“The train on Platform B is the 3:58 Canterlot Cross-Country service heading towards Dodge Junction, and is ready to depart. Please mind the gap between the train and the platform edge. Please mind the doors. Please mind the closing doors.”

The drone of the station’s automated tannoy system was voiced by a pleasant and rather husky sounding Canterlotian accented woman; announcing quite clearly to the only occupant at the small countryside station that the train the mint and white streaked haired woman had just alighted from was ready to leave onwards to its next destination.

No turning back now, Lyra. Say goodbye to the big city and say hello to peace, quiet, country air… and mind numbing boredom.

Mere seconds into her uncertain thoughts, the doors of the four carriages slid to a close; a loud ear cringing alarm indicating a warning to keep well away as the train shuddered into a slow silent advance before clanking away upon the tracks. The massive engine at the front released its full powered hissing roar; hauling its cargo of passengers away in a plume of dust and hot air, laced with the nose trickling scent of diesel that rushed along behind it.

Golden eyes of apprehension watched on as the train meandered away into the distance, disappearing around a sharp bend into a far off valley minutes later. Then, all too suddenly, a deafening silence permeated the station, a meagre breeze the only disturbance as the invisible force calmly whisked its way across the platform kicking up grains of dust, dragging dead leaves from the surrounding trees. A stray page of a newspaper skittered about in its unseen grasp, pleasantly warding away the horrid stench of hot air that spewed from the belly of the departed metal beast, and replacing it with the crisp, wet aroma of country life within the fall just after a minor rainfall.

“Well Heartstrings, you’re finally here,” she announced to herself with a sigh, turning with a pair of hands to idly place upon her hips as she regarded Ponyville Station’s rather empty indoor lobby through a large window. “Jeez, it’s like a ghost town here,” she grumbled as she took several steps back from the structure and tilted her gaze up to the small clock tower poking out from the centre of the station, frowning rather deeply at the displayed time.

“She’s late. She’s always late. Why am I always the one on time when I am apparently the more—” she made motions with her fingers either side of her head denoting quotation marks as she attempted her best, though mockingly terrible, Bon Bon impersonation, “rebellious, lazy and unpunctual one…” She lifted a hand up to point at the clock tower in an accusing manner, as if it were the source of evil in Equestria, “I mean come on Bon, you’re already almost twenty minutes late... Someone’s getting a spanking later and it ain’t going to be me!”

Lyra flushed red at her rather open, somewhat personal, promise; her head twisting side to side to double check that no one had heard her monologue. Fortunately, for Bon’s and her sake, she was still alone.

Lyra sighed away her frustrations and thoughts of her hand firmly making contact with Bon’s rump, though that telling blush hardly wavering from her cheeks as the thought secretly persisted. She turned to regard the large suitcase filled with all of her earthly possessions; a hand running up through her messily styled, chin length, freshly cropped hair as she regarded what laid next to it. An oddly shaped, somewhat half-moon carry case that contained her pride and joy, her lyre, contained safely within a hard and padded protective shell designed specifically for housing her chosen instrument.

Crossing her arms over chest, the golden eyed woman frowned at it as she voiced her thoughts, “I know I have directions to Bon’s sweet shop from here, but there is no way I can carry all this by myself,” she paused, and then lifted a ring pierced brow, “Well, I could…. but I think I’ll just wait here for her to show up and run the guilt trip on her and get her to help me at the very least.” A moment of realisation struck her; a mischievous grin swiftly spreading across her lips as she glanced about the platform one last time.

Talking to herself was a habit of hers. Lyra could not help but verbally announce whatever it was that was going on inside of her brain. It seemed the filter from thought to speech was near non-existent, and it often got her into all kinds of trouble. To Lyra, it was her greatest of virtues. To others? It just made her seem that little bit awkward to be with. A woman with little to no inhibition to call out bullshit when she saw it.

“And since she isn’t here right now, being so late and all…” Lyra knelt down to the large suitcase and moved to unzip the small front pocket where smaller items could be stored separately from the main compartment. With a frantic fiddle inside the pocket she withdrew a lighter and placed it between her teeth while she dug around the pocket a second time, expertly maneuvering a cigarette out of the packet hidden there, and wedged the stick behind her ear as she closed the zipper.

Lyra had given up smoking, or so Bon Bon thought. The truth of the matter was, at least in her eyes, Lyra could not help it. Having smoked since her teens, during her most rebellious of years, it was not as easy to give up as Bon Bon had made it out to be. Sure, she lasted a week or so without having one or two… but it drove her completely insane every single day. It made her grouchy and, if at all possible, even more sluggish in her actions. Not even the pick me up of several cups of coffee could smooth over the edge of her severe crash and penultimate cold turkey.

Today, alone and without her conscious in the form of her lover, she could resist no longer. Lyra was tired from the travel, and not to mention she sat next to a man that simply reeked of nicotine like the devil of temptation he was. Her urges had won her over and she was going to indulge herself unashamedly. So what if Bon Bon caught her? She was her own woman, and she was going to do with her body as she saw fit.

Licking her lips and procrastinating no longer, she placed the cigarette into her mouth and lit up.

