Overcoming Oceans

Chapters

Prologue
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 7
Part 8 [Mature]
Part 9 [Mature]
Part 10
Part 11
Part 6

Prologue

The warm mid-morning sun flows over the vivid green leaves covering Golden Oaks Library. A light breeze carries the scent of summer - dry soil, pine trees and veggie barbeques - up and down the homely Ponyville streets. A few ponies are dotted here and there, some making their way to whichever destination they’re needed, others stopping for a brief chat with one another. A bright purple unicorn, well known throughout the town as the local librarian, stands just outside the doorway of her home. A lightly-packed saddle bag is strapped securely over her back.

Joining her in conversation, a small dragon nonchalantly stands just outside the library’s door, arms folded, with a chilled look on his face. Spike knows that portraying oneself as laid back as possible gives the impression that there’s nothing to worry about. An impression that he’s still trying to drill into the horned head of his anxious friend, Twilight Sparkle.

“Are you sure you’re all set for this, Spike?” the unicorn asks for the fourth (and hopefully final) time that hour, “Will you remember to dust the bookshelves? Stock up on spare gems in case you‘re peckish? Oh! And make sure the mail-mare delivers that book from the Crystal Empire…”

“Ah, chill out Twilight,” the dragon waves away his lifelong friend’s worries, “I’ll be fine! Your number one assistant has everything covered! Besides…” Spike pauses to lift a clawed hand. As if on cue, a stoic nocturnal bird flaps through an open window from the library and adeptly lands on the dragon’s arm, “I have Owlowiscious to help me out if I need it.”

The owl in question hoots in acknowledgement. One wouldn’t need to learn the owl’s language to recognise his hoot as one of reassurance.

Twilight Sparkle breathes a sigh of composure; this is her faithful assistant she’s talking to, after all! “Okay, I believe you Spike,” she gives a goodbye nuzzle to her oldest friend. “Have fun, keep the place clean while I‘m gone!”

“You know I will,” the dragon rolls his green eyes as the unicorn readjusts her saddle bag one last time before departing. “Say hi to Shining Armor and Cadance for me! Oh, and say hi to you-know-who as well. What do you call him nowadays?”

That last statement turns the normally purple pony a shade of bright red. “I, er, don’t wanna say it. Not in public.”

With a smarmy grin, the dragon teasingly leans forward, “C’mon, what‘s his lover-name?”

“I’m not saying it, Spike.”

Spike playfully cups a green ear with his claw, as if pretending to be hard of hearing, “Who is he, again? Something about lakes..?”

“No, not here…”

“Who?”

“I- I don’t wanna be late for my train-”

“Who?”

“No, I’m not-”

“Hoo!”

“Oh not you too, Owlowiscious!”

“C’mon, just this once and we‘ll let you go!”

“Ugh, fine!” the unicorn, now scarlet-faced, lowers her voice considerably. “He’s my handsome lake-loving cuddle-fish.”

“Pfft- gahahahah!”

“ForCelestia’ssakegrowupSpike!”

Part 1

Your Earth Pony hooves numbly clop against the cobblestone-dotted ground as you pelt through Ponyville‘s bustling street. The muted clatter of the saddlebag you’re wearing does little to help the situation. Ignoring the sweat trickling from your brow, you race around the next corner, the local train station finally coming into view.

Thank goodness you made it on time; you know what your girlfriend’s like when you’re late. You shouldn’t’ve overslept.

Hmm. Your girlfriend. You've been with her for two whole months, yet you still can't get your head around how you managed to land a pony like her.

Upon reaching the station platform, you get the strangest feeling; there’s nopony else on the platform with you, and your train - according to your girlfriend at least - is due any minute now.

Hold on, she isn’t here either. Are you even at the right platform..?

A rising sense of panic stirs within your chest. Oh no. Did you miss it!? Did you miss the train!?

“There you are! Over here!”

Your ears twitch. Your heart skips a beat at the sound of her voice. Well how about that. You’re in the right place after all. Thank Celestia for that!

Turning towards the wonderful sound, you’re immediately met with a bright flash of purple. The unicorn of your dreams appears from thin air - teleportation is her favourite method of quick transport - and lovingly hugs you at a moment’s notice, her violet face adorably snuggled within the crevice of your neck. Upon instinct, you nuzzle Twilight Sparkle in return, letting that fuzzy hum of bliss resonate in your chest. In doing so, you can’t help but notice she used the lavender-scented shampoo this morning.

You‘re no emotional expert. In fact, you’ve not really felt this way about a mare before Twilight came into your life. But you‘d happily call the dizzy feeling true love. Couldn’t be anything else, really.

You release your grip on her before it gets too awkward. Not that she’d mind; she’s fastidious about schedules, about lists, about facts and theories, sure. But when it comes to something as beautifully intricate as love, she takes leave of her schedules and numbers and logic, letting her own passionate feelings take precedence. It’s one of the few times she lets her instinct take over from her calculative side.

“I didn’t keep you waiting long, did I?” you ask.

“Not at all,” she chirps, her deep violet eyes glistening with excitement, “You arrived at the exact time i predicted. So, are you ready to finally meet my brother and sister-in-law? I can't wait to introduce you both!”

She finishes with a high-pitched "Eeeee" sound to punctuate her enthusiasm. You’ve heard stories about the ponies Twilight claims she’s related to, judging by her well-established connections with Princesses Celestia and Luna (you recall both princesses sending ‘get well soon’ cards to Twilight when she was sick that one time) , you have no reason not to believe her.

“And by brother and sister-in-law,” you slowly hazard asking, your eyes cast towards the near-cloudless sky, “you mean the prince and princess of the mythical Crystal Empire?”

“Or just, you know, my brother and my sister-in-law. It’s how I've always thought of them.”

“Ah, no pressure then,” you sigh. To be fair, you had plenty of time to prepare for this meeting. And it's not even supposed to be formal - just a vacation with Twilight's family. But the pressure that comes with you, an earth pony from a lakeside shack, meeting two rulers of a long forgotten empire and approaching them as the lover to their younger, much-loved sister…

A familiar purple hoof reassuringly grasps your equine shoulder. “You’ll be fine. They‘ll love you almost as much as I do, trust me.”

“D’aw, thanks Twilight,” you return her calming embrace with a hoof of your own. But something’s not right. Something you can’t quite put your hoof on… “Oh, where’s Spike? Is he not coming with us?”

Twilight shakes her head, “I needed someone to look after the library and do a few odd jobs while we’re away. Right now, he’s re-arranging the whole library from alphabetical-by-title to alphabetical-by-author.”

“Why’s that?”

“He laughed at your sexy-name again.”

You suppress a chuckle; half from the thought of a tiny grumbling dragon moving books from one end of the library to another, half from recalling the fact that Twilight’s taken to calling you ‘cuddle-fish‘ recently. She has her own reasons for calling you that.

Before long, the distant grind of metal and the hiss of steam beckons your attention. You glance around the station platform as the train - with only two carriages - draws to a stop before you. The only two ponies on the platform are you and Twilight. Before you can remark upon this, one of the train carriages open their doors. A pretty-looking train conductor pokes her head out from the door directly in front of you. You’re mildly surprised to recognise her as a crystal pony.

