This Is Awkward

Sunset stretched out her hindlegs under her dining room table with a bowl of cereal in front of her with a few marshmallows on her spoon, a newspaper unfolded in front of her set to the comics with Ray sitting in front of it reading with her.

“You enjoying yourself, Ray?” Sunset asked and gently stroked his scales with a loving smile. “Pretty good comics, right? They always were my favorite part of the morning newspaper.”

Ray stuck out his tongue and made a sound that Sunset swore was the reptile version of a laugh and she grinned widely at him, wagging her tail happily.

“Thanks for keeping me company, little guy. Maybe I’ll bring you those little snacks from Dr. Fauna you love so much. It’s nice to have somepony to spend time with,” Sunset continued to pet him affectionately with the tip of her hoof.

“What am we, chopped liver?” Trixie coughed into a hoof as the other five looked up from their own breakfast and Sunset blushed.

“I may have forgotten you five were here,” Sunset admitted and took a sip of her coffee.

“And Dinky,” Derpy added before glancing at her oldest daughter. “And Sparkler.”

“And Silver Spoon,” Silverspeed chimed in as she stirred a spoon inside her chocolate milk.

“Do you eat with that lizard everyday?” Roseluck asked and gave Ray a wary look.

“Of course. He’s part of my family. Family eats together and he occasionally sleeps on my chest with me. Where I go, Ray goes most of the time,” Sunset answered dismissively and smiled adoringly at Ray. “Isn’t he so cute?”

“He is, yeah,” Derpy stretched a hoof to pet him. Ray eyed her warily before he allowed her to pet his head. “Cute.”

“Can I get a lizard? They are cute,” Dinky propped her hooves on the table and smiled at Ray, flicking her tail back and forth. “He’s adorable.”

“We will see. It takes a lot to watch after a pet. Sunset can tell you.” Sunset nodded her agreement.

“You have to clean out Ray’s terrarium, make sure he gets enough heat and water, proper food. He likes rocks to sunbath on. And he occasionally likes water being poured over him. Makes him feel like he’s getting a shower. Dr. Fauna and Fluttershy are very helpful when it comes to taking care of my baby boy.”

“The way you talk about that creature reminds me of a way a mare talks to her son,” Roseluck shook her head with a smirk. “I don’t understand it.”

“Maybe because all you have is plants?” Shoeshine suggested with a grin and nudged her. “And as. You really need a pet.”

“This is gonna be another one of those discussions that turns into us all arguing and Derpy breaking it up, isn’t it?” Trixie interjected with a glare.

“No, of course not,” Silverspeed coughed into a hoof and Trixie levitated her waffle to her mouth with a satisfied nod. “So. What’s on agenda for this week, world saving team of bad ass mares?”

Derpy coughed and glared at her, pointing a hoof at the two fillies.

“Heh, right. Sorry,” Silverspeed rubbed the back of her head nervously with a wing. “Anyway uh what’s everypony doing this week?”

“Working.”

“Cleaning the house and setting up my flowers in the greenhouse with my sisters.”

“Making sure this one gets to school on time,” Derpy shot Dinky a look.

“I got nothing planned,” Sunset shrugged and glanced at Silverspeeds purple eyes. “We can hang out all week long. Trixie?”

“Sorry, but Trixie has to iron out details for her next tour across Equestria otherwise she would come along.”

“Oh,” Sunset sighed and gazed down dejectedly into her cereal as the other adult ponies shared a look.

“Hey,” Roseluck lifted her chin with a hoof. “Just because we’re busy doesn’t mean we don’t care about you. What about your friends from Canterlot? Surely you had some.”

“Heh, yeah about that. I never cared about friends back home. I always focused on video games or studies.”

“I see,” Shoeshine mused and tapped a hoof agaisnt the table. “Well, there has to be other ponies in Ponyville.”

“Berry Punch,” Sunset answered immediately and smiled. “We’ve been close ever since I bailed her out of the drunk tank in Canterlot that one time.”

“Anypony else? Who even lived in Canterlot when you did?” Trixie asked and Sunset frowned slightly.

“Uh Lyra, Minuette, Twinkleshine, Spike and his marefriend, Twilight Snarkle and Moondancer. Sea Swirl and Sparkler but she lives here as we all know.”

“Lyra is nice,” Dinky told her with a warm smile. “She gives me some extra candy occasionally when I see her picking up Liza from school.”

Derpy made a mental note to talk to Lyra about that as Sunset chewed on her lip nervously.

“Maybe start with Lyra. She’s a very nice mare in her own way. She won’t judge you for any past actions, Sunset,” Derpy rested a hoof on her shoulder. “Trust us. We would never lie to you to hurt you. We love you.”

“I know. I guess I’ll go see Lyra. Alone,” Sunset sighed and Silverspeed shook her head with a grin.

“Not alone. Remember, me and you hanging out this week?” Silverspeed reminded her and Sunset nodded as she glanced at her eyes and looked away quickly.

The other four shared a quick look of confusion and shrugged it off.

“First, we finish our weekly breakfast,” Trixie proclaimed with a shrug. “Trixie cherishes this time.”

“Are you sure we can’t just catch a movie?” Sunset asked hopefully and Silverspeed shrugged. Berry Punch had been apparently too busy with bottling the rest of this seasons wine to spend time with them but she did promise them each a bottle of wine once they were ready.

“Meh, no dice. We all agreed to see Lyra, remember?” Silverspeed reminded when and paused. “Or well, the two of us did. It’s kinda nice when my job is keeping you safe. It’s relaxing.”

“I’m not all paperwork, meetings and causing chaos. I used some time off to take a week long vacation. Clear schedule for nothing but video games, drinking, shameless mast- I mean uh nothing,” Sunset and Silverspeed both turned bright red. “Carrying on, let’s get this over with. Hopefully she’s not home.”

“She always is around this time. Usually playing music,” Silverspeed answered casually and Sunset shot her a look. “Right, not helping.”

Sunset trotted along with Silverspeed hovering next to her to a small two story mint green house with a window open as the twe listened briefly to the sounds of a lyre coming through the window.

“Before we go in there, what happened back in Canterlot? Why are you so nervous about seeing Lyra?” Silverspeed held out a foreleg to block Sunset from walking.

“It’s complicated between the two of us. I never was a bully. I was never mean to anypony or if I was, I never meant it. I always made myself available as Princess Celestia’s daughter. To anypony who needed help. I pride myself on being a mare of ponies who need me: homeless ponies, poor ponies. Anypony who my influence could help. But a lot of ponies thought I was too aloof to spend time with them,” Sunset answered and created a circle in the dirt with her hoof. “Anyway, during a class, I sat next to Minuette. I turned to talk to her and she teleported away. She teleported away from me to sit next to Twinkleshine. That hurt me. A lot. So after that, I vowed to not make any friends. To keep doing my work to help ponies. Making friends just seemed like it would hurt me so you five are really the first ponies I truly opened up to outside of Mom, Raven and Captain Spitfire.”

Silverspeed hovered quietly and lowered her foreleg, lowering her head slightly.

“I’m sorry for asking. If it makes you feel better, I’m not good at making friends either. You girls and a select few are the only ponies I trust. I have a mentor in the guard who taught me everything I know. I look up to him a lot. You know Spitfire?”

“It’s okay, you didn’t know. And yeah, she and I hang out a bit. She’s actually pretty chill when she’s not being Captain Spitfire. She knows how to have fun, believe me.”

Silverspeed didn’t entirely know what to say to that. While she never met the mare personally, she did see the Wonderbolt Captain briefly at her Westhoof graduation. And everypony said Spitfire was the most intimidating mare they had ever met.

“If you’re sure, we can go catch a movie or hang out at my place. I can cover for you and say we went but Lyra wasn’t here,” Silverspeed offered and Sunset shook her head.

“No, we made a promise and I intend that promise. Even if I’m not enthused about it. Might as well just face the music.” Silverspeed snickered and Sunset rolled her eyes, giving her a playful shove. “Shut up.”

“Yes boss,” Silverspeed tossed her a lazy salute followed by a large grin.

Sunset inhaled and knocked on a dark brown door with a lyre shaped engraving on the surface and the music stopped.

“Coming!” Lyra called out in her normal, soft spoken voice and Sunset gulped. She listened to soft trotting inside and the door opened. Sunset stared into wide bright gold eyes as Lyra blew some of her mane out of her face. “Sunset Shimmer?”

“Hi Lyra.”

“What uh, what brings you by? I swear I paid my taxes this year. Or well, I think I did,” Lyra muttered to herself and tapped a hoof against her chin.

“You did this year,” Sunset confirmed and Lyra sighed in relief. “As for your first question we uh wanted to know if you were down to hang out this week. We both got this week off and our other friends are busy soooo. You can say no obviously but-”

“Are you kidding? I’m so down to raise some Tartarus. As long as we’re done by three thirty today, at least. Just let me get my keys and we can hit the road.”

Lyra disappeared back inside and Sunset closed her jaw.

“I always did forget how easy going Lyra was,” Sunset commented and crossed her forelegs.

“And you were worried about meeting her,” Silverspeed teased with a smirk.

“Shush you.”