” she said. Her disappointment was evident.

The other three unicorns offered their commiseration.

“I thought for sure there was something there,” Twinkleshine said.

“Well,” said Lemon Hearts, “how did she react when you told her you’re a lesbian?”

Lyra looked a little embarrassed. “I didn’t tell her.”

“What?” Minuette exclaimed. “Why not?”

“I was going to, at some point,” Lyra said. “I was trying to figure out how to work it naturally into the conversation. But then she told me that I was her first real friend!”

The other three looked at each other.

Lemon Hearts spoke. “I think that might be a warning sign. And you’re living in the same building as her? You should move. To another town.”

“No, it isn’t like that,” Lyra said. “She kept moving from city to city when she was growing up – she never had the chance to make any friends.”

“But she’s been living in Ponyville for how long?” Lemon Hearts asked.

“She knows the other townsponies, of course,” Lyra said. “But she hasn’t developed any kind of meaningful friendships with any of them. Not like, say, what the four of us have. I’m the first pony she’s ever really connected with.”

“But Lyra,” Lemon Hearts said, “she doesn’t know that much about you. Hint hint.”

“That’s what makes it worse! What if I tell her, and she hates me? Doesn’t want to be friends with me anymore? Minuette wrote to me and told me what’s happened to Moondancer since Twilight didn’t attend her party. If I did that to Bon Bon, I’d feel horrible!”

Twinkleshine quietly said, “I keep trying to invite Moondancer to lunch with us, but she keeps saying no.”

Lemon Hearts was visibly flustered. “So you’re just never going to tell her?”

“Not never,” Lyra protested. “Just until I figure out how she feels. Even if I’ll never be her marefriend, I still really like being friends with her. I don’t want to lose that.”

“Since when do you care what anypony thinks about you?” Minuette asked.

“I care what she thinks.”

Silence fell over the table.

Once again, Lemon Hearts spoke for the group. “Look, Lyra, I’m worried about you.” Minuette and Twinkleshine nodded in agreement. “I thought Bon Bon seemed nice at the party, but we didn’t get to see much of her that night. And I don’t think it’s good that you’re trying this hard to not upset a mare you’ve only known for one and a half moons.”

Lyra responded, “You said it yourself – it’s because you don’t know her that well. She’s a really great pony, and we get along in a way I didn’t even think was possible. It’s not her fault the way she had to grow up, and she doesn’t deserve to be alone for her entire life because of it. I’m not going to do anything that could ruin our friendship.”

The other three could feel the emotion behind Lyra’s words. Minuette and Twinkleshine turned to Lemon Hearts.

“You’re right,” Lemon Hearts conceded. “We don’t know her that well. What if you invited her to have lunch with us next week?”

Minuette jumped in. “If she’s as great as you say she is, then we’d be happy to be her friends.”

Lemon Hearts nodded. “And if we sense something wrong, we’ll tell you. You know we’re just trying to look out for you, right?”

Lyra was placated by the offer. “I know,” she said. “That’s actually a good idea. You’ll like her – I know you will. But you’ve got to promise me one thing.”

“What is it?” Twinkleshine asked.

“Please promise that you won’t out me if I bring Bon Bon here.”

“All right, we promise,” Lemon Hearts said. The other two nodded in agreement.

“Thank you,” Lyra said. “Now come on – I came here to find out what you three have been up to. For example: Minuette, why are you wearing that roller derby outfit?”

A couple of days later, Lyra knocked on Bon Bon’s door.

“Hi, Bon Bon!” Lyra said as the door opened. “Are you free today? There’s an arts and crafts fair in town and I was wondering if you wanted to go check it out.”

“Sorry, I can’t go anywhere today,” Bon Bon said. “The Cakes just put in an order for a batch of jelly beans and a batch of caramels, so I’ve got a lot of work to do.”

“Oh, okay,” Lyra said, slightly disappointed. It was always more fun to do things when Bon Bon was with her.

Bon Bon could see the disappointment on Lyra’s face. “Do you want to stay here and help me? It might be kind of boring for you, so feel free to say no if you don’t want to.”

“I’ve never made candy before,” Lyra said. “Are you sure I wouldn’t get in the way?”

“There won’t be that much for you to do,” Bon Bon said. “And I wouldn’t ask you to do anything difficult. Really, this would mostly be me showing off what I know about candy making.”

“I suppose I could let you show off a little bit. Where do we begin?”

Bon Bon led Lyra into her kitchen. “See all of those molds?” she asked, pointing to a tall stack of trays with small indentations, all on the edge of the counter. “Eventually, I’m going to fill all of them with seven different flavors of jelly bean syrup. Would you be willing to grease the molds while I start the first four flavors? That’ll save me some time.”

Bon Bon gave Lyra a stick of butter, which Lyra used to lightly coat the indentations in each of the molds. While Lyra did that did, Bon Bon placed a pan on each of the four burners of her stove and began to boil a sugar mixture. While she monitored the pans, Bon Bon filled four large bowls with ice and placed them in what little space remained on her counter.

As Lyra finished greasing the molds, Bon Bon looked at her candy thermometer and said, “This next part has to happen really quickly – having you here will be really helpful. Out on the table, there are seven bottles of juice. When I ask you to, bring in four of them, one at a time, so I can add them to the syrup. That way, I won’t have to keep running back and forth to do it myself.”

“Any order they need to be in?” Lyra asked.

“Not really,” Bon Bon said as she stirred each pan. “I usually do them by color, just because. Cherry, then orange, then lemon, then lime. But it really doesn’t matter.” She looked at the thermometer. “Get ready.”

Lyra walked out of the kitchen to Bon Bon’s dining table. Using her magic, she picked up the bottle of cherry juice.

After about a minute, Bon Bon said, “Okay, now!” Bon Bon lifted the first pan off of the stove and placed it in one of the bowls of ice. Lyra stood in the doorway and levitated the cherry juice toward Bon Bon, who took it and stirred into the syrup. Lyra then picked up the orange juice as Bon Bon lifted the next pan off of the stove and into a bowl of ice.

Once all four juices had been added, Bon Bon turned off the burners on the stove and moved the bowls there to free up her limited counter space. “Can you help me spread out the molds?” she asked.

As Lyra laid out the molds, Bon Bon filled them with the flavored syrups. When she had finished, Bon Bon said, “Now these have to cool for a few hours. I put them out on the table just to get them out of the way.”

Lyra helped Bon Bon move all of the filled molds out into the living room. Afterward, Lyra asked, “What’s next?”

“Now I have to do this for three more flavors,” Bon Bon said. “But first, I have to wash out the pans.”

Bon Bon put the bowls of ice back into the icebox to refreeze, then began to wash the pans. Lyra looked at the remaining bottles. One of them was filled with a black liquid. “Is that licorice?” she asked.

“Yep,” Bon Bon answered.

“Yuck.”

“I agree,” Bon Bon said. “But when a customer orders jelly beans, they expect there to be licorice ones. Some ponies like licorice. Those ponies are wrong.”

Lyra chuckled. Then she looked more closely at the bottle. “So is that… licorice juice? Is licorice juice a thing?” Her tongue stuck out as her face contorted in disgust.

“It’s mostly licorice root powder mixed with molasses, but essentially… yes. It’s something I have to put up with. The candy-making business isn’t all glitz and glamour.”

“When I offered to help, I didn’t think you would subject me to such horrors.”

“And that stuff’s going into the jelly beans. You’re an accomplice now.”

Soon, Bon Bon finished cleaning the pans and together, Bon Bon and Lyra prepared the three final flavors.

“While those are cooling,” Bon Bon said, “we can make the caramels.”

Bon Bon got out a large pot and placed it on the stove. Lyra helped by greasing two square pans while Bon Bon mixed butter, cream, sugar, and corn syrup in the pot. She inserted her candy thermometer and stirred while the ingredients cooked.

“This is going to take a long while,” Bon Bon said, “and there’s nothing else to do except stir. You don’t have to stick around and wait – you’ve already been a huge help, and I don’t want to waste your whole day.”

“Eh, I didn’t really care about the arts and crafts fair anyway,” Lyra said. “Not enough to go by myself. Tell you what – while you’re stirring, I’ll work on some of my stuff.”

Lyra left for her apartment. To Bon Bon’s surprise, Lyra quickly returned, now carrying her lyre.

“Wanna hear what I’ve been writing?” Lyra asked.

“Absolutely!” Bon Bon said.

While Bon Bon stirred, Lyra performed some of the songs she had recently composed. She then experimented with some new song ideas – trying out various patterns and chords that didn’t always work. Both ponies were happy to simply be in the other’s company, grateful to be able to share with one another what they enjoyed doing the most.

Bon Bon was engrossed in listening to Lyra play the same short piece at different tempos when she looked at the candy thermometer and saw that her mixture had nearly reached its optimal temperature.

“That went by a lot faster than it usually does,” she said as she turned off the stove and added some vanilla. She then poured the mixture into the two square pans.

Lyra stopped playing and walked into the kitchen to see what Bon Bon was doing. “Is it caramel now?” she asked.

“Pretty much,” Bon Bon said. “It just has to cool for a while.” She placed the pans in the icebox. “In the meantime, we can go back to the jelly beans.”

With Lyra’s help, Bon Bon removed all of the jelly beans from their molds and dusted them with cornstarch.

“These need time to set and the caramel still needs time to cool,” Bon Bon said. “Do you want to go get something to eat? My treat – I really appreciate you helping me today.”

“It hasn’t been that big of a deal,” Lyra said. “But if you want to swing by the Hayburger, I wouldn’t object.”

“Just the Hayburger? I did offer to pay.”

“What can I say? I’m a cheap date.”

“I guess so. Hayburger it is,” Bon Bon said. She wished that Lyra hadn’t used the word “date.” She was having a hard enough time accepting the fact that Lyra wasn’t interested in her romantically.

As soon as she said it, Lyra wished she hadn’t used the word “date.” She was having a hard enough time accepting the fact that Bon Bon wasn’t interested in her romantically.

As the two sat in a booth at Hayburger, enjoying their meals, Lyra realized that it was a good time to invite Bon Bon to a different lunch.

“So you know how I was visiting my friends back in Canterlot?” Lyra said. “It occurred to me that even though you met them briefly back at the Summer Sun Celebration, you never really had a chance to get to know them. And my friends are your friends. Do you want to have lunch with them in a few days?”

“Really?” Bon Bon asked.

“Yeah,” Lyra said. “They meet for lunch every week – I used to always join them before I moved to Ponyville. And this last time, they were asking about you. If you’re looking to make more friends, I can vouch for these three.”

“You’re taking a pretty big risk,” Bon Bon said with a wry smile. “What if I’m only capable of having one good friend at a time? What if I start ignoring you so I can hang out with one of your friends?”

Lyra returned Bon Bon’s smile with one of her own. “You’re right,” she responded. “Forget I said anything. You’re not allowed to talk to any of my foalhood friends. In fact, I forbid you from going to Canterlot at all, just to be safe.”

“Nope, too late,” Bon Bon said. “You’ve already extended the invitation, and I’ve already decided to accept. It was nice meeting you, Lyra Heartstrings. Perhaps we’ll see each other again at some point in the distant future.”

“Oh yeah?” Lyra said. “You can’t go if I don’t tell you that we should take the 8:15 train five days from now.”

“Oh, I’ll find a way.” Bon Bon adopted a serious expression. “I’ll find a way.”

Bon Bon lowered her eyebrows and stared directly at Lyra. Lyra lowered her eyebrows and stared back. Bon Bon leaned over and took a sip of her drink without breaking eye contact. Lyra lifted her burger to her mouth and took a bite while staying locked on Bon Bon. Bon Bon leaned down to take a bite of her fried potatoes while staring at Lyra, but misjudged the distance and dipped her chin into the ketchup. Still staring, she raised her head and nodded as if that was what she had meant to do.

By half a second, Lyra was the first to laugh.

Five days later, Lyra was leading Bon Bon to the Canterlot Outdoor Café. Typically, in a situation like this, Bon Bon would feel nervous about trying to befriend new ponies. But with Lyra by her side, she had a newfound confidence.

As the café came into view, Bon Bon looked across the outdoor seating area. She recognized the two ponies sitting at one of the tables as Lyra’s friends – although because it had been roughly two months since she had last seen them, she had forgotten their names. The blue one, upon seeing Lyra and Bon Bon, started waving enthusiastically. Lyra waved back.

“Bon Bon, you remember Minuette and Twinkleshine,” Lyra said as she approached the table. “Minuette, Twinkleshine, you remember Bon Bon.”

Bon Bon gave each of them a hoofshake. Lyra pulled a chair from a nearby empty table over – the group’s usual table only had four chairs – and sat down.

“It’s nice to meet you again,” Bon Bon said as she sat down next to Lyra. “So, Lyra tells me you’ve all known each other since you were foals?”

“We all attended school together,” Twinkleshine said.

Minuette nodded. “We’ve kind of been inseparable ever since. Well, until this one decided to move to Ponyville,” she said, pointing to Lyra.

