It was a quick walk to the home shared by Lyra and Bon-Bon-- One of the town’s most publicly affectionate couples, renowned just as much for their inseparable nature as their respective talents. And sure enough, one couldn’t even get within a block without smelling the sharp sweet and bitter notes of chocolate and caramel, or hearing the gentle thrum of the lyre. Today, the string music was accompanied by the faint percussion and occasional rustles of a backing track- Lyra must have gotten that new record player she had been saving up for. Fluttershy had barely gotten close enough to see the record-player’s massive brass horn before Lyra had whipped around to see who was coming. She burst into a grin, immediately stopping the music.

“Flutters! Just the mare I was wanting to see- Come here!”

Confused, she did so, walking closer and looking from side to side, suddenly a bit self-conscious.
“Yes?”

The unicorn propped her instrument against the wall before plopping back onto the porch’s rocking-chair, sitting in her usual odd posture. Her smile turned devious, almost conspiratorial, as she looked Fluttershy right in the eye.
“So, me and Bon had a bet going... Didja?”

“Did I... what?”

“Well... you know!”

“Lyra, I’m afraid I really don’t.”

Lyra began waggling her eyebrows and making a series of crude gestures with her hooves.
“Didja screw? You and the Princess, up all night, makin’ sweet music? Get yourself some of that gentle (or not so gentle, I wouldn’t judge) alicorn lovin’? Slip her the ol’ wing-ding? Eh, eh?”

Fluttershy was very glad she was standing on the dirt road, because her blush was so hot the wooden porch would probably have burst into flames. Lyra was just grinning and chuckling, her question apparently answered, while Bon-Bon ducked her head out the window.
“There was no such bet, Fluttershy! I would never pry into your affairs like that.”
She punctuated her sentence with a nice forceful backhoof to the side of Lyra’s head, which only made her laugh harder. The earth pony mare sighed and then leaned back inside, popping open the door.

“Come on in, Fluttershy- Don’t mind my atrocious marefriend.”

“Awww honey-buns, ya know you love it when I talk dirty!”

There was a soft -splut- as a perfectly-fired maraschino cherry got launched through the window, dodged equally-well by Lyra. From inside, Bon-Bon could be heard sighing audibly, while Lyra finally stopped laughing and started packing up her musical equipment.

“Eh, if she were really mad she’d aim better. Comin’ inside?”

Fluttershy didn’t have the words to form any kind of response, so she simply followed her inside without speaking, wondering whether or not this “thank you” visit was ill-timed, ill-conceived, or both. She could only imagine how Luna was going to react to this kind of treatment...

--------

“And so that’s when Da’ said “You thought that was bad, you should’a seen the mare!””

Bon-Bon groaned deeply into her hooves, hiding her shame as her marefriend finished another salacious joke. Fluttershy was practically burrowed into the cushions of their loveseat, flushed with embarrassment, and the Princess? The Princess was laughing loudly enough to bring the occasional rivulet of dust from the rafters, forelegs clutching her sides, rolling back and forth across the carpet. Eventually their royal guest calmed herself, wheezing out a few last chuckles and lifting up onto her hooves again. Apparently realizing the kind of scene she was making, Luna settled into her chair, attempting to keep a straight face and proper decorum... Only to crack up again when Lyra repeated one of the gestures from her gag. Bon-Bon’s marefriend turned to her with a huge smile.
“See, Bon? I told you somepony would find my Dad’s stories funny.”

“Using a word like ‘stories’ implies there’s a hint of truth to those terrible old jokes.”

“Pfft, denier. My old Pa wouldn’t even know how to tell a lie... Unless it was really really funny.”

She shook her head again and looked out the window at the sun- Four or five o’clock at best. This was going to be a long visit...

--------

She had not had such an opportunity to let herself loose and truly laugh in some time. Certainly, the parties with Fluttershy, Twilight Sparkle, and her other friends were enjoyable, but Lyra was simply slinging jokes without provocation or cessation, and it was allowing her to really enjoy each one fully, as an audience, instead of as a friend. Luna almost did not notice when Bon-Bon thanked them (again) for the gifts and went to put them into the pantry. As soon as she left, however, Lyra got up and darted her eyes from side to side, leaning forward to whisper to them.
“Wanna see something great?”

“Surely!”

“Why are we whispering?”

Lyra winced.
“Bon... Isn’t a fan of my collection.”

