Living with Yourself: A Ponies Protecting Ponies Tale

by Venates

Rating: everyone
Tags: Lyra, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Alternate Universe, Sparkler, Carrot Top, Bon-Bon, Derpy Hooves, Slice of Life
Length: 6483

Lyra Heartstrings is a cantankerous secret agent, to put things mildly. At least she can do her job well. Having her as a roommate is another story entirely.

After the events of the Summer Sun Celebration, Lyra Heartstrings is permanently relocated to the Ponyville division of Ponies Protecting Ponies, Equestria's oldest and most secret defense agency. Surrounded by unfamiliar ponies in an unfamiliar town was not her choice, but it's the one she needs to live with. Now, someone else needs to learn to live with her, and vice-versa.

Published 2020-10-29 22:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2020-10-29 22:00:00 UTC

Living with Yourself

"No way, no how."

Bon Bon sighed and pressed a creme-colored hoof to her forehead. "Heartstrings, we've been over this," Bon Bon said, exhausted. "I'm not exactly a fan of it either, but the fact is—"

"The fact is, I want my own place!" Lyra yelled. The green unicorn's voice echoed in the cavernous underground facility that Ponyville's Ponies Protecting Ponies headquarters operated out of. Bon Bon and Carrot Top stood on the control room console while Lyra stood on the ground in front of it, protesting. "I know this is a 'team effort' and all, but if I don't get any time to myself, I'm going to kill somepony!"

A stallion's voice emanated from the nearby research lab. "The number one rule here is—!"

"Don't kill stuff, yeah, got it, thanks, Hooves," Lyra growled.

"Yup!" Doctor Hooves answered. A small bang punctuated his reply, with a quick "It's under control!" coming from the stallion.

Bon Bon massaged her temples. "The fact is, there isn't any real estate open right now. To house you somewhere by yourself, we'd have to build a home from scratch, and that simply isn't in the budget."

"Oh, so our boss is the princess of all of Equestria, we saved her sister with a doo-dad that makes no sense, and the entire kingdom is unknowingly in our debt, but suddenly we can't spare a dime for a log cabin out in the woods?!" asked Lyra incredulously.

Carrot Top chuckled. "I'm glad she's taking this well," the yellow mare said to Bon Bon. "A log cabin, Lyra? Really? I didn't think something so rustic would be appealing to a city pony."

"It has solitude," Lyra retorted. "In the city you can be surrounded by ponies and still have your privacy. No one cares. Here it's all, 'Hi! I'm Cherry Rainbow Confetti! Do you want to help me build a tree house made out of sunshine?'"

"I'm not sure the photons would be stable enough for construction!" came Hooves' voice from the research lab.

"YES. THANK YOU, HOOVES. GOT IT."

"Yup!"

"Don't take it out on him, Heartstrings," Bon Bon chided. Lyra glared. "Look, until some real estate opens up, you'll need to stay with one of us to avoid suspicions and make life easier."

"'Easier?'" Lyra scoffed.

Bon Bon continued as though she didn't hear her. "You stated yourself on your profile that you'd rather not spend time with children, which rules out Doo and Top, even if Top's sister only visits a few times a month. That just leaves me."

Lyra complained, "But what about—"

A louder bang than the first boomed from the lab. "It's under control!" Hooves yelled. "Mostly! Mostly under control!"

"Never mind," Lyra said with a groan.

Carrot Top stepped forward. "Bon Bon, why don't you go check on the doctor. I'll take Lyra around town to get her some air and get her more acquainted with her new home. Maybe some time away from the discussion will help clear some heads."

Bon Bon opened her mouth to speak, then sighed. "I suppose that would be best. Be back before dusk; I want ponies to know where they're sleeping come nightfall." She marched to the research and development lab, leaving Lyra and Carrot Top alone.

"Wait, don't I get a say in this?" Lyra asked.

"Nope," Carrot Top replied. She stepped down from the console and gingerly helped Lyra to walk towards the lifts to return to the surface. "Believe me, this is completely necessary."