“It’s not like I cut you out of my life,” Lyra said a little defensively. “Sorry I couldn’t immediately find a job in Canterlot like the three of you did.”

“Oh, you know I’m just teasing,” Minuette said.

“Actually, though,” Twinkleshine said, “I’ve been meaning to ask. What have you been doing—”

“Hi!” Minuette said as Lemon Hearts walked up to the table.

“Sorry I’m late,” Lemon Hearts said. “Things have been pretty crazy at the castle lately.” She turned to Bon Bon and extended her hoof. “Nice to meet you again, Bon Bon. Lyra’s been telling us all about you.”

“Good things, I hope,” Bon Bon said, giving Lemon Hearts a hoofshake.

“You seem to have made quite the impression on her,” Lemon Hearts said. Bon Bon didn’t notice Lyra blush a little. “I understand the two of you have become good friends.”

“We hang out together a lot,” Bon Bon said. “But you all already know how much fun she is.” It suddenly occurred to Bon Bon that the three of them might be angry at her for convincing Lyra to leave their group and live in Ponyville. She also realized that she couldn’t remember the yellow one’s name and the window for casually asking had just closed.

“You seem like a lot of fun, too,” Minuette said. “What do the two of you do around Ponyville?”

“Whatever’s going on around town,” Bon Bon said. “Activities, performances… it depends on what’s happening on any given day. For example, a traveling showpony stopped by recently, so we went to see her perform.”

“The whole thing ended with an ursa stomping through town,” Lyra said. “And guess who saved Ponyville. Again.”

Twinkleshine looked at Bon Bon in surprise. “You?” she said.

Bon Bon was a little startled. Sure, she had been on high alert when the creature first appeared, but she hadn’t had to act or report back to the agency. Why would Twinkleshine—

“No – I meant Twilight,” Lyra said.

Bon Bon realized she was overreacting and calmed down. She relaxed a little further when she realized that none of the others had picked up on her slight change of facial expression. “So, do all of you know Twilight Sparkle?” she asked, trying to steer the conversation away from monsters.

“More like ‘knew,’” Lemon Hearts said. “She started off in primary school with us, but soon she transferred to the School for Gifted Unicorns. We tried to keep her involved in the group, but she kind of grew apart from us.”

The four Canterlot friends all looked a little sad about it. Bon Bon returned to her newfound concern that three of those ponies were now thinking that Bon Bon was influencing Lyra to grow apart from them.

“You know, if the three of you find yourselves with some free time, you should come visit Ponyville again,” Bon Bon said. “So you can visit Lyra,” she quickly added. “And me. I know Ponyville has a reputation for being a small, quiet town, but there’s a lot to our little village.”

“You should take a hike through White Tail Woods,” Lyra said. “It’s gorgeous – nothing like what’s here in Canterlot.”

“We absolutely should!” Minuette said. “When are you girls free? Should we just pick a weekend, or is there a way we can shuffle our work schedules…?”

“Speaking of work, I was wondering,” Twinkleshine said. “Lyra, what have you—”

“I’m swamped right now,” Lemon Hearts said. “All of this royal activity has been great for career advancement, but it’s wrecking my social life.”

“Lemon Hearts works at the palace,” Lyra explained, “organizing the chefs and caterers.”

Bon Bon was grateful to be reminded of Lemon Hearts’ name.

Lemon Hearts nodded. “With the return of Princess Luna, one of my bosses received a promotion to work directly for her. Which let me move up and take over her position. Eventually, we’ll get everything running smoothly again, but between the needs of a new, nocturnal princess and the usual inconsistent demands from the other members of royalty, things are a little hectic right now.”

“What do you do for a living, Bon Bon?” asked Minuette.

“Oh, I’ve been really lucky,” Bon Bon said. “I’m Ponyville’s resident candy maker.” She paused for a moment. “And it just occurred to me that I should have brought something for all of you. I’m sorry.”

“Yes, you should have,” Lyra said to Bon Bon in a mock stern voice. “I suppose we can let you off with a warning this time, since it’s your first offense.”

“Thank you,” Bon Bon said as she bowed her head to Lyra. “You are most benevolent.”

Lemon Hearts rolled her eyes. “Now there’s two of them,” she said half under her breath.

Twinkleshine interjected, more forcefully than she usually spoke. “So. Lyra.” The other four ponies turned to look at her. “As I was saying.” Abruptly, her voice shifted back to its normal, pleasant tone. “What have you been doing in Ponyville? Have you found any work in music?”

“No,” Lyra admitted. “To make ends meet, I’ve been taking whatever odd jobs are available. Mostly chores that other ponies need help with. Painting, decorating, moving things. It doesn’t pay much, but fortunately, my rent is really low.” Lyra saw the sympathetic looks on her friends’ faces. “Actually, Bon Bon tried to get me a gig a couple of weeks ago. The owners of the local bakery wanted to experiment with hosting a high tea, with cookies and miniature cakes and that kind of thing. A formal yet low-key affair. Bon Bon convinced them to hire me to gently play lyre as background music.”

“That sounds nice,” Minuette said.

“Well…” Lyra continued. “Do you remember that pink pony we first met when we arrived in Ponyville?”

The other three unicorns nodded.

“She works at the bakery,” Lyra said. “And as you can imagine, ‘low-key’ isn’t her strong suit.”

“Ah,” the other three replied.

“Yeah. But it was an interesting experiment.”

“Really interesting at the end,” Bon Bon said.

“I’m sure you’ll find something eventually,” Minuette said to Lyra.

“In the meantime,” Lemon Hearts said, “it sounds like Ponyville is a good place to be while you look for a city that needs a lyre player. Or at least some kind of professional musician.”

“It’s really nice,” Lyra said. “I’m glad Bon Bon talked me into moving.” Lyra went to wrap her foreleg around Bon Bon familiarly, then, at the last second, decided against it. She quickly shifted and simply gave Bon Bon a friendly bump to the shoulder.

At that time, Urbane Charm approached the table with four drinks. He gave Bon Bon a lunch menu – he already knew what the other four always ordered. Bon Bon wasn’t able to study the menu very closely. She was still thinking about what Lemon Hearts had just said.

After lunch, and after the two of them spent the rest of the day browsing through some of the shops in Canterlot, Bon Bon and Lyra boarded the train back home. As they sat across from one another in the passenger car, Bon Bon decided to ask Lyra about it.

“So is it true that someday, you’ll be leaving Ponyville?”

Lyra, who hadn’t spent the day ruminating on what Lemon Hearts had said, gave Bon Bon a confused look. “I’ll be what? When?”

“When you find a job as a lyrist,” Bon Bon said. “You’re not going to find that job in Ponyville, so that means someday, you’ll move to another town.”

“Oh,” Lyra said. She looked across the passenger car, not focusing on anything in particular. She looked back at Bon Bon. “Maybe? I’m not saying that to sound wishy-washy. I really haven’t thought about it.”

“Never?” Bon Bon asked somewhat incredulously.

“Not really,” Lyra said. “Ponyville has been great, so I haven’t really thought about leaving.”

“But it makes sense,” Bon Bon said. “You’re never going to make a career out of playing your lyre if you stay in Ponyville. And it’d be a shame if you didn’t get to do what you loved for a living.”

“Well, I do agree with you on that last part,” Lyra said. “But the thing is, before I moved to Ponyville, I tried looking for a lyre-related job in cities all over Equestria. All I got back was letter after letter saying thanks but no thanks. So there’s no reason for me to think about leaving right now, and really no reason to expect that any job offers are going to come along in the future.”

“Won’t that make you resentful?”

“Nah. Frustrated, maybe. But not resentful. I love living in Ponyville, even if I never find a job related to music. Although I guess my parents will be pretty upset that I spent four years studying a subject which I never get to use.”

“I can’t imagine that you’ll never find anything. You’re too good.”

“I mean, if an opportunity came along, of course I’d take it. So it might happen. Like I said: Maybe?”

Bon Bon looked out the window.

“I think I know what this is about,” Lyra said. She reached across and gently nudged Bon Bon’s chin so Bon Bon was looking her in the eyes. “And I promise: Even if I get an amazing job playing lyre and have to move away from Ponyville, I’ll still write to you. All the time. I’m never going to stop being your friend.”

“I know,” Bon Bon said. “But I still don’t like the idea of it happening. I mean, I’d like it for you – I want you to be happy. I just wouldn’t like it for me. But if you stay, then you wouldn’t be completely happy, so I’m not happy about that… suddenly, this feels like a no-win situation.”

“Worrying about it isn’t going to help anything,” Lyra said. Even though she claimed that she had never thought about it, it was clear that she had. “Whether an opportunity comes along or not, it isn’t anything you or I can control. Whatever happens, happens. So why not just enjoy what’s happening right now?”

“You make a good argument,” Bon Bon said. “Did you have philosophy classes at the music academy or something?”

“No, but the music theory classes were really boring. I’ve had a lot of time to sit and think about life.”

Chapter 8: Putting It Out There

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A couple of weeks later, Lyra and Bon Bon were walking back to Bon Bon’s apartment.

“For somepony who’s never competed at tug-of-war before, I think you really held your own out there,” Lyra said.

“I may not be an asset to the team, but at least I won’t be a liability,” Bon Bon replied as she opened the door. It was the day before Ponyville’s annual Summer’s Final Fling festival, where Bon Bon would be earning some extra money selling cotton candy. A tug-of-war competition was scheduled during the afternoon of the festival, and some of Ponyville’s vendors had, at the last minute, asked Bon Bon if she wanted to be on their team. Bon Bon had begun to decline; however, Lyra insisted that she join in. So Bon Bon spent the afternoon practicing with her new team while Lyra watched and gave them encouragement.

“Sorry I won’t be there to see you compete,” Lyra said as she followed Bon Bon inside. Lyra had already told Bon Bon that she would be visiting Canterlot that day to have lunch with her foalhood friends. “And I’m sorry you can’t be there for this lunch. You know you’re welcome to tag along any other time.”

“I know,” Bon Bon said. “Thanks for introducing me to them.”

“Did you all get along okay?”

“Absolutely. I was going to ask if you thought they liked me.”

“Don’t be silly – of course they liked you.”

“Ah, good,” Bon Bon said with relief in her voice. “I couldn’t really tell what Lemon Hearts was thinking.”

“She’s always like that – it’s always hardest to get her to have fun. Plus, I think she’s a little overwhelmed with her job right now. But I can tell she likes you. And if she doesn’t, then tomorrow, I’ll force her to like you.”

“Do I want to know how you’d force a pony to like me?”

“I’ve known Lemon Hearts since kindergarten,” Lyra said. “I’ve got all kinds of things I could blackmail her with.”

“Doesn’t that mean she could blackmail you right back?”

“With what? I’m not ashamed of who I am. What do I have to hide?” Lyra said as she looked Bon Bon in the eyes. Into her dark turquoise eyes… Lyra was abruptly reminded of what exactly she had to hide. She reminded herself that this wasn’t a serious conversation – she didn’t actually have to worry about Lemon Hearts retaliating with that particular piece of information.

Lyra hastily added, “But anyway, she likes you, so it doesn’t matter.” In her head, she chastised herself: Smooth.

“It means a lot that you’d help me make friends like this,” Bon Bon said. “Without you, I’d just be sitting in here alone, probably talking to myself.”

Lyra was quiet for a moment. “Can I give you some honest criticism, Bon Bon?”

“You? Yes.”

“I think you put too much pressure on yourself to make friends. All you have to do is be your normal self. I saw how you talked to Golden Harvest this afternoon. And Pinkie Pie. Are you telling me you’re not at least casual friends with them?”

“There’s nothing casual about Pinkie Pie.”

“You know what I mean.” Lyra chuckled and gave her a gentle shove. “You’re a lot of fun to be around, Bon Bon. Before I moved here, Spike told me that this is one of the friendliest places in Equestria, and he’s right. You can make all the friends you want in this town. You just have to put yourself out there.”

Bon Bon thought about it. “I… it’s…” She took a breath. “I guess so,” she conceded. “It’s just that when I was growing up, I always assumed that friendship had to be something really big and meaningful. Since I couldn’t have that, I didn’t think to try and find anything else.” She sighed. “Where was a pony like you in any of the schools I went to?”

Lyra turned her head dismissively. “You make it sound like I’m some kind of friendship expert. I’m not.”

“You know more about it than I do. I mean, you’ve got three really good friends in Canterlot. I’m glad you introduced me to them, and I’m glad the four of us will be friends, but you and I both know I’ll never be as close to them as you are.”

“Well, sure – I’ve known them for practically my whole life. That doesn’t make me an expert on the subject. Actually… for a long time, I figured that my friendships with them were as good as friendship could get. But recently, I found out how amazing friendship really can be. You know when I found that out?”

“When?”

“Two months ago. When I got to know you. You’re my best friend, Bon Bon.”

Bon Bon’s eyes widened slightly. It was the first time Lyra had ever told her that. Bon Bon looked at Lyra, smiled, and sniffled a little. She knew that during a meaningful moment like this, Lyra would really appreciate a hug.

Bon Bon happily embraced Lyra. Lyra embraced her back.

