Every Rose Has Its Thorns

"So this is your apology?" Lisbon grunted. The partners were seated at an outside cafe just in the center of Ponyville. Casual chatter floated around them as they waited for their server. The only thing that they had done so far that day was share complaints with each other. Lisbon had a sharp tongue, that was for sure. But she only used it when she was angry. That said, she was angry at the moment . . . and most of the time.

Putting up his hooves in an overdramatic surrender to her retort, Jane said, "We couldn't afford anything else. I'm using the money that's supposed to go towards the rent!" His blue eyes sharpened as he saw Lisbon start to relax. This game wasn't over yet. "I'm sorry princess. I'd take you to a fancy restaurant if I could." He scrunched up his face and gave her a lovey-dovey pout.

"Don't you try to feed me that crap! The only time you take me to fancy restaurants is when it's part of one of your elaborate schemes. May I add you've already gotten me fired before? Not to mention suspended from my job!"

Rolling his eyes, Jane waved her bitterness away. "Yeah, but that was a whole year ago. Plus, I got you your job back anyway."

Fighting the urge to bang her head on the table, Lisbon snarled, "Yeah, by threatening the boss with your attitude." She tried to keep a straight face, she honestly did; but the rolling anger inside of her was sliding away and being replaced by a bubbly warmth. Imagine that, a man who could blackmail others using his annoying personality.

Sunlight penetrated the light cloud cover and shone brightly against Lisbon's eyes. She shut them against the harsh rays, but couldn't help smiling at the feeling of sun on her skin.

Jane's pout gave way to round eyes and an open mouth. Lisbon was wearing a sincere smile and laughing, completely oblivious to the fluttering heart beating rapidly inside his chest. Despite his efforts he couldn't rip his eyes away from her. Dark brown bangs sloped just over her eyes, and the bottom of her mane was perfectly curled and shining golden in the sunlight. Then, she opened her eyes. Those bright green orbs had the ability to trap anything in their beauty. They were the pure essence of nature itself.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Lisbon snapped, utterly shattering the vision Jane had carefully painted in his head.

"I'm not!" Jane panicked for the first time in a while. Usually he could always find something to say to get him out of an awkward situation, but it was different with her. She had the power to send him into a tongue tied state of humiliation.

"I swear, if you called me a princess again, I'm going to-"

"I was just thinking about how nice it is to see you happy for once. I don't think you have smiled since we got here."

Lisbon furrowed her brow and crossed her hooves with distaste. "What does that matter? You don't get to choose when I do and do not smile."

"Just be quiet and look at your menu." Jane chided teasingly, pushing the small booklet over to her. She stared at it for a few moments, her eyes scanning over the words. Pictures of sandwiches, soups, and salads littered the pages.

The menu held plates that Lisbon had never even heard of, and not in a good way. She had to hold back a groan of agitation for not seeing this coming. The cafe served everything from an aurinia sandwich to a bowl of zinnia petal salad. The drinks weren't any better. I don't want a hayshake!

"May I take your orders?"

So caught up in reading the menu, Lisbon hadn't noticed the waiter stop at their table. The stallion was light blue and dressed in a white suit, complete with a puffy hat that fit snuggly on his head. The shape of the chef hat reminded Lisbon of a muffin, but she kept her mouth shut. To her surprise, Jane ordered a daisy sandwich and a hayshake. When the waiter turned expectantly to her, she guiltily shied away and closed her menu politely.

"I'll just have a glass of water thanks." The waiter nodded, satisfied, and used his magic to retrieve the two menus on their table. So he's hiding a horn beneath that hat!

"You didn't eat yesterday, and now you aren't ordering food?" Jane narrowed his eyes and leaned forward, resting his hooves on the mushroom table.

Lisbon shrugged, a surge of defensive energy lit in the pit of her stomach. "It isn't my fault that you dragged me out to catch a serial killer who ended up sending us into a magical world filled with talking equines." Lisbon tried to stare Jane down, narrowing her eyes into a menacing glare, but their competition was interrupted by a rumbling sound from under the table. Lisbon blushed as Jane smirked. "I'm just . . . a little hungry! But I'm fine!"

