Revenge and Candy

Lyra tiredly held up her lyre in her hooves as she mindlessly plucked away at the strings with her magic, going through the motions of the Winter Wrap Up melody that she had done a million times before. She struggled to keep her eyes open as she played along with the orchestra around her, watching her lyre as the strings vibrated with each note she played.

Sleep had been a struggle for her lately. She couldn't stop thinking about Chris and Bon Bon. She hoped that they were getting along and Bon Bon wasn’t being her usual stubborn self.

Lyra knew Chris wouldn’t let Bon Bon do that. He would go nuts if she wasn’t at least talking to him by now. If anypony could get her to come out of her shell, it was him, but Lyra couldn't help wondering what they might be doing in that cabin right now. Maybe she could check on them later, just to see if things were going smoothly.

The more Lyra thought about it the more she realised she couldn't do that. It would just be too risky. What if somepony saw where she was going and followed her? She would have to stay away from the cabin until the spell wore off, but she might be able to just peek into the window and… No, she couldn’t.

“Lyra?”

Maybe she made a mistake. What if her plan was doing the exact opposite of what she thought it would do? What if Bon Bon and Chris weren't really meant to be together like she originally thought?

But, that couldn't be true. Bon Bon definitely saw something in Chris at The Everfree Moon; there was no doubt in her mind. The way Bon Bon looked at him when she took the firelily said it all. It was the right choice to put them together and it was the only way Bon Bon would even give Chris a chance.

“Lyra?”

But would they even forgive her once this was all over?

Lyra could feel her eyes start to water as she thought about losing the ones she loved the most because of her actions. It was a scary and horrible thought, but she couldn’t blame them if they didn’t want to see her anymore. Maybe it wouldn’t be too late to dispel the barrier, tell them she was sorry and try to make it up to them. All she would have to do is―

“LYRA HEARTSTRINGS!”

Lyra jumped, jerking her head up and looked towards the source of the voice that called to her. She saw Octavia in the front of the room, looking directly at her with a confused and worried expression. The grey earth pony was standing up, holding her cello in her hooves as if she was in the middle of playing a note.

“We’ve moved on from Winter Wrap Up a while ago. Can you please keep up with us?” Octavia asked in a kind, yet exhausted tone.

Lyra glanced around the room and saw that everypony had stopped playing their instruments to glare at her. The crowd of ponies were giving her a mix of bemused and frustrated looks.

Lyra smiled sheepishly in embarrassment and looked back towards Octavia. “S-sorry. I-I wasn’t... paying attention.”

“Yes, I could hear that,” Octavia said in a disheartening tone before sighing deeply. “How about we conclude practice early today,” she said as she started to put her cello away in its proper case. “Everypony played exceptionally well and I expect the same performance during tomorrow's practice,” she added as everypony in the room started to pack their instruments away.

Lyra took a deep breath and exhaled slowly before using her magic to put her lyre in its case. Thoughts about Chris and Bon Bon continued to plague her mind as she placed the case in her saddlebags. She fought back a tear as she set the bags on her haunches and slowly made her way towards the exit, hanging her head in despair.

“Lyra,” Octavia called softly from behind her, causing her to freeze just as she was about to reach the exit. “I want you to stay. We need to talk.”

Lyra groaned to herself, knowing what was going to come next. She stepped away from the door, making her way towards Octavia, who was standing in the middle of the room with her cello case strapped to her back.

Once everypony had left Octavia looked directly into Lyra’s exhausted and baggy eyes with a worried frown. “Lyra… what's been going on with you lately?”

Lyra knew this question was coming. “I-I’m sorry Octavia, I just…” she started to explain, not daring to look directly into Octavia's eyes. “I know I haven’t been performing at my best. I-I’ll make sure I do better tomorrow.”

Octavia frowned deeply. “You've just been so distant and distracted,” she pointed out, sounding concerned. “You're one of our best musicians here, but you keep playing off tempo and you even started to play that… that really strange and sad melody in the middle of Beethoofen’s 5th yesterday.”

Lyra sighed tiredly, knowing exactly what song she was talking about. “I-I’m sorry..." she said softly, not really sure what else to say.

"I've never heard that song before. Is it one of your own?"

"O-oh, no it's..." Lyra started to explain shyly, hesitating as she drew a small circle in the floor with her hoof. "I-it’s just this song from Chris’s old world that he, uhh... told me about. He loves it when I play it for him,” she reminisced with a gentle smile, but frowned once she remembered where he was at the moment.

“Has... everything been okay with you and Chris?”

“Y-yeah... we're fine,” Lyra responded nervously, keeping her gaze down.

Octavia walked up to Lyra’s side and placed her hoof over her withers in a comforting gesture. “Lyra, I can tell that’s not true. I’m your friend and you can tell me what's wrong.”

Lyra shut her eyes and turned her head away from Octavia. “It’s nothing, really, everything's fine,” she argued weakly.

“You two haven’t split up or anything, have you?” Octavia asked softly. “He hasn’t... hurt you, has he?” she added in a whisper.

“What?!” Lyra shouted, jerking her head towards Octavia, looking directly into her eyes with a scowl. “He would never do something like that! And we didn’t break up!” she snapped loudly.

Octavia quickly took her hoof off Lyra’s withers and held it up in a defensive manner. “M-my apologies. I meant no offence.”

Lyra groaned, shutting her eyes as she massaged her temple with a hoof. “I’m sorry, Octavia," she said, placing her hoof back down. “You're just looking out for me. I didn’t mean to snap.” She let out a long exhausted sigh, opening her eyes slightly so she could peer down at her hooves. “I've just been so on edge ever since...” she started to explain, but stopped once she realised what she was about to say.

“Since what? You can tell me.” Octavia tried to reassure her. “I’m willing to lend an ear and help if at all possible.”

Lyra continued to stare down at her hooves as she contemplated Octavia’s offer. She really wanted to talk to somepony, or anypony about what happened. “I-It’s just…” she began to explain again, but hesitated, shutting her eyes tightly. She couldn’t just tell Octavia what she did to Chris and Bon Bon.

“It’s okay, Lyra,” Octavia reassured her in a sweet, friendly voice. “I'll swear to secrecy if I must.”

Octavia's offer was extremely tempting. Lyra needed a friend to talk to right now and Octavia was one of her best. She had known the earth pony for most of her musical career and she knew that Octavia was a trustworthy and kind-hearted pony. If there was anypony that she could trust to keep a secret it was her.

“If... I tell you…” Lyra began to say, opening her eyes, looking up to Octavia with a sad, pleading expression. “You have to promise me that you won’t say a word to anypony else.”

Octavia nodded her head in agreement, holding a hoof over her chest. “I swear on my honor as a musician I will tell no pony," she stated, dropping her hoof down, smiling warmly at Lyra. "Now, I would like to know what has been troubling one of my dearest friends so much.”

Lyra smiled briefly at her remark before taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly. “You remember what happened after… Chris and I took Bonny out for a date?”

Octavia nodded her head. “Yes, I remember that. I can’t imagine why Bon Bon would hit Chris so suddenly like that,” she admitted with a frown.

“I know right!?” Lyra shouted in frustration. “It was so strange and I tried to talk to her about it afterwards, but she wouldn’t tell me what was wrong!” she half shouted, stomping a hoof down in annoyance.

“So, is that why you've been so distracted lately?” Octavia asked, frowning in concern.

“Well, no…” Lyra admitted, rubbing the back of her neck with a hoof, looking away. “I-I mean, yes… but no...” she added vaguely, dropping her hoof back down.

“Then what is it? Please tell me, I’m really starting to worry about you,” Octavia pleaded.

Lyra looked back to Octavia with saddened eyes. She hesitated, thinking whether this was really a good idea or not. She squeezed her left foreleg with her hoof, biting her bottom lip for a moment as she thought about what she would say. “I… I think I did something… terrible... to Chris and Bon Bon…” she finally admitted with teary eyes.

Octavia raised a confused and concerned eyebrow, tilting her head to the side ever so slightly. “What do you mean?” she asked flatly.

“I…I lied to them.”

Octavia blinked a few times in confusion. “Is that it?”

“N-no… I-I tricked them into spending time... with each other," Lyra half mumbled.

“You… did?” Octavia asked, sounding baffled.

Lyra nodded her head slowly. “I…” she started to say, but paused, thinking that it would be best not to tell Octavia the whole truth. She took a short moment to think more about her little lie before continuing. “I umm, tricked them into going on a… long... cruise... together…” she lied, trailing off into a soft whisper.

Octavia lifted a hoof to her lips and scrunched up her muzzle, trying to hold back her laughter. “Y-you… t-tricked them... into...,” she tried to say before finally burst into a fit of giggles.

Lyra forced herself to laugh awkwardly with Octavia. It was good that her friend could at least find what she did funny. That was a good sign that she bought her little lie and didn't think what she did was terrible.

Octavia quickly calmed herself, dropping her hoof down. “Oh... my,” she breathed. “I’m sorry, Lyra. I didn’t mean to laugh,” she apologised gently with a brief giggle. “I just can’t believe you managed to actually trick them into going on a cruise together.”

