Lyra discovers the Internet

Chapters

A trip to the Market
Magic Book
Cooking with Bonbon
The Message
Confrontation
The Discord

A trip to the Market

"LYRA!" Yelled a nearby voice! Her head sprang from her pillow, and she tumbled forwards, out of her heavenly bed and onto the less welcoming carpet floor. She took a moment to raise her hoof and rub her clam-tight eyes from exhaustion. I really shouldn't have stayed up so long last night thought the cyan mare I must be worrying Bonbon with all my late night studying lately.

Lyra rose from the floor and took another moment to clear her throat before replying "Yes?" And before Bonbon could respond, also added "I'm sorry that I slept in again Bonbon."

Bonbon opened the door to Lyra's room and glanced at her before wincing. "Lyra you need to take better care of yourself" lectured the pale pony. "You have major bedhead and it looks as if you haven't slept in days" She continued. Bonbon swept her eyes around the area to look at the pigsty of her roommates bedroom. Books scattered the floor and plates still riddled with crumbs lay on the floor. The room gave off an unpleasant odor and a neglected aura all at once. "What have you even been doing up here?" Bonbon interrogated.

"The same old hobbies from before" replied Lyra "Just with more enthusiasm." Her face glowed with excitement as she began to talk. "Did you know that Humans used to write books with there hands one at a time? They invented this machiene called the prin-." The mare was cut off by her roommate by a hoof to the mouth.

"Lyra I don't mind this hobby you have about studying Humans or whatever, but when it physically affects you like this it really does concern me for your well being," the mare took a step back, "And you really can't live like this Lyra, I mean it," she sighed. "You know what, I need to make a new batch of muffins for tomorrow, and I need some extra flour. How about you clean this mess of a room and go to the shops to get me some?"

The cyan mare attempeted to get a few words off before the door was closed on her, abruptly ending the conversation. Fine then, I do need some excersise. All I've done is study cooped up in my room like a chicken. Lyra looked at her room in realization, But I still to finish this.

An unpleasant tidying up later Lyra was off to the market. "Goodbye Bonbon, I'll see you later" she said, and closed the oak shop door behind her. Lyra checked her saddlebags to make shure she had brought all the things she needed. Bits? Check. Map? Check. Snacks? Double check.

Lyra deliberately took her time to wake up on her stroll to the market, stretching her legs and satisfyingly cracking her neck. She passed by town square and fished through her saddlebags, looking for her bits. One was grabbed and tossed from the bridge into the river's churning water below And a bit for good luck. The coin shimmered and sank to the bottom, along with all the other coins tossed by passerby.

Past the square, Lyra brought out her map and checked for the specific shop she needed. A minute of searching found her the route she needed. Over to my left past Twilights Library, about a ten-minute walk. She packed away the map and headed towards the shop.

The Sun was still rising over Ponyville, as it was about late-morning at the time. Buildings gave off a light glow from the Suns ever beautiful light, and seemed to brighten everyponies mood. The light might as well have been telling everypony to have a nice day, as if Celestia herself was greeting you.

Winter wrap up was hummed silently as Lyra's hooves clopped on the stone walkways beneath her, as she moved from her slow wander to a easy trot. Her hooves created an echo on the buildings around her, and was mirrored by the few others crossing this path. Lyra took a minute to admire the beautiful morning before continuing on her errand. I need to stop getting distracted, I should just stay quiet for now.

The next few minutes were passed on dirt roadways, lined with trees and bushes most likely concealing timid animals. Why aren't there animals here? There's usually always some here on the pathway, giving the ponies cute eyes for scraps of food. Ponies are kind, they couldn't be scared by me walking by, could they? Lyra trotted to the bushes nearby and heard faint beeping noise. She used her ears until she found the source of the noise and then peered down at it.

The device that lay before her was small, with a flat bottom and top coated with black paint, an apple displayed on the cover. Curious, it was picked up and examined. After a minute Lyra located a small pullable lever that could let her open it. The inside was more confusing than the outside, with a glassy cover on the top showing the night's darkness and the bottom covered in buttons labeled with letters and symbols.

"Why would buttons have two symbols on it," commented Lyra "it makes no sense." She experimented with the buttons on the bottom of the contraption before the ones on the side. The glass mirror flashed white, unnatural light at her, and Lyra was taken aback. The cyan mare darted backwards until she realized the device was harmless, and gave a sigh of relief. "What a weird thing" she said out loud, and walked back to the machine calmly.