Lyra grit her teeth. "I don't think—"

Another bang preceded plumes of smoke coming from Hooves' lab. "Nope! Not under control! No longer under control!"

"Hooves, the hay have you been doing in here?!" yelled Bon Bon.

"It's for digging!" the stallion replied.

"THAT'S WHY WE INVENTED SHOVELS!"

"You know what, yeah, air," Lyra said. Then, to Carrot Top in the most unrefined accent she could muster, "Show me 'round these here parts, neighbor."

"—And you'll need to participate in Winter Wrap Up every year, and you should also consider signing up for the Running of the Leaves this fall, not to mention—"

"Carrot. Stop. I can't take any more."

Lyra and Carrot Top sat outside the famous Sugarcube Corner with two desserts and drinks between them. One of the baked goods was already half gone, but the other sat barely touched.

Carrot Top took another bit of her cake. "I'm sorry, Lyra, I'm just trying to help."

"Help?" asked Lyra in disbelief. "I was just explaining to Bon Bon that I want to get away from the ponies in this town, and you're sitting here telling me to jump right into every social activity imaginable!"

The yellow mare dabbed the corners of her mouth with a napkin before speaking. "I know it may be a hard thing to believe, but I honestly think that you'll be happier if you try to integrate into the community a little."

"Integrate?"

"Are you going to repeat key verbs all afternoon?" Carrot Top asked.

"I—" Lyra shook her head. "Carrot, we're secret agents. Why in Equestria should I want to 'integrate' and make ponies more aware of who I am?"

Carrot Top took a long sip from her drink. "Ponies are social creatures," she finally said. "Friends are often times what keep us going in the world."

"Can't say I agree with that," Lyra said. She peered off into the distance. "I don't have anyone I consider a friend, and look at me, I'm still going strong."

A warm summer breeze flitted through the air around them. Carrot Top finished her dessert in a slow silence. When she downed the last of her drink, she spoke deliberately. "Lyra, I read your file."

"You told Star you read hers when we got here, so I imagine mine must have been next in line," Lyra said in response.

"It was first, actually," Carrot Top said.

Lyra snorted. "Well, yay for me. What do I win?"

Carrot Top waited before speaking again. "I know about your trainee. The one you handled before Amethyst."

"Boy, those files sure are terrible at keeping secrets, aren't they?"

"Lyra, please, I need you to be serious for a moment."

"Carrot, I don't want to talk about this. I'm going back to HQ."

Lyra tried to stand up from the table, but found the motion restricted. She spun angrily towards the owner of the hooves that were holding down her own. She glowered at Carrot Top, but only for a moment; the yellow mare's green eyes were racked with grief. "I know you don't want to. But I need you to," the mare said to Lyra.

Lyra hesitated before slowly returning to her seat. Her features softened, though she still looked sour. "Alright, fine," she said. "Though I don't know what I can add that wasn't already written down in the report."

"What I'm looking for isn't what is usually written down," Carrot replied. "I just... well... how did you deal with it?"

"...Excuse me?"

"Your trainee. How did you..." Carrot Top's grip on Lyra's hoof tightened, even though the unicorn didn't try to move. "How did... Did you feel guilty at all?"

Lyra stared. Her mouth was just open enough to show how uncomfortable she was. "Yeah. I did," she answered. "I trained her. And she failed. That's on me."

"And how did..." Carrot Top swallowed. "How did you move on?"

It was as though Lyra forgot how to blink. "What gave you the impression that I did?"

"Well..." Carrot Top swallowed again. "You don't seem to show it. You don't carry yourself as though you're burdened by the memory."

Lyra shifted in her seat. "I carry it everywhere I go, Top," she said. "Even if I didn't, every time I see someone who knows about it, one look from them puts that weight back on my shoulders."

"Oh..." Carrot Top released Lyra's hoof and looked to the ground. Lyra continued to stare at her.

Lyra licked her lips. "Did you..." She licked her lips again. "Did you lose someone?"

Carrot Top looked up in shock. "You mean no one told you...?"

"Told me what?" Lyra asked. "What did you do?" Carrot Top flinched. "Sorry," Lyra said, "I mean what happened?"

