And the River Keeps Rolling On...
A cool breeze blew over the bridge behind Bon Bon’s candy shop. Together, she and her friend, Lyra, sat side by side on the cold cobblestone, looking down at the chilly water. The river bubbled and splashed against the bridge’s edges.
“It’s a beautiful day,” Lyra said.
Bon Bon shivered slightly. “Still kinda cold.”
Lyra shrugged. “Winter’s coming soon. What did you expect?”
“The heat wave could have lasted another day or two, at least,” Bon Bon grumbled. Another gust blew from downstream, and she shuddered again.
Chuckling, Lyra picked up her lyre and began to pluck strings at random.
Turning toward her, Bon Bon smiled. “Play me a song, Lyra.”
The plucking stopped as Lyra looked up. “Which one should I play?”
Bon Bon laughed. “Any one! Just play, you dunce!” She playfully shoved her friend.
“Hurtful…” Lyra pretended to pout. Bon Bon stuck out her tongue in response. “Hm. How about this one?”
Her hooves danced over the strings, conjuring up a song Bon Bon recognized. Its melody was light and upbeat, like a refreshing summer breeze.
Bon Bon closed her eyes and drank in the music. Her ear twitched as the playing suddenly stopped.
“Recognize that song?” Lyra asked.
“Yeah,” Bon Bon said, smiling. “That’s the song you were playing when I first had the misfortune of running into you.”
Lyra stuck her tongue out. “You didn’t seem to think it was unfortunate. You seemed to like my playing.” She chuckled. “Heh, we met up while I was playing on this very bridge.
“I remember I was just sitting by the water and practicing.” She sighed. “You must’ve come out while I was fiddling with my lyre, because I didn’t see you. Then I played that song. When I finished, I happened to look up, and I saw you there.”
Propping her head on her hoof, Bon Bon smiled dreamily. “I remember that.” She jabbed her friend in the side. “It’s no wonder you’ve got a lyre on your butt. You’re not half bad.”
Lyra snorted. Her hoof went to her chest, and her mouth hung agape. “Not half bad? And I thought you liked my playing!”
“Hm,” Bon Bon said, laying her head down. “Play me another song, and maybe I’ll reevaluate.”
Chuckling, Lyra picked up her lyre again. “Let’s see…”
The music began again, a slow, haunting tune. A shiver ran down Bon Bon’s spine. Whether it was from the music or from the wind, she was unsure. The rustling of the leaves in the treetops and the burbling of the river were the only other noises as the melody rang out through the grassy field.
The wind dropped out as Lyra neared the end of the song, leaving the last few notes to ring out over the near-silence. Only the constant churning of the river accompanied it.
Bon Bon let out a breath she realized she had been holding. “Wow…” she whispered.
“Liked that one? Did it give you chills?” Lyra laughed as Bon Bon looked down to see her bristled coat.
“Not funny, Lyra.” She glared at her friend.
Covering her mouth with a hoof, Lyra silenced her laughter. She cleared her throat. “Sorry, Bon.” Her shoulders slumped. “But what did you think of the piece?”
Bon Bon put her hoof to her chin. “Well, it did, as you said, give me chills.” She tilted her head. “Why do you ask?”
“Well…” Lyra sheepishly rubbed her neck with a hoof, “I composed it, actually.”
“Really?” Bon Bon’s eyes widened. “That’s amazing! I didn’t know you wrote your own music!” She sidled up closer to her friend. “Do you have any others I can hear?”
A slight flush lit up Lyra’s face. “Um…” She cleared her throat. “Yeah, I have one other one. It’s a bit more lively. Actually, it’s a dance song.”
“Oh, that’s nice. Let’s hear it!”
Lyra smirked. “Not unless you dance along with it.”
Bon Bon pouted. “Come on, Lyra! You know I don’t dance.”
“Well, no music then.” Lyra turned her back on her friend.
Bon Bon bit her lip. “But… I can’t dance.” She pointed at her flank. “It’s not my thing, Lyra.”
Lyra turned around. Hesitating for a moment, she put a hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “Hey, come on, Bon. It’s okay. I told you before, all you’ve got to do is shuffle your hooves and let the music move you.”
“But…”
Lyra held up her hoof. “I’ll try to dance along, too.” She smirked. “And in case you didn’t know, it’s pretty hard to dance and play lyre at the same time, so I’ll probably make an even bigger fool of myself.”
Bon Bon’s hoof shuffled against the cobblestone. She looked around and saw nopony beside her and her friend. She sighed.
“Okay, I’ll try.”
The first few notes rang out, and Bon Bon slowly slid her hooves in front of her. Every fourth count, she’d add in a kick.
Lyra began some sort of four-step move, and Bon Bon followed suit, mixing it into her dancing. The music began to pick up, as energetic and lively as the river beneath them.
She tried a few new moves now, spinning and sliding in an attempt to match the energy of the song. A small mat of sweat began to form below her mane.
Bon Bon's hooves flowed over the cobblestone beneath her. They tapped and scraped as she spun and leapt. The lyre's music flowed through her, compelling her to move in ways she'd never thought possible. All the while, her friend played on, eyes closed. Together they were lost in the tune.