With another beep of the screen it's color changed again What magic is this? Nothing proceeded the changed light for almost a minute, keeping Lyra in suspense as she bit her tongue. One singular icon appeared on the top left of the screen as Lyra stared dumbfounded. This was more advanced than any other magical contraption she had ever seen and it was only existed for One Thing? "Internet" she tested the word silently.

Whatever it is, it must be powerful. I could return it but I'm not shure that is something anypony can buy. There's never been any advertisement or words to describe anything like what I'm holding. Maybe it's some secret government project! Lyra playfully thought.

Lyra glanced around, making shure nopony was paying her any attention, then closed the rectangular device and placed it carefully in her saddlebags, grinning mischievously to herself. I believe I've found something new to study. She headed right back to the Candy Shop, dismissing her task at hand, completely entranced by the machine. The flour can wait for later, this box is amazing!

Magic Book

Lyra opened the door to Bonbons shop carefully, peering though the crack for sighns of her. Im back earlier that I should be, I can't have Bonbon know what I was doing. After what seemed like minutes trying to open the oak door under hushed breath that Lyra was able to squeeze through the gap. Slowly, once more Lyra closed the door behind her with as much care as before, minimizing noise.

Lyra took a moment to observe the shop, it was mostly clean with the exception of the kitchen, which was covered in all sorts of materials. There was no audible noise coming from the shop, and Lyra took a moment to make shure she wasn't missing something. Bonbon probably went out for some ingredients she didn't mention to me. Reminded by this thought, she took a closer look at the mess in the kitchen.

There were an assortment of baking tins and measuring cups laid before her. She examined then to find any hint of Bonbons experimentation, as her treats were always amazing and practically embedded with a feeling of home. Lyra loved to get a sneak peek and the occasional nibble when Bonbon wasn't looking. Some chocolate, a few strawberries, a cone, and... Flour? "This doesn't make sense" questioned Lyra. She picked up the bag and peered inside, Near completely full.

Am I that bad that Bonbon needed me out of the home? I know I can be clinging to my room and weird sometimes but do I drive her crazy that badly? The cyan mare felt guilty for a moment, making a mental note to apologize to her roommate later, then continued to her room.

"Sweet bed I've been missing you" she said as she opened her bedroom door. Her books were gone. All of Lyra's books on Humans had disappeared from her room, with a new book in each ones place. She stormed to her bookshelf to take a closer look at the titles. Baking Sweets 101, Proper Equine diet, Building Healthy Habits? Lyra picked up one and glanced at the cover, is Bonbon trying to tell me something? she thought cluelessly.

Not wanting to simply part with her beloved studying books, Lyra grabbed the impostors, and threw them aside. Only the wood paneling lay behind the new books. They have to be here, I've spent months hunting down these books, Bonbon doesn't know how hard I've worked!

"They aren't here" confessed a voice behind her.

Lyra jumped away from the sudden voice, hitting her head on the wall. "Celestia!" She yelled, then proceeded with, "Owwwwwwww, my horn!" She put a hoof to her head to comfort the pain, then addressed her roommate, who only stared at her with a lame look. "Bonbon don scare me like that, I though you weren't home" groaned Lyra.

"I though you were out getting me flour" replied Bonbon.

"I thought you actually needed flour" reminded Lyra "or is there something else you need me to do while you toss away my books?" Lyra was furious at his point, Bonbons never done anything like this to me before, she must be serious.

"Look, I needed you out of the house Lyra, your too obsessed with Humans now, and I'm not going to let you rot away in a room while I sit by pretending everything is happy and fine. Have you even though about how your studying affects me? We used to be best friends, and now I can't spend a day with you without you running back to those books."

The words settled heavily on Lyra's heart, "Shes right you know" said the angel on her shoulder "You've neglected her and spent too much time in those books, have a day with her". On the opposite shoulder a devil appeared in a spark of flame, holding a pitchfork with a nasty grin. "Don't listen to him" said the devil "She's jealous of the information you've learned and her greedy desires want to know it!"

"LYRA! Yelled her roommate for the second time that day. The Angel and Devil simultaneously popped out existence, each in there wisp of themed smoke, snapping her back into reality. "Have you been listening?" She said feeling downcast. "You need to change your habits, so I got a few books for you from Twilight while you were out. I'm not letting things get so out of hand again" she said, head towards the floor.