Carrot Top shuddered. "I..." she took a deep breath. "We lost an agent. Years ago. Agencies lose their members on the field all the time, but... he was the first one I lost as chief handler. And only, considering I gave the position to Bon Bon..."

"Yeah," Lyra began hesitantly, "and losing ponies... well... it's... not fun, no."

"I see him every day, Lyra," Carrot Top said, looking up. When Lyra raised an eyebrow, she continued, "Doctor Hooves. It was his brother. Every time I see the doctor, I can't help but think of him, and how it's my fault Hooves no longer has his only brother."

Carrot Top's head sank into her forelegs on the table. Lyra reached out hesitantly, then, after a few seconds, gave her an awkward consolation pat. "Um..." Lyra licked her lips. "Yeah. I can see where that would be hard."

"How do you do it, Lyra?" came Carrot Top's muffled voice, "How do you go back to work every day with something like that on your conscience?"

"Because what I do is important," Lyra answered. Carrot Top looked up, her eyes begging Lyra to continue. "Look, it's hard losing someone, it really is, especially when you feel like it's your fault," Lyra explained, "but just because they're gone doesn't mean you should just... stop, you know?"

Carrot Top sat up a little taller. She opened her mouth, but only a faint sound came out before she gulped. Lyra took it as a request to keep going.

"What we do is important, and those we've lost believed the same," she said. "If I really want to move on from that mistake, from that guilt... Then I need to do all the good in the world that she never got the chance to do."

Carrot Top blinked a few times and tried to compose herself. She motioned to speak a few times before she actually did so. "Your trainee... would you say that she was a friend?"

Lyra hesitated. "At the time I would have said no, but..." She sighed. "I feel like saying that now does her an injustice. So yeah. She was my friend."

Carrot Top nodded. "So you do have a friend who keeps you going."

Lyra shook her head as though trying to shake something loose. "I don't— You— That's not—" She ended her spree of broken sentences with a grunt.

"Friends are important, Lyra," Carrot Top told her. Her voice was comforting. "And a town like this is a great place to make several. It would really be to your benefit to consider meeting a few ponies."

"And what if I lose them too?" Lyra asked. Her voice cracked at the end as though her throat tried and failed to catch the question.

"Then you'll have others to help you through it." Carrot Top sighed and stood up. "You can at least start with us, if it's any easier. Your coworkers, that is. We'll be seeing a lot of each other, after all."

"I think we've already established that it's more than I'd like," Lyra remarked.

"Think about it. Start with Bon Bon. You'll be living with her, after all, and it'll make things easier on the both of you." Carrot Top tossed a few bits onto the table. "Amethyst too. I think you guys already have something special."

"A mutual respect from working together, I assure you," Lyra stated. She watched as Carrot Top turned to leave. "Where are you going?"

"I need to take a walk," Carrot Top replied. "There's... some things I need to think about."

"Sure, but when I try to leave or get time to myself, ponies protest."

Carrot Top shook her head. "Well, now you can do both. I'd at least eat your dessert first. It's already been paid for, after all."

"Yeah, thanks," Lyra said with a prod into the pie in front of her. "I didn't really want it, but I do appreciate the gesture."

Carrot Top nodded and turned to leave.

"Hey, wait," Lyra said, stopping the yellow mare. Carrot Top turned back around to address her.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Did... Did you get what you were hoping to get out of me?"

Carrot Top stood motionless. "I'm... not sure. I suppose I'll know by the end of my walk. Goodnight, Lyra."

"Later." Lyra watched Carrot Top walk away before the yellow mare disappeared around a building. She looked back down to her dessert and gave it another dissatisfied poke. After staring at it for a few seconds, she finally opted to take a small bite. The rest of the delicacy was gone in a second. Regretting the fact that she let the treat get cold, Lyra hopped from her seat and made her departure. She returned a few moments later to add another bit to the pile Carrot Top left on the table.

Alone in a town slowly making its way to bed, Lyra walked casually in the still warm air towards a small cafe near the edge of town. There, a lone pink unicorn rested with her head on her hooves on one of the outdoor tables.