Lyra's playing began to approach a crescendo, and Bon Bon started to dance with reckless abandon. She twirled in midair and tiptoed along the bridge's edge. Her heart pounded. The music grew louder. Lyra's hooves bounced from string to string in their own strange dance.
Suddenly, Bon Bon felt her hoof slide out from under her. Gravel from the worn cobblestone slipped from under her hooves, tumbling over the edge. She hardly had time to scream as momentum plunged her into the river.
"Lyra!"
The playing stopped as Lyra turned to see her friend being swept away. The final note hung in the air, its shrill screech nearly matching that of Bon Bon's.
“Bon Bon!”
Lyra dropped her lyre and raced along the river’s edge after her friend. The river wasn’t particularly deep-- Bon Bon’s head barely dipped below the surface-- but it was fast, and Lyra could tell that her friend would be unable to simply walk or swim out.
Her mind raced. There had to be something, a stick or a branch, that she could pull Bon Bon out with. Come on! Give me something!
But the ground was clear. Somepony must have cleared it. Lyra cursed her luck. Her only option was to follow the river.
...
Bon Bon could only try to float. Her head bobbed, pulled under by the current. She pushed off the bottom, propelling herself to the surface. It was for naught. She sank as soon as she did so.
Her muscles burned, despite the chill of the water. It felt as if there was some massive weight attached to them. Her pushes against the river bed barely pushed her snout above water now. The mouthfuls of air she gulped down were becoming smaller and smaller.
Her head went under again. Now that she thought about it, maybe it wasn’t so bad to be beneath the water. The sky was beautiful from her new perspective, and the fish could keep her company. No, there was no need for worry. The cold was fading, even. She just needed to sleep. She closed her eyes.
…
Lyra no longer saw her friend’s head rise to the surface. She needed to act now! Yet her legs locked up upon reaching the water’s edge. What if it was too late? What if she couldn’t find Bon Bon? What if she herself got swept away?
Come on, Lyra! Your friend’s in danger! You can’t let your fear take over now!
She saw a flash of blue and pink curls. Breaking a branch from a nearby tree, she ran toward the water. She reached the branch toward her friend, succeeding only in stopping her body from moving further downstream.
“Come on, Bon Bon! Take the branch!”
Her friend didn’t move.
Desperate, she swung the branch upstream. The water’s force was too much, however. Bon Bon was less than ten centimeters closer to her, despite her efforts. She couldn’t continue this method. Her grip was already slipping.
There was only one option to save Bon Bon: diving in after her.
Lyra’s breathing quickened. I can’t, there’s no way, I’ll be swept away, Ican’tIcan’tIcan’tIcan’t…
But Bon Bon’s life is on the line, another voice in her head said. Phobia or no phobia, you’ve got to dive in after her. If you don’t, it’ll be all your fault.
Lyra closed her eyes. This was Bon Bon’s last chance. There was no one else to save her. If she failed, Bon Bon would be dead.
She braced the stick against the bottom of the pond, as if she were pole vaulting. Then, before she could think twice, she lept into the river. Her hooves wrapped around her friend.
Immediately, the river pulled her under.
Her mind blanked as one thought filled her mind: cold. This single-mindedness did not last long, as another thought raced across her mind: drowning!
Her heart raced as she pushed the stick against the river bed, propelling her and Bon Bon to the surface. Lyra gulped down air, Bon Bon did not.
The stick slid along the river bed, serving only to slow their movement downstream. Lyra tried to swing it toward the edge to allow them to climb out, but the effort got them no closer. Her grip began to slip on it again, but this time the wet bark allowed her hooves no purchase. She and her friend drifted downstream, now without any tool to aid in their escape.
The river pulled her and Bon Bon down to the bottom again. The cold made her shiver, and she lost a few precious bubbles of air. Her muscles were tense and uncooperative. Her friend’s weight was nearly too much to bear at this point. They had, at best, one good chance left.
Some determined, survival-guided part of Lyra’s mind drove her toward the river’s edge. The sand along the bottom scraped her hooves, and she was dragged downstream all the while, but these facts did not distract her from her goal.
When she was near the edge, she leapt, grabbing ahold of solid ground with her free hoof. Her muscled strained as she tried to pull herself and Bon Bon out. Slowly, she managed to lift Bon Bon’s head above the water before she felt her grip on the grass and dirt start to give way. Almost in slow motion, she watched helplessly as the grass snapped and the dirt dragged beneath her hoof.
Once more, she was caught up in the river’s flow, and her last chance to save Bon Bon-- or herself, for that matter, were gone.
She closed her eyes and resigned herself to her fate. She didn’t even notice when her head struck something wooden.
…
Fluttershy smiled. It was a lovely day. She could hardly have picked a better day to help the beavers prepare for the oncoming winter.
She frowned as she saw a beaver approach her, slapping his tail against the ground.
“What’s the matter, Benny?” The beaver pointed toward the dam, where it appeared something had crashed into it.