“Thanks, Lyra,” Bon Bon said as she released from the hug. “You’re my best friend, too.” She paused for a second. “Though I guess you already knew that.”

The next morning, Bon Bon arrived at the largest lake in Ponyville, the site of the Summer’s Final Fling festival. She pulled a cart containing a brand new cotton candy machine over to the designated vendor area and found her designated space. A table and a canopy had already been set up for her. She lifted the cotton candy machine onto the table, then pushed the cart, which also contained her supplies, behind the table.

Bon Bon was feeling nervous – she reasoned that selling cotton candy would be good for her business, and she had been making decent profits on her other candies recently, but still, the professional-grade machine had been a significant purchase. If she didn’t make enough bits that day to cover at least a third of the price of the machine – not to mention the cost of renting the sales space – she was going to be in a little trouble financially.

While Bon Bon was still laying out her equipment, the other vendors arrived and began to set up their stations. To Bon Bon’s immediate right, a pegasus was selling snow cones. To Bon Bon’s immediate left, and closest to the large open area where all of the ponies would be enjoying themselves, Big Macintosh had wheeled up a cart loaded with apple pies. In total, there were just six food vendors by the lake – and only three of them were selling desserts – so Bon Bon liked her chances of making plenty of sales. Still, the Summer’s Final Fling festival was a picnic event, so a lot of the ponies would be bringing their own food.

It was still a little too early to begin making anything, so after she had finished setting up, Bon Bon simply stood in place, shifting on her hooves nervously. She looked over at Big Macintosh, who also had nothing to do but who looked much more relaxed about it.

“Good morning, Big Mac,” she said.

Big Mac smiled and gave her a nod.

Bon Bon went back to nervously shifting. She wished that Lyra was there to help keep her thoughts away from worrying about sales. You’ve done everything right, she imagined Lyra saying. Ponies will love your cotton candy and everything will be fine. Hearing Lyra’s voice, even if it was only in her head, helped Bon Bon calm down a little.

Eventually, though, she couldn’t wait any longer. She opened up one of her jars filled with finely granulated sugar that she had infused with a vanilla flavor. She poured some of the sugar into a chamber at the center of the machine, then lit the fire underneath. After waiting a couple of minutes, she began to repeatedly pump a pedal at the bottom of the machine, which caused the chamber to spin rapidly.

After several minutes of pumping and heating, thin strings of candy floss began to fly out of the chamber. Bon Bon lowered the heat. She then picked up a paper cone with her front hooves, switched to pumping the pedal with her rear hoof, and, while leaning on the machine, began to collect the cotton candy on the cone. Soon, she had a fluffy bundle of cotton candy, which she placed in a specially built display holder. She immediately went to work forming the next bundle.

Once she had placed the second serving of cotton candy in the display, she picked up a third paper cone. This time, however, she also added some hard candies to the cotton candy as it built up.

After making five servings of cotton candy, Bon Bon moved the flame away from the chamber and gave the pedal a rest. It was still early in the day – she knew that most of her sales would take place in the afternoon.

After a while, the residents of Ponyville began to arrive at the lake for the festival. Families and friends laid out picnic blankets on the grassy hill overlooking the lake. Some of the ponies jumped in and started swimming.

As Bon Bon watched the festivities, Mr. and Mrs. Cake approached her table. Mr. Cake had a picnic basket balanced on his back.

“Bon Bon!” Mrs. Cake cheerfully greeted her. “You’ve started making cotton candy?”

“It’s a brand new machine,” Bon Bon said.

“And what are those colorful pieces in these two over here?” Mrs. Cake asked. “They’re too big to be sprinkles.”

“Those are special popping candies I got from Canterlot,” Bon Bon explained. “When you put them in your mouth, they create a tingling, popping sensation. I’m charging one bit for the regular cotton candy and two bits for the deluxe variety here.”

“I’ve never tried such a thing,” Mrs. Cake said. “We’ll have to have some after lunch.”

Bon Bon nodded. “It’s nice to see you two get some time away from the bakery.”

“It’s nice to get out for a day,” Mr. Cake said. “The entire town’s going to be here, so there was no sense running the shop. And it seems like we never get a chance to just go out and take a day off.”

Mrs. Cake said, “That didn’t stop him from opening the shop early this morning for the coffee-and-doughnuts crowd.”

“It’s easier to enjoy yourself when you know you’ve made some sales for the day,” he explained.

“Well, I don’t want to get in your way,” Bon Bon said. “Get out there and have some fun!”

“We plan to,” Mrs. Cake said. “We’ll be back later to try some of that deluxe cotton candy. Save a helping for us!”

“Will do!” Bon Bon said as the couple walked away.

Morning sales were modest at best, which made Bon Bon a little nervous. She had to keep telling herself that she expected this to happen. The snow cones and slices of apple pie weren’t selling well yet, either – the festivalgoers were still finishing lunch. While Bon Bon waited for the ponies to begin craving sweets, she took bites from the salad she had brought and watched the other ponies enjoying themselves.

A section of the lake had been roped off for swimming – at the moment, a game of Marco Palomino had broken out. Farther out on the lake, there were a few ponies maneuvering paddleboats and water inflatables. On the shore, some of the younger foals and their parents were building sand castles. On the grass nearby, a few nets had been set up for volleyball and badminton.

Bon Bon looked over all of the activities and wished that she was having fun with the other ponies. Of course, she realized, the only pony with whom she would be participating in any of those activities was in Canterlot at the moment.

Because the ponies were in the process of finishing their lunches, Bon Bon set everything on her machine back in place to begin making more cotton candy. As she did, she thought about what Lyra had said to her, both about making friends and realizing that she already had friends.

Bon Bon thought about the Cakes. Were they her friends, or were they just business associates? She always exchanged friendly words with them, but she usually only saw the couple when she was delivering an order or purchasing some treats for herself.

Still, they had made the effort to come visit her table and say hello – they hadn’t needed to do that. And the reason she only ever saw them at their bakery was because it seemed like they were always working. Maybe they were business friends, Bon Bon decided. She wasn’t sure whether “business friends” were a thing, but if they were, then that was her relationship with the Cakes.

While Bon Bon was pumping the pedal to rotate the chamber, lost in her thoughts, Golden Harvest approached from a couple of stalls over. She had been doing brisk business selling freshly grilled carrot dogs and was taking a quick break.

“Are you ready for the tug-of-war competition this afternoon?” she asked.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Bon Bon said. “Thanks for having me on your team.”

“Thank you for being our fifth. I meant to tell you earlier – the rest of the team and I are going out for drinks after the festival is over. You wanna join us?”

Bon Bon’s first instinct was to politely decline – she didn’t often drink and she had always been awkward the few times she had attended that type of gathering. But then she remembered what Lyra had told her: Put yourself out there.

“Sure!” Bon Bon said. She was still somewhat reluctant about the idea, so she had to fake her enthusiasm. However, as soon as she said it, Bon Bon realized that she had faked a little too much enthusiasm – they were only going out for drinks. She hoped Golden Harvest didn’t pick up on it.

“Great! I’ll get you when we’re ready to leave,” Golden Harvest said. If she had detected anything false about Bon Bon’s response, she didn’t let on.

As Golden Harvest returned to her stall, Bon Bon thought about the opportunity to get to know her four tug-of-war teammates better as friends. Although she was a little apprehensive, she was ultimately glad that she had accepted the invitation – and she would never have done that if it hadn’t been for Lyra.

While Bon Bon continued to operate the hoof pump, she looked over at Big Mac. Was she friends with him? Not long after she had moved to Ponyville, they had worked together operating a caramel apple stand – the first time they had done it was at the conclusion of that year’s Running of the Leaves, with the two teaming up to sell more caramel apples a couple of other times after that.

Big Mac and Bon Bon didn’t talk much while they were selling caramel apples. At first, Bon Bon thought it was her fault – before Lyra came along, Bon Bon had trouble keeping a conversation going for any length of time with any other pony. Bon Bon soon learned, though, that Big Mac was simply more comfortable relying on himself. As a pony who kept to herself the entire time she was in secondary school, Bon Bon could understand and respect that.

Bon Bon wasn’t great at reading ponies, but she got the impression that Big Mac was happier, and a little less standoffish, when a pony wasn’t trying to constantly engage him in conversation. In their own way, maybe the two of them were friends. It seemed to Bon Bon that of all of the vendors in Ponyville, she was the one that Big Mac got along with the best. Maybe it was because she understood him on a deeper level when it came to an appreciation of solitude. Or maybe it was just because there wasn’t any of the sexual tension that always seemed to be present when the other mares were around Big Mac.

As she was contemplating that, Bon Bon watched Big Mac’s little sister, Apple Bloom, run across the grass with her two filly friends. As they raced past the vendor area, Bon Bon could see that they were pulling a wagon filled with paper towel tubes, newspapers, cooking oil, matchbooks, and unlit sparklers.

“Cutie Mark Crusader fireworks makers! Yay!” they shouted as they ran toward the forest.

Bon Bon looked at Big Mac and could see the worry in his eyes. Simultaneously, the two of them scanned the festival for the other Apple family members. Applejack was in the lake, competing against Rainbow Dash in a swimming contest, and clearly hadn’t overheard. Granny Smith was taking a nap under the shade of a large umbrella.

Big Mac watched as the three fillies disappeared into the nearby woods. He then anxiously looked at the pies.

“Do you want me to watch your cart while you go after them?” Bon Bon asked.

“Yup!” Big Mac exclaimed as he took off running. Bon Bon smiled. It was what friends did for each other.

Soon, Bon Bon’s machine began to produce more cotton candy. While Bon Bon was forming additional bundles to sell, ponies started to approach the three dessert stalls a little more frequently.

So for the next several minutes, Bon Bon found herself doing double duty. Not only was she creating, talking up, and selling her own cotton candy, but she also minded Big Mac’s cart. She could have simply told the customers that Big Mac would be back soon – she probably would have gotten some more sales from ponies who weren’t willing to wait – but Bon Bon knew that that wasn’t fair to Big Mac. Instead, if a customer asked where Big Mac was, Bon Bon explained that he had to step away, but that she knew what his prices were. She hurriedly stepped back and forth between both stations, cutting pies and making cotton candy.

Eventually, Big Mac returned with three disappointed-looking fillies behind him. Bon Bon examined the forest – there was no smoke, so it appeared that everything turned out all right. Big Mac pointed toward the festival, and Apple Bloom and her friends made their way back, their heads hung low.

“Business has been picking up,” Bon Bon said as she returned to focusing all of her attention on her machine. Big Mac snorted in frustration. He then glanced over his inventory – a number of pieces of pie were missing. Confused, he looked in the bag that held his bits to discover that it was fuller than he had left it.

Big Mac looked to Bon Bon with his head tilted slightly, his eyes asking whether his assumptions were correct.

“I ran your cart while you were gone,” Bon Bon explained. “I hope that was okay.”

Big Mac nodded. He didn’t say anything, but the gratitude on his face was evident.

For the next half hour, business was steady. Bon Bon was happy to see that ponies were enjoying the deluxe cotton candy – word of mouth spread quickly, and she was selling just as much of the deluxe variety as the regular cotton candy. Since she made more of a profit on the deluxe variety, she was feeling better about the day.

At one point, when there was no line, Mr. and Mrs. Cake returned to her table.

“One deluxe cotton candy, coming up,” Bon Bon said before either of them could even ask. As Mr. Cake began to reach for his money, she added, “For you, it’s on the house.”

“Really?” asked Mr. Cake.

“Really,” Bon Bon said. “I owe my whole career to you two. The least I can do is give you some cotton candy.”

“Thank you so much,” Mrs. Cake said. She picked up one of the paper cones and took a bite. “Ooh!” she exclaimed as one of the candies hit her tongue. “That takes you by surprise!”

Mr. Cake took a bite from the other side. “Wow,” he said appreciatively. “That’s something else.”

“Who would have thought there was a way to make cotton candy more fun,” Mrs. Cake said. “Only you, Bon Bon. Has Pinkie Pie been by here yet?”

“Not yet,” Bon Bon said.

“Oh, she’ll love this. The next time we see her, we’ll make sure she knows.”

“We’re going to have to find a way to work these candies into a frosting,” Mr. Cake said.

“Well, they’re not as effective once you get them wet,” Bon Bon said. “But if you find a use for them, I’ll be happy to get more for you.”

Each of the Cakes took another bite of cotton candy.

“Are you having fun on your day off?” Bon Bon asked.

Mrs. Cake replied, “Very much so – thank you for asking.”

“I can’t remember the last time we got to spend an entire day just taking it easy,” Mr. Cake said.

Mrs. Cake leaned in. “It’s especially nice,” she said quietly, “since early next spring, we aren’t going to have any time for just the two of us anymore.”

Bon Bon asked, “Why, what are you—” but stopped talking once it hit her. “Are you…?” she asked excitedly.

“We haven’t told too many other ponies yet,” Mrs. Cake said. “So don’t say anything.”

“I won’t,” Bon Bon promised. Quietly, happily, she added, “Congratulations!”

The Cakes thanked her. Seeing another customer approach Bon Bon’s table, they left.