"Twilight Sparkle plus one?" the gemstone-infused mare asks. Twilight nods politely, prompting the conductor to step aside and grant you both access to the humble train’s cabin. “Next stop, Horseshoe Bay!”

When the doors close behind you, you're instantly enveloped by the warm, well-refined decorations inside. Banners bearing the seal of the Crystal Empire hang alongside each polished window, four comfortable chairs are placed around an ornate table in the centre of the fairly spacious cabin, not too far from a push-tray - manned by another crystal pony - containing cups and cutlery, sweets and other nibbles.

But what catches your attention more than anything else? The two extravagant ponies taking up two of the aforementioned chairs. One of them, a bleach-white stallion, blessed by a two-toned blue mane, turns his head upon noticing you enter.

“Twily!” he briskly gets up from the chair, nuzzling Twilight in a friendly greeting, “Nice to see you brought your husband along for the ride, Twi!”

Husband!? Wha-!?

The stallion bursts into laughter when he sees the blank look on your face. “Ah, I’m just kiddin’,” he extends a fetlocked hoof, “I’m Shining Armor, it’s a pleasure to meet ya! Twilight’s told me so much about you…”

As you shake hooves with the cheerful, hardy stallion, you can’t help but notice he stands slightly taller than you, and as well-built as you’d expect from Twilight’s stories about him serving as a Canterlot guard. Why he’d give up such a position for a role as an empirical prince… well, you’d do the same thing, honestly.

“-and do a little shake!”

You and Shining turn back towards the two fully grown mares giggling like fillies. Twilight’s sense of youth begins to surface from meeting her old foalsitter, perhaps even her oldest friend.

You’ve never seen a princess this closely before, you admit. Everything about this royal specimen demonstrates what a princess should be, from the smoothness of her violet, rose and pale-gold mane to the greatly softened cerise of her coat. Her very presence betrays a sense of pride and strength behind her grace and beauty. You could tell she was the leader of an Empire for a reason.

Oh geez you’re standing in front of a princess right now! Quick, do that thing ponies do in the presence of royalty.

Upon instinct, you lower your two front hooves and dip your head into a bow. “Ah, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza!” you cheerfully exclaim, “It’s an honour to meet you!”

You look up from your bow to find Twilight Sparkle and Princess Mi Amore Cadenza exchanging split-second blank looks. You sense the proverbial record-scratch sounding inside your head; oh no, you didn’t mispronounce her name, did you!?

And then the two mares, both unicorn and princess, start another melodic round of giggling. Er…

“You don’t have to bow to me,” she chuckles, “you’re Twilight Sparkle’s boyfriend! And that makes you an honest-to-goodness friend of mine!”

Did you hear that right!? The train’s only just set off, and already you’re being told you’re a friend of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Prince Shining Armor.

“Oh!” you say rather dumbly, feeling a blush of mild awkwardness as you pick yourself up off the floor. “Thank you, Princess Mi Amo-”

A royally-decorated pink hoof cuts you off; “Please, just call me Cadance. No need for the whole ‘princess’ song and dance here.”

“Well in that case,” straightening yourself out, you introduce yourself the old-fashioned way, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Cadance!”

You extend your hoof in expectation of a friendly hoof-shake. Instead, Cadance smirks and whacks your hoof with a solid bro-hoof.

Yup. You’re going to get along with these two just fine.

Part 2

“More pastry, guys?”

Shining Armor, former Captain of the Royal Guard, and co-ruler of the Crystal Empire, sits directly across the table from you, levitating another plate of delicious cinnamon rolls in front of your face. Well, how can you say no to round two? Twilight Sparkle, sitting snugly next to you, plucks up a roll for herself with the flick of her horn, and places it next to the rapidly-filling cup courtesy of the hovering teapot via Princess Mi Am… er, Cadance’s magic aura.

As friendly as the ambience is, what with the merry exchanging of stories and smiles, you feel a slight sense of unease by something. Looking around the table, glancing at Shining and Twilight chewing on their food as the rest of it levitates in front of them, and Cadance effortlessly floating the teapot from one cup to another, it becomes glaringly obvious.

You’re an earth pony. Everypony else in the room is using magic, not just for the sake of it, but because it’s pretty much been that way their whole lives. It’s hard to tell whether or not you should feel left out. It’s best just to play it safe and nibble your cinnamon roll as the royal couple start reliving their past adventures to you and Twilight.

The hours tick by, and the train chugs steadily onwards past the Rumbling Rock Ridge. To the north, Foal Mountain drifts by in the distance, glimmering in the midday sun. The longer you remain in the carriage, the more you think of these two rulers as living, breathing ponies rather than embodiments of leadership.

Shining Armor, for example, seems to behave more like a colt than a prince.

“So yeah, then Cadance just grabbed Spike AND the Crystal Heart outta mid air, like WHOOSH!” Shining Armor waves his hooves dramatically as he talks, because as we all know, doing that enhances all forms of storytelling tenfold. “And then she did this awesome thing where she used her magic alongside the Crystal ponies to repel the darkness and the whole city just lit up like P-SHEEW! And then evil King Sombra was all like ‘Noooo!’ and then BOOM!” He smacks the table with a burly hoof, causing all the cutlery on said table to jump, and the odd teacup - thankfully empty - to topple over.

“And that’s pretty much how we saved the Crystal Empire,” Cadance beams, finishing the story before her husband could get too excited. She turns her regal eyes towards you, “What about you? We’d like to get to know you better; what’s your story?”

In a few brief seconds, you scan through any past stories that stick out in your head. You can’t think of much, truth be told. At least, nothing that can top their latest story of saving a long-lost empire from ancient dark forces, nor their previous one of thwarting the insect-like army of the Changeling Queen using the power of love.

Your life is pretty uneventful - at least, it has been since you moved to Ponyville - and that’s exactly how you like it.

You gesture back to her; a combination of shrugging shoulders and a shaking head. “Nothing too interesting. I came from a family of swimmers, not adventurers. I guess I could tell you about my aunt and uncle who worked as lifeguards, or my nephew who became an Olympic diver, or my second-cousin who became a famous surfer. Hardly slaying monsters and saving kingdoms, I’m afraid. Pretty uneventful.”

Shining Armor chuckles to himself, one foreleg leaning on the table, “Heh, uneventful? I almost wish we could trade lives! That way Twily would have to save your rump instead of mine!”

A gasp. Cadance puts a hoof to her lips at a sudden thought, “Speaking of Twilight, you’ve never told us how you both met!”

Oh no. Oh dear Celestia, here we go…

“Hey, yeah,” Shining adds, “Come on, tell us about that! How did you first meet?”

Of course, you remember the story quite vividly; you first met Twilight trying to turn the beloved lake just outside your shack into a makeshift ice rink. However, her spell was untested and, when it came to checking the strength of the ice, she stumbled across a thin patch.

That’s where you came in, distraught with the fact that she’d frozen your pride and joy. You started yelling at the top of your lungs (which, you mentally add, are superior to most other ponies’ lungs due to you spending quite a lot of your life underwater). Twilight, startled by the yelling, slipped, fell through the thin ice with a crack and…

…well, she nearly drowned. And even after you and her dragon friend, Spike, saved her, she was still sick with hypothermia for a while. Oh well, you’ve both put that unpleasantness behind you. Now it’s time to tell her militarily-trained older brother with a small Empire under his command that you nearly snuffed his little sister within seconds of meeting her.

