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[FR] Night of The Flutterbat (COMPLETE)

By slep
Created: 2023-09-24 00:09:46
Updated: 2023-10-28 01:39:39
Expiry: Never
anontwilight sparklefluttershyromancensfwflutterrapehorrorzecorapinkiepieflutterbat

  1. >Another day, another bout of aches and pains.
  2. >You don’t know what the hell you were doing in your sleep, but to say you’ve been waking up feeling drained would be an understatement.
  3. >Still, on sleepy Sundays like these…
  4. >”Mmh… I was wondering when you’d finally wake up, Nonny…”
  5. >It’s hard to care.
  6. “Mornin’. You been jumpin’ on my back while I’m sleeping again, Flutters?”
  7. >The love of your life nuzzles her face into your chest, casting an eye up to you.
  8. >”Nnnot on your back, no~”
  9. >Risque!
  10. >Bit by bit, you were corrupting this cute little pegasus.
  11. “Hmm… Animals need feeding?”
  12. >”Stillllso early, Anon! The animals are used to waking with the sun…”
  13. >Fluttershy’s sleepy slurred speech was already beginning to rouse yourself in more ways than one, but that could be a problem to handle in an hour or two.
  14. “Ah. I’ll get a hang of your schedule soon, mmpromise.”
  15. >The pony draped over your chest shifts, now moreso properly straddling you.
  16. >”Mmmmhnorush…”
  17. >She yawns out the words spilling past her lips, nestling her head under your chin and sending a gentle vanilla fragrance up to your nose.
  18. >Fluttershy was a mess of mane when cuddling this close, but you certainly weren’t about to complain about it.
  19. >The sun must’ve been an hour still from rising and, in the cool darkness of Luna’s retreating night, you had ample quiet time to hold your mare close before the day began proper.
  20.  
  21. >”You promise you’re not in pain?”
  22. >A wave of the hand is about as much reassurance you can give Flutters at the moment, as you drag a razor down your cheek.
  23. “Just a bit ache-y is all, ‘Shy. I’m probably not used to your bed yet.”
  24. >Fluttershy bounces her concerned gaze off the mirror and back into your own, the mare rearing her forelegs up onto the sink.
  25. “Don’t believe me? C’mon, it can’t be anything serious. I shouldn’t have brought it up,”
  26. >In that mirror, you can see a whole host of small critters milling about from one place to another as your eyes wander.
  27. >Little holes in the walls had been purposefully bored out by Shy years ago, giving anything from mice to particularly-adventurous snakes a highway throughout the cottage along the support beams close to the ceiling.
  28. >It’s enough to nearly forget you’re shaving.
  29. >”Well, I’m just concerned is all– the animals all know who you are by now, a-and I made sure to inform them that you’d, eheh– be sleeping with me from now on, but…”
  30. >A little swear slips from your lips, your razor biting into the skin of your neck a touch too far.
  31. “Fuck–”
  32. “Sorry; hard to shave with cute company.”
  33. >Of course, Fluttershy has already taken to the air, inspecting the thin line of blood collecting at the nick as she hovers at face-level.
  34. >”Ooh! I’m only making things worse…” Shy mumbles to herself– apparently seeing nothing wrong with going in at the ‘wound’ with her tongue.
  35. >The wet touch sends a trailing shiver up your spine; but you’re not about to complain.
  36. >You’ve gotten well-acquainted to the ‘ponyisms’ of Shy and her race by now– for as human as the ponies seem to act, there’s an equal wealth of reminders that clear differences still do exist.
  37. >That’s to say: You simply cock your head to the side, letting Flutters do her thing for your close shave.
  38. >You can’t help but smirk at the situation all the same.
  39. “If cutting myself while shaving means I get you to suck on my neck, I might have to make it a habit.”
  40. >The sight of Shy’s face in the mirror -a deer caught in the headlights- is so worth it.
  41. >Even still, she lingers for a second longer before pulling herself away, inspecting her work.
  42. >”Mister Nonny…” Shy playfully scolds, “you know better than to hurt yourself just to get some kisses–”
  43. >”You only need to ask Momma~”
  44. >You’re ready to fire back your own flirty rebuttal– but a gasp from Shy kills the quip in your throat.
  45. >Once more she’s nuzzling into the crook of your neck; only now she’s staring at something.
  46. >”A snake bite?”
  47. >Her words are more quizzical than shocked, as if she might be mistaken.
  48. >On the other hand, your curiosity is piqued with more accompanying nerves than you’d ever admit.
  49. >Shy has no problems keeping around even creatures like vipers; and though they seem friendly enough with you in the day– who knows if one might’ve gotten to you in the night?
  50. >You lean against the bathroom counter, highlighting the apparent spot in the mirror as you try to work your head to get a good view.
  51. >Why would one of the snakes even come at you?
  52. “If it were a snake bite, I think… I think we would’ve known a while ago.”
  53. >Sure enough, two petite puncture spots dot your throat.
  54. “They’re vertical, too…”
  55. >Shy’s about ready to go into fits, a hot blush of rage burning her cheeks.
  56. >”W-well! That is absolutely… u-unacceptable! I told them you were my… my mate! All of the animals should know better!”
  57. >With her wings now flared fully in some pegasi-posturing of intimidation, Shy rests her forelegs up on your shoulder, balancing a hindleg on the counter as she stares accusatory daggers at one of the tiny milk snakes minding his own business atop the rafters.
  58. >Poor guy just got blasted with The Stare for loitering in the wrong place at the wrong time.
  59. >Better turn on the damage control.
  60. “Shy, c’mon now. It might not even be a snake bite– and if it was, it certainly didn’t come from Señior Leche.”
  61. >Thankfully, that seems to turn the common sense back on; Flutters mumbling a quick ‘sorry sweetie’ to the traumatized juvenile before turning her attention back to the marks on your neck.
  62. “Wouldn’t make sense for any of the snakes to target my neck anyhow, right? They could just be bug bites. Look how far apart they are.”
  63. >Her concern lingers, even with your words.
  64. >”M-maybe… I’ll have a talk with them all today and see… Please, let me know if you start feeling any more pain, Nonny– even if you think it’s minor!”
  65. >You return to the task at hand, finishing up your shaving work.
  66. “Only one allowed to bite me around here is you, huh?”
  67. >Fluttershy sputters, a new blush working up across her face as her emotions intertangle.
  68. >”Eheh… W-well, yes…”
  69. >Tutting, you give yourself one last look-over before hooking a towel over Shy’s shower curtain.
  70. “Mhmm. I’m gonna shower– you joining me, or are you gonna go give the animals the what-for?”
  71. >Shy bites her lip, weighing the two options.
  72. >”Mmmh… I’ll go talk to the ones I see real quick, and hop in if you’re still going, okay?”
  73. >You return Shy’s gesture, a quick peck on the cheek turning into a full-on lull of tongue lash across her neck.
  74. “Don’t bully them for too long, then– I’ll take my time.”
  75. >With a low trill slipping from her lips, Shy purposefully flicks her excess tail at you as she departs– surely intentional in giving you a show of her goods as she scurries from the bathroom, already calling for Angel.
  76. >She's just too easy to tease.
  77. >...
  78. >With her voice fading off downstairs, you’re left in a newfound quiet.
  79. >Alone with yourself now, you give the weary snake above you a look.
  80. >Señior Leche, despite his usual friendliness, has little to offer you at the moment– still collecting his swirled mind.
  81. >You check your neck one last time in the mirror.
  82. >Those two dots still remain, seemingly so unassuming.
  83.  
  84. >A refreshing cleanse under the showerhead’s downpour does wonders for your worn body.
  85. >So too does it give you a chance to think.
  86. >You’d been going steady with Fluttershy for a while now– over a year now at least.
  87. >The girls were apparently shocked at the news when she’d told them of her desires; and even moreso when it was revealed you’d become an item.
  88. >None of them expected Fluttershy to be the one chasing after a guy, let alone the oddity human.
  89. >You were plenty shocked too at the time.
  90. >Didn’t exactly share her sentiment, either.
  91. >There’d been some… hurdles you had to jump through; and certainly some tough questions to answer late at night (especially after the first time Shy stayed over at your place).
  92. >Those moral queries were well behind you now though, and the two of you had gotten serious enough that you’d moved in not even a month ago.
  93. >Of course, you were well-used to Shy’s… unique living arrangements by then, and you were now perhaps the only human ever to be able to claim such a nonchalant relationship with everything from grizzly bears to alligators–
  94. >So those bites just don’t add up.
  95. >Maybe if Sir Slitherin’ decided to cuddle up with you for some extra warmth one night, and you’d unknowingly rolled onto him?
  96. >Even so– venomous or not, you’d think any kind of bite would wake you up from your sleep.
  97. >You probably wouldn’t have even noticed in the first place if not for Shy’s keen eye.
  98. >Could it have something to do with your morning soreness?
  99. >Rough wakeups weren’t something you ever had issues with before, and even with Shy’s… eagerness in the bedroom– it wasn’t something that happened back at your old place either.
  100. >It was admittedly a fair bit shocking how you were getting lost in your thoughts over this.
  101. >Left to your own devices in the shower, it seems such thoughts are just naturally inclined to wander.
  102. >Even that feels more like a rationalization than anything else.
  103. “... It’s gotta just be bug bites…”
  104. >But even that doesn’t quite fit– it’s Autumn time now.
  105. >Surely there’s still some biting critters about in the cottage, but…
  106. >A lovely sigh slips past your ears from behind, as Fluttershy drifts into the shower to wrap your back in a gentle hug; the building steam cloaking you both in some hazy, hidden fog unto yourselves.
  107. >You hadn’t even heard her come in.
  108. >”You’re not still hurting, are you?”
  109. >Hands reach back, tracing the length of Shy’s barrel, pressing your back into her weight as the concern lifts from your mind.
  110. “Wouldn’t say I was ever really ‘hurting–’ it’s a more general soreness. I’m sure it’s just the bed, Songbird.”
  111. >Shy coos at the pet name, pressing her head to your back to get in on some of the hot water runoff.
  112. >”I hope you’re not just putting on a strong face for me. If you’re not feeling well, then I want to help.”
  113. “Mhm…”
  114. >Gently breaking from the hold, Shy seems to move past you, feeling her body dismount and slip around to your thigh.
  115. >The downpour from above is shut off, and a new stream of water cascades into the tub basin.
  116. >”Sit, Nonny.”
  117. >You do so, carefully coming down to your rump as Shy plugs the tub, allowing for that hot release of water to pool about your legs.
  118. >Fluttershy takes her new spot, purposefully positioning her ample butt in your lap as she lays herself out across your chest.
  119. >The two of you shared a love of baths, and though Shy’s certainly wasn’t meant for a human– well…
  120. >That just made sharing the space all the more intimate.
  121. >With excess water still dripping from her mane, the ends of it splaying out in the rising water like some holy mermaid– your heart beat a renewed thumping symphony at the sight of this angel who’d come to rest in your arms.
  122. >She offers you that perfect, demure smile; some stray locks hanging over her face in the still-dripping rain of the shower head.
  123. >”A bath’s good for sore muscles, no?”
  124. “As if we need an excuse.”
  125. >”Hmhm~”
  126. >Shy giggles to herself, beginning to idly roll her rump atop your cock as her face settles in against your chest.
  127. >”I can feel your heartbeat, Nonny…”
  128. >You drop a dollop of Shy’s shampoo into your palm as your mare tries to get that heart pumping faster.
  129. “Keep that up and we’ll be needing to towel down the whole bathroom, Songbird.”
  130. >”Mmh– I’ll be good.”
  131. >The pinkish goo of the shampoo is worked into a sudsy mess in your hands; and you set yourself to running the bubbles through Shy’s mane in long, massaging strokes– taking particular care to break up the routine with idle rubbing, working Shy’s scalp like dough with your finger tips.
  132. >The pegasus is outright purring in your arms, happily defenseless to the onslaught of hands.
  133. >”Mmh… I should be doing this for you…”
  134. “Tch, rubbing in my shampoo?”
  135. >”Massaging you…”
  136. “Say the word and I’m yours, Songbird.”
  137. >”I know you are…”
  138. >She might be enjoying the moment, but even from your angle you can make out the utter look of pride adorning your mare’s face.
  139. >You hadn’t made the whole courtship process easy for her, what with the taboo of interspecies relations and your own slow acclimation to Equestrian life.
  140. >Still, Shy had never given up hope in her goals– and she’d taken your ‘claim’ with her trademark humble grace when you were ready.
  141. >That remains the case these days, but seeing her still swell with self-assured confidence melted your heart even now.
  142. >It might’ve been an uphill battle to break your defenses down in the past, but make no mistake– you were Fluttershy’s through and through.
  143. >Your impromptu spa date continues on in relative silence for some time after that, the two of you hidden away in the hanging steam of your own secret getaway from reality.
  144.  
  145. >...
  146.  
  147. >Throughout the day, Shy couldn’t help but hover over you; checking and double-checking constantly to ensure your status hadn’t changed.
  148. >Cute as hell for sure– but very much unnecessary as well.
  149. >Even now, with the cottage chores finished up and the animals at ease for another day, she eyes that particular mark on your neck– craning her head about at different angles as if she might spontaneously identify its cause.
  150. “Shy, I appreciate your worry, truly I do– but I doubt it’s anything to get so fixated on. Don’t you think I’d have already collapsed, or turned purple, or something if it was venomous?”
  151. >The mare by your side tuts, shaking her head.
  152. >”It’s not just a matter of the bite itself potentially being dangerous; I’m concerned over what caused it in the first place.”
  153. >You meet Shy’s gaze; her visage unable to drop its dose of lingering worry.
  154. “The animals didn’t say anything?”
  155. >”N-no: A majority of them don’t tend to sleep in the bedroom, let alone try getting into the bed–”
  156. “And the animals have never lied to you before, right?”
  157. >Shy breaks from your staring, idly twiddling her hooves.
  158. >”W-well, not really–”
  159. >Capitalizing on the moment, you rear Flutters up onto your chest, scooching your legs into the newly made room on the swinging chair.
  160. “Then I’m sure it’s just a coincidence, Songbird. We’re working outside just about all day keeping the chickens in line or throwing fish to the otters– there’s no need to fret over me getting some bug bites.”
  161. >Hoping to put a lid on Shy’s worries once and for all, you deliver the coup de grace, cocking your head out to the nearby pond drenched in Equestrian sunset.
  162. >It’d become something of a ritual between the two of you in the months after Shy’s successful courtshipping– spending the evenings rocking together like some elderly farm-steaders in quiet awe of the cottage’s lands, sharing good company as the nocturnal friends begin to rouse.
  163. “We’ve gotta enjoy the Fall before it gets too cold, right?”
  164. >Whether done in by your words, or too tired to return an argument– Flutters finally capitulates.
  165. >The little mare collapses atop her new bed, gently lulled by the porch’s swinging chair.
  166. >”Mmm… I just wanna be a good marefriend…”
  167. >Turning the cuteness up to 11, two weary eyes peer upward to meet your own, Shy having mastered the puppydog look.
  168. >”I-I never knew the proper way to go about… relationship stuff like this– and now that I’ve gotten this far… I want to do everything right.”
  169. >Whether she knows what she’s doing or not, you can’t help but fall for it.
  170. >Nestling your hands up under Shy’s wings, you try putting your mare at ease with idle, circling scritches.
  171. >Much to her delight, evidently– if the gentle quivers of the pegasi’s frame are any indication.
  172. “I wouldn’t say there’s any ‘right’ way to go about all of this in the first place, Shy. Make no mistake– I’m not about to go wandering anytime soon. Had to have done something right, no?”
  173. >Hopefully that’s enough to put her mind at ease.
  174. >But those great blue wells refuse to relent, even if her words say otherwise.
  175. >”... Alright… Just– just please let me know if I’m falling short, or being too much, or–”
  176. >In moments like this, when Shy’s nerves seem to get the better of her, you’ve found that the best course of action isn’t typically delivered through mere words.
  177. >Your hands slip from under Shy’s wings, deftly drifting overtop of them to bring the mare into a more proper hug.
  178. >Fluttershy had always seemed to speak more in body language.
  179. >Seems like your message got through, too– if the released sigh from the mare held snug in your arms is any indication.
  180.  
  181. >...
  182.  
  183. >As evening moved into night, so too did you and Flutters eventually come to retire– the only diversion from the bedroom being a quick shower to work away the strain of the day’s work.
  184. >It was a routine you’d become quite acclimated to, and one you particularly loved sharing.
  185. >By the time you’d toweled away the remaining water from Shy’s coat, the poor girl was nearly asleep on the bathroom floor–
  186. >But you weren’t about to complain carrying her across the finish line.
  187. >Not wanting to disturb her any further, you carefully set the cute bundle of a pony on her side of the bed before working yourself in, flipping some covers over you both.
  188. >Of course, the moment you turn to face her– the ‘sleeping’ mare is already pressing her back up into your chest.
  189. >”Goodnight, Nonny.”
  190. >Her voice is barely above a whisper.
  191. “Night, Songbird.”
  192. >You sneak your arms around her form, now truly settled yourself.
  193. >Though Shy might sometimes be a mare of few words, you knew a particular set she’d always parrot back.
  194. “Love you.”
  195. >”Love you too.”
  196.  
  197. >...
  198.  
  199. >The dancing phosphenes across your vision scurry from your blind focus as you rise to some level of lucidity.
  200. >You’re not awake enough to truly notice it, though–
  201. >Nor can you yet comprehend the weight perched atop your lap.
  202. >The un-vision of your closed eyes seems to spin, and even then you cannot fully feel the accompanying vertigo that sends your mind into spirals.
  203. >You’re attacked by sensations from all corners of your body, your senses all seeming to light up with frequent hits as something -or some great medley of things- runs rampant through and across your defenseless form.