As Bon Bon made another sale, Big Mac finished with the customers at his cart. With both of the vendors momentarily not busy, he carried a slice of apple pie over and set it down next to Bon Bon’s empty salad bowl.

“No charge,” he said. “Thanks.”

Bon Bon thanked him back. While Big Mac returned to his cart, she eagerly took a bite. As far as she was concerned, Apple family apple pie was the best in Equestria.

As the flaky crust gave way in her mouth to the filling’s perfect blend of sweet and tart, Bon Bon looked around and reflected on her day.

She did have a lot of friends in Ponyville.

Meanwhile, in Canterlot, Lyra was meeting with her foalhood friends. She had deliberately chosen this day to do it, as she knew that Bon Bon wouldn’t be able to accompany her. And Lyra needed to talk about Bon Bon with some ponies she could trust.

“So, you all got to know Bon Bon better,” Lyra said once the four of them had gathered at their usual table.

“I like her,” Minuette said.

“She’s really nice,” Twinkleshine added.

Lyra looked at Lemon Hearts.

“I have to admit,” Lemon Hearts said, “you really are two peas in a pod.”

“Thank you,” Lyra said.

“I suppose you still haven’t told her,” Lemon Hearts said.

“You seem awfully eager to make sure ponies know I’m gay,” Lyra said. There was a slight edge of anger to her voice.

“This isn’t about me, and you know it,” Lemon Hearts said, matching Lyra’s tone. “You met a pony that you get along really well with – heck, you even moved to a completely different town just to spend more time with her – but you’re keeping a part of who you are secret from her. This isn’t like you, Lyra.”

“And we can all tell it bothers you,” Minuette said sympathetically.

“We don’t like seeing you like this,” Twinkleshine said, genuinely concerned. “Why won’t you tell her?”

Lyra looked down at the table. After a moment, she quietly said, “I’m afraid.”

“Afraid to tell somepony?” Lemon Hearts said. “You do it all the time. When that annoying stallion tried to hit on you a few moons ago, you seemed especially happy to shut him down.”

“In her defense,” Minuette said, “once she told him she was gay, it only seemed to get him more excited.”

“I’m afraid,” Lyra said, “to find out how Bon Bon will respond. What will happen if she hates me for it. Not just what it would do to her. But what it would do to me. We’re best friends. If she stops talking to me, I’ll be… well, heartbroken. If I never tell her, that can’t happen.”

“Best friends?” asked Twinkleshine. She and Lemon Hearts looked at Minuette. Lyra was close to all three of them, but of the three, she was the closest to Minuette.

“You saw how they got along,” Minuette said to them. “It’s not surprising.” She spoke very matter-of-factly. For emphasis, she added, “We’re still her friends, too.”

Lyra either didn’t notice the subtext or was so certain it wouldn’t be an issue, she didn’t acknowledge it. “I told her she was my best friend. And it’s true. I was hoping that once I said it out loud, it would help me come to terms with my other problem, but it didn’t.”

“What problem?” Twinkleshine asked.

“I have dreams about her,” Lyra said. “Not like daydreams. Actual, while-I’m-sound-asleep, dream dreams. Dreams where we’re more than just friends. And I know that we’ll never be more than friends – and I’m fine with that. I really am. I’m glad we’re best friends. I just wish I knew what to do with these feelings.”

The other three were quiet. They all searched for the right words.

Finally, Lemon Hearts broke the silence. “Lyra, I’m going to ask you a question. There’s a reason I’m asking this. I’m not trying to make things awkward or fish for compliments, but: Have you ever had these feelings about any of us?”

Lyra was taken aback. “We’ve known each other since we were fillies!” she said.

Lemon Hearts just looked at her.

“Okay,” Lyra said, “maybe when I was going through puberty and trying to figure things out, I thought Twinkleshine was kind of cute.” She turned to Twinkleshine. “But I never thought about asking you out. Or had any dreams about it.”

Minuette put her hoof to her chest and pretended to be offended. “I thought you weren’t trying to make things awkward,” she said to Lemon Hearts.

Lemon Hearts ignored her. “I was going to ask what you did to move past that,” she said to Lyra.

“I’ve never had to move past that before,” Lyra said. “I’ve never kept having a crush on a pony after I found out she was straight.”

The other three went quiet again.

“And that’s another reason I don’t want to tell her,” Lyra said. “No matter how she reacts, I don’t want to deal with the awkwardness of being attracted to her like this.”

“It sounds like it’s pretty awkward already,” Lemon Hearts said.

“Only for me,” Lyra replied. “It would be a lot worse if she knew.”

Another pause.

“I just wish I knew how to get over this.”

“You really love her, don’t you?” Twinkleshine asked.

“Love?” Lyra said. “I mean, I really like spending time with her. And she’s definitely attractive. But it sounds wrong to say I’m in love with a pony I know will never love me back. In that way.”

“You know,” Lemon Hearts said, “there’s a princess in the castle who’s supposedly the princess of love. I don’t know anything about her – my department doesn’t work with her retinue. But I could try to find something out for you. Maybe she knows how to help ponies with unrequited love.”

Lyra didn’t take too long to think about it. “You know I don’t like to ask you for favors like that,” she said. “But right now, I’ll take any help I can get.”

The next day, Bon Bon knocked on Lyra’s door. When Lyra answered, it was clear that Bon Bon was excited.

“How did it go?” Lyra asked.

“Great!” Bon Bon replied. “It seemed like most of the ponies wanted snow cones, but I sold enough of the deluxe cotton candy to justify the cost of the machine. You should have seen the look on Pinkie’s face when the popping candies first went off. But that’s the best part – you were right about the friends thing.”

Lyra smiled.

“Afterward, my tug-of-war team went out for drinks. I didn’t do much drinking, but I made more of an effort to be a part of the conversation, and we all got along really well.”

“How did your team do?”

“Well, we competed. That’s what’s important.”

Lyra chuckled.

“Oh – Berry Punch is going to be out of town for a week, and she needs somepony willing to water all her plants in exchange for a few bits. I volunteered you for the job.”

“Thanks,” Lyra said. “You’re the best agent I’ve ever had.”

“I’m the only agent you’ve ever had.”

A beat. “You’re the worst agent I’ve ever had?”

“Do you want the leftover cotton candy or not?”

A few days later, Lyra received a letter from Canterlot.

Dear Lyra,

I spoke with the princess’s representatives today. Unfortunately, they said that she wasn’t seeing petitioners at this time. If anything changes, I’ll let you know.

We’re always here to talk if you need us. In the meantime, what if you tried to meet somepony else? Maybe that would help take your mind off of your problem.

I’m sorry if I was a little short with you at lunch the other day. You know it’s only because I don’t like seeing you unhappy.

Your friend,
Lemon Hearts

Lyra was disappointed, but she reminded herself that she knew it was unlikely a princess would want to hear about her petty problems.

Lyra reread the letter. Meet somepony else? she thought to herself.

How am I supposed to find somepony else who’s as perfect for me as Bon Bon?

Chapter 9: Side by Side

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As autumn came to Ponyville, Bon Bon and Lyra continued to enjoy their friendship. While they didn’t get to see each other every day, they did see each other on most days, and they had fun with one another throughout the season, from attending the fashion show that Rarity held near the beginning of autumn through the Running of the Leaves near the end.

They talked about many things, but never about their romantic aspirations. It had come up in conversation one time early on, but rather than make up excuses and lies, both Lyra and Bon Bon quickly said that they weren’t looking for anyone at the moment. They were happy being single, they told each other.

Each tried to convince herself that it was true.

Eventually, winter arrived. Most of Ponyville’s community events took place outdoors, so with the cold weather making it difficult to spend long periods of time outside, there weren’t as many things for Lyra and Bon Bon to do during the week. Their apartments were each furnished with a small standing fireplace, though – a perfect size to heat the compact space. So they spent more time simply hanging out with one another. Usually, Lyra would visit Bon Bon’s apartment and keep Bon Bon company while she made candy.

One day, near the middle of winter, Bon Bon was returning from the marketplace. She was already growing tired of seeing so many root vegetables during the cold, snowy months, even though she knew the fresh spring produce was still several weeks away. As she carried her saddlebags back to Beech Tree Apartments, she saw Lyra in front of the building, dressed in a coat, scarf, earmuffs, and hoof warmers. She was collecting snow and packing it into a wide cylindrical shape.

“What are you doing?” Bon Bon asked.

“Making a snowpony,” Lyra answered.

“Isn’t that usually done by foals? Or families that have foals?”

“Why should we stop doing things that are fun just because we aren’t foals anymore?” Lyra said. She started to collect snow for the second leg. “Come on, make one. My snowpony’s going to want to have a friend.”

The previous winter, Bon Bon wouldn’t have even entertained the idea. She would have worried about the other ponies in town staring at her. But now, she didn’t hesitate.

“Just let me put these away first. I’ll be right back.”

Bon Bon quickly ran upstairs, put down her saddlebags, and swapped her front two boots for a pair of knitted hoof warmers so she could more easily mold the snow. She made it back to the front of the building while Lyra was still working on building her third leg.

“It’s been a while,” Bon Bon said. “What do I do?”

“Grab some snow and put it in a pile,” Lyra said. “Don’t worry about making it perfect. Just have fun.”

Bon Bon followed Lyra’s lead and began to create four small piles of snow about half a body’s length away from Lyra’s snowpony. Bon Bon’s piles were wider and less uniform than Lyra’s.

When Bon Bon had finished forming the legs, she realized that she had been so engrossed in her work, she hadn’t watched what Lyra was doing. Now Lyra had already placed a body onto her set of legs and was rolling some snow to form the head.

“What do I do for the body?” Bon Bon asked. “Do I just start piling it on?”

“Try to make a big bean of snow, then lift it onto the legs.”

“It’s a good thing I made my legs so sturdy,” Bon Bon said. “Clearly, that was my intention the whole time.”

Shortly, Bon Bon had formed a wide tube of snow. With some effort, she lifted it onto the legs. The legs were set farther apart than the sides of the body, so she began to pack more snow onto the trunk.

After a couple of minutes, Bon Bon said, “My snowpony is looking kind of fat.”

“Good,” Lyra replied. “It’ll keep her warm during the winter.”

“Snowponies need to stay warm? I always assumed they had ice running through their veins.”

“If snowponies don’t need to stay warm, then why do they wear scarves and hats?” Lyra said as she finished her snowpony’s head.

“Maybe they received them as gifts and feel like they have to wear them,” Bon Bon said as she continued to add snow to her snowpony’s body. “One year, when I was a filly, my mom decided to take up knitting and made me a sweater for Hearth’s Warming. It was way too thick and way too scratchy, but I didn’t want to hurt her feelings, so I wore it for the whole rest of the day. The entire night, I couldn’t stop itching, even after I took it off. I think my mom got the hint, as she didn’t ask me to wear it again and never knitted anything else.”

Lyra stopped and looked at Bon Bon. Bon Bon remained focused on forming the body of her snowpony. Lyra wasn’t sure how to respond – Bon Bon never talked about her parents. Ever since Bon Bon had told her that it was a sore subject, Lyra made sure to never bring it up.

Lyra decided that she was grateful Bon Bon was willing to share even that much with her. Rather than press any further, Lyra said, “I’m going to go find some decorations.”

A couple of minutes later, Lyra returned, wearing a floppy straw sunhat.

“Bold fashion choice for this time of year,” Bon Bon said as she began to sculpt the head of her snowpony.

“It’s not for me,” Lyra said as she levitated the hat off of her head, “it’s for Frostflanks here.” She lowered the hat onto her snowpony’s head.

“You named her Frostflanks?”

“Are you saying she doesn’t look like a Frostflanks?”

“No, that certainly describes her. Very literal.”

“Well, if you’re so great at naming things,” Lyra said as she started to dig in the snow by the bushes near the apartment building’s archway, “what’s the name of your snowpony?”

“Um… Snowball?”

“Snowball?”

“Snowball.”

Lyra gave Bon Bon a half-lidded stare. “And you’re complaining that I’m too literal?”

Bon Bon finished sculpting the head, then leaned down so that her ear was at its mouth. “She says she likes it.”

“Well, I guess I can’t argue with a snowpony about what a snowpony should be named.” Lyra levitated two rocks from the landscaping surrounding the bushes and placed them on her snowpony’s head to form eyes. She levitated two more rocks over toward Bon Bon and let them fall at her hooves. “Now she just needs a tail.”

Lyra looked around. She didn’t have an old broom that she was willing to sacrifice to the winter elements, so she needed something else. After a minute of thinking, she ran back to her apartment.

When Lyra returned, she was carrying a pom-pom that she had received during the youth hoofball game that had taken place the month before. The students of Ponyville Primary School had made a good effort, but the visiting team from Broncodessa soundly defeated them. Still, they had learned valuable lessons about always trying your hardest and being gracious in defeat.

Lyra stuck the handle of the pom-pom in the rear of her snowpony and took a step back. “Frostflanks is looking good,” she said.