Lyra let out a aloft and nervous laugh, rubbing her foreleg tightly. “Y-yeah... p-pretty crazy, huh?”

Octavia took another deep breath before smiling back at Lyra. “That is indeed crazy,” she agreed jokingly. “You’ll have to tell me how you pulled that one off later.” She giggled under her breath a few times before. “But I do feel that what you did was wrong," she admitted somberly. "Even if it was just to send them away on a fun cruise together, you really shouldn't be tricking ponies like that.”

Lyra sighed deeply, hanging her head down in shame. She knew Octavia was right. It was a good thing that she didn't know the whole truth.

“Knowing you, though, I’m sure you had a good reason,” Octavia continued with a soft smile. “So why did you feel it was necessary to get those two together?”

Lyra looked back at Octavia with a tired and stressed expression. “I tried to talk to Bonny about what happened, but you know how she gets sometimes,” she started to explain, sounding worn out and beaten. “I think it has something to do with Silver Wing, but she refused to talk about it.”

“Bon Bon was rather hurt after what he did to her. I can see why she would be apprehensive towards another stallion if that was the case.”

“That was so long ago, though," Lyra argued, frowning deeply. "And I don’t even know if that’s the real reason why she left that night. I have a feeling there’s more to it, but she won't tell me. And I know she doesn’t have to fear Chris hurting her like Silver did.”

Octavia hummed to herself in thought, looking away for a moment. "I would have to agree with that. I can't see Chris ever doing what Silver did.”

"That's not the only reason I did it," Lyra added in a soft, somber tone, looking down at the floor. "I know them both extremely well and it's obvious that they would be happy together. They even share a passion for cooking!"

Octavia nodded her head in understanding. “So that’s why you felt like you had to trick them into spending time with each other?” she asked in a serious tone. "Because Bon Bon wouldn't have given Chris a chance otherwise?"

“Yes,” Lyra admitted simply, nodding her head.

Octavia frowned in thought for a moment, humming to herself before replying to Lyra. “I know Bon Bon can be… oh, what's the word?” she paused, rubbing her hoof over her chin. “Unreasonably difficult when it comes to talking about personal matters,” she said, placing her hoof back down, looking back to Lyra. “And if you're certain that they would make each other happy, then I can see where you're coming from.”

Octavia placed her hoof on Lyra’s shoulder, causing her to look up. “I do have to admit though. I am a little disappointed that you would lie to them, but at least you sent them on a nice cruise where they can relax and enjoy themselves.”

“Y-yeah,” Lyra stuttered, feeling even more ashamed. She wished that was true. It would have been nicer if she sent those two on a nice romantic cruise, but even that might not have worked considering Bon Bon would've just stayed away from Chris the whole time. “I… I know what I did was wrong… I just… I just wanted all of us to be happy together,” she half-babbled as tears started to well up in her eyes. “But now… now I’m afraid they won't forgive me when they get back… I’m… I-I’m afraid of losing them.”

“There, there, dear,” Octavia cooed reassuringly as she wrapped her hoof around Lyra and pulled her into a friendly embrace. “Don’t say such things. I can’t see that happening at all.”

Lyra held Octavia tightly with her foreleg as she leaned her head against Octavia’s neck. “Y-you… don’t think they'll leave me?” she whimpered sadly. She wanted to believe her friend’s words, but how could Chris and Bon Bon ever forgive her? “W-what I did to them was awful.”

Octavia shook her head in disagreement, giving Lyra a reassuring squeeze. “I don’t believe that,” she countered in a warm, friendly tone. “What you did wasn’t very nice, but I’ve seen the way Chris looks at you,” she added with a giggle. “He loves you and he’s practically attached to your hip. And Bon Bon has loved you for longer than I’ve known you," she reassured Lyra, giving her a tight, friendly squeeze. "I was so delighted when you told me you were finally taking Bon Bon out on a real date; it was about time you two made it official.”

Lyra shut her teary eyes tightly, nodding her head and taking a moment to enjoy the much-needed hug. “T-thank you, Octavia,” she sniffled.

“Of course,” Octavia responded, pulling away from the hug but keeping her hoof on Lyra’s shoulder. She looked into Lyra’s eyes with a comforting and reassuring smile. “I know things will work out. Who knows, maybe your little trick worked,” she teased lightly before giving Lyra a more serious look. “But if I was in your position, I would be thinking of a way to apologise to them. And I wouldn’t be pulling stunts like this ever again.”

“Y-yeah,” Lyra agreed, wiping her eyes with the back of her hoof. “I won’t lie or trick them ever again," she said, dropping her hoof down, breaking their embrace and taking a small step back.

Octavia’s opened her mouth to say something else, but was interrupted when somepony opened the door and trotted into the room. “Yo, Tavi!” called a loud and energetic voice.

Lyra and Octavia both turned their heads and saw Vinyl Scratch. The white unicorn grinned at them both, wearing those purple sunglasses that she always had. “Oh hey, Lyra!” Vinyl greeted warmly as she happily trotted up Octavia. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything important.”

Octavia sighed softly, shaking her head slightly. “Hello, Vinyl,” she greeted as she turned to face the unicorn.

“Hey, babe," Vinyl cooed lovingly. "I thought I'd come by and see if you wanted to get lunch," she added, wrapping her foreleg around Octavia, pulling her into a loving kiss which the earth pony gladly accepted.

Octavia broke their kiss, blushing softly. “Could you just give us a moment, sweetheart? I need to finish talking with Lyra.”

“Oh, yeah?” Vinyl asked, letting go of Octavia as she faced Lyra. She stared at the unicorn for a moment, then lifted her purple shades with her magic, letting them rest on her horn, revealing her concerned, rose-colored eyes. "Woah, you don't look so good, Harps. You been sleeping at all?"

"I'm fine," Lyra replied weakly. "I've just had a lot on my mind lately."

“Sorry about bustin' in like this, then,” Vinyl apologised with with a frown. "I'll just come back later, Tavi," she said, making her way back out.

“O-oh, it’s fine,” Lyra reassured them both, causing Vinyl to stop mid-step. “We're just finishing up and I should really be heading home.”

“Are you sure, Lyra?” Octavia questioned. “We can keep talking if you'd like.”

Lyra nodded her head. “Yeah, I’m okay now. Thank you so much for listening to me, Octavia.”

“Yeah, Tavi's pretty awesome," Vinyl chimed in happily. "Always helping ponies and looking sexy as ever,” she teased with a wide cocky grin, kissing her lover on her now-rosy cheek.

Octavia giggled, playfully pushing Vinyl away with her hoof. “Oh, stop it! You know flattery doesn't work on me.”

Vinyl snickered before turning her attention back to Lyra. “So, it’s been awhile. How’ve you and Chips been doing?”

“Vinyl!” Octavia chided, with a scowl. “His name is Chris, not Chips. Please don’t embarrass me in front of our friend.”

Lyra laughed out loud, which caused Octavia to look back at her in surprise. “It’s okay. I like that name. I’ll have to remember that one for later. Chris would get a kick out of it,” she reassured Octavia, before facing Vinyl. “Chris and I are doing fine and thank you for asking.”

“Cool! You two are a pretty badass couple, ya know?” Vinyl complemented with wide smirk and a wink. "I wish I could date a weird alien. Well... aside from Tavi here, of course."

Octavia huffed in mock-annoyance at her lover, trying to hide her smile with little success. “Yes, yes. Very funny.”

Lyra snorted, stifling a laugh at her friends.

“Are you sure you’re okay now, Lyra?” Octavia asked with concern.

Lyra nodded her head. “Yeah, I’m sure. And I promise I’ll be at my best for tomorrow's practice.”

Octavia waved a limp, dismissive hoof at Lyra. “You go practice at home. I think it would benefit you to take some time off and relax a little.”

“Thanks," Lyra replied, smiling happily. "And thanks again for listening.”

“Of course, Lyra. Anytime."

“Hey!” Vinyl shouted in excitement. “Since you're off tomorrow, we can go out for some drinks and have some fun! You can bring Chips with you!”

“Thanks for the offer Vinyl, but I think I’ll take a rain check on that. I just want to stay home and chill for a while.”

“Lame!” Vinyl said, with a mock frown before flashing Lyra a big toothy smile. “Nah that’s cool, I getcha. Have fun with your day off!”

“Feel better, Lyra and I’ll see you later,” Octavia said as she started to walk out of the room with Vinyl close behind. “Do try to take it easy, won’t you?” she added looking over her shoulder.

“I will.” Lyra waved her hoof as they both exited the room, closing the door behind them, leaving her all alone. She slowly lowered her hoof back to the ground as her smile melted into a sad frown.

Lyra stood in the empty room, mulling over everything Octavia told her. She wanted to believe that Chris and Bon Bon would forgive her, but how could they? She sat back on her haunches and whimpered quietly to herself as her eyes started to water again. She just hoped they were doing okay.

Bon Bon kicked the bathtub’s stopper out with her hoof, letting the water drain out completely before shaking some of the excess off of her. She hadn’t been able to have a proper bath since this whole cabin fiasco had started and she was starting to feel pretty grimy. She figured it was time to clean herself, plus she couldn't let her coat get all dirty and frazzled with Chris around.