Lyra gave the mare a nudge. "Hey, kid." One of the unicorn's legs flopped off the table. "Star! Wake up!"

"Whuzzuh?" Amethyst groggily raised her head and rubbed her eyes. "Sparkle tree book..."

Lyra looked towards a large tree in the distance, a few windows in its bark illuminated by light. "Yeah, I can see that, kid. Come on..." Lyra helped the borderline unconscious unicorn get to her hooves. "The cafe is still open. Go inside and splash some water on your face. You're staying with Derpy tonight, okay? I'll send the address to your datastick."

"Stick... Mmphah..."

"Yes, I know it's in an uncomfortable spot, but I don't have a quill and paper handy to write it down for you," Lyra said. She gingerly released Amethyst, who in turn stumbled towards the cafe's main entrance. Once Amethyst was successfully inside, Lyra sat down at the table her pink friend had been occupying. A friendly, but tired-looking mare came from the building.

"Thanks for waking her up," the waitress said. "She's been here most of the day... She's really nice, and I just couldn't bring myself to wake her myself."

"It's no biggie," Lyra replied. "Do you know how long she was out for?"

"On and off for the last two hours or so, I think." The waitress tilted her head. "Why?"

"Just curious," answered Lyra.

"Well, can I get you anything?" the waitress asked.

"Pie, if you have it," Lyra said. Amethyst exited the cafe and started wobbling down a nearby road. "And you can put anything from her tab onto mine; I'm not sure if she paid yet or not."

"Wow, that's really generous of you!" the waitress exclaimed. "So nice when we see neighborly strangers. Is she a friend of yours?"

Lyra didn't immediately answer. "Yeah, I know her."

"Well, it's still a friendly gesture," the waitress remarked. "Anything to drink? Tea? Lemonade? Coffee?"

"Coffee. Definitely."

The waitress nodded and disappeared back indoors. Lyra idly fiddled with a loose string on her seat while she waited, feigning a mild interest in the giant tree library across the way. After glancing at the setting sun and wondering just how long getting coffee could take, she casually brushed her earlobe, prompting a faint beeping noise that only she could hear.

"This is Agent Heartstrings," she said, seemingly to the open air.

Bon Bon inquired over the hidden earpiece.

"It's fine, Bon," said Lyra. She plucked the annoying string from her seat. "I won't like it, but you're right. Staying with you is the only option we have right now. Send your address to my datastick, and I'll be there later tonight."

asked Bon Bon.

"I relieved Star of Sparkle duty," Lyra answered. "Looked like she really needed the break. I'll hang out here until it's someone else's turn."

The cafe's waitress came by and set a mug of coffee with a slice of pie on Lyra's table. Lyra thanked her, and the waitress gave a smile before returning to the kitchen.

"Sorry." Lyra took a bite of her pie; it wasn't quite as satisfying as the last one. "Yeah, I'm still here. Look, Bon, we're all tired, but someone's gotta do it."

Bon Bon said.

"Give it a little while before you contact her," Lyra requested. "She's... she's really tired too."

Lyra took another bite of her pie. She couldn't tell what flavor it was supposed to be.

Lyra had a remark, but decided to keep it contained. "Yeah. Will do. Heartstrings out."

Still unsure of the nature of her dessert, Lyra grabbed the mug at her table and took a few sips. She pulled the cup away and looked at it closely.

"I know this town farms, but do they boil the dirt too?"

Lyra ate and drank quietly as stars replaced sunshine until the establishment informed her that they were closing up. She meandered about a few buildings, pretending to have an interest in bug collecting once or twice, but she never wandered far from the now darkened library. When the time came for the end of her shift, she neglected to make sure her replacement arrived before she left.

Lyra nudged open the door to a home that she'd never been in before. There wasn't a light lit inside, and the cloudy night around her didn't help matters.

"Bon?" she whispered into the darkness. When no answer came, Lyra opened the door a little wider and stepped inside. Once the door was shut securely behind her, she lit her horn in order to better see where she was going.

