What Comes Next

The morning sun was no longer cutting through the windows, and for that Twilight was thankful. "It is a good thing libraries are so quiet." she mumbled to herself.

She was never one who was given to drinking, so it was no surprise that, after a night of cider and very little sleep, she would have a terrible headache. Remembering what Fluttershy said that morning she wondered if all her friends were having as rough a time as she was. Regardless, it was well past time to start shelving the returned books.

Spike was humming happily to himself as he cleaned the unspeakable filth from the bathroom. He had just spent the night and most of the morning in Rarity's boutique, she even served gems with breakfast.

Everything had to be spotless, that was the way of things. Spike was well accustomed to this, and being that he and Twilight lived above a public library, he had seen his fair share of terrible messes. Add to that Twilight's constant science experiments and it was a wonder he had any color left in his claws from all the bleach and other chemicals he was in constant contact with.

It takes more than that to topple a mighty dragon though. Especially one with a belly full of sapphires and head full of a certain white unicorn.

"Spike, are you finished yet? I need to get in there!" Twilight's voice was devoid of energy and Spike knew that meant to leave her alone.

Spike reached up to open the door but was interrupted as it swung inward and slammed against the wall. He felt his feet leave the ground as a soft glow enveloped him and ushered him quickly past Twilight and into the hallway.

As the door slammed behind him a realization hit. He was done with the bathroom, had been for a little while. With his head in the clouds all he was doing for the last several minutes was staring at his reflection, daydreaming. May as well break for lunch.

"There is more mud by the fireplace." Twilight called from behind the bathroom door. Of course there was. There was always more. At least Spike didn't have to do the reshelving today.

Making his way towards the fireplace Spike met a familiar face, a mint green unicorn that was somewhat of a fixture around the library. "Hey Lyra," he chimed "here to check out our new releases? We just got in the new Daring Do book, Rainbow Dash said it was the best one yet."

"Mornin' Spike," She said in her usual cheery tone, "I actually need a calculus textbook, got a big test coming up and I gotta ace this one or the professor will have my head."

"Say no more, I know just the book! It's one of Twilight's favorites."

"Wow you sure are perky today, did you get to eat ice cream for breakfast again?" Lyra smiled warmly at the tiny dragon gingerly waddling over to a nearby desk.

"Better!" Spike nearly shouted, "I got to spend the night at Rarity's place and we had pancakes and she made mine with sapphires instead of blueberries." Turning on his heels to face Lyra, Spike clutched a large book covered in numbers and mathematical symbols tightly. Staring off into the distance he giggled, "It was PERFECT!"

"Wow, sounds like you had fun, was it a special occasion or something?" Reaching out to take the book Lyra gasped, "I didn't forget your birthday did I?"

Returning to his original task Spike scoffed, "Nah, nothin' like that, Twi and her friends had a party and AJ and Fluttershy were acting real weird. They stayed in the guest room and Twilight sent me to stay with Rarity, something about me being 'Too young to watch this'" making air quotes he rolled his eyes as dramatically as he could muster.

It took her a few seconds to comprehend what she had just heard. Barely noticeable through her green fur, her cheeks turned a bright red. "Ohh… That's… err… Is Twilight here? I really need to check out now."

"Did I hear my name?" As if on cue Twilight rounded the corner out of the hallway. "Oh, hi Lyra! Did Spike tell you we have the new Daring Do book in?"

"Uh, yeah, he mentioned it"

"Ooh, I see you found 'Complex Calculus Concepts for Complete Cretins' that's one of my favorites." Twilight smiled and cocked her head. "Doing some studying?"

"Hehe, yeah, got a test this friday." Chuckling nervously Lyra motioned to the door, "Speaking of which, I need to get going so I can hit the books. Bonbon won't let me hear the end of it if I fail another one."

Spike continued quietly scrubbing away with his head back in the clouds as the two mares went through the checkout process. Though barely aware of anything outside his own mind he noticed something odd, Lyra was whispering into Twilight's ear.

Twilight's eyes grew wide, the rubber stamp she was levitating came clattering to the floor. Her gaze shifted from Lyra to Spike and back. "Thank you Lyra, I'll talk to him."

Twilight walked with Lyra to the exit. As the door closed she flipped the open sign, they were now closed for lunch. "Spike, let's take a break, there is something I need talk to you about. Bring a copy of 'Equine Biology Made Easy' to the kitchen, I'll make us something to eat."

