Only Human: A Lyra Heartstrings Production
Chapter 1: The Pitch

By Smoking Gun

---

Canterlot was known for two key aspects. The first was its royalty. Tourists would come from all over Equestria just to take pictures of the Palace or to catch a glimpse of Celestia and Luna. The second aspect was the Pub network, whose building rivaled the size of the palace and was in the dead center of town. Pub was Equestria's number one television network, specializing in children's programs (licensed more often than not). The executives that dwelled inside had seen everything. They'd seen the best of the best, the worst of the worst, and everything in between. But they were not prepared for what was about to step through the doors of the meeting room.

---

"The board will see you now, Miss Heartstrings," said the secretary, never once taking her eyes off her hoof-file.

On the couch was a light green unicorn, clad in a very nice-looking business suit. Next to her were several slides that she had brought in, as well as a briefcase. Unfortunately, she was unable to hear the secretary over the sound of her own heartbeat. Sweat dripped from her forehead and onto her lovely suit. Her forelegs shook with anticipation while her hind legs went limp, almost like the blood had left them.

"Lyra Heartstrings!"

Lyra's head shot up, revealing her tangelo eyes. She was so nervous that even her pupils were shaking. "Oh yeah. This thing," she said with a joking tone in her voice. She jumped off the couch and levitated her items with her as she headed to the meeting room. The secretary didn't even bother to offer her a complimentary glass of water while she was waiting, leaving her thirsty while she lost her fluids from all the sweat.

Like she was stepping onto a theater stage, Lyra's demeanor changed as she entered the meeting room. She looked confident, strong and more than prepared—although the sweat stains were still on the collar of her suit. "Ladies and gentlecolts, thank you so much for giving me this opportunity!" she said happily.

"Don't thank us yet," replied a female executive at the end of the room with her two colleagues. Examining her surroundings, Lyra took note of the fact that she had a good few meters' worth of space to herself. On the other side of the room, with their backs to the window, were the executives, sitting behind a very expensive-looking mahogany table. Lyra took note of the fact that one chair at the table was empty. "My name is Miss Synergy. These are my associates, Mister Paradigm and Mister Structuring." The two other executives nodded as their excuse for a greeting. "Now, you are..." Synergy asked a little pompously.

I was kind of hoping they would have at least known my name before I walked in, the unicorn thought to herself.

"Lyra Heartstrings, Miss Synergy. I'm here to pitch my show to you." Lyra had been to enough of these to know that you have to come in with self-confidence; otherwise, she would just get the boot again. But that confidence started to drain as Lyra noticed the execs sharing a rather condescending look, complete with cocked eyebrows.

"Miss Heartstrings," piped up Paradigm. "We think it's important before you start that we make it clear to you that we receive several pitches for new shows every new season. We're not saying this to break your spirits—"

Yeah you are.

"—but we think it's only fair that you understand this fully before we proceed. We should also note that we take video recordings of all meetings."

Lyra was more than familiar with the first move. It was known as the "wear down entrance." The idea was that if the executives went into a pitch session that they knew was going to end in a refusal, they would slowly break down the aspiring young storyteller before they delivered their pitch. This tactic became popular among the film and television circuits when there was a disturbing amount of writers going insane and tackling executives out the window. The recording part, however, was new. Luckily, the unicorn knew the one defense a pitcher had to have to get through this: stay strong. Don't let them get to you. Keep going and never doubt yourself.

"Perfectly understandable," Lyra said nonchalantly. "We're just discussing things, aren't we?"

"That's true," said Paradigm slowly. "It would probably be wise actually to start these discussions. Wouldn't it?"

"Absolutely!" When Lyra looked hard enough, she could see that her positive attitude was making the executive's skin crawl. Before she could say anything, Lyra's attention was once again drawn to the empty chair. "Shouldn't we wait for—"

"Our fourth is running late today. However, she has given us the green light to go ahead without her. Now, please proceed with your presentation."

Now they'll ask me to introduce myself.

"Why don't you fully introduce yourself to us?" suggested Structuring.

Bullseye!

"A fantastic idea! As I mentioned earlier, I'm Lyra Heartstrings."

Remember, Lyra—give them the cliffs notes and move on.

"I moved here from Ponyville a few weeks ago after graduating as a screenwriting major from Ponyville School of Art and Design—which brings us to this moment."

Smooth work, girl, she thought to herself with a cocky grin on her face.

"To the point. I can appreciate that," remarked Synergy with a nod. "Tell us, what brings you to the Pub network as opposed to another Equestrian network?"

You can do this, Lyra. You rehearsed this!

"The Pub network is synonymous with great television!" she said with great emphasis. Lyra knew that if there's one thing executives love; it's having smoke blown up their plots. "Transmorphers, Daring Ducks, Cuddle Kittens. Those shows have captured the hearts of audiences. Who wouldn't want to have their creation as part of the Pub family?" At least in this version of the speech, Lyra didn't give away the fact that she had been to four other networks prior to this.

"Quite the flattery," remarked Synergy.

"Not flattery—truth!" retorted Lyra. The unicorn could almost see the executives sign the contracts already.

"Now, I believe you have something to present to us." Structuring nodded towards materials that Lyra had brought towards the room.

"Ah, yes. That thing!" Lyra jested, making the older executives crack a small giggle.

You're doing great, Lyra. Now it's showtime!

Using her magic, Lyra levitated the first of many slides. "Allow me to present you Only Human!" The first card revealed the logo of the show, which had a distinct cartoony feel to it.

The executives shared the same confused expression. "Only... what?" asked Synergy.

"I'm glad you asked." Heartstrings brought up the second slide. "Humans are creatures of my own design. They walk on their hind legs... I'm sorry. Their ONLY legs. Also, instead of hooves, they have these appendages called 'hands'. Think claws, but not as scaly. And to top it all off, no tails!" The slide in question held a pencil-drawn image that more or less met Lyra's description.

Paradigm leant forward in his chair, squinting at the design. "I presume that's your design for these 'humans'?"

"Well... more of a rough sketch." Lyra was starting to feel uneasy.

"It's a series of sticks with a circle for a head. And I believe that there are some scribbles for hair."

Deep breaths, Lyra. Deep breaths.

She may have gotten straight A's as a writing major, but there was a reason she wasn't an animation major. Doing the project on her own meant that she would have to take up art responsibility, assuming that once the project was picked up, a professional animation studio would take care of the rest.

"I'll admit that this is more a 'basic template' for the humans. However, what's important is the story of these characters." She dropped the second slide and pulled up the third. This slide had six different humans standing together in town. Unfortunately, different only went as far as different hairstyles and additional circles for breasts on the females. "The series follows six of these humans, three boys and three girls, each with their own unique personalities and skills."

Lyra noticed the executives staring blankly at her, and her left hoof started to shake. "Y-you see, we have Sarah, Justin, Diane, Clark, Claire, and Peter."

Still no reaction from the judging ponies.

"They would start off not really liking each other. But over the course of the series, they put their skills together to overcome life's obstacles and grow close because of it."

Still, nothing.

Stay calm, Heartstrings! You're not out yet!

"Each of these characters has their own thing going on." She brought up the fifth slide. "Whoops. Sorry, I skipped a slide," she said, sweat starting to seep out. She pulled all of the cards in front of her. "No, that isn't it. Wait a minute, I didn't forget it, did I?" The cards eclipsed her view of the executives, making it impossible for her to see them sharing the same bewildered expression.

