The Prissy Pony's Padding/Chapter Eight

A trench was being worn in the fibers of the living room carpet as Vinyl Scratch paced back and forth. What was taking them so long? She glanced at the clock. Its hands were almost mockingly slow. She sighed, glancing over the clock. An hour. It had been an hour since Octavia had gone, and that it had been nearly three minutes since she last checked the time. Again she paced, her hooves moving quickly, her breath a little ragged from the stress. Vinyl didn’t do stress. She coasted through life always confident, if not calm because a calm DJ was a boring DJ, but content. Music, duh! Just gotta listen to some beats and I’ll be fine, she thought, nodding to herself.

She was about to head into the hallway when she heard voices coming toward the door. She turned around just in time to see the lock click and the door swing open to reveal Octavia and Lyra, not a frown on their smiling faces.

“Octy!” she shouted. Her hooves clattered on the polish wood until she bounced into the air with hooves outstretched.

Octavia wheezed as the air was forced out of her, nearly slipping at the force of the tackle-hug. “I’m… happy to… see you… too!” she managed to say.

Vinyl chuckled sheepishly as she released her roommate. “Mare, I had no idea where you were! I’m glad you and Lyra are safe, though. What’s the deal, Ly? Why’d you take off like that?”

“She just needed some time to think,” Octavia interjected before the unicorn could reply. “And now that we’ve talked, she’s feeling much better.” She gave Lyra a wink. Lyra hesitated, then smiled and nodded.

Her nerves shot, Vinyl was not to be calmed quite that easily. Her features darkened a little as she approached Lyra. “Well, I hope you learned your lesson, young filly! We don’t leave Mama Scratch’s house until she says so, okay? She doesn’t want to worry about her little fillies getting hurt or in trouble. Got it?”

Lyra gasped in surprise at the sudden lecture. A guilty expression flashed across her face and she looked down. Her new caretaker walked up and gently lifted her head, showing her a warm smile.

“Hey, it’s okay, sweetie. Just don’t scare mommy like that again, okay?” Vinyl reassured her.

The warmth from her mommy flooded her and banished the doubt and guilt from her mind. “O… okay, mommy. I won’t run away again, ever. I promise.”

Vinyl chuckled and pecked Lyra on the cheek. “Good girl. Now, how would you fillies like to get padded again?”

Octavia didn’t shy away from the offer, nodding and all but pulling Lyra with her to towards the living room. With one question, she changed from adult to overgrown foal, and Lyra couldn’t resist the allure. Laughing, Vinyl brought up the rear, grinning at the sight of her two foals, waiting for their diapers.

Hours later, Lyra pouted as she glanced out the window. Octavia’s room was brightened up by the liberal spread of her colourful foalish things even in the fading dusk light.

“Wishing this could last forever, huh?” Vinyl asked. She was stripping the diaper from Lyra by hoof rather than magic, despite its dry state. The thorough wetting half an hour before in her last diaper had seen to that.

“Yeah…” admitted Lyra, sighing, and turning her eyes from the dim evening sky to the earth pony perched on the bed watching them. “Like her.”

Octy couldn’t help but smile a little smugly, sitting there in one of her onesies, the rear puffed by her padding, and a pacifier lodged firmly in her mouth. She was going to enjoy her diapers until tomorrow afternoon when she was meeting her ensemble, and she didn’t even pretend not to be flaunting it to her new friend.

Vinyl laughed as she wiped foal powder and cream from Lyra. “Don’t worry, smug little fillies get beetroot for din-dins for teasing,” she promised. The unicorns both laughed at Octy’s suddenly stricken expression.

“Mama,” whined Octy, drawing the sound out. “I ‘ate ‘eetwoots,” she lisped around the large pacifier bulb.

“No, Octy, you’re going to eat them. Glad you agree though, and here I thought you hated them. Need my little filly to be nice and healthy, don’t I?” Standing back, Vinyl helped Lyra up. She gave Lyra a mock-stern look. “That goes for you too, missy. I want to know you’ve been eating well when you come over for your next playdate. No spicy food before you come over, got it?”

Lyra couldn’t resist giggling as she glanced at the pouting foal. “Sure thing! You’ll already be dealing with Octy’s beetroots. I never eat the things before I pad up.”

“Hmph!” Attempting to look away haughtily, the effect was a bit spoiled by the pacifier and onesie. Octavia shuddered at the thought of her diaper after a dose of beetroots. Despite the teasing, she still got up to follow them to the bedroom door.

“My brave little filly coming to the front door to say goodbye?” Vinyl asked. When Octavia hesitated, she ruffled her foal’s by now chaotic mane, noting how cute the normally prissy mane looked after a day of playing.”It’s alright, you can say goodbye here.”

Lyra nodded, and welcomed a hug from Octy. “I can’t wait to come back,” she said wistfully.

Shrugging, Vinyl ducked into her room to find a rather messily scrawled calendar. “Don’t worry, we’ll find the time.” She frowned as she eyed the next week. “Huh, got a gig in Ponyville next week. Want me to give Bon Bon anything from you? How about a kiss? She hasn’t seen you in so long, she probably needs a nice long makeout, and I’ll do it for you. Aren’t I generous?”

Lyra saw Octavia roll her eyes, and gave Vinyl a flat look of her own. “No, Vinyl, I don’t want you to make out with my marefriend for me.”

“You sure? Maybe you and me makeout first, then when I do with her, it’ll be, like, you two making out by proxy-” continued Vinyl as she followed Lyra to the door.