The only downside was that she couldn't clean her mane or back very well since she left her special earth pony bathing brush and grooming combs at home. Bon Bon had left all those behind, thinking Lyra would have been in the cabin to help her bathe. If she got her mane wet now without properly combing it afterwards it would just get matted, so it would just have to wait until she got home. Luckily her mane was still intact for the most part.

Bon Bon stepped out of the tub and walked up to the sink, opening one of the drawers. She found a collection of unicorn combs that she could use, but the sight only made her sigh in despair. Most of the brushes had no handle to speak of. This wouldn’t have been a problem if Lyra was here to help her.

Sighing to herself, she pulled out one of the larger brushes and set it down on the floor. She then bit a towel that was hanging from the wall and draped it over her back. She used her forehooves to rub the fabric into her coat as best she could, drying of the water that reminded in her coat.

Once she was dry enough, she bit the towel and laid it down, flat on the floor. Curling her tail under her legs, she sat down and folded the fabric over her tail before pressing down with her hooves, patting it dry.

“That should do it,” Bon Bon quietly whispered to herself, unwrapping the towel before taking the comb in her teeth. She scooped up part of her tail in her forelegs, lifting it closer to her muzzle before running the comb through her hair. It was difficult, but she knew it would be. She continued to work out the knots and tangles for what felt like hours before giving up and putting the comb back in the drawer.

“There,” Bon Bon breathed, looking down at her now straight and combed out tail. She looked around the room for her curlers that were nowhere to be found. They were still in her saddlebag in the bedroom; she forgot to grab them.

“Oh, shoot,” she pouted to herself, frowning with disappointment. It looked like she might have to walk around with a straight tail for most of the day. She just hoped that Chris wouldn’t mind.

But, why would it matter what he thought?

Bon Bon blushed and rolled her eyes at the silly notion. 'It's not like I'm trying to impress him or anything,' she thought with a giggle. She figured Chris wouldn’t even notice, but she did remember Lyra saying something about him liking her curls... No, that couldn’t have been true and it really didn’t matter what he thought. She could go the rest of the day, and even the rest of the two weeks without curling her tail. It was just one less thing to worry about.

Bon Bon stood up and looked back, flicking her tail around in the air a few times before letting it fall back. Part of it was dragging on the floor now, making it look similar to the way Fluttershy wore hers.

She admired her work for a moment, thinking that she did a pretty decent job considering she wasn’t using her normal brushes. She opened the bathroom door and saw that Chris was on the couch reading that parental guide book again. “I’m done now. Sorry I took so long,” she said as she walked into the living room.

Chris closed his book before setting it down and standing up. “It’s okay; I don’t mind,” he reassured her as he bent down and picked up a neatly folded pile of new clothing before standing up and facing her again. "I know how troublesome manestyling can be," he teased with a wink.

"Y-yeah," Bon Bon giggled nervously. If only Chris knew exactly how long it took her to brush and style her mane when she could do it. She might have been in there for hours if that was the case.

Chris started to make his way to the bathroom, but stopped suddenly, giving Bon Bon a curious look. “Did you... change something?”

Bon Bon blushed, darting her eyes left and right. “W-what do you mean?” she questioned, taking a small step back, shying away from his gaze.

“Your tail… it’s all straight now,” Chris pointed out, sounding slightly disappointed.

Bon Bon looked back at her tail. “O-oh, I-I just… umm,” she started to explain, facing her back end away from him, hiding her tail behind her. “J-just forgot my curlers in the bedroom, s-so I haven't put them in yet,” she reassured him with an awkward smile.

“Oh, good." Chris replied in relief. "I mean, the straight look is really nice on you, but I really like your curls.”

“Y-you d-do?” Bon Bon asked shyly as her heart start to beat faster in her chest.

“Yeah," Chris replied with soft blush, looking towards bathroom door while rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "I just always thought they were really cute and, umm... pretty," he admitted shyly.

Bon Bon blinked up at him, feeling like her cheeks where going to catch fire. She didn't even know how to respond to that. "I-I... Th-thank you." Lyra was right, Chris really did like her curly tail and mane. She didn't think anypony ever cared or even noticed, especially not... the human.

Chris coughed into his fist, keeping his gaze fixed on the bathroom door. "I'll just, umm, take my shower now so we can start making some candy."

"O-okay," Bon Bon replied softly as Chris entered the bathroom.

She stared at the door for a moment before looking back at her tail. She lifted it up, swaying it back and forth in the air a few times. 'Maybe... I should curl it after all,' she thought to herself before her eyes widened in realization. "N-Not because Chris said he liked it or anything... It's just... dragging on the floor... a-and I don't want it to get dirty again," she tried to convince herself as she trotted into the bedroom to find her curlers.

It didn't take Bon Bon long to put her curlers in and Chris was still in the shower when she walked out of the bedroom. She didn't know how long it took humans to wash and groom themselves, but as far as she knew, he didn't have a lot of fur and his mane was on the shorter side. He might not be in there much longer, but she figured she still had time to get the kitchen ready.

Bon Bon walked into the kitchen to gather all the ingredients they needed to make caramel. She found everything she needed pretty easily and placed all the items on the counter.

With some time to kill she thought she could start cleaning up Chris’s mess in the living room for him, or at least organize it a little. She started to make her way out, but stopped once she noticed Scary’s aquarium. She cringed a little, remembering there was a spider in the area. At least he was still in his little tank, so that was good, but she thought she should check on him really quick, just to make sure he had some water.

Bon Bon slowly crept up to the aquarium, getting just close enough see Scary’s little saucer dish. It was still filled with water and seemed untouched, which made her look around for Scary. He was nowhere to be found which caused her to panic a little. Did he get out and was now crawling around in the cabin somewhere?

“S-Scary?” Bon Bon called out softly as she moved closer. She leaned in, darting her eyes all over the aquarium in a frenzied panic, trying to see if he was hiding somewhere. “Scary!?”

Suddenly a small patch of dirt next to the piece of wood started to move.

“Eep!” Bon Bon squeaked, flinching her head back as Scary slowly crawled out of the dirt and moved to the center of the aquarium, covered in the soil he was hiding in.

Bon Bon let out a sigh of relief, holding a hoof over her chest. “Y-you frightened me!”

Scary shuddered his little body in response, shaking all the dirt off his fur before turning and looking up to Bon Bon.

Bon Bon raised a curious eyebrow at Scary. She had to admit that was kind of cute, even for a terrifying creature like him. It reminded her of something a little bird might do when taking a bath in a small puddle of water. “You know…” she mused softly, “you don't seem all that terrifying when you do cute things like that.”

Scary’s little eyes started to widen and glisten in response as he stared up at her.

Bon Bon frowned in confusion at this, tilting her head to the side. “Are… are you giving me… puppy dog eyes?” she questioned in disbelief.

Scary kept his gaze on her as his adorable little eyes started to shimmer in the light.

Bon Bon winced, feeling very uncomfortable with how adorable Scary was being at the moment. “S-stop that… You're not supposed to be cute… you're supposed to be scary and terrifying.”

Scary’s expression melted into a more sad and hurt frown as he slowly turned away from her.

“W-wait, I’m sorry,” she said, causing Scary to stop and turn back. “I didn’t mean to say those mean things it’s just… spiders really scare me, okay…” she admitted with a sad frown.

Scary walked up to the glass of the aquarium and pawed at it lightly with one of his forelegs.

Bon Bon sighed, hanging her head down and shaking it in disbelief. “I can’t believe I’m talking to a spider right now,” she mumbled under her breath before looking back up to Scary who was still staring at her. There was no way she would be doing this if he wasn’t behind that glass. She looked back to the bathroom to check that Chris was still in there. She stared at the door for a moment, frowning as she thought deeply before looking back to scary. “Scary… What do you think of Chris?”

Scary placed his leg down and backed away from the glass, taking a moment to rub his face a few times with his little feelers.

“You think he’s nice?” Bon Bon continued, causing Scary to stop his rubbing and look up at her. “I mean… he’s a really kind and sweet stallion, but… oh, I’m not sure what to think,” she admitted sadly. “I just wish I wasn’t so afraid of his... hands… touching me...” She shivered at the unwelcomed thought.

Scary remained motionless as he gazed up at her.

“I just don’t know… part of me thinks that Lyra might have b―”

Suddenly the door to the bathroom opened, interrupting Bon Bon. She looked over and saw Chris standing in the doorway of bathroom. He was wearing clean clothes now and had his old dirty ones from this morning draped over his arms. His mane and beard seemed to be trimmed as well. It was a really good look for him and she had to admit that, for being a weird alien, he really wasn’t that bad looking. In fact he was quite charming.

Bon Bon watched as he walked up to the couch and dropped his dirty things down, adding to the mess in the livingroom. She walked out of the kitchen and towards the couch, cringing slightly.

“You okay?” Chris called to her, making her look up at him. He seemed to have noticed her discomfort.

“I-I hate to be rude,” Bon Bon said shyly, glancing back at the mess. “But… can we clean this place up later?”

Chris scanned the room for a moment and cringed when he saw the mess. “I guess I kind of let this place go, huh?” he admitted, turning back to Bon Bon and gave her an embarrassed smile. “How about I clean it up after we cook?”