The home was simple enough. There was a reading room on her left with a classically-styled sofa, and on her right stood a rather large kitchen. A set of stairs in front of her led to what she was certain would be bedrooms. She took a few more steps in to see a door ajar next to the staircase with a tiled floor. She shrugged and walked towards the couch. It wound up being a little stiffer than she imagined, but it would do for the night. Still not feeling any exhaustion pulling at her eyelids despite not sleeping a wink the previous night, she used her magic to pull a volume over from a nearby bookshelf. She flipped it open to a random page and squinted at it.

"A cookbook?" she asked. "Who keeps a cookbook on a bookshelf?"

"A classic, if you ask me."

Lyra's heart skipped a beat, but she managed to maintain a nonchalant persona. "Oh, hey, Bon. Sorry, did I wake you?"

A creme-colored mare stepped into the golden glow of Lyra's horn. Bon Bon didn't look any more or less tired than the few other times Lyra had seen her. "Not really. Just wanted to make sure that it was you who came in here."

"You did just leave your door unlocked," Lyra noted. "Do you not worry about break-ins around here?"

"Hardly," Bon Bon replied. She moseyed over to and set herself down into an arm chair that looked like it came from the same set as the sofa Lyra was resting on. "I don't know if Ponyville has ever once had a robbery to report. Still, I wanted to make sure."

"So weird to think about," Lyra said, shifting on the couch. "I would never dream of just leaving a house unlocked in Canterlot, especially for ponies like you and I."

"Like you and I?" Bon Bon repeated, eyebrow raised.

"You know," said Lyra, waving her hoof as she looked for words, "ponies with secrets."

Bon Bon snorted. "If you truly want to convince ponies that you don't have a secret, then don't act like you do," she said simply. "Besides, there's nothing here worth stealing anyway."

"Not all break-ins are over stuff," Lyra replied. She levitated the cookbook back onto the shelf she found it. Bon Bon watched it warily. "So why aren't you sleeping?" Lyra asked her. "Star was practically falling over from exhaustion."

Bon Bon looked away from her bookshelf and back to Lyra. "I could ask you the same, you know."

Lyra shrugged. "Yeah, you could."

A few silent moments passed.

"So, um," Lyra began, "I'm really not good with this sort of thing, but... thanks for letting me crash here tonight."

Bon Bon nodded. "I know it's not exactly what you were hoping for. We can keep an eye out for vacant homes."

"Eh, there's no rush," Lyra said with another wave of her hoof. "Besides, maybe having a roommate could be good for me."

"How so?" Bon Bon inquired.

Lyra shrugged again. "I dunno. Give me something to do I guess. Make the nights go faster."

"What do you mean?"

"Full of questions tonight, aren't ya?" Lyra stretched, but ultimately stayed in the same spot on the sofa. "I suppose I may as well give you a heads-up. Some nights I don't always get to sleep real early, so having somepony to talk to could make things a bit more interesting. Maybe."

Bon Bon tilted her head. "You have trouble sleeping?"

Lyra groaned. "Again, with the questions..."

Bon Bon shook her head. "As your handler, I think it's my job to know about any possible conditions, both physical and mental."

"I'm not 'mental', if that's what you're getting at."

"I didn't say it was, nor did I mean to imply that," Bon Bon said. "It's just that in my experience, a pony that doesn't sleep well has some issues that she's dealing with."

Lyra tilted her head back in order to stare at Bon Bon. "What do you mean, 'in your experience'?"

Bon Bon opened her mouth, but said nothing. Lyra groaned.

"Are we about to have an actual conversation?" she asked. "I'm not sure I can do this twice in one day."

"Twice?"

Lyra grunted. "Yeah. Twice. I had a real 'heart-to-heart' with Top during our little 'tour'.

Bon Bon nodded, but her eyes didn't waver from Lyra. She looked as though she was mulling something over.

"Are you going to say what's on your mind, or am I going to have to pull it from you?"

"Excuse me?" Bon Bon looked confused, almost offended, even. "Pull what from me, exactly?"

"Whatever's eating at you," Lyra said. She turned onto her stomach. "Whatever crippling pain is keeping you up at night."