“No, Vinyl. Thanks so much for the offer.” Lyra smiled, knowing the DJ was just having her fun.

“Anything...else?” Vinyl looked back at Octavia, watching them from the bedroom door, and coughed. “You know, about this?”

That made Lyra hesitate. “I… I don’t know. Octavia told me that I should, but… I just don’t think I’m ready, y’know?”

“You’re going to have to talk to her about it sooner or later, Lyra. It’s better to get it out in the open now rather than risk her finding out about it later,” said Octavia from the bedroom door. Her pacifier dangled by a thin ribbon that ran around her neck like a necklace.

Lyra nodded. “I know, I know… I just don’t want to risk her getting upset at me. I feel nervous even considering talking about it.”

Knowing that further discourse would be futile, Vinyl shrugged. “It’s your call, man. If you want to keep her in the dark for the rest of your life, then go for it.”

Nodding, Lyra opened the door. “Thanks again, Vinyl. It really means a lot.” With that, she walked out the door.

Vinyl locked it, then turned around and walked back toward the bedroom at the end of the hall. Octavia was still sitting there, watching her walk up, a vague smile sitting on her lips. She knew that smile. All too well.

“Vinyl, don’t.”

The DJ cocked an eyebrow. “Why, whatever do you mean, Tavi?”

“You know very well what I mean!” Octavia gave her friend a stern look, which didn’t work so well when she was dressed like a foal. “She told you she doesn’t want her marefriend to know! Do you realize what would happen if…”

Sighing, Vinyl rolled her eyes. “Don’t worry, Octy! Mama won’t spill the beans.”

“Not even a little bit!”

Waving Octavia off, Vinyl walked over to the closet to fish around for something. “Not even a little bit.” Of course, nopony said anything about hinting at it.

“Alright everypony, great rehearsal! See you all next week!”

The musicians who had been working on Beethoofen’s Fifth were all exhausted from their work, but not so exhausted that they couldn’t gossip after their practice. Treble Clef, a pony with a rather large stomach and an ego to match, sauntered up to a pink-maned pony and watched Octavia and Lyra. The two famously belligerent musicians were walking out of the rehearsal hall, but their faces suggested, of all things, that they were now the best of friends.

“I wonder what those two are on about?” he mused aloud.

Flowing Tone tapped a hoof to her chin. “Maybe they’re just happy that we’ve finally gotten the last part of the third section without the violins ruining measure 64.”

Treble Clef snorted, shaking his head. “They’ve been like this for a week. I somehow doubt the violins pulling their act together is enough for those two to start getting on. Remember a few months ago? I was certain one of them was going to snap right there. Those two are- were worse than cats.”

“How could I forget?” moaned Tone. “Lyra practically insulted every member of Octavia’s family simultaneously, suggesting they’re all descended from mules or something, and then Octavia threw her bowstring at Lyra! I figured the mare was going to need surgery to remove it.”

“Lest we forget just after Hearth’s Warming, of course. I swear, I’ve never heard a mare call somepony such a crass term with so much dignity, and so much swearing. The only time I’ve been glad that DJ friend of hers was there.” Treble looked thoughtful. “I never would have expected her to be the voice of reason at a Hearth’s Warming party.”

Nodding, Flowing Tone settled her oboe into its case, gingerly closing the lid and snapping the latches closed. “At least I don’t have to worry about flying instruments and manuscripts anymore.”

Treble harrumphed. “Such immature and uncouth behavior. Regardless of their reasons, I for one am glad they decided to patch things up between them.”

As the two gossips chatted, Lyra and Octavia were practically skipping out of the music district of Canterlot toward Octavia’s apartment. Lyra squeed at the thought of how they were going to spend their evening.

Octavia giggled at that. “Sounds like somepony’s excited about tonight.”

“I can’t help it!” said Lyra. “Every time I think about coming over and spending time with you and Vinyl I get giddy as a schoolfilly!”

It was true. Octavia recalled an incident where she and Lyra were in the mall during their rehearsal lunch break and Octavia casually mentioned the playdate they were having that evening. She chuckled at how Lyra had started bouncing in place and bounced right into a vendor selling overpriced sunglasses. She had been so grateful he didn’t make them pay for the broken ones. Probably knockoffs anyway.

“Well, I hope you’re alright with it just being me. Remember Vinyl’s trip to Ponyville?” she reminded Lyra.

“Oh,” said Lyra, a little wind going out of her sails. “I’m sorry, I forgot. But I’ll be fine. I have the best baby sister in Equestria to play with!”

The name made Octavia giggle again. “And I have the best baby sister in Equestria to play with, too! Although, I feel I need to remind you; I’m the youngest!” I am, too! By a whole two and a half months!

Lyra laughed at that. “Okay, but I still get just as many cookies as you. Agreed?”

“I suppose I can live with it,” Octavia said with fake grandness, before she too giggled. She quickly smothered the sound when a pony passed them, fighting to look dignified. “Now you’re making me act like a filly in public. Shame on you, Lyra Heartstrings.”

“Hey, you’re the one who won’t let me forget she’s the youngest,” Lyra teased with a grin. She didn’t really mind, and it helped her feel more at ease whenever she had trouble fully getting into it. Even now, Lyra still had flashes of guilt or fear that she was wrong to do this, but after their two playdates since the first, these bouts of negative emotion had decreased significantly. When she worried about the other side of the spectrum, that she wasn’t getting into it as much as Octy, well, it made sense. Octy was the most foalish of the foals, after all.