"Bonbon I'm sorry that I've made you worry for me so much but it's not so bad, I'm still young, green, and happy" Reassured her roommate.

"But you still on the wrong path Lyra, I want to help you before you do something permanent to yourself!" said Bonbon. "Your going to read those books, and help me in the kitchen later when your done. In fact, speaking of the kitchen, did you get me some flower anyways? It can't hurt to have extras" Her roommate reached into Lyra's saddlebags before objections were made, and pulled out the strange box from earlier.

"Bonbon please don't do anything to it" pleaded Lyra as she reached for the device

"Firstly, I don't mind that you didn't get some flour, but what is this thing? It's black and plastic and useless! There are holes in the sides and it's heavy" said the almost transfixed mare. "What is this thing?"

Oh no, I never thought of what to do if Bonbon caught me. "It's a magic book" Lyra lied "The merchant made it look really good" she added, hoping to convince her friend. Maybe she'll believe that, I've heard of a few magic books in Canterlot, but nothing like this, she thought to herself.

"Why doesn't it open" Bonbon questioned, and Lyra pointed to a small lever at the bottom. She pulled it and opened the book, and was flashed with the same artificial light from before. Her head reared from the light at first then relaxed with the the smile her roommate gave her, If Lyra bought it she must've tested it, I'll be alright.

"It uses magic magic to function, so it can't be used by an earth pony for long" added Lyra to the list of growing lies "Can I have it back now, pretty please?"

"Fine" said Bonbon "But first, what does it do? Does it show Human books on it?" she asked cautiously.

"Nothing of the sort" replied Lyra "Magic exclusive titles only. Stuff like how to improve telekinesis, make your own spells, potions, those sorts of things." Im really on a roll with this.

"Promise?" asked Bonbon.

"Promise" replied Lyra.

A look of relief crossed Bonbons face as she passed the Magic Book back to her roommate. "...Alright... I suppose it's fine as long as your not fiddling uselessly with it. And you'll still need to put these books back on there shelves and help me in the kitchen. But if you want to read the new books I gave you first that's fine." Bonbon began to leave the room and stopped at the doorway. "And by the way Lyra, thanks for finding something new and productive to do."

As soon as the door was closed Lyra mentally complimented herself on the quick thinking, as well as punish for lying to her best friend. She opened the device and was greeted by the one icon again, One way to know what it does. Might as well go for it. She pressed the screen and waited, until it was apparent nothing was going to happen. In response to this, Lyra did the only rational thing anypony would've done.

Each and every button was hammered upon mercilessly, a vulnerable subject under its cyan master. Screens popped up and closed rapidly, too fast to be readable. The 'Book' was making unnatural beeping noises and small clicks, and soon become hot to the touch. On her third attempt at button mashing, Lyra's hoof slipped across the bottom of the machine and a small pointer appeared. She rubbed the area again and was given the same response, the pointer followed where she touched and when she tapped the pad a short 'click' noise followed.

Lyra soon mastered the controls of the pad and moved her attention back to the mysterious icon. Time to find out what you really are. She controlled the pointer to the icon and gave it a click, upon when the entire screen changed to static, imploding on itself. Lyra only stared at the screen in question, All that time, for this? Maybe if I turn it on and off again? Her motives were confirmed when a white sub-box appeared carrying the message 'Windows.exe has stopped working'. Lyra groaned and shut off the device. "Ill try again tomorrow," she said conclusively.

She placed the Magic Book back in her saddlebags and one by one grabbed the books and paced them back on the shelf. Lyra began to walk back to her bed then hesitated, and grabbed Baking Sweets 101. She sat down on her bed in a way nopony else did, and began to read.

Cooking with Bonbon

The guidebook in Lyra's hooves, having revealed all it's tips and hints to a delicious treat, was laid to rest back on the newly stocked bookshelf. Of course it wasn't completely read, she had had no patience for reading when she could be inches away from a freshly made muffin beside her best pal. There were a few highlights Bonbon had made, most likely recipes for them to bake later, and Lyra's mouth couldn't help but water. Hopefully I'm not to late to help!

A slamming noise echoed throughout the house as Lyra swung her door wide open, "I'm ready Bonbon," she called with a tone of eagerness and cheer. Clanging and clinking sounded from the kitchen, now filled with bags of unknown spices and powders pondering their new form. Regardless of the mess of ingredients strewn around, nothing existed to show for progress, except for Bonbon.