Bon Bon snorted and glared. "Nothing is eating at me, Heartstrings, and if anything were, there's nothing saying that it's anything I need to share. Now, if you'll excuse me," she said as she hopped down from her armchair, "I really should get some sleep."

Lyra blinked for a moment, then shrugged. "Hey, you're the boss." Bon Bon stiffly trotted back to the staircase. Before she could take her first step up, Lyra muttered, "See you in the morning." Bon Bon hesitated for a second before ascending to the upper level.

Lyra sighed and rolled herself onto her back again. "Good chat, Bon."

Lyra woke without ever realizing she fell asleep. The room swam around her while her brained tried to remember what some of the more complex shapes were. Like walls.

"Oh, you're awake."

Lyra shifted on the couch and brushed some loose strands of mane from her face. Bon Bon stood at an open front door, empty saddlebags on her back.

"I'm going out on a few errands," Bon Bon continued. "Doo is currently on Sparkle detail. I'll radio you in a few hours when it's time to relieve her." She left and closed the door behind her, but not before adding, "Try to get some more sleep. You look like twice-chewed cud."

Lyra shook some sleep from her head and looked around as the previous night's events caught up with her. She stretched and cracked her back. "Okay, maybe a real bed would be better," she said to herself. She got up and started a slow walk towards the stares. She glanced at Bon Bon's bookshelf again, and the same cookbook from the previous night caught her eye. A few steps later a glint of sunlight bouncing off a surface caught her other eye, and she turned toward it, squinting. A large saucepan winked at her from behind a glass cabinet door.

"Neat," said Lyra to no one as she stifled a yawn.

As she walked upstairs, her legs grew warm as her body got used to the idea of moving again. "Aw, no, come on," Lyra muttered as the sleep left her eyes. "I was actually tired!"

It was no use. Lyra's body was ready for the day, even if her mind was not.

"Whatever."

She slumped in the stairwell, unsure of what else to do for the time being. She gazed out the stairwell window and saw an orchard in the distance. The laughter of a few fillies playing echoed in from parts unknown.

"Bored."

Lyra brought herself upright and started a self-guided tour of Bon Bon's home. Now that she could see it in the daylight, she noticed that there wasn't much to it that she couldn't see in the moonlight. The walls were bare, the bedrooms furnished with only the essentials, and the bathroom was tidy with only a few things tucked away square in the medicine cabinet. "Are you sure no one snuck in here and stole all your stuff, Bon Bon?" Lyra asked the absent mare.

Downstairs wasn't much different. There was still the couch, the bookshelf, the armchair, and the kitchen. The morning sunlight drifted to a different part of the saucepan Lyra spotted earlier, but it was still reflecting brilliantly through the plain home. Lyra opened the cabinet with her magic and withdrew the pot, spinning it whimsically for her own amusement. The incoming sunbeam highlighted a cloud of dust that drifted in its wake.

"Nice," Lyra grunted. She brushed some dust off her coat and motioned the saucepan back on its shelf. As she did so, her stomach growled.

"I assume I can help myself?" Lyra once again asked to a pony not present. "You know, you can learn a lot about someone by their fridge." Lyra took a few steps toward Bon Bon's refrigerator and pulled the door open. "For example," she continued, "you are cold and empty inside." Lyra sighed and closed the door again. She peered around the room for anything else to satiate her hunger, but found very little. The spice rack contained nothing except sugar and corn syrup ("Really watching your figure there, Bon.") and the rest of the shelves only held a few bowls and dishes.

"I guess if my diet consisted of sugar and fat loads of nothing I probably wouldn't have enough dishes for company either."

Lyra's eyes glided to a small bowl of apples near the kitchen sink.

"Uh, finally."

One of the apples lit in a golden glow and twirled into the air. Lyra caught in her teeth, proceeded to the reading area, and plopped back down onto the couch. She took one big bite and withdrew the apple from her mouth with a hoof.

"Ugh, red delicious is anything but," she said, a few flakes of the fruit's flesh flying from her mouth. She floated the cookbook from the bookshelf back into her view. "Let's see if anything in here can spice things up a bit."