Bon Bon smiled up at him. “That would be fine. Oh, and I can help!” she stated excitedly which caused Chris to tilt his head and raise an eyebrow.

“What?” Bon Bon asked, blinking up at him.

“Well, for a second there, it sounded like you were super excited about cleaning.”

“Cleaning is fun!” Bon Bon expressed happily, which caused Chris to shake his head in disagreement. She furrowed her brow at him, but kept her smile, feeling a little deja vu. Lyra would always give a similar reaction whenever she tried to get her into the spirit of cleaning. “Don’t worry. I’ll show you just how much fun it can be later, but for now,” she paused for dramatic effect, grinning with excitement, “I’m going to teach you how to make some delicious candy the Bon Bon way!” she cheered, holding up a triumphant hoof in the air.

Chris contorted his face and bit his lip, trying desperately to contain his laughter.

“What?” Bon Bon questioned, giving him a confused look.

Chris burst out laughing which caused Bon Bon to blush brightly and slowly put her hoof back down. “Wh-what's so funny?”

Chris stifled his laughter, wiping away a happy tear from his eye before looking back to Bon Bon. “You’re a dork.”

Bon Bon already knew this and she wasn’t ashamed of her dorky nature. She huffed playfully in mock-annoyance, shutting her eyes and holding her nose up in the air. “I’m just passionate about cooking,” she stated firmly. “And this dork is going to show you a thing or two, so hurry up and get in here,” she demanded as she turned around and started to head back into the kitchen.

“Yes, ma'am,” Chris said before following her.

Bon Bon happily trotted up to the wide variety of items she had collected and turned back to Chris, beaming with eager excitement.

“Somepony’s excited,” Chris pointed out as he walked up to the counter and glanced over the ingredients. “So let’s see,” he mused, stroking his fuzzy chin. “We have white and brown sugar, salt, corn syrup, unsalted butter, and some heavy cream.” He hummed to himself before looking back to Bon Bon with an almost disappointed expression. “This all seems really simple and standard for making caramel, but your candies always seem to come out a lot richer than the stuff I’m used to back home. I was half expecting to see some secret ingredient that you use or something.”

Bon Bon giggled under her breath. “Don’t start putting your cart before the pony, mister. We’ll get to that part later.”

"Well, alright then!" Chris said excitedly, gave her an eager smile, clapping his hands together. “So what are we doing first?”

“We aren’t doing anything.” Bon Bon corrected. “But you,” she stated, pointing a hoof in Chris’s direction, “are going to be making our sweets today. And I want you to follow my instructions to the best of your abilities.”

“Okay, sounds easy enough,” Chris replied with confidence.

“We’ll see about that. Now I want you to start mixing the sugars, syrup, and cream in that pot over on the stove,” Bon Bon ordered, pointing a hoof at the pot in question. “I’ll tell you how much you need of everything.”

“You're the boss,” Chris replied as he started to reach for the sugar first, but hesitated. “Wait.” He glanced over all the ingredients again with a confused look.

“What’s wrong?” Bon Bon asked, puzzled.

Chris frowned, looking back to Bon Bon. “We don’t have the vanilla extract. And I don’t think we have any in the cabin.”

“Oh that? Don’t worry. I got some in my saddlebags back in the bedroom," Bon Bon explained happily.

Chris snorted, trying to hold back a laugh. “You keep vanilla extract in your saddlebags?” he questioned with a smirk.

Bon Bon blushed, looking away from him. “W-well, n-no, not all the time... I-It’s just a special blend a-and I thought I would need it to…” she tried to explain herself, but grunted in embarrassment. “J-just focus on the mixing.”

Chris snickered. “You're weird,” he teased.

“Hey! You’re the weird one here, mister… mister alien from another world!” she retorted playfully, trying to sound stern and hold back her smile, but failed.

“Hmmm, you make a good point,” Chris agreed, turning his attention back to the task at hoof.

Bon Bon watched as he worked. She made sure he was adding in the right amount of ingredients before telling him to turn the stove on and start mixing everything together. His experience in the kitchen was evident and only made the idea of working with him all the more exciting for her.

Bon Bon got up on her hind legs and placed her forehooves on the counter for support. “Okay now,” Bon Bon started to explain carefully, peering into the pot to make sure everything was still going smoothly. “Turn the heat up just a little to bring everything to a nice, steady boil.”

“Can do,” Chris replied, doing as she asked of him.

“Perfect!” Bon Bon cheered. “Now all you have to do is keep stirring. You want to make sure all that sugar dissolves nicely.” She placed her elbows on the counter, propping her head up with her hooves as she slowly wagged her tail back and forth. She had to admit that getting to watch somepony else cook with her was a lot of fun. It reminded her of how Lyra would always try to do her little part to help in the kitchen, which led her to reminisce about the last time she made caramel with Lyra.

Bon Bon let out a soft, muffled giggle at the memory, which caused Chris to turn and look at her. “What’s so funny?” he asked as he kept stirring the caramel.

Bon Bon blinked a few times, not realizing she giggled out loud. “Oh, I-I was just remembering this time I cooked caramel with Lyra,” she explained with a sheepish smile.

“And you were just going to hold on to another great story about Lyra and not tell me about it?” Chris questioned in disbelief, almost as if he was hurt by that fact. “Come on, you gotta tell me.”

“I-it’s not really a silly story,” Bon Bon admitted with a frown, not knowing if she should really tell Chris about this particular moment. “I-I’m not sure I should…”

“Oooooh,” Chris sang in a knowing tone. “It’s one of thooose stories.”

“W-what?!” Bon Bon shouted in shocked embarrassment, jerking her head towards Chris as she placed her hooves back on the counter. “N-no! I-It’s not that kind of―I-I mean it’s not what you think!” she quickly tried to defend herself, blushing uncontrollably.

Chris chuckled, focusing on his stirring. “It’s okay, you don’t need to feel embarrassed. I know you two love each other, and I know how things can heat up when she’s around,” he teased and with a knowing grin.

Bon Bon’s whole face turned a bright crimson as her embarrassment shot through the roof. “N-n-no... I-It’s not like that... I-I wouldn’t, I-I mean I would, b-b-but not in the,” Bon Bon babbled, then growled in frustration. “I’ll just tell you!”

Chris kept up his stirring as he turned his head towards Bon Bon, eagerly awaiting her story.

“I-it was before you were Lyra’s coltfriend.” This caused Chris slow his stirring and raise an eyebrow. “I was in the kitchen making caramel like you're doing now, but Lyra was making it difficult for me to concentrate.”

“Oh, I know all too well how ‘distracting’ Lyra can be in the kitchen,” Chris teased her with an amused smirk.

Bon Bon puffed out her cheeks in annoyance. “Not like that!” she said loudly, knowing that he was just trying to get her flustered again. She shoved him playfully with her hoof in retaliation. “You need to get your mind out of the gutter.”

“Okay, okay,” Chris chuckled, “I’m sorry, please continue.”

“Thank you,” Bon Bon replied kindly. “As I was saying. Lyra was just pacing back and forth, muttering about you and making it difficult for me to focus on what I was doing.”

“Wait, about me?” Chris asked, sounding shocked.

“Yes,” Bon Bon answered, nodding her head. “She was absolutely obsessed with you for the longest time. It’s all she ever wanted to talk about!” she said in an exhausted tone. “She had been wanting to confess her feelings for you, for…” she paused, looking down at the counter, tapping a hoof to her chin as she thought back for a moment. “Well, for as long as you've been in Equestria.”

Chris’s eyes widened in surprise. “Really? That long?” he asked. “I mean, I know she was trying to get me to notice her for a long time, but I didn’t think…” he trailed off.

“Yeah, she was pretty taken with you,” Bon Bon said softly, with a sigh. “But she could never muster up the courage to ask if she could court you, so I offered to help her get over her fears and confess everything to you that day.”

“Wait, what!?” Chris asked in shock, causing his stirring to stop completely. “You helped her do that?!”

“Y-yeah,” Bon Bon replied nervously. “I-I mean she was so infatuated with you and it was driving her insane that you didn’t seem to return any of her feelings even though she was constantly flirting with you.”

Chris winced a bit at that. “Yeah... I... wasn’t in my right mind back then…” he admitted sadly, looking back to the pot.

“No, you weren't,” Bon Bon agreed. “But, I helped get her ready to try and woo you. We even went out and bought a dozen or so roses, which were very expensive by the way,” she added with a scowl and a ting of agitation to her voice.

“S-sorry about that…”

“Oh, it’s not your fault…” Bon Bon reassured him, but paused and thought twice about that answer. “Actually, it was your fault, but it helped Lyra to come clean and I’m glad she did.”

Chris stared down at the now almost boiling mixture in the pot. “I just can’t believe that,” he muttered softly.

Bon Bon frowned and perked her ears up to hear him better even though she got the gist of what he said. “You can’t believe what?”

Chris looked back to her with an almost puzzled expression. “You helping Lyra,” he clarified. “I kind of thought you didn't like me back then.”

Bon Bon’s ears splayed back as she looked down at her hooves on the counter. “W-well… I-I―”

“It’s okay, I understand why,” Chris interrupted her with a hint of sadness, sighing deeply. “I mean, now I understand.”