“Actually,” Twilight Sparkle, the light of your world, pipes up, “the first thing he ever did when we met was save my life.”

That certainly piques the interest of the royal couple. Twilight continues her version of the story unabated; how she fell through the ice, the shock of the freezing water preventing her from teleporting out. How, in her submerged, breathless panic, she saw you trying to save her with the combined efforts of her faithful dragon assistant. How, after she had broken free from her cold, watery prison, the first thing you did was take her into your home and dry her off without even asking for her name. Twilight even goes on to tell them about your unyielding compassion as, after she was diagnosed with hypothermia, you stuck around to help her recover.

Shining Armor and Cadance are just staring at you both in fascination, sometimes nodding their heads and spurring the story onwards with murmurs of agreement or curiosity (and, in Shining’s case, the occasional nibble of a cinnamon roll). Twilight finally finishes her recollection of the tale at your first kiss; the milkshake date at Sugarcube Corner. Due to her brother being in the room, she omits any… mature events that occurred shortly after.

“And after that first kiss, well…” in unison, you and Twilight shuffle closer to each other in your seats, “that’s when we knew it was love.”

You can see it in her eyes; that amethyst gleam of happiness as she relives your fateful first days together. Shining Armor and Cadance compliment the story’s ending with a harmonized “d’aww”.

If that’s not a sign for accepting you as part of the family, you don’t know what is.

*******

The sky outside the moving train pushes the burning sphere of daylight ever-onward. The city of Baltimare becomes a rising silhouette on the horizon, and Horseshoe Bay would be just beyond it.

“You’re gonna love it there,” Shining Armor rubs his fore-hooves together in anticipation, “Cadance and I rented a private villa for us all to stay in, and it’s right next to the beach and the Lover’s Arch!”

Cadance notices your double-take at the mention of a private villa; you had assumed it would just be a very posh hotel. “Being the diarchy of a small empire has its advantages!”

Twilight’s ears pricked up at a different word; “Wait, what’s the Lover’s Arch?”

“It’s a submerged natural arch formed just off the bay’s coast,” Cadance replies, “Above the water, it looks like a small cluster of rocks, but when you dive under the surface, it’s actually a huge heart-shaped arch on the sea bed. They say that if two ponies swim under the arch at the same time, they’re destined to be together forever!” The princess of love heaves a giddy sigh, her eyes drifting husband-wards. “So romantic!”

“Whoa,” you turn to face Shining Armor, “is that true?”

The stallion in question leans back in his seat. “It’s more like superstition and tradition amongst the Horseshoe Bay locals, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the rocks were enchanted or something; this is Equestria, after all.” He then lifts a foreleg and places it lovingly around his alicorn wife’s shoulders, “Either way, Cadance has always wanted to swim under it with me, so that’s why we rented the villa for the week.”

Twilight Sparkle gasps quietly to herself; you can guess what she’s about to say; “We should totally do that too!”

A tingle of unease creeps down your spine. You try not to bite your bottom lip. “Y-you really think so?”

“Of course!” your unicorn lover beams, “Shining and Cadance are both proficient in magic and love. You’re the best swimmer I know, heck, you’re better than most in Equestria. This underwater - and possibly magical - Lover’s Arch thingie is the perfect way for us to bond as a family!”

Oh for pony‘s sake, you didn’t tell her about… no, you didn’t, did you?

“Um, yeah, it sounds fun,” you cross your hind legs under the table. You hope the others don’t notice the anxious, repeated tapping your rear hooves are making on the train carriage’s floor. “I haven’t been in the sea for, uh, a long time.”

Your eyes drift towards the nearby window as the city of Baltimare looms ever-closer. Soon the train will terminate there, and you’ll most likely be getting a simple carriage from there to Horseshoe Bay. Personally, you knew of the location well enough; you just thought you’d be able to avoid swimming in the ocean there, preferring to lie in Celestia’s sunlight on the beach, or sip the exotic drinks and dance with your lavender lover in Luna’s moonlight.

Heck, even if you felt the need to submerge yourself in water, you’d be perfectly happy dipping yourself into a sun-soaked swimming pool, and nuts to the chlorine; it’d still be better than swimming in - ugh - the ocean.

No. Maybe it’s just bad nostalgia. You’ve grown up since then. Maybe once you see the greeny-blue waters with your own eyes, you’ll realise that there’s nothing to fear from it.

Twilight snuggles up to you, glad to have your support in the idea. You push yourself closer to Twilight in return, hoping she’ll be able to support you when the time comes.

Meanwhile, Shining Armor prods the bare, crumb-dotted plate with a hoof, envelopes himself in deep thought for a moment, then politely asks the crystal pony staff for more cinnamon rolls.

Part 3

The private horse-drawn carriage ride from Baltimare train station to Horseshoe Bay is short and sweet. The summer sky is painted a brilliant orange by the time you come to a stop outside the lavish villa just on the edge of the local town.

The walls of the building are painted a soft cream colour. On one side, the powdery-golden sands of the beach, on the other, a simple cobblestone road that leads to the town itself, dotted with locals and tourists alike here and there. You can’t see much beyond the villa’s walls, at least, not from the outside. One would suppose that’s where the ‘private’ part of the term ‘private villa’ comes from.

With a nod of acknowledgement from the pullers, you leave alongside Twilight as her two royal family members generously tip them. You’d tip them yourself, but the amount of bits you have compared to them, well… you live full-time in a shack, that’s all that needs to be said about you in terms of wealth.

The four ponies - Cadance, Shining, Twilight and yourself - unload their respective luggage and take them to the villa’s decorative gate. Three of these ponies levitate their oddly excessive baggage with their horns’ aura. One of the ponies thinks it’s better to just strap the saddlebag on and walk as normal.

Pfft, magic.

*******

The interior of the villa is cool, in both senses of the word; the interior atmosphere takes the edge off any heat from Horseshoe Bay’s decidedly warmer sun. The villa also takes away the fanciness that would usually come with a prince or princess’ domain, and replaces it with more practicality and usage, giving the ponies within a freedom of utility rather than royal banners and the traditional namby-pamby. Shining Armor and Cadance must see this as a welcome change.

It’s got two bedrooms, each with a comfortable two-pony bed - you and Twilight dump your luggage in one room, the royal couple set theirs in another - and a large kitchen/dining area for cooking food, eating food and lounging around talking about which nearby restaurant makes the best food.

Looking out of one of the generously-sized windows, you notice the well-lit private swimming pool; you hadn’t noticed it from the outside due to the villa’s protective walls. The surrounding area of the pool has everything you could imagine; a shaded bar area, complete with an outside mini-fridge. More than enough deck chairs to go around. The wall’s high enough to prevent onlookers peeping over it, yet low enough to ensure the sun hitting the pool itself at all the best angles throughout the day.

Maybe tomorrow you’ll have a splash around in that… wait, no. Tomorrow you’re gonna be at the beach with Twilight and company, trying to swim under this ‘Lover’s Arch’ under the ocean’s surface. Emphasis on trying.