“Oh my, that is a problem. I wonder what could have…” Fluttershy gasped when she saw two ponies in the new hole in the dam. “Quick, help get them out of there!” She bit her lip. “Oh, I hope they’re alright.”
The beavers brought the two ponies out of the water. Fluttershy put her ear to the mint-green one’s snout. She was raspy, but she was breathing-- barely. The cream-colored one had no such luck. Fluttershy heard absolutely no breath from that one. Her pulse was extremely faint.
Fluttershy wrapped her hooves around her mouth and whistled as loudly as she could. A flock of birds answered her call. “Go get help, now!” she commanded. One of the birds gave a solemn nod, then the whole flock flew toward town.
Fluttershy turned back toward the unconscious ponies. She had no idea what to do! She specialized in animals, not ponies. Still, she suspected that CPR might be the proper sort of response.
She rolled both ponies onto their sides. She started chest compressions on the cream-colored one, since she seemed to need it more. Her hooves pumped against the pony’s ribcage. The pony’s unconscious body bounced to the rhythm of the compressions, but did not stir.
Fluttershy finished the round of compressions and paused. She hated the mouth-to-mouth part of CPR! It didn’t help that she had to do it to two mares. But ponies knew she wasn’t a fillyfooler, didn’t they? And it was to save a life…
She pressed her lips against those of the cream-colored stranger. Her breath flowed into the stranger’s mouth, filling her lungs.
Nothing happened. The unconscious pony didn’t move.
“No…” Fluttershy squeaked. “No, that should have worked!”
Her mind raced. Should I try again? Maybe… maybe I should help the other mare? Then maybe the other mare could help! Oh, I need somepony here with me!
She therefore moved to sit in front of the mint-green mare. She counted out thirty compressions, it was thirty, wasn’t it? then pressed her lips to the second stranger’s mouth. She breathed out as hard as she could.
The mint-green mare’s eyes stirred. Oh, she’s waking up! Fluttershy’s faced flushed with a sudden realization. I hope she realizes the kiss was just part of CPR…
…
Lyra coughed as she slowly sat up. Her mind was hazy.
“What… happened? The last thing I remember is being underwater, and Bon Bon was-” Her head jerked around as she looked for her friend. “Bon Bon? Bon Bon!”
A yellow pegasus slowly walked toward her, head lowered. Her face had a slight crimson flush. “I think she’s right here.” She moved to the side, granted Lyra a view of her friend.
“Bon Bon!” Lyra raced to her side. “Bon! Wake up!” She shook Bon Bon’s unconscious body.
The pegasus put a hoof on her shoulder. “I tried doing a round of CPR, but she’s not responding to it. I think she might be-”
Lyra slapped the hoof away. “No! Horseapples! It has to work!” She began chest compressions on her friend. “It has to. She can’t just die like that.”
“You’re going to crack her ribs doing that,” the pegasus muttered, watching the scene from over Lyra’s shoulder. One eye peeked out from behind her mane. “You’re pushing too hard.”
Lyra softened her compressions, but still continued doing them. Her lips pressed roughly against Bon Bon’s as she blew her breath into her friend’s mouth. She put her hoof on Bon Bon’s side for another round of compressions before she heard a sob ring out behind her.
“I don’t think she’s gonna make it…” Fluttershy said softly. She sniffed. A single tear ran down the side of her face.
“Fuck you! She will make it!” Lyra pressed her hooves against Bon Bon’s side again, faster than before. Her lips assaulted her friend’s face. She forced her breath into Bon Bon’s mouth.
Bon Bon remained still, and Lyra slammed her hoof into the dirt. “Wake up, dammit! I have to save you!” She hunched over her friend again, ready to begin another round.
A pair of hooves wrapped themselves around her barrel, and she felt herself collapse into the embrace. Her chest began to heave against her will. She gritted her teeth, not letting the emotion get to her.
“It’s over,” the pegasus whispered in her ear. “She’s gone.” Another sob rang out. “I am so, so sorry.”
Lyra shook her head. “She can’t be gone. It’ll be all my fault…” Her eyes began to water. “It’s all my fault,” she rasped.
“Shhhh… Shhhh… It’s alright,” the pegasus cooed. She rubbed Lyra’s back. “Just let it all out.”
The dam holding back Lyra’s tears burst. She cried, a messy, miserable flood pouring down her face. Her shoulders shook, and she held the pegasus close to her. “I tried…” she whispered, her voice hoarse. “I tried so hard to save her.” She sobbed, her entire body shaking. She smashed her eyes shut. “I t-tried… and I failed.” Lyra shook her head.
“It’s all my fault.”
“Don’t say that,” the pegasus said, but Lyra did not hear the command. She sniffled again, a loud and wet noise, as she pressed her head against the pegasus’s shoulder.
Eventually the medic, a red pegasus, flew in. He confirmed that Bon Bon was, in fact, dead.
All the while, one thing echoed in Lyra’s head: the sound of that last note ringing out over Bon Bon’s screams.
Author's Note
Thanks for reading!