Bon Bon had already put her two eye rocks in place and was bringing back some sticks that had fallen from a nearby tree. She placed them down her snowpony’s neck in a vague approximation of a mane, then stuck a few in the rear to form a tail.

Bon Bon stepped beside Lyra to take in her finished work. “Actually, that about looks like what I made when I was seven years old,” she said.

“I think it looks great,” Lyra said. “They’re just missing one thing. And we need a snack to replace all the energy we spent building these.” She ran back toward her apartment.

“You wouldn’t have to replace so much energy if you didn’t keep running back and forth!” Bon Bon called after her.

Lyra returned with two bananas. She levitated one to Bon Bon, who with a heartfelt “Thanks?” began to peel and eat it. Lyra quickly peeled her banana and, taking three large, rapid bites, stuffed the entire fruit into her mouth, then carried the peel over to her snowpony. She carefully placed the peel against the bottom of its head in the shape of a smile.

Bon Bon took the time to eat her banana in a more controlled manner while Lyra walked around, examining the snowponies from every angle to make sure they looked all right. Finally, Bon Bon finished eating and added a banana peel smile to her snowpony.

“That was fun,” Bon Bon said as she returned to where Lyra was standing. “And they do make the building look more festive.”

“Now we get to bask in the satisfaction of having created something,” Lyra said.

After a moment, Bon Bon replied, “Can we go bask indoors? My hooves are getting really cold.”

“Agreed.”

The two went up to Bon Bon’s apartment. Lyra built a fire in the fireplace while Bon Bon cooked some wassail over the stove.

When Bon Bon finished, she ladled the drink into two mugs. She then pulled the two seat cushions off of her loveseat and placed them on the floor in front of the fireplace. She and Lyra each took a mug, sat on a cushion, and warmed up in front of the fire.

Lyra took a slow sip of her drink. “This really puts me in the Hearth’s Warming spirit,” she said.

“You said you’re leaving in two days?” Bon Bon asked.

“Two days. It’s weird – I’ve spent every Hearth’s Warming with my parents and my sister back home in Canterlot, but this one feels different. Like I’m looking forward to it more.”

“You used to live at home while you were at the music academy, right?” Bon Bon asked.

“Right.”

“So this is the first year you haven’t lived there. You’re looking forward to returning home and seeing everypony again.”

Lyra smiled. “Yeah.”

Bon Bon smiled at Lyra. Lyra could see that while the smile was genuine, Bon Bon’s eyes betrayed a tiny amount of sadness.

“Are you okay spending the holiday here by yourself?” Lyra asked.

“Don’t worry about me,” Bon Bon said. She took a sip of her wassail. “I’ve spent the last five Hearth’s Warmings alone. I’m used to it.”

“If I could stay here and keep you company, I would, but…”

Bon Bon gently shushed Lyra. “I’ll be fine. It’s Hearth’s Warming. You’re supposed to spend it with your family.”

Lyra stared at the fire.

“Stop thinking about it,” Bon Bon said as she stood up. “You need to stay in the Hearth’s Warming spirit.” She disappeared into the kitchen. When she returned, she was carrying a small basket stuffed with thick peppermint sticks. “These are for you.”

“What?” Lyra said, setting down her mug. “You said we weren’t exchanging gifts!”

“What I said,” Bon Bon smiled, “was that I didn’t want you to get me anything. Making candy is what I do. This is no big deal. Now try one.”

Lyra obediently picked up a peppermint stick in her magic and started to suck on it. Soon, the mint gave way to a different flavor. Lyra bit down to discover that the peppermint was coating a smooth chocolate interior.

“This is delicious,” Lyra said. “Thank you.”

“Happy Hearth’s Warming.”

“I really wasn’t expecting this. And now I feel terrible that I didn’t get you anything. And I can’t hurry and whip up something, because my special talent doesn’t really work for making homemade gifts.”

Bon Bon thought for a moment. “Tell you what. If you want to give me a present that badly, I know what you can do. I haven’t had a good Hearth’s Warming carol sing-along in years. You could give me that.”

“Okay!” Lyra said. She got up and raced back to her apartment, eager to give Bon Bon something.

After a moment, Lyra walked through the door, lyre suspended in her magic. As she entered, she began to play a familiar tune.

She sang, “Dashing through the snow…”

Bon Bon sang the next line. “As I pull you in my sleigh…”

They sang together:

“Over the fields we go, laughing all the way!
Bells on collar ring, making spirits bright,
What fun it is to trot and sing a sleighing song tonight!
Oh! Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way,
You’ll have fun aboard a ride in my brand new open sleigh!
Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way,
Oh what fun it is to trot and pull you in my sleigh!”

Lyra played a short bridge, then stopped. “Do you know the other verses?” she asked.

“Not really,” Bon Bon said.

“Yeah, nopony does. Next song!”

Lyra played another introduction, and they began singing “Deck the Halls.” This was followed by “Let It Snow,” a version of “Winter Wonderland” in which they stumbled over the lyrics, “We Wish You the Warmest Hearthstone,” “Santa Hooves Is Coming to Town,” “Sleigh Ride,” a break from singing as Lyra played an instrumental version of “Carol of the Bells,” and finally, “The Twelve Days of Warming.” Neither of them could remember what the correct order of gifts was from the sixth day onward – in the end, they just started making up gifts, culminating with “twelve flautists flauting.”

As they belted out their final “partridge in a pear tree,” they could barely contain their laughter. Their voices had been off-key in every song and they frequently mumbled their way through the words.

It was the best sing-along Bon Bon had ever been a part of.

Hearth’s Warming passed, and eventually, winter was wrapped up. Early that spring, Ponyville was thrown into disarray by the spirit of chaos.

With Discord wreaking havoc outside, Bon Bon quickly decided to stay inside and hope that everything would soon return to normal. Therefore, the only irritation she had to deal with was walking through the archway built into the apartment building – there, and only in that short, tunnel-like area, gravity had been reversed. It was extremely disorienting.

Lyra had a more difficult time during Discord’s brief reign, as her body began to act like a magnet that repelled every pony to a distance of three body lengths away. Not only did that mean she couldn’t ride out the chaos alongside Bon Bon, but she also had to stay in the center of her apartment so as not to upset her neighbors. She was glad the chaos magic didn’t last longer than it did, as being forced into what was effectively solitary confinement was maddening.

After Discord was defeated, Bon Bon spent more time than usual making candy, as she needed to be ready for Hearts and Hooves Day. Lyra was hesitant to ask if Bon Bon would be doing anything on the day itself – Lyra was free for most of the day, and she was worried about what spending the most romantic day of the year with Bon Bon would do to her.

Lyra was relieved, therefore, to learn that Bon Bon would be busy for the entire holiday, although Lyra did make it a point to visit Bon Bon early at sunup before Bon Bon spent the day selling candy. Bon Bon, too, didn’t have any romantic plans for the holiday, so she was glad she would be busy – she couldn’t think of a non-awkward way to suggest to Lyra that since neither of them had very special someponies, they could spend the day being single together.

Bon Bon knew it was irrational to keep daydreaming that her relationship with Lyra could be something more. She was content with being single – and likely remaining single for the rest of her life – but seeing all of the happy couples on Hearts and Hooves Day did make her wish that she too could find her own very special somepony.

But how am I going to find somepony, she thought, who’s as perfect for me as Lyra?

Soon after, it was time for the annual Ponyville Days festival. This year, it was being hosted by the Apple family at Sweet Apple Acres. There was delicious food, lively music, and a wide variety of fun farm games. Ponies had the option of competing in individual or team games, with blue ribbons given out to the winners of each event. Lyra and Bon Bon, naturally, had decided to compete together as a team. And even though they hadn’t come close to winning the milk bottle ring toss or the haystack scavenger hunt, they were still having a great time together.

“All right, everypony, listen up!” Applejack announced at the conclusion of the individual potato sack race. “This next event is for the team competitors. We’re gonna have ourselves a good old-fashioned seven-legged race. You’ve got five minutes to get roped up and practice your stride, then line up here at the startin’ line.” Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom began to pass out short lengths of rope to the team competitors.

Lyra looked at Bon Bon. “Are you ready for this?” she asked. Lyra knew that something like a seven-legged race might still be a little bit outside of Bon Bon’s comfort zone.

“Let’s give it a shot,” Bon Bon said. “So long as neither of us sprains a leg, I’ll be happy.”

Apple Bloom gave Lyra and Bon Bon their rope.

“Which side do you want to be on?” Lyra asked.

“Are you right-hoofed or left-hoofed?”

“Left-hoofed.”

“Perfect,” Bon Bon said. “I’m right-hoofed. So if we tie my left leg to your right leg, we should be able to stay in sync without one of us having to run awkwardly.” Bon Bon stepped around to be on Lyra’s right side. Lyra used her magic to tie their forelegs together.

Oh, Bon Bon realized. We’re effectively going to be holding hooves for the entire race.

Try not to think about it, Lyra told herself. It’s nothing more than a really long hoofshake.

Both ponies slightly leaned away from one another.

“So, uh, let’s practice,” Bon Bon said. “Ready, go.”

Each pony slowly placed her dominant hoof out in front, followed by their tied-together hooves. Their rear legs naturally followed. The two tried to increase their pace to a walking speed, but when they did, they stumbled and nearly toppled over onto one another.

When they regained their bearings, Bon Bon once again said, “Ready, go.” As before, they started slowly and were successful enough at taking a couple of slow steps forward. But once they tried to move any faster, they nearly fell over.

“We’re not going to do very well if we can’t even get to the starting line,” Bon Bon said.

Applejack, who had been watching all of the competitors prepare, walked over. “Y’all are too far apart,” she said to the two of them. “You’re tryin’ to walk forward, but your bodies are pointed in toward where the other one’s goin’. Straighten out so you’re both headin’ in the same direction. Don’t be afraid to get up flank to flank.”

Applejack left to give advice to some of the other teams. Lyra and Bon Bon looked at one another. Each was too preoccupied with trying to conceal the nervousness on her own face to notice the nervous smile on the other’s.

“Well,” Bon Bon said, trying to sound nonchalant. “Let’s try it.”

“Yep,” Lyra agreed.

The two tentatively made small steps with their rear hooves toward one another. After a few moments that felt much longer than they actually were, they had inched together close enough so that their flanks were touching.

“Okay. Ready?” Bon Bon asked, focusing on preventing her voice from cracking.

“Ready,” Lyra said, staring straight ahead.

“Aannd go,” Bon Bon said. They each slowly stepped forward with their dominant legs. Their tied-together legs followed. When their touching rear legs moved in sync, it took all of their concentration to not instinctively pull away from one another. As a result, they were able to continue moving forward. They slowly increased their speed until they were walking at a comfortable pace.

“This does work better,” Bon Bon said. “For racing.”

“We’re moving faster than before,” Lyra said, stating the obvious.

“Racers to your marks!” Applejack shouted through a megaphone.

Lyra and Bon Bon had to turn around to get to the starting line. Bon Bon took shorter steps while Lyra took longer ones, and they were able to make a U-turn to approach the starting line without breaking stride. They were one of the first teams to arrive – some of the other racers were having a more difficult time staying in step with one another.

Which meant that there was nothing for the two of them to do except stand together and wait.

Our forehooves are touching, Lyra thought. And our rear hooves are touching. And our flanks are touching.

I didn’t realize this would mean our barrels would be touching, too, Bon Bon thought.

Okay, Lyra. Don’t think about the fact that you’re pressed up against the pony you secretly have a crush on.

Think about the race, Bon Bon. Focus on the race. We’re only like this because of the race.

You can’t let her know how you really feel about her. About this.

Deep breaths, Bon Bon. Keep calm. You can’t let her feel your heart beating faster while she’s… pressed up against you. That didn’t help.

A couple of the other teams were still working their way toward the starting line.

I can feel her breathe, Lyra thought. Dear Celestia, I can feel her breathe. This isn’t fair. It was bad enough just knowing she’ll never date me. Now I have to know that I can never have… this.

This is as close as you’re ever going to get, Bon Bon. Her coat feels so warm.

They simultaneously wished that the race would both end and never begin.

Finally, all of the competitors were at the starting line. Applejack stepped back up to the megaphone.

“On your marks!

“Get set!

“Go!”

Each of the teams took their first cautious step forward. Three of the teams immediately fell down. Lyra and Bon Bon quickly increased their pace from a walk to a trot. They stayed perfectly in step with one another.

Only one other team – a male and female earth pony – was moving as quickly as Lyra and Bon Bon. Together, without saying a word, Lyra and Bon Bon gradually stepped faster and faster until they were at a canter. The other team tried to speed up, but stumbled. While they didn’t fall down, they were slowed enough that Lyra and Bon Bon took an early, commanding lead.

Neither Lyra nor Bon Bon looked backward. They continued to move as one, side by side, faster and faster, until they were at a full gallop. The first turn on the track came – as they had done in practice, Bon Bon took smaller steps while Lyra made up the difference. In order for the maneuver to work, Lyra had to lean into Bon Bon. They completed the turn successfully.