Bon Bon felt her heart drop into her stomach. She felt terrible about the way she had been treating him. She thought back to all the times she ran from him, or ignored him when he tried to say hello.

“I’m… I’m sorry about the way I treated you…” Bon Bon apologised softly, keeping her gaze down and away from him.

“It’s alright, Bonny, I under―”

“No!” Bon Bon shouted in anger, jerking her head up towards Chris. “It’s wasn’t fair that I acted like that. You were only trying to be my friend and I just ignored you like some kind of rude pony,” she argued sadly. “I let my fears get the better of me and―”

“But, we’re friends now,” Chris interrupted her, looking back at her with a warm smile.

Bon Bon froze as she looked up at him. She did consider them to be friends now, but it was heartwarming to hear him say it. “Yeah,” she agreed softly with a smile. “We’re friends now.”

“Then all the stuff before is just water under the bridge,” Chris stated, turning his attention back to the caramel mixture in the pot. “And I should thank you for helping Lyra. By doing that, you helped me discover how much I truly love her. If she hadn’t come up to me that day then I might have never come to terms with my own feelings, so… thank you for helping me find the love of my life,” he said in a genuine and sincere tone.

Bon Bon felt wonderful knowing that she was able to help Chris confess his feelings as well. She might have been sour about it before, but now she was happy. “You're welcome Chris, but I’m sure you would’ve come around eventually. It’s hard not to fall in love with that pony,” she teased, sticking her tongue out at him.

Chris let out an awkward and shy laugh. “Yeah, that’s true,” he agreed softly as the mixture in the pot reached a steady boil. “Looks like this is ready for the next step.”

Bon Bon leaned over the counter to check, seeing he was right. “Okay, now you can stop stirring and you’re going to need the thermometer over there.” Bon Bon pointed with her hoof to the thermometer that was on the counter.

“Okay,” Chris confirmed, placing the wooden spoon down before picking up the thermometer.

“Just clip that to the edge of the pot and keep an eye on the temperature. We need it to be at exactly 250°F before we do anything else.”

“250°F? Got it,” Chris repeated as he fixed the thermometer to the side of the pot, letting the end rest in the now bubbling, gooey mixture.

“While you watch that I’m going to get my vanilla extract from my saddlebags,” Bon Bon stated as she started to make her way out of the kitchen.

“What ever you say… dork,” Chris muttered under his breath, but just loud enough for Bon Bon to hear.

Bon Bon whipped her tail against Chris’s rear end in retaliation, letting the curlers that were still in bump against his firm back side. “Hush you,” she said before joyfully trotting out of the kitchen and into the bedroom. She thought now would be a good time to take her curlers out and put them back in her bag. She quickly found her vanilla extract carried it back to the kitchen, setting it down on the counter.

Chris looked down at the bottle then back to Bon Bon. “So, what’s so special about this vanilla that you thought it was necessary to pack for a two week long stay in a cabin?” he asked in a teasing manner.

“Well, I thought I was going to be here with Lyra and I wanted to use this to make her some candies while I was here,” Bon Bon admitted with a sigh. “But, remember before when you thought I had a secret ingredient for my candies?” she asked, looking up at him with a smile.

Chris only nodded his head.

“This would be one of those little secrets,” Bon Bon stated, pushing the small bottle closer to Chris with her nose.

Chris raised a curious eyebrow. “No kidding? What’s so secret about it?” he asked with curious wonderment.

“It’s a special formula I make myself,” Bon Bon explained proudly. “Once we get out of this cabin I can show you how it’s made, but you can’t tell anypony about any of it!” she demanded firmly, giving Chris a serious look.

Chris pinched his thumb and index finger together and move them across his mouth. “My lips are sealed.”

Bon Bon smiled before turning her attention to the thermometer, letting the room fall into silence as they both watched.

“You know…” Chris spoke up, interrupting the silence. “I was thinking about Lyra and your plans for expanding the shop last night.”

Bon Bon looked up at him, raising a curious eyebrow. “You… were?”

“Yeah, I was thinking that Lyra might be able to help with the store as well.”

Bon Bon rolled her eyes. “Lyra already helps me in the shop when she can,” she explained as if he should’ve already known that. “But that is a lovely idea.”

“No, not like that,” Chris retorted quickly, looking down at her. “I know she helps a little in the kitchen and helps with customers, but I think she should help with her music.”

“Her… music?” Bon Bon questioned, blinking up at him.

“Yeah, think about it. She only practices with her orchestra group in the mornings and her concert gigs are pretty far apart, so she could play some music for all the shop patrons during the afternoon, or just play a few shows when we’re the busiest.”

“I…” Bon Bon started to say but paused to think about that. It was actually a pretty good idea. She never thought about having Lyra help with her special talent before, but it seemed so obvious now. “I think that’s a great idea, Chris,” she complemented. “I’m not sure why I haven’t thought of that before. We’ll have to ask her about that once we get out of here!”

Chris nodded his head in agreement, looking back at the thermometer. “But, you know…” he started to say, but hesitated, stroking his fuzzy chin in thought. “We can’t just let her get away with this.”

“Get away with what?” Bon Bon asked in confusion.

“You know,” Chris said with a frown, looking back to Bon Bon. “This whole cabin thing,” he explained, fanning out his hand, gesturing to the whole room.

“Ooooh,” Bon Bon replied, but furrowed her brow in confusion. “What do you mean exactly?”

Chris rolled his eyes. “I mean we need to get a little revenge on her,” he explained with a mischievous smirk.

Bon Bon scrunched up her muzzle for a moment. She never really thought about getting revenge for what Lyra did. She knew that she wanted to have a long talk with her, but pulling a prank on her might be… fun. She couldn’t deny that the idea was a pleasing one, but she didn’t know what they could do. “What did you have in mind?”

“I was thinking,” Chris mused as he looked back to the pot, watching the temperature. “I saw these little ring things at this… umm… store” he explained vaguely, which caused Bon Bon to look up at him curiously.

“What store?” Bon Bon questioned, noticing Chris’s soft blush on his cheeks.

“Umm, well… i-it was at an adult shop,” Chris admitted shyly, which caused Bon Bon to blush.

“Oh… I-I see,” Bon Bon replied shyly.

“Anyways,” Chris continued, clearing his throat. “I saw these little rings there that cancel out magic that unicorns can wear. They had a locking enchantment on them, so she wouldn’t be able to get it off without the key that comes with it. I figured we can trick her into putting one on and make it so she couldn’t use her magic for a while.”

Bon Bon frowned Chris’s idea for a prank. “I don’t know about that… It seems a little too cruel. I mean Lyra relies on her magic all the time and she needs it to play her instruments. That’s her whole livelihood.”

Chris hummed to himself in thought, scratching his beard. “I guess you’re right. I didn’t really think about that… that would be a little much.”

Bon Bon looked back to the thermometer as she brainstormed more ideas. “I got it!” she shouted excitedly, causing Chris to jump back a bit in surprise.

“What is it?” Chris asked with wide-eyed excitement. “You got a good idea for a prank?”

“Yes!” Bon Bon chirped happily. “And it’s a hilarious one,” she stated, holding back her giggles.

“What is it?”

Bon Bon held a hoof to her lips trying not to giggle from her clever little idea. “How about instead of a magic canceling ring,” she started to explain, pausing for dramatic effect. “We tie a frilly pink bow to her horn and she’ll have to walk around all day with it!” she blurted out, breaking out into a fit laughter at her own idea, finding it immensely amusing.

Chris just grinned and raised a questioning eyebrow. “A pink bow? Really?” he questioned, not sounding convinced of the idea.

Bon Bon stifled her laughter and looked up at him. “Yeah! It would be perfect! Lyra hates girly things, and it would embarrass her so much!” she explained, fighting back more giggles.

Chris shook his head in disagreement. “Not that I don’t think that’s a super hilarious prank or anything, but I think we can go a little bigger.”

“Awwww,” Bon Bon whined in disappointment. “But she would look sooooo cute with a pink bow on her horn!”

Chris laughed loudly. “Well, I can’t deny how adorable it would be to see Lyra like that. Maybe we could do that and something else. Like a big prank combo.”

The room went quiet for a short moment as they both continued to think before Chris spoke up. “You know. I’m half-tempted to get Twilight to put a spell on my hands to make them look like hooves,” he mused with a snicker. “That would really freak Lyra out.”

Bon Bon frowned, knowing exactly why Lyra wouldn’t enjoy that. She always talked about how wonderful and amazing Chris’s hands were.

‘How could Lyra like Chris’s hands so much?’ Bon Bon thought to herself. It seemed like Chris's digits would just feel like creepy, spindly spiders trying to crawl all over her. In fact the idea of him having hooves instead of hands was a pleasing one. She actually wanted him to do that for her own sake, which in turn just made her feel terrible. She shouldn’t want her friends to change what makes them who they are. No matter how much she wanted it.

“N-no. I don’t like that idea… Can we do something else, please?” Bon Bon asked in a sad and dry tone. She just wished she could get over her stupid fear of spiders and stop comparing Chris’s hands to the terrifying creatures.