  204. >Even then, they’re all so distant– none nearly enough in intensity to pull you any further up from rest.
  205. >But all the same, those sensations continue– radiating pangs of feeling seeming to run along some rough shape, though you’re not quite aware that you even possess physical form in this moment.
  206. >Your unconscious can’t define what it’s feeling, so you remain locked in a limbo; even the deep rooted instincts that make you both human and mortal seeming somehow bypassed by that which acts on you.
  207. >That is, until you feel the sting.
  208.  
  209. >A gasp, uncharacteristically faint, is all you’re able to produce.
  210. >Even now, the waking world is simply removed from your mind– there’s no memory you’re capable of recalling at the moment.
  211. >Only some acknowledgement of yourself, paralyzed atop an inky blackness–
  212. >And your mate, taking from you that which is rightfully hers.
  213. >These are the only two things that exist.
  214. >Your mate sips from your neck, her lips merely napkins that shyly brush your skin.
  215. >A kiss?
  216. >It had to be.
  217. >So chaste and loving, nothing else made sense.
  218. >These were all of the thoughts you were allowed– all of the sensations permitted currently to comprehend.
  219. >Her eye gently flutters open, something seeming to have roused her from the intimacy.
  220. >You’re met with a predator’s glint– a fierce flare of ruby.
  221. >Her kiss retreats, and that same string is unnumbed for a breath, though it too slips away into unfeeling.
  222. >A demure smile and the fluttering of eyelashes envelopes your vision.
  223. >Your mate is stunning beyond all else.
  224. >”Oh?”
  225. >”Hehe~”
  226. >”I might’ve gotten too greedy tonight…”
  227. >She kisses your lips as her eyes refract, whatever degree of consciousness you had prior taken away.
  228. >”Please, visit me again tomorrow, Nonny! I want us to have fun together!”
  229. >You slip back into formless slumber, those blooming sensations thwapping atop your frame once more removed into mere physical whispers– till a nothingness reigned once more.
  230.  
  231. >...
  232.  
  233. >A more natural awakening comes to retrieve you by morning.
  234. >”Nonny?”
  235. >By your estimate– far too early, at that.
  236. >Part of you wishes to flip over to the other side of the bed, but you’re too indisposed to manage even that at the moment.
  237. >Instead, you mumble hoarsely.
  238. “... Too early today, Songbird…”
  239. >Even in such a state, the gravel kicking up in your voice manages to surprise you.
  240. >Had you gotten dehydrated in the night or something?
  241. >”It’s, um, nearly 6 am…”
  242. >You hadn’t yet forced your eyes open– but it sounded as though Fluttershy was standing over you.
  243. >And judging from the comparative alertness in her voice, she’d been awake longer than you.
  244. >Sleeping in was one thing, but had you even slept through Shy’s usual morning pillowtalk?
  245. >Though your mind pleads against it, you force yourself out from the final lingerances of sleep.
  246. >Sure enough, Fluttershy stood poised above you; the mare draped in the subtle morning whispers of an Autumn sun.
  247. >The bedroom lay in motionless gray as the last of the night retreated from the cottage.
  248. >Just as you blink the last of sleep from your eyes, able to focus with a truly conscious mind–
  249. >Something seems to click.
  250. >You’d just seen this, hadn’t you?
  251. >Fluttershy overhead, a low-lit bedroom?
  252. >Or were you mixing up memories?
  253. >”Didn’t sleep well?”
  254. >Shy pulls you back from the deja-vu; your body seeking to discern an answer for her with an instinctual stretching of your legs.
  255. >Sure enough, you’re met with buckling.
  256. “Mmh– have had better nights.”
  257. >Your marefriend pouts, petting your cheek with a hoof.
  258. >”Ooh, poor baby…”
  259. >She gives the headboard the evil eye.
  260. >”This… s-stupid bed…”
  261. >You crack your neck side to side, getting some great pops.
  262. “My stupid body, more like… ugh.”
  263. >Fluttershy lets herself plop down atop your chest, her weight thankfully feeling more like a pillow more than anything else.
  264. >Pegasi genes come in clutch.
  265. >”W-well, how about we feed the animals their breakfast quick, then take a nice long Epsom bath? Maybe we could even go out to eat by ourselves afterward?”
  266. >You shrug about as much as you’re able, hands unconsciously slipping around to cup Shy’s rump.
  267. “Don’t see nothing wrong with that.”
  268. >Even after clearing your throat, that gravelly click still seems to have it parched dry.
  269. >You try to somewhat ‘seal’ your response with some learned pony-intimacy, hooking your neck in alongside Shy’s– but she shakes out of it.
  270. >A look of concern meets your curiosity.
  271. >”Anon… are you getting sick?”
  272. >Normally, you’d answer in the negative without question– but…
  273. >Hell, maybe?
  274. “I don’t think so… does sound like it though, huh?”
  275. >Shy nods, touching a hoof to your forehead.
  276. >”... Maybe a bit hotter than normal… sweaty, too…”
  277. >That at least gets a little laugh out of you.
  278. “Oof, embarrassing.”
  279. >Shy tuts, quickly pecking your cheek regardless.
  280. >”Now now mister, there’s nothing embarrassing about being sick– you can’t help that.”
  281. “Probably shouldn’t be kissing on me if I am, then.”
  282. >Fluttershy scoffs, nuzzling her head under your chin as she coos sarcastically.
  283. >”Mmh, definitely not.”
  284. >With the two of you now appropriately awake, Shy leaps from the bed, landing deftly before the door.
  285. “We’re just gonna both end up sick– again.”
  286. >As you start to rise yourself, again you catch that pride swelling in Shy’s chest– your mare cool and confident as she recalls the time.
  287. >”Oh, well– I remember myself being the sick one that time; infact, /you/ were the one not listening to me when I said you might contract the Pony Pox too.”
  288. >You round up behind the French-vanilla mare, her tail already teasingly batting at your legs as the two of you move for the stairs.
  289. “Couldn’t help it– you looked good in spots.”
  290. >”Mmhmm~” Shy smugly chides, bumping her butt into your hip for good measure as the two of you ready to play catch-up on the cottage chores.
  291.  
  292. >...
  293.  
  294. “Maybe we should sleep in more often? We ran through shit with the animals in record time.”
  295. >The settling cool of Autumn is a balm for your mind– the perfect weather for an afternoon walk with your lover.
  296. >”Oh– you know we can get them handled quickly if we need to. Really, a majority of them can fend for themselves; I just like having an excuse to see them all everyday.”
  297. >You nod, your hands drifting into your pockets as Fluttershy gently floats by your shoulder.
  298. >It was true, too– Shy had perfected the cottage whether she really knew it or not; her little stretch of Equestria having become its own sort of biome.
  299. >A place where all animals -prey, predator, or otherwise- could seemingly commingle without the typical laws of nature applying.
  300. >Maybe it helped that the animals who’d stick around would be ensured daily meals, too.
  301. >Shy was a jack of all trades in that regard– her land wasn’t a zoo, though it seemed to look like it– she wasn’t a veterinarian, though she certainly could get by if necessary.
  302. >Moreso… she simply sought to live off the land she’d claimed– like a Disney princess crossed with Ted Kaczynski.
  303. >Money wasn’t often needed, but when it was– she’d get it through selling her chickens’ eggs and the like.
  304. >Helped too that she was a national hero, you suppose.
  305. >Plus, you still have plenty of bits leftover after selling your old house.
  306. “That reminds me: We ought to finish off harvesting the rest of the garden, no?”
  307. >”We could! By now, I’ll typically leave whatever’s left for the animals to take as they need– but it wouldn’t be a bad idea to store some excess.”
  308. >You shrug, not too bothered either way.
  309. >The pegasi wouldn’t start pumping snow out toward Ponyville for another few months at least, but they’d clearly shifted gears since the recent Equinox.
  310. >A delightful chill had settled in the air– almost novel, having just come off the worst days of Summer.
  311. >Times like these were your absolute favorite, and having Shy by your side made them all the better.
  312. >”That Epsom bath seemed to help, huh? Not feeling so beat up anymore?”
  313. >Your eyes linger out across the outskirts of Ponyville, only now just beginning to loom in the distance.
  314. >The meandering path that folks took coming to and from the cottage wasn’t very well worn.
  315. >It wasn’t often traveled by many– and when it was, it was typically taken solo.
  316. >The usual beaten-down dirt of such a foot trail was instead richly bloomed with a host of native wildflowers; as if they too sought to live within the unique coexistence Fluttershy seemed to attract.
  317. >One would think she was an Earthpony with the inherent affinity nature seemed to have for the pegasus.
  318. “Not so beat up, no. Maybe it’s just the onset of a cold? You know how you tend to feel it coming on before it really hits.”
  319. >Shy sighs, nuzzling cheek to cheek with you as her wing beats silently cut the air.
  320. >”Gosh, I hope not…”
  321. >Her own gaze drifts from Ponyville, coming to settle on the endless border of the Everfree.
  322. >”... Maybe we should visit Zecora? She might be able to give us some sort of anticipatory remedy?”
  323. “Certainly could. We need to stock up on our tea reserves anyhow.”
  324. >At that, Shy hides away her face.
  325. >You crane your neck and lengthen your stride in an attempt to get ahead of the pegasus.
  326. “Tch, what?”
  327. >An innocent enough inquiry– you hadn’t said anything embarrassing, right?
  328. >Unable to hide her blush any longer, Shy capitulates with a tiny squeak.
  329. >”... Y-you said ‘our tea reserves…’ ”
  330. >Aww…
  331. >You can’t help but laugh, snatching the mare out of the sky for a quick bear hug.
  332. >She rubs her face into your sweater, your laughter seemingly infectious in the moment as her own serene chords quicken your beating heart.
  333.  
  334. >It wasn’t too much of a detour to reach Zecora’s neck of the woods.
  335. >After you began accompanying Shy more and more on her trips, the trek became something she was a lot more willing to take in particular.
  336. >The Everfree druid had Shy’s favorite blends, after all.
  337. >Though you, admittedly, are beyond starving– you could manage another hour or two for Shy’s sake.
  338. >There wasn’t any sort of typical path leading to the zebra’s hut, but by now you and Flutters know these woods well enough that it wasn’t an issue.
  339. >Atop ancient bulges of roots and under drooping lowlines of Willow trees, the two of you move between the bursts of Celestia’s light that manage to pierce the canopy.
  340. “Has Pinkie said anything in regards to Nightmare Night? Or would you prefer staying in this year?”
  341. >Shy sighs, her eyes trailing the path of a passerby butterfly keeping pace with you both.
  342. >”I’m not sure yet… I know she’ll want to plan something, certainly, but… I-I don’t want to commit until I’m positive about how I’m feeling.”
  343. “Mmh, more of a question a few weeks from now, then?”
  344. >”Maybe…”
  345. >You chew your cheek.
  346. “Wellll… if you were to be interested: What costume would you want to wear?”
  347. >At least this gets Shy thinking.
  348. >Really, Nightmare Night’s just another day to you– but you don’t want Shy to give up on the idea just because her nerves strong-armed a consensus.
  349. >”Mmh… maybe, um…”
  350. >You stare expectantly– nearly face planting into the soggy greenery at your feet for the trouble.
  351. >”... H-how about Red Riding Hoof? Nothing too extravagant– maybe I could even wear the cloak after the fact…”
  352. >You hum, already picturing the pink-maned beauty staring up at you through both the crimson hood and her equally-hued blush as her frock hangs in the breeze.
  353. “Good pick! I suppose I’d need to be a big, bad Timberwolf then, huh?”
  354. >Though her voice still wavers a touch, Flutters seems to pick up what you’re putting down.
  355. >”O-oh, but then you’d need to– to gobble me up…!”
  356. >Admittedly, being covered in a suit of tree branches doesn’t sound like the /most/ appealing outfit under any circumstances; but you’re not gonna give up any opportunity for some flirty banter with Fluttershy.
  357. “Gobble you up? Well… our interpretation might stray a bit from the original story, but I think we could work something out~”
  358. >A stray rhythmic canter calls out from the nearby woods.
  359. >”An excellent idea for Nightmare Night dress– though it seems you two plan for a bit more fun, beyond just to impress~?”
  360. >Zecora’s call is equally playful, having come into hearing range of some juicy gossip.
  361. >”Eep!”
  362. >Immediately Flutters clamps down on your back, embarrassment surely burning up on her face.
  363. >The zebra’s smirk pops out from a nearby bush, already waving the two of you welcome.
  364. >”Haha! I did not mean to pry, but I couldn’t help but to be within earshot, Fluttershy!”
  365. “Afternoon, Zecora! Heading back home soon, or are you busy?”
  366. >The zebra comes to close the gap, turning on her hooves to trot by your side back to her place.
  367. >”I can always make time for a good friend; have you come for wares, or merely my presence to attend?”
  368. “Both! We’re looking to stock up on Snapdragon tea– and we were curious if you might have any stronger stuff.”
  369. >Zecora cocks her head, a bit more coyness slipping in with her joy.
  370. >”Stronger stuff? Looking for that which grows your tuft? An Everfree dew, I’m known to brew– but such hooch is likely to make the uninitiated spew!”
  371. >You shake your head, though the offer is a fair bit enticing.
  372. “No jungle juice today, no– I mean more on the healing side of things. Some home remedy for preventing fever?”
  373. >Zecora laughs again.
  374. >”My ‘jungle juice’ can certainly cure that which causes ail, but I understand your intent– I have just that which you seek; it can’t fail!”
  375. >”But I must ask: Why? You feel you’re coming down with something awry?”
  376. >Zecora offers the pony hiding away her face a look, genuine concern across her snout as she catches a glimpse of that still-hot blush.
  377. >”Or perhaps, it is Fluttershy?”
  378. >Having been addressed, Shy comes to rest her chin atop your shoulder.
  379. >”N-not me– Nonny… S-sorry you heard that stuff earlier, Zecora…”
  380. >Once more, Zecora’s look brightens with a great bout of laughter.
  381. >”Haha! Oh, don’t be– hearing two lovers who keep their bond strong is a blessing in my home; not something wrong!”
  382. >Maybe she’s trying to take the edge off Shy, but the poor pegasus still stews in temporary shame.
  383. >You offer what nuzzles you can, taking it on your chin as Zecora’s hut finally comes within view.
  384.  
  385. >The medicine mare’s great hollowed Willow is shockingly spacious, despite her cluttered clusters of foreign goods.
  386. >There’s a method to the seeming-madness, Zecora being much like Twilight in that regard.
  387. >Her Everfree home stayed in a constant state of organized chaos to the unknowing eye; but really, the apothecary’s dwelling flowed with a sort of feng-shui known only to her far-distant Zebrician sisters.
  388. >Even now, Zecora wastes little time compiling a great host of spices and unlabeled potion brews into her centerpiece cauldron– moving about the room in something like a dance as just the right quantity of ingredients fall into her whirling pot.
  389. >All the while she keeps up a friendly disposition, her movements almost instinctual.
  390. >”Anonymous, this I must say: Normally I can diagnose maladies without a delay– but taking you in as a whole, I see no sickness taking its toll?”
  391. >As her tail flicks overhead, hanging seed bottles give up exactly the necessary contents for the tonic.
  392. >Zecora gives you another top to bottom glance in her next pass about the cauldron.
  393. >”A little pale, sure, but you need not a potion for that to cure.”
  394. >Shy steps in, placing a hoof atop your thigh as she looks up at you.
  395. >The two of you sit together on the floor just steps away from Zecora’s working space, getting treated to something of both a dinner and a show.
  396. >”S-she’s right– I hadn’t really noticed, but you should be a bit more tan if anything. It might be Autumn, sure, but we’ve been working outside for weeks now…”
  397. >Unconvinced, you give your hand a curious look.
  398. “... I don’t see it. Was I all that tan before or something?”
  399. >”Well, not exactly… but…”
  400. >That seems to pique Zecora’s curiosity, the zebra breaking from her multitasking to give you a more thorough stare down.
  401. >After not even a second, a striped hoof is pushing your chin to the side, wide eyes fixating on the dimpled dots lining your neck.
  402. >”A fanged bite? No– that can’t be right…”
  403. “Probably just bug bites, Zecora. Shy said the same thing, but I’m more than certain I wouldn’t still be walking around if I’d been bit by some venomous snake– that thing’s days old at least.”
  404. >Zecora seems unconvinced, still eyeing the marks with increasing concern.
  405. >”Not all fangs seek to ill, let alone kill…”
  406. >Even from this angle, you can see how Zecora chews her lip, as if weighing options.
  407. >Whatever inner consensus the zebra comes to, it seems to culminate with a single haphazard movement– tossing an entire bulb of garlic into her now bubbling cauldron.
  408. >Neither you nor Shy question the act: Whatever medley of things Zecora sought to hobble together would surely help in at least some regard.
  409. “... Not to sound bossy, but could you throw somethin’ in there to help with muscle soreness?”
  410. >Zecora’s past cheerfulness has all but vanished.
  411. >Your words only sink her deeper into some unseen battle in her head– perhaps weighing multiple what-if diagnoses ?
  412. >”Such an ache… Yes, that I can make.”
  413. >”But your brew will need some time to stew: Perhaps you could stay for a spell whilst your cure is stirred well?”
  414. >A sudden hopeful tinge drips from the zebra’s words, almost veering on desperate–
  415. >But you don’t notice, your attention instead pulled to the gentle murmur of Shy’s tummy; your own hunger pangs returning with doubled force.
  416. >The two of you share a look; Flutters’ face already twisting in a mixed blushing pout.
  417. >”... Um, excuse me–”
  418. “Maybe not, Zecora; Shy and I haven’t eaten anything all day. Fuck, what is it, nearly Three?”