You haven’t set hoof in seawater in a long time. And for a very good reason. Not since you gained your Cutie Mark and…

“Hey, c’mon,” the laid back voice of a stallion brings you back to the present. Shining Armor’s head pokes through the doorway; “Cadance saw this sweet restaurant on the way here, and it’s right around the corner. Let’s give it a shot!”

Yes. Shining has the right idea. You’re here to enjoy the vacation with Twilight and her family so that’s exactly what you intend to do.

“Ready when you ponies are.”

*******

The outside air is cool against your fur coat. The sun has properly set now, and the lantern-dotted streets provide a calm, content backdrop for the exterior dining area of the restaurant.

The food is delicious, and the local pony-folk are polite enough not to give the Crystal Empire royals a second glance, preferring to just let them enjoy the meal. The restaurant sometimes caters to celebrities, according to the owners, so the locals see their presence as more of a passing interest than a paparazzi-esque obsession.

“So our plans tomorrow,” Cadance thoughtfully swirls the straw around her fancy-cocktail-with-a-tiny-umbrella-in-it, “first thing’s first, the beach and the Lover’s Arch. Then we check out the rest of the town and shops, maybe go our own way, then meet up back at the villa in the evening and hang out by the pool?”

“Sounds good to me!” your lavender-coated love chirps. Shining toasts the occasion and you mumble some form of agreement to the idea in your drink.

You’d contribute more to the conversation, but you’re really not looking forward to tomorrow. Being a seaside resort, you can smell the ocean’s salt on the breeze. It’s there, just outside the town. Washing over the powdery sands. Reminding you with each cold, frothy wave-

“Are you cold, sweetheart?” The gentle touch of Twilight’s hoof slows your heartbeat. “You’re shivering.”

Funny. You weren’t even aware of that before now.

“I’m… I’m alright,” you dismiss with a short wave of your hoof, “just a one-off twitch, I guess.”

You don’t have the heart to tell her, do you? Twilight’s always been impressed by your proficiency as a swimmer. The only problem is, she’s only ever seen you swim in your own lake just outside of Ponyville. She has no idea that you can’t dip a hoof in the ocean without so much as fearing for your life.

To put your lavender lover at ease, you give her a peck on the forehead, gently pressing your lips just below the base of her horn. You know the spot.

As predicted, her face blooms into a faint blush, and she forgets all about your unintended shivering. She shouldn’t need to worry about your problems. You’ll cross that bridge when you come to it. For now, just enjoy the rest of the night with her.

Speaking of which, the night’s just about to get a lot more interesting, courtesy of Cadance ordering another fancy-cocktail-with-a-tiny-umbrella-in-it and bringing on the next round of drinks. Well, since it's a vacation...

*******

“I’m tellin’ you guys, I’m not drunk,” Princess Cadance drunkily drunkie drunk.

You count on your hoof how many rounds of exotic drinks you’ve had in the past few hours, but because you’re counting on your single hoof, you just resort to counting “one” over and over again.

The swaying floor tells you that you may have had a smidge more than that.

“No, I’m serious,” the pink princess affirms, “I’m not as think as you drunk I am.”

“Oh really?” Twilight Sparkle challenges her old friend by pointing at the nearby clock hanging on the bar‘s wall. “Can you tell the time?”

Cadance promptly turns to the clock. “I’m not drunk, time!”

You check the clock yourself, and decide that it’s probably best if you stumble back towards the villa soon. Any later and you may forget the way back, despite it being just around the corner.

Shining Armor seems to have read your mind; perhaps it’s that male intuition from one stallion to another, or the realisation that his wife is arguing with a timepiece. He stands up on all four hooves - doing a commendable job at hiding his faint wobble - and makes a quiet announcement to the three of you.

“You know, I think there’s some drinks in the mini-fridge back at the villa. We should head back so we have somewhere to collapse.”

You second the notion without hesitance. Twilight follows suit, helping Cadance to her own four hooves. The princess’ sense of stability kicks in a moment later, her gorgeous downy wings shooting out horizontally to act as a makeshift balancing aid.

“To the next destination!” she quips, giving that stubborn clock the cold shoulder as she exits very slowly and carefully.

*******

“H-hey,” Shining Armor tipsily nudges you during the walk home, “yer starin' at my little sister’s butt there.”

His observation was not wrong; Twilight and Cadance were trotting just a few steps in front of you two stallions, and you’d spent most of the short, but slow trip hoping your girlfriend’s swaying buttocks would lead you back to the villa safe and sound.

“Well, technically,” you correct him, “I’m staring at my girlfriend’s butt.”

Twilight’s ear twitches ever-so-slightly. A classic sign that you would have recognised as ‘I heard that’. However, as previously established, it's not her ears you're paying close attention to.

“Yeah, but even so,” Shining replies matter-of-factly, “save it for when I’m not standin' right next to ya, y‘know?”

"Aw, c'mon, you fixed Twilight and me up with our own room for a reason, didn't you..?"

"S'only cause my li'l sis is growin' up," Shining's slurred words increase as he tries to think, walk and talk simultaneously. "I can respec' that she'd wunna be romantic in the romantic town with the romantic magicul unnerwader rock... and my wife's like the... princess of romantic love or somthin', I dunno... so what kinda husband'd I'd be if I didn't... y'know... damnit Twily, stop eggin’ him on!”"

Twilight promptly stops wiggling her butt at you. Oh well.

Part 4

Luckily, you all manage to amble back to the villa with minimal hassle. Ladies first; Cadance opens the door, drifts to her room and collapses. Moments later, she’s sleeping like a princess. A drunken princess that snores like a wood saw, but a princess nonetheless.

“She’s out like a light,” your girlfriend giggles mischievously, “you know, we should take advantage of this opportunity…”

“You read my mind,” you tell her. “I’ll get the marker pen.”

“Wha? No, I didn’t mean that! I meant, well…” she trails off, but her seductive gaze and a twitch of her tail conveys the rest of the message perfectly.

“Oh, sex!” you declare. “You want sex, that’s it!”

It is worth noting that you still might be a little drunk.

“Shh, do you want my brother to hear that!?”

“Oops, geez, sorry, wasn’t thinking!” You turn around to see if he’d actually heard, but…

“Twilight, where is your brother?”

You check the other bedroom; Cadance is still fast asleep. The bathroom. The kitchen. The pool area outside. He’s nowhere to be found.

“Did… did we lose him on the way back?” Twilight scratches the back of her head with a hoof.

“Er, I don’t think so, I was walking alongside him the whole time.” It occurs to you that you did have your back turned when you were entering the villa itself, and that since Cadance and Twilight were the first two in, Shining Armor would have been just behind the group, giving him the chance to wander off at that point.

“I’ll go look for him,” you, Twilight’s brave stallion (and also handsome, lake-loving cuddle-fish), accepts the challenge to bring home your fair maiden’s missing sibling. “Get some rest, we’ll be right back.”

Upon leaving the villa, it occurs to you that you just willingly turned down sex with Twilight in favour of fumbling about in the darkness to find her missing brother. That’s… a silly thing to do. But honest too. You suppose she’ll remember that act of selflessness, if she remembers anything about tonight at all.

Now where did Shining Armor go? You suppose you should search the town’s sleepy streets…

“Wooo! I’ve got a beach all to myself! Wooo!”