Lyra flipped over one page. And then another. And then another.

"Is this all..." Lyra swallowed. "Is this all... candy? Bon Bon, seriously, the apples are NOT enough, girl..."

Lyra took another bite of her apple and grimaced at the texture. She flipped over another page.

"Wait, there might be something to this."

Lyra rose from the couch and walked toward the kitchen. The confectionery cookbook glided in behind her. Magically, the saucepan floated from the shelf to the sink while the sugar and corn syrup came to rest beside the stove. The pot washed itself in the sink before landing on the stove, a small fire glimmering to life beneath it.

"Candy apples," Lyra said to herself. "Looks easy enough."

A glass measuring cup collected water from the sink while sugar and corn syrup added themselves to the pot.

"Bring to boil," Lyra said, repeating the words in the book. She looked over the top of the pot at the perfectly still mixture, and waited. And waited. And waited.

"...Bored."

Lyra found herself flopped right back on the couch again while visions of sugar plums danced through a few pages of the cookbook. "I know they say a watched pot never boils, but come on..."

The morning's sunlight traveled through the home until it reached the sofa. Lyra yawned.

"WHAT HAPPENED?!"

Lyra collided with a hard, wooden floor. She sprang up on her hind legs, her front ones poised to strike. The smell of smoke filled her nostrils.

"Fire!" Lyra hollered.

"NO KIDDING. I HADN'T NOTICED."

Lyra spun toward the kitchen to see Bon Bon holding a smoldering saucepan. Her eyes bulged, and the hair in her mane stuck out around her as though powered by the force of anger itself. Lyra's composure relaxed.

"Oh, you got it," said Lyra as she gave her back a crack. "I, uh... oh."

"I am going to ask you one more time," said Bon Bon as she stepped toward Lyra. Somehow the soft voice she used was more intimidating than the yelling.

"Well..." Lyra's front hooves circled each other. "I was hungry, and—"

"This," said Bon Bon, brandishing the scorched pot, "was my favorite... My only... You—!"

"Look, it was an accident, okay?" said Lyra. She made a mental note to try to sound more genuine than defensive. "I tried making a recipe from your book, and I guess I just kind of... fell asleep."

Bon Bon spiked the pot into the ground. Lyra flinched as it hurled past her and bounced off the bookshelf. Bon Bon collapsed on the floor as she rubbed both of her temples.

Lyra inched toward the front door. "I'm just gonna..." Lyra swallowed. "I'm just going to step out for a bit. Okay?"

"Please do."

Bon Bon didn't need to be chief handler for Lyra to take the order.

Lyra strolled past the town's market, smells of flowers and produce inviting her closer as she resisted the pangs in her stomach. Her eyes darted from cloud to cloud, though the bright, sunny day didn't see many. Finally, she spotted her target. She gave her ear a casual flick.

"Doo, is that you up there?"

responded Derpy.

"Yeah, I know, I..." Lyra swallowed. "I needed some air."

Derpy sounded to be in good spirits.

"Things go okay with Star last night?" asked Lyra. She watched one of the local growers weigh tomatoes on a scale.

replied Derpy.

Lyra licked her lips. "Yeah, I think we've all been a little beat..."

Lyra sighed and watched a few ponies go back and forth on color options for their flower garden.

<...Lyra?>

"Look, what's with Bon?" Lyra asked suddenly. "Seriously, I know she's the boss and all, but what stick did she sit on?"

Derpy didn't immediately answer.

Derpy gathered herself.

"It's okay, Doo," said Lyra. She kicked a small pebble and watched it bounce. "Top told me about it yesterday."

<...I see.>

There was a pregnant pause.

Derpy explained.

"So Top was too close as a leader, and Bon is too distant."

Lyra watched a worm inch toward the closest produce stand.

Derpy started hesitantly.

"What do you mean?" asked Lyra.

Derpy clarified.

There was another pause.

"No, it's okay, I'm not mad," said Lyra. "I guess... I guess I just hadn't thought about it much."

Lyra could see Derpy shift on her cloud.