Her mane was messy and covered in flour, eyes strained on the mixture she was clenching to her and stirring silently. She looked strained and rushed, In fact, Bonbon had done nothing to acknowledge her friends existence, as if the slop in her clutch enticed her.

"Hello, Equestria to Bonbon, do you read Bonbon?" asked Lyra, hoping to get a chuckle. She reached a hoof to poke her friend and was met with another. She's awfully invested in that bowl,thought Lyra.

"Hey Lyra," murmured Bonbon. "I'm sorry, I just tried a new recipe. The instructions were simple enough, I just wanted to make you something before you left your room. Guess I failed huh?" She bear the words with a small smile.

"Don't sweat it Bonbon," reassured Lyra. She placed a hoof on her friends back carefully, "We can still make something. The kitchen can be cleaned and we can try again," promised the cyan mare. She grabbed the nearest container and began to scoop the powdery substances from the countertop, and was followed by Bonbon with a wet cloth. The previous tools were tossed to the sink for tedious cleaning later, and the floor was swept and the piles scooped to be thrown away.

"What were you trying to make for me again?" Asked Lyra, "Can't hurt to give it another go." She was directed to a small note hanging by a clip to her right. The paper was crumpled and had small tears along the thin edges, Bonbon must've really doubted her cooking if she had to keep the note to her face so much to rip it. Good thing it's only a note.

"It's the Cakes recipe for muffins, I thought you would enjoy them and that it would ease you from losing your books," said Bonbon. "Again, it looked easy and I was going to make them for you but I failed," the frustration showed in her eyes.

"Let's try again," Lyra put simply, "I can help this time." She picked up the note and began to drill off the list to Bonbon, acting almost as a teacher prepping her student. How ironic is this? When will things ever make sense?

The pair gathered the ingredients to start their messy task and reap the delicious rewards. They worked slower than before, taking extra care to each instruction as their treat depended on it. Everything about the instructions was to be executed perfectly.

They made small talk about daily events recently occurred, trying to spark a proper topic for conversation while making the muffins. "So how'd you get the Cakes recipie exactly?" Asked Lyra, "I'm not shure how you would get it so fast."

"Well it wasn't exactly the Cakes I got it from," confessed Bonbon. "I ran into Pinkie Pie on the way to store your books, which was for your own good," emphasized Bonbon. "We chatted for awhile, and she wanted to help you out of the slum we both though you'd go through, and one thing led to another and I got the recipie from her. What I can't understand though is why this recipie has been so stubborn with me."

"Maybe she wrote a wrong ingredient?," Asked Lyra, "You know she can be twitchy when she's excited, she probably wrote something wrong and didn't notice."

Bonbon gave a chuckle, "Your probably right, she was twitchy at the time." She looked desperate to believe her friends words.

The rest of the cooking passed in silence as the batter was placed in the oven and heated. When the oven beeped, the mares both rushed for the oven and pulled out the tray. Frosting was covered on the cupcakes, the mares sparing no expense to mask the creations they silently feared would be terrible.

Each grabbed the first cupcake finished and gave it a unique glance of their own. Please be not terrible, pleaded Lyra, and plunged the treat down. Dear Celestia help me.

Silently, the two friends gave each other a huge twisted grin, picked up the tray of cupcakes, and tossed them throughout the open window. They dared at glance at the pile of squashed cupcakes, now being surrounded by a small assortment of woodland animals, and slammed the window followed by shutting the blinds.

"Guess we better head to bed," suggested Bonbon, "I've got some reading to catch up on"

"Yeaaaah me too, maybe I can improve Pinkies recipe later," offered Lyra.

"NO!," yelled Bonbon, "We don't speak about that recipe in our house, no more!" She ran to her room and promptly slammed her door shut and bolted it.

A simple hush would've sufficed, thought Lyra. She walked towards her room and longingly looked at Bonbons door, I should've comforted her about the cupcakes. And receded into her bedroom, shutting the door behind her.

Lyra once more hopped on her bed and curled up, tired from her confusing day, Hopefully tomorrow will be better, she comforted herself. The cyan mare took a few rushed seconds to fluff her pillow and crack her neck before laying down again. Sweet dreams.

A Ding echoed throughout Lyra's room, waking her in a start. Light flowed throughout the room, creating an unnatural aura that no Equestrian room should have to endure. The light continued despite Lyra's attempt to cover herself in blankets and hide from it. After five minutes she finally rose and looked at the source of the disturbance, The magic book, what's it doing? Lyra moved closer to her machine and squinted her eyes to read the impossible text in front of her.