  419. >Shy shrugs– but your host interjects.
  420. >”I’d be happy to provide!”
  421. >The Willow goes silent, as all eyes seem to drift to the currently occupied cauldron idly bubbling away.
  422. >It’s a bit tricky to makeout, but Zecora seems to be riding her own wave of embarrassment.
  423. >”... Well… I tried?”
  424. >The mood has shifted dramatically– and you can’t help but wonder at the zebra’s sudden insistence.
  425. >You don’t distrust her or anything, but you’d prefer not to set off both Shy and now Zecora fretting over some perceived sickness that probably isn’t even affecting you.
  426. “Yeah, uh…”
  427. “We’ll just come back in a bit, if that’s alright?”
  428. >Seemingly not seeing any other option, Zecora finally capitulates with a restrained sigh.
  429. >”I suppose that’d work best… By the time you return, your tonic will be ready to ingest.”
  430. >You rise for the door at that.
  431. “Thanks for the kindness anyhow, Zecora– for both the medicine and the offer.”
  432. >She simply nods, her eyes following your back as you and Shy depart.
  433. >With that, the reclusive apothecary is left alone once more–
  434. >But her mind is troubled.
  435. >...
  436. >”It could not be… but–...”
  437. >”... Perhaps Twilight Sparkle will see what I see…”
  438. >Her mind made up, Zecora throws some things into her nearby saddlebags, readying her own trip to Ponyville.
  439.  
  440. >...
  441.  
  442. >Uncertainties be damned, they couldn’t stop your ass from eating.
  443. >The feeling seemed mutual with Fluttershy on the walk over, but…
  444. >She’d ordered a mere appetizer, and even now– she just stares at it, almost seeming bored with the spinach dip on her plate.
  445. >Instead, the mare takes a far more vested interest in watching you annihilate an eggplant parm.
  446. >So invested in clearing your plate– you don’t even notice her lidded-googling eyes until your waitress returns.
  447. >”Is the meal not to your liking, ma’am? The kitchen would be happy to offer something else if–”
  448. >The both of you snap from your respective snafus– staring up at the poor mare like you’d been caught fucking in public.
  449. >”O-oh! Um, no thank you– I-I’m just not as hungry as I thought. Please, you can take it away–”
  450. >You scurry to wipe your lips, choking down the last of the gooey eggplant medley stuck in your throat.
  451. “/Ahm!/ S-Shy, do you want some of mine? You’ve gotta be starv–”
  452. >Your waitress lightly ‘ahems,’ and your eye catches the now-emptied plate before you.
  453. “... Y-you can take my plate too, Miss.”
  454. >Undisturbed by either party, the little mare is quick to pluck up both plates in her magic, whisking them away as she calls out behind–
  455. >”I’ll bring the cheque!”
  456. >It’s odd: Shy usually isn’t one to be so forward, especially with a stranger.
  457. >You’d figure a situation like that would have left her flushed pink in hot embarrassment at the least.
  458. >Not that you’re against her showing confidence, but hell, not through starving.
  459. “Are you not feeling well, Shy? Your plate looked untouched.”
  460. >She shrugs in her seat, once more setting those hungry eyes onto you.
  461. >”Oh, no– I guess it just passed, you know? I was watching you feed and, well…”
  462. >Watching you ‘feed?’
  463. >”... Eheh, you’re distracting~”
  464. >You rub the back of your neck, breaking eye contact.
  465. “Jeez, I wasn’t eating like a pig, was I?”
  466. >Shy waves her hoof dismissively.
  467. >”Hardly, sweetie! I-if anything, that seemed a little light, didn’t it? It would’ve been a lot for me, but with your height and size; you maybe should get something else?”
  468. “Hooh, God no– I’ll be fine till morning, promise.”
  469. >Speaking of…
  470. >An early Autumn chill kicks up the winds, or perhaps moreso a teasing breath of Winter.
  471. >You chose outdoor seating for dinner, this particular restaurant offering both a great breeze and a greater view of Ponyville’s upper end.
  472. >The afternoon had given away into evening by now, with even the setting sun beginning to touch down atop the great Everfree treeline.
  473. “Shit, we oughta get back to Zecora’s soon, huh?”
  474. >Fluttershy takes the opportunity to extend out in a full stretch, even puffing out her wings to their full glory.
  475. >”Aaahm~... O-or, we could go back to visit tomorrow?”
  476. >That earns a curious look from you.
  477. “Tomorrow? I mean– doesn’t really feel right, having Zecora make that medicine just to not pick it up, you know? We’ve gotta get the tea too, remember?”
  478. >Your words seem to get through, if the sudden awash of realization on Shy’s face is any indication.
  479.  
  480. >...
  481.  
  482. >”Did you take your medicine already, Nonny?”
  483. >Your lovely mare stares up from her thick blanket, a mixed look of expectancy and curious innocence just half-visible poking out from under the covers.
  484. >Figuring she’d ask, you bring the emptied vial up into her vision and give the glass a little shake, showing not even a drop remained.
  485. “Tasty stuff, honestly. Might not be a bad idea for you to take some too, yaknow– can’t hurt, right?”
  486. >Shy’s lips part– but words don’t follow until she seems to reevaluate the question, instead opting to shake her head in the negative first.
  487. >”I-I think I’ll be alright, at least for now.”
  488. >”... Honestly, I’ve been feeling, well, better than ever recently. I-I’m not… upset about that or anything– just a bit odd, you know?”
  489. >You huff as you slip under the covers and against Shy’s side.
  490. “Probably because you’re sleeping with me.”
  491. >”I-if anything, that should leave me exhausted.”
  492. >Cheeky little flirt.
  493. >Placing the vial atop the nightstand with little further forethought, you’re free to focus on and take in the full force of your mare’s snuggled-up cuteness.
  494. >Your hands snake about to wrap her up like two predatory pythons underneath the sheets, and you can’t help but hungrily delight in Fluttershy’s cute squees as she instinctively worms about within your enclosing clutch.
  495. >Maybe the sudden dinner after going so long without had left you with a sort of second wind energy-wise this close to bedtime.
  496. >Either way– if Shy wants to play, then you’re game.
  497. >But a second question from the pegasus pulls you out of your lusty drive.
  498. >”Kinda odd that Zecora had left that note, huh?”
  499. >You elect instead to simply pull your mare close for the time being– seemed pillow talk wasn’t over quite yet.
  500. >To be honest, you’d felt the same to some extent after returning to the Everfree– finding only a note on the zebra’s door explaining that she was out on urgent business, but the brew had been completed & bottled– sat right beside the door alongside a set of tea for Fluttershy.
  501. >Of course, her letter mentioned as well that payment wouldn’t be necessary this time around; but you weren’t about to let such kindness go unrewarded and left extra bits anyhow.
  502. “Mm… I mean– she was already out collecting stuff when we came, right? Maybe we’d interrupted her?”
  503. >Shy seems unable but to be perturbed, her voice taking on a bit of that pouty whine at the thought of having been unintentionally impolite.
  504. >”Oh, I hope not…”
  505. >You hold off on any further lewd escalation, just holding the mare close.
  506. >Much better to cool her concerns, even if they might seem surface level.
  507. >Fluttershy’s just that kind of pony: One who feels hard, and thinks even harder.
  508. >She’ll be stuck on whether or not the two of you should’ve made the trip at all for the rest of the night in some silent war in her mind if you don’t knock some sense into her–
  509. >With some reassuring cuddles, of course.
  510. “C’mon now, Shy– she would’ve shooed us away if she was busy. I’m sure she’s more than happy with any visitors, especially so you.”
  511. >It’s a bit shaky, and slow to form– but the beginnings of a renewed smile is the last image you take of the waking world as your eyes flutter shut; content to simply keep your mare company through the night.
  512. >”Well… t-then the same goes for you, Mister.”
  513. >A smug ‘hmph’ escapes your lips.
  514. ”I know~”
  515. >”Nonny…!”
  516. >That cute grumble brushes just inches away from your face, and those lips you so love feeling touch to your own in a final goodnight kiss.
  517. >”Goodnight, Nonny…”
  518. >”Love you…”
  519. “Night, Songbird.”
  520. “Love you, too.”
  521.  
  522. …
  523.  
  524. >There’s a return to that halfway house somewhere between the conscious & the unconscious.
  525. >You’re without form– or at least you must feel as such in this moment.
  526. >Really, there’s no feeling at all.
  527. >Just something abstract, a blackness under the lids of your eyes that seems both infinite while also simultaneously touching your vision directly, as though your face was up against a wall.
  528. >Nothing prevails for a time– before that distant thumping returns.
  529. >Is this what it feels like to be asleep?
  530. >Had some switch been overlooked in your mind, leaving you between phases?
  531. >Were you supposed to be dreaming right now?
  532. >The questions are asked, but they have nowhere to go, and you have no further capacity in higher thinking to mull them over.
  533. >Something external would need to pull you back up from the deep.
  534. >And it does.
  535. >”... onny? Nonny!”
  536. >She does.
  537.  
  538. >”N-Nonny! Blegh!”
  539. >A series of all too real sensations hit you at once and subsequently cause a mass car pileup of feelings in your just coming-to brain.
  540. >It’s enough to leave your head spinning, caught spiraling in circles to try and center itself from the sudden awakening.
  541. >Luna’s moon must be cresting atop the stars judging by the light within the bedroom.
  542. >But, even if it hadn’t been–
  543. >The glow of Fluttershy’s eyes staring cute daggers into your own offer enough shine of their own.
  544. >Is it truly her?
  545. >Though that red brilliance is nearly enough to make your heart stop– instincts are jumping the gun to try and confirm whether or not the mare on your lap with your cock firmly holstered within her greedy wet clutches really is the pegasus you love.
  546. “Um–”
  547. >Suffice to say, it’s an odd way to wake up.
  548. >With your tongue feeling like some unwieldy log bapping about to wetten your dry mouth– you ready to throw this potential intruder off of you on instinct alone as your crusted eyes dart to your left, unsure even in the moment whether or not seeing Fluttershy still there would answer more questions than it’d raise.
  549. >She isn’t– but with mere picoseconds to spare before you started raising some feral, half-awake hell–
  550. >”Nonny, Nonny! Here, my Prince–”
  551. >A single hoof effortlessly realigns your head, falling into the radiance of Fluttershy’s rubies.
  552. >” –my eyes. Look and relax, please! It’s me, silly!”
  553. >Your heart must’ve been throbbing at a mile a minute just a second before– but it was screeching to a welcomed halt now, like a runner faceplanting into bed after a dead sprint.
  554. >You find only further lapses as you sink deeper and deeper into her gaze, any attempt at focusing is met with nothing– only a horizon of comfort without end.
  555. “F-Fluttershy?”
  556. >Though she spits shamelessly off the side of the bed, Shy somehow recovers, still looking as cute as always and nodding in affirmation.
  557. >”/Bleh!/ Of course, Nonny! Who else?”
  558. >”But just /what/ have you been eating? Is somepony trying to poison you?”
  559. >The questions mix in your mind, congealing into something you can’t yet properly comprehend.
  560. >You’re a bit busy being lost in Shy’s stare, after all.
  561. >And of course it’s Shy– who else would be straddling you in the dead of night?
  562. >The fact that you’d come so close to turning the cottage upside down over a perceived intruder is frankly shameful!
  563. “God, I–”
  564. “Hooh…”
  565. >Your hands slip up from under Shy’s hindquarters to cup the back of your skull.
  566. >You hadn’t realized they were even there to begin with.
  567. “Fuck, I’m so sorry, Shy– j-just a sudden wake up is all.”
  568. >Eager to reclaim some level of both normalcy and personal understanding– the best course of action seems to be going with the flow.
  569. >With your fears assuaged, you might as well start to catch up on what you’d been missing out on, surveying the salacious pegasus still idly bouncing herself upon your lap even now.
  570. “... Eheh. Getting needy in the night, Songbird? You could’ve woken me up– I wouldn’t have said no.”
  571. >Keeping her forelegs pressed up to her sternum like some sort of sexy Tyrannosaurus Rex, Shy either doesn’t hear your question– or outright ignores it.
  572. >”What have you been eating, prince? You need to treat me better…”
  573. “Treat you better?”
  574. >You cock an eyebrow at the confident insistence, but Fluttershy’s already pressing her snout back up against your throat– a curious tongue dipping past her lips to lap where those little divots are situated.
  575. >An oddly raw sensation tingles along your spine at the contact–
  576. >You were bleeding!
  577. >Why?
  578. >Of course, you can’t see much of the action– but a quiet ‘eugh…’ washes the site in hot breath.
  579. >”That, Nonny! Your love! It tastes all… bitter…”
  580. >Not wasting a second, Fluttershy’s forehead is pressing up into yours, as if the literal connection of your bodies wasn’t enough.
  581. >Your vision is filled by crimson puppydog eyes and a pout marred with the tiniest stream of blood.
  582. >”Y-you still love me, right? Nonny? Nonny, you still love me, right? Don’t you?”
  583. >Shy stammers on, every syllable of every word seeming both so rushed in a fit of desperate passion– yet with a measured eloquence to go alongside, as an actress upon the stage.
  584. >You hear every note– every shaking break in her voice.
  585. >What the fuck is happening?
  586. >Is Shy having a nervous breakdown or something?
  587. >Do her insecurities get so bad at night she feels the need to ride you in your sleep as though it might be her last chance?
  588. >There are too many questions– questions swirling in your head, and questions frantically slipping from Shy’s beautiful satin maw as her now quivering lip throws out more and more to add on to the pile.
  589. >”You want to stay with me, right? You want to be mine?”
  590. >”You are mine, right?”
  591. >”You’re not going to leave me, right?”
  592. >”You’re going to stop eating that bad stuff, right?”
  593. >”You still love me, right?”
  594. >Now, you always liked to think of yourself as being pretty capable under tense situations with keeping your cool –doubly so in regards to your ability in calming Shy down– but this was far too much to be woken up to.
  595. >A rapid onset headache begins banging upon your skull to the increasing rhythm of Shy’s pleas– the questions echoing at full volume and interrupting each other.
  596. >To pair alongside the pounding up top– Flutters is desperate enough to redouble her reverse-cowgirl pistoning alongside, even bringing a fast beating of her wings after the impact to get more airtime for the next fall.
  597. >Frankly, it’s a horrid mix of terror and pleasure– and you can’t help but near your own breakdown at a record pace if it keeps up.
  598. >You find your hands once more gripping into the plush excess of Fluttershy’s rump, but it’s out of a need for any kind of stability in the moment.
  599. >Finally does your own limit hit, caught in the crosshairs of what must be The Stare all the while.
  600. >She’d never used such a thing on you before.
  601. >If nothing else– it seems to break you from your snafu.
  602. “I, eyuh– I-I do! O-of course I love you, Shy! The fuck? Yes, God, yes.”
  603. >Your words snap the pegasi’s jaw shut –her face frozen as it had been for just a moment– before you’re finally given respite both above and below.
  604. >That is, not before Shy crashes her weighty rear down atop your poor pelvis a final time.
  605. >... Head might not be happy, but cock is totally down for the level of crazy Shy’s bringing to the table.
  606. >Little victories, you suppose.
  607. >Though you felt milked beyond belief.
  608. >You fall back onto the pillow, each breath feeling as hollow as the last.
  609. >Shy could get pretty possessive, especially in the bedroom– but this was some other beast entirely.
  610. “F-fuck me, girl…”
  611. >Totally in control, Fluttershy nuzzles herself cheek to cheek with you, her greedy mons fighting to retain each and every inch of your slipping length as she leans up against you.
  612. >”Hehe~”
  613. >”I’m really happy to hear that, my prince…”
  614. >Surely unintentional in how she rubs salt into the wound, Shy’s demeanor pulls a full 180– apparently even having the gall to give you those cutie puppy dog eyes once more, as if you weren’t just fighting for your sanity back there.
  615. >She peers up from your chest with demure innocence, her snout buried in your pectorals and leaving behind petite kisses on your skin.
  616. >”You mean it…?”
  617. >The questions you probably (definitely) should be asking are simply unable to manifest at this moment- the mere concept of them blanking outright from your mind.
  618. >To that end, you’re locked in a messy state of being, stuck in the present without capacity for higher abstract thought as though you were a dog.
  619. >You feel about as worked as one, too.
  620. >The two of you could handle whatever brought on this situation in the morning, or something.
  621. >You don’t care.
  622. >Right now, Flutters is obviously hungry.
  623. >A hot flush flares static into your muscles, the sight of Shy’s now cheeky eyes kick starting a whole host of your inner engines.
  624. >If she wants to jump you in the middle of the night and play mind games after, then you’ll play ball– and deliver the consequences she seems so readily to face.
  625. “Mean it?”
  626. >Your hands dig sharp valleys into Shy’s cutiemarks.
  627. “Girl,”
  628. >You’ve never been one to grind your teeth– but a rapid-building torque in your body feels about ready to explode.
  629. >The yip that slips out from your bratty mare’s lips is oh so vindicating, flipping yourself over with her in toe and repositioning overtop of her with such feral quickness that the sound seems as though it was pulled from her lips by force rather than something she willingly uttered.
  630. >Thankfully you were still half-sleeved in her lower grip.
  631. “I’ll show you just how much I ‘mean it.’ “
  632. >Less work on your part.
  633. >Though clear shock still lingers across her snout, perhaps not expecting to get ‘dethroned’ tonight– Shy doesn’t seem all that displeased with the development.
  634. >”Oooh~ You’re not usually so active at night, my Prince~”
  635. >You wanted to let Shy stew in her predicament for a few moments, but apparently she’s still got some nerve.
  636. >Even at her most flirty, she never spoke like this.