Or the beach, you should definitely check the beach first.

*******

It doesn’t take long to find the marble-white stallion. Luna’s moonlight is so vivid tonight that his coat stands out like a sore hoof in the darkness. Plus, you could hear him yell drunken gloats at the sea.

“I’m a prince! I own a frickin’ tiny empire! Suck it, Horseshoe Bay! Wooo!”

That’s your favourite one so far.

“Hey Shining, there you are!” The prince of said tiny empire recoils from the sea for a moment, before realising that it wasn’t actually talking back. Upon finding the source of your voice, he gives you a friendly wave before sitting down on the powdery sands and inviting you to join him.

You would probably enjoy the minute-or-two trot along the beach to catch up with your lover’s brother; the sand is soft and cool in the moonlight, and the salty breeze reminds you of your foal-hood home before moving to Ponyville. However, the repeated whispers of waves washing over the shore sound almost like hisses of warning. Don’t get too close to them. They will probably bite.

“We were wondering where you disappeared off to,” you explain upon finally reaching the stallion and taking a sandy seat next to him. “You just slipped away when our backs were turned.”

The royal unicorn chuckles frivolously, dispelling any cause for concern. “Sorry man. I’m just excited about tomorrow.” He jabs a hoof outwards toward the watery hissing. He probably hears it as something less threatening. “Cadance has always wanted to come here and swim under that… er… Love-Rock..? Sexy-Arch..?”

“Lover’s Arch?”

“Yeah, that it! Anyways, she’s finally gonna be able to do that with the guy she loves. And I know it’s probably not really magic down there, but it shows that she genuinely wants us to be together forever. Like, as if royal marriage and having the power of love wasn’t enough already, she wants to take my hoof and go overkill with it as a couple.”

“The whole nine yards and nine more, right?”

“Exactly! Man, it’s gonna be so awesome.” Shining Armor leans back reflectively, using his forelegs to support himself. He looks to the sky, his booze-addled eyes darting from one glistening star to another. “I love Cadance so much. And this proves that she loves me back, not like I needed proof anyway. Take away my title as a prince, my years as a royal guard and the strength I‘ve built from that, even my horn and my magic. So long as I have Cadance, I’m still the happiest stallion alive.”

Aw, that’s the nicest thing you’ve heard the big tough guy say. Wait a minute…

“I don’t have a horn. Or experience as a royal guard. Or a crown.”

“Do you love Tw-?”

“Of course I do,” you cut across Shining’s question. “Don’t even ask that. And yes, I feel like the luckiest pony there is whenever she’s around.”

“So I guess we aren’t so different after all.”

There was a moment of contemplative silence from the normally loud and buddy-buddy stallion. Then he said something completely out of the blue.

“Dude, let‘s go swimming.”

“Wh- what?”

The somewhat tipsy prince pulls himself to his hooves. “C’mon, man, Twilight’s been tellin’ me how awesome of a swimmer you are, I wanna see it!”

Oh no. No no no. You can’t. Not in the sea. Not at night. Not without Twilight for support. Make something up!

“Er, I’d love to,” you mutter, “but it’s way too dark, we’ll be doing it tomorrow anyways...”

“Aw man, come on! Gimme a sneak preview or somethin’.”

“No way, the water will be freezing this time of- hey what are you-!?”

Before you can finish voicing an objection, a light rose aura lifts you effortlessly from the sandy ground. The unicorn’s inebriation means his magical grip on you isn’t as steady as you’d want it to be; in fact, he can’t seem to hold you still at all. Though that might be because of your constant struggling.

“Put me down put me down put me down put me down put me down-!”

“Alright, fine,” Shining finally gives up, turning his aura off like a light and letting you drop harmlessly (“Oof!”) to the ground. “Tell you what, I’ll go into the water first, then you follow, okay?”

“Uh…”

“Great, let’s go!”

Shining sloshes his way over the finely-lapping waters, wading until he’s damp up to his chest. He cockily wanders back and forth amongst the frothy waves before turning back to you.

“Told ya. There’s nothing wrong, ya scaredy cat! The water isn’t even that cold OH MY GODS SOMETHING’S GOT MY HOOF AAAAAGH-!”

Seeing the heroic royal guard and prince flailing for his life - bucking, kicking his hooves in a frenzy and screaming - doesn’t exactly help with your oceanic phobia.

“AAAAAGH GET IT OFF GET IT OFF GET IT OFF-!”

And in that horrible instance, the slimy mass of what appears to be tentacles finally lets go of Shining Armor’s leg… and flies through the cold air before latching onto your face with a SPLAP!

The impact knocks you clean off your hooves, until the next thing you know you're on the ground writhing in panic. You’d scream about the sloppy monster enveloping your face, but you can’t get the taste of seaweed out of… wait a minute.

“OH SWEET LUNA IT’S GOT YOU TOO-!”

“Don’t worry, it’s just-”

“WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE-!”

“It’s just seaweed!”

“TELL CADANCE I LOVE HER- wait, what!?”

Shining looks between you and the limp plant dangling off your face. An awkward silence, broken only by the gentle crashing of waves against the sand, fills the air as you scoop the harmless mess off your muzzle.

“I… thought it was a sea monster or a jellyfish.” he sheepishly explains.

“Naw,” you shake your head, “it’d have stung your leg if that was true.”

“Maybe it could’ve had it’s sting turned off?”

“Jellyfish can’t turn their sting off.”

“Ever asked one?”

*******

The stumble back to the villa was short and sweet. Both of you seemed to have sobered up while you were yelling about sea monsters a few minutes prior.

“So, Shining Armor,” you ask once you’d plucked up the courage, “what was all that about?”

“Hmm? Oh,” lowers his head in embarrassment. “I’m not a big fan of the sea. The only reason I wanna do this thing with Cadance is because I love her.”

“You have a fear of the ocean too!?”

“Nah, I was just spooked for a second.” he shakes his head in denial before something dawns on him. “Wait, you have a fear of the ocean? Really!?”

Oops. Way to let that one slip out.

“Please don’t tell Twilight,” you beg him. “I’m trying to keep that a secret!”

“Eh, I’ll have forgotten by the morning,” the stallion points out his dizzy, drunken head. “But how are you gonna do that Lovey Dovey Arch thingie tomorrow if you can‘t stand the sea?”

“I don’t know!” you throw your hooves up in exasperation. “I’m hoping to cross that bridge when I come to it, but I’m not so sure any more. I’m gonna look like an idiot tomorrow, I just know it.”

“Maybe you’ll feel different in the morning,” Shining encourages. “And look on the bright side; the fact that jellyfish have survived for like 650 million years despite not having a brain is great news for idiots!”

"I'll take your word for it."

"Thanks buddy. Wh- hey!"

Part 5

The next morning is kind enough to you, considering what you’d been drinking last night. Your first feeling upon waking up is the soft, hot air drifting across your neck and jaw; Twilight’s sweet, gentle breath as her head nuzzles your shoulder. The scent of lavender emanating from her mane.

Your second feeling upon waking is her upper hooves sleepily wrapped around your shoulders, enveloping you in a tight hug. The rest of Twilight’s body is draped over your side, her hind legs tangled around your own. You can feel her heart beating, her chest rising and falling with each breath, her bodily heat radiating, pressing up against you.