You have one new message.

The Message

You have one new message.

Those five words were almost more than Lyra could comprehend. Any previous attempt at learning from her magic book led to nothing, and now, it was reaching to her. Such a simple action as recieveing a message was made much more complicated, and therefore, more risky.

Impossible, Accused Lyra, nopony has this kind of magic. At least, no regular pony. She moved the cursor over to 'open message' almost praying it was nothing,Probably no point in ignoring it, not like anypony else couldve gotten the message. Hesitantly, she pressed the button and very quickly turned her head away, swishing her mane everywhere.

"I cant hide from this forever," she wisperd to herself. The cyan mare took a split-second glance at the screen and caught a name, Brittany. Who in the hay is that, ive never heard of a Brittany before. She had to admit the name was foriegn to her, not once in her life she had heard it, or anything like it. This thing Brittany was what stood on the other end of her Device, and fit with it perfectfully, Strange name for a strange device.

After her brief ponder Lyra was ready to bear the full weight of the message, A book cant harm me, ill be okay at the end of it, the cyan mare tried and failed to comfort herself. She faced the computer in all its might, ready for her abnormal message.

The message was labled 'Bring it back',and it alone was enough to freeze Lyras blood five times over. The fear she had set aside ran in a full gallop back to her, slamming into her body and shocking her soul with no mercy, Im doomed Luna help me. No force in Equestria could stop her from devouring the message, pleading it ensured that her worst nightmares wouldnt be used to punish her.

Zach I dont know what you did to my Laptop but its been two days since ive seen it. Youve passed me in the halls countless times now and havent given me any mention of what you did to it or when you intend to return it. The matter cannot be avoided, I need my Laptop back by tommorrow or im going to rip off your theiveing hands and mount them on my wall. Bring it to the courtyard at Wayard park tomorrow and everything will be fine. You know where it is right? Just look it up on the internet from the laptop you stole, jerk.

At this point, the message was less than what she was expecting but still more than what she could handle. Her crainium hammered her with questions untill she had to re-read the message to satisfy it, and noticed one singular, simple, life-changing fact. She knows about hands, even better, she knows someone *with** hands.* With all her excitment Lyra could probably conjour a small earthquake and still have enough to party through the night with Pinkie Pie, but no Cupcakes.

Her anxiety had melted away completly by the end of the second read,I can deal with Brittany, no idea who Zach is though, maybe this Wayard place can offer some clues. She closed the message and clicked on the Internet icon once more,Please dont break on me, mentally pleaded Lyra. Her face only brightened when the icon opened and she was led to a small bar, which she assumed must be where she puts the name.

20 search results for Warard park in 0.01 seconds. "Horsefeathers" claimed Lyra, "I know your a powerful thing but thats too far." The fact that even such a powerful thing would lie for more appreciation amused her. She returned her attention to the screen before she realized looking for this Wayard park was pointless, Theres nothing, anything probably in all of Ponyville that is even close to that name. I'd better just write back sorry to Brittany, can't get it to you in who knows how long, if ever. Lyra smiled at that last thought.

Dissmissing her brief search she looked back at the bar, Maybe if I... thought Lyra as she imitated her previous process, but this time entering 'hands'. What she found was heaven. All of her hard work with her books meant nothing in the presence of this, hand after hand after even more hands flooded her view.

Hours past and the moon left the sky, as the sun took its place and soared throughout the sky. Lyra's eyes squinted at the screen in front of her and burned as they bathed in the unnatural light. Her hooves were long sore and her back ached with the stillness she had adopted.

Eventually, the inevitable had to happen as Lyra retracted from the addicting Internet icon and settled into her bed,Better late then never, I can spare an hour for rest. She instantly became comfortable and began to doze upon touching the bed.

"Rise and shine!," yelled Bonbon from her doorway. "Don't worry about me being mad at you, I expected those cupcakes to do a number on us. In fact, I just woke up myself and came to wake you." Bonbon grinned at her doorway.

Something is off with her, thought Lyra, Neither of us are this up in the morning.She groaned and rubbed the grit off her eyes, "five more minutes." Then grabbed a pillow and shoved it on her head, wishing for all her problems to go away.