The two happy mares trotted along, though when the turn came, they turned away from the road to Vinyl and Octavia’s apartment. They kept on chatting until the ring of train whistles filled the air, and they spotted a familiar shock of two-toned blue mane through the crowd rushing in and out of the East Canterlot Train Station.

“Well, look who found the time to see me off.” Vinyl grinned at the pair as they approached. lowering her sunglasses to peer over the top like a stern teacher staring over the rim of her glasses. “Did my fillies do well at music class?”

Octavia rolled her eyes. “Vinyl, it’s called ‘rehearsal’-”

“Music class!” interrupted the gleeful DJ, giggling at the look on Octavia’s face. “Sounds like somepony needs a reminder. Lyra, do you remember what I told you two?”

Blushing, Lyra glanced about and despite the noise of the crowd, lowered her voice. “Fillies who don’t do well as music class need a reminder about how to act?”

Vinyl nodded. She casually began to lift the bags she had with her. It wasn’t much, just a few emergency things in case the gear that had been sent ahead was damaged. “Exactly! Wouldn’t you two make just the cutest sight, walking into that big fancy hall in little filly school uniforms…”

“Oh, as if you would.” Picking up one of the bags and balancing it on her back, Octavia smirked. “You’re much too nice to do that, Scratch. Come on, you better get a move on, your train leaves soon.”

Some things would never change, and no matter how much time Octavia spent as Vinyl’s padded foal, the prim and proper earth pony would never cease to be punctual.

“I thought I was the one in charge here,” Vinyl stage-whispered to Lyra, who smiled.

“Only at home, Vinyl. Somepony has to be dignified in public, and I doubt either of you could manage it for more than five minutes.” Turning her snout up pompously, Octavia still smiled, her good cheer quite clear.

“Hey, I can be dignified!” protested Lyra.

“In public and not at the orchestra,” Octavia said, correcting herself. “And no, reading conspiracy theory magazines is not dignified.”

“Oh…” Lyra frowned for a moment before conceding and grinning. “Well, okay, fair enough. Bon Bon hates how I never act classy enough for us to go to a fancy restaurant without embarrassing her.”

Vinyl snickered. “It’s weird, right? You’re both fancy-shmancy musicians, but only one of you is actually fancy. Bon Bon is fancier than you!”

“She so is. I think that’s why she kept trying to get me to reconcile with you, Octavia, she was just dying to have a fancy friend in Canterlot.” Imagining her marefriend, Lyra nearly ran into somepony, so enthralled was she.

Octavia sighed, loudly. “Well, that certainly discounts Vinyl.”

“Hey mare, I can be totes fancy and stuff,” Vinyl mock-whined. She grinned at the skeptical looks they gave her.

As Lyra was about to crack a joke about Vinyl’s behavior, they heard; “Aaaaall aboard!”

“All includes you, Vinyl, so hurry up! The sooner you leave, the sooner you’re back.” Pushing her along, Octavia gave her friend a quick hug.

“And the sooner somepony can see her Mama again, right?” Vinyl whispered, grinning at the blush that appeared on Octavia’s face. She discreetly kissed her filly on the cheek, then turned to Lyra. “Make sure your little sister stays out of the cookie jar while I’m gone.”

Octavia rolled her eyes, knowing that she had her own stash of expensive cookies she liked to indulge in, provided she could hide them before Vinyl discovered their existence and rob her of one or two. But she still blushed at the comment.

“Don’t worry, Mama,” murmured Lyra quietly, taking a moment to look around as she said it in a near whisper. “I’ll make sure.”

After a quick peck on the cheek for her newest foal, Vinyl boarded the train. They both watched their mommy walk through the car and then proceed to get into an argument with a stewardess about whether it’s acceptable to put ones hooves on the backrest of the seat in front of you.

“That’s mommy,” said Lyra. “Laid back as usual.”

A laugh erupted from Octavia’s mouth. “Yes, she’s never been one to follow the herd. And I suppose we should be grateful. After all, if she were, do you think she’d put up with our little hobby?”

Lyra chuckled at this. “No, I suppose not. I’m glad she’s so tolerant of us. Hopefully...” she trailed off.

Octavia looked at her, frowning at the look on her friend’s face. “Hopefully Bon Bon will be?” she asked gently. Lyra said nothing, just nodded slightly. “Don’t worry about it,” said Octavia. “She’ll be fine with you, I’m sure.”

“Still, I really hope Vinyl doesn’t mention this to Bonnie. I’d hate for her to find out about this side of me, or at least I’d hate for it not to be on my terms.” Lyra sighed. “I suppose I shouldn’t be worried about it, but Vinyl’s so…” She laughed. “She’s so Vinyl.”

“Yes, she is,” agreed Octavia. “And believe me, she won’t say a word to Bon Bon about it. She might not look it, or act it, sometimes, but deep down Vinyl is very responsible pony.”

WUB wuh-wuh-wuh WUB wuh-wuh-wuh WUB!

“Aww yeah! I’ve in love with the wubs!” Vinyl couldn’t even hear herself, her voice lost, the speakers shaking the whole building. She was glad the place was empty for the sound test she was doing. It allowed her to experiment to the fullest with the beat and create the perfect melody.

Her foreleg was pumping in the air with each beat of the music and her horn’s magic worked the vinyl records that gave her music its unique sound. Most dubstep musicians these days worked with electronica or other modern stuff, but Vinyl Scratch had always had a thing for injecting a little classic rock in her music, and the best stuff was on old vinyls that her dad kept up in the attic. She supposed that he wouldn’t like knowing that she was close to destroying some of them from the constant working of the turntables, but she kept that her little secret.