"If we're stuck here, we might as well try their food. Don't forget, our bodies changed when we were transported here. Our digestive systems are built for these meals now. Not hamburgers and coffee." Jane licked his lips at the thought of eating. Inside, his stomach churned greedily, waiting for food to devour.

Resting her head on her hooves, Lisbon lost herself in her own thoughts. But why did Red John send us here? He could have sent us anywhere with that creepy mirror right? So why somewhere as peaceful as Ponyville?

"Hey Jane, I wanted to ask you something." The unicorn was caught off guard by Lisbon's sudden reluctance, but leaned in respectively. His wide blue eyes did little to help her flustered state. Instinctively, her hooves moved to her necklace, and she cradled it, petting the golden cross as if it were a dog. "Do you think Red John can see us right now?" New born fear shifted in Lisbon's eyes, and she bit he lip anxiously.

That possibility was something Jane had been considering himself. He hadn't planned on talking about it with Lisbon, knowing it would make her skittish. Control was what she craved after all. The only time he had ever really seen her cry was when she couldn't control anything around her as it was all crashing down. That was two years ago, and they still never talked about it.

Maybe I can tiptoe around it and drive her away from the question. I don't know if I'm ready to answer it myself . . .

"I want it straight." Lisbon said, cutting right through his half cooked plan. "No shortcuts, no reassurance. I just want it straight."

Who was I kidding? Letting out a sigh that he hadn't known he had built up, Jane said, "I think he's watching everything we do . . . Like he said before, he's testing how far our partnership can stretch. I can't say I know the extent of his control over what happens here though. Maybe he can just watch, and maybe he can go so far as to interact with Equestria."

Lisbon stared in silence for a few moments, piecing what Jane said together. Her features visibly darkened, and his beautiful angel fell. "So he's seeing how much our friendship can take before it breaks?"

Jane nodded and they sat in silence. The sunlight had clouded over by now, and a slight breeze was whistling through Ponyville. Pegasi were bringing in clouds for the scheduled cool evening ahead of them. Some of the ponies that had been enjoying their breakfast had left, leaving only Jane, Lisbon, and one other couple. By the time the waiter came back with Jane and Lisbon's breakfast, neither of them were very hungry.

Minutes passed without another word being spoken, so Jane settled on eating his daisy sandwich in silence. It tasted alright, surprisingly. The sweetness of the flower combined with the soft dull taste of bread created a soothing yet vibrant flavor that tasted somewhat like a lemon that had lost its sour.

"I don't want our partnership to end."

The bite of sandwich Jane had been swallowing caught in his throat at the sound of Lisbon's mumbled words. Snatching his hayshake he gulped it down mercilessly, washing down the clump.

Lisbon watched Jane recover from his shock, not repenting the words she had said for a second. "We can get through this, right? We're not going to fall apart?"

Jane wiped his mouth with his hoof and cleared his throat. "No, we aren't."

She cast the worrisome thought aside, allowing the smallest smile to pull at her lips. All Lisbon wanted to do was focus on was her apology meal, or in this case, her apology glass of water. She reached out to grab the drink, only to stop and lean back. How do you pick up a glass with hooves? Looking over the table, she watched as Jane expertly used his magic to drink and eat his sandwich without a care in the world. Maybe I am a little jealous . . .

Determinedly, Lisbon wrapped both of her hooves around the clear water filled glass. Slowly she brought it to her lips and tipped it so that the water slid down her throat easily. The wet touch of the light liquid made her stomach cheer. Relishing the icy cold, she took one more small sip before setting the cup back down and wiping her mouth with as much dignity as a horse could have. When she looked back up at her partner, he was holding back a snicker. "What?" She demanded, slamming her hoof on the table.

"You look so awkward when you try to drink!" Jane laughed, his eyes watering. Heat flushed through Lisbon's cheeks and she lowered her head. "Oh come on now, let me help you." The glass started glowing blue and floated up to Lisbon's face. Pushing it away with her muzzle, she snarled, "I don't need you to feed me!"

"I was just trying to help." Jane muttered as the gray mare stole the cup from his levitation. "Sometimes you need to let go of your pride." She only answered him with a grunt before tilting the glass again, only for her hoof to slip. Lisbon squealed as the glass dropped to the grass and shattered, her legs and stomach were soaked through to the skin, tinging her gray fur black.