  637. >It fuels your need to put her in her place all the more.
  638. >You seize the moment and reposition your knees, lording over her form as you slowly sink the rest of your soaked length back into her depths inch by agonizing inch.
  639. “So is /this/ why I’ve been waking up sore? You’ve been playing so coy too, these past few weeks.”
  640. >You had no idea Shy was into… whatever this kind of play was– but it seems like the kind of thing that can get out of hand very easily.
  641. >Now isn’t the time to focus on that though.
  642. >Fluttershy readies a rebuttal, surely another smug chiding– but you don’t allow her the chance.
  643. >The subsequent eardrum-rupturing screech sounds far better to you anyway, as you unholster yourself and give Shy’s cunt your first lancing.
  644. >She /is/ a screamer, but… typically not that loud.
  645. >To your credit, you’re intending to deliver your A-game here.
  646. >You set to work pistoning, working into the tempo of interrupting every second or so word Shy moans out as her comments turn into encouragement.
  647. >Her tail goes from wagging along the bed, to wrapping itself in loose coils around your leg– apparently any means necessary to keep you in place since she can’t exactly leg lock you.
  648. >By God does she try, though– even employing her wings in their full-splay to cocoon you in an embrace, so greedy that it seems she’d prefer you to stay fully hilted rather than thrusting.
  649. >With how her walls work overtime to milk that next climax out of you, you suppose that even while on the bottom she still wants to be in control.
  650. >Shy has never been a starfish in the bedroom, but all this energy is certainly out of left field.
  651. >You’d be lying if you said it wasn’t driving you wild.
  652. >But if she wanted to command, she’d have to earn it.
  653. >Splitting her thighs like the Red Sea, your own arms slip under Shy’s wings, clutching her back in a forceful grip as you complete the 180’d power dynamic.
  654. >Now it’s your lips teasing Shy’s neck with small nips– though there was no way in hell even in this state that you were going to be drawing any blood.
  655. >Nothing wrong with leaving some marks for the morning, though.
  656. “I hope your ‘Prince’ is doing well, Songbird– am I making it clear enough how much I love you?”
  657. >Growling out the semi-sarcastic jab, you really /do/ hope you’re getting your point across.
  658. >With any luck, you’ll be able to fuck some sense into your crazy mare.
  659. >”Y-yes! Moon above, yes my Prince! My /King~!/ D-don’t you, ngh, DARE fucking stop– feed your Bride!”
  660. >Swearing now, too?
  661. >It’s almost enough to give you pause–
  662. >But it also only further deepens your frenzy, a growled laugh barely able to slip through clenched teeth as the wet slap of your bodies alone is surely waking up the critters in the walls now.
  663. >Keep this up and the two of you are going to end up breaking the bed.
  664. >It’s the least of your concerns.
  665. >”I-I, fuck, Iwantit so F-FUCking bad, Nonny– more, more! I’m your ONLY mare! I’m your goddess!”
  666. >You didn’t need to be told twice, pushing your knees up into the backs of Shy’s thighs and lifting her rump off the bed.
  667. >Let her say whatever the fuck she wants: She’s defenseless against you now.
  668. >Her plump mons kiss your base and drag back mixed strands of her own juices and your pre, and it’s a wonder you can even pull out to the length you do with how her sucking depths grip at your cock– her hot inner workings constricting in their own tempo to resize herself to a perfect too-tight fit no matter if you’re hilting or only tip-deep.
  669. >At the rate you’re going, it doesn’t even matter that Shy’s probably already worked out God-knows how many climaxes from you while you were asleep.
  670. >Refractory period be damned, you were at your limit again.
  671. >Timing your release with a final hilting thrust– you can feel your jewels clenching against Shy’s twitching pucker as you unload whatever you still had left in the tank into Fluttershy’s greedy womb.
  672. >Sealed at the hip, you lock lips with your goddess up top as well– the final touch to hopefully put Shy’s insecurities to rest for good.
  673. >Although, a shameful part of you dreadfully hopes you two can fuck like that again sometime real soon.
  674. >Your tongues wrestle for dominance, but it’s clear who’s won this fight.
  675. >Defining Shy’s fangs with your tongue is just your victory lap– the taste of blood in her mouth not even concerning you at the heights of your orgasm.
  676. >That afterglow settles in wonderfully, masking the growing feeling of husk as something nice.
  677. >Your eyes fall shut before the kiss can even break.
  678. >The last of your waking energy is spent falling to Fluttershy’s side so that you don't suffocate her or something.
  679. >You surely wouldn’t remember in the morning, but your goddess leaves you with some parting words.
  680. >”Such a good boy, my Prince~”
  681. >”But I’d like some blood tomorrow, too.”
  682.  
  683. >...
  684.  
  685. >Morning, of course, comes with vengeance.
  686. >You feel as though you’d slept for days in a dreamless fugue– but your body disagreed.
  687. >Acid keeps your muscles locked up, yourself currently a curled up mess at Shy’s side.
  688. >Surprisingly, she’s only just stirring as you find your words.
  689. >You might be well worn, but fuck if you weren’t about rub in your victory.
  690. >The memory is spotty, but you recall enough of last night to know that 1. You’re fairly certain who the culprit of your nightly pains are and 2. You won the subsequent mattress wrestling.
  691. >With her long lashes fluttering as her own rest retreats, you can’t help but draw out an oh-so satisfying full body stretch.
  692. “Aah~ hope you’re feeling better now, Songbird– feel free to sleep in some more, I’m sure you need it.”
  693. >Shy’s lips pop together a few times, wetting her mouth.
  694. >”... Mmh… sssleep in…?”
  695. >”What for…?”
  696. >Holding back a gloaty chuckle, you prop your head up on your elbow, staring down at your coming-to mare in disbelief.
  697. “Oh please, I had you /pinned/ last night. Acting all coy & cute isn’t gonna work this time.”
  698. >Despite your words, a cute smile surely does come to bloom across Shy’s face–
  699. >But it gives way to curiosity, then confusion not a moment after.
  700. >”I– ahm…”
  701. >The covers shift as Fluttershy purses her thighs together, rubbing those soft pillows against one another.
  702. >A hot blush burns her cheeks rosy after feeling a familiar damp squish.
  703. >”... O-oh my.”
  704. >Yeah, you don’t believe her innocence game for a second.
  705. “Pfft– come on now. I know it was a good showing, but you really expect me to believe I fucked the memory out of you?”
  706. >”We… did that last night?”
  707. >You lay your fiercest Costanza eyes down to Shy’s sleepy, questioning face.
  708. “Shy, seriously, I’m not buyin’ it. You were screaming like–”
  709. >”A-Anon!!”
  710. >As if she couldn’t take anymore wind out from your sails, Shy has seemingly been spurned to full awakeness–
  711. >Once more clinging to your neck.
  712. >You can’t help but purse your lips as she goes through this song and dance once more.
  713. >Only now, you’re not left in the dark.
  714. >”T-there’s blood on your– my goodness! L-look at this!”
  715. >Of course, you can’t– but from your vantage point, you’re catching enough of Shy’s genuine panic to know that, well, it’s genuine.
  716. “... Did I really fuck the memory out of you?”
  717. >”Anon, what are you talking about!? W-what did this!?”
  718. >You blink, unsure of how you should be taking Shy’s reaction.
  719. “... You did?”
  720. “You were on some absolutely freaky shit last night.”
  721. >Maybe it’s the absurdity of the situation, or maybe you just can’t hold a serious moment to save your life– but you can’t help but break out in a dumb, dopey smile.
  722. “I’m totally here for it though, just wanna say.”
  723. >Shy doesn’t seem to appreciate the explanation.
  724. >”M-me!?”
  725. >Unsure of the means to go about it but certain it’s the right decision, you scramble for some form of damage control.
  726. “Uh, yeah? Shy– I woke up to you, well, riding me and giving the craziest hickies ever. This was probably just a few hours ago.”
  727. “... Judging by how sore I feel, at least.”
  728. >Fluttershy is inconsolable, quickly melting into a sputtering mess.
  729. >”I-I don’t, I don’t understand–”
  730. >God, and here you were thinking that you’d fucked her calm for the morning.
  731. >Sounds like you just made things worse.
  732. >You pull Shy into your embrace, purposefully leading her head to snuggle up against the unbitten side of your neck.
  733. “Easy, girl! You didn’t do anything wrong! I woke up while you were in the middle of your fun and we had fun together! It’s alright!”
  734. >Honestly, in hindsight, that whole situation is /definitely/ concerning the more you think about it now– but this clearly isn’t the time for such reflection.
  735. >It wouldn’t do much good anyhow if Fluttershy couldn’t even remember the part she played.
  736. >”Why- why would I bite you? My t-teeth don’t look like that!”
  737. >The poor girl’s on the verge of tears, shuddering in a panic.
  738. >What the hell is going on with her?
  739. >You can understand her being concerned over something like thinking she’d hurt you in some blackout state, but denying the look of her teeth?
  740. “Shy, it’s alright– please. I can explain everything, yeah? Maybe it’ll jog your memory?”
  741. >Fuck man, whatever– anything to bring her back to reality.
  742. >You gently pump her squishy frame with what are hopefully reassuring squeezes, breathing a silent sigh of relief as her hyperventilating begins to fade.
  743. “I promise, it’s alright– You didn’t do anything bad.”
  744. >Shy’s hot breath pours out onto your shoulder, her breathing finally beginning to slow as well.
  745. “I didn’t mean to accuse you or anything like that– I wouldn’t have said anything if I knew you didn’t remember.”
  746. >With the passing of another minute of quiet close contact, Shy finally seems ready to at least listen.
  747. >As if she might shatter you, or break out into some bloodied frenzy, your mare carefully lifts her upper body back up to meet your eyes, her own goading you on for the explanation.
  748. “... I woke up in the middle of the night, and you were already on top of me. Honestly, it seemed like you’d been, um, at it for a while already. I was confused why you didn’t just wake me up if you’d gotten in such a mood, but… fuck– it was great. You were just kissing me really, that’s all–”
  749. >”K-kissing your neck, Anon? There’s dried… b-blood splotched all over your neck. When have my kisses ever caused something like that.”
  750. >It’s a question, but Shy isn’t really asking– moreso trying to call bullshit.
  751. >Your brow instinctively furrows.
  752. >You don’t say it for the sake of her unstable mood, but you really don’t understand her angle here.
  753. >There’s a whole host of times you could recall her drawing blood from her kisses.
  754. >Last night, the night before that, probably the night before that–
  755. >The thought runs off, and you need to shake your mind of a brief, annoying static.
  756. >Woozy morning brain fog is the last thing you need right now.
  757. “... Right. Anyway– you were kissing me, and you seemed… like you were at a low point, so I took control of the fun and made sure to let you know that I love you and I’m not goin’ anywhere.”
  758. >Those final few words can’t help but make you smile.
  759. >The gesture isn’t returned by your mate.
  760. >”... ‘A low point?’ Anon, what does that mean?”
  761. >You fold in your lips, breaking eye contact to find safe wording.
  762. “Like… vulnerable. You seemed like you were desperate to, uh, ‘keep’ me? I have no idea where a thought like that could come from, but I wasn’t about to just let you think you weren’t loved.”
  763. >To say the situation is tense would be an understatement.
  764. >Now the both of you seem lost in different levels of confusion– Fluttershy stuck waiting for a moment of eureka where all of these foreign events would click in her mind, and you now rationalizing the oddities of the night before aloud for the first time.
  765. >And, in hearing them aloud, you have to admit that you’re understanding Shy’s freak out more and more.
  766. >Hell, you /remembered/ all this, and hearing the words coming out of your mouth still sounded like a lie.
  767. >But you were there!
  768. >The fuck is going on?
  769. >If nothing else, Shy seems to take note of the now mutual misunderstanding.
  770. >”... You said me kissing your neck caused ‘that?’ “
  771. >Fluttershy simply nodded with her head.
  772. “Yeah. With your fangs.”
  773. >You’re not sure where she’s going with this.
  774. >At least you weren’t– up until Shy opened her mouth wide.
  775. >No fangs.
  776. >You blink.
  777. >Still no fangs.
  778. >Hm.
  779. >That annoying static buzzes in the back of your head again, to the point you nearly slap yourself as though trying to kill a bug.
  780. >A full body shiver takes brief control of your being- necessitating you shake the cobwebs off your mind.
  781. “... I don’t get it.”
  782. >Obviously she doesn’t have fangs, what exactly is she trying to prove?
  783.  
  784. >...
  785.  
  786. >Some piece of you does feel a sort of melancholy double, seemingly only visiting Ponyville upon a sign of trouble.
  787. >Even now, with your assumptions still up in the air, there is little room left in which to simply hang with a fellow mare.
  788. >But no matter, you figure–
  789. >Even if just researching together, Twilight will always be your zigg–
  790. >”Gah! Other than the basic stuff everypony knows like garlic and Celestial iconography, I can’t find anything on these ‘Thestrals’ at all– let alone a means to purify one!”
  791. >Yet another esoteric tome is flung away in sickened, haphazard fashion– something Twilight is capable of only in this particular moment of passion.
  792. >You feel her migraine, finding similar results within your own stack of piled up literary pain.
  793. >Twilight had been eager to assist with your hunch when you’d arrived the day prior.
  794. >Now, the unicorn seems about ready to turn her library home into a great book-burning fire.
  795. >The two of you had worked dutifully through the night, yet taken not even inches of progress since– no respite!
  796. >You feel no false aires nor outrageous affairs in looking upon both yourself and Twilight as the most patient, studious mares around this town–
  797. >But even a zebra has her limits, before beginning to break down.
  798. >With your striped hooves clutching up your head, you’ve certainly reached that point– even you, of all ponies, wishing instead to be dead.
  799. “I must admit, I did not foresee ourselves falling into such a pit.”
  800. >With one hoof still cupping your aching head, the other snakes down to your deposited saddlebag spread.
  801. >Tired, defeated eyes not even bothering to look, it’s all too easy to retrieve something that, atleast, isn’t a book.
  802. >Curious, Twilight eyes the bottle you bring to the table– clearly looking for a label.
  803. >”... Zecora, I get where you’re coming from, believe me– but I don’t think liquor is going to make our research anymore fruitful.”
  804. >You sigh, too defeated to deny.
  805. “True, but it’d make us feel better– even if our minds continue to fetter.”
  806. >Twilight bites her lip, her mind searching for any grip on a new path in which to steer this lost ship.
  807. >”... I could send a letter to Princess Luna? My library may not have anything on this particular mythical monster affliction– but these Thestrals are definitely, like, a night thing right? Sounds like the sort of thing that’d be right up her alley, and if any place is gonna have info on them, it’d be the Canterlot Archives.”
  808. >Your head snaps up, and your tail begins to wag like that of a young pup.
  809. >Could it be?
  810. >Two heads had been fruitless, but perhaps the answers lie with three?
  811. >You’d both turned the Golden Oak upside down– but this alone might turn your luck around!
  812. “Aha! An idea divine, Twilight! If anypony would know, it must be the Princess of the Night!”
  813. >That’s all the support your unicorn friend needs; and already readying paper and quill, she proceeds.
  814. >”Spike!! I know it’s early, but could you come down here!? We need this letter sent out before Princess Luna goes to bed!”
  815. >A distant groan rumbles from the stairs above, but neither of you pay it any particular love.
  816. >”How should I begin this then, Zecora? You never did tell me why you were so curious about this Thestral affliction thingy–”
  817. >”Eheh, of course, I’m not the type who’d say no to an excuse to pull an all-nighter, especially with a friend– but the Princess is probably going to expect at least some explanation on our part, or even some of our own insight– and… um, we have none.”
  818. >Tired and weary as you are, it doesn’t take a sound mind or wisdom by far to see what’s been on Twilight’s radar.
  819. >... By all that is black and white, you’d hoped you wouldn’t need to mention the cause of your plight.
  820. >In truth, you held a greater deal of knowledge on the matter than your fellow sleuth– but felt letting her know the reason why would only distract the unicorn from saving Fluttershy.
  821. >Biting your tongue, you uncork your jungle juice and preface your excuse with a deep, early morning sluice.
  822. ”... Please forgive me, my friend Twilight: I do not withhold information out of a want to fight.”
  823. “Anon and Fluttershy recently visited my home, searching for both tea and a remedy for some soreness syndrome.”
  824. “But Anon carried fresh marks pronged in his neck,”
  825. “Such a kiss, rare to see– that of a Threstral’s peck.”
  826. “I’d seen such a sight before, long ago on my Zebrican shore. But even with the medicine mare’s fix–”
  827. “The efforts amounted to none, against the power of the Thestral’s tricks.”
  828. >You ready your final words on the matter, hoping Twilight would see the reasoning behind your chatter.
  829. “The monster herself wasn’t ever found, and try as we might to guard the victim’s resting mound– he too disappeared soon after, surely an eternal slave to his hypnotic love’s crafter.”
  830. >Twilight had eagerly scribbled down the beginnings of something on her letter, but her quill fell static soon after as you fell into your rhetor.
  831. >Her gaze turned from active listening to that of concern, and now to an emotion you couldn’t quite discern.
  832. >”... So, you think Fluttershy might be one of these Thestrals?”
  833. >Though her words are measured, they are carefully so– a wrong move on your part will surely cause the unicorn to blow.
  834. >... Your hoof squeezes around the bottle once more, some part of your mind yearning for another swig to get through this chore.
  835. “Mmh, that is where my knowledge ends, I’m sad to admit. I didn’t want to preface you with assumptions toward a friend without the proper means to acquit. Perhaps this Thestral affliction is a curse on the pony as much as it is their victim– or maybe some other mare entirely has picked him.”
  836. “With my own uncertainties in action, I thought it best to not taint our study with even more concerning distraction.”