The sun was high in the sky and Big Macintosh's stomach was growling. Applejack was supposed to take over his shift at the market stand nearly an hour ago. Surely she had her reasons though, his little sister was nothing if not dependable. He closed his eyes.

"Hi there Big Mac!" The voice roused him from the nap he didn't realize he was taking. "Are you awake there?" Looking up, he struggled to focus on the pony in front of him.

"Carrot Cake?"

The baker smiled, "Oh good, you're awake. I need to place another order, the usual."

"60 pounds, right?" Big Mac fished under the counter for his receipt book. "That's 47 bits."

Carrot Cake placed a small pouch onto the counter, still smiling. "Are you coming tonight? Cup Cake is at the dessert contest in Canterlot and Pinkie is making her special punch."

"Eeyup" Big Mac said, not looking up from the pad he was writing on. Tearing off Carrot's copy of the bill, he continued, "I'm not losin again this time, ya best bring yer A game."

"Heh, with the way you've been playing lately I'd just feel sorry for you if I brought my A game."

Big Mac gave a short laugh, "We'll jus see what tha cards have ta say." In the distance he caught sight of Applejack, just now cresting the top of the hill that served as the halfway point between the farm and the market.

"Soon as AJ gets here I'll bring yer order round to tha bakery."

With a nod and a short "thanks" Carrot Cake was off to finish his errands. A few short minutes later Applejack had joined her brother at the stand.

"Heya Big Mac." Said AJ, unenthusiastically. "Sorry ah'm late, got caught up buckin an lost track o' tha time."

Big Mac looked up at the clock tower in the distance, Applejack was over two hours late at this point. He decided not to pursue the issue. "You alright sis? Ya don' look so good."

"Ah'm alright, it's nothin ya need ta worry 'bout." Applejack said with a sigh. She never was a good liar.

"Big Mac…" she said. "If'n ah made a big mistake that would hurt mah friends an make Granny hate me… you'd still love me right? Still be mah big brother?"

Big Macintosh was no longer concerned, now he was panicking. "AJ, there ain't no mistake big enough ta make us stop bein family. Now yer worryin me, if yer jokin' please stop."

"Hehe, you know me, always a kidder." Applejack forced a nervous chuckle. "But suppose theoretuh-theoratek-theeur… in theory… what if somethin' that bad were ta happen?"

"Ya can't hide it from me AJ, somethin's botherin' you. Now ah gotta get this cart o' apples over ta Sugarcube Corner an' when ah get back ah expect ya ta tell me what it is." Putting his hoof under her chin he raised her eyes to meet his, he could clearly see the tears building. "We're fam'ly, nothin' can break a bond forged in blood."

"Now ah think we have another customer so ah'll take tha cart an be back before ya can say 'Special Delivery'"

A cream colored mare with a two-tone mane approached the stall. Bonbon, the confectioner, no doubt here for more apple liquor for her candies. Big Mac nodded to the two mares before galloping off, apple cart in tow.

"Mornin' Bonbon." AJ said, wiping the moisture from her eyes, "What can I do ya for?"

"The usual." Bonbon replied with a smirk. "That was some party last night, huh? That Pinkie Pie sure knows what she's doing."

Applejack winced, "Yeah, sure was. Now how many bottles did ya need?"

"Four should do it for today" Bonbon said, her smirk slowly becoming a wide grin. "You know how it goes, put too much in there and you may as well be drinking it from the bottle. Don't want to get drunk now."

Applejack felt sick. "Yeah, ah hear ya, let me just get those bottles fer ya an you can be on yer merry way." She pulled on the doors beneath the stall but they wouldn't open. "Gosh darnit, the stalls locked."

"Oh don't worry about me, take your time." Bonbon cooed, her smile seemed unnaturally wide now. "Say, did you notice anything unusual about anypony there?"

"Ah can't say ah did, ev'rypony seemed fine ta me." AJ was sweating, frantically searching for the keys to unlock the stall and end this conversation. "Tell ya what, ah sure don't wanna keep ya from whatever yer doin t'day, why don't ah get Big Mac ta come by yer store later with yer order?"

"Oh nonsense, I don't have anything to do today, the stores closed for remodeling, remember?" Bonbon's voice was saccharine sweet, the same smile still on her face now seemed to twist and warp as Applejack started to succumb to panic. "Was it just me or was Fluttershy really wobbly last night? If I didn't know better I would say she had been drinking."

Applejack's stomach churned. She was starting to hyperventilate. "Ah'm sure ya know that Fluttershy has trouble around crowds, it was probably just nerves." Her head was swimming and her ears were ringing as she frantically tore through the drawers trying desperately to find the key that held her escape.