Lyra dropped all the cards in a fit of frustration. "It doesn't matter where it is. First, we've got Sarah, who works as a scien—"

"That's enough, Miss Heartstrings," said Synergy with a raised hoof, signalling Lyra to be silent. "I think we all know where this is going. You're presenting a children's show that would bring in both boys and girls. These 'humans' of yours would serve as an interesting new species that would catch the audience off-guard but would still be accessible due to the characters' personalities. Would you say we're correct?"

Of course they'd know. They've probably heard a pitch for an identical show before breakfast.

"Yes, Synergy."

"Miss Synergy," she corrected.

"Miss Synergy," replied Lyra with a great deal of frustration. "I understand that you might feel—"

"Underwhelmed?" interrupted Structuring with a wise-ass smirk. His associates let out little chuckle. Lyra didn't join in.

They're laughing at me now? she thought frantically.

"Apart from your... interesting creatures, this is very similar to many of the shows we've said no to. What exactly makes these humans so special? What makes them more compelling than Transmorphers, for example?"

You mean those heartless hunks of metal that do nothing but shout one liners and punch each other?

"What makes them compelling are their hearts. These are characters that fillies and colts all over Equestria will be able to relate to, as well as learn valuable lessons from."

"We're doing morals now?" inquired Paradigm.

"I was planning to get there, but yes. Each episode would be themed around one core concept that would help kids grow into better adults. As opposed to just learning action quips they can quote at school the next day."

Oh crap. Why did I let that slip?!

"So..." said Synergy as she leaned forward in her chair, making it creak. "You're saying that Transmorphers has nothing but action?"

Tread lightly. Tread. Lightly.

"Well. Trans—"

"It's OK, Miss Heartstrings. We're well aware of the demographic that Transmorphers is catered to. Something like 'Only Human' would fall into the same field as Cuddle Kittens."

"You mean that poorly written, cutesy-wootsy waste of airtime?" Lyra retorted.

Lyra froze as shivers traveling down her spine.

I'm bucked.

"Ah, so maybe the Pub network isn't as perfect as you led us to believe," snickered Paradigm. "That's quite alright. The most important thing in business is that everypony is honest with each other." His colleagues joined in the snickering.

They're just screwing with me now!

Any confidence that Lyra had left flew out the window. "I didn't mean to offend. That just kind of slipped."

"Clearly," Synergy said with a cocky smirk. "May I have a closer look at your samples?" Lyra knew that this couldn't end well, but that couldn't stop her from levitating the slides over to the table. The executives looked through each of them. "Wow. I do have to admit, I can truly feel the essence of this universe that you've created, Miss Heartstrings."

Hearing the laughs come out of the executives mouths shattered Lyra's self esteem like glass. She knew this was it.

"As long as we're being honest, Miss Heartstrings, please tell us, how many other studios have you shown this creation of yours to?" asked Synergy.

"Four," she whispered. Unfortunately for her, they heard it clearly.

"You've show this to four other studios?" she asked with the same kind of fake impression that only a true jerk could give. "And what did they say?"

Lyra squirmed for a brief moment.

"Don't call us. We'll call you," she said with great reluctance.

Synergy's chest started to bounce as she did her best to contain her laughter. "A very interesting choice of words."

The unicorn's eyes started to water.

"Miss Heartstrings, you're young. Fresh out of university. Don't be surprised if these studios don't take your creation as far as you were hoping. This is a great learning experience for you. I would recommend taking your vision to a... smaller platform. Perhaps a web series would be best suited to your art style."

I've got to get out of here before I buck them through the window.

"Thank you all for your time. Maybe I'll just leave those with you."

It's not like I'm going to need them anymore.

The broken unicorn magically lifted her brief case of the ground as she headed for the door.

"Wait! One more question."

Lyra turned to Paradigm, who was holding up the card with the show's logo on it. "Why exactly did you name the show 'Only Human'? It's quite curious."

This part Lyra could recite in her sleep. "Because they're flawed, just like ponies. They try and they fail but they'll always get back up. That's what my humans do," she said with a single tear running down her face.

"Very inspiring words. I'm sure we could all learn from these humans."

"Yeah... sure." Lyra pulled the door open.

"Actually,one last detail," said Structuring. "Don't call us. We'll call you."

That smarmy little...

"Thanks for your consideration." And with that, Lyra closed the door behind her, power walking towards the door, leaving nothing but tears in her wake.

BING!

Thank Celestia that the elevator had just decided to open up as she trotted toward it. When the door opened, Lyra could have sworn she saw a cream-coloured pony exit it. But who cares? She just needed to get out of there.

Pushing past the cream pony, she hit the ground floor button as quickly as she could, letting emotions out as soon as she thought the door was closed. Little did she know that the pony she just ran past was still in earshot when she started crying.

The cream pony opened the door to the meeting room, greeted only by the laughter of her fellow executives. "Did I miss something funny?" she asked.

"Don't worry, Miss Bon. We have it all right here—and we recorded the whole thing," greeted Synergy. She hoofed over the first slide she could grab hold of. Bon Bon examined the slide that had just been given to her. The only thing on the card was a single stick figure with a poorly drawn circle for a head.

She raised her eyebrow in curiosity. "Can I get a look at that recording?"

---

Ditzy's Muffins wasn't the busiest store in Canterlot, but it always had a few decent ponies in there, enjoying the fresh, straight-out-of-the-oven muffins. Chocolate chip, banana, strawberry, they named it and Ditzy had it on a platter for them. The aroma practically lifted them off their feet. Hoping the sweet scents of the baked goods would lift her spirits, Lyra dragged herself into the restaurant, taking a seat at the only available table, which was seated for two.

"Lyra!" shouted Ditzy, the store owner. She flew straight over the counter and gave her friend a big hug. "How'd it go?" she asked, smiling at her.

"Well—" she began heavily.

"Wait! I just remembered. I baked you your favorites." She flew back over the oven set she had behind the counter, pulling out a fresh platter and laying it in front of the depressed unicorn. "A batch of blueberries! On the house."

Looking through the steam emanating from the muffins, Lyra could see Ditzy smiling warmly at her with her wall eyes. "Damn it, Ditzy. You know I can't say no to these." It wasn't much, but Lyra's morale was just a little bit stronger after taking a nice, slow bite out of her favorite treat.

Ditzy took the seat across from her. "I'm guessing by the tear stains on your suit that it didn't go well."

"Mmhmm." That was the only way Lyra could respond while eating her muffin. "Nat ohnly ded thei—"

"Swallow, silly," chuckled the pegasus.

"Not only that, they laughed at me in the process. Keeping my artwork—"

"Stick figures."

"Whatever. I've been to five studios now, but that had to be the first time they actually laughed."

"I thought it was supposed to be a comedy," she said playfully.

"Oh shut up." Despite her words, Lyra was actually starting to smile again. Ditzy did have that effect on her. It was one of the reasons they were friends.

Ditzy poked her head pasted Lyra, noticing several customers waiting impatiently at the counter. "Got to go. But I want to hear all about it later."

Lyra was now left alone with her muffins. "Trust me, you really don't." They may be delicious, but they weren't good enough to make her forget about her last five meetings. One by one, shut down completely.

"Sloppy." The unicorn raised her head, seeing a cream-coloured earth pony standing in front of her, holding a slide under her foreleg. Lyra noticed that she had a dark blue mane with pink highlights. The ends of her mane were done up to look like sweets. "Poorly drawn. Hastily put together. Missing slides. Shall I go on?"

Didn't I see her back at Pub? she wondered.

"No, please don't. I've had enough people say those words to me already."

"People?" the mare asked with a curious look.

"Ponies. Sorry, I got used to saying people when I was working the story for my show out."

