Harmonic Blue Skies

The perfect weather continued into the next day as well. After waking up together and brushing their manes, Sky and Lyra walked down the street to the Hay Burger for breakfast.

“I just want to say again, thank you so much for defending me yesterday.” Lyra said sincerely.

“I would have done that for anypony I truly care about.” Sky replied modestly. “I should really be the one thanking you for pulling Noteworthy off of me before things got even uglier.” He chuckled. “You did the same thing to him that Ivory Brushstroke did to Penny Pincher!”

“I guess I did!” Lyra laughed. “But I couldn’t just stand there and be a bystander, could I?”

Sky turned and kissed Lyra’s cheek. “I’m so lucky to have you, Lyra.”

Lyra kissed Sky back. “The feeling is more than mutual, Sky.”

The new couple soon arrived at the Hay Burger. “Do you want to share a waffle sundae?” Sky asked.

“Sure!” Lyra agreed. “We can share a milkshake, too!”

Sky walked up to the door and held it open for Lyra. Lyra blushed and thanked Sky as she walked into the diner, and Sky followed. As one would expect on a Sunday morning, the diner was quite busy and most of the tables were full. As Sky and Lyra looked around for a table, they ran into Octavia, who seemed relieved to see them. “Lyra! Sky!” Octavia exclaimed. “Oh, it’s so good to see you’re all right!”

Lyra quickly figured out what Octavia was referring to. “You heard about the fight yesterday?” she asked.

“Of course, it was on the front page of the papers!” Octavia replied. “It said you two and Noteworthy were involved in a fight at the Ponyville park, and that Noteworthy’s now in the hospital. Royal Riff filled in the missing details for me.”

“So you know why the fight started?” Sky asked.

“Yes, I know.” said Octavia. “It’s absolutely shocking that Noteworthy would act in such a manner. Would you like to sit with me? I’m with Vinyl and Royal, but our table still has room for two more ponies.”

“Sure!” said Lyra. Sky nodded in agreement.

“Splendid!” said Octavia. She led Sky and Lyra to a large table near the center of the diner, where Vinyl Scratch and Royal Riff were seated. Octavia returned to her seat, and Sky and Lyra took two of the three remaining chairs.

“Good to see you’re back on your hooves, Sky!” said Royal. “You feeling all right?”

“Yeah, I’m feeling fine again.” Sky replied. “Though I probably won’t be flying for a few days.” He turned to show his bandaged wing. “Lyra patched it up for me yesterday.”

“Good mare!” Vinyl said with a smile.

“Thanks.” Lyra giggled.

A waitress soon came by to take Sky and Lyra’s orders. They ordered one waffle sundae and one vanilla milkshake, much to the surprise of Octavia. “Are you two sharing?” she asked.

Lyra grinned. “Yep! I didn’t tell you this, but as of yesterday, Sky is my coltfriend! We shared our first kiss after I carried him home.”

“Oh, really? Congratulations, you two!” Octavia exclaimed. “That’s wonderful!”

“Thank you. It really is.” Sky agreed. “Yesterday was a pretty wild day for both of us.”

“I can imagine that!” said Octavia. “But I’m just glad to see that neither of you was seriously hurt.”

“I think I should mention that the fight and everything leading up to it happened because Note was jealous of Sky.” said Royal.

“Really?” Octavia asked. “How do you know that? I mean, I know Noteworthy always liked Lyra, but I never thought he’d be the jealous type. He’s always seemed so confident in his abilities. Conceited, even.”

“Note may seem like one of the most confident ponies around, but he and I have been best friends for a long time, and I can tell you that he’s pretty insecure on the inside.” Royal explained. “He compares himself to others a lot, and he brags about himself to compensate for his insecurity. He got so much worse after the music show.”

“Well, that’s obvious.” Sky remarked. “He went from being just a braggart to being a total asshole.”

“I think I’ll have to agree with you there.” Royal admitted. “I told him to stop focusing on you two, but he wouldn’t listen to me, and now this is the result.”

“I really, really don’t want him in my friend group anymore.” Lyra said firmly.

“Me neither.” Octavia agreed. “Anypony who treats others like that is no friend of mine.”

“Same here.” put in Vinyl. “How about you, Royal?”

Royal thought carefully. “This is going to be really hard for me. I mean, I’ve known him for so long, but he really has changed for the worse. I really want to believe that he’ll learn something from this whole thing, but if not, I guess I’ll have to leave him behind.”

Sky shrugged. “I don’t think he’ll learn anything from this. He’ll probably just be even more angry and mean when he gets out of the hospital.”

“Well, regardless, I think I’ll go there and visit him today, just to see how he’s doing.” said Royal. “Hopefully I can convince him to become a better pony again.”