"No, I think she was drunk at the party. It was a good thing that she had friends like you that stayed with her after everyone left. She could have done something she would regret."

Applejack's stomach gave way. She crumpled into a ball on the ground, her head spinning and her stomach convulsing she tried in vain to respond but any words that formed were immediately cut off by retching. Within seconds she had purged the entire contents of her stomach and was heaving dry.

The sound of laughter was piercing, even over the loud ringing in AJ's ears. She peeled her eyes open and, looking upwards, saw Bonbon standing over her, reveling in the sight of the orange earth pony surrounded by a pool of rancid waffles and bile.

"If'n yer tryin' ta say somethin' just come out with it. Ah never done nothin' ta you." Applejack managed to squeeze out through ragged breaths and her retching stomach.

Bonbon continued to laugh, "You want it straight? Fine. How long did it take you to realize you were one of us?"

"What are ya talkin 'bout" AJ gasped, "Ah don't understand."

"I'll say it clear, how long did it take you to realize that you were gay? You know, one of us, a filly-fooler, A F****T!" Bonbon's smile was gone, in it's place was a bitter scowl. Her soft, sweet tone replaced by a wavering shout. "YOU MADE FUN OF ME WHEN I CONFESSED MY FEELINGS FOR YOU. YOU REJECTED ME WITH NO REGARD TO MY FEELINGS AND NOW YOU ARE GOING AROUND WITH YOUR LITTLE F**K-BUDDY FLUTTERSHY"

"She… is not… my f**k-buddy." Applejack heaved. "And ah never… made fun of you… neither. How'd you even find out about that?"

Suddenly two sets of hooves skidded to a stop between the two mares. A large red earth pony and a mint green unicorn. "WHAT IN CELESTIA'S NAME ARE YOU DOING BONBON?!" Lyra cried as Big Macintosh gently pulled Applejack upright and leaned her against the applecart.

"Applejack is a hypocrite, she picked on me when she found out I liked her. She made fun of me for being gay. And now you tell me she is going with Fluttershy, the girliest mare in all of Ponyville!" Bonbon's voice cracked and trembled, Lyra could see the tears beginning to flow.

"Bonbon, Honey, I was there that day remember? She didn't make fun of you or tease you or anything. You were so hurt by her rejection that you avoided her like the plague. You were so scared of your own feelings for her that you imagined she was terrorizing you every time you saw her. You hid from her and I'll bet anything she never even knew."

Big Macintosh whispered into Applejack's ear, "Is what she said true? Are you goin' with Fluttershy?"

"No, we aren't goin' together, it was just one night, an it was a mistake."

Lyra continued, "Honey, you need to take a look at yourself right now. You are terrorizing a friend. You turned into an even bigger bully than you imagined her to be. I thought you liked her."

"I DO, all I wanted was for her to give me a chance. And now she is running around with some hussy with a long mane and a soft voice." Bonbon's cheeks were soggy as the tears freely flowed down her face. "Is there something wrong with me?"

"Yes, there is." Lyra said with a scowl. "You let jealousy take over and turned to bullying the very pony you like. You broke a promise you made to me to not tell anybody what I heard from Spike. And on top of that, you just admitted that the whole time we have been together you have been obsessing over somepony else! We're about to celebrate a whole year of being a couple but you can forget that. I don't even know you. I guess I never knew you."

Lyra turned her back to Bonbon. "If you can't give me your heart, then you don't deserve to have mine. We're finished."

"But… I just… Sweetie!" Bonbon couldn't piece together what had just happened. "I love you Lyra."

"It's too late for that now." Lyra said coldly, her back still turned to Bonbon. "You should just go. I need to be here with AJ and Big Mac to help fix your mess."

Unable to think, Bonbon sat, stunned, trying just to make sense of her surroundings.

"GO!" Lyra shouted.

That single word seemed to strike Bonbon's chest like a locomotive. Unable to hold back anymore she turned away, openly sobbing, and ran.

"Ah'm so sorry sugarcube." Applejack said, finally struggling to her feet.

"Don't be, it's not your fault." Lyra replied, a hint of pain finally entering her voice. "I should have known."

"Seems t'me nopony knew." Applejack brushed aside Lyra's bangs and looked her in those orange eyes brimming with barely restrained tears. "You need someplace ta stay for a couple nights, we got a guest room, right Big Mac?"

"Eeyup"

"Thanks guys." Lyra slowly wrapped her hooves around Applejack, her face buried in her chest, and finally broke down.