"Uh-huh. May I sit down?"

I really want to tell her to buzz off, but I wouldn't want to kick out a potential customer for Ditzy.

"It's a free city. Do whatever you want."

As soon as the earth pony sat down, she grabbed one of Lyra's muffins. "Blueberry? They're my favorites. You really shouldn't have."

Lyra watched the mare eat away at the muffin and wondered what the hay was going on.

"Anyway, I know I said some kind of mean things to you a second ago—"

Oh really?

"But I like what you've got."

"Like what, exactly?" asked Lyra.

"Your show, doofus. I watched your pitch to Pub," she said, pulling the slide up to her eye level. "I have to admit, despite how amateurishly you put this together, I see something in this. I see something in you, Heartstrings."

"What are you talking about?"

"Look, you've clearly got an idea. You love what you've got rattling in your head. You know how to talk to executives... up until a point at least. You know how to sing, Lyra. But you need to learn how to dance."

"I'm sorry, but could you maybe slow down and just tell me who you are?!" shouted Lyra.

The earth pony extended a friendly hoof to Lyra, who shook it against her better judgement. "Bon Bon. Junior executive for the Pub Network."

Oh great! Another one of these jerks.

"Is there something I can do for you, Bon Bon?" asked Lyra with a cautious hint in her voice.

"Actually, I'm here to do something for you." Bon Bon held up the slide she had brought with her. It was the first slide in Lyra's presentation, the slide that had the 'Only Human' logo on it. "I'd like to bring your humans to life."

---

Next: Development Hell!

Only Human: A Lyra Heartstrings Production
Chapter 2: Development Hell

By Smoking Gun

---

Lyra sat dumbfounded as she stared at the mare holding up her title card. "You want to do what?"

"I want to get Only Human on the air. Even if you don't," said Bon Bon before taking another bite of the blueberry muffins in front of her.

"What do you mean by that? I've put my heart and soul into this!" said Lyra angrily.

"Well, you strolled into the biggest network in all of Equestria with nothing more than badly drawn slides, no financial backing, and no test material or any clue as to what the hay you were doing. I know I'm just the junior executive, but trust me, those are not the actions of somepony who wants to succeed."

Lyra may not have been able to form words, but her face spoke clearly enough.

She's right. What was I thinking?

Bon Bon laid the title card down next to her. Her face didn't look as snarky as it was when she first sat down. Her eyes gave off waves of empathy, lifting Lyra's spirit a tiny bit. "You're young. Tartarus, I'm young. It doesn't mean you're stupid. It just means there's more room for greatness."

Lyra discovered that Bon Bon had a rather infectious smile. "Wow… that's very kind."

"It's true. But don't get ahead of yourself. You've got a long way to go. First thing's first—how many followers do you have?"

Lyra's face was one of utter confusion. "I'm sorry. What do you mean by 'followers'?"

"Twitter, Facehoof, Friendster. How big of an audience do you have at the moment?"

"I don't have any of those things."

"That's your homework. Get a Twitter account and a DeviantArt page. Post like your life depends on it."

"Wh-what are you talking about? Why do I need followers?"

"Because as much as I hate to admit it, Only Human has nothing else to go with."

Is she giving me a pep talk or a beat down?

"What do you mean it has nothing else?" asked Lyra with an annoyed tone.

"Look at the other shows on Pub. Transmorphers, Cuddle Kittens, what do they have in common?"

Lyra's eyes rolled away from the light-coated mare as she searched for an answer.

Bon Bon continued, "They're all franchises. They've been around for decades. They have toys, movies, and millions of bits in merchandise sales. Why do you think they're on the air now? It's because all executives see is a recognizable logo that people will spend money on. Only Human came out of nowhere for them with no names or brands attached. Just some no-name mare with a tear-stained dress."

"Stop it, you're making me blush," retorted Lyra with a deadpan expression.

"Heh, you're funny. I like that. It'll make the press junket easier for me." Bon Bon took on last bite of her muffin before standing up. She placed a business card on the table. "Come to my apartment tomorrow—we'll talk shop. And I'm gonna keep this, by the way," she said, nodding towards the Only Human title card.

Lyra shot up from her chair. "You want me to come to your apartment?"

"Yes. Around 12 would be great. Bring any other materials you have for the show with you. We have to knock this out as quickly as we can." Bon Bon trotted away from the table. "Bring some of those muffins with you too."

Once Bon Bon shut the door behind her, Lyra sank back into her chair, in utter befuddlement.

Ditzy flew over to the table and picked up the crumb-filled plate in front her of friend. "She's cute."

"Oh shut up!" Lyra's eyes retuned to the business card, which was now in her hoof.

"So what did she want?" asked Ditzy.

"She works for Pub and wants to make Only Human. She wants me to come to her apartment tomorrow and talk about…" Lyra turned her head up to her pegasus friend, who was looking at her with one arched eyebrow and a cheeky smile plastered across her face.

Lyra blushed and looked away angrily. "Shut up!"

---

The next day, Lyra found herself standing before a tall, dark building with gold ornaments around the top. here and there. She stepped past the silent doorstallion and headed straight for the elevator. She searched the number pad for the number Bon Bon had written on her card, only to find it at the very top of the list. She was in the elevator for a good while before reaching the top. As the door opened, Lyra saw that the door opened directly to a huge penthouse suite.

"Lyra, come in!" said Bon Bon, descending from a staircase that led to what she could only assume was the bedroom. "I've got some cider over there," she said as she pointed to a table in the living room.

"Thanks. I brought the stuff you wanted," she said with trepidation as she stepped into the penthouse.

"Great. Leave it on the table."

Lyra gently laid her saddle bag over the table, picking up the cup of cider after her hoof was free.

"Please, have a seat." Bon Bon sat on the couch adjacent to the table. Lyra made a point to put a good bit of distance between them. The light mare pulled her cider close and took a long sip. "We should probably start by getting to know each other better."

Celestia, I'm glad I can't see Ditzy's face right now.

"Well, I graduated from—"

"I know that part. Tell me about you. Who is Lyra Heartstrings?"

I'm really glad I can't see her face.

"Well, I'm… I don't know. I'm not sure what you want me to say. I thought we were here to talk my show."

Bon Bon silently nodded as she laid down her cup. "I'll start. I graduated from Canterlot University two years ago."

That's just a year before me. Is she seriously only one year older than me?

"I don't mean to brag… Actually I do. I kind of rose through the ranks quickly. Made a lot of contacts, shifted paradigms. Boring stuff."

"Actually, that's something I wanted to ask you," interjected Lyra. "What exactly is a paradigm?"

"Nothing, absolutely nothing. It's just a word that business ponies throw around to make whatever shtick they're selling you on sound more professional. You have to give them credit, though; it's an impressive-sounding word, isn't it?"

Lyra was too confused to keep drinking her cider. "Wait, isn't one of the executives named 'Paradigm'?"

"Yeah… Don't believe anything he says. He's one of those fake-it-till-you-make-it kind of stallions. A good one, though, I'll give him that."

Wow, she's really being honest with me.

"You OK, Lyra?" asked Bon Bon.

The green mare had to shake herself out of her daze. "Sorry, it's just—you're the first executive that has acted the smallest bit human."

"Human?"

"Pony, sorry. I'm still in Only Human mode," she said with a nervous chuckle.

"A great segue if I ever hear one. Give me the full deal on Only Human. Tell me, in your own words what the show really is." Her encouraging tone helped the smile return to Lyra's face.