“Good luck with that.” Lyra scoffed. She turned to Sky. “Octavia, Vinyl and I are going to be having a jam session this afternoon. Do you want to watch?”

“No, I can’t. I’m going to Sugarcoat’s house for lunch today.” Sky replied. “Thanks for the offer, though. I’m sure your music will be great.”

The waffle sundae and vanilla milkshake soon arrived, and Sky and Lyra shared a wonderful breakfast together. A new chapter of their lives was only just beginning.

At one o’clock that afternoon, Sky arrived at Sugarcoat’s house and rang the doorbell. It was a two-story lavender stucco house with royal blue lining, and it was only a few blocks away from the Canterlot train station. Sugarcoat had lived in the house ever since she first moved to Canterlot, so Sky was very familiar with it.

“Hey, Sky!” Sugarcoat said with a smile as she answered the door. She then noticed the large white bandage on Sky’s right wing. “What the hay happened to your wing?!”

“It’s… a long story.” said Sky. “Anyway, what’s for lunch?”

“I made some hayburgers.” Sugarcoat replied. “Hadn’t used the grill in a while. But we’re not eating until you tell me how you hurt your wing.”

“Oh, all right.” Sky conceded. “Can I come in?”

“Of course you can. I wouldn’t have opened the door otherwise.” Sugarcoat quipped. She moved aside to let Sky into her house, and they sat on the couch in the living room. Sky then began to tell his story.

“So yesterday afternoon, Lyra and I went for a walk in the Ponyville park.” Sky explained. “We got some slush and sat down on the bench. She brought her lyre too, and after we finished the slush, she offered to play a song for me. But then that Noteworthy guy showed up.”

“Ugh… him again?” Sugarcoat groaned. “I thought me tearing him apart in the cafe would have been enough. I guess not.”

“Yeah. Anyway, he hurled insults at both of us, and then Lyra really tore into him. Called him out on all his bullshit.” Sky continued. “The shouting match continued for a while, between all of us, and then Noteworthy decided to grab Lyra without her consent.”

“Wow, he really is a horrible pony!” Sugarcoat exclaimed.

“Oh, definitely.” Sky agreed. “Lyra pulled herself away immediately, and I did what any decent pony would do in that situation – I popped him straight in the muzzle.”

Sugarcoat patted Sky on the back. “Good on you, Sky! He deserves that!”

Sky nodded. “Absolutely! He then tried to kick me, and I dove out of the way, but one of his back legs still hit my wing. That’s why it’s bandaged. We continued taking swings at each other, but I’m a lot faster than he is, so I was winning the fight. Then he punched me in the shoulder really hard, which hurt like hell. Lyra then picked Noteworthy up with her magic and threw him through the air! He landed on a park bench and was knocked out! Serves him right!”

“Nice!” Sugarcoat laughed. “He ended up just like Penny Pincher!”

“Yes, indeed! Lyra and I were already saying that.” Sky agreed. “I wasn’t seriously injured in the fight, but my shoulder injury made it too painful to walk. So Lyra carried me on her back, which was really nice.”

“You should be seriously thanking her for that. You’re bigger and heavier than she is, after all.” Sugarcoat remarked.

“I know. I did thank her for it.” Sky replied. “Anyway, she carried me back to her house and sat me down on her couch. She disinfected and bandaged the cut on my wing, and then she surprised me by kissing the bruise on my shoulder! The pain went away just like that, and I didn’t even need an ice pack!”

“She must really love you then.” Sugarcoat giggled.

Sky blushed. “Yeah. She does. We confessed our feelings for each other after she kissed my shoulder. And we had our first real kiss after that, so she’s my marefriend now!”

Sugarcoat smiled warmly. “I’m happy everything worked out well between you and Lyra, but the thought of you in a relationship will take a while for me to get used to.”

“It’s all right, Sugar.” Sky said kindly. “I was always your quiet little cousin, after all. Well, younger by one year, but you know what I mean.”

“Exactly. When we were young, I was always the one who spoke for you.” said Sugarcoat. “It really is amazing how far you’ve come. I’m proud of you, Sky.”

“Aww, thanks, Sugar!” Sky wrapped his front legs around Sugarcoat and hugged her tightly. Sugarcoat reciprocated the hug.

“So… how about lunch?” Sky asked when he and Sugarcoat let go of each other.

“Sure thing!” Sugarcoat replied. “The burgers aren’t getting any fresher. They’re sitting on the kitchen table.”

Sugarcoat led Sky into the kitchen, where a plate of four hayburgers with lettuce sat on the table. “I made two for each of us. Is that enough for you?” Sugarcoat asked.

“Of course it is. I’m not that piggy!” Sky laughed.