Your third feeling upon waking is the eager… stiffness between your legs. This feeling is totally expected, due to the purple personification of beauty and sexiness sharing the bed with you.

Right there. Under the covers with you. Breathing. Nuzzling. Embracing. Hot.

Oh gods she’s hotter than Celestia’s sun during an Appleloosan heat-wave. You can hardly take it! Maybe if you give her a gentle prod a few times, she’ll become aroused too.

“… … …”

“Nnnnostoppokingmewithyourpenis. Ihaveahangover.”

Damn. You totally thought that would work. Luckily, you know just what to say to wake her up properly.

“Want something nice for breakfast?”

That certainly gets her attention. After a moment of silent thought, she replies; “Dandelion sandwich. No, wait… toasted dandelion sandwich.”

“With extra butter melted into the toast?” you ask.

She responds by dozily smacking her lips and making adorable ‘num num’ sounds. You’ll take that as a yes.

You decide it’s within your best interest to wear a dressing gown while fixing up breakfast; you wouldn’t want Twilight’s brother or the renowned princess of the Crystal Empire to see how… attentive your undercarriage is this morning.

Sliding the bread under the grill, you think back to the previous night. At least, what you can remember of it. Okay, now retrace your steps from that restaurant… you remember Twilight’s butt (duh), sitting on the beach with Shining Armor… and fighting a sea monster? That can’t be right.

What else happened? You went back to the villa with Shining Armor, didn’t you? Then just collapsed next to Twilight and drifted off to sleep? No, there’s something else that happened between those events, and you can’t for the life of you figure it out…

“Oh, good morning.” Princess Mi Amore Cadenza voice breaks your attempt to recall the rest of the night. “You wouldn’t happen to have any cleansing wipes nearby, would you?”

“I think there are some in the bathroom,” you reply, turning around from the grill to meet her face to face. “But why would you need cleansing wi-?”

Oh yeah. THAT’S what you did before falling asleep. Mystery solved.

*******

Cadance is surprisingly forgiving to you, considering that you’d been defacing said princess's face with a marker pen. “It’s the first time anypony’s dared to do such a thing,” she explains. “It kinda made me feel like a normal pony again, back before I earned my horn.”

You guess she’d have a very different outlook on the situation if the ink hadn’t have washed off so easily. Lucky you.

After Twilight had been successfully lured out of bed by the scent of hot, buttery toast and dandelion, the four of you gather in the main dining area to plan out the big day. Shining Armor, you discover, is wearing a dressing gown too. Knowing the unspoken language of stallion-wearing-clothes-in-the-morning, you decide not to chase the idea any further. He’s probably thinking the same thing about your own concealing attire.

“I hope you’ve all remembered to bring goggles,” your lavender lover grins. “As soon as we’re ready, we’re heading to the beach!”

Shining Armor and Cadance are can’t help but applaud the up-and-coming trip. You try to feign excitement too, but the itch of unease, that hot feeling in the back of your head, makes it hard to sound convincing. You aren’t certain, but you could’ve sworn Shining picked up on it. Twilight doesn’t notice, however; she’s too busy double-checking her list.

“Goggles? Check. Towels? Check. Vinegar? Check. Bottled water? Check. Snacks? Check. Sunblock Spell?”

Shing… fwash!

“Check. And away we go!”

*******

Celestia’s sun does a wonderful job lighting up the whole of Horseshoe Bay. Families of ponies, griffons, donkeys and all sorts dot the golden shoreline. Laughing. Sunbathing. Knocking bright, bouncy beach balls to each other. Snacking on ice creams and sipping drinks from ice-coolers. Splashing about in the cool waters lapping the sand.

There’s no way the sea could be as scary as you think, right?

Right!?

With each step you take towards the endless expanse of green-blue before you, the more your confidence shrivels. You don’t even notice the way you’re edging closer to Twilight Sparkle for moral support.

“Are… are you okay?” she asks. “You’re shivering, surely you can’t be cold in this weather..?”

Uh oh.

“I’m just a little nervous is all,” you shrug. “It’s been a while since I’ve last been in the sea.”

What, just a little nervous? No mention of it being your number-one life-long paralysing fear? Suit yourself, idiot.

“Ah,” your girlfriend’s voice adopts a very… contemplative tone. “I get it. I’m a little anxious too, to be honest.” She shakes the contents of her saddlebag. “That’s why I brought goggles; I heard seawater’s bad for the eyes. And this vinegar’s just in case we get a jellyfish sting. And I packed extra towels too. Gotta take all these precautions!”

D’aww. That’s the Twilight Sparkle you know and love; prepared for anything. Or at least, anything that she’s made aware of.

Twilight’s eyes glance briefly towards the royal couple a few paces ahead. The unicorn stops in her tracks, giving them a second or two to walk even further away… just enough distance for her voice to remain out of earshot. That’s when she leans closer to you and whispers in your ear;

“And if you’re still a little worried, I think I know just how to… relieve the tension.”

“Oh?” you have to admit - that sentence piqued your interest.

“Think about it,” she continues, her voice ever-quiet, ever-sultry. “The sea’s just one huge lake for us. And remember what we do whenever we’re alone in a lake..?”

“I see where you’re going with this,” you draw yourself closer to her, almost to the point of sharing her breath, “and I like it.”

“We’ll wait until Shining Armor and Cadance have had their turn swimming under the Lover’s Arch,” she explains. “We’ll wait until they’re gone, then we’ll do the Arch together. And while we’re down there, we’ll…”

Twilight Sparkle whispers a few ideas in your ear. A few suggestions. A few positions. To sum it up in two words? Aquatic intimacy. You agree with every little thing she suggests.

Or at least, you would if you could convince yourself that a dip in the sea isn’t going to kill you.

*******

You look down.

Water and sand flows between the cannons of your legs. Each underhoof pebble, so hard to see thanks to the light-distorting waves, has the potential to hide something bitey. Or stingy. Or perhaps both.

You look up again.

Twilight’s a few feet in front of you. She’s genuinely confused; you’re only a few inches deep in water, while she’s wet to just short of her barrel. You should have warned her about this long ago… but you were too afraid to let her down. You’re her boyfriend - the water-loving stallion. You couldn’t possibly spoil her idea of you just because this particular water is saltier than what you’re used to.

Behind the purple unicorn’s back, a good number of yards away, you see two specks - Shining Armor and Cadance’s heads bobbing on the water‘s surface. They seem to be treading water near what looks like a small pillar of natural rock. It doesn’t take much guesswork to know they’ve found the Lover’s Arch.

A short splash later, they’re gone. Looks like they’re already taking the plunge. Best of luck to them, you suppose.

But… you and Twilight Sparkle are still in the shallows. Exchanging awkward, fearful glances.

No. You can’t let her down like this. You won’t. You’re going to show the sea who‘s boss. You’re going to dive underwater with her, and you’re going to swim under that maybe-magical-maybe-not hunk of rock with her. And it’s going to be the best thing ever, and it’s going to be one of the best memories in your life.

Twilight also promises submerged sexy times once Shining and Cadance leave, but y’know, that’s more of a bonus against the whole “true love persevering over fear” thing.

Do it for her.