Bonbon spared no mercy getting Lyra up. She began by pulling the blankets from her roommates grasp and tossing them in the closet, followed by picking up the cyan mare from her bed and dropping her right on the floor. In Lyra's confusion, Bonbon took her evil time to ready a glass of water and promptly pour it on her friends face.

"What the hay Bonbon!" Yelled the dripping mare, "I was going to get up in a minute!" She raised her head to face Bonbon and received a twisted grin. Lyra had seen that face on Bonbon before, somepony was going to pay. Please tell me there's not more to this morning routine that tortures me.

"Up now Lyra, hurry!" Said her friend, "Were going to make Pinkie regret ever giving us that recipe. And then were going to make it and feed it to her lying face!" The seemingly deranged mare hopped out and away from her roommates bedroom. "And it's going to happen by the end of the day or Celestia help me I'm gonna kill somepony." The pale mare waited a moment for her friends response and asked, "Right Lyra?"

Confrontation

Lyra and Bonbon stood at the back of the popular candy shop of their soon-to-be victim, Pinkamia Diane Pie. The backside wasn't nearly as pleasant as the front, merely because anypony with a level head would want to see and smell the baked goods in front of them. Hardly anypony would ever occupy this space except the Cakes to throw out the trash in a dumpster once a day.

"You know why we have to do this, right Lyra?" Asked Bonbon. She seemed almost desperate for her friend to trust her and help her at this point.

"Not really," confessed Lyra. "You really seem to be overreacting about this Bonbon. Firstly, how are we going to get Pinkie alone in the restaurant, and then how are we going to manage to use her kitchen to make the cupcakes when there's probably customers waiting inside? You need to think about this Bonbon, your trying to take a friend hostage and feed her nasty muffins, who does that?" The cyan mare took a step back and put a hoof to her friends shoulder. "Are you sure I'm the one who we should be worried about?"

"Listen Lyra, I don't think you understand the situation here," said Bonbon, "I mean, what if your abilities, everything you were able to once do suddenly stopped working? How would you feel if you were suddenly worthless?" The pale mare seemed to be on the verge of tears from her outcry.

"I can understand why your upset but are you sure the muffins weren't just a joke, maybe some infamous Pinkie prank? We can't do something of this proportion to her Bonbon, can we figure something else out, an apology maybe?" Negotiated Lyra.

"No, she needs to pay," said the stubborn mare, "Even if it was a joke it was too far Lyra, she needs to know how I felt." Bonbons need for revenge soon grew to a ramble, her dispute bringing only a few reasonable points. She wanted to punish Pinkie for her joke, but in all too harsh and unrealistic of a way. In her rambles Bonbon only grew more concentrated on her reasons, developing them in the hope they could stand against any accusations, but it went completely unaware to her that her friend had slipped away around the corner.

The shops bell have a small ding as Lyra pushed open the doors of the bakery and wandered into the smell of freshly baked goods. Luckily nopony was in line at the moment, every one of them having been already served and sitting the wrong way at their tables. Lyra trotted her way to the counter and gave it a knock, Please tell me Pinkies here right now, mentally pleaded Lyra.

Moments passed in worried silence as it became more apparent that Pinkie couldn't be here until the familiar springing sound made its way into Lyra's ears. Soon later Pinkie made her way to the counter, the same ever present smile plastered on her face and turned her attention to Bonbon.

"What can I get'ca Lyra, haven't seen you here in awhile you silly filly."

"Pinkie I want this to be over as fast as possible so if you can just follow me outside this can be over in a minute." The cyan mare gave no clues to Pinkie through her eyes, which seemed to almost want to rocket out of her and away from this place by the look she was giving the bubblegum pony.

When Pinkie stood still for too long in question Lyra took her hoof and led her out of the shop, Who cares for that she's not at the shop for a minute, this needs to end now. They quickly rounded the corner once and again to gaze upon Bonbon, still oblivious to her friends departure. Guideing Pinkie, Lyra moved her to Bonbon and tapped her roommates shoulder, Please don't kill me.

Bonbon retracted from her debate for her claims to see the one who fooled her. Her face contorted in an array of unpleasant emotions, clearly shocked to see Pinkie standing in front of her. "What.... LYRA!" Yelled the pale mare. "What in Celestia's name are you doing!" She yelled in obvious hate.

"Fixing your problem, it's not mine," responded Lyra, "buhbye now Bonbon, I'm going home."

"What, no, your staying here and helping me with Pinkie." Said Bonbon in annoyance. "Get back here now!"

