Author's Note
Be aware that in this chapter I'm experimenting with an active narrator who interacts with the ponies, and they talk back to him. Italic is the narrator directly talking to a pony or ponies.
Lyra & Her Book
Today was like any other day during a Ponyville summer. The sun shone in all its warmth, bees buzzed, birds hummed, and the small town quietly bustled with life as the little ponies went about their lives. Though, one particular mint green unicorn seemed to be up to something special by the looks of her gleeful smile, bobbing head, and prancing walk.
Where are you heading this morning, Lyra?
“I’m on my way to Twilight’s Library to get my favorite book!” she exclaimed excitedly.
Ah yes, it was the first day of the month, which meant checking out the story of “The Last Human” for Lyra. A ritual she’d diligently stuck to for the past couple of years. The book had seen more time in her’s and Bon Bon’s home than it had in the Library ever since she learned of its existence. In fact, it spent almost three weeks in Lyra’s home, and then one week at the Library. Sure, she loved the book to pieces, but she wouldn’t allow that love to cheat other ponies out of the joy she’d found in this story. Though, she only allowed them one week to enjoy it, the rest of every month was reserved to her.
“That’s right, and I’ve waited patiently to get my hooves on that book again. There’s still something new to discover every time I read it. Plus, it totally looks great on my shelf,” said Lyra before knocking at the library door.
I couldn’t agree more, Lyra.
As per usual, Spike was there to let Lyra in. He knew, Lyra knew, and even Twilight knew precisely when Lyra was to show up, what she wanted, and that she could do it without assistant. Every bounce in her step accumulated a child-like giddiness in the little unicorn’s facial expression, for it all meant getting one teeny tiny step closer to that magical book.
She swung the ladder over in front of herself with the aid of a little magic, to then pull herself up the steep steps with surprising ease. She was once again face to face with that oh so familiar shelf in the library, the one furthest to the right, and at the very top of the bookcase. But, something was off this time. The book, it was gone.
Her pupils turned to needlepoints and her lips began to quiver violently as a void took up her heart. All little Lyra could muster up was screeching at the top of her lungs for help, “TWIIIIILIIIIGHT!”
The overwhelming scream startled any and all ponies currently in the library to get some books, and it was also accompanied by a loud thud from the area above the bookshelves. A disgruntled Twilight came tripling down the stairs to find out what in Equestria could have disturbed Lyra enough to cause her to scream like that.
“Lyra, why are you-“ It was then Twilight locked eyes with Lyra who’s entire frame shivered, her eyes had welled up with sorrow, and one hoof flailed futilely at the spot where her favorite book had once been.
“It’s gone, Twilight! Why is my favorite book gone?!” cried Lyra as she did her best to hold back her sobbing.
With ears folded back, and a hoof gently scratching her neck, Twilight mumbled in a slightly apologetic tone, “Well, Lyra, I think somepony actually bought it yesterday. I’m not really sure who it was. It was a really busy day yesterday, and Spike was the one who took care of it… But, I’m sure we’ll get another one sometime soon.” Twilight’s soft smile had little to no effect in comforting the progressively more upset Lyra.
Lyra held her head low as she descended the ladder. To Twilight she looked like a pale shadow of her former self. Seemingly the shock had been too much for the little unicorn, and sure enough, Twilight did her best to make Lyra feel better.
“Maybe you’d like this-“
“No.” Pouted Lyra, rejecting one book after another as Twilight tried to find something else for Lyra to obsess about, but to no avail.
Lyra, why don’t you just ask the pony who rented the book if you can have it?
“I think the narrator has a good point, Lyra,” added Twilight in a most brilliant fashion, being wise enough to recognize a good suggestion when she saw one.
“But do you even know where this mysterious pony lives hmmm?” asked Lyra with an eyebrow raised in suspense.