“Hmm, well,” Chris continued, not noticing Bon Bon’s change in mood. “We could get Pinkie Pie to hide all of Lyra's instruments for a short while and replace them with balloon replicas. I think that might be pretty funny.”

Bon Bon started to smile again, picturing the confused look on Lyra’s face as she held up a balloon lyre with a cute pink bow on her horn, making her giggle in the back of her throat. “Yeah,” she replied softly, nodding her head in agreement. “I really like that one. We’ll add that to the list for sure.”

Chris chuckled as he watched the thermometer gauge reach exactly 250°F. “The caramel’s at the right temperature now,” he pointed out, looking back to Bon Bon, waiting for what her next step was.

Bon Bon double checked the thermometer and saw that he was right. “Perfect! Now take it off the heat and turn the stove off.”

Chris did as ordered, and turned back to Bon Bon with an excited gleam in his eye. “So, is this secret vanilla extract time?!”

Bon Bon bit her lip trying not to laugh at how excited Chris was. He was quite the silly and excitable human at times. “Yes, but you don’t need much for this batch. My vanilla extract is pretty strong, so just add in a teaspoon.”

Chris reached out to the tiny bottle and added the right amount into the bubbling mixture, then placed the bottle back down.

“Now add the butter and salt, and mix it all together," Bon Bon continued, watching him carefully. “This part’s important, so make sure it all gets nice and blended before we move on to the next step.”

Chris nodded and did as directed, grabbing the wooden spoon and using it to stir everything in the pot.

Bon Bon opened the cabinet under the counter and pulled out a small, thin non-stick pan and placed it down on the counter before looking up to Chris. “Once you’re confident everything is mixed and ready, I want you to pour it all onto this pan, but slowly and evenly.”

“You got it, candy butt,” Chris teased.

“Oh, ha-ha,” Bon Bon laughed sarcastically, blushing. “That joke is even funnier the second time,” she teased back, trying to hold back a smile. “Just focus on pouring that caramel onto the pan, mister.”

Chris chuckled lightly as he continued to stir. After a short while, he placed the spoon down and lifted the pot by its wooden handle, moving it over to the waiting pan and started to slowly pour the thick, gooey candy out. Once the pan was filled, he placed the now empty pot back on the stove and faced Bon Bon. "So, how long do we have until we can start cutting it up?"

Bon Bon stuck her tongue out and scrunched up her muzzle, thinking for a moment. "Well… It normally takes a few hours for it to cool, but it's pretty chilly in here, so it shouldn’t take that long.” She got up on her haunches and held on to the counter with her forelegs as she inspected the caramel in the pan for a moment. “You did really well,” she praised, looking up to Chris. “I know cooking caramel isn’t the most complicated thing in the world, but you made a good batch of candy a lot quicker then I could’ve done working alone.”

Chris shrugged. “I was just following your instructions, besides we haven’t even tasted it yet. It could taste awful.”

“I guess there is still the taste test to perform,” Bon Bon mused, stepping off the counter. “But we’ll have plenty of time for that later once it's cooled off. Then we can cut it up and start wrapping the individual pieces.”

“That could be fun,” Chris happily added.

“And speaking of fun,” Bon Bon sang, giving Chris a wide, dorky grin. “I can show you how fun it can be to clean while we wait for the caramel to cool!” she expressed with an excited little bounce before happily trotting out of the kitchen. “Come on, you’ll see!”

Chris rolled his eyes, but followed Bon Bon into the living room.

It took an hour to clean the whole cabin and Bon Bon failed in her quest to help Chris see how magical and fun cleaning can be. “You mean you didn’t think any of that was fun?” she asked with a hint of sadness. “Don’t you feel all warm and happy inside now?”

Chris rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “I mean, it feels great having a clean and organized cabin again, but I’m just not good at singing like you ponies are,” he admitted, walking back into the kitchen.

Bon Bon huffed in sad disappointment, following close behind. “You didn’t even sing with me!” she chastised softly with a frown, puffing up her cheeks.

“I didn’t know the lyrics!” Chris retorted quickly. “Besides, I just can’t enjoy all that scrubbing and dusting, but it was a lot of fun getting to hear your singing voice,” he admitted as he leaned against the kitchen counter next to the caramel. “I’d love to hear that again.”

Bon Bon giggled nervously with a bright blush. “Y-yes w-well,” she stuttered, before clearing her throat. “Maybe next time I can get you to sing with me.”

Chris grumbled quietly to himself in response as Bon Bon walked over and placed her hooves on the counter. She giggled softly at him before looking to the now cooled candy. “It looks like this is ready to be cut up. Then we can start wrapping them in wax paper for storage.”

“Awesome!” Chris blurted out excitedly. “I saw a folding table down in the basement. I’ll go get it and set it up next to the couch.”

“That sounds good,” Bon Bon replied, opening the drawer with all the knives in it with her hoof. “I’ll just use the pizza cutter to cut these up while you do that,” she said as she bit the cutter in her teeth and set it down on the counter. It was the only cutting tool in the kitchen she could easily use on her own.

Chris nodded and walked out of the kitchen.

“Oh, and Chris,” Bon Bon called, causing Chris to stop mid step and look back. “Please make sure the table is clean.”

“Don’t worry,” Chris said reassuringly. “I’ll make sure it’s nice and sanitized.” He gave a salute with his hand before heading down to the basement.

While Chris was busy setting up the folding table, Bon Bon finished cutting the caramel into small rectangles. She placed the pieces in the center of a clean cloth before folding the four corners of the cloth over the pile of candy. She bit the joined corners it in her mouth and carried it to the living room where Chris had just finished wiping off the table.

“Cwuld ywu get da wax papwa?” Bon Bon mumbled through the fabric in her teeth.

Chris muttered something under his breath about ponies and something being adorable, but Bon Bon couldn’t make it out. “Whwt?”

Chris chuckled to himself and shook his head slightly. “Nothing. I’ll go get the paper,” he said as he walked into the kitchen.

Bon Bon got up on the couch and placed the cloth down in the center of the table and waited for Chris to return. It didn't take long for him to walk in with the wax paper and some scissors. He quickly took a seat next to her and started to cut the paper into small squares, putting them into a small pile between them.

Bon Bon reached her hooves out and gripped a piece of candy, popping it in her mouth. She savored the treat, humming in delight.

"Is it good?" Chris asked in concern.

Bon Bon simply nodded her head in approval, unable to answer as she chewed the candy. The texture was nice and it tasted like a caramel should, but it wasn’t the same as what she made and sold in her shop. That was more the ingredients fault then it was Chris’s. The sugar and cream were a cheaper brand than what she normally uses, but he did a wonderful job considering. She couldn’t wait to get home and really put him to the test.

“I gotta try a piece,” Chris stated as he reach out and pick up a caramel, popping it into his mouth. He suckled and chewed it a few times, but shrugged his shoulder. “It’s okay I guess. I think yours are better,” he admitted as he continued to chew the treat.

Bon Bon giggled in the back of her throat at him, before chewing and swallowing the candy. She then grabbed a small square of wax paper and placing it in front of her, then grabbed another piece of candy. She placed it on the paper and wrapped it the best she could. It took her a while and it was a little awkward wrapping candy with her hooves, but she managed okay.

They both continued to work in a comfortable silence until Chris spoke up as he finished cutting the last piece of wax paper. “So, umm…” he started to say shyly, hesitating for a moment. “How long have you, ehh, known Lyra for?” he finally asked, placing the scissors down, reaching out towards the pile of caramel so he could start wrapping as well.

Bon Bon hummed to herself as she thought. “Well, it was right after I moved to Ponyville when I was just a filly. We met because we were attending the same school at the time.”

“Oh? Did you guys… umm, become friends right away?” Chris asked sounding curious as he turned to face her.

Bon Bon blushed lightly as she started to remember when she first became friends with Lyra. “N-not exactly,” she answered in a bashful tone. “Lyra actually wouldn’t talk to me at all when I first arrived. She would talk to everypony else, but she’d shy away from me if I approached her.”

“Really?” Chris asked,

Bon Bon giggle under her breath, smiling softly. “Yes, but everypony in my class kind of ignored me back then, so I didn’t think much of it at the time.”

“So how did you two become friends then?”

“Well, one day at recess a few bullies decided they would pick on me for being the new filly in town,” Bon Bon replied, which caused Chris to frown deeply. “Don’t worry,” she said in a comforting tone, noticing his saddened expression. “They didn’t hurt me or anything, and you know how foals can be when somepony new comes into town.”

“Yeah, but I still don’t like hearing that you got bullied,” Chris admitted, sounding disheartened.

“It’s just what foals do,” Bon Bon explained nonchalantly with a shrug. “But, Lyra came to my rescue that day...” she paused, letting out a dreamy sigh before continuing. “She was so brave to help me and she told those bullies off pretty quick.”

Chris grinned to himself. “I can only imagine what she told them,” he chuckled, which caused Bon Bon to giggle as well.

“Let’s just say she had a pretty colorful vocabulary for being such a young filly,” Bon Bon said as her smile widened and her eyelids fell slightly. “But, once the bullies left... Lyra turned to me and tried so hard to ask me if I wanted to go play with her.” Bon Bon sighed deeply with a warm blush on her cheeks as she continued to reminisce. “It took her forever to finally stop babbling and invite me over to her house after school, and ever since then we’ve been the best of friends.”