“Time for the real deal, ahaha!” Laughing almost to the point of cackling, Vinyl got ready, the next beat ready to drop, and drop hard. A splash of color at the corner of her eye drew Vinyl’s attention away from her music for just an instant. Her hoof dropped, and with it the volume.

“Bonnie!” She waved a hoof, grinning at the mare in the doorway.

Bon Bon whipped her dark blue and pink mane toward the sound of her name, then she grinned and trotted over to the DJ’s stand. After fiddling with the controls for a moment to set the board into musical autopilot, she turned to face Bon Bon.

“Look who it is! Wanted to get a pre-party taste of the music, huh? Can’t say I blame you, my wubs are pretty awesome.”

Raising an eyebrow, Bon Bon made a show looking out the window. “How strange, it looks like Rainbow Dash is napping on a cloud out there, but I could have sworn I heard her talking just now.”

Vinyl laughed, remembering her encounters with the pegasus whenever she was in town. There was a pony who knew good music when it made the roof shake and pissed off the old folks.

“Good one, Bon Bon. How’ve you been? Feels like it’s been ages! You never come say hi when you’re in Canterlot,” the unicorn said.

Sighing, Bon Bon gave her friend a warm smile. “I’m sorry, Vinyl, but whenever I’m in Canterlot it’s to see Lyra, and if we come to see you, well, I don’t want a repeat of that time at the cafe. I called out hello, and Lyra saw Octavia with you…”

“Yeah, that was a pretty nasty catfight. Did the manager ever replace that mirror?”

Chuckling at the long-past memory, Bon Bon nodded. “Eventually, yes. So are you just here to drive the old ponies crazy, or did you plan on coming by the sweet shop to see me?”

“Oh, totally!” said Vinyl as she checked her tracks to make sure she didn’t miss the place to drop the next beat. “Just as soon as this sound test is over! Might be a while, though. You know how us ar-teests get when we are in the groove!”

“No worries, I know how much you love to mix it up, Vinyl.” Bon Bon gave her friend a quick hug. “It’s good to see you! I’ll catch you later at lunch, huh? Still want to meet at the cafe on Saddle Street?”

“You bet!” said Vinyl “See you later, Bonnie!” As Bon Bon made her way out of the room, Vinyl could have sworn she saw the pony being taken by the beat, her head bobbing in time to the music. Nopony can resist the wubs… except for a certain little priss I know. Vinyl chuckled at that, then went back to mixing, finishing out the latest set. She would be sure to visit Bon Bon after she made sure her beats were as awesome as they could be.

Bon Bon sat at the table and glanced at the clock. She knew Vinyl would be late, but she didn’t figure that she’d be over an hour past lunch hour. At least Bon Bon was self-employed. She could take breaks for as long as she wanted, and her shop usually wasn’t that busy till the middle of the afternoon. She did hope Vinyl would show up. She was beginning to look like a pony stood up by their date.

A bell signalled Vinyl’s entrance into the small cafe. “Yo, Bonnie! Sorry I’m late, had to talk to the manager of the building and you would not believe how long it took to find the guy!” She trotted over to the table and plopped into the chair. “Man, that was a long set.”

“Well, I’m certainly glad you remembered the location,” said Bon Bon, her face breaking out into a smile. “Remember when we tried to meet up at that pancake restaurant and you thought it was Flower Street?”

“Yeah,” said Vinyl with a chuckle. “But in my defense, Flower and Flour sound exactly the same.”

“...I wrote it down for you,” Bon Bon pointed out with a small smile.

Vinyl shrugged, and grinned. “Let’s not get bogged down in minor details.”

Bon Bon laughed and flagged the waiter over. After they placed their orders, she caught a glance at one of the mares in the booths lining the walls. “Ugh, those conspiracy magazines… Lyra loves those. They always seem to want to pad out their stories with meaningless drivel, though.”

Nodding with a laugh, Vinyl replied, “Yeah, Lyra sure does love padding…” She could barely restrain a snicker, adding offhandedly, “Since it gives her more to read.”

The earth pony hesitated, but it was for such a brief moment Vinyl was sure she imagined it. Bon Bon asked, “So how is Lyra these days? I haven’t seen much of her the last couple of weeks.”

“She’s great,” said Vinyl. An undeniable smug grin appeared on her muzzle.. “In fact, me and Octy took her out to lunch and she started talking about this new gig that the classical musicians are working on.”

“That sounds like f-...” Bon Bon froze for a moment. “I’m sorry, but… did you say that you and… Octavia took her out to eat?” The astonishment on Bon Bon’s face could have been read from orbit.

Still smug, Vinyl nodded. “Yeah, those two really get along now. Never seen ‘em happier.”

“That’s a relief. I’m glad they finally buried the hatchet,” said Bon Bon. She hastily added, “And not into each other.”

Laughing at the joke, Vinyl nodded with a big smile on her face. “They just needed some help to bond over something they shared, like how they both act like such foals around each other.”

Again Bon Bon looked at her oddly for a moment, the earth pony’s eyes narrowing before doing her best to look nonchalant. Vinyl dismissed it. It was easy to be skeptical about Octavia and Lyra getting friendly.

“You act like that’s a surprise,” said Vinyl with a cheeky grin. Oh, she was having such fun.

“Oh, um,” Bon Bon stammered, looking away, “yes, it is quite surprising. Last I’d heard Octavia almost tore her apart with her bowstring. “

“Yeah,” said Vinyl, waving her hooves around like a swashbuckler. “Just like Captain Blood! She went all pirate on her a-”

“Please, Vinyl,” interrupting her friend, Bon Bon frowned. “This is a public place.”