  837. >The two of you share a few long, tense moments of simple staring, hoping your gaze wouldn’t tip the vibe of the room into territory overbearing.
  838. >”... I see.”
  839. >”Well, I see where you’re coming from, Zecora– but I admit, I’m disappointed in your choice. I can certainly jump to conclusions, but if what you say is true: Then time might be of the essence. Our night of fruitless study could’ve been avoided outright, and if I knew the situation indeed might be so dire, I surely would have defaulted to the Princesses hours ago.”
  840. >You can’t help but hang your head in earned shame, feeling deep that terrible sting of sole blame.
  841. “I’m sorry, Twilight. It’s rare that I’m without an answer’s respite. I hope, at least, you still trust my rhymes against this Thestral beast.”
  842. >Adept at putting out such fires, Twilight begins once more in relaying the news to the Princess of the Night– and offers you a squeezing hug, despite.
  843. >”Of course, Zecora. I know your intentions are good, and even a pony so steeped in wisdom like yourself can still run into conflicts of interest. Don’t worry about it.”
  844. >You’re happy to sink into the unicorn’s side, grateful the two of you are still allied.
  845. “Thank you…”
  846. >... You need another sip of your brew.
  847.  
  848. >...
  849.  
  850. >It’d been a rough morning, to say the least.
  851. >Having reached an impasse in the bedroom, you and Shy thought it best to take things slow.
  852. >Obviously something, somehow was wrong– but between you sputtering out unintentional accusations and Shy not remembering anything: The two of you figured it’d be best to recollect yourselves rather than risk blowing something up way out of proportion.
  853. >So, you currently share a bath.
  854. >Again.
  855. >... Seems like two birds with one stone to you– it’s relaxing and it gets you both ready for the day.
  856. >Acute sex-activated amnesia or not, these cottage critters weren’t going to adore themselves.
  857. >And, for better or worse, the two of you do your best detective work while snuggling up underneath the hot suds.
  858. >As is proper, Shy lays sprawled out along your chest like netted driftwood caught upon the island that is your pecs.
  859. >Having been sitting like this for quite some time now, the gentle slosh of the water within threatens with each current to venture over the edge.
  860. >It bothers neither of you.
  861. >The quiet contemplation of the bath-bound embrace almost serves as a do-over of the morning’s… nonideal start.
  862. >Hell, if you could, you’d be sleeping in the tub anyhow–
  863. >”The thing that gets me the most is the blood, Nonny…”
  864. >You crack open an eye.
  865. >Shy herself is doing the same, only one side of her face able to meet yours with the other atop your heart.
  866. >Though, she’s not really looking at your face.
  867. >Your neck is far more interesting apparently.
  868. “Well, I was probably scratching at it in the night? I think I would’ve remembered if you were biting me during your kissing frenzy– and even when you /do/ bite; you don’t do it hard enough to break skin.”
  869. >You hope the tease would cut the tension a bit, but no dice.
  870. >Shy’s face only falls that much more, and you curse yourself for it.
  871. “Hey… that was something else I wanted to talk about.”
  872. >”Mmh.”
  873. >This still might not be the right time, but fuck, it’s too concerning and it’s eating you up.
  874. “Disregard everything else for a sec, okay?”
  875. “... You’re not… afraid I’m gonna leave you or anything, right?”
  876. >The question has Shy refocusing that lonely, beautiful teal eye from your neck right up to your face.
  877. >You hope the concern you wear is evidence enough of your feelings toward the matter.
  878. >Surely to both of your silent terrors, the question hangs in the air far longer than you’d like it to, twisting up your stomach.
  879. >”... No, Anon.”
  880. >”I guess I can’t speak for how I might act at night… but I know you love me. R-really, that’s part of why all that stuff just sounded so crazy to me: I would think, if I were having some kind of… episode like that, wouldn’t it be something that’d been digging at my mind, keeping me up for hours before?”
  881. >”Obviously we did– did stuff… I could /feel/ that much– but without knowing what I said, I just… I mean, you see where I’m coming from, right?”
  882. >Your head falls into a slow nod as she speaks, finding no fault in her words.
  883. >It’s true: The more you think about it now, the more absurd it all sounds, and the foggier it all gets.
  884. >It certainly doesn’t help that you’d been half-awake through the whole affair only to fall asleep right after.
  885. “Ugh… I can’t remember any of the specific stuff you said.”
  886. >Maybe you are just making something out of nothing.
  887. >Just some sloppy, mutually half-asleep fun half-remembered on one side and not at all on the other.
  888. “Know what, Shy?”
  889. >The sudden self-insistence rocks your bodily vessel as you decide you’re done ruminating on this nonissue, still not caring as you now send a bulb of water over the edge of the tub.
  890. “Whether some fever dream from Zecora’s cocktail, sleepfucking, whatever– it’s not worth us wasting the morning mulling over it like a murder scene.”
  891. >Roused from your island tummy with the new waves, Shy isn’t so quick to agree.
  892. >”But the blood–”
  893. “I saw what was there in the mirror when I cleaned it off, girl– it wasn’t exactly a stab wound. It was probably just an accident with us two fools knockin’ against each other in the middle of the night.”
  894. “It’s not worth the time we’ve dumped onto it already and it’s not worth a second more. I’ll be concerned when I wake up totally drained.”
  895. >”Anon…”
  896. >She doesn’t stutter, but the wavering in her voice is enough to stop your stubborn proclamation dead in its tracks.
  897. >”I-I’m not concerned over you leaving me, but I /am/ concerned about your health: You’ve been waking up sore when you never did before, pale, and now bloody? Y-you say those are bug bites, but I /know/ bugs! I’ve never seen any that can leave marks of that size, aligned in that way, biting somepony without provocation!”
  898. >Whether she means to or not, Shy’s voice steadily mounts to a shaky rise– the pegasus nearly coming to stand with her hooves planted atop your chest as your butts lose buoyancy and fall to the tub’s bottom.
  899. >Fuck.
  900. >Time to walk it back.
  901. >Your hands come to hold her cannons, running your thumbs in light circles through the short, wet fur.
  902. “... Shy, do you wanna go get a second opinion? If it’ll put your mind at ease, then I’m sure someone like Twilight could see something we’re not in all this.”
  903. “I didn’t mean to, ngh, trivialize your concern or anything like that; I’m just worried that this is eating you up if it’s all just a misunderstanding.”
  904. >Thankfully, you seem to be saying the right things now, finally finding some relief as Shy’s face softens.
  905. >”... I would like that very much, yes.”
  906. >And now that softening turns to shame.
  907. >”... A-and I’m sorry for raising my voice.”
  908. >Not exactly what you’d call ‘raising one’s voice,’ but you get it.
  909. >Splitting the difference in upsetting Shy for the final time, you recorrect with a long, gentle kiss to her foreleg.
  910. “It’s alright, Songbird; your passion is coming from a good place.”
  911. “Tell you what, I’ll boil some tea– you keep enjoying the bath and I’ll bring it in, yeah?”
  912. >Confliction cuts across Shy’s face– but she isn’t one to reignite a disagreement right after one had just been extinguished.
  913. >”... O-ok…”
  914. >That wasn’t your goal, but the bath would surely do her some good.
  915. >You start to shift, worming yourself out from underneath the pegasi’s lingering hooves without sending the both of you in a wet, splashing tumble.
  916. >And you’re sure to plant a kiss on her cheek as you ready to depart– though Shy’s quick to turn the chaste peck instead into a proper liplock you’re in no rush to break.
  917. >Sadly, time can’t stand still.
  918. “Mmh~”
  919. “Be back in a sec, ‘kay? I’ll even sit by the rim.”
  920. >”Love you, Nonny…”
  921. “Love you too, Songbird.”
  922. >She watches as you slip out of the bathroom and head downstairs.
  923.  
  924. >Liar.
  925. >You lied right to Anon’s face.
  926. >Moved the goalposts as soon as possible, huh?
  927. >For what?
  928. >So you wouldn’t have to admit you’re scared?
  929. >You’ve come all this way, you’ve got Anon living in your home, sleeping in your bed, apparently even rutting you so hard you can’t even remember–
  930. >And you’re still scared you’ll wake up one day and he’ll be gone.
  931. >Moved on to some new filly– somepony who doesn’t have him laboring in the gardens or cleaning up after a horde of bunnies–
  932. >Somepony who isn’t suctioned to his hip like a nervous lap dog.
  933. >All that confidence you’d built up, finally having gotten what you wanted–
  934. >And you still can’t admit you’re scared.
  935. >The bath’s still warm, steaming even–
  936. >But you can’t help but feel icy, hit like a truck with nagging insecurity.
  937. >...
  938. >The tea time in the bath is a cute idea, but not today.
  939. >Tea time out on the porch swinging chair sounds just as cute.
  940. >It doesn’t take long for you to uncork the drain and shake away the excess wet, moving for the towel rack to handle the rest.
  941. >You use the bathroom’s mirror to ensure you get every spot, the whole song and dance feeling just the slightest bit sloppy as you do the part you’d gotten used to Anon handling.
  942. >But as you wipe the last of the damp from your forelegs…
  943. >A glint catches your eye in the mirror.
  944. >Odd.
  945. >It’s enough to have you doing a double take, trying to refocus on whatever it was that had made you look twice.
  946. >It doesn’t take long to settle into a one-way staring contest.
  947. >The towel slips off of your hoof, your mind now lost in your own reflection.
  948. >And, to your horror–
  949. >The Fluttershy in the mirror doesn’t seem to mind breaking away from your contorting reaction.
  950. >A lidded, smug assuredness meets the own confused horror trapped up in your head.
  951. >Wait, you’re not recoiling…
  952. >You’re not moving at all!
  953. >Even worse, though you had no intention of talking to your mirror–
  954. >Your lips move anyhow, your own control so effortlessly wrenched away.
  955. >”Fluttershy…~”
  956. >Your reflection singsongs, her chime dripping with purposeful sarcastic venom.
  957. >She’s laying it on thick.
  958. >”So you’re the day-usurper of /my/ vessel, hm? /My/ body!?”
  959. >Words fail on your part– a sort of waking paralysis holding you hostage before the mare in the mirror.
  960. >”Hardly a fit for /my/ Prince. You like to play with toys that aren’t yours when the Master is away?”
  961. >’You’ tsk, pursing your lips.
  962. >”Not nice, Fluttershy~”
  963. >”Because I don’t share.”
  964. >No, this isn’t just paralysis–
  965. >You’re outright hijacked.
  966. >In the moment, you’re nothing more than a voice without sound, locked up in your own mind.
  967. >”I don’t know what you’ve kept me asleep during the /day/ for so long–” she practically spits the word, “ –but I think I’ll have front row seats from now on.”
  968. >Your blinks, even your breaths–
  969. >They’re not your own.
  970. >Your body sighs, yourself only able to further transfix on the deep rushing crimson of your eyes–
  971. >Crimson?!
  972. >”Keep your distance from my Prince. Else, I may have to intervene again– and I’m not a particular fan of being roused when the… /day/ is out.”
  973. >That particular word seems to be the only thing capable of even remotely breaking her cool demeanor, needing to pause and force it out each time.
  974. >”Don’t you worry though, usurper…”
  975. >”Soon enough, I believe our roles will be reversed. Then, you can rest easy for as long as you like. Doesn’t that sound lovely? To trade places?”
  976. >”Who knows, headmate~? Maybe we’ll even get along. If you learn who your better is, I might even let you–”
  977. >It might just barely reach your ears, muffled and distant, through the floor of the cottage–
  978. >”Songbird, tea’s nearly ready! Be up in a sec!”
  979. > –but it’s enough to break away from your reflection’s gloating stare.
  980. >Finally, you can manage a blink– the red in your eyes vanishing without any further fanfare.
  981. >You collapse to the bathroom floor, huffing forceful, ragged breaths; your face outright ejecting the buildup of tears held dormant behind once-controlled eyes.
  982. >It’s as liberating as it is soul-crushing, instincts demanding you to hyperventilate as if you needed to remind yourself that this body is in fact your own.
  983. >The accompanying feral scream is much for the same reasons, though far more leaning on the soul-crushing side.
  984. >Anon’s heavy footsteps as he skitters up to the bathroom offer what little respite you can conceptualize at the moment.
  985.  
  986. >...
  987.  
  988. >Thankfully, you and Zecora didn’t need to wait long for a reply.
  989. >A half-asleep Spike is ripped from returning back to his nap, the little dragon haphazardly sprawling out atop the Golden Oak’s center table, by a belched return letter.
  990. “Thank you, Spike… Sorry about interrupting your sleep.”
  991. >Thinking his duty fulfilled, the drake simply waves a claw lazily in the air, turning away from your side to curl up.
  992. >”Eugh, don’t mention it, Twi. Just lemme know if… if… mmh…”
  993. >Just like that, the little guy is out like a light.
  994. >With the scroll in your magic grip, hopeful zebra eyes meet your own, silently goading you on to reading the content aloud.
  995. >You clear your throat, readjusting to speech after such a long night of study with little discourse during.
  996. “Ahem! Dearest Twilight Sparkle,”
  997. “Thy letter is most disconcerting. Of this so-called Thestral malady and thy friend’s account, the verdict seems clear in our eyes: An investigation should be initiated at once. Such an accusation, against a fellow Element-Bearer no less, spells far greater trouble than the mere ensnaring of a lone victim– though that alone is due cause for intervention itself.”
  998. “However, we must admit: We have no personal experience with any beast of this sort. We shall deliberate unto our Sister for further insight. Admittedly, our own interest is piqued– should Sister know little on this matter, we shall steal away to the Royal Archives to–”
  999. >There was surely more to that letter, but another burp from Spike stops your words.
  1000. >He doesn’t even wake up this time.
  1001. >You’ve got to stop letting him stay up so late.
  1002. >You and Zecora share a look of mutual confusion, with hints of concern creeping in close behind.
  1003. “... Maybe Princess Luna already found something?”
  1004. >The zebra shrugs.
  1005. >”It is like you said: Where else but the Canterlot Archives could one be so well-read?”
  1006. >Nodding approvingly at Zecora’s fellow Archives-dick riding, you take up the new scroll.
  1007. “This one has Princess Celestia’s seal!”
  1008. >With excitement finally granting you its presence, you waste little time.
  1009. “My Faithful Student,”
  1010. “Luna has given me the details while I raised the sun. We are of one mind on this matter: Further investigation on all our parts is paramount. Luna has already sworn off sleep for the night and sent off into the Archives. If able, I’ll be joining her soon.”
  1011. “I’ve not heard word of this plight for quite some time– and even when such vernacular was better known in the vocabulary of my little ponies, most cases that even reached Canterlot were either already closed, for better or worse. The bulk of my knowledge on the matter of Thestrals comes from a simpler, more scared time– where ponies defaulted to drastic measures defined only by odd regional oral tradition. Even with what I know, I fear that it may be ill-defined at best, and outright myth at worst. I know this answer is surely not what you desire to hear, so I’ve instructed Luna to send you all matters of written knowledge the Archives possesses. If anypony can discern the facts from fiction, I know it to be you, Faithful Student.”
  1012. >Just as you finish your retelling of Celestia’s letter, poor Spike is forcefully roused from his nap once more– only this time, he’s not offering scrolls.
  1013. >Outright tomes, dust still caking their tattered, titleless covers, collapse with heavy thuds in a neat stack upon your reading table.
  1014. >After the fifth one or so, it seems Luna has found all she could.
  1015. >For now.
  1016. >”Uegh… T-Twilight… I thought you were just, bleh, getting a letter…”
  1017. >You reach to caress Spike’s scales, the poor drake clenching his belly as the fires inside seem to settle.
  1018. “S-sorry, Spike…”
  1019. >Zecora’s eyes find your own once more.
  1020. >Seems your all-nighter would be stretching well into the morning.
  1021. >Not that you mind, this is the greatest lead you’ve come across yet!
  1022. >All you need now is no further interruptions to properly pour into–
  1023.  
  1024. >You nearly shatter the Golden Oak’s front door, wasting no time to slow down as you shoulder check the damned thing open.
  1025. >Teatime could wait– that bloodcurdling scream from your pony was more than enough to leave the kettle boiling and hightail your ass over to Twilight’s.
  1026. >Shy’s a quivering mess in your arms, still hyperventilating as if each breath was taken on borrowed time.
  1027. >You know it’s not her fault, but Twilight better have some answers– or at least know some trick to return Fluttershy’s sanity.
  1028. >With your own panic reaching a crest, you’re in no state for rational discussion.
  1029. >The unicorn and her company all collectively gasp at your sudden attempt of property damage, thankful at least that the library’s door absorbed the bulk of your sprinting inertia– you might’ve gone careening into the wall otherwise.
  1030. >It doesn’t help that you nearly slip on something pink with frantic footfalls, only stabilizing in the nick of time.
  1031. “Twilight! We, uh–”
  1032. >There hadn’t been much discussion after you slid into the cottage bathroom.
  1033. >’Much’ in this case being none.
  1034. >With no leads to go off on, you’d just scooped Shy up and bolted.
  1035. >Your own fears be damned, you needed to give at least /some/ form of explanation.
  1036. “Fluttershy, she– she’s been confused all morning! F-forgetting stuff and shit– she, uh, fuck– I-I went to make us tea, and-and she just screamed! W-we need help!”
  1037. >Hardly much of a description, but you couldn’t help but trip over your own words in your both panicked and now exhausted state.
  1038. >The eerie gray of early morning had done you no favors, running through sleepy Ponyville doused in a thick blanketing of fog.
  1039. >Zecora takes a stand, planting her forelegs up on the reading table, almost as if shielding her two friends.