“Good.” Sugarcoat and Sky sat down at the table, and each took two burgers. “Mmm, these are really good!” Sky said as he bit into one.

“I’m glad you like them!” said Sugarcoat. “They turned out better than I thought they would.”

“You’re a better cook than me for sure.” said Sky. “Anyway, how have things been going for you as of late?”

“The explosives factory has been really busy this week.” Sugarcoat replied. “We’ve been getting a ton of orders for fireworks and dynamite. Keeping all the shipments organized is becoming a real pain.”

“As is making sure none of them explode, I’m sure.” Sky chuckled.

“We have stringent safety measures put in place.” Sugarcoat said bluntly. “There have been zero accidents since I started working there.”

“Well, that’s good.” said Sky. “I’m sure you’re doing an amazing job as the boss.”

“All of the workers say I am.” Sugarcoat replied. “I run a tight ship. No messing around, no wasting time. Since I got my promotion, every shipment has been delivered safely and on time. I’ve got a spotless record that I don’t intend to break.”

Sky grinned. “Awesome! Keep it up! You control both the production and the deliveries, right?”

“Pretty much, yeah.” Sugarcoat replied. “As I said before, the company’s owner barely does anything. I could use a day off, though.”

Sky then had an idea. “Now that Lyra’s my marefriend, you probably want to get to know her better, right? I mean, you only met her once at the cafe.”

“Of course I do.” said Sugarcoat. “I need to know the pony my favorite cousin is dating.”

“Well, how about sometime this week, you take a day off from work and spend it with me and Lyra? All three of us, hanging out together!”

Sugarcoat smiled. “That’s a great idea! There are so many places in Canterlot that we could go to. I’ll take Friday off. It’ll give you time to make plans with Lyra, and it’ll give me a three-day weekend.”

“That’s perfect!” said Sky. “I can’t wait!”

Meanwhile, Royal Riff arrived at Ponyville Hospital and walked up to the front desk. The receptionist asked for his name and who he was visiting.

“I’m Royal Riff. I’m visiting my friend Noteworthy.” Royal replied. “Which room is he in?”

“He’s in room 14.” said the receptionist. She pointed to the hallway on the left. “Go down the west corridor and when you reach the end, take a right.”

“Okay. Thanks.” Royal followed the receptionist’s directions and soon arrived at a door with the number 14 on it. He opened the door and saw Noteworthy laying on a bed at the back of the room. His head was bandaged and his left rear leg was in a cast. Royal slowly walked over to him and sat down on a chair.

“Hi, Note.” he said. “How are you holding up?”

Noteworthy rolled his eyes. “Sky picked a fight with me and then Lyra almost killed me. How do you think I’m holding up?!” he snapped.

Royal was taken aback. “I just wanted to check on you. You know, as a friend.”

“Well, thanks for that.” Noteworthy grunted. “At least you haven’t turned on me, unlike a certain mint green unicorn that we both know.”

Royal sighed. “About that… I hate to break it to you, but this whole situation is your fault. None of this would have happened if you weren’t such a jerk to Sky. It’s no wonder Lyra doesn’t want to be friends with you anymore.”

Noteworthy growled. “I was always nice to Lyra. We always worked well together. I was destined to be her coltfriend. And then Sky Scraper came into the picture, and ruined everything for me!”

“I understand that you’re frustrated about Lyra liking Sky more than you.” said Royal. “And that’s okay. What’s not okay is insulting Sky every time you see him, and grabbing Lyra without her consent. I’m your friend and I want to stand by you, but the way you’ve been acting lately is inexcusable.”

“If you’re just going to berate me, please leave.” Noteworthy retorted. “I’m in no mood for flak from my so-called friend.”

Royal sighed again. “I’m not giving you flak. I’m trying to help you learn from your mistakes and become a better pony.”

“What’s there to learn?” Noteworthy learned. “All I’ve learned is that you, Lyra and the others have no loyalty. You’ve chosen a lonely outsider over me, and I won’t stand for it. When I get released from this hospital, I’m moving out of Ponyville. I have no place in this town anymore.”

“Well, after what you did yesterday, I’d say you’re right about the last part.” said Royal. “Octavia and Vinyl also said they don’t want to be friends with you anymore. And at this point, I think you’ve lost me, too.”

“Then go away.” Noteworthy grumbled. “I don’t care to see you or any of my former friends ever again.”

Royal shook his head. He didn’t want to leave his best friend behind like this, but Noteworthy’s refusal to listen had left him with no other choice. He silently left the room, leaving Noteworthy with nothing but his own misguided anger for company.

For Sky and Lyra, a wonderful new chapter was beginning. But for Noteworthy, it was the end of the line.