The DJ snorted. “Who cares? It’s not like nopony curses. I do it all the time!”

“I don’t,” Bon Bon told her sternly.

Rolling her eyes, Vinyl snorted again. “Are you like this with Lyra? Are you her marefriend, or her mommy?” she taunted, smirking.

This time, Vinyl definitely caught the little flash of emotion on Bon Bon’s face. She didn’t get a chance to comment on it. The waiter walked up and put two plates before them.

“If you keep snorting like that, ponies might start mistaking you for a piggy,” Bon Bon shot back, covering her surprise as best she could.

“Man, this looks awesome!” Vinyl eyed the hayburger and fries in front of her. “You never get this kind of junk food in Canterlot. All those fancy-schmancy places with high-brow ponies… it drives me crazy sometimes.”

“I bet,” agreed Bon Bon as she cut up her mixed vegetables. “At least you’re halfway neat when you’re eating. Lyra always seems to make a mess of herself when she eats. It’s like watching a foal.”

Narrowing her eyes, Vinyl looked at Bon Bon, trying to discern some sign that she was talking about what Vinyl thought she was talking about. She had just been amusing herself with the line about Lyra loving padding, but now...well, she was getting suspicious.

“So,” she said, “I keep wondering something. How the heck could Lyra just up and leave Ponyville? I mean, it’s a great town. No clubs or anything, but I love how everything’s so… um, cool-lame?”

Bon Bon chuckled. “I think you mean, ‘quaint’.”

“Yeah, that,” said Vinyl. She shrugged, not too concerned about the difference. It wasn’t the point of this anyway. “After all, there are so many happy foals here. How could anypony just move as soon as they grow up?”

This time Bon Bon’s eyes narrowed. “Well, maybe she never really grew up. I mean, maybe she never moved…” She covered her mouth with a hoof at the slip.

Both ponies stared at each other for a moment. A cough interrupted them. They looked up at the waiter. “Um, is… everything alright with the food?”

“Food’s great,” said Vinyl. She glared at him, making a shooing mention. “We’re having a discussion here, dude.”

As the waiter left, she turned back to Bon Bon. “Y’know, I learned a lot about Lyra in the last week or so. It was amazing, really.”

“Really?” said Bon Bon. Her stare was getting intense. “What did you learn? I know some amazing things about her as well. Maybe you discovered something I already knew.”

“Well…” said Vinyl, “she really likes to… take naps.”

Bon Bon nodded. “Yep, already knew that.”

“And,” continued the DJ slowly, careflly, “she still licks the beaters when I’m done with them.”

“You cook?” A glare and a growl from Vinyl steered her back toward the conversation. “I mean, of course she does! I let her lick the beaters all the time!”

“And I learned that she likes to play games!”

A frustrated groan got past Bon Bon’s best attempt to control herself. “Lots of ponies play games,” she said flatly. “Look, you’re clearly trying to tell me something here, Vinyl. Spit it out.”

Vinyl was just about to tell her everything, but she held back. Don’t worry, Octy. Mama won’t spill the beans. “I… um, I can’t.”

For a second Bon Bon just stared at her, not saying anything. Her frustration wasn’t even slightly concealed as she struggled not to explode. She failed.

“What do you mean, you can’t?” Bon Bon blurted. “Just tell me what’s going on! It clearly has something to do with Lyra, and I want to know what it is!”

Vinyl wore a stubborn look. “Nope,” she said, shaking her head. “I can’t. Not my thing to tell, and I know two ponies who would be furious with me if I did, not including myself.”

For a moment Bon Bon looked like she was going to strangle Vinyl for being so stubborn. But in the end she sighed. “Look Vinyl, I care a lot about Lyra. I need to know what’s up, okay?”

Many moments of silence passed before Vinyl said, “Okay. But I can’t just tell you. You have to guess.”

“Fair enough,” said Bon Bon. “How do you propose I guess?”

Vinyl thought for a bit, then said, “I’ll give you the first and last letter, then you fill in the blanks. D and S.”

A flash of anxiety crossed Bon Bon’s face. Vinyl could have sworn she was about to wet herself right there on the seat. After a moment of hesitation, Bon Bon whispered, “Diapers.”

Silence followed the phrase, and then.... Vinyl snickered. The chuckles turned to laughter, and soon both of them were laughing their heads off, relief flowing through them like a river of delight.

Vinyl sighed in relief, chuckling as she calmed down from the uproar. “Wow, okay, that was bucking intense, but I’m so glad we’re on the same page.”

“Yeah, me too,” replied Bon Bon. She gave Vinyl a relieved smile, leaning closer and lowering her voice. “Y’know, I’ve noticed all these little signs of that ever since I knew her. A hint of foal powder in the air, the faint sound of tapes ripping off in the house, the odd dirty diaper in the trash can. I never mentioned it, though. I figured she’d come to me on her own one day. Or at least, I hoped she would. And I never wanted to broach the subject with her. I didn’t want to scare her off or make her think that I hated her.”

“She is pretty scared,” intoned Vinyl, looking away for a moment. “She thinks that if you found out that you’d hate her guts and throw her out of your life.”

Bon Bon gasped, frowning at Vinyl. “I… I could never do that to Ly-Ly! I love her with all my… what’s so funny?”

Vinyl stifled the rest of the laugh and smiled at Bon Bon. “That name! Ah haha!”

“Name?” Bon Bon blinked, looking bewildered. “Ly-Ly?”

“It’s what I call her when I play her mommy,” gasped Vinyl despite guffaws.

“You… you play her mommy?” said Bon Bon incredulously. She had a hard time believing that Vinyl was capable of being motherly. It just didn’t fit the picture. “What do you do for her? Feed her? Give her baths? Change her?”

Vinyl opened her mouth, then shut it again. After a few seconds of silence, she sighed and gave Bon Bon a serious look. “Okay, cards on the table; I really wanna tell you everything, but I made a promise that I wouldn’t talk about it. This ain’t something you should talk to me about.”

Bon Bon looked a little hurt. “But… but I…”

“Look,” said Vinyl, “you need to trust me on this. Besides, this is kinda something you need to talk to her about yourself. I’m sure she’d wanna tell you if she knew you were okay with it.” She chuckled. “But if you do… um, maybe you don’t mention I told you about it, huh?” A lopsided grin betrayed the embarrassment she felt at having let this much slip already.

A smile cracked on Bon Bon’s lips. “Don’t worry, I promise she won’t know it was you.”

The sky was clear, the birds were chirping, and all was good with the world.

Or at least that’s how Lyra perceived everything at the moment. She took in a deep breath, smiling as she let it a slow, happy sigh. Weeks of missing Bon Bon were only minutes from coming to an end, at long last. It seemed that whenever Bonnie was gone, Lyra felt a part of her go with her, and when her marefriend returned butterflies would wake up and flutter around inside her ribcage. She’s definitely The One. I just hope she never finds out about this stupid obsession of mine.

She sighed again, a less happy sound, her uncertainty returning like a storm cloud on a sunny day. How would Bon Bon react? That was the question. Lyra knew that her love returned her feelings, but you couldn’t really know a pony until a test like this came up.

‘Maybe it’s a test too far...what if she’s weirded out? I’m so weird, maybe too weird. I mean, diapers, come on, she can’t possibly not mind my foalishness…’

Glancing at the clock in the town square, Lyra frowned at the time. Too early, and nothing to occupy her. She pondered for a moment what Bon Bon had said in the letter… Sweetie, I have something I want to talk to you about, and it’s kind of important. Questions worried at her, butterflies of uncertainty flitting about in her stomach.

She consoled herself, knowing there was no reason to panic. Bon Bon couldn’t know. There would have been something more to it than just that if she did. Lyra told herself this as firmly as she could, determined to be happy to see Bon Bon. So when Bon Bon showed up at the end of the street, Lyra bounded off and glomped her marefriend.

“Whoa, Ly-Ly! I’m happy to see you, too!” said Bon Bon from under the mountain of mint green fur laying on top of her.

Lyra chuckled sheepishly as backed off. “Sorry, Bonnie. Just couldn’t help myself, hehe.”

Bon Bon nuzzled her slightly. “It’s okay, hon. It’s one of the things I love about you.”

Giggling, Lyra nuzzled her back, her eyes shut and a happy grin on her face. “Mmhm. Let’s go, I’m hungry!”

With a chuckle, Bon Bon turned and walked toward the restaurant with Lyra in tow. The earth pony’s smile hid her own worries. The same question that she had been pondering for months, since her fateful, secret discovery, came back. Did Lyra’s attraction to diapers go beyond merely having an infatuation with them? How far did it go? Did she want to be a full-on baby? A little foal that needed to be taken care of?

Bon Bon admitted to herself that she hadn’t been ready for that. Oh, she knew Lyra liked baby stuff. Catching her sleeping in a diaper, clutching her teddy and sucking a pacifier were more than a hint that she liked those things. And she had to admit, it was a rather adorable sight. But Bon Bon had assumed the objects themselves had been mere stress release. She had no idea that Lyra actually needed them. Talking with Twilight had helped her understand that it was a much deeper need than she’d thought, but it wasn’t entirely clear why she needed them.

At the same time, she hadn’t wanted to tell Lyra she had discovered her fondness for dressing up like a baby, either. Not that she wasn’t curious, but this was apparently something she wanted to keep a secret, and as long as it was just a harmless bit of stress relief, what’s the harm in a secret or two? Now that she knew the truth, she had a lot more questions, but one thing was clear: Lyra was afraid of being found out. Bon Bon didn’t want to hurt her by letting her know that her secret was out, but she had let her know that she was okay with it.

She glanced at Lyra as they entered the modest restaurant, repeating all her justifications to herself. She had thought this over, hard, but sitting here, right across from Lyra, she hesitated. She had to show Lyra she didn’t care. The idea of this bubbly, happy mare wracked with worry and fear...

Sitting down across from Lyra, watching the bouncy mare scouring the menu for something to eat - ‘Oh Celestia, is this why she always wants to order from the kids’ menu?’ - Bon Bon remembered her unannounced visit months ago. There had been little things before then, the smallest of hints that had sent Bon Bon idly looking for answers.

“What do you want, Bonnie?”

Jarred from her train of thought, Bon Bon stared at Lyra for a moment before glancing down at the menu in front of her, trying to look like she had already been doing just that.

“Er, I was thinking…” She picked randomly. “Pumpkin salad?”

Lyra nodded, licking her lips. “Squash strips and hay fries for me!”

A smile came to Bon Bon’s lips, and she giggled. “That’s from the kids’ menu, dear.” As the corner of Lyra’s lips began to turn down, she added, “Which is fine. I think it rather suits you, sweetie.”

A warm feeling filled Bon Bon at the sight of Lyra’s grin, and for the first time, she realised just how much hearing something even that innocent meant to Lyra. Was this what Lyra wanted? To have the love and doting affection of a mommy? More than a marefriend’s love?

Did she have what it took to be that mommy? Did….did she want to be?

‘There’s only one way to find out,’

“Lyra,” said Bon Bon. Lyra looked up at her marefriend, a frown on her face. Bon Bon seldom used her full name when they were hanging out unless she wanted to talk about something more serious. “I… I need to talk to you about something.”

“W-what?” said Lyra. Her grin faded.

“Now, don’t be upset, okay? I just want to talk.”

“Bon Bon, you’re scaring me.” Lyra drew back into her chair ever so slightly and shook her head. This isn’t happening… is she trying to break up with me?

“Please, don’t be scared. I just wanted to talk about something I found out about you recently.”

Oh Celestia, she knows! Lyra started to sniffle, her lip quivering as she tried to hold herself together. She knows… my life is over…

Bon Bon reached over instantly, glad they had picked a private booth, to pat Lyra’s hoof. “No no, Lyra, sweetie, calm down!” She gave her marefriend a pleading look. “I promise, I’m not angry, or upset, or anything, I just want to talk.”

Taking a deep breath to calm herself, for all the good it would do, Lyra slowly exhaled. “O-okay… what d-do you want to talk ‘bout?”

Here it was, and Bon Bon had no way of breaking this gently. She sighed, looking her lover straight in the eyes. “Lyra….I know. I know about…” She hesitated. ‘All or nothing.’ “The diapers.”

Lyra’s mind went blank. Years of fear and worry came flooding back all compressed into a single moment and just one thought. ‘She knows!’ Trembles nearly knocking her hoof her chair, the unicorn’s only reaction was a pure instinctive urge to flee.

“Stop!”

Bon Bon’s sharp cry, quiet as she tried to make it, stopped Lyra before the panicking mare could leap from her seat. Superior earth pony muscles held Lyra’s hoof down, enough for Bon Bon to come around the side of the table and squeeze Lyra into a hug.

“Shhh, calm down,” she murmured softly. With the unicorn safely contained, she freed one hoof to rub Lyra’s back. “It’s alright. I told you, I’m not angry. I’m not upset. I love you, Lyra. I promise, and nothing before today or after is going to change that.”

Lyra’s pounding heart didn’t slow, but the urge to flee began to fade as she buried her snout in Bon Bon’s shoulder. She held onto the promise like a lifeline. Bon Bon loved her. Bonnie loved her. Lyra’s brow furrowed for a moment. “But… but it’s wrong. Sick. Bonnie, you can’t─”

A hoof to her mouth stopped her. “Shhh…” replied Bon Bon. “It’s not sick. It’s a little odd, but there are weirder things out there, sweetie. I’ve even done a little research on it, and it’s no big deal.” A giggle came from her lips. “In fact, it’s kind of cute.”

Sitting back, Lyra looked at her marefriend with tear-rimmed golden eyes. “You… you think I’m cute?” she croaked, not sure if she trusted herself enough to hope.

“Of course I do!” said Bon Bon. “Cutest widdle filly I know!”

That simple comment and the way Bon Bon had said it seemed to cause all of Lyra’s pent up fear to...well, it wasn’t all gone, but it took a backseat. She didn’t know how much Bon Bon meant it, but right now, what mattered was that Bon Bon cared enough to try. She wasn’t angry, or disgusted, or anything.

“T-thank you…” she whispered, leaning against Bon Bon. The soft nuzzle from the other mare brought a small, tentative smile, and it was punctuated by a peck on the cheek.

Bon Bon stepped back and looked into Lyra’s eyes with a warm, almost motherly smile. “No problem. Now, let’s get back to our lunch.”

As Bon Bon sat back down across from Lyra, the mint green unicorn smiled, almost in disbelief. She knew, and she’s perfectly fine with it! Or… at least I hope she is. The anxiety in Lyra’s heart didn’t quite go away, but at least her fears were allayed for the moment.

“No fair! You’re a unicorn!” Octy, her diaper already damp from several hours of playing, was poking her lower lip out at Lyra as her fellow foal levitated several “squadrons” of pegasi dolls in Wonderbolt uniforms.

“But they’re pagasusses!” said Lyra. “They’re supposed to fly!” A raspberry filled the air as she swooped her air force down over the small gathering of forces on the living room rug. They were arranged in rows, preparing to advance on the coffee table that served as Lyra’s castle. But the fortress would not go down so easily.

A giggle threatened to spill from Octy’s lips, but she hid it and instead pouted foalishly. “But I can’t make mine fly!” she whined. She crossed her forelegs. “It’s unfair!”

Keeping an eye on the pair, Vinyl grinned, partly in relief. Lyra hadn’t said much about her date with Bon Bon. Whatever had happened, the unicorn wanted to keep to herself and the most Vinyl had been able to get out of her was that she and Bon Bon had agreed to have a more thorough, in-depths talk later. For now, both of them needed some time to think.

Of course, what that actually meant was Lyra wanted some play time to destress. Octavia had found her ‘sister’ and a thick diaper waiting for her when she finished her usual, personal cello practice in her room. That had been three hours ago. Privately, Vinyl was glad they weren’t totally foalish, since she was pretty sure trying to keep two real foals happy and playing for this long would be waaaaaaaaaay harder.

The DJ’s ears perked up, a faint sound catching her attention. Watching the foals for a moment, making sure they were engrossed in playing, Vinyl quietly up up from the couch and left the pair to it. Her horn glowed.

‘Sound canceling spells, not just for raves,’ she thought with a smirk. She couldn’t be too careful about her little ones, after all.