Almost immediately, the track made a left turn. Even though they hadn’t done it before, Lyra instinctively reduced her steps while Bon Bon rounded the outside of the track, pushing against Lyra in the process. They finished the turn and continued to gallop, now with a lead of over half the track.

The final obstacle was a relatively large mud puddle. It dipped down a couple of inches lower than the track, but even though they didn’t know exactly how deep it was, Lyra and Bon Bon splashed through it – moving so quickly, each hoof only touched the water once – with ease. In no time, they had crossed the finish line. Their nearest competitors were still working their way around the first turn.

It wasn’t until they crossed the finish line and were charging toward a nearby stack of hay bales that Lyra and Bon Bon finally fell out of sync. As they attempted to come to an abrupt halt, they tripped over one another and went flying into the hay, Bon Bon hitting the bales first and absorbing the weight of Lyra immediately after.

Applejack ran over. “Are you two okay?” she asked the two ponies lying on the ground.

“I’m fine,” Lyra said, trying to get up. She pulled at the rope with her magic, struggling in her hurry to untie it. “Are you okay, Bon Bon?”

As Lyra loosened the rope, Bon Bon slowly rose to her hooves. “Yeah. Just got the wind knocked out of me.”

“They’re okay!” Applejack shouted. All of the ponies who had watched the race erupted into cheers.

“Hoo-ee!” Applejack said to Lyra and Bon Bon. “I ain’t never seen two ponies run a seven-legged race as fast as that before! That’s gotta be some kind of record!”

Lyra and Bon Bon looked out at the cheering ponies. They looked at one another. At the same time, they turned their heads away, blushing.

“The winners!” Applejack announced. “Bon Bon and Lyra Heartstrings!” She attached a blue ribbon to the end of each of their manes. “Congratulations,” she said under the noise of the crowd. “You two make a heck of a pair.”

Bon Bon gave the crowd a small wave. Lyra dramatically raised the rope into the air with her right hoof. On instinct, she turned around and gave Bon Bon a triumphant hug. Also on instinct, she leaned her head back to face Bon Bon and nearly began to pucker her lips.

Lyra caught herself just in time. She froze in place, quickly pursing her lips together to conceal what she was about to do. After a brief moment in that position, Lyra released the hug and hopped backward. Bon Bon was still too dazed from everything that had just happened to notice Lyra’s unusual behavior.

“I’ll… be back in a minute,” Lyra hastily said to Bon Bon. “I’ve got to… go… hit the showers.” She quickly galloped off, giving high-hoofs to spectators to conceal the fact that she was running away.

Bon Bon was happy to have won, but she really wanted a minute away from the crowd so she could collect her thoughts.

Why, after all of that, did Lyra have to top it off by making me picture her in the shower?

Lyra ran all the way back to Beech Tree Apartments. She wasn’t lying – she ran up to her apartment, jumped in the shower, and turned on the cold water. The frigid blast across her head and body did momentarily distract her from her thoughts. It was also extremely uncomfortable, so she quickly turned off the water, stepped out of the shower, and toweled off.

Even though Lyra had cooled down – so to speak – for the moment, it didn’t take long for her mind to go right back to what had just occurred. Lyra knew that she needed some kind of distraction. She walked out of her apartment, down the stairs, and over to the mailboxes. She was relieved to find a couple pieces of mail in hers – anything that would momentarily take her mind off of Bon Bon.

Lyra was surprised to see that one of the pieces of mail was from Lemon Hearts – Lyra hadn’t gotten the chance to talk to her since the winter holidays. She quickly walked back up to her apartment and opened the envelope.

Dear Lyra,

Good news! I don’t know what changed, but Princess Mi Amore Cadenza (the princess of love) has started to offer to help ponies who, as her representatives put it, “have a lot of unexpressed love.” I told them that I had a friend who loved somepony who couldn’t love her back, and they agreed to fit you in!

Appointment times were limited, so I signed you up for this coming Friday at 2:00. You can come up and join us for lunch, then meet with the princess. No guarantees, but hopefully she can give you the advice you need.

See you soon!

Lemon Hearts

Lyra excitedly trotted in place. She had a good feeling about this. Soon, she would be able to hang around Bon Bon without any awkwardness, simply as her best friend!

Lyra then realized that she had left her best friend alone at the Ponyville Days festival with two events left to go, and hurried back to Sweet Apple Acres.

Chapter 10: Motivated by Love

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When she met with her friends on a weekly basis for lunch, Lyra was almost never the first one at the café. This day, however, she arrived early at their usual table and anxiously waited for the others, especially Lemon Hearts. Urbane Charm brought her a glass of lemon balm iced tea to help calm her nerves. Lyra drank the entire thing in one gulp, somewhat defeating the purpose.

Finally, Minuette showed up. “Lyra!” she said. “Lemon Hearts told us you’d be here!”

“Did she tell you why?”

“She sure did! Are you nervous?”

“A little. But I just keep telling myself that soon, everything will be all better.”

“So, how was your trip?”

“Fine. What’s with the giant magic bubble?”

“Nopony knows. Princess Celestia must have some reason for it. If it was important, I’m sure they’d tell us about it.”

Twinkleshine and Lemon Hearts arrived at the same time. Lyra greeted Lemon Hearts by getting out of her chair, giving her a hug, and saying “Thank you!”

“Slow down, Lyra,” Lemon Hearts said. “We don’t know whether Princess Mi Amore Cadenza will be able to help you or not yet.”

“She’s the princess of love,” Lyra said, returning to her seat. “If she can’t help me with a problem about love, then why do we even have a princess of love?”

“Just don’t go in being demanding or expecting things,” Lemon Hearts said. “There’s a certain way you have to act around royalty. You have to be really reverent.”

“I know, I know,” Lyra said. “I’m not going to make you look bad. Actually, I’m kind of worried that I’m just going to freeze up. I’ve never met royalty before.”

“Don’t worry,” Twinkleshine said, “we’ve got your back.”

Lyra arched an eyebrow toward her.

Twinkleshine looked at Minuette. “You didn’t tell her?”

“Not yet.”

“Tell me what?” Lyra asked.

Twinkleshine smiled. “We’re coming with you!”

“If you want us to,” Minuette said.

Lyra turned to Lemon Hearts. “Can I do that?”

“Sure,” Lemon Hearts said. “I asked if it was okay if you brought some emotional support, and the princess’s officials said yes. I have to get back to work right after lunch, so I can’t make it, but Twinkleshine and Minuette moved their schedules around so they can be there for you.” She shifted her gaze. “Remember, you two: This meeting is for Lyra. You’re only there to help put her at ease.”

“Yes, we know,” Minuette said. Then, as an aside to Lyra, even though the entire table could hear: “Although if you get your problem solved early, there’s a cute stallion who works across the hall from me that I’d love to get some advice on.”

After lunch, Lemon Hearts bid Lyra good luck and then left. The remaining three friends walked over to the castle and made their way to the waiting area outside of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza’s throne room. They stood and waited for permission to enter.

“I’ve had the entire train ride and the walk over here to think about this, and I still don’t know what I’m going to say,” Lyra told her friends.

“Just tell her the truth,” Minuette said. “She can’t help you unless she knows exactly what you’re going through.”

“She isn’t going to want specifics, is she?” Lyra asked.

Twinkleshine said, “I don’t think you have to be explicit about what you’ve been—”

“I meant about who Bon Bon is.”

“Oh. Sorry.”

A member of the Royal Guard approached the three. “The princess will see you now,” he said.

Lyra walked through the tall, ornate double doors and into the princess’s throne room. Minuette walked slightly behind her to the right and Twinkleshine walked slightly behind her to the left. The guard closed the doors behind them and waited outside.

Lyra approached the throne, upon which sat a pink alicorn with a long mane of purple, fuchsia, and yellow. Lyra and her friends bowed.

After a moment, the princess said, “You may rise.” The three did so. “Now, which of you has come to see me about love?”

Lyra cleared her throat. “I have, your highness. My name is Lyra Heartstrings. For the past several moons, I’ve been in love with my best friend. I know that she’ll never love me back in the same way, but for some reason, some part of me refuses to accept that. I don’t want to lose her as my best friend, but how do I stop feeling this kind of love for her?”

“I can sense that you do indeed have a lot of love for this pony,” the princess said. She got out of her throne and stepped toward Lyra. “A lot of love.”

What Lyra and her friends didn’t realize – what none of the ponies in Canterlot realized – was that the real Princess Mi Amore Cadenza had been abducted roughly two weeks prior. She had been replaced by Chrysalis, queen of the changelings, a race of shape-shifting quadrupeds. Chrysalis had assumed the princess’s form and took her place on the throne as part of a scheme to nourish her hive, which naturally fed off of the love ponies expressed toward one another.

Before the replacement occurred, Princess Celestia had somehow learned of Chrysalis’s plans to use Canterlot as a feeding ground for her hive and quickly arranged for the captain of the Royal Guard to surround the city with a protective shield. As the most powerful changeling, Chrysalis had the strength and ability to slip through the shield undetected, but her hive remained trapped outside.

Chrysalis knew, though, that the princess of love was the marefriend of the captain of the Royal Guard. Initially, when Chrysalis took the princess’s place, she had planned to use her mind-altering magic to subdue the captain and remove the protective shield. However, Chrysalis had used most of her energy to penetrate the shield and imprison the real princess of love, so the best she had been able to do was to feed off of the captain’s bountiful love for his marefriend, which provided her with the power to convince him to propose to her.

Chrysalis said yes to the proposal, of course, and persuaded the captain to arrange the wedding as quickly as possible. Between the love of the captain and the love exhibited by the wedding guests for a royal wedding, Chrysalis would gain the energy she needed to destroy the shield, at which point her hive would invade and feed.

In the meantime, Chrysalis needed to continue to feed herself in order to keep up her own strength. Since she was masquerading as the princess of love, she arranged to hear the problems of ponies who were filled with love but didn’t know how to express it. Chrysalis considered it to be the perfect plan – ponies overflowing with love would come directly to her, she would absorb that love, and then she would cast a quick mind-erasure spell on the ponies and send them on their way, woozy and having forgotten that they had come to see the princess in the first place. After all, the easiest solution to the problem of ponies who had trouble expressing their love was to take away that love so they didn’t need to worry about how to express it.

Chrysalis’s plan had worked well enough up to that point, although not every pony who came to her really harbored as much love as they claimed to have. But as soon as Lyra entered, and especially as she approached the throne, Chrysalis could sense that her love was genuine – and plentiful. More plentiful by far than any other pony whose love she had absorbed.

Chrysalis thought about simply gorging herself on Lyra’s love, then dismissing her, as she had done to all of the other ponies. However, the amount of love being generated by Lyra was so great, Chrysalis quickly devised a different plan. If she kept Lyra around, Chrysalis would be able to continuously feed herself with small amounts of Lyra’s love without excessively weakening the pony. The obedience spell would take more energy than Chrysalis had wanted to use, but even after casting it, she would be able to absorb enough of Lyra’s love for a net gain of strength.

Chrysalis wasn’t thrilled that Lyra had brought two witnesses that she also needed to deal with. However, it occurred to Chrysalis that she could use the three to solve a small problem that had come up during the wedding preparations.

“I know what needs to be done to help you,” Chrysalis-as-the-princess told Lyra. “I’m going to cast a spell – hold still.”

Lyra held still. Naturally, Minuette and Twinkleshine held still, too. Chrysalis lit her horn and cast the obedience spell across all three unicorns. In unison, their eyes turned green.

“You will stay with me and become my bridesmaids,” Chrysalis said hypnotically. “Doesn’t that sound like fun?”

“Yes,” the three said in a monotone. Chrysalis smiled. She hadn’t been familiar with all of the ponies’ wedding customs and hadn’t initially known that she would be expected to choose bridesmaids. Now she had three of them, one of whom would also provide her with a steady supply of nourishment. Chrysalis absorbed some of Lyra’s love to replenish her strength. Lyra, under the effects of Chrysalis’s spell, did not react.

Chrysalis walked to the doors and opened them. “Guard!” she said. She attempted to convey an air of happy innocence. “You didn’t tell me that my old friends from school would be stopping by! Prepare three rooms in the guest quarters. They’re going to be helping me with my wedding preparations.”

Chrysalis turned to the three unicorns. They were still standing completely motionless, facing the empty throne. Chrysalis growled and trotted back over to them.

“My guard will accompany you to the rooms where you’ll be spending the weekend,” Chrysalis quietly said to them. “Stay there until I come to get you tomorrow.”

With blank expressions on their faces, Lyra, Minuette, and Twinkleshine obeyed.

The next morning, Lyra awoke to find herself in a lavishly furnished suite. Confused, she got up and looked out the window. From the view, she concluded that she was inside one of the castle’s towers.

Lyra racked her brain, trying to remember why she was in the castle. After a minute, she remembered: She had been selected to be one of the princess’s bridesmaids! Lyra grinned at the realization.

A tiny voice in the back of Lyra’s head told her that something wasn’t right – that it didn’t make sense that she would be one of the princess’s bridesmaids. But the thought was so fleeting that Lyra didn’t have time to register it. Instead, she thought about how happy she was to be serving the princess.