“I might not have seen who got it, but I saw the book from my window upstairs, the pony carrying it marched southeast from here. The house had two floors, pinkish tainted glass windows, yellow straw roof, I think the house number was 149-“
“Fiiiinneee, I’ll go ask.” However reluctantly she was, Lyra agreed, and with that she said her goodbyes to first Twilight, and then Spike who was otherwise busy assisting a far less difficult inhabitant of Ponyville.
“Hey! I’m not difficult! I just know what I want!” snarled Lyra while glaring into the sky.
My apologies, Lyra. Let’s continue.
Lyra had absolutely no trouble finding the house despite the rather vague directional descriptions given by Twilight, and despite how every house in the village seemed almost identical in design. If it hadn’t been for the number, surely Lyra would have gotten lost by now.
“Good thing I haven’t gotten lost,” mumbled Lyra to herself as she schemed outside the suspect’s house in a tiny isolated bush. Using her green coat to perfectly blend into the plant disguise, she crept closer and closer to the house.
“Hhmm… this place seems oddly familiar.”
Lyra, I believe that’s because-
“SSSSHH!!! The pony inside will hear you Mr. Narrator. I’m going to sneak inside and get the book before the pony knows what hit her… or him,” whispered Lyra.
Sorry… I’ll be quiet now.
She didn’t waste any time with this mission. The book was inside and she was sure as heck going to get it back, no matter the cost. She had a brilliant burglar plan, and with her current disguise, who could possibly stop her?
Scuttling, rustling, and other strange noises came from the wandering shrubbery, and as sneaky as Lyra thought she was, a dozen or more ponies observed her move across the street and over next to an open window on the side of the house.
One big leap from the bush into the air was all it took for Lyra to attach herself to the window sill with both forelegs, her stubby little hind legs kicking furiously in the air as she pulled herself into the living room of the house, landing on the floor with a little thud.
“Phew” whispered Lyra in an exacerbated tone, wiping sweat off her forehead while laying spread out on her back on the wooden floor.
“Hey, this place looks really familiar…” mumbled Lyra while slowly turning her head from side to side, taking in the sight of the white dresser next to the window she had just snuck in through. There was a carpet underneath the sofas and coffee table that looked an oddly similar to the carpet in her own house. Though, all these strange coincidences soon melted away from Lyra’s mind as she came eye to eye with the beautiful book resting on the dining table a bit away from her.
“To heck with being sneaky! You’re MINE!” She once again leapt from her position, landing on the table, fully embracing the book to then roll back off the table and onto the floor, never letting go of the volumes of human stories.
“Lyra?” sounded a mare standing right next to the bubbling mess of giggles who she referred to.
Lyra opened her eyes to stare at the upside down expression of Bon Bon. “Bonnie! What are you doing in here! The pony who stole my book could be back at any moment!”
“This is our house, Lyra…” groaned Bon Bon while helping Lyra back up on her hooves.
“Huh, I thought this place looked really familiar.” Lyra gave the place one more thorough look now that she’d realized where she actually was.
“I’m not even going to ask why you’d break into somepony’s home to steal a book. I’ll also ignore that you broke into your OWN home without noticing it. But, that book doesn’t belong to you, Lyra. It belonged to the library, and anypony could rent it.” Bonnie’s voice shifted from deeply frustrated to mildly empathetic.
“But… I always rent the book… I’ve done it every month, for like years!” Lyra underlined her point by holding out her forelegs as wide to the sides as possible when she mentioned having done this for years.
“I know you have, which is why I actually bought the book for you, and I asked Spike to order a new one for the Library. I also told him not to tell you if you ever asked him about it, I wanted to surprise you.” Bon Bon scuffed the floorboards in front of her as a faint tint of red crept into her cheeks. She then picked up the book with her mouth and held it near Lyra as she smiled softly. “There you go… Lyra?”
She only got to stare at Lyra for a few seconds before her friend welled up with joy and pounced Bonnie while screaming, “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”
Well, Lyra. It seems that everything turned out just fine. And with that, everything had been resolved, and Lyra had once again gotten the book which was most precious to her heart, but this time, she got to keep it forever.