With that in mind, she remembered to check the peephole before opening the door. The mare waiting patiently outside was, to be frank, a surprise. Another knock, slightly louder, made Vinyl twitch. She knew she’d have to open it one way or another…

“Bon Bon,” she greeted the mare, rubbing the back of her neck. “Uh, hey, nice to see you, but now really isn’t the ti-”

“Lyra’s here, isn’t she?” Bon Bon smiled. “Don’t worry, Vinyl, everything is alright. I just....I know Lyra and I agreed to talk after our emotions had calmed a little, but I couldn’t leave without seeing her being...herself.”

She gave Vinyl a pleading look. The DJ groaned quietly. “I just can’t resist a mare in need, can I?” she muttered, stepping out of the way. She rolled her eyes. “Just a peek, alright?”

Bon Bon didn’t answer, already slipping past her with an anxious look in her eyes. This was important, as much as admitting she knew about the diapers had been. She had to see what Lyra was like without the fear of rejection, as she knew any attempt they did together was bound to be filled with.

Slowly she crept along, inching toward the couch, not daring to make a sound lest her marefriend hear her and be tipped off. She peered over it as she approached, and what she saw both surprised and pleased her. There, sitting and playing on the floor in a wet diaper, was Lyra. Her mouth was split into a wide, happy grin as she dove-bombed the toy soldiers. Her delighted squeals as she played with the toys were as adorable to Bon Bon as if she’d heard them from a filly, and her heart warmed when she saw Lyra clapping her hooves together with glee.

Bon Bon’s fears and doubts, everything she had worried about seeing Lyra and finding it disgusting or weird or just plain wrong...fell away. She looked at the mare she loved, and that was all she saw. The mare she loved. Not a weirdo. Not a freak. Lyra, having the time of her life, and Bon Bon decided right then that she wanted to be the one making Lyra that happy.

As she watched, Octavia - Octavia! The fanciest, most prim and proper mare to have ever lived! - had apparently had enough. She stood, with all the dignity of a mare with a poofy diaper, turned and knocked over Lyra’s toys with her padded tush.

“Oh no!” exclaimed the mare, giggling as she looked at Lyra. “All your ponies have been hit by a flood!”

Bon Bon didn’t understand, until Vinyl appeared next to her and snickered, nodding at the diaper. Bon Bon’s mouth dropped open as she realised what she was seeing; Octavia was wetting herself! She couldn’t help but let out a chuckle as she finally understood the joke.

Suddenly the playful scene turned to silence as Lyra and Octavia both shot their heads toward Bon Bon. The pegasi all clattered to the floor as both of the mares sat in shock at the appearance of Lyra’s lover. Walking over to the pair of adult foals, Bon Bon wore a warm smile on her face.

“Why did you stop, sweetie?” she said as she looked down at Lyra, who had turned at least five shades of red.

“Um… u-um…” stammered Lyra as she looked away.

As Lyra struggled to get an answer, she felt prodding on her diaper. “Tsk, tsk… looks like we have a wet widdle filly on our hooves.” Bon Bon looked toward Vinyl Scratch. “Can you go get me a fresh diaper and wipes, please?”

Shaking her head violently to wake herself up, Vinyl stopped staring, picked her jaw off the floor, and then gave a quick nod before trotting off to the back room.

Bon Bon turned her attention back toward Lyra. “Come on, pumpkin. Lay down for me, please.” When Lyra didn’t immediately start lying down, Bon Bon gently pushed her back until she was down on her backside. “Don’t worry, sweetie. Mommy will get you in a nice, dry diaper in no time!”

The gentle smile on Bon Bon’s lips seemed surreal to Lyra. Was this really happening? Could she be dreaming this all up? The sound of Vinyl’s pounding hooves above her pulled her attention away from Bon Bon.

After ripping off the tapes, Bon Bon opened up Lyra’s soggy diaper. “My goodness!” she said with a coddling tone. “Looks like we had a big accident in our diapees!”

The confusion didn’t abate as Bon Bon went about changing Lyra’s diaper. As the mare layed there getting her backside cleaned up and a new diaper fastened up around her hips, she tried to formulate a response, a question, anything. Nothing came to mind. Her brain was fixated on the mare who was currently helping her up on her rump.

“Well? Did mommy do a good job, sweetheart?” said Bon Bon expectantly. A hint of worry remained in the back of her mind, but she pushed it aside. She just wanted to know she was doing it right.

Lyra tried to answer, but after several seconds of deliberation the only thing that escaped her lips was a single word. “Why?”

Without hesitation, Bon Bon wrapped her forelegs around Lyra, squeezing her tight. “Because that’s what you do when you love somepony. You try to make them as happy as you can. Even if that means changing a diaper or two.”

Suddenly the gears in Lyra’s brain clicked into place. She really is okay with this! Overjoyed, Lyra squeezed back, then leaned back and planted a big kiss on Bon Bon’s lips. The gesture was met equally as Bon Bon kissed back.

“Ugh, get a room, you guys!”

They both turned and glared playfully at Vinyl Scratch, who was wincing from the elbowing Octavia had given her.

“Just, you know, not my ro- ow!” She looked at Octavia, who glowered at the tactless DJ.

Rolling their eyes almost in unison, Lyra and Bon Bon both turned and looked back at each other. They both beamed, their love reaffirmed as they both knew that this was the start of a new chapter in their relationship. “Ly-ly?”

“Yeah?”

“Would… you like to play?”

A wide grin spread across Lyra’s face, her eyes tearing ever so slightly. “I’d love to… Mommy.”