"Not my problem," said Lyra casually. Leaving steaming Bonbon with a very confused Pinkie Pie. She walked calmly around the corner of a bright yellow building, out of her friends sight and than ran for her dear life.

After a short run away from the bakery shop Lyra took a seat next to Bonbon's candy shop, Thank Celestia we live close by, I'm so out of shape. Minutes passed as she regained her breath and calmed down, She must've stayed with Pinkie after all. She gave a sigh of relief and opened the front door, not giving a hoot for its creaking.

"Everything will be fine," muttered Lyra, "Bonbon will talk it over with Pinkie for a bit and see she didn't mean to mess with her. Until then I can just sit here and rest." She walked past the kitchen and it's mess, avoiding the cause of her friends predicament and went to her room. She rested her hoof on the handle and waited a moment in thought, I hope Bonbon won't hate me for what I've done.

The plain door creaked open slowly as Lyra entered her cozy room. She made the obvious choice for her well being and decided to take a rest, I've been needing this rest for ages now. Hopefully I can get some this time. The tired mare hopped onto her bed and pulled the sheets over herself, waiting for sleep to envelop her and mend her aching joints from the day.

The room grew dark with the oncoming moon with its impossible levels of darkness, rivaling all memory of the days sun with its beauty. Lyra was still wide awake, shifting and tossing in her bed, Bonbons not come back home yet, thought Lyra, Its too late to go for her, she must've stayed the night with Pinkie or something. She continued her thoughts for reasons as to why her friend hadn't come home yet, her worry slowly growing until it she couldn't stand it anymore.

Lyra rose from her bed and grabbed her saddlebags, shaking off any layers of drowsiness she had achieved from her attempt at sleep. She ran out of her bedroom and to the front door hastily, locking it behind her. Not a second was spared as she ran full force to sugarcube corner. She rounded the last corner into an alleyway, and was stopped in her tracks as a lions hand took hold of her and hoisted her into the air to stare into large yellow eyes. The lions hand placed her in a scaled red tail that coiled her in the air.

"What have you done with my machine?"

The Discord

Discord, it is not a kind thing. Discord is what causes friends to turn on each other, society to crumble, and relationships to end in bitter strife. Even through his smile and renewed loyalty to ponies, Lyra could feel the anger radiate from him and penetrate her soul.

His grasp on her was tight, forcing her to make small breaths while doing her best to impersonate Fluttershy's stare to be let go.

Up close, she could observe the chimera better than she would've liked. For being composed of many amazing animals, Discord wasn't a charming beast to look at in the flesh. The unnaturalness of his body made Lyra fear she was going to sprout an extra limb from her chest and be stuck with it for life, and having Discord in front of her it could become a terrifying reality.

His sudden appearance started fireworks and flares in her mind, he wanted the machiene she had stolen days ago. She thought back to the message she had received earlier, and replayed it in her head, searching for an explanation. Brittany and Zach, both humans. Brittany had wanted her magic book back from Zach, and he obviously doesn't have it, so why had it ended up here?

Despite the embodiment of chaos clenching her in its grasp, Lyra decided it was best to wait for a better explanation and hope it was just a misunderstanding.

Only a few minutes passed until Discord upped his ante, and put a tighter grip on Lyra. His eyes grew sharp and penetrating, searching the pony in front of him for answers before finally asking, "Where is my Laptop?"

The question was enough to set gears turning in her head. Brittany mentioned that the book was a laptop, so how is Discord involved in this? She carefully crafted her next words in hope she wouldn't be strangled, "A few days ago, an... acquaintance, of mine mentioned something by the same name, do you know who?" Lyra knew questioning the already threatening chimera in front of her for proof was risky, especially if he didn't know who Brittany was.

"Brittany," he responded plain and simple, "Specifically Brittany Kenderson. She's a bit of a stuck-up brat but nice... In a few ways. Why would you be asking?"

"She sent me a message awhile back, how do you know her?" Lyra was only getting more confused and hurt from this, she glanced down at her stomach which was beginning to chafe from his coiling tail. Why aren't I down on the sweet ground? Can't he let me down for this?

"I think I should be asking you that, be careful, it's not your possession." He smirked, "You've already given me proof that you have it, now hand it over before you grow a feeler and I lose a friend." He almost laughed at his last remark, adding to Lyra's fear.