Luna’s eyes boggled for a moment. If this was anything like her sister’s Collection, then... No, even a pony as ‘open’ as Lyra wouldn’t be showing off that kind of assemblage on a simple social visit. It was likely just some kind of interest or hobby that her marefriend felt was childish, or odd. Mayhaps she was a model maker, a stamp-keeper, or some similar thing. Oh! Perhaps paraphernalia of entertainment products outside of her demographic, or-

Lyra pulled aside a curtain in one corner of the living room, revealing a double-wide bookcase covered from top to toe with objects. Some books, yes, but also globes and pictures and anatomical models, jars and cases and more. Yellowing article clippings were pinned to the sides, binders likely full of the same rested on top. One shelf was even solely devoted to children’s toys and books, despite their obvious simplicity they still had the same focus. Every single surface was covered, and the entire thing was devoted to that one subject. One subject which Luna had almost managed to pretend wasn’t going to come back and bite her in the temporally-displaced plot.

“This... Is my collection of information on humans.”

Luna swore under her breath.

--------

Fluttershy was only paying half-hearted attention to Lyra’s collection, and the accompanying speech. Which is not to say it was boring- She found the entire concept very interesting herself, and Lyra’s enthusiasm was infectious. But it was far more intriguing to watch Luna’s reaction to the whole thing: With every passing sentence, she got a bit more grim. Each artifact displayed, each toy activated, led to her frown growing to an almost depressing scale. Eventually, Lyra managed to catch on, slowing down in the middle of winding up a human construction worker toy- It dropped to the shelf and began walking across, occasionally emitting a strange wolf-like whistle.

“Uh, Princess... Is something the matter?”

Luna winced.
“You’re going to ask, aren’t you?”

Lyra looked to Fluttershy, but all she could do was shake her head- She didn’t have any more idea what was going on than Lyra herself did. This was all new to her. Her marefriend groaned and began pacing as she spoke, punctuating each point with a short stomp or a toss of her starry mane.
“They always ask. Everypony, without fail, when the topic of humans come up...”

She began a humorously archaic impersonation of a little filly, voice shrill and adorable.
“Oh Princess! Thou hast been around so dreadfully long, would thou know of these hu-mans?”

Another whip of her mane, a rough snort, and her pacing started over, going the other way.
“And every time, their disappointment when I refuse them is just.. palpable!”

Lyra looked nervously to the side.
“Um, Princess...”

She picked up speed, and volume, as her rant continued to barrel onwards.
“Time after time, year after year, even now, no, in fact, not just now: The first time was the very week I returned! Incessant, unceasing...”

Fluttershy cleared her throat, just a little.
“Luna...”

This time, her hooves were almost sparking, despite the wooden tiles of the floor. Her voice was even rising closer to Royal Canterlot registers...
“And it would not be even half so bad if t’were not for the fact that-“

Finally, Fluttershy decided to assert herself a bit, leaping in front of the pacing (practically charging) alicorn.
“Luna!”

She stopped, looking around as if just now becoming aware of where she was.
“Oh. Oh! We... we ranted, did we not?”

“Mmhmm.”

Luna groaned and sat down hard, putting her head in her hooves.
“Our sincerest apologies. We... it is just a stressful subject.”

Their host backed away, putting up her forehooves in surrender.
“Well hey, if it’s any help, I wasn’t going to ask.”

That seemed to mollify Luna, and she relaxed visibly.
“...Thank thee, friend Lyra.”

A wicked grin crossed the unicorn’s face.
“Although if we’re on the subject anyways...”

Fluttershy gasped.
“Lyra!”

“Kidding! Kidding. ...mostly.”

She felt a Stare coming on.
“What was that?”

Lyra backed off instantly, shaking her head.
“Nothing!”

Now it was Fluttershy’s turn for a wicked, if content, smile.
Better.

--------

Things had managed to calm down after that, Lyra giving the rest of her speech and tour without interruption or worry- In fact, Luna even seemed interested now, instead of mildly angry and worried. Fluttershy herself, however, had fled not once, but twice- Both times, however, Bon-Bon just laughed and insisted that the skull and the skeletal hand were plaster, not real bone. And while it didn’t help her nerves much, it was enough to get her back out into the living room just in time to catch another one of Lyra’s lewd jokes, this one aided by a human anatomical diagram. She had not heard most of it, but came back in time to catch a few rough poking gestures and got the gist. Luna burst out laughing again, and the two of them continued to chatter for a while until they noticed Fluttershy’s return.

“Oh! Welcome back. Uh, sorry about...”

“No, it’s no worry, Lyra. I just... don’t do well with deceased things. Or pictures of them. Or talking about them.”