Lyra walked over to the door. Just as she was about to turn the handle with her magic, she was overcome with the urge to stay in her room. So instead, she returned to the window, sat perfectly still, and watched the ponies outside.

After a few hours, the door opened. Lyra turned around to see Princess Mi Amore Cadenza standing there with Minuette and Twinkleshine.

“It’s time for the dress fittings,” the princess said. “Come with me. And keep your mouths shut while I’m looking at my dress.”

The three unicorns followed the princess to the building in which the dressmaker was finishing her work. Lyra watched as the dressmaker showed the princess her dress. Lyra thought that the dressmaker, as well as the pony overseeing the wedding preparations, looked familiar… but couldn’t remember from where. Lyra’s brain felt like it was in a fog. Pony… ville? Lyra wasn’t sure why that word held some kind of meaning to her.

Lyra looked at the ponyquin displaying the princess’s dress. The head was adorned with a garland of pink and blue flowers. Lyra felt a warm sensation inside of her. Pink and blue… on the head… that’s beautiful. Why do I think that’s beautiful? I should say something. Why don’t I want to say something?

The princess looked over the bridesmaids’ dresses. “Those should be a different color,” the princess said.

Deep down, Lyra knew she disagreed with that. That dressmaker had worked very hard to create those dresses, and the colors complemented each other nicely. It didn’t seem fair to force her to start all over again so close to the day of the wedding. Lyra wanted to say something to make the dressmaker feel better.

Lyra heard Twinkleshine speak. “I think they’re lovely,” she said.

“Me too,” Minuette agreed.

Lyra was glad to hear that her friends felt the same way. “I love them,” she said.

The princess turned her head and glared at the three. Although the moment was brief, Lyra suddenly felt an overwhelming desire to remain quiet and do whatever the princess said.

After a final order to change the color, the princess left the room. Lyra, Minuette, and Twinkleshine followed her. The pony overseeing the wedding preparations also left the room and led the princess to the hall where the reception would begin.

“Wait here,” the princess ordered the three bridesmaids. The unicorns stood still in the courtyard while the princess went inside to see what plans had been made.

After a couple of minutes of standing still, Lyra looked over at her friends. She wanted to talk to them, but she wasn’t certain whether the princess would approve of that. And Lyra didn’t want to disobey the princess… she wasn’t entirely sure why, but she knew that she didn’t want to disobey the princess.

Finally, Minuette spoke. “This is amazing that we were the three ponies selected to be Princess Mi Amore Cadenza’s bridesmaids,” she said. “Right?”

Lyra reasoned that if Minuette thought it was okay to speak, it should be okay for her to speak, too. “It’s a great honor to serve the princess,” she heard herself say.

“That’s what I think,” Twinkleshine said. “I’ve never met a real live princess before, let alone gotten to stand next to her while she’s getting married!”

Lyra looked at Twinkleshine. Does that not make sense? But why wouldn’t that make sense?

“Maybe we’ll get to meet other members of Canterlot royalty, too!” Twinkleshine said. “Wouldn’t that be exciting?”

Suddenly, the unicorns heard the sound of a pony clearing her throat. They turned to see the princess glaring at them. “Did I tell you three to speak?” she said.

Minuette looked uncertain. “You told us to wait here,” she said.

The princess examined her surroundings. No one else was watching. “It should go without saying that when I tell you to stay put, you should quietly wait for my return!”

The three penitently lowered their heads.

Chrysalis grew frustrated. She knew that the obedience spell had a limited duration, but she thought it would last a longer time. Yet her new servants were already beginning to exhibit the first signs of free will. With a sigh, she absorbed some more of Lyra’s love – somehow, the green pony had just as much love as the day before – and recast the obedience spell.

“From this point forward, I want you to behave like proper bridesmaids,” Chrysalis said. “Now return to your quarters.” Silently, the three left.

An hour later, while Chrysalis was overseeing the rehearsal of the songbirds that would be performing at the ceremony, she received a magical beacon from a spell she had cast over a week before. When she had imprisoned the real Princess Mi Amore Cadenza deep in the caves below the city of Canterlot, Chrysalis infused the subterranean crystalline walls with a spell that would alert her if the princess made any sort of progress in an effort to escape. And it appeared that the real princess had successfully weakened one of the walls.

Chrysalis wasn’t too worried – she knew that even if the real princess could cut through the wall and then work her way back up to the caves’ entrance, it would sap so much of her strength, she wouldn’t be able to interfere with Chrysalis’s plans. Any two drones could easily subdue the princess in such an enfeebled state.

Chrysalis stomped her hoof on the ground when she remembered that all of her changeling drones were located outside of the magic bubble protecting Canterlot. She wanted to have some guards positioned at the entrance to the caves, just in case. But ordering members of the Royal Guard to do it might arouse suspicion.

Chrysalis then remembered the three ponies currently under her control in the guest quarters. Guards were more important than bridesmaids, she reasoned. And although Chrysalis had a bad feeling about the pony overseeing the wedding preparations, she figured that because the other five ponies actually doing all of the work were so excited to be participating in a royal wedding, they would agree to be her bridesmaids with no mind control necessary.

So Chrysalis returned to the quarters where the bridesmaids were staying and gathered them together. She didn’t want to completely deplete the green one, but since Chrysalis wasn’t going to need to use her as a source of food for the remainder of the wedding, she absorbed a dinner-sized portion of her love.

Chrysalis then escorted the three down to the entrance of the caves. After casting an additional mind control spell that would last for a couple of days, she gave her servants – now wearing their bridesmaid dresses – the order to stand guard and stop the progress of any pony that tried to leave.

Right before she left, Chrysalis decided to stock up on food and absorbed even more love from the green pony. To Chrysalis’s surprise, even after having so much love removed from her in such a short length of time, the pony still looked fit enough to stand guard. Chrysalis made a mental note to retrieve the pony for future use once she conquered Canterlot.

“…Miss? Are you okay?”

Lyra shook her head. Not because she wasn’t okay, but because she was trying to clear the clouds from her mind. She was aware of everything she had done in the past couple of days, but all of those memories were surrounded by a thick haze.

She looked past the pegasus from the Royal Guard who had asked about her condition and toward Minuette and Twinkleshine, who were also being attended to by armored pegasi. They too looked okay, if also a little dazed.

“I’m fine, I think,” Lyra said. “What happened? I mean, I know what happened, but… why what happened?”

“You were under the control of the queen of the changelings,” said an older unicorn – he appeared to be one of Princess Celestia’s wizards. He addressed all three of the friends. “She cast a spell to force you to do her bidding, then commanded you to stand guard here in this cave. Don’t worry – the real princess is safe and she sent us to make sure you’re all right.”

Lyra began to put the pieces together. She looked at Minuette and Twinkleshine. “Oh my gosh – this is all my fault,” she said. “I’m so sorry.”

Minuette and Twinkleshine both walked over to one of Lyra’s sides and draped a foreleg over her in half of a hug each. “This is not your fault,” said Twinkleshine. “There’s no way you could have known that wasn’t the real princess.”

“Don’t you dare blame yourself,” Minuette said. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

Lyra joined them in what turned into a group hug.

After being examined by the royal physicians, who discovered no side effects or lingering aftermath from Chrysalis’s mind control spell, the three unicorns were released. In a break from tradition, they joined Lemon Hearts for dinner that evening at their usual table at the Canterlot Outdoor Café.

“And you’re sure you’re okay?” Lemon Hearts asked after the three had told her everything that happened.

“Just a little hungry,” Twinkleshine said. “The changeling queen didn’t realize that all ponies need to eat more than once a day.”

“I feel terrible about this,” Lemon Hearts said. “I never should have set up that appointment.”

“We’re not going through this again,” Minuette said. “It took long enough to get Lyra to admit that it wasn’t her fault that she wanted to see the princess in the first place. You didn’t know that the princess was actually the changeling queen, so nopony blames you.”

Lyra sighed. “She’s right. Now I’m just upset that I’m not any closer to figuring out what to do with my feelings for Bon Bon.” At the mere thought of Bon Bon, Lyra could feel the love and longing building back up inside of her.

“Couldn’t you just ask the real princess of love?” Twinkleshine asked.

“She’s busy planning her wedding now,” Lyra said. “And then she’ll be on her honeymoon starting tomorrow.”

“Plus, she was never the one holding court in the first place,” Lemon Hearts added. “It was always the changeling queen.”

“So I’m right back to where I started,” Lyra said.

For emphasis, Lyra sighed again. Because they didn’t have anything to say, Minuette and Twinkleshine each took a sip of their drinks.

“Can I give you some advice?” Lemon Hearts asked.

“I already know what your advice is going to be,” Lyra said. The annoyance in her voice was dampened by her despondency.

“That’s because it’s what you should do,” Lemon Hearts said. Her tone was sympathetic yet unwavering. “You have to tell her. If for no other reason than because it isn’t healthy to pretend to be somepony you’re not.”

“I’m not pretending to be somepony I’m not,” Lyra protested. “I’m just being selective about what parts of me she knows about.”

Twinkleshine opened her mouth to speak, then hesitated. Finally, she went ahead. “I don’t see what the difference is.”

“There isn’t much of one,” Lemon Hearts said. “And Lyra, the truth is going to slip out eventually. I mean, what are you going to do – never go on another date again so Bon Bon doesn’t accidentally see you going out with a mare?”

“I…” Lyra said, then paused. She groaned because she couldn’t think of a good counterargument.

“You have to stop trying to hide it. If you had already told Bon Bon any time before now, then none of this—”

Lemon Hearts stopped when she realized what she was about to say. She exhaled and started over, speaking more softly this time.

“Lyra, if you’re her best friend – and it’s clear that you two make really good best friends – then don’t you think she’d want you to be open and truthful about who you are?”

“But what if she asks how I feel about her?” Lyra said. “Do I lie about that?”

“Well…” Lemon Hearts said, “…no. You tell her the truth. Again, she’s your best friend – she’d want you to be honest with her.”

“You don’t know for sure she’d want that.”

“I think she would. Twinkleshine, has anything changed between you and Lyra since you found out she thought you were cute when we were younger?”

“No,” Twinkleshine said. “Actually, I was kind of flattered.”

Lemon Hearts said, “So if Bon Bon asks, you tell her, and then the two of you work things out. That’s what friends do.”

Lyra was hesitant. She looked at Twinkleshine. Twinkleshine nodded in agreement. Lyra looked at Minuette.

“I think Lemon Hearts is right,” Minuette said. “Let her know. You owe it to yourself. It’s obviously eating you up on the inside, and that’s not good for you.”

Lyra stared at her drink. “I’ll think about it,” she told her friends. “I promise, I will. Now can we please talk about something else?”

Minuette smirked. “But I thought you loved talking about yourself.”

“After the past couple of days, I’m tired of ponies paying so much attention to me.”

Lyra spent that night at her parents’ house. The next day, she had to get dressed up – even though they had only been “invited” to the wedding by Chrysalis, and even though they had actively tried to prevent her from leaving the caves, the princess had been gracious enough to invite Lyra, Minuette, and Twinkleshine to her official wedding. Lyra even got to keep the bridesmaid dress that had initially been made for her.

Lyra enjoyed the reception that was held after the ceremony, but she left relatively early during the festivities so she could catch the train home to Ponyville before it was too late at night.

After Lyra dropped off her belongings on the floor in the center of her living room, she walked over to Bon Bon’s apartment and knocked on the door. When Bon Bon opened the door and saw who it was, she jumped out and gave Lyra a hug, much to Lyra’s surprise.

“I was so worried about you,” Bon Bon said. “You were gone for three days. Are you all right? What happened?”

“It’s a long story,” Lyra said. “Can I come in?”

Bon Bon invited Lyra to sit down on the loveseat. It was dark, and late enough at night that there was a chill in the air, so Bon Bon lit a small fire in the standing fireplace for light and warmth.

“Do you want something to drink?” Bon Bon asked.

“Well, if I’m going to tell you the whole story, then I guess I’m going to need something to keep me calm,” Lyra said. “Do you have anything for that?”

“If you give me a couple of minutes,” Bon Bon said, “I can make us some hot chocolate.”

“That sounds really good.”

Lyra waited while Bon Bon busied herself in the kitchen. Soon, the enticing aroma of chocolate filled the air. Not long after that, Bon Bon emerged with two mugs of rich hot chocolate and sat down next to Lyra on the loveseat.

Lyra took a sip and savored it – Bon Bon was a master of all things chocolate-related. Lyra waited until Bon Bon had swallowed her first sip before she spoke.

“To begin with, I was enslaved by the queen of the changelings,” Lyra said.

“What?!” Bon Bon replied. She nearly dropped her mug.

“I’m okay now,” Lyra assured her.

Bon Bon listened as Lyra told her everything that had happened to her during the weekend, from meeting a supposed princess to being forced to obey Queen Chrysalis to the events of the wedding itself. The only thing Lyra didn’t tell Bon Bon was why she had met with a princess in the first place.

The hot chocolate disappeared long before Lyra had finished relating all of the events. By the time her story ended, Bon Bon could see that Lyra was a little on edge from reliving the experience.