"Only Human is about these creatures called humans. I made them up myself. It's about three girls and three boys, each of them having their personality and skills. They're not exactly big fans of each other at first. But over time they learn to become friends, accept each other for who they are, and make each other better."

Bon Bon smiled and nodded as Lyra finished her speech. "I like it already. Can I see some of your work for it?"

"I guess." Lyra levitated a large a thick notepad out of her saddlebag. "If you flip the corners, you can see a little animation I did of how they walk and run. I take it by now that you know I'm not an artist."

"Just because somepony can draw, that doesn't make them an artist." Bon Bon flipped through the pages of the notebook, letting the stick figure come to life. She stared at the animated creature with confusion.

"Is something wrong?"

"This is how they run?"

"Well—yeah."

"It looks like they're karate-chopping wind."

Lyra looked away to make sure Bon Bon couldn't see her embarrassed blush. "I admit it looks weird. But they're new creatures. It's gonna be weird to everybody at first."

"Everypony," Bon Bon corrected.

"Damn it!"

She laid the book back down on the table. "We'll have to work on that. Do you have any stories outlines or scripts?"

Lyra grew a sly smile as she levitated a thick leather-bound book out of her saddle bag. "One or two. I'll have to check." She opened the book, revealing hundreds of pages of sketches, theoretical scene outlines, script samples, and a few drawings. The thing about these drawings was that they actually looked halfway decent.

"These don't exactly look like your work."

"I had a couple of my art buddies from school draw them up for me. It's the most expensive graduation present a student can give you."

"Do you still have their numbers?" asked Bon Bon as she looked up at Lyra.

"Well… yeah. I think."

"I'll have to grab those off you before you go."

Bon Bon continued sifting through the book, speed-reading the story and character notes that Lyra had written down. It was clear that the unicorn had been improving them over what must have been years. Detail by miniscule detail, the world of humanity grew with every page, showing Bon Bon an ever-expanding world, filled with these new creatures. "Wow… I can see you've been at this for a while."

"Eeyup! As pompous as this sounds, writing makes me feel like a genius. I just let this stuff pour out of my head and I love every bit of it." She paused. "Sorry if that was too—"

"No!" Bon Bon closed the book and laid it on the table. "Don't apologize for feeling good about what you do. You know you can write. Don't stop. Whatever you do, don't stop." Hopping off the couch, Bon Bon trotted over to her office desk near the opposite wall. Next to her computer was a script, which she tossed across the room to Lyra. "Memorise that—we're going to shoot it and show it to Pub."

Lyra began flipping through the pages, noticing that the script couldn't have been more than fifteen pages. "What is this for? All I see are references and blank pages."

"Only Human will get on the air, I promise. The problem is that you can't expect the executives to pour millions of bits into something that isn't a safe bet. And nothing makes people feel safer than nostalgia," explained Bon Bon, walking to a door near her desk.

Lyra shot up a look of confusion. "People?"

"Ponies!" Bon Bon started to break out into a fit of giggles. "You've got me doing it now."

Lyra joined in the giggling as Bon Bon opened the door, which led into a dark room. The earth pony flipped the lights on.

The two mares were in what looked like a low-budget public access show set. A cheap camera was aimed in front of a small green screen. To the left was coat rack full of costumes. "Wh-what's all this for?" asked Lyra, staring at the impromptu set.

"We're going to have to shoot your pitch now. Only Human is still fresh in the minds of Pub. Granted it's the butt of a joke, but they're talking about it. And in the end, that's what matters."

"Uh huh…" Lyra sifted through the wardrobe, pulling off what looked like a cheap business suit.

If I knew I needed to wear something, I would have brought the nice one that Ditzy bought me.

Lyra slowed down mid–suit-up, looking up at Bon Bon, who was adjusting the settings on her camera. "Hey, Bon Bon. Earlier you said that just because a pony could draw didn't mean they're an artist. What does that mean exactly?"

Bon Bon lowered her hooves from the camera, looking back at Lyra with a warm smile. "It means that art isn't just pretty pictures. It never has been. Art is about a pony taking their creative talent and making somepony else feel an emotion, or several." She started to advance towards Lyra. "Whether it's a book, a sculpture, a painting, whatever, art is about making ponies feel something." She laid a reassuring hoof on Lyra's shoulder, looking deep into her eyes. "Your story made me feel like I had just seen something special. Granted, I've only skimmed it, but the fact that you had put so much effort into making something so detailed and positive was enough to make me feel confident about all of this. Like it or not, Lyra, you are an artist!"

Lyra blushed but didn't turn away. All she did was return Bon Bon's supportive smile. She placed her hoof on Bon Bon's. "That's," she began. "I… Thank you." Using all of her strength, Lyra made sure she didn't shed any tears. Aside from what she had heard from friends and family, that was the nicest thing anypony had said about her work.

"Don't mention it. Now come on. We've got some executives to impress."

---

Ditzy's Muffins closed at night, complete with a "Closed" sign hanging on the door. Still, that never stopped Lyra from coming in. Using a key from her bag, she unlocked the door, making sure to re-lock it after stepping inside. She ascended a flight of stairs towards the back and pushed open the door at the end to reveal a small apartment. On the couch was Ditzy, who jumped up as soon as she saw her roommate.

"So... How was your date?" the wall-eyed mare cooed.

"There was no date. The business meeting I had, however, turned out just fine, thank you very much," she said as she laid down her heavy saddle bag. "She was supportive and creatively driven. She was so… so…"

"Beautiful?"

Lyra shot a glare at Ditzy. "I was going to say 'confident.' She talked like she knew everything there was to know, yet she can't be more than a year or so older than me."

Ditzy smiled uneasily. "It sounds like she's a bit too good to be true."

"What do you mean?"

"Lyra, I know how badly you want to get this show made. But she does too. I doubt she has any malicious intent, but she's in a position to make a lot of bits off you. She might be nice, she might be supportive, but just keep in mind that she might not have your friendship at the top of her priority list ."

The green mare shook her head, still finding it hard to stomach the possibility. "You're right. Do you always have to be right?"

"Only when I want to be." Ditzy wrapped her hoof around Lyra and guided her to the couch. "Come on,Desperate Housemares is on."

"But that show's horrible."

"I know, right?" she laughed.

---

The next day, Lyra power-walked into the Pub building, opting to leave her suit at home with Ditzy this time. As the elevator opened, she found a certain mare inside waiting for her.

"Right on time! Let's go," said Bon Bon.

Lyra joined Bon Bon in the elevator as she pushed the button for the top floor. "Not gonna lie, I think we're gonna kick flank today!

Ditzy was right—she is cute.

"As long as we're being honest, I should let you know that I'm nervous as all Tartarus right now," said Lyra, hooves shaking. Bon Bon wrapped her hoof around her, just in time for the door to open.

"Hey, you're only human."

---

Next: Viral Marketing!

Only Human: A Lyra Heartstrings Production

Chapter 3: Viral Marketing

By Smoking Gun

---

The two mares trotted down the hallway, their eyes fixed on the large wooden door that lead to the executive's office that Lyra once stood in. The secretary hastily put down her hoof file when she saw the two beam lining for the entrance.

"Hey!" shouted the secretary. "She can't go in there now," she said, pointing at the light-green unicorn.

"Actually, she can," said Bon Bon as she and Lyra kept trotting to the door. She didn't even turn her head.

"Why?" asked the flabbergasted employee.

"Because she's with me."

Bon Bon pushed the door open, startling the three executives inside. Sporting a confident smile, she stood before her co-workers with Lyra standing nervously behind her.

"Miss Bon, thank you for joining us so... theatrically," remarked Synergy as she peaked over Bon Bon's shoulder. "And... Miss Heartstrings."

Lyra had trouble discerning if Synergy's face was one of surprise or disgust.

Lyra stepped forward with a forced smile. "Hey everybody—"

"Pony," corrected Bon Bon.

Lyra bit her tongue to keep something questionable from out of her mouth again.

I wonder how long I can go before I say something stupid in front of these guys again, thought Lyra, keeping her fake smile up.

"So," began Paradigm, "what business brings the two of you back here... together... without an appointment?"

Lyra raised her hoof only to be interrupted by Bon Bon shover her hoof in front of her.

"I've brought Miss Heartstrings here today because she forgot to tell you who she really is," said Bon Bon, giving everypony in the room a confused expression. "She's the pony that's going to change this network."

Lyra's pupils constricted, as well as the rest of her body. Bon Bon glanced back at her with a reassuring smile before turning her gaze back to the executives, whose looks were more akin to confusion.

"Excuse me," said Marketing, leaning forward with a tone of disbelief.

"You're excused," Bon Bon quickly retorted. "You see, Only Human is going to be the final push that the Pub needs to dominate children's programming in Equestria."

Would have been nice to tell me that.

"I thought I was pretty clear before, but whatever," Bon Bon said quickly. "Lyra Heartstrings over here is going to be our new golden ticket. I've taken the liberty of uploading her video presentation to the server. Why don't we pull it up now?" she said, gesturing to the large television hanging on the wall.

For a brief second, Synergy scowled at Bon Bon before returning to a more civil smile. "Miss Bon, Lyra has already presented her vision to us. We already passed. I'm sure she appreciates your support, but our decision is final."

Bon Bon took a few steps forward, bringing her and Synergy a mere few inches from each other. "Firstly: It's Miss Heartstrings to you."

Lyra's eyes widened as she gulped.

Why do I feel the sudden urge to say 'I'm not with her'?"

"Secondly," Bon Bon continued, "as I recall, I wasn't there for the presentation. I never got to have my input."

"That's because you weren't there. We had to move ahead without you," said Synergy, very matter of fact.

"I was promoted to your level. We're equals here," retorted the cream pony. "I didn't give you the go ahead to make a judgement call without me. Granted, just one pony's opinion wouldn't have changed things, but I think it's only fair to both Miss Heartstrings and myself that we give her a second go."

Synergy glared straight at Bon Bon, looking deep into her eyes. "You were lucky to get promoted at your age. It would be wise for you to—"

"Wouldn't want the board of directors to think that their staff can't work together as adults, would we?" Bon Bon cocked her left eyebrow and turned the corners of her mouth up.

Deeply inhaling and exhaling, Synergy and the rest of the executives sank back into her chairs. "Please have a seat, Miss Heartstrings," the female executive mumbled.

Grabbing one of the spare seats in the room, Lyra positioned herself in front of the television, being sure to give herself a reasonable distance.

Opting not to sit in her executive chair, Bon Bon pulled over another chair and sat next to Lyra, giving her a reassuring smile and nod.

"Aren't you going to join us, Miss Bon?" asked Scructing, nodding towards her usual seat.

Bon Bon didn't turn to her co-worker when she spoke. "I prefer the view from here. But thanks."

Opening her laptop, Bon Bon started sifting through the various video files on the Pub servers.

Lyra leant over to Bon Bon, keeping her face angled towards the screen. "How were you able to get the video done so quickly?"

"I got top marks in my film editing class," answered Bon Bon. "Plus, having enough money to spend on computers that you use for nothing but rendering doesn't hurt either."

I never thought a pony talking about computers could sound hot.

Finally finding the file, Synergy turned down the lights with the switch that was built into the table and sent the video straight to the wall-mounted television.

---

Oddly enough, the video started out in black and white. Floating through what looked like space were various sketches from Lyra's Only Human Bible. They floated towards the screen as eerie music played over them. Coming on camera from the right, was Lyra, walking on her hind legs, wearing a blazer and sporting a confident smile while holding an unlit cigarette in her right hoof.

"You're about to enter a world of opposable thumbs, motorized vehicles, and where nudity is taboo," she said looking directly into the camera. "A world of flawed creatures with great dreams. A world without magic. A world with unlimited possibilities."

After the last sentence, Lyra and her sketches faded away, with a (royalty free) image of a door taking their place.

"You open this door with your new 'hands' and step into the world of... Only Human."

As the door opened, the image of Lyra's logo was formed out of several shards that came from off-screen.

---

Back in reality, Bon Bon leaned in close to Lyra and whispered in her ear. "I'm not gonna lie, I only knew about the Twilight Zone from random clips online."

"That's fine," returned Lyra. "I had no idea what the hay we were doing, so I just went with it."

The two giggled for a couple of seconds before returning their attention to the screen.

---

The next scene in the presentation took place on what looked like a sheet of lined paper, the kind that Lyra would have used back in school. A drawing-like animation generated the sketches from Lyra's book onto the page while Lyra's voice over

"The show follows six humans in particular. Three boys and three girls... or 'men' and 'women' that all study at a university together. Name of university pending."

---

Bon Bon leant into Lyra's ear. "Where did you get those names from? Did you pull them from somewhere? Are they a scientific term?"

Keeping her eyes on the screen, Lyra whispered back. "In all honesty, I pulled those words out of my flank."

The two started to giggle again, until Structuring promptly 'shushed' them.

---

The humans continued to appear one by one on the screen. The first was a female in a lab coat with her hair done up in a ponytail. "This is Sarah, who is a studying scientist who focuses on biology. She is a skeptic, an elitist and a total bookworm."

The second was a male with long black hair, wearing a blue shirt, a red jacket and thick specs. His physique was rather muscular. "This is Clark. A journalism student with an uncomprisable moral code, a kind and giving heart, as well as a built in drive to help those in need."

The next girl appeared. She was wearing tight jogging shorts, sports bra and running shoes. Her physique is particularly noteworthy compared to the other two humans. Her stomach, arms and legs were well defined, while her gluts were drawn to look firm. "Next is Diane, the athletic one. She's competitive, headstrong and well... shall we say, a bit thick-skulled at times?"

---

"She's the idiot of the show, isn't she?" whispered Bon Bon.

"Wait for it," Lyra answered.

---

The next male was animated. He was shorter than the others by a fair bit. He had curly hair, skinny arms and legs and a less-than-attractive smirk on his face. He wore a T-shirt that was clearly too big for him, shorts and flip-flops. "This handsome devil is Justin. He's the cocky, wise-mouth, prankster, up-to-no-good member of the group."

---

"Oh, there he is!" exclaimed Bon Bon, who was, once again, shushed by Structuring.

---

The finale female appeared. Humans may have been a new concept to everypony in the room, but it was clear that this one was the bombshell of the cast. Her breasts were large, her figure was curvy, she had long hair, full lips, long legs and thick eyelashes. "This hot momma—"

---

Why the hell did I say that?

---

"—is Clair. She's a fashion expert, who wages war on all things unfabulous. However, she has a tendency to be vapid, self-centered, egotistical and manipulative when she wants things to go her way."

And the final human took his place next her. "And last, but certainly not least, is Peter." This human didn't look like the others. His skin was dark brown, he had a much broader build, and was wearing incredibly fancy clothes, including a top hat, coattails, slacks and cane. "Peter is the 'fancy lad of the humans. Always doing what he can to stand out from the crowd, wearing the most expensive and fancy clothes he can get his hands on, often putting him in an elite mindset when he interacts with other people."

---

Structuring turned to the Bon Bon and Lyra. "So, is he supposed to be the Zebra of the show?"

He was quickly shushed by the two of them.

---

The sketches of the human disappeared from the screen. In their place, was Lyra, sitting in a huge chair, wearing a smoking jacket, carrying a corncob pipe (that blew bubbles), right in front of a fire place.

"Now, I don't always create creatures in my free time. But when I do, I make them flawed, but I make them brave." Lyra smiled warmly at the camera. "Humans are creatures that are naturally prone to failure. They fall, they lie, they make mistakes, just like us ponies. So, what makes humans so special? They're special because none of what I just said matters. If they fail, they try again. If they fall, they get back up. Humans are the representation of what ponies can be. Despite their flaws and natural distrust of each other early in the series, it won't matter. Why?"

The camera cut to a close up shot of Lyra.

"Because they're only human."

Suddenly, Lyra was replaced with the logo for the show.

"Only Human is a Lyra Heartstrings production!" proclaimed Lyra's voice over.

With no more words, the video ended.

---

With the video reaching its conclusion, Bon Bon rotated her chair to face her fellow executives, Lyra copying her. Without saying anything, Bon Bon slipped off her chair and trotted back over to what is her usual spot next to the executives. Synergy, Paradigm and Structuring gazed blankly as she took her seat.

"I trust the four of us are ready to make a decision in regards to this new product?" asked Bon Bon of her co-workers, quickly winking to Lyra.

Synergy leaned towards Bon Bon. "Miss Bon-"

"Don't talk to me, talk to her," Bon Bon said, pointing at Lyra, who was smiling nervously.

Synergy took a deep breath and adjuster herself to face Lyra, who just kept on smiling. "Miss Heartstrings, we appreciate the effort that you've put into improving your presentation, and while it is a much more convincing presentation that your last one—"

Really?

"But I believe I speak for my fellow executives... at least most of them, when I say that this still isn't a viable investment on our part."

Lyra's smile started to shrink, until Bon Bon suddenly raised her hoof.

"Excuse me, Miss Synergy, but I don't really see how it wouldn't be a wise investment."

Forcing a smile onto her face, Synergy faced Bon Bon, staring straight into her eyes. "Only Human has nothing attached to it. No media attention, no financial backing and no place in the public conscience."

"Actually..." Bon Bon opened her laptop again and opened up a web browser, heading straight for YouTube. "Only Human has more going for it than even Miss Heartstrings knows."

Oh God...

Lyra turned her head to the T.V. so she could get a view of what Bon Bon was doing. She saw the cursor head for the search bar and type 'Only Human Pitch.' The very first result was a video titled: "Only Human: A Lyra Heartstrings Production." The thumbnail for the video was the image of Lyra on her hind legs, wearing a blazer.

Suddenly, everypony - excluding Bon Bon - shared the same expression of shock and horror, going wide-eyed and clenching their jaws shut.

I'm going to jail. I don't know how, but I am going to jail.

"Miss Heartstrings!" shouted Paradigm. "Publishing content in regards to your pitch directly violates the contract you would have signed to present your show to us!"

Oh, that's how.

"Mister... Y-y-y-y-you see I have no idea-"

Bon Bon interjected. "Miss Heartstrings had nothing to do with this little leak." All eyes were suddenly on the junior executive. "You see, Miss Heartstrings left this presentation in my care. I left my laptop on, unprotected, and unattended. There are plenty of news hounds out there who would do anything to get the scoop on our upcoming developments." Bon Bon started playing with her mane as she looked away, sporting a cheeky grin. "Obviously this fiend hacked my computer and posted the video on YouTube... not that there's a way to tell who did for certain."

The only sound that broke the silence was the humming of the television in the background. That is until Lyra started to hear her own heartbeat. It sounded like her heart took a trip up to her brain and started a mosh pit.

She is going to jail.

Synergy breathed in deep and slow, not breaking eye contact with the cream mare. "And what exactly has come of this 'little leak,' Miss Bon?"

"Look in the comments."

Everypony looked back to the T.V. seeing nothing but positive comments, up votes and likes across the board.

Bon Bon continued. "If I may direct your attention to the top comments, we can see that 'XxKandiSucaxX' said that Only Human looks 'Sawiiit', while 'SlenderMare' adds 'Toats.'"

Lyra scanned ahead and started reading the other comments. One by one, she saw nothing but positive expectations, optimism and humour, all coming from her show.

She knew this would happen, didn't she?

"Before we continue, I'd like to show you two more things." Bon Bon scrolled up to show the description attached to the video. "You'll note that the description explains the premise of the show, as well as Lyra's background. Including her education, age and experience... or lack thereof. The second is the hit counter. I don't believe I need to explain why that many zeroes are important. Now, imagine the sort of attention we could get for this. A rookie with nothing more than a dream stepped forward to produce one of the best new concepts in television history. We get good press and Lyra gets her show, everybody wins."

"Pony," corrected Lyra.

Wait... did I just do that?

"Everypony, I'm sorry," remarked Bon Bon with a smile. "So, Miss Heartstrings, my associates have a decision. Green light a show that will bring us nothing but good press and new interest. Or we can let the public outcry that's bound to come from us shooting down your project eliminate what positive place we still have in the public's mind."

Bon Bon's smirk was not directed at her fellow executives, who just stared in amazement at her.

I can't tell if they're impressed or are planning to kill her... or both.

Structuring and Paradigm turned their attention to Synergy who kept her eyes fixed on Bon Bon. She then looked to Lyra, who was clearly sweating in her seat. Synergy then closed her eyes, processing her position. Lyra shot Bon Bon a worried expression while Bon Bon just smiled and winked at her.

Synergy finally spoke up. "Twenty-six episodes, oriented to the female demographic, Saturday mornings a few weeks before we kick off the new seasons of our other shows. We need to be ready to fill up the schedule when falls flat on its flank." She stared deep into Bon Bon's eyes. "Well?"

Female demographic?

"Don't ask me, ask her."

Before Lyra could prepare herself mentally, she was staring Synergy down. The executive stared daggers into the unicorn.

Breathe Heartstrings. Breathe.

Without warning, Synergy chuckled, showing off a smile that did nothing for Lyra's nerves. "Well, Miss Heartstrings? It's your show. It's your call." Synergy squinted and she kept smirking at Lyra. "Are you ready to give humanity life?"

This is it Heartstrings. This is what all your hard work is for. Your friend took a risk to get you here. Don't let her down. Don't let yourself down!

"I think that's quite alright," Lyra said with a confident demeanor. "I'm ready to move forward if the Pub will have me."

"Oh, we'd be more than happy to own you Miss Heartstrings."

Come again?

"Mister Structuring, would you be so kind as to have the legal department write up some contracts for Miss Heartstrings to sign tomorrow?" asked Synergy.

"I'll get on that immediately."

"Wonderful. Now, Miss Heartstrings, you're new to this industry, so it's only fair that I make something very clear to you before we proceed."

If she says 'seven days', I'm out.

"We are partners in this venture. We are a team now. If you follow our lead, take our input and listen to our advice, we promise you will have an amazing experience under the Pub banner. But in order for this to work, we need your word that you're prepared to work with us. Work with us very closely. Do I make myself clear?"

Lyra gulped. "Yes, Miss Synergy."

Synergy's smile went from freaky to warm and welcome in a flash. "Excellent. We'll have you come in for the signing tomorrow. We should have a public announcement ready by next week. Until then, you're dismissed." Synergy looked to the cream pony sitting next to her. "Both of you are."

---

Lyra followed Bon Bon into the elevator silently, looking back over her shoulder to notice the secretary shooting her a less-than-questionable expression. Once the two had both entered the elevator, Bon Bon pushed the button for the ground floor, the two waiting in silence for the door to shut. The second it did, Bon Bon quickly hit the emergency stop button. Lyra gave her a confused look.

"What was that for?"

Bon Bon didn't turn to face Lyra. She just kept her face toward the door, smirking a little bit. "You can do it now."

"I'm sorry?"

"They aren't looking. You can do it now," the cream pony said out of the corner of her cheeky looking mouth.

After a brief pause, Lyra shook her head and turned back towards the door, mimicking Bon Bon. After a few more seconds of silence, her lips turned up, growing wider and wider. Her lips parted, revealing her pearly whites. Giggling started to sneak out from her grin until she exploded into laughter and cheers. The unicorn bounced up and down and started hopping around Bon Bon, who just watched on like a proud parent. Lyra's cheering started to bounce off the walls of elevator, almost tripling the effect in Bon Bon's ears.

Back in the lobby, the secretary, who was now joined by Synergy, stared at the elevator door with bemused expressions on their brows as they bathed in the giddiness that was emanating from the closed metal box.

"Excuse me, Miss," asked the secretary. "Should we tell them that we can hear them?"

Synergy did not respond.

After a few minutes or laughter and cheers, Lyra finally came to a stop. Sweating and smiling, she gave Bon Bon a hug with what energy she had left.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" she said as she squeezed the air out of the earth pony. "You have no idea how much this means to me!"

"Trust me," Bon Bon squeezed out, "I have a rough idea... you can let go now."

"Oh, sorry." Lyra released Bon Bon, letting her breath again. Sharing a little giggle, Bon Bon pushed the emergency stop button once more, sending the elevator down to the ground floor.

"Let's get you out of here," said Bon Bon as she started to get her breath back. "Your sweat is starting to fill up the room."

The elevator opened to the foyer. The two mares trotted, sporting confident smiles as they trotted past the other ponies in the room. Lyra noticed a bunch of them giving the two weird looks as they strutted past.

They're either paying attention to my ecstasy or my B.O, either way, I don't care.

The door pony held the door open as they trotted down the stairs, eventually reaching the sidewalk. Their smiles were still holding strong.

Lyra turned to her new friend. "Bon Bon?"

"Don't mention it," brushed off the junior executive. "I was doing my job. I saw potential, and I got it green lit. Besides, you already said thank you."

"I don't care." Lyra was only standing a few inches from Bon Bon. "I know this is rare for anypony and I... THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU—"

"Easy!" Bon Bon raised a hoof in the air, signally Lyra to calm down. "You're welcome. How's that?" she asked with a wise-smirk.

Taking a few deep breaths, Lyra's heart rate returned to a closer-to-normal rate. Though it was clear that her excitement wasn't dissipating anytime soon. "Better, hehe. So... now what?"

"We wait for the announcement next week. Then we begin production, casting, animation, all that good stuff. Until then, I suggest you chillax. You're gonna be busy beyond belief once we get into things."

"Sure... hey Bon Bon, what were you guys talking about when Synergy brought up that whole 'female demographic' thing?"

Bon Bon's eyes shifted from left to right, she shifted uncomfortably before speaking up. "It's... how we're gonna market the show. It's how we'll have to make the show in order for it to be a viable investment."

"But I made the show for boys and girls. That's why there's an even amount of them in the cast." Lyra's smile had vanished for a second for her to get the seriousness of concern across.

"That's true... and that's why we have to make it for girls."

Lyra didn't respond with words. She just stared with an arched eyebrow, gazing at Bon Bon until she elaborated.

"You see, when half the core cast of a product consists of females, it is considered a 'female demographic' product by its investors. In this case, because you have three females as well as the three males, the show will be target towards our female viewers more than our male ones." Bon Bon started to sweat when Lyra remained silent. "It's just the way executives do things."

"So let me get this straight," began the unicorn. "Because there are just as many girls as there are boys, it MUST be made for girls?"

"Focus groups over the past few decades have shown that's how audiences have viewed it."

Lyra looked away and shook her head with disbelief. "Wow. That is... almost sickening."

Bon Bon quickly put her hooves on Lyra's shoulders, causing her gaze to return to the mare in front of her. "Forget about that crap. That's just for the stupid marketing department to worry about. I've seen what you've got. I know what this show is going to be. You won't have to worry about that. You got a show on the Pub Network for pony sake!"

Lyra's smile returned. "Heh, I guess that's true," she said with a light shrug.

I've only known her for a couple of days and she already knows how to keep me smiling.

Bon Bon released Lyra. "We'll talk about what you'll need to do next later. I've got some other stuff to take care of, but then I'm all yours."

You bet you are.

Bon Bon continued. "Until then, take a load off."

Lyra lunged forward and gave her friend one more hug for the road. "Yeah, yeah. I know I've said thank you already."

"Heh, OK, OK."

Lyra let go, giving her a moment to stare into Bon Bon's eyes. The two blushed and smiled before turning away.

"I... I should head home. I've got some stuff to take care of," mumbled Bon Bon.

"Yeah, me too," added Lyra. "Last time I made Ditzy worried, she put up lost dog signs with a picture of me on it."

Bon Bon let out a chuckle. "Sounds like a real friend, right there." She started to walk backwards. "Well... see ya!"

"Yeah," returned Lyra. "See ya... and stuff."

The two turned away from each other and headed opposite directions on the sidewalk. Gazing over her shoulder, Bon Bon caught a glimpse of Lyra on her hind legs, doing ballerina twirls down the street.

---

Ditzy's Muffins wasn't particularly busy during the evening, so Ditzy would take the opportunity to get the cleaning done early. She would take the all-purpose-cleaner and spray down all the windows and tables. Wiping away, over and over and over again in silence. A contempt smile hung off her face as she hummed to herself, soaking in the light of the twilight sky that bounced off her freshly cleaned furniture and signs.

The pegasus' humming was disrupted by the sound of the bell hanging over the door making its usual noise when a customer walked in. The customer in question was a green unicorn, twirling into the muffin shop with a goofy grin and song in her heart.

"Somepony get laid?" Ditzy asked as she put down her cleaning equipment on the counter.

Lyra stopped twirling and brought herself face-to-face with her roommate. "Better. ONLY HUMANGOT GREENLIT!"

Lyra froze in place, on her hind legs, with her forelegs in the air as she awaited Ditzy's response. Ditzy stared straight at her with a blank expression.

"No, seriously. Did you get laid?" Just as Lyra's smile started to fade, Ditzy erupted into laughter. Ditzy ran up to Lyra and gave her a big hug. "I'm kidding, dummy. Congratulations! I knew you'd do alright."

"Really?"

"For the sake of your rent, yep."

Ditzy released Lyra, leaving the two free to head up the stairs to their apartment.

"You should have seen it!" exclaimed Lyra as the two reached the stairs. "We just strutted in—"

"You're right. I should've seen that."

Lyra socked her in the arm as they entered the apartment. "We showed them our presentation, which it turns out Bon Bon had leaked on the net beforehand."

"Hoof," corrected Ditzy. "Wait a minute, is that legal? Was she allowed to do that?"

"Barely, and that's what's so awesome about her! Just listening to the way they talked, it was like drama. Who's right? Who's wrong? Who's working together? It was a total play. This was some Breaking Bad stuff right here!"

Ditzy's only reaction was roll of her wall-eyes.

I'm never gonna get used to that.

"I'll pretend that the reference you just made wasn't that dumb and let you continue," groaned the pegasus.