  1040. >”Anonymous, please, find your sense! The manner in which you speak is far too intense! Whatever Fluttershy’s issue, we cannot diagnose– when your behavior is this morose!”
  1041. >Upon her speaking, you properly take in Twilight’s company in the library.
  1042. >Zecora gives you enough pause to at least begin catching your breath.
  1043. “Z-Zecora?”
  1044. >She doesn’t offer any explanation, only clearing away a stack of books, nudging to the area with her head.
  1045. >You refuse– if she expects you to let Shy go, she’s dead wrong.
  1046. >”Please Anonymous, do not delay! You know I’m no pony who’d lead you astray!”
  1047. >That’s right, but you’re not budging.
  1048. “You can look at her on the couch– I’m not letting her go.”
  1049. >These two have never heard you be so stern before.
  1050. >You’ve never been one to raise your voice or get into arguments, but it didn’t take a genius to gather the ice in your voice– just begging them to push the issue further.
  1051. >For everyone’s benefit, they relent.
  1052. >You settle onto the couch, dreadfully shaky hands attempting to guide the stray locks of Shy’s still-damp mane out from her face.
  1053. “Easy, Songbird– i-it’s alright, please…”
  1054. >Shy might as well be catatonic, only capable of sucking in far too-fast lungs of air.
  1055. >With tears beginning to knock up against your eyelids, all you can do is hopelessly plead with a pathetic look that either of the mares knows a solution–
  1056. >Because you’re totally lost.
  1057. >Your Songbird is hurting, and you can do nothing about it.
  1058. >Thankfully, the two are quick to butt their heads in, quickly surveying the curled up pony in your lap.
  1059. >Careful not to bark her orders too forcefully, perhaps out of fear of worsening Shy’s condition further, Twilight’s head snaps up to Zecora.
  1060. >”Zecora, water now, please.”
  1061. >The zebra simply nods, breaking away into the kitchen for a glass.
  1062. >Twi’s hoof runs in little circles on Shy’s cheek, her eyes darting from the pinpricks of Fluttershy’s eyes down to her gasping mouth.
  1063. >”Fluttershy, nod as best as you can if you can hear me. You can hear me, right?”
  1064. >It’s weak, and hard to tell through her shivering, but Shy’s nod picks up sure enough.
  1065. >”Good– this doesn’t seem like a seizure, then.”
  1066. >The word ‘seizure’ has hairs standing up on the back of your neck.
  1067. >Zecora returns with a glass of water, sloshing lightly in the grasp of her teeth.
  1068. >Twilight saves her further trouble as she wrenches control of the glass in her magic.
  1069. >”Think you can drink some water? It’ll help calm you down.”
  1070. >Whether she ever stopped nodding at the first question or not, Twilight takes it as a yes.
  1071. >A fair bit doesn’t even make it into her mouth, or dribbles out from her lips through the intense shaking, but your heart finally gets a bit of a break as you see the first tentative gulps snaking down Shy’s throat.
  1072. >Taking the drink, Shy has no choice but to finally ease up on her forceful panting.
  1073. “Just like that, Songbird…”
  1074. >Bit of a break or not, your heart is still firmly lodged up in your throat– a lump you just can’t swallow down.
  1075. >Still, it’s not long before Flutters has drained the glass, now merely panting as though she’d just finished a race.
  1076. >You’d take it over that frantic hyperventilating anyday.
  1077. >With Shy at least stable for the moment, two faces turn up to meet yours.
  1078. >”What happened, Anon?”
  1079. “With this? I have no idea– we were already planning on, on coming to visit.”
  1080. >You lean your head, showing off your neck.
  1081. “Shy thinks these stings could be something bad– or at least, neither of us know where they came from. I woke up today with–”
  1082. >To everyone’s shock, Fluttershy speaks up.
  1083. >”Y-you… you said I bit you…”
  1084. >You blink.
  1085. “... What? When?”
  1086. >”A-Anon, how– how could you forget!?”
  1087. >Zecora shuts everyone up, butting her face in front of yours.
  1088. >”Nevermind that, for now– what caused your pain anyhow?”
  1089. >Poor Fluttershy can’t help but squirm weakly in your arms, very much not a fan of all these intrusions to her personal space.
  1090. >”I…”
  1091. >Her eyes dart about, dodging faces.
  1092. >”... I-I don’t know… I was just drying off, a-and… next thing I know, I’m on the floor s-screaming.”
  1093. >Zecora’s eyes plead with you, begging for any more information.
  1094. >You hopelessly shrug.
  1095. >”Ngh… I suppose it cannot be helped–”
  1096. >Twilight puts a hoof on Zecora’s side, but the zebra is quick to shut her out before she can speak.
  1097. >” –please, Anonymous, what happened before Fluttershy yelped?”
  1098. >You bite your tongue, trying to factor in when or why Shy would say that /you/ had said she bit you.
  1099. >It doesn’t add up.
  1100. “... Well, I woke up with some blood on my neck– Shy and I, uh… had some fun last night, so… I just assumed maybe we’d had a little /too/ much fun in the dark. It wasn’t, like, a bleeding wound or anything crazy…”
  1101. >You resist the urge to rub your neck, feeling more than embarrassed to recount that particular fact under such circumstances.
  1102. “I was totally fine with it, let me just say! Accidents happen, maybe the sting– bite was still not fully healed over, or she just couldn’t tell in the dark? I really don’t think it’s a big deal.”
  1103. >Again, Twilight whips her head to Zecora’s, her eyes full of conflict and excitement, but Zecora doesn’t let her speak.
  1104. >”I see. So, is that what you truly elect the cause to be?”
  1105. >What is this, an interrogation?
  1106. >It feels like any explanation you give just paints Shy in a bad light.
  1107. >This is a nonissue!
  1108. >What the hell has everyone so panicked!?
  1109. “I mean… that’s what I think, yeah?”
  1110. >Zecora gives Twilight one last look, seeming to seal whatever silent conversation the two had been having.
  1111. >The unicorn certainly isn’t pleased, but she seems to honor Zecora’s wishes.
  1112. >”Perhaps, then… should your issues renew, you could come back again?”
  1113. >You sigh, chancing a defeated look down at Flutters.
  1114. >You’d figure that she would want to put up more of a fight, but her own defeat clearly written across her face is telling enough.
  1115. >At least Twilight could calm her down.
  1116. >Really, you idiot– why was your own first instinct to panic and lump responsibility onto someone else anyhow?
  1117. >All she did was give Shy some water!
  1118. >If you’d just kept your cool at the cottage, maybe these two would’ve been more willing to listen.
  1119. >Fool.
  1120. >Unable to hide your own self-disappointment, it seems best to just leave.
  1121. >Obviously you interrupted Twi and Zecora with your bullshit.
  1122. “... Right. Thanks, and… sorry for the trouble.”
  1123. “Come on, goddess.”
  1124. >With the bruising pain now well & flaring up in your shoulder, you head for the door with Fluttershy in toe.
  1125. >Harsh whispers barely tickle your ears from behind, but you’re in no mood to bother trying to discern them.
  1126. >What a mess of a morning.
  1127.  
  1128. >You’re about ready to dish out the sternest chiding you can to Zecora as the two of you watch the door close behind Anon.
  1129. “I– just what was that, Zecora!? /Clearly/ something was up with those two, and you just send them away!?”
  1130. >The zebra looks torn, but still defends her position.
  1131. >”Twilight, please, allow me to explain– the last thing on my mind is to let our relationships strain. We still know so little since seeking the Princesses’ remittal. If we were speaking to the Thestral and not Fluttershy, showing our suspicions might rouse it to shanghai! Do you remember, as I said, that our outright intervention caused the Thestral from my homeland to have fled? To show our hoof too soon without even knowledge as our boon– the Thestral might be roused to flee under the light of Luna’s moon!”
  1132. >Zecora takes up a book from the pile she’d once pushed aside.
  1133. >”Please, come– we must learn all we can if we wish to free Fluttershy from under the Thestral’s thumb.”
  1134. >Though you remain unconvinced, you obey, picking up your own unlabeled tome.
  1135. “... I hope you’re right, Zecora: You say you’ve seen this before, and the Princesses say this whole Thestral business is no joke, but I think we could’ve gathered more evidence straight from the pony’s mouth if we at least engaged Anon some more.”
  1136. “I mean, ‘goddess?’ When have you ever heard Anon call Fluttershy /that?/”
  1137. >Zecora doesn’t respond.
  1138. >You don’t see it, forcing yourself into your own book– but the zebra’s face contorts with strain and regret.
  1139.  
  1140. >...
  1141.  
  1142. >It’s too bad you already used the bath card today.
  1143. >Offering it again would probably just look lousy on your part.
  1144. >The cottage bathroom is the last place Shy would want to visit anyhow.
  1145. >Instead, the two of you soak up as much of the day as you can simply going through the usual motions.
  1146. >There isn’t much discussion during that, to say the least.
  1147. >The two of you melt into chores, everything from feeding the animals to some handiwork around the cottage.
  1148. >At least in your case, after a while things simply become busy work to have an excuse to be near Fluttershy.
  1149. >The chicken coop by no means needed reinforcing, but fuck– you’re at a loss.
  1150. >You don’t know if this stupid bug bite situation has just gotten in Shy’s head or if it was some straw that broke the pony’s back and the poor girl is barely holding herself together.
  1151. >What’s worse is that you’re afraid to even bring the topic up now, which is surely just going to be a negative feedback loop of avoiding issues and risking them all to spiral further.
  1152. >Even moreso– now you’re half-convinced there’s something wrong with you, too; but you don’t even know where or how to start diagnosing a problem that it seems only Fluttershy is aware of.
  1153. >Like– you forgetting something you apparently said just that morning?
  1154. >You’d assume you were getting gaslit if you didn’t know Fluttershy.
  1155. >So, as morning turns to afternoon turns to the late evening, the two of you can semi-avoid one another no longer.
  1156. >While you wash off the last of the recently harvested vegetables, the familiar clip-clop of hooves from close behind leave you exhaling sharply– a shaky breath you weren’t even aware had been quivering in your lungs.
  1157. >Thankfully, an even more familiar warmth soon presses against your back; Fluttershy rearing up on her hind legs to hug you from behind.
  1158. >You can’t help but melt back into her embrace, eyes falling shut.
  1159. “How are you holding up, Songbird?”
  1160. >She doesn’t respond, but you don’t need her to.
  1161. >Probably not well, but certainly better than she’d been.
  1162. >Maybe a little return to routine will end up doing you both some good.
  1163. >Cozy cottage life, after all, is nothing if not relaxing.
  1164. >The two of you simply hang there for a time; a chaste hold that neither party is willing to break apart.
  1165. >Time passing by is really of no interest to you right now, however.
  1166. >Let it fall stagnant, for all you care.
  1167. >You just want your Songbird to be at peace.
  1168. >Shy’s coat presses deeper against you as she further stretches out– light breaths coming to tickle your ear.
  1169. >”... You called me your goddess, earlier. Do you remember?”
  1170. >Thankfully, you do.
  1171. >Honestly you have no idea where it came from– a slip of the tongue in a heated moment, you figure.
  1172. “Sorry if that was weird. I totally lost it this morning– fucked up our visit to Twilight because I panicked and–”
  1173. >Vanilla lips peck your ear.
  1174. >”It’s alright, Nonny…”
  1175. >”I think my own stress just got the better of me, too.”
  1176. >Shy’s gentle breaths grow the slightest bit more purposeful, fogging your skin.
  1177. >”... A-and I like the name.”
  1178. >Oh?
  1179. >Maybe you might’ve done a single thing right today.
  1180. “Hm? I didn’t know you enjoyed worship, Songbird.”
  1181. >It’s faint, but you catch the tiniest gasp from Shy’s lips at your words.
  1182. >”Ngh…”
  1183. >”Worship…”
  1184. >A path of little kisses, barely even making contact with your skin, begin drawing a line down from your ear to your neck.
  1185. >”Well… it’s only proper, isn’t it, my Prince?”
  1186. >”A good husband like yourself…”
  1187. >Shy marks her preferred spot on your neck with a husky breath, teasing the area with her fangs.
  1188. >”... should always be worshiping his beloved wife…”
  1189. >Shy’s gentle mellowness warps in real time, as if turning up some inner salacious dial.
  1190. >Although… something nags in your mind.
  1191. >It’s a quiet voice, speaking distant words whose meaning you can’t quite discern– 2 and 2 unable to be put together.
  1192. >You can’t help but bite your lip, sparks firing up and down your body as Shy’s lips settle on your neck, an oh-so alluring sting accompanying as your skin is punctured.
  1193. >It’s nothing more than a kiss to you.
  1194. >A needy one at that.
  1195. “Mh… See? Those fangs.”
  1196. >Shy barely responds, giving little more than a low moan muffled by her drinking.
  1197. “That’s what I was trying to… to explain to you this morning.”
  1198. >As Fluttershy sips from your neck, paradoxes and illogic cloud your mind even further– but you feel as though the confusion from the day all just melts away.
  1199. >Why now are you suddenly capable of reaching this clarity?
  1200. >Why couldn’t you get it through to Shy before?
  1201. >Why were you ever even questioning it?
  1202. >With the moon only just taking a vantage point above the setting sun, things just become simpler.
  1203. >More correct.
  1204. >There was never anything wrong with you or your goddess.
  1205. >Maybe the two of you should sleep in more– the day just brings problems.
  1206. >You find your eyes beginning to lid, and you eventually need to prop yourself up on the kitchen counter by your elbows to resist falling asleep outright.
  1207. >This is exactly what you and Shy needed– some personal time in the quiet heights of evening.
  1208. >There’s little better gift you can give to your goddess than your love, after all.
  1209.  
  1210. >...
  1211.  
  1212. >If nothing else, the cold vibe present in the library made for ideal study.
  1213. >You’re no stranger to blasting through even the toughest of reads, and Zecora’s no slouch herself–
  1214. >But as the two of you finish up the last of your learning, it’s time to collaborate and attempt discerning realities from fiction.
  1215. >You want to consider yourself proud, having been able to restrain yourself from outright exclamations multiple times, but–
  1216. >If even half of what you learned is true…
  1217. >You’re liable to teleport into the cottage right this second.
  1218. >Chancing a look up at the zebra, you decide somepony’s gotta break the ice.
  1219. “Have you finished up, Zecora?”
  1220. >She only nods before tearing her eyes away from the last of her pages.
  1221. “... I gotta admit– this business is worse than I figured, even after learning what you knew on the matter: These Thestrals are like a mix of bloodsuckers and succubi. Did you come to the same conclusion?”
  1222. >Regret paints clearly across Zecora’s face.
  1223. >”Indeed so– and with added time alone with their victim, the Thestral’s hypnotic charm only continues to grow. I fear I’ve made a grave mistake, allowing Anonymous to flake. Worse even still, the Thestral in Fluttershy has surely been drinking her fill. We don’t know how long she’s been at this fiendish work, so that beast within may be strong enough now to do more than merely lurk.”
  1224. >You concur with a headnod.
  1225. “So we’re in agreement that Fluttershy is definitely… the one possessed, right? It’s the only sensible outcome from what we know: Even if we disregard Anon hoof-waving everything that’s happened to him, I can’t help but think she was deflecting when you confronted her.”
  1226. >”Aye, I agree, but we also shouldn’t rule out the possibility of three. Even still, it’s important to note, this affliction lies deeper than Fluttershy’s coat. Our goal must be to exorcise– to attack the pony trapped within would be most unwise.”
  1227. >You resist the urge to go on the defensive– of course Fluttershy’s safety is paramount!
  1228. >Redirecting that flash of anger back into your book, you scramble through pages in search of your best lead.
  1229. >Learning the capabilities of this creature is just one step of the process, after all–
  1230. >Learning how to banish it is of far greater importance.
  1231. “Here! I quote: ‘For those ponies, born under an eclipsed moon, the Day Star’s blessing is not passed unto them in full. From there, each eclipse thereafter invites the taint of Nightmare Moon, pouring into the afflicted the means in which for their mind to be consumed. The Thestral shall be roused to wake, lured by blood and the promise of a mate. Her powers, then, increase tenfold– and if left unchecked: Both the mare that once was and her victim shall be wrenched away. Only the new Master and her dulled thrall shall persist, locked in eternity by forced, hostage kiss.’ ”
  1232. “ ‘This Thestral, then, is the Nightmare’s servant– a nocturnal scourge who acts as a working hoof on her tyrant’s behalf. To correct this perversion of the banished Princess’ power, a Celestian servant must bless the afflicted with the Day Star’s gift: Awash her in the sun, while the Thestral thinks she has won– and force into her stolen ear the Day Star Prayer to hear.’ ”
  1233. >Scrambling through random pages and the scant notes you’d taken– you come to the end of your retelling, looking back up to Zecora for her thoughts.
  1234. >”This ‘Day Star Prayer:’ Do you know it? Can you share?”
  1235. >Just your luck– you were hoping Zecora might’ve found that part.
  1236. “It’s not something I’ve ever heard– some of these books are nearly 800 years old. Ponies back then were far more zealous and superstitious, outright worshiping Princess Celestia rather than just following her guidance. She always told me it was something she’d try to quell, but Equestria’s a big place… Hard to stop each and every pony from getting up to their own devices.”
  1237. >”Well, if anypony would know– we could give a letter to Celestia another go?”
  1238. >You chew your lip, nodding.
  1239. “Seems like our only option at the moment, yeah…”
  1240. “And what about the whole ‘awash her in the sun’ part? From what I read, the Thestral is really only active at night. I got the implication that if it was capable of controlling the victim during the day… well… it was already too late.”
  1241. >”I compel, we should bring that up to Celestia as well. I’d say we’d need to catch her just as morning lights break… but it’s hardly an ‘awash–’ merely a new day’s wake.”