The first inhalation? Lyra almost shuddered as the smoke filled her mouth, then her throat and finally her lungs. She plucked the cigarette from her lips after what seemed like an eternity, and simply sighed out the curling blue-grey smoke from between slightly parted lips. “… Oh yeeaaahh. That hits the spot.”

Lyra was not quite sure why Bon Bon was so against her smoking. It was not like it was going to kill her, was it? Well… technically it could, Lyra thought, but that was something she considered part and parcel of something that could make you feel so good. Addiction never came without its price and funny enough, when it came to Bon Bon and Lyra’s relationship, something similar could be said.

After all, Lyra gave up the city life to move to this backwater town practically in the middle of the countryside, leaving the late night parties, social drinking, great restaurants and her friends behind to which Lyra adored for most of her life, all for the love of one woman. One attractive, amazing woman, Lyra had to admit. Bon Bon was perhaps the greatest single thing that has ever happened to her in her entire life. Bon Bon was Lyra’s greatest of addictions to which she prayed a cure would never be found. She was smitten by her, and would do anything for her.

Such thoughts brought a frown to her face as she glanced at the cigarette, a smidge of guilt gracing her features as she watched the stick burn. She’s going to kill me if she finds out. Better perfume the hell up before she gets here once I finish… I swear, this will be my last one.

There were many regrets that weighted the mint haired woman down; the cigarette she was partaking in just one of many. Lyra knew she had to grow up sooner or later; while she was single, wild and unchained Lyra was a self-destructive force of hormones and youth; right up until three years ago. All that changed in that one fateful morning when she bumped into, quite literally, the woman of her dreams; despite being resigned at the time to be single and free to do what she wanted, when she wanted.

With such a value on life Lyra had to work very hard to get herself, and more awkwardly enough, Bon Bon into a relationship considering she was not exactly batting for the same team; as it were at the time. It took one and a half years for Bon Bon to relent to Lyra’s advances, and Lyra would be damned now if they went back to that lonely long distant relationship, where one lived in Canterlot stubbornly refusing to leave her hometown out of pointless adoration for city life while the other lived in Ponyville working at her own business looking to produce a stable life.

The outcome was a no brainer when it boiled down to it. Lyra loved her sweetie dearly and could no longer bare being apart from her a second longer.

Which is why I’m in the middle of nowheresville right now. Good job, Lyra. You sure pick the one you’d do anything for.

During her thoughts Lyra had zoned out of the world around her; entirely focused on the memories of the past few years with a woman she rarely saw once every two weeks. The long distance relationship a true testament of not only her admiration and love for Bon Bon, but also a test of her own resolve. A test against the demons of temptation that had ruined her previous relationships. Relationships that all ended in disaster, through no fault but her own.

At that departing thought Lyra’s smile dissipated as she suckled upon the cigarette, casually exhaling the plumes as she muttered to herself. “I’m beginning to wonder if I’m right for her…” Doubt stitched her features, as did a growing sombreness that blackened her heart. “Maybe she's made a mistake. I really don’t deserve someone so hard working, and so… loving… I’m not exactly the 'responsible' type. She deserves better.”

“Is that so?” Came the nonchalant response from behind Lyra, startling her to turn wide eyed with the half-burnt cigarette still dangling from her lips.

“Bonnie?! When did you –” Lyra paused, taking note of the twitching, finely plucked eyebrow and the rather scarily impassive expression upon the face of her lover. No sooner had the silence cut a canyon of awkwardness between the two did Lyra’s brain kick into gear and instinctively took the failed initiative. Instincts are not always right, for Lyra’s brain; once again without its thought-filter, responded in such a way that it made Lyra cringe almost immediately after speaking. “This isn’t what it looks like… I, uh; y-you look wonderful! Is that a new dress?”

Bon Bon kept a firm grip on her handbag, which was casually slung over her left shoulder, as the confectioner opted for a moments silence to contemplate her reply. The rather pathetic response did manage to make her turquoise eyes solidify its glare at the mint haired one, an irritated expression wrinkling her forehead as both brows went up.

“Do go on.”

“I’m…” She withdrew the cigarette from her mouth hurriedly, flicking it behind her shoulder, and exhaling the smoke that was still trapped in her lungs aside from the corner of her mouth, “I’m—ah—I’m… boned, aren’t I? Look… Sweetie, I’m sorry . I know I said I’d quit but I—”

“That was not what I was hinting at.” Came the stern reply.

The lyrist paled, “O-oh… How long, uhhm, were you standing there?”

“Long enough.” Came the brisk reply, which caused the mint haired one to nibble at her lower lip nervously. The silence only caused Bon Bon to question further. “Is that what you think, Lyra? That you do not deserve me? That you are not right for me? Is that what you truly think?”

Lyra’s fears bubbled beneath the surface, and her eyes shined with moisture, tears formulating as her mind scolded herself for saying such things aloud, for being stupid and for being absent minded of her surroundings. If she had spotted Bon Bon earlier then none of this would had come to light.

Or if you could just keep your big trap shut once in a while.