“I’m so sorry that happened to you,” Bon Bon said. “Is there anything I can do? More hot chocolate? You look a little uncomfortable. Do you want to lie down?”

Lyra looked down at Bon Bon’s plush loveseat. There was something that she wanted to do to be more comfortable, and it occurred to Lyra that in addition to her sexuality, there was another part of her that Bon Bon didn’t know about. Lyra decided to test the waters.

Instead of lying down, Lyra leaned backward until her shoulders were cradled against the loveseat’s cushioned backrest. She rested her foreleg on the raised side of the loveseat and then adjusted her back legs so they were dangling over the edge.

Bon Bon looked at Lyra’s unusual position. “If you want to lie down, I’d be happy to get up so you can have the whole seat,” she said.

“No,” Lyra explained, “I’m sitting.”

“I’ve never seen anypony sit like that before.”

“Well…” Lyra hesitated. She decided to keep talking. “You know what humans are, right?”

“I feel like I’ve heard the word before,” Bon Bon said, “but I don’t remember where.”

“They’re tall, hairless creatures that walk around on two legs. Instead of forelegs, they have arms which hang in the air with hands on the end that they use to grab stuff.”

“Oh yeah,” Bon Bon said. “They’re those mythological monkey things.”

“They’re not monkeys,” Lyra said. “And they’re not mythological.”

“They’re not?” Bon Bon said. “How do you know?”

“Well, I mean, I don’t have proof or anything,” Lyra said. “I just know, deep down, that they’re real. Somewhere, they’re out there. And someday, I’m going to meet one. Anyway, this is how they sit.”

“Wait… someday, you’re going to meet one?”

“They’re really smart, like us,” Lyra said. “I don’t know if they’ll come here, or if ponies will go find them, but someday, we’re going to meet them. It’ll be amazing.”

“Okay… but why are you sitting like one?”

“It’s comfortable. And I’ve always wondered what it would be like to be a human.”

“Always?”

“Ever since I was a filly. You can ask Minuette, Lemon Hearts, or Twinkleshine – they’ve seen me sit like this lots of times.”

“Is that why you sometimes rear up onto your hind legs for no reason?”

“Not for no reason, but yeah. Like I said, I like to imagine what it’s like to be a human.”

Bon Bon looked at her friend. One side of her mouth curled upward.

Lyra suddenly felt very self-conscious. She shifted back to sitting on the loveseat like a pony.

Bon Bon just kept staring at Lyra, one eyebrow quirked.

Lyra felt a pit forming in her stomach. “…You think I’m crazy, don’t you?” she said. She couldn’t hide the disappointment in her voice.

Bon Bon smiled. “I don’t think you’re crazy,” she said. “I’ve just never met a pony who was so passionate about… humans.”

“So you don’t think it’s weird?”

“No, I do,” Bon Bon said. Lyra frowned. “But that’s what I like about you. You know it’s different, but you own it. It’s part of who you are. You’re not afraid to be yourself.”

“Really?”

“Really. You’re Lyra Heartstrings, and you like humans. If somepony else doesn’t like it, too bad.”

Lyra let out a sigh of relief. “I was afraid to tell you. I didn’t want to lose you as a friend because there was something about me you didn’t like.”

Bon Bon put her hoof on Lyra’s shoulder. “Lyra, you’ve taught me a lot about making friends since you moved here. But one thing that seems to me to be true is that if the only way somepony will like you is if you hide part of who you are, then they aren’t really your friend.”

Lyra smiled.

Bon Bon continued, “So why hide it? Just be yourself. Right?”

Bon Bon pulled back her hoof with a warm smile. Lyra looked at Bon Bon. She thought about the conversation she had had with her friends at dinner the previous night.

“Right,” Lyra said. She took a deep breath. “In that case, there’s something else. Okay, so you know months ago when I told you about my last relationship, with the bass clarinetist named Cosmic Dust?”

Bon Bon nodded.

“Well, I didn’t exactly tell you everything. Cosmic Dust wasn’t a stallion. She was a mare.”

Bon Bon blinked. “Oh. So you’re…”

“Yep. One hundred percent.”

Bon Bon was silent.

Lyra looked at Bon Bon. Her first fear was that Bon Bon’s silence represented anger. Or hate.

But those weren’t the emotions conveyed by Bon Bon’s face. Lyra continued to look. She was actually having a difficult time getting an exact read on what Bon Bon was feeling.

Fear? No, not quite. Trepidation? Maybe.

But Lyra had spent enough time secretly studying those beautiful blue eyes that she could detect some kind of a spark… and it wasn’t a spark of anger or disgust.

“Bon Bon?”

After a moment, Bon Bon spoke. “I have to tell you something. I… also… like mares. In that way.”

Lyra’s heart skipped a beat.

Silence returned to the room as Lyra processed what she had just heard. She had to be sure. “Really?” Lyra said. “You hesitated…”

“You’re only the third pony I’ve ever told,” Bon Bon said. “And the last time was six years ago.” She let out a derisive laugh. “And here I’ve been lecturing you on not hiding who you are.”

Bon Bon shook her head and looked down at the floor.

Lyra stared at Bon Bon. In the darkened room, Bon Bon was softly illuminated by the fire’s glow on one side and by moonlight on the other. There was only one thought on Lyra’s mind.

Before she could talk herself out of it, Lyra leaned over toward Bon Bon and kissed her delicately on the cheek.

Bon Bon’s eyes went wide. Lyra leaned back over to her side of the loveseat and looked away, blushing. Without turning her head, Lyra looked sideways toward Bon Bon. Bon Bon was now staring at her.

They stayed that way for a moment. Suddenly, quickly, awkwardly, Bon Bon leaned toward Lyra and kissed her on the cheek. She then shifted back to sitting upright.

Lyra turned her head toward Bon Bon. Bon Bon looked at Lyra.

Slowly, they both leaned toward one another. Inches away. Centimeters. Millimeters.

Finally, their lips met.

And remained there.

After a few moments, they separated. But not far.

Lyra spoke. “Was that… you wanted to…”

“Yeah.”

A pause. “I liked that.”

“Me too. A lot.”

Lyra smiled. A smile that she wouldn’t have been able to suppress for all of the bits in Equestria. “You don’t know how happy I am to hear that,” she said.

Bon Bon smiled back.

“Actually, I think I do.”

They kissed again. This time, there was no question.

It was meant to be.

Epilogue

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It was two weeks before the six-month anniversary of when Lyra and Bon Bon had begun dating. As the day approached, Bon Bon had pointed out that by definition, an anniversary could only celebrate something that occurred after a year. Lyra countered that while that may technically be true, their relationship was still worth celebrating, a fact that Bon Bon couldn’t deny.

Lyra and Bon Bon were walking back into town, having successfully scouted out the perfect location for the romantic picnic lunch they planned to have in two weeks. As they began to work their way toward Beech Tree Apartments, they passed by a cottage with a sign out front reading “For Sale – Open House Today.”

“Do you want to stop inside for a second?” Bon Bon asked. “I’ve been saving up for a house, and I want to get an idea of what I should expect once I start looking.”

Lyra followed Bon Bon inside. The house was two stories tall, but it wasn’t large – only about three rooms on each floor.

“It’s cozy,” Bon Bon said. “Not too big, not too small. This actually isn’t too far off from what I hope to find someday.”

They walked into the kitchen. Bon Bon was awestruck. “Look at that,” she said. The room was nearly four times the size of the kitchen in her apartment. “All that space. I could do so much in here.”

After admiring the kitchen for a couple of minutes, Bon Bon walked up to the real estate agent to find out what the asking price was. When the agent told her, Bon Bon’s face fell. She and Lyra walked back outside.

“I can’t afford a down payment on that,” Bon Bon said. “If that’s what houses cost, I’m going to have to save up for at least another half a year.”

Lyra looked at the house, then looked at Bon Bon. She thought for a moment. Finally, she asked, “Do you really like it?”

“Oh, absolutely,” Bon Bon said. “I just hope I can find something like it once I have the money to start searching.”

Lyra said, “Well, what if I put in some of my savings, and we both bought the house?”

Bon Bon looked at Lyra. She was serious.

“So we’d officially be living together?” Bon Bon asked.

“Why not?” Lyra said. “We practically do already anyway.”

Bon Bon took a minute to think about it. Lyra was right – they had been spending more and more nights at each other’s apartments.

It was a significant decision – one that Bon Bon knew would affect the rest of her life. It couldn’t be made hastily. Bon Bon spent a few more minutes lost in thought. She came to the only sensible conclusion.

“Let’s make an offer.”

The day preceding their “anniversary,” Bon Bon and Lyra received terrific news: Their offer on the house had been accepted. In order to make it official, paperwork needed to be signed and money needed to be paid to the appropriate parties. Even though it would mean a lot of time rearranging accounts at the bank and sitting with the notary at town hall, the couple was looking forward to owning a house together. But before they did any of that, they were going to spend the entirety of the upcoming day celebrating their love.

In a secluded section of White Tail Woods, Bon Bon and Lyra relaxed on the picnic blanket after having finished their romantic lunch. They were lying side by side on their backs, each with a foreleg wrapped around the other’s. They stared up at the vibrant shades of orange and gold on the trees overhead.

“Six months already,” Bon Bon said.

“Yeah,” Lyra replied.

“It feels like it’s gone by so fast.”

“Not like the year before it,” Lyra said.

Bon Bon laughed. “Why did we stay single for so long?” she said reflectively.

Lyra turned to look at Bon Bon. “Because I didn’t know it was possible to have a marefriend as great as you,” she said. Bon Bon turned her head and kissed Lyra right above the bridge of her nose.

They both looked back up toward the sky.

Bon Bon spoke. “Am I really the first pony you dated since you moved here?” she asked.

“Yeah,” Lyra said. “Once I assumed you weren’t interested in me, I thought about looking for a marefriend in Ponyville, but I couldn’t get a good enough read on any of the mares here to figure out whether they’d want me to ask them out. It’s easier in Canterlot – you just go to one of the gay bars and it makes things a lot less complicated.”

“So it wasn’t just me, that I couldn’t figure out how to get a date,” Bon Bon said.

“It’s always hard,” Lyra said. “After a few months, I was getting so desperate to find a date that even though I don’t usually go for the athletic type, I nearly tried asking out Rainbow Dash.”

“Is she?” Bon Bon said, turning to Lyra. “I thought she might be, but I’ve never been sure.”

“That’s why I didn’t ask,” Lyra said. She looked at Bon Bon. “You’ve lived here longer – I was kind of hoping you knew.”

“Oh,” Bon Bon said, pretending to be hurt. “So that was your plan all along? To use me to get to Rainbow Dash?”

Lyra smiled. “Yeah, but then you seduced me and ruined it.” She gave Bon Bon a peck on the lips.

Bon Bon smiled and returned her gaze to the sky. “Really, I think Rainbow Dash is more in love with herself than with anypony else.”

Lyra laughed. “I think you’re right.”

After lunch, the two returned to Bon Bon’s apartment to exchange gifts.

“Who should go first?” Bon Bon asked.

“Let me,” Lyra said as she produced a wrapped present shaped like a flat heart. “You know, you’re really hard to get a gift for. Normally, I could just buy a box of chocolates and call it a day. But what do you get a pony who can make all the chocolates she wants?”

“I would say something from the heart,” Bon Bon said. “But it looks like that’s what you did.”

“It’s the best I could think of,” Lyra said. “I’m sorry in advance.”

Bon Bon unwrapped the gift. She gasped. “It’s beautiful,” she said.

Bon Bon held a heart-shaped frame. On the canvas inside the frame was a painting of a lyre. Three yellow and blue wrapped candies were entwined in its strings.

“I love it,” Bon Bon said. “I didn’t know you could paint so well.”

“I can’t,” Lyra said. “Remember when Bold Palette asked me to play lyre for inspiration while she painted that scene of ancient Hippopolis? She made this for me in return.”

“It’s perfect,” Bon Bon said. “Actually, it makes my gift look bad. You had somepony paint this amazing artwork, and I just made you some candy.” She gave Lyra a shallow rectangular pan wrapped in aluminum foil with a bow on top.

“I love your candy,” Lyra said. “I’m never going to be disappointed if you make something special for me.” She removed the bow and began to peel back the aluminum foil.

“I wanted it to be heartfelt,” Bon Bon explained. “To tell you what you mean to me. But I had trouble finding the perfect words. Or candy.”

Lyra looked inside the pan to see a batch of swirled chocolate and peanut butter fudge. Written on the top in white icing was the following message:

Lyra Heartstrings
You make me the me I want to be
I love you

Lyra looked at Bon Bon as her eyes welled up.

“I love you, too.”

My True Self

by _Undefined_

Chapter 1: Formative Years

Chapter 2: The Agency

Chapter 3: The Bugbear

Chapter 4: New Ponies to Meet

Chapter 5: Connection

Chapter 6: Establishing the Relationship

Chapter 7: Spending Time

Chapter 8: Putting It Out There

Chapter 9: Side by Side

Chapter 10: Motivated by Love

Epilogue