Lyra sighed and took a moment to collect herself before answering Discord, "I don't have it."

The comment rattled Discord more than it seemed it should. He his face appeared to show... Worry, but just for the briefest second. "Where is it then?" He said as he pulled Lyra to an even closer position to himself.

"The laptops back in the bakery now let me go!" choked Lyra, "Aren't you supposed to be good now?" The question stopped Discord cold in his grasp, almost dropping her for a moment, before he resumed his stance. He flicked his fingers, and the two popped into existence right in Lyra's bedroom.

"Find it," he put simply, "And as for your question, well... those elements aren't everywhere are they now my little pony? It's surprising what you can accomplish out of sight, just like you."

Discord dropped Lyra right onto the floor to retrieve the laptop, sitting openly on the floor in front of them, This is too simple, why does he need me to get it? Hesitantly she inched to the device and grabbed it while rubbing her aching stomach.

"Sit down now, I'm going to tell you a story that you may choose to believe, or to try to falsify it."

Lyra took no objection to his demand, it was more time for her to recover from his coiling. She observed the embodiment of chaos as he also took a seat and rested his back on the wooden wall, and stared to the ceiling.

"Some time ago I felt a need for more friends, sure Fluttershy was nice and more caring than the rest but the need I had was bigger. You ponies are all familiar with me now, and quick to flee and run as the 'big bad Discord comes to town', all but a small, brave, and loyal few. This encouraged me to seek out new friends, ones who had never heard of me before, not even in myth, legend, or tale. The search was brief nonetheless, a habitable world was practically around the corner."

"What does this have to do with me exactly? Why is this here?" Questioned Lyra.

Discord gave a frown to her impatience and continued briefly. "When I arrived at the planet it was infested with beings I came to learn were Humans. The first few ran from me in terror, but what would you expect if you saw me one day come at you for seemingly no reason?" He quickly put a claw to Lyra's mouth "Hush, patience is a virtue," he took a moment to retract. "With all the screams I was getting it became clear I couldn't approach them looking the way I was, so I turned myself into one by the name of Zach."

Lyra couldn't be more invested with his Discords story, all her dreams of humans were being answered so simply and easily. If only do known to ask him earlier. She leaned towards him and absorbed every word he could offer her.

"Which led me to find Brittany, three days later on the side of the road. She had been walking home and I asked if I could help her carry her book and backpack. She had accepted thankfully and I helped her home, to which she invited me inside for a snack. I had taken a seat in the dining room as she gathered something in the kitchen and walked back to me. The snack doesn't matter, it's what else she brought. Right as she sat down she was holding some plain, metallic looking object that could show her anything and everything she desired. Eager to use it, I asked her if I could borrow the contraption she called a laptop. Her generosity surprised me, the power of a god and she handed it over, well... after we had established a return date and location, bit still. Brittany had shown me a great kindness by letting me borrow her possession, one I will not soon forget."

"So you want to give it back to maintain your relationship with her, how nice of you." The words had played out better in her head, "Oh," she winced. "Yep that explains a lot," Lyra said nervously, "So if you could just take back the thing and go that'd be great please."

"Oh I can't have it be that simple now can I," replied Discord as he snatched the laptop back from Lyra, "You've been very disrespectful of our friendship, so I'll have to punish you." He began to make a show of chanting and meaningless rambles to heighten her fear and at its climax slammed talon and paw together.

Lyra felt no change by the event, nothing was different as far as she could observe. Then the chimera in front of her pointed at her stomach, precisely where she was chafed. What lay there were letters, in a mocking tone, saying thief all around the damaged area.

"The curse should last for a few days at its best, ta-ta now pony, see you in the human world," Discord gave a cackle before he flicked his talon and vanished with no trace of having ever entered her room.

With all that's just happened! I'm surprised it was nothing worse. The mare took a moment to absorb all that had recently happened before Bonbon came through the door. Lyra quickly jumped into her bed, retreating under the covers to hide her new features.

"I wanted to thank you Lyra, turns out Pinkie had just forgotten to list an ingredient like you guessed. Any other way and I think I would've torn her to shreds if you hadn't made us come together. Again, thanks for helping me out, even if did seem mad at you. And... Goodnight Lyra, you've earned some sleep." Bonbon then closed the door and left her friend to her thoughts.

Lyra took minute to reflect on the last few days and smiled at them, Mostly fun, she thought. Inside her bed she realized it was the one thing she had left to do, sleep.