Lyra made a strange gesture with her hoof- “It’s supposed to be a thumbs up!”- before re-shelving the charts, finally pulling the curtain (literally) on that strange aspect of their visit. Luna trotted over and caught her in a one-legged hug, and she gladly let herself be pulled back towards the couch. With almost impeccable timing (she probably knew just how long it took Lyra to go over her oddities) Bon-Bon exited the kitchen, joining her lover on the couch opposite them. There was a moment of silence, not exactly awkward, as they all quickly scrambled for a conversation topic.

They were, in the end, beaten to the punch by Luna’s stomach, which growled loudly enough that they all heard it. The Princess chuckled nervously, and Fluttershy blushed, but their hosts... Bon-Bon seemed to be pretending not to hear it, and Lyra eventually lost control and burst into full gales of laughter.
“Ah! Oh wow... Yeah, we have kept you guys a while, haven’t we?”

“Well, our lunch was... fairly light. And my body often begs more food than I hope, if one understands...”

“I getcha. Gotta keep that smokin’ royal figure if you wanna keep catchin’ mares like Fluttershy, eh?”

This time it was Luna’s turn to blush, completely without response. Lyra did, however, look a bit pensive, eventually turning her head aside and breaking eye contact. Her question surprised Fluttershy:
“Uh, Lu-... Princess. I’m not being too informal, right? It’s not an issue?”

“Neigh. We wish more ponies were like thee, Lyra of Ponyville. It is both refreshing and welcome.”

“Sweet! Glad to hear it. I’ll keep bein’ me then, all open-minded and open-eared.”

Bon-Bon nudged her in the side.
“Open-mouthed too, most of the time.”

They all shared a laugh at that, and Luna stood from the couch. Unsure if they were leaving just yet, Fluttershy stayed where she was, averting her eyes (with great effort) from Luna’s posterior.
“Well then. In return for thy... Open-minded camaraderie, I will give a boon to thee.”

Lyra seemed intrigued, but Bon-Bon looked nervously around, as if dreading what she would hear. Fluttershy could understand such paranoia- With somepony as intimidating and ancient as Luna, there was really no guarantee that a ‘boon’ would actually be a good thing. Especially given how ‘unorthodox’ Lyra’s behavior had been. But Fluttershy trusted her Princess, and hoped Bon-Bon would too, in time.
“Princess, you really don’t have to-”

Lyra laughed and waved a hoof dismissively.
“Honey, let it go. I doubt she’s lyin’ or trying to do something sketchy. Seems like a nice mare to me, after all- Would she be with Fluttershy, otherwise?”

That seemed to calm her marefriend, and so Lyra turned back to face the Princess of the Night. For her part, Fluttershy sat aside quietly, wondering at what would happen. Trust or not, she still wasn’t positive what Luna meant.

“This coming Sun’s Day, which is to say, tomorrow... We will be holding a speech here in Ponyville before We depart, that evening. Bring your lyre to this speech, and afterwards, a lesson will be taught to you.”

Unsurprisingly, Lyra bristled a bit at this.
“Are you... sayin’ you think I need to get better? That I don’t play well?”

“Oh! My apologies. That... No, that was not Our intention. What We meant to say was that thy skill is suited to something... long-missing. There are secrets to music, and magic... That is to say, to the music of magic and the magic of music... Which were almost lost in my absence. I had been hoping to share some of them with ponies of great talent, like thee.”

Her formerly angry expression faded, to be replaced with a wide smile, turning to Bon-Bon with her eyes bright.
“Bon! Didja hear that?”

Bon-Bon turned to her marefriend, and then to the Princess.
“I did. I’m proud, Lyra. And Princess... Thank you.”

Luna smiled at the couple as they embraced.
“Think nothing of it. ‘Tis only natural. Although to thee, Ms. Bon-Bon, I am afraid I have little reward of such significance to offer.”

“Aaaw, don’t worry about that- You already did!”

The Princess looked at her in puzzlement before she continued.
“Your gift, er, boon to Lyra made her happy, and... Well, making her happy is reward enough for me.”
Bon-Bon blushed and leaned in closer to Lyra after explaining herself.

Even if she had not been directly involved in the conversation, Fluttershy couldn’t hold back a soft coo at the adorable love the two shared. She had always noticed them around town as a well-matched couple, but seeing it in action was another story entirely. ‘Will anypony see me and Luna the same way?’, she thought, musing on their relationship and how it might be received... Once she told anypony. Sure, Lyra had sussed it out, but others might not be so fast, and breaking the news of success to her friends would likely have to wait a bit...