“That’s a very sweet story,” Chris said, smiling softly before frowning with a sigh as he reached for another candy to wrap. It was obvious that something was bothering him.

“What's the matter?” Bon Bon asked, frowning in concern.

“It’s just… well…” Chris started to say, but took a breath and exhaled slowly, not daring to look back at Bon Bon as he continued to wrap candy. “I’m... sorry.”

Bon Bon blinked in confusion. His apologie seemed so spontaneous and he hadn't done anything wrong as far as she knew. “What ever are you saying sorry for?”

“I just… I feel like I got between you and Lyra,” Chris admitted in a somber tone as he placed the wrapped candy into the finished pile he had started.

“Oh…” Bon Bon slowed her wrapping before stopping completely, letting out a soft sigh. She used to resent Chris for Lyra moving out, but hearing him apologize for it now just felt sour and wrong. She might have resented him in the past, but she couldn’t really blame him for wanting to spend time with the one he loves the most. Plus he didn’t do anything to change her friendship with Lyra. “It’s okay. We’re still great friends.”

Chris looked back to Bon Bon with a deep frown. “It’s just… it seems like ever since I started dating Lyra, you two haven’t been as close as you were before and I don’t want you to stop loving her because of me.”

Bon Bon paused at that comment. Did he think that she didn’t love Lyra anymore because of him? That wasn’t true at all. She still loved Lyra with all her heart, she was just avoiding her because she didn’t want to be... around… him…

Bon Bon winced once she remembered the real reason why she would never spend as much time with Lyra. She couldn’t admit any of that to him though. “I-it’s not like that at all. I-I still love Lyra,” she reassured him sweetly. “A-and you didn’t do anything to change that, honestly.” She reached her hoof out and pulled another caramel to wrap towards her. It was true that she still loved Lyra, but he didn’t need to know that she was spending less time with her because of him.

Chris smiled for a brief moment. “Thanks Bonny… That makes me feel better,” he said, sounding more upbeat. “You should come by and hang out with Lyra more. It would really make her happy.”

“I promise that after we get our revenge, then I’ll spend more time with her,” she reassured him sweetly. “A-and you…” she added softly in a bashful tone, blushing deeply.

Chris’s smile widened at her words. “I would love that,” he replied, as they continued to wrap candy in silence.

“You know,” Chris mused, breaking the silence as he reached for another piece of caramel. “It’s still kind of strange to me that you ponies are a polyamorous culture.”

“Why is that?” Bon Bon questioned as she fiddled with the candy in her hooves, wrapping it in the wax paper. “It’s a normal thing.”

“I know,” Chris replied, finishing his wrapping and moving on to another piece. “It’s just that I came from a world where you picked one mate and lived with them for the rest of your life.”

“Really?” Bon Bon questioned. “Well, that’s not completely unheard of. There are some ponies that only fall in love with just one mate, but most ponies will find a herd to start a family with. It’s really common.”

Chris nodded his head in understanding. “Did you, umm…” Chris started to ask in a bashful tone, but paused.

“Did I what?” Bon Bon asked, tilting her head to the slightly to the side as she looked up to him.

“Did you ever fall in love with anypony else? Other than Lyra?”

Bon Bon froze completely at that question, making her drop the half wrapped caramel candy that was in her hooves. There was only one name that entered her mind when he asked that question… Silver Wing. “I-I… I, umm,” she stuttered, feeling very uncomfortable.

“Oh? So there was another?” Chris asked sounding curious, not picking up on her discomfort. “Was it another pretty mare?” he teased with a strange eyebrow wiggle.

“N-no… I-I―”

“Or a dreamy stallion?” Chris added, interrupting her as he continued his playful teasing. “I bet it was that Time Turner guy wasn't it? He seems like the dreamy type.”

“N-no, it wasn’t―”

“Oh! I bet it was Big Mac, huh? Hey, I don’t blame you for wanting a piece of tha―”

“His name was SILVER WING!” Bon Bon yelled, scowling at Chris as tears started to well up in her eyes, causing him to flinch back in surprise.

“H-hey, I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I-I was just playing around,” Chris quickly tried to defend himself, leaning away from her.

Bon Bon’s scowl slowly melted into a sad frown, making her sigh when she realized what she did. “No… I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to yell at you,” she apologized, slowly blinking away her tears as she looked away from him.

“I-it’s okay,” Chris reassured her, relaxing a little more as he sat up again. “So, umm, his name is Silver Wing then?”

“Yes,” Bon Bon admitted dryly as she slumped back, letting her herself sink into the surprisingly comfortable couch cushion.

“I see,” Chris replied softly. “I’m going to guess that this Silver Wing wasn’t the best guy around.”

“No,” Bon Bon confirmed flatly. “He wasn’t very nice at all,” she added with a huff, scowling again.

The room fell into silence once more. Both Chris and Bon Bon stayed motionless for a time, until Bon Bon spoke up again. “I’m sorry, he just... really hurt me.”

Chris frowned, scratching his beard in thought for a moment before replying. “So… how can I find out where this Silver Wing dip shit lives?

“Dip... sh-eet?” Bon Bon sounded out the unfamiliar word quietly to herself. Whatever that word meant it didn’t sound nice. Chris was obviously upset. “I wouldn’t know where he lives,” she admitted with a sigh. “He left me after…” she started to explain but stopped, unsure if she should be telling Chris these more personal stories.

“After what?” Chris asked, sounding deeply concerned and worried. “You can tell me.”

Bon Bon sighed as she thought. Maybe it would be okay to tell Chris what happened. It would feel good to talk to somepony else about it; like when she talked to him about her fears. Besides, it’s not like it was some big secret. Pretty much half the town knew what Silver did to her.

Having made up her mind, Bon Bon sat up and took a deep breath. “Maybe I should start from the beginning.”

Chris said nothing, but turned his body to face her more, giving her his full attention.

“It was… about five years ago when I met him at this traveling stunt show Lyra took me to,” Bon Bon began to explain, fidgeting with her hooves on the couch. “Silver was one of the main pegasi performers there. He was great at really wowing the crowd when it was his turn to perform.”

She started to fidget with her hooves as she dug up the painful memories. “In one of his more daring acts... h-he flew past the crowd but slowed down when he flew by and gave me a wink. I-I didn’t think much of it at the time, but... but after the show he came out and found me,” she continued, hanging her head down in shame. “I shouldn’t have been so blind,” she mumbled under her breath, going quiet for a moment.

“What happened next?” Chris asked in a disheartened tone.

Bon Bon took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “He asked me out on a date and I stupidly agreed,” she said, with a tinge of anger and self hate. “He was a great liar too,” she huffed. “He would say all these nice empty things like, you're so beautiful, babe, and you’re the one for me.” Bon Bon shook her head in disgust as tears started to well around her eyes. “I was such a foolish little filly back then.”

“What did he do?” Chris asked dryly, sounding more worried.

“He just kept asking me out on nice dates and bought me fancy flowers. H-he was so kind and generous... I-I thought he... actually cared about me... t-then one day... I-I," Bon Bon stuttered, trailing off as her eyes started to water more. She took a deep breath, calming herself before continuing in a flat, exhausted tone. "I made the mistake of sharing a bed with him." Her body shivered in disgust at the memory.

“I thought he loved me and I knew I loved him,” Bon Bon said dryly as she wiped away a tear with her hoof. “Or a-at least I loved the lie he portrayed himself as,” she added, sniffling a few few times.

“Bonny…” Chris said softly, reaching out a hand, but stopping and placing it back down. “It wasn’t your fault, he played with your heart, you couldn't have known.”

Bon Bon shook her head in disagreement. "I should’ve known. Even Lyra told me he was no good, but I didn't listen to her."

"It wasn't your fault," Chris protested gently, trying to reassure her.

“The worst part,” Bon Bon continued sadly. “After he was done… u-using me!” she spat in anger. “He left the very next morning before I even woke up. He didn’t leave me a note or anything, and I never could figure out why he left.” Bon Bon fought back the tears as she became more heated and angry. “W-was I that bad in bed? Did he just do all that stuff to sleep with me? W-what pony would do such a thing? A-are all stallions like him?!” she whimpered angrily.

“Bonny… don’t say that. Not all stallions are like that,” Chris tried to comfort her in a gentle voice.

Bon Bon sniffed and wiped away her tears with both hooves. “I know, but―," she stopped, sighing deeply. "I-I’m sorry Chris… I didn't mean to say those mean things,” she said, collecting herself more. "I know not all stallions are like him, but it's just―,”

"hard for you to trust them," Chris finished for her softly. "I've been there before and know what it can be like when someo―I mean somepony just leaves you and breaks your heart."

Bon Bon sniffled a few times, then turned her head to look up at him. "You... you do?" She questioned sadly. "D-did your lover leave you after they slept with you?"

"Not exactly,” Chris admitted, looking down and away for a moment. “It was a similar situation. Only… I had been dating her for over a year at that point."

Bon Bon frowned. “W-what happened?”

“Well, this was before I ended up here in Equestria. I was dating this, ehh, human mare. Her name was Rebecca.”