"Well now we have to pay extra." Jane slipped off his chair and carefully picked up the shards of glass lodged into the grass. With delicate precision, he collected the clear fragments and placed them on the table in front of Lisbon. Then, he slid next to her. She shied away in protest as the stallion scooted onto her seat, but didn't argue. "Can I see your hooves?"

"I don't need you to baby me, I can take care of myself just fine! I always have!" Guilt and longing pricked at Lisbon's heart like a needle. She had always taken care of herself, even when she was little. It was hard sometimes, and lonely, but she had managed to get a job in law enforcement, and even work her way up to the role of senior agent. She couldn't have made it that far if she wasn't able to handle herself! She had threaded her life together without any assistance! Then again, Jane knew all of this. And maybe, just maybe, it wouldn't be so bad to get some help once in a while. So, Lisbon swallowed her pride and showed Jane her hooves. Remnants of the glass had embedded themselves in her skin, but there wasn't any blood and the wounds were small, barely large enough to be considered as scratches.

Jane took Lisbon's hooves in his own and slowly looked them over. His heart pulsed rapidly against his ribs, making his chest throb. Heat spread through Jane's body as he slid his hoof over Lisbon's as if she was made of cracked porcelain.

Lisbon decided it was best not to look at Jane as he proceeded to remove the remains of the glass. Her face felt hot as his hoof rode over her tender skin searching for the tiny fragments, and she almost squeaked as a sudden twinge shivered through her stomach. She felt ticklish and squeamish. Soon, the need to look at Jane again was unbearable. When she gave in to her foreign desire, she was taken aback by the ocean blue eyes looking up at her; She struggled not to drown in their drawing depths, but part of her didn't think that was such a bad fate.

"I . . ." Lisbon couldn't think of anything to say to her consultant, she couldn't even bring herself to give him some kind of sassy remark. She was frozen, paralyzed by his touch. and appearance, and even his smell. Why did he have to be so damn good at infatuating people!

Being in this crazy town must be messing with my head!

Although Lisbon tried to cast her previous emotions to sea, she was still plagued by Jane's smokey pine aroma. Images of forests flooded her thoughts, rising up around her like towers. Everything felt perfect, she was the last stitch in Jane's life quilt. Together, they were the perfect team! Unstoppable! But maybe they could be . . . more?

Stop it mind! What are you doing?!

"Lisbon, I'm done." Jane said.

Lisbon drew her hoof back and inspected it. Sure enough, all the glass was out. Looking back to Jane, her eyes wavering between his smiling face, and his blond mane. Without thinking, she reached out and let her hoof roam through the waves on his head. Was it wrong to want to know what someone's mane felt like?

"Sorry to disappoint you, but you can play with my mane when we get back home. First I have to pay for breakfast and that glass you broke."

Lisbon almost choked as her mind broke out of her amorous trance, she tugged her hooves back to her body quickly. "As if! I was only . . . checking to see if you had lice! I don't want you so close to me if you're infected!"

Jane backed away and waltzed to his side of the table, giving her a look of torturous teasing. His eyes were narrowed slightly, and he walked with a tantalizing sway that almost hypnotized her. Maybe this apology breakfast wasn't so bad . . .

"I take it I'm forgiven?" Jane smiled as Lisbon climbed onto the double bed in the middle of their room. When she nodded, he pulled himself up beside her and his horn lit up. Lisbon watched in wonder as the box of leftovers from the restaurant floated up beside them. Flicking the cover off with his hoof, he passed her the remaining half of his daisy sandwich. Immediately Lisbon scrunched her face and tried to push it away, but Jane didn't take no for an answer that easily. "I promise, it isn't actually that bad. You need to eat something." When Lisbon's stomach growled, he only smirked and gave her an 'I told you so' wink.

"I swear, I'll send my stomach to limbo after this." Smothering the last of her pride, Lisbon took the, what she considered to be, weed sandwich from his levitation. Taking a bite, she chewed, and swallowed. It was . . . Good actually. Quickly devouring the rest of the sandwich, she licked her lips and said a swift thank you to the man that had saved her roaring belly.

"Don't think this means that you aren't sleeping on the ground tonight." Lisbon snickered

"I wouldn't dream of it." Jane said, before Lisbon shoved him off the bed.