  1242. >Your hooves find themselves propping up your head.
  1243. >Usually you’d be chomping at the bit to unravel some occultish riddle like this, but with potentially two of your friends on the line…
  1244. >Well, the fun is all but sucked out, grappling with uncertain borrowed time.
  1245. >Though she’s fighting with her own fears, you feel the familiar nuzzle of Zecora’s neck against your own.
  1246. >If she’s feeling any stress, and you know she is– it’s hidden well.
  1247. >”Twilight, keep your faith. With our efforts combined, and the Princesses’ with us aligned, we stand well to banish this lustful wraith.”
  1248. >The insecurity melts away, if only for a moment.
  1249. >It’s enough to get your head back in the game.
  1250. >You ready another quill, exhaustion just barely held at bay as the all-nighter threatens to drag into night two.
  1251. “You’re right, Zecora… Thank you.”
  1252. >She only nods, before coming to stand with renewed purpose.
  1253. >”Twilight, tell me fast– have you any arts or craft? Call it a hunch, but the Thestrals are an ancient bunch; we might think it antiquated, but perhaps iconography of the sun might aid us in the fight of which we’re fated?”
  1254. >Your quill finds pause.
  1255. “... Like, markers and stuff?”
  1256. >Zecora nods.
  1257. “Um, not really…”
  1258. >That is, for better or worse, eureka grips you.
  1259. >You’re not certain it’s exactly the /best/ idea…
  1260. “ … But… I know just the pony who would.”
  1261.  
  1262. >...
  1263.  
  1264. >A night like this is just what you needed– what you and Shy both needed.
  1265. >You’d been drained by the day’s both mental and physical toll, so simply basking in your goddess’ goodness sounds ideal.
  1266. >Without any further cares or regrets carried over from the morning, you willingly give yourself up to Fluttershy’s desires.
  1267. >When she’s not latched on your neck, the little lovebug, she’s cooing sultry flirts in your ear; trailing her hooves, tail, just about any and every part of her body across your own.
  1268. >You’re happy to feed the sudden ego– act big all she wants, even now she’s just like a little pup stuck at your hip.
  1269. >It’s not something you’d change for the world.
  1270. >As the sun sets and allows way for nighttime proper, you find your feet shambling back toward the bedroom, your lover guiding the path.
  1271. >Her leathered wings flaunt to a half extension, needlessly showing off as though she were slicing through a nonexistent breeze as she struts.
  1272. >Of course, she’s more than happy to give you a show as you follow.
  1273. >Her brillant ruby stare was one thing– but fuck, if her ass wasn’t just as transfixing.
  1274. >Distracted as you are, a shiver still manages to sober you up just a touch.
  1275. >Maybe Shy had gotten a tad bit greedy in sampling your love.
  1276. >No matter, you’re happy to share it all.
  1277. >It belongs to her, after all.
  1278. >You belong to her.
  1279. >Another electric jitter skitters around your brain, outright canceling thoughts before they could have a chance at being even unconsciously pondered.
  1280. >Well, all the more reason to hurry up and snuggle under the covers– it may only be Autumn, but Cloudsdale is surely looking to ready the summer-soaked Equestria for the transition into winter.
  1281. >Come to think of it, Nightmare Night /had/ to be coming up sometime soon, right?
  1282. >Fluttershy holds open the door for you as you make your way in, hungry eyes feasting up your form as you pass.
  1283. >”You should get rid of those things on you, right? They seem like they’ll only get in the way, Nonny.”
  1284. >Bah, of course.
  1285. >You waste little time in stripping outright, barely about to even make it into bed before Shy jumps you.
  1286. >Her greedy tongue trails up from your bare chest to just under your chin– and hygiene or your own feelings on the matter be damned– that hot muscle is forced past your lips.
  1287. >Such an eager mare, all that teasing apparently got her far more fired up than anyone else– not to say you weren’t keeping pace.
  1288. >Your hands can’t seem to decide where they’ll play, swapping between her wingpits and those ample handfuls of ass just begging for some kneading.
  1289. >Either way, you have your goddess moaning through her teeth in record time.
  1290. >With thick strands of mutual spit still connecting your lips, you break the seal early.
  1291. “Fuck me… Before we get too carried away, goddess– lemme just take my medicine real quick, left it by the bed–”
  1292. >Your hand reaches down over the side of the mattress, feeling for the box of Zecora’s vitamin shots, but Fluttershy guides that wandering hand back to her ass.
  1293. >Your love presses her forehead to your own, sending you spiraling into her rubies.
  1294. >”Nonny~ no need for that stuff, right? It doesn’t do either of us any good. Forget about that, and just focus on me, ‘kay?”
  1295. >You blink, confused by her insistence.
  1296. “It’s just Zecora’s stuff, Shy, remember? It doesn’t taste bad by any means, I bet you’ll like it when we kiss. Oooh, maybe we could even swap–”
  1297. >Shy goes cheek to cheek with you, leaning your head away from that side of the bed while whispering in your ear.
  1298. >”Shhh, my Prince… listen to me, okay?”
  1299. >That now lingering static in the back of your head fires up once more, but now the feeling manifests as tantalizing euphoria ricocheting up and down your spine.
  1300. >Suffice to say, you’re all ears to Shy’s cute sing-song chirps; whatever it was you were even just talking about ejected from your train of thought.
  1301. “Listening, goddess. Did you have something to say?”
  1302. >Her cute giggle has your heart swelling with butterflies, and with how she now lords over you, using your lap as a throne…
  1303. >Well, your cock sees to it that she doesn’t slide any further down.
  1304. >”Hehe~ no, sweetheart– just keep listening to my adoration, my own worship…”
  1305. >That excess rump cushions itself snugly with your meat in between, Shy making sure you feel every little gyration and shake of her hips, going as far as to lift herself up a bit to cradle your length between her slickened mons.
  1306. >You don’t need to see past those thighs spilling out from her sides to know her tail is well-flagged upward, that damn near-prehensile thing tickling your legs as she can’t help but wag.
  1307. >More than happy to stay put in this moment, you sink deeper into your pillow, your hands finally deciding to stay put and ride the motions of Shy’s sashaying as she looms above you, gliding her plump folds along your length in otherwise-quiet serenity.
  1308. >”Don’t you want to be like this forever, Nonny?”
  1309. >Is that even a question?
  1310. “With you? There’s nothing more I need.”
  1311. >Shy coos.
  1312. >”Mmh~ resting like this, riding you, drinking your love…”
  1313. >”There’s nothing else either of us need, right?”
  1314. >Makes sense to you.
  1315. >Your hand comes to rub gentle circles on Fluttershy’s foreleg, just as you had done when you were in the bath.
  1316. “Anything with you is my ideal, Songbird.”
  1317. “I love you.”
  1318. >Fluttershy juts, her eyes flaring wider than you’ve ever seen before.
  1319. >Her body freezes in place, and if just for a second–
  1320. >Something seems to change.
  1321. >You blink.
  1322. >Did Shy’s eyes just turn blue?
  1323. >It might be dark in here, but that piercing red shine is pretty hard to miss–
  1324. >Some sort of sharp ringing sends spasms coursing through your body, so much so you nearly bump Shy right off of your lap.
  1325. >But the moment passes, and your goddess remains, herself even seeming to blink away some passing impulse.
  1326. >You can’t help but crack a giggle.
  1327. “Fuck, ah, s-sorry girl– been getting these crazy tingles.”
  1328. >You make a show of darting your eyes down to her straddling seat.
  1329. “Probably your fault.”
  1330.  
  1331. >...
  1332.  
  1333. >You couldn’t help but increasingly sink into outright restlessness, exhaustion be damned.
  1334. >Something about tonight…
  1335. >Maybe it was just the knowledge-bomb of what you had learned in regards to the beast that’d taken control of your friend and is plotting to do the same to another burning a hole through your confidence; or maybe it was the mere fact that you were out when the beast would surely just be reaching her peak of alertness.
  1336. >It doesn’t help either that you still have no time frame in regards to just how far along Fluttershy is with her own corruption.
  1337. >Standing outside the Sugarcube Corner in the dead of night has you hopping from one hoof to the other, your head snapping between the full moon shining down on you like a spotlight through an opening in the tendrils of cloud– and Zecora, who is peppering Pinkie Pie’s window with pebbles.
  1338. >Maybe those ancient superstitions were getting to you, but a full moon /cannot/ be a good omen.
  1339. >Spike jostles about on your back, trying (and failing) to catch some further shut eye.
  1340. >”Grr, a shot askew! Twilight Sparkle, I like to think my aim is true– but if Pinkie Pie /still/ doesn’t come to–”
  1341. >A final pebble is sent careening through the night air, bonking against the party pony’s forehead as she leans herself out the window, a dangly nightcap hanging off to the side of her mane.
  1342. >If that hurt at all, Pinkie doesn’t show it.
  1343. >”Oooh! Hiya guys!”
  1344. >A few neighboring lights blink on from nearby houses.
  1345. >You can’t help but panic a touch, paranoia beginning to creep its way up along your neck as though your cover had been blown.
  1346. “Pinkie! Keep it down! W-we need your help!”
  1347. >Your own voice is a strained mix of shouting and whispering, meeting somewhere in the middle and failing to deliver on both fronts.
  1348. >Pinkie’s face only lights up further.
  1349. >If she’d been sleeping at all before, she’s wide awake now.
  1350. >”Ah! What for!? Is this an impromptu sleepover!?”
  1351. >Zecora chimes up.
  1352. >”Arts and witchcraft, Pinkie Pie! We need you on our staff! Hurry down, and we’ll share why!”
  1353. >Now they’re both yelling.
  1354. >”Omigosh! Just in time for Nightmare Night! Girls, this is excellent! I’ll letchya in!”
  1355. >With that, Pinkie scurries from the window, presumably to come downstairs.
  1356. >And wait– Nightmare Night!?
  1357. >Celestia give you strength; these omens are only getting worse…
  1358.  
  1359. >The next hour is spent catching Pinkie Pie up as much as possible on what you know.
  1360. >In the meantime, your three pairs of hooves have an arsenal of markers, poster board, and glitter glue at your disposal.
  1361. >Using diagrams from within the books from the Archive as references, the three of you compile everything from the standard to the outright dubious in esoteric sun-worship iconography.
  1362. >... You just hope these symbols still pack whatever mystical punch they may or may not possess when they’re scrawled out on what amounts to macaroni art.
  1363. >”Sooo: Howd’ya think this kooky stuff works? We just sling ‘em in Flutter-thestral’s face and she doesn’t like it? I can’t imagine she’s gonna be all that interested in listening to us if we’re boppin these thingies all up on her.”
  1364. >The three of you convene around a lonesome table in the Sugarcube Corner’s basement, a mere single light overhead illuminating your work as you talk game plans.
  1365. “We’re not certain, Pinkie– I think we’re just gonna have to wing it and hope for the best.”
  1366. “... Oooh, maybe I should write to the Princesses for an exorcism guide…”
  1367. >Zecora clicks her tongue as she finalizes the last bits of an occultish sun, letting the market drop from her lips.
  1368. >”Keep the faith, my dear friend. No matter what happens, I know we’ll see this through to the end.”
  1369. >That might’ve worked on you before, but you can’t shake the fears now.
  1370. >Your mind keeps flashing scenes from earlier today– seeing Fluttershy in the state she was.
  1371. >You’d kept your cool, and things seemingly turned out fine, but…
  1372. >Anything might happen in this coming confrontation.
  1373. >Even with the info you /do/ have, you can’t be certain any of it is even true, and you can’t help but wonder if those ancient ponies even knew what they were really up against.
  1374. >The fear of the unknown is well alive in you.
  1375. >Still, you nod– craning your neck to check up on Spike again.
  1376. “Still no word back from either Princess, huh?”
  1377. >Giving up on getting any sleep, the baby dragon sighs.
  1378. >”You’ll know when I know, Twi…”
  1379. >Chancing a glance to your compatriots, he leans up to your ear.
  1380. >”Look, I’m spooked over all this too, but you’re sweating bullets, Twi. You gotta trust in yourself, ‘cause I think the only reason we’re all not in the same boat is that we trust in you, too.”
  1381. >That doesn’t exactly make you feel better…
  1382. >But you appreciate the sentiment.
  1383. >You return the kind words with a quick forehead touch, slipping back into your work from there.
  1384. >Pinkie eyes her recent work: She’s the best artist out of the three of you by a landslide, but her protection sigils also come with little doodles of everything from Jack-o-Lanterns to little portraits of Fluttershy in the margins.
  1385. >She stares in silence, before it seems as though an idea pops into her head.
  1386. >”Oh! Girls, check /this/ out!”
  1387. >Pinkie whizzes from her spot in a pink blur, showing up seconds later wearing…
  1388. >”... Pinkie, I must admit: I did not expect you of all ponies to possess a Priest’s outfit.”
  1389. >A tight, white collar rides just below the layers of black coat, the only contrast aside being a dangling sun necklace of gold.
  1390. >”Zecora, c’mon! You know I’ve gotta have every costume under the sun!”
  1391. >The necklace jingles, catching Pinkie’s attention.
  1392. >”Ah! I’m even wearing a sun, too!”
  1393. >”You gals want some? I know it’s not Nightmare Night yet, but I mean, c’mon, who says you can’t wear a costume on the Eve?”
  1394. >Your blood flashes cold.
  1395. “I-it’s Nightmare Night Eve!? Like, tomorrow morning, or right now?”
  1396. >Pinkie blows a raspberry.
  1397. >”Right now, silly! It’s, what, 1 O’clock by now? Didn’t you get my invitation today? I slipped it under your door while I was making my rounds! Gotta invite everypony in town, after all.”
  1398. >You turn to meet Zecora’s eyes, taking particular note of the bags underneath them.
  1399. >She shrugs.
  1400. “Did you drop one off at the cottage?”
  1401. >Pinkie nods.
  1402. >”Yeppers! I wasn’t knocking though– so I don’t blame ya for missing it.”
  1403. >Once more, Pinkie’s bobbing up and down on her hooves.
  1404. >”Anywho, wanna costume!?”
  1405.  
  1406. >It isn’t Nightmare Night yet, but damn if this whole situation didn’t feel like one.
  1407. >Especially now, standing before the unlit cottage.
  1408. >Usually Fluttershy’s house seems so serene, even at night.
  1409. >But now?
  1410. >With the moon hanging high overhead, as though it’d split the collecting clouds to alert predators out in the darkness of you four dressed up fools, the cottage might as well have been some sort of haunted house attraction.
  1411. >It’d only felt proper that you’d all dress similarly to Pinkie Pie.
  1412. >Really, of all the absurdity already swirling about this certainly no-nonsense situation, you don’t even know why you and Zecora humored the idea.
  1413. >... You’d chosen a Nun’s attire.
  1414. >Zecora went with the robes of a Bishop, affixed with decidedly tasteful Celestial ‘sigils’ where able.
  1415. >Spike was a choir colt, much to his chagrin.
  1416. >For better or worse, this is your exorcism crew.
  1417. >The typical peace on the path leading up to Fluttershy’s cottage is certainly present, but the quiet stillness now carries with it an eerie ambiance, knowing what you do.
  1418. >The three of you stand in a row, in solidarity perhaps, but none wishing to take the first step further, as though this were the line in which mortal ponies could still back out– maybe to be spared.
  1419. >... You’re getting /far/ too much into your own head.
  1420. >Besides– you’re not even the victim here!
  1421. >Fluttershy and Anon are!
  1422. >Here you are, constantly peering over your own shoulder, while those two suffer in ways you’re still only uncertain of!
  1423. >You grit your teeth, shaking away however much nerve you could.
  1424. “Alright everypony, here’s the deal–”
  1425. >That ethereal threshold is crossed by your hooves, and you turn your back to the ominous backdrop to address your crew.
  1426. “ – By the moon, I figure the witching hour is nearly upon us.”
  1427. “From my studies, a Thestral will be at the height of her power now. In theory, she should only weaken further from here, before giving up her body once more for the day. I believe, then, our options are thus: We wait out here for another few hours before attempting to bring her outside for the sunrise and hope Celestia has good news on the Day Star Prayer before then, or we barge in there right now and catch her in the act. It might be risky, but it could also be one of our only chances to discern what’s fact and what’s fiction in regards to this curse.”
  1428. >You keep your voice low and stern, eyes darting between each member in your crackpot-exorcism posse.
  1429. >This is all on the fly, and regardless of the fact that even you don’t know how much longer you have before Fluttershy is fully claimed by the Thestral within– Spike’s right.
  1430. >Your friends are all relying on you.
  1431. >Anon and Fluttershy too, though they don’t know it yet.
  1432. >Zecora chimes up, one of her tacked-on sigils hanging pathetically as she cocks her head.
  1433. >”But, Twilight– please recall! Direct intervention only emboldens the Thestral’s gall! When my tribe intervened– that was when her thrall was finally stolen away by the succubus fiend!”
  1434. >Pinkie’s next.
  1435. >”The Thestral is a succu-bus too? I thought you said it only feeds on blood?”
  1436. >You resist the urge to curse your past panic and hope Spike isn’t listening, readying to dive into the more… touchy aspect of this curse–
  1437. >But a screech from within the cottage has every head craning up at the sleepy hollow, searching for a source.
  1438. >Fluttershy’s walls are either unfit to house anything, or that scream had been truly ear splitting.
  1439. >Seems fate has decided the game plan for you.
  1440. >Despite Spike’s sudden insistence otherwise, the three of you waste little time galloping up to the cottage door.
  1441. >Whatever awaits inside can wait no longer.
  1442.  
  1443. >Fluttershy’s walls, well-fit for housing your length, pull along each and every vein as she rides your lap, bouncing from the last downward crash to carry just as much momentum into her next thwomp.