"Because she leaked the video, it got a whole bunch of positive attention from ponies across Equestria. All that attention would have given the Pub bad press, so Bon Bon was able to get them all to green light it. They're making the announcement tomorrow and we'll be on in time for next fall. Ditzy, it's happening! I knew if I kept going thing would work out. Just like my little hu—"

"Wait!" Ditzy suddenly had her hoof up to Lyra's mouth, cutting off her speech. "You're saying that this mare that you met only a couple days ago came to you and helped you get your show on the air. Not only get your show on the air, but get it on the air by going against her co-workers."

"Yeah!" said Lyra with a giant, earnest smile.

Ditzy didn't respond, at least verbally. She stared at Lyra who continued to hold her smile until Ditzy finally spoke up.

"I'm just gonna stand here until you realize what's wrong with that."

"Oh, it's OK. Because Bon Bon didn't tell me she was going to leak the video, I have plausible deniability. I don't get sued, and the show gets on the air."

"That's not the... argh!" Ditzy facehoofed. Upon removing the hoof, she now had a more somber expression. "Sweetheart, I think you're moving a little too fast here."

"What do you mean?"

"Lots of things. Firstly, let's look at this whole leaking situation. You got lucky with this time, but what happens if she tries something else and puts your career at risk? Do you honestly still trust her after this?"

"Totally!" she proclaimed with not an ounce of irony. "She did that for me. She did it to get my show on the air." Lyra started to turn dreamy-eyed. "She's so cool, Ditzy. She said I was an artist, got my show on the air, we hugged and—"

"Stop." Ditzy shoved her hoof straight into Lyra's mouth. "Stop right there. I think I'm starting to see the problem here. Sweety, do you remember our talk last night? The one about going too fast? The one about this Bon Bon?"

Lyra shifted her eyes back and forth, doing her best to keep smiling. "Maybe?"

"Lyra, I know she seems like a great mare. She's helped you out, talked you up, got your show going, but I think you're getting way too far ahead of yourself. Especially considering the delicate situation she's recklessly put you in."

"Ditzy, you're being ridiculous," she scoffed back. "I haven't been moving too fast with anything."

"No, of course you haven't. You just strutted out of university, went straight to a bunch of the top networks in Equestria with a bunch of creatures that you pulled out of your flank with no money or experience under your belt and already wanna shack up with some mare you just met."

Lyra looked to the ground. "I didn't say I wanted to 'shack up.'"

Ditzy gently laid a hoof on her Lyra's face. "Sweetie, I don't doubt that she's very nice, but really stop and think about where you are right now. Bon Bon has put you in a very bad position with these ponies who are now your employers. She seems young and reckless. It's great that you're gonna get your show on the air, but I think it's a seriously bad idea to be pursuing this girl, especially right at this second."

Looking into Ditzy's good eye, Lyra showed utter disappointment plastered across her whole being.

We JUST talked about this... and I already jumped the gun.

"Ditzy... I don't know. She just seems so cool and she did a really good thing for me. Only Human is getting made, we're gonna be seeing more of each other and... I don't know."

The grey pegasus smiled at her. "Lyra, you got a T.V. show green lit. How many ponies can say that? It wasn't because some mare leaked your video. It wasn't because she helped you make a video. It's because you made something that ponies want to see. My suggestion at this point would be to just focus on making the show as great as you possibly can. Focus on your work; keep it professional, but friendly with Bon Bon, and maybe when things have calmed down... who knows? Besides, I want to get to know Bon Bon myself... to make sure I don't let my girl get snatched up by some hussy."

Lyra pulled Ditzy in close for a hug, nuzzling up against her head. "Thanks, Ditzy. I didn't mean to—"

"It's fine, sweetheart. You just needed somepony to slap some sense into you. Speaking of which, I have an idea of what you can do while you're waiting for the announcement to come out."

"And what's that?"

Grabbing hold of Lyra, Ditzy turned her around to the clothes hanger behind them. She gestured towards a cleaning apron lying on the floor at the foot of the wardrobe.

"You can work on keeping up your half of the rent until that T.V. money starts to come in."

The two shared a laugh as Lyra levitated her apron off the ground and strapped it to her. Lyra trotted to the door, only for Ditzy to dash in front of her.

"And before you even think about it, the answer is no."

"Think... about what?" asked Lyra with trepidation in her voice.

"You're a big time T.V. writer with your own show on Equestria's number one network, and I'm a muffin store owner. I am clearly out of your league."

---

The pulled back curtains allowed the light of Luna's moon to illuminate Bon Bon's penthouse. The blue light glistened off all the metal objects on the room, creating a beautiful sparkle. Trotting straight out of the elevator, Bon Bon's entrance triggered the automatic lights, shattering the moonlight effect. Heading straight for the kitchen, she pulled out a canned apple cider before slumping onto the couch. She turned on the wall mounted television to Desperate Housemares and watched in silence for a few moments, only to be disrupted by her ringtone. With a groan, she reached for her phone and answered.

"Yellow?"

"What do you think you're doing?" the peeved voice on the other side of the line growled into their phone.

Bon Bon chuckled. "Sup, Synergy. I was just watching looking for some crap to watch. Unfortunately all the shows you green lit aren't on right now."

"Clearly you don't know, so I'll tell you," Synergy continued, ignoring the junior executive. "You're not thinking. At least not like a business pony should."

The cream pony muted the T.V. "Are you sure? Because the meeting I went to today ended with me and young writer getting a show green lit. What meeting did you go to?"

"I went to the meeting where you acted like a spoiled child, thinking you could undermine us in front of a mare who is now our employee, not to mention the rest of Equestria. I know I'm some old-timer who's probably outdated, but those are not the actions of a pony who wants to make friends."

Bon Bon's smirk slowly faded as she sat up straight and placed her can of cider on the table in front of her. "I was simply doing as you taught me. Be aggressive, be smart and pay attention to the way Equestria thinks. That's exactly what I did." Bon Bon swallowed the spit that built up in her mouth as she was talking. "Plus, I saw a pony that was in a similar position to me not too long ago. I got to move up the ranks with a bit of help. I thought she deserved the same help."

"Well, look at you on your high horse!" Synergy shouted back. "You've been an executive for a year. Get over yourself!"

Sweat dripped from Bon Bon's forehead and onto the couch.

Synergy continued. "You two are made for each other. A couple of kids who ran before they could walk. You know what happens to ponies that do that? They fall, and they fall hard."

Bon Bon breathing increased in speed. "Is that supposed to be a threat?"

"A 'threat' implies that I'm going to do something about this. I won't have to. You two idiots have set yourselves up. And when the board sees you for the unstable, unprepared little filly that you are, you'll be relieved of your duty. The reason I'm frustrated is that this little exercise in pragmatism of yours is going to cost us a lot of time and money. Time and money that we could be spending on projects that are being made by people with actual experience!"

Bon Bon paused for a moment. "Did you just say people?"

The phone went dead silent for a little too long. Not even the sound of Synergy's breathing could be picked up.

Hearing a gulp on the other end of the line, the senior executive's voice spoke. "Look, let me give you one piece of advice. I've seen the way that mare looks at you, and I've caught the way you look at her as well. This whole deal is probably going to break this girl's career. Do her a favour and don't break her heart in the process."

Without another word, Synergy hung up. Lowering her phone onto the couch, Bon Bon looked up at the T.V, watching the romantic leads of Desperate Housemares chew up the scenery silently as she left the mute on. She looked back down at the Only Human title card she had resting on her living room table.

"What have I gotten myself into?"