An iciness slithered about in her gut, causing the lyrist to feel sick to her very core; her words came out in a sorrowful whisper, “Bonnie… I…” How could she lie? It was how she truly felt about the situation. Was this not a perfect example? Was this not the most perfect of reasons why Bon Bon should had found someone better than this sorry sack of regret? “Yes. It’s… It’s what I… I’m, so sorry. You know how things were when we met… I just know, deep down you could had done so much better than—hmph?!”

The lyrist was stunned as a set of hands assaulted her cheeks, dragging her head down towards the slightly smaller woman. What was perhaps more shocking was the set of soft, juicy lips that had crushed themselves against her own. Not a second into the kiss and Lyra’s once tense body began to relax; wide golden eyes falling to a close as she melted into the passionate, and rather sudden, display of affection.

Both women wrapped their arms around the other, fingers digging into the fabric of the other’s attire as their kiss intensified to the point that both were almost groaning and grinding their bodies against each other, longing to satisfy a sudden flare of heat achingly animating within them. Tongues collided in the other’s mouth, battling for supremacy, writhing sloppily without a care as they broke the kiss frequently to dive their tongues back in for another wet assault.

To those who may had spotted the two lovers on the lonely, deserted platform it was safe to say they were having a rather… intimate moment. A passing mailman bicycling on the public footpath at the front of the station had his eyes glued to the scene as he zoomed on by towards Ponyville, only to pedal straight off the path as his attention was firmly upon the two kissing women. He disappeared into wall of hedges as he was launched from his bike and over the handlebars with a distant yelp and curse.

As swiftly as the kiss had started did it end, leaving Bon Bon to open her turquoise eyes to gaze back into the half lidded golden orbs of her girlfriend with a fierce conviction. Their lips barely inches apart as both women panted hot, gasping breaths in between.

Tenderly, Bon Bon’s hands remained cupped about Lyra’s face; the thumbs moving to move over the now sleek, spittle covered lips to which she now observed with a growing lust for more. “Don’t you ever say that again Lyra, okay? I know of your past—you told me when we met, and again when you asked me out, remember? Just let it lie, and forget about the past because right now you have me, alright?” Bon Bon whispered affectionately, nuzzling the lyrist’s nose with her own. “I want nothing more than you, Lyra. I don’t care about your previous relationships or how they ended up because in the end, you came to me, and showed me how much you loved me, and how much you were willing to sacrifice just to be with me. I mean look, you’re here now, yeah? You chased me for months and months until I could not ignore your cute eyes, or your cute laugh, or that sexy little rebellious streak that really got me hooked on you… yet now look at you, Lyra. You left the city, to live with me in Ponyville—you hate the countryside, and yet you did that, all for me... Don't you see, Lyra? I do deserve you. Every bit of you.”

“B-Bonnie…” The previous tears that welled in her eyes from the fear of moments ago spilled down her cheeks as her heart thundered away inside of her chest, transforming into tears of joy. Lyra was touched by the words to the point where she had forgotten how to smile or to even breathe. Despite the touching moment the lyrist began to smile awkwardly, pointing to her mouth as she swirled a very small mint within, “Do you… want it back, by the way?”

The loving features of Bon Bon faded all too quickly as she took a step back, “No. Suck that until that horrible stench of tobacco leaves your breath. You know I hate the taste of it. And for the record? No more kisses until then.”

The lyrist wiped her eyes and cheeks, ridding herself of the hot tears, as she mocked a frown and started to whine like a small child, “Buuuuuut!” At that Bon Bon turned and simply walked off leaving, yet again, the stunned lyrist blinking, “H-hey! What about my bags?!”

“What about them?” Bon Bon called over nonchalantly.

“They’re heavy! At least carry my lyre for me?” Lyra scrambled to pick up her suitcase and the instrument case, sucking on the mint frantically in hopes that it would at least mask the scent of smoke from her breath. By the time she had moved off to follow Bon Bon the woman was already turning a sharp corner onto the public footpath that led towards the distant Ponyville. “Wait up!”

“Consider it your punishment for lying to me about giving up!” Came the loud reply as the woman disappeared around the corner, causing Lyra to hurry up her steps; straining her arms against the combined weight of her luggage.

“Oh come, on, sweetie! I’ll massage your feet! Bon? Booon? You love it when I do that Bonnie! Bon? BON! Wait up! Hold up! Stop your sweet ass one second and give me a hand—ah… fuck it.” She openly protested with a groan; waddling her way along the footpath to catch up to her lover as she passed by a disgruntled mailman who was trying to entangle his bicycle from out of a hedge.

Author's Note

Hello everypony who is still following this story, I am very sorry for the delay... Okay, so it was more than a delay. More like a two week unresponsive promise of posting every Sunday - however, due to the mixture of my own time being VERY, very limited to write, and my editor's unlucky streak of luck trying to get online, all I can offer is my most sincerest apologies, and I hope you all won't hunt me down and gut me like a fish for making you guys wait so long.

I will endeavor to post more frequently! I just won't promise any set day for my stories to be thrown up.

Like. Hate. Flame. Gut me like a fish. All is welcome.