"Compared to staring Nightmare Moon in the face?" Lyra said with a laugh. "Yeah, sure, that's fine. Just let me get some shopping done first."

As Lyra approached Bon Bon's home, she noticed some kind of handle sticking out from on the trashbins outside. She stepped over, removed the lid from the bin, and pulled the object out. It was the saucepan she ruined, several inches worth of burnt caramel still clinging to the inside. Lyra sighed and returned the pot to its resting place. As she did so, she noticed that most of the contents of the bin were soup cans and boxes from frozen meals.

"Bon?" Lyra stepped into the quiet building with caution. "Are you here?"

"I am." Bon Bon's figure came into view at the top of the staircase.

Lyra took a few steps inside and closed the door behind her.

"Star relieved me from Sparkle detail," Lyra explained as she dropped a few of her saddlebags.

"Don't drop those there," said Bon Bon. There was no emotion in her voice, and it was too dark to see her face. "They are a fire hazard."

"I was just gonna—" Lyra shook her head. "Yeah. Sure. Whatever." She used her magic to float the bags onto the kitchen counter.

"I read your file."

"Jeez, is that thing on a best seller's list or something?"

Bon Bon descended the stairs. Now in better view, Lyra could see that Bon Bon's face, while stern, did not hold any contempt.

Lyra stared as she waited for a response. "...And?"

Bon Bon did not immediately answer. She broke Lyra's gaze and glanced over to the counters. "What did you buy?"

Lyra blinked before answering. "Just food and stuff," she said. She walked over to the bags and started unloading a few things. "I'm not much of a cook, and you haven't given me the impression you are either, but I thought a few things might—"

"I used to be."

Lyra turned to face Bon Bon again; her expression was still rigid.

"I used to cook all the time," Bon Bon clarified. She took a few steps toward the supplies for a better look. "Well, more baking than cooking. I was Ponyville's top private confectioner before I took on this job. I made everything you can imagine: sugar glass, truffles, caramel chew, peppermints..." Bon Bon cautiously approached one of the larger bags. She opened it slow and withdrew a sparkling new saucepan. She looked around at the other bags and noticed most were ingredients needed for the same sweets she just mentioned. "...How did you—"

"Your book," Lyra said, motioning toward the bookshelf. "I took what I could remember and just kind of ran with it. I figured..." Lyra licked her lips. "I figured it's been a long time since you've taken a shot at something like that, and with Star and I here beefing up your numbers you might have some time for yourself again."

"...Thank you."

Lyra shrugged. "It's not like any of this sugar stuff is real food anyway, so even if you don't get around to it they're not going to expire anytime soon."

Bon Bon set the saucepan down gently. Her eyes wandered over the labels of everything Lyra brought in.

"...Listen, I'm going to go get some rest," Lyra said into a long silence. She turned and took a few steps, then stopped. "If you read my file, then... Then you know I know what kind of pressure you're under. I mean, I know, you know?" Lyra shook her head. "Anyway... Don't be so hard on yourself. If you want to keep your distance and not be friends with anypony you work with, that's fine. I get it. I'll avoid the late-night gossip gabs and keep things professional. Okay?"

Bon Bon didn't move.

"...Okay. Thanks again for letting me stay here."

Lyra took a slow march to the upstairs bedrooms. She prodded open the door to the guest room and saw something that wasn't there before. She stepped into the room to get a closer look.

"I thought you might want one."

Lyra turned to see Bon Bon standing in the doorway. "I haven't even touched a lyre since I was recruited," said Lyra.

"Why not?"

Lyra shrugged. "Story for another time I suppose."

Bon Bon nodded. "I noticed that you never submitted a request for transfer of possessions," Bon Bon explained. "I thought you might like something a little... personal. To help you feel more at home here. Do you like it?"

Well, I prefer a walnut body to rosewood and this only has seven strings versus—

Lyra gave the instrument a few plucks. Long buried musical numbers danced pleasantly through her mind and filled her spirit.

"It's great. Thank you, Bon Bon."

Bon Bon nodded and stepped back down the hallway. Lyra closed the door behind her and strummed until it was like she never stopped playing. And when the moon rose, she slept.