“Rebecca?” Bon Bon questioned, blinking a few times. “So, all you humans have those, umm, interesting names?”

Chris smiled briefly and chuckled. “Yeah, we’re weird creatures, but I’m sure you already knew that,” he said with a giggle which caused Bon Bon to smile in response. “Silly names aside,” he continued, frowning again. “I was in love with Rebecca. She was everything to me and I thought she loved me too.”

Bon Bon sat up a little more and turned her whole body, facing Chris as she listened intently to his story.

“Just like Silver Wing, Rebecca would always tell me that she loved me and would often talk about our future together. I was actually starting to make plans to marry her when the time was right,” Chris explained with a smile as he reminisced about the good times they’d had together, but sighed sadly. “But one day… out of nowhere she just stopped talking to me. I couldn’t figure out why she was ignoring all my calls and text messages.”

“Text… messages?” Bon Bon questioned, giving Chris a curious look. “What is that?”

Chris laughed softly shaking his head. “It’s a little hard to explain, but lets just call them instant letters. Like what Spike does for Twilight, only everypony could do it and without the baby dragon.”

“Oh, wow,” Bon Bon said in awe, wanting to know more about these text messages, but stopped when she realized she was she was getting off track. “W-well, you’ll have to tell me more about that sometime, but why did Rebecca stop talking to you?”

Chris scowled and shut his eyes, turning his head away from her. “She… slept with another... man... I mean stallion.”

Bon Bon frowned in confusion. “D-did, she not want to try a herd with you?” she questioned, but remembered Chris told her that humans were monogamous. She quickly covered her mouth with her hooves, regretting what she had just said. She hoped Chris wasn’t offended now. “I-I’m sorry. I forgot you humans only stay with one partner.”

“It’s okay,” Chris reassured her softly. “I know the herd thing is normal for you ponies.”

Bon Bon removed her hooves from her lips and gave Chris a sympathetic frown. “But, that's terrible she did that to you. It must have been awful to find out she betrayed your love.”

“It was very painful,” Chris admitted with a soft sigh. “She called me the next day after I found out and told me that she never loved me and I was a fool to think she thought the same.”

“That’s horrible!” Bon Bon cried loudly. “Why would somepony say such a thing?”

Chris shrugged his shoulders. “I wish I knew.”

“What did you do after that?” Bon Bon questioned.

“Moped around my house for months,” Chris replied flatly.

Bon Bon did that as well after Silver left her. She never left her house and it took Lyra months to get her to come out and walk amongst the living again. “I know how that is… I didn’t want to leave my home ever again after what Silver did.”

Chris nodded his head. “It’s not fun having your heart ripped out, and for a time I felt like I never wanted to love again.”

Bon Bon could relate to that. She was lucky to have Lyra in her life, but she didn’t know if she could ever trust a stallion with her heart again. “I-I know what you mean…” she admitted sadly, hanging her head down, looking away from him.

“But you know what?” Chris said in a more upbeat tone, causing Bon Bon to slowly look up to him. “After a while I realized I couldn’t just wallow in self pity and let one person make me give up on love completely. If I did that then I would’ve never given Lyra a chance.”

Bon Bon sat up straight and perked her ears up.

“I just couldn't give up on finding love because of what one mare did to me. I took what Rebecca did as a... learning experience.” Chris looked towards Bon Bon before continuing. “I look at it this way: there are lots of ponies out there that could make you happy, but you just have to live your life and keep your eye out for them.”

Bon Bon looked up and smiled at him, feeling a little better. His words where surprisingly comforting. She could definitely learn from what Silver did to her. Plus, she didn’t want to be afraid of loving stallions all her life. She wanted to raise a happy family one day when she found that special somepony. That dream would be impossible if she never gave ponies a chance.

“I… I like that,” Bon Bon said, softly. “Thank you Chris… I’ll remember your words.”

Chris’s smile widened. “Yeah? Well, I’m glad I could help,” he said happily, reaching out to the pile of candy to start wrapping again.

Bon Bon looked down at her hooves on the couch as she mulled over everything Chris had said some more. He was a little dense at times, but he could be a wise stallion when he wanted to be. She smiled to herself as she mindlessly reached her hoof out to start wrapping candies again.

Once her hoof reached the pile, something soft yet firm landed on top of her hoof. It was a strange feeling, but had a certain pleasantness to it. She turned her head and looked down at her hoof and saw that Chris’s hand had accidentally grabbed onto her. Time slowed down as her pupils constricted and that strange feeling started to morph into a prickly, burning sensation. Memories of the spider that crawled on her hoof and sent her to the hospital flooded her mind, sending chills down her spine.

Bon Bon squeaked loudly, jerking her hoof away and pinning it tightly to her chest, cradling it with her other hoof as she looked up to Chris in a panic.

“Bonny!” Chris cried, pulling his hand away quickly, hiding it behind his back. “I’m so sorry! I-I wasn’t looking where I was reaching! I didn’t mean to do that honestly!”

Bon Bon rubbed her hoof, petting the spot that Chris touched over and over again as she heaved. Her whole body started to tremble as she tried to speak to him, but only her heavy breathing could be heard.

“Bonny… are you okay?” Chris asked, frowning in concern.

Bon Bon’s eyes started to water as she struggled to calm herself. ‘It wasn’t a spider, it was just his hand. It wasn’t a spider, it was just his hand. It wasn’t a spider, it was just his hand,” she thought over and over again, trying to convince herself to let go of her unreasonable fear. ‘It didn’t even feel like a spider at first. It was nice. Focus on that feeling. Just focus on that feeling.’

“Bonny?”

Bon Bon shut her eyes and took several long and deep breaths, calming herself down. The thoughts of how his hand felt before she knew what was touching her helped as well. She kept her hooves pressed against her chest and slowly opened her eyes once she was in control again and looked up to Chris. “I-I’m s-sorry… I-I didn’t…. mean to f-freak out,” she stuttered breathlessly. “I-I know you, d-didn’t mean … t-t-o d-do that.”

Chris frowned deeply. “Are you going to be okay?”

“Y-yes… I-I’m fine now,” Bon Bon replied weakly, trying to act like everything was normal. She didn’t want to show Chris that she was still afraid and wanted to keep wrapping candies with him. She turned back to the caramel pile on the table and slowly reached out a trembling hoof and knocked part of the pile away. “O-oh… s-shoot.” she said shakily as more tears started to well in her eyes.

“Maybe you should take a break and go rest,” Chris offered, sounding even more concerned.

“N-No!” Bon Bon practically shouted. “I-I’m fine, h-honestly… I-I want to k-keep... w-wrapping w-with you.” She reached out a shaky hoof again and managed to grab a caramel and pull it towards her. Just to help prove her point she started to wrap it, but only managed to crush the sweet, causing her to whimper softly.

“You're still shaking,” Chris pointed out sadly. “I’ll finish wrapping the candies while you go rest.”

“I-I don’t want that!” Bon Bon shouted in anger, feeling frustrated that her hooves wouldn’t stop shaking as a tear streamed down her cheek. “I-I don’t want to be afraid…” she whimpered sadly as she held her hooves to her chest again and shut her eyes.

“You shouldn’t force it. I’m not mad or anything, but I’m worried about you. Please… for me… just go rest.”

Bon Bon shut her eyes and whimpered softly for a moment. “I-I’m sorry,” she sobbed.

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” Chris reassured her in a friendly tone. “I’ll finish up here and bring you some dinner later, okay?”

Bon Bon wanted to stay and try to wrap another caramel, but she knew that would only end in the same result as before. She felt absolutely terrible for her actions, but Chris was right. She needed to calm herself and get some rest.

Without saying a word, she slowly put her hooves down on the floor and started to walk on shaky legs towards the bedroom. She stopped just as she was about to enter the door and looked back towards Chris. “I-I promise, I-I’ll be out again soon. O-okay?” she stuttered.

Chris nodded his head, giving her a soft, reassuring smile. “I would enjoy that, but don’t push yourself.”

Bon Bon forced a smile, entered the bedroom, and shut the broken door. She walked over to her saddlebags and used her nose to open the loose flap. There was a black box in the center of the bag with a small white string around it that acted like a handle. She bit the string and lifted the box out before turning and jumping up on the bed.

After sliding into the covers, she dropped the box in front of her and opened it with her snout. She peered inside and saw the firelily Chris had given to her at The Everfree Moon. She let her muzzle drift inches away from the flower before shutting her eyes. She inhaled deeply, letting the nostalgic fragrance fill her senses, helping her to relax even more.

Whimpering to herself, she let her head fall to the pillow as she pressed the box against her chest. “C-Chris…” she whimpered softly as she tried desperately to fall asleep.

Author's Notes:

Hahahaha! I can't believe I put a To Zanarkand reference in here, but I bucking did it! Chris would make Lyra play that song for him. What a dork!

Anyways… So yeah this chapter kind of kicked my ass. I hope its good for you guys. A lot happened and I tried to condense things as much as possible but… it was hard. I don’t think the next few chapters will be as long, so the next one might come out sooner.

Please let me know what you think and if you see any mistakes just let me know so I can fix them.

Enjoy everyone! And if you want chapter updates you can always check that out here!