  1444. >Each soaked bump atop your cock echoes with it another chorus of praise, moans, or now– outright screams.
  1445. >You’re thankful she’s enjoying herself, because you’ve been utterly outpaced by now.
  1446. >It’d been hours.
  1447. >Hours of feral, feverish fucking.
  1448. >Had you been able to think straight at all in this moment, you’d probably have asked her to stop– and you’re Anon, for Christ’s sake!
  1449. >The idea of needing to tap out /would/ be a slight against your pride that you couldn’t afford– but this?
  1450. >This is absurd!
  1451. >Either way, you’ve no say in the matter.
  1452. >Not that you’re even capable of talking anymore.
  1453. >Merely a still-warm cadaver for your goddesses’ enjoyment, you’re happy to play the role of dead starfish while Shy works out the last of her energy out on your pole.
  1454. >Somehow you’re still hard, so–
  1455. >Though muffled by the distance and walls in between, the front door slamming open travels easily up to your ears, followed by a clamor of hooves honing in on the upstairs bedroom.
  1456. >The noise makes you jump, but you’re in no state to respond beyond that.
  1457. >Seeing to your goddesses’ needs is far more important.
  1458.  
  1459. >You rear up onto your hindlegs, busting the bedroom door wide open.
  1460. >Perhaps you should’ve expected the subsequent image of your two friends fucking, but…
  1461. “Get behind me, Thestra– oh, Tartarus!!”
  1462. >You’re in a rush, okay!?
  1463. >Your valiant battle cry is near-instantly rendered toothless as you scramble to avert your eyes, as if Fluttershy might scurry to cover her deed.
  1464. >Not quite.
  1465. >In fact, she doesn’t even slow her tempo, merely cocking her head at the newly arrived welcoming party.
  1466. >The look of shock painted across her face holds for only a moment, before falling to something far more coy.
  1467. >”A-ah~ A mare, hooh, can get no privacy hm? Awfully bad manners…”
  1468. >She might look the part from a distance, but even in the low-light, you see the truth plain as day.
  1469. >Though she may possess the same coat and mane– the mare riding your friend is not Fluttershy.
  1470. >Her eyes need a second to drink in the sight of you all, but it’s obvious when she finally finds focus on the subpar sigils stapled to your outfits.
  1471. >The Thestral bares her fangs with an accompanying hiss, flaring out leathered wings.
  1472. >”/Day/ worshipper trash! Desecrating /my/ sanctum with such things!? Prince, avert your eyes!”
  1473. >The ‘prince’ in question can’t even raise his head, let alone do much more than whimper out moans forced from his lungs.
  1474. >If you didn’t know better (and really, you don’t), Anon’s already fallen into a comatose state.
  1475. >You don’t know what you were expecting– but this is a worse sight than you thought.
  1476. >Drilling a harsh mean-mugging into ‘Fluttershy’s’ fallen face, Zecora takes up the mantle next, rearing up in a whinny and seemingly prepared to charge.
  1477. >”Accursed, vile thing! Give up that vessel on which you cling! The SUN shall cast judgment and light unto your masquerade lie– when we drag you out before the morning’s sky!”
  1478. >The Thestral winces, hissing at that particular word.
  1479. >Pinkie chips in too, offering up “uh– yeah! Give us back our Fluttershy! A-and the Prince, too!”
  1480. >Not a second later, your ‘Priest’ is leaning up toward your ear, whispering poorly.
  1481. >”So, I see what you mean by Flutters being a succu-bus– but the Prince is supposed to be Anon, right?”
  1482. >Finally, ‘Fluttershy’ pulls herself up off of Anon’s length, flaring her bat wings wide as she readies herself for a fight overtop of her mate’s body.
  1483. >”D-don’t you even SPEAK his name, whores! He’s MINE– /MY/ Prince!”
  1484. >You risk a step further into the bedroom, calling her bluff.
  1485. >Somepony would need to see to Anon as soon as possible while the others kept this Flutterbat distracted.
  1486. “Pinkie! Spike! You try to awake Anon up while Zecora and I handle the Thestral– we’ll wrestle her away!”
  1487. >Horror and rage comingle into a nasty expression on Fluttershy’s face.
  1488. >”My love /IS/ awake! And neither of us have any time to deal with the likes of some DAY WORSH–”
  1489. >Zecora doesn’t let Fluttershy’s sentence finish, instead tackling her off of the bed outright.
  1490. >”G-gah, that was so wrong– I grazed Anonymous’ dong!”
  1491. >Fluttershy shrieks in abject rage, easily coming to overpower the zebra locking down her limbs.
  1492. >In mere moments, Zecora’s hold is physically renegotiated, and she can only just barely keep a grip on Fluttershy’s hind leg.
  1493. >You double the pressure, throwing yourself against the batpony’s chest.
  1494. >... Quite literally, as you don’t exactly have much form or finesse in regards to something as blunt as this.
  1495. >Quickly, the three of you are a mess of dead weight, struggling groans, and excess fabric from your robes.
  1496. “P-Pinkie! Go to Anon!”
  1497. >It’s about all you can muster, with both hooves grappling around Shy’s neck as the three of you devolve into an angry puddle on the floor.
  1498.  
  1499. >There’s something going on.
  1500. >Harsh words are spat over your head, heard but not understood.
  1501. >The language might as well have been foreign, syllables combining to make something utterly devoid of meaning.
  1502. >Even your eyes, once locked firmly on your goddess, now find focus nowhere, something having plucked her from your vision.
  1503. >It’d be upsetting, had you the capabilities to think that deeply about it.
  1504. >But the most comforting warmth still tingles your entirety, as though you’d slipped below the surface of a blanketed sea.
  1505. >A new face fills your vision– someone pink, and with very big eyes.
  1506. >... No wait, she’s just very close to your face.
  1507. >It’s hardly your concern– she’s not your goddess.
  1508. >”... hel… non?...”
  1509. >The noises from her mouth aren’t worth attempting to translate.
  1510. >You just want your goddess back.
  1511.  
  1512. “Hellloooo? Nonny? Wake up ya big lug, c’mon now…”
  1513. >In just about any other situation, you think you’d find this fun– like you were waking up Nonny from some long night of joyful drinking to share in the well-earned suffering of a hangover.
  1514. >You know the situation in particular is certainly no time for games, but even still– you have a knack for keeping your demeanor light-hearted.
  1515. >Helps to cope with the stresses, after all.
  1516. >But seeing Anon’s woozy, unresponsive state now, paired with the frantic ravings of a possessed Fluttershy mere feet behind you…
  1517. >Well, this panic seems like the rare sort, the kind jokes can’t quite fix.
  1518. >”DON’T CALL HIM THAT!”
  1519. >Fluttershy’s teeth are bared in a nasty snarl, giving you an all-too detailed showing of those hypodermic fangs.
  1520. >Even with Zecora and Twilight holding her back to the extents they’re able, they can’t keep it up for long.
  1521. >You trade a look with Spike, who stands atop the bed on the other side of Anon.
  1522. >...
  1523.  
  1524. >Everything feels so disconnected, so detached of any meaning or understanding.
  1525. >Faces drift in and out of your view, and–
  1526. >A bold slap upside your head knocks the thought away.
  1527. >... The fuck was that?
  1528. >No two ways about it, even if you brain was fogged up to hell and back, that shit hurt–
  1529. >Another claps your other cheek, turning your face outright toward Spike–
  1530. >Spike?
  1531. >Just what in the fuck is he doing here?
  1532. >You and Fluttershy are fuckin–
  1533. >Again, a hot snap of scaly claws turns your view (very unpleasantly, you’ll add) over to Pinkie–
  1534. >Pinkie’s here too!?
  1535. >Blinking the stars from your vision and some sense back into your drugged mind, you shake up your skull to disperse the rest of the mental funk.
  1536. >You’re awarded with another wrapping across the side of your head for the trouble.
  1537. >Not a second is wasted in plucking Spike up by his topmost spine.
  1538. “Ok, ow, dickhead– you clearly got my attention.”
  1539. >”Nonny!”
  1540. >Pinkie’s poof pops a plush pink beard onto your face as you gain truly-conscious bearings once more.
  1541. >Twilight and Zecora, both dressed in religious garb you never thought you’d see again, continuously seek to dogpile a foaming-at-the-mouth Fluttershy.
  1542. >Fluttershy herself looking… a bit different than usual.
  1543. >And you’re naked.
  1544. >And very, very sore.
  1545. >...
  1546. “Uhh…”
  1547. >Renewed hope flares out across the girls’ faces, unintentionally letting down their guard.
  1548. >”A-Anon! Fluttershy is possessed! We have to get her outside!”
  1549. >Though the hot, beating pangs of what feels like a very, /very/ bad hangover play drums upon your forehead– you have no reaction to the scene playing out before you.
  1550. >What could you say?
  1551. >Instincts demand you spring up from the bed, collect Fluttershy, and start demanding an explanation, but…
  1552. >You lock eyes with your mare.
  1553. >At least, the rabid pony that must be your mare.
  1554. >Though you’re not quite conscious of the realizations yet, the pieces are clicking into place subconsciously at least.
  1555. >The biting, the situations you felt you remembered correctly, the odd declarations and desires…
  1556. “Possessed?”
  1557. >The word leaves your mouth rather matter-of-factly, as if you’re questioning the definition rather than the validity of Twilight’s claim.
  1558. >”Y-yes! Can’t you– agh!”
  1559. >Fluttershy’s had enough– shaking off the mares’ hold and pouncing on you, slamming your body back down flat atop the bed.
  1560. >She doesn’t waste a moment, drilling her fangs back into that so-beloved spot for your ‘love.’
  1561. >Your hands fly up to pull at the scruff of her neck– something, anything just to get a moment more of understanding over just what the fuck is going on–
  1562. >But they instead settle, your fingers slipping into the thick of Shy’s mane, gently brushing small strokes through as Shy harvests you further.
  1563. >Her plump rump settles back down atop your lap, swishing to get another rise from you even as she saps your blood flow.
  1564. >You fall for the fast-pacing cadence of her heart beat thumping against your chest, bellies touching as close as they could be.
  1565. >”Girls! Get her off of him! She’s gonna kill Anon!”
  1566. >The trance has been tainted, that much you retain.
  1567. >Fluttershy, or whoever this is corrupting her body, is trying her damndest to keep you under a spell.
  1568. >... Fuck, if it doesn’t feel so right.
  1569. >You know it isn’t, but you can’t stop the euphoria.
  1570. >Resisting the urge to be lulled once more, you try to focus on what you know.
  1571. >Fluttershy is a pegasus, red eyes, bloodsucker?
  1572. >No…
  1573. >Something isn’t right there.
  1574. >Even if you can’t decide what’s incorrect, you focus on the fact there’s something incorrect at all.
  1575. >You can’t raise a finger up against her, or it, or whatever has taken control–
  1576. >Can you at least do this much?
  1577.  
  1578. >You strain to catch your breath, attempting to replant your hooves to come to a stand once more.
  1579. >Seems like pony-piling the Thestral is pretty effective: Will the three of you be able to roll her down the stairs?
  1580. >Maybe you could chuck her out of a window?
  1581. >Probably not a great idea…
  1582. >Zecora’s own strained breath barks in your ear.
  1583. >”Up, up! Fluttershy drinks from Anon like a cup!”
  1584. >Pinkie had been knocked to the side as well from the Thestral’s wild pounce, but the three of you are just about recollected now.
  1585. >Yanking the demon away with she has fangs lodged in Anon’s throat doesn’t sound very wise…
  1586. >Tippy-tappying on her hooves for a moment of panic, Pinkie suddenly lights up.
  1587. >”Twilight! Can you teleport the whole bed out onto the front lawn!?”
  1588. >Your eyes bulge, the plan visualizing in your head.
  1589. “U-uh… Sure, let’s go with that!”
  1590. >You charge your horn, not sparing a moment to think of any downsides this new path may bring with it.
  1591. >Aura envelopes the entire bed frame, Anon and Fluttershy caught up in the warping glow as well.
  1592. >This might be a bigger load than you’re used to poofing, but it won’t be very far–
  1593. >”Do us too next, yeah!?”
  1594. >Fuck it, one trip.
  1595. >At the very least, Fluttershy doesn’t seem particularly skittish at the moment, seeming to be trapped in her own sort of limbo as she resets any progress you might’ve made with Anon.
  1596. >A blink of white flashes the room, and the chaos within is unceremoniously dumped out onto the grasses outside.
  1597. >Your vision clears, but the first sight you see is that of the full moon on its path back below the horizon.
  1598. >You’re not the only one, either.
  1599.  
  1600. >Fluttershy’s fangs are plucked from your throat once more, and though that connection is severed with it, you’re not left scrambling for answers this time.
  1601. >... Though, you certainly still have some questions burning up holes in your head– especially since you’re most definitely now outside.
  1602. >Blinking bleariness from your eyes and catching unsynced breath once more, Shy stares up at the fleeing moon in the first uneasy silence since you first regained free thought.
  1603. >Your eyes drift over to your uninvited guests, a burst of green flame catching your eyes.
  1604. >A scroll bounces against Twilight’s head, slightly upsetting her veil.
  1605. >She points toward you as she collects up the unfurling scroll in her magic.
  1606. >...
  1607. >Fluttershy’s ruby red gaze guides your eyes back into hers.
  1608. >”A-Anon! Do you see that!? The moon!?”
  1609. >Excitement is fit to burst the little bat pony, as she glides herself up and down your abdomen unable to contain her feelings.
  1610. >”We can go there! We can leave these crazy ponies behind! J-just you and me! Goddess and her Prince, to worship and love and share for all of eternity!”
  1611. >”You want that with me, right? Together?”
  1612. >Fluttershy slips down face to face, nose to nose, keeping her eyes locked.
  1613. >You have no idea what’s going on.
  1614. >You’ve awoken from conscious dreams, only to be thrown back into them.
  1615. >You can’t claim you know the right path to take here–
  1616. “Fluttershy…”
  1617. >Though your anemic muscles groan for it, you swing your arms around Shy’s wings, keeping her snug against you in a great imprisoning bearhug.
  1618. “I-I just want us to be okay.”
  1619.  
  1620. “This is it, Spike! Girls, hold down Fluttershy while–”
  1621. >Muffled gasps pause your train of thought, looking over to see Fluttershy squirming in Anon’s clutches.
  1622. >Whether he’s restraining her with the last of his might, or perhaps the real Fluttershy is fighting from within to lock her body up from flight, it’s a hopeless struggle on the Thestral’s part.
  1623. >”N-now, Twilight the Papist! Speak the ancient prayer, and banish this rapist!”
  1624. >You nod at Zecora, readying your throat.
  1625. >The sun isn’t quite ready to rise yet, so you figure you’ll be repeating this thing until Fluttershy’s back, or the Thestral is off eloping into the Everfree with Anon.
  1626. >Your hooves march slow but sure toward the bed, each step followed by the next verse.
  1627. “Day Star on high! Blessed, am I! For I may wake with the sunlight and dance at daybreak!”
  1628. >Fluttershy’s eyes shrink to pinpricks, her writhing only intensifying.
  1629. “Day Star on high! Blessed, am I! For luminous is Her glory, and numinous is Her path!”
  1630. >The stanzas roll on, each one anew breaking the Thestral out in worser thrashings.
  1631. >The others pile on atop Anon’s arms, bringing Fluttershy’s final resistance to an assured stop.
  1632. “Day Star on high!”
  1633. >You repeat the prayer again and again, even as the Thestral begins to simply screech in opposition, trying to drown you out.
  1634. “Blessed, am I!”
  1635. >In time, though certainly all present feel the slow inch of each and every second as you all fight, scream, or otherwise–
  1636. >The morning breaks.
  1637. >Even then, you don’t give up.
  1638. >You continue on well past everypony has ceased moving, Fluttershy herself finally brought to rest.
  1639. >Whenever it happened, you hadn’t noticed– but her wings had returned to their proper form.
  1640. >You’re sure the same has happened to her eyes and teeth, but you don’t care.
  1641. >You continue repeating the Day Star mantra until even you cannot resist sleep– the stressors of two days awake and the panic that plagued you all throughout finally catching up.
  1642.  
  1643. >...
  1644.  
  1645. >”Mmh~...”
  1646. >A familiar sweet coo is music to your ears– no better noise to be lulled awake by.
  1647. “... Songbird?”
  1648. >You can just barely manage to crack open an eye, against the cool breeze of a late Autumn evening.
  1649. >The beautiful sea-green sapphires you’d fallen in love with peer up from your chest to greet you.
  1650. >”Mhm…”
  1651. “You alright?”
  1652. >It’s a slow nod, but a nod all the same.
  1653. >”Think so… had a… scary dream…”
  1654. >You blink, her words sparking a similar memory in you.
  1655. “Me too, I think…”
  1656. >”Nightmare Night, what a fright, give us something sweet to bite!”
  1657. >...
  1658. >You and Fluttershy both laze your head over toward the unfamiliar voice– only now realizing that you hadn’t just forgotten to close the bedroom window last night.
  1659. >A group of colts and fillies dressed in costume stand a distance off, varying levels of confusion painted across their faces.
  1660. >They’re lead by Granny Smith– looking no different from them.
  1661. >Only one colt seems unbothered.
  1662. >Pipsqueak.
  1663. >You lean up, now keenly aware there’s more than just Fluttershy in bed with you.
  1664. >Twilight, Zecora, Pinkie– hell, even Spike all lie in various stretched out messes, still dead asleep.
  1665. >Shy seems to take notice too.
  1666. >...
  1667. >The two of you share a look.
  1668. “Hm.”

Pony Supremacy Thread Fluttershy Story (WIP, Indefinite Hiatus)

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