Taking one slow, cautious step at a time, you wade through the briny waters towards the mare of your life. You tell yourself that each pebble, each grain of sand, each tickle of seaweed is harmless. Because they are.

You finally come within reaching distance of Twilight. Just as you’re about to give her a relieved smile… something brushes against your leg. Your heart stops. Your mane feels like it’s standing on end.

Oh thank goodness for that. It’s just a tiny, silvery fish. So small. So harmless. A second later, it scurries away.

“See?” she reassures you, “There’s nothing to be scared of at all!”

“I don’t even remember why I was afraid.”

It’s true; you can’t remember why were you ever fearful in the first place. Odd. You’d think it would be at the forefront of your mind by now. But as long as it isn’t, you may as well strike while the iron’s hot.

You take Twilight by the hoof, as a gentlecolt should. “Let’s do this. Together.”

Just as you take a few more steps towards the ocean blue, you spy two familiar faces paddling for the shore.

“That… was a close call…” gasps the pink-coated alicorn, a faint tinge of red glowing behind her cheeks.

“I… I…” her white husband tries again and again to finish his sentence between ragged breaths, “I was worried too. Thought you’d… you’d at least cast a gill-giver spell… or… or at least a bubble-head charm!”

“Didn’t want it to… interfere with the Arch’s love-magic…” Cadance responds, “…if any.”

“Yeah, well… oh, hey you two!” Shining’s hooves finally make contact with the sand beneath the waves, “I guess you guys are up for it next?”

Twilight confidently nods, “We’re ready now, sure. What’s it like?”

Cadance catches up just in time to reply between each breath; “It’s… wonderful! A little… dangerous if you’re not using… a breathing aid, though.”

You share a knowledgeable smirk with your lover. Like that’s ever stopped you two before.

“Aside from that, it’s awesome,” Twilight’s brother adds. “Just a warning though; Cadance and I saw a whale as we were leaving the Arch. It could just be lost, but I wouldn‘t wanna get too close to the thing. Looks like it could swallow a pony whole.”

“Whoa, a whale? Really? What did it look like? I might‘ve read about it!”

“Geez Twily, we were underwater without a breathing spell. We didn’t really have time for a polite conversation with it…”

A whale? Strange. What would a whale be doing this close to shore? But then again, you guess it’s not the first time that’s happened-

I can’t breathe! Where’s the surface!? Where am I!?

-could just be lost-

What the heck is that!? Somepony! Anypony!

-could swallow a pony whole-

Help me!

You remember now. Oh Celestia, you remember everything. The very water you’re standing in grows cold when you realise the horrible truth.

“I can’t do this.”

You don’t know what’s worse - the creeping sense of fright crawling up your spine, or Twilight’s sudden recoil at your words. “Wh- what? What do you mean, you can’t do this?”

You don’t answer. You don’t waste any time at all. Every second spent in the water is a second that… thing could just snap you up at a whim.

“Wait! Come back!”

Too late. Twilight’s desperate calls for calm fall upon deaf ears as you turn around and wade for the shore. You don’t stop upon reaching dry land either - like you’d want to stay on the beach after letting Twilight down like that.

The other three ponies, still chest-deep in the sea, just stand and stare.

“Please… come back.”

Behind the lens of her goggles, a single tear rolls from her eye.

“We were so close.”

Part 7

The fluffy towel around your head goes from dry to damp within seconds as your ruffle it through your sodden mane. You mumble your thanks to Twilight for levitating it to you from the bathroom to the bedroom you and your beloved pony are sharing.

Twilight sits on the bed beside you with a somewhat childish smirk on her face. As soon as you finish scrubbing your mane with the towel, she perches herself on the bed behind you, grasps a soft horse-brush with her magic aura and starts brushing it into shape. You don’t mind - you hardly ever maintain that mess on your head anyway, so she can have her fun; meanwhile, you focus on drying out your tail.

“I can’t help but wonder,” the unicorn says, measuring each stroke of the brush an even number of times before moving onto another section of your mane, “and don’t take this the wrong way, but… whatever caused you to get thalassophobia?”

You pause for a moment of consideration. You at least owe her an explanation. Perhaps it’s better that you get it out of the way, now that you’re alone.

You take a deep breath, your eyes rolling towards the ceiling in a state of recollection.

“It all started when I first got my Cutie Mark back in my home town. A tiny seaside village just north of Las Pegasus, and way below Vanhoover. That general area, hugging the western Equestrian coastline. I told you about my family, about how we’re all kinda gifted with water in one way or another, right?”

Your lavender love nods wordlessly, her brush ever-stroking your mane.

“Well, mine was swimming. Big surprise, eh? Except I hated competitive swimming; it was free-diving in the sea that sparked my special talent and gave me my Cutie Mark. I just felt so free, swimming among all the fish and the corals and the rocks. I still remember my surprise when I swam back to shore, only to find all of my friends pointing at my flank in disbelief. My parents were so happy that they arranged a party for the very next day.”

Your grip on the towel you’re holding tightens. You don’t like talking about what happened after that.

“So we held a massive party on that exact beach. The same place I earned my Cutie Mark would be the same place I’d celebrate having it. And during that party, I guess I got a little over-excited. I wanted to show everypony there how good of a swimmer I was. So I kinda ran into the ocean to show off, and…”

The very ambience of the room grows cold. Even Twilight noticed it; she’d stopped brushing.

“I swam out too far. In waters too deep. I didn’t even notice until I was face to face with an baleen whale. It just swam past me so quickly, oblivious at first. Caused a strong water current that dragged me through the water, deeper and deeper. I finally broke out of its currents, but I didn’t know which way was up. Didn’t know where the surface was. And before I could even gather my thoughts I…”

As much as recalling the story hurts you, just getting it over and done with would be worth it. At least it would be off your chest.

“I saw the whale swimming towards me again. It must’ve thought I was a stray fish or some plankton or something. If I hadn’t have swam out of the way in time it would’ve…”

Your grim recollection is interrupted by the sudden embrace of your mare’s warm, pastel-purple forelegs from behind. You welcome this new development, the stark contrast to your story that reminds you that everything’s okay with the world. You show her how you welcome it by turning your head to the side and giving her an adoring peck on the cheek.

“I never went back into the ocean again after that,” you sigh, eager to put an end to your story. “Which sucks, as you can guess. Can you imagine just getting your Cutie Mark, then a day later you can’t even make use of your special talent without suffering a panic attack? Over time, I guess I just started directing my fears to the sea itself rather than the whale. So much so, that I moved away as soon as I was old enough. Just drifted from town to town.”

You fully turn towards Twilight on the bed, calmly locking your eyes with hers.

“Eventually, I found a lake just outside a town called Ponyville. It was the only body of water I could remember - that wasn’t a pool or a bathtub, of course - that I could actually swim in without fearing for my life. I finally felt like I was home there. So much so, that I set up a simple shack with whatever funds I had left, and decided to live there permanently, right on the edge of Ponyville.”

With half-lidded eyes and a heightened heartbeat, you feel yourself leaning towards Twilight Sparkle, her breathless, parted lips, and her warm, scented breath…

“I lived in that shack for a few years. Until one day, I looked out from my window and saw a beautiful mare standing by the lake… and magically turning it into a hazardous freezie pop.”

“Snrk! Bah hah hah haaah!” And in one subversive instance, the unicorn falls from hopelessly romantic to hopelessly rolling around on the bed laughing. “Heh heh, yeah, I think I know the rest!”

Your eyes soak up the image of the wonderful unicorn lying over the bed, her mane flowing beside her. Twilight's chest rising and falling with each breath. That wonderful, beautiful… sexy mare.

You seductively roll over, positioning yourself over her hot, oh-so-tempting body. “You know, I should really thank that whale; if I hadn’t have moved away from home, I never would have found you.”

The corners of Twilight’s lips curl into a smile. Her eyes gleam with a sense of longing, as if she’d just imagined a world where you two had never met, and she was silently blessing that it wasn’t the case. With her forelegs hooked over you, she pulls your bodies closer still, the sensual heat alone causing your muscles to quiver.

“In that case,” she finally replies, her voice dripping with desire, “let’s make the most of what we have.”

Part 8 [Mature]

You’d been yearning for this moment since you’d arrived in Horseshoe Bay. You and Twilight Sparkle, finally alone together. The recent stresses of today are already melting away with each passing second of her company. Your eager body is positioned above hers, sharing the soft, warm bed that’s about to get a whole lot warmer. With the brief flicker of your lover’s horn, the curtains pull themselves shut, darkening the room just enough from the persisting afternoon sunlight.

Your skin makes the faintest brush against hers. You can feel Twilight Sparkle’s rapid heartbeat through her chest, rising and falling with each passing breath. One of your forelegs are wrapped sensually around her shoulders, the other’s being used to support yourself in the oncoming passion.

She locks her beautiful, deep violet eyes with you, silently knowing what’s to come, before they start to slowly but surely close. Instinctively, her warm lips part as her face closes the distance toward your own.

With a short, steadying breath, you waste no time in delaying the passion any longer. Your mouth, your face, your whole body pushes itself forward; your lips blissfully connecting, the sensation of soundless, sightless fireworks as your reward. The very taste of Twilight Sparkle’s lips, the heat of her breath, the tiny vibration of pleasure from her throat as she sighs in contentment…

You want more. So much more.

Further down your body, you can sense the pounding within your chest. You can feel Twilight’s torso pressed up against yours, grinding, sliding, teasing…

And further down your body still, your blood races. Tingling. Twitching. Your hips, on impulse, gently press against hers. And then you press against her again. And again. And again…

Finally, Twilight’s mouth opens in a short, satisfying gasp. Your tongue had been hungrily pressing against her lips for a moment or two; now it sees the opportunity to taste her once again. Twilight doesn’t mind; rather, the relishes the occasion.

Your tongues tease, dance, wrestle with one another’s as Twilight continues pressing herself against you. Her inner thigh brushes against your now-erect shaft, causing it to twitch from a rush of euphoria that catches you off-guard. With your tongues still mingling in their hot, wet embrace, you moan in pleasure and in pleading as your desire to go one step further builds within your loins.

Without breaking your lips from you lover’s, you shift position ever-so-slightly. Instead of your manhood teasing the insides of Twilight’s thigh, it now settles over her soft, tender vulva.

Your hips continue their natural pattern, directing, rubbing your shaft against her, feverishly sliding back and forth without penetration.

A shiver of sexual anticipation runs though you, the dull throb of your erect member strengthening with each passing second. Twilight’s heavy breathing is occasionally broken by a muffled moan vibrating from her throat, only for it to stop at her lips locked in a sensual paradise with your own.

You finally part your lips from the long, wonderful kiss, giving Twilight a chance to breathe; her first thankful gasp is accompanied by a short, lustful cry. You take the opportunity to ravish her neck with short, sensitive kisses, feeling the rush of her every breath, the vibration of her every moan. All the while, your privates continue to rub against hers, faster and faster as the pleasure mounts.

Suddenly, Twilight squirms in a fit of arousal under you. Her hooves, all four of them, grip your body tightly as her muscles tighten. She heaves a hot breath or two as her limbs twitch, and she sighs in contentment a moment later. You continue the familiar pattern of rubbing your shaft - the sexual pressure racing towards its breaking point - against her entrance, except with one very noticeable difference; the sensation is far, far more… lubricated.

The pleasure, the heat, the mingling of limbs and tongues and sweet, hot sweat… it doesn’t take long for you to feel like you’re about to burst. With all of the mental control you can muster, you deny your begging rod the pleasure of discharging for another moment, and another, and another. You whisper a few hushed, desperate words into your lover’s ear, pleading with her to let you inside. She dumbly nods - dizzy from her own ecstasy, the book-loving mare cannot even string a sentence together in this state - and allows you to slide yourself int- into her- aah!

No sooner had you buried yourself many inches deep into her, did you feel your last defences breaking. Feeling the inevitable rush of your climax drawing closer and closer, you thrust as deeply and quickly as you can, gaining as much stimulation as you can possibly stand before…

That’s when you finally break. With an involuntary cry, you feel the accumulation of your pleasure finally gush through you. Your back arches as you feel yourself spurting from your tip again and again, wave upon wave of relief and euphoria washing over you.

And just like that, it’s over. The air is still electric with the feeling and fervour that transpired. Your eyes fall upon your lavender lover, still panting and red-faced, but happy, from the experience. You roll to the side of her, gently sliding yourself out from between her legs, before landing face-to-face with her on the covers.

A few sleepy minutes follow, exchanging warm breath (and occasionally stealing a short, cheeky kiss) with Twilight Sparkle. Her dozy half-lidded gaze slowly lulls you into a tired haze, keeping awake with the romantic exchange of words that often followed the act of love.

“I love you so much,” she whispers once again, your noses essentially touching as you cuddle above the cover.

“I love you too, Twilight,” you reply without hesitation. “Every day I’m thankful that I’m in love with somepony as smart and understanding as you.”

Your lover’s purple face reddens behind her smile. She knows that she’d never be this understanding were it not for her closest friends.

“For what it’s worth,” her voice breaks just a little from tiredness, “I’m sorry if it felt like I was pressuring you into swimming with me in the sea. I guess I just wanted the two of us to… you know… do things in a different body of water than the old lake.”

As Twilight’s eyes slowly shut as she drifts off to sleep, your mind suddenly starts to whirr at those words; a different body of water. After a moment, a mental light-bulb brightens in your mind around the same time your loins start to stir at the thought. You tenderly lean closer to the sleeping unicorn and whisper in her ear:

“You know, Twilight, this villa has a pool.”

The snoozing stops. Her ears perk. Her eyes open wide. That woke her up.

*******

“Man, that beach party was awesome,” Shining Armor throws open the villa’s gate and waltzes through it, his beautiful wife in tow. “Shame it didn’t go on for longer.”

“Well, it is past midnight,” Cadance points out, her eyes taking in the twinkling blanket of stars overhead, “I just wish Twilight and her boyfriend were there; they’d have loved it.”

“You think they’re still inside?” the stallion pokes a hoof towards the villa’s front door as he locks the gate behind them with a glimmer of his horn.

“Either that or they’re in town, maybe exploring the local bars,” the pink princess muses without taking her eyes off the sky. “Go and check.”

Shining mumbles something in agreement and casually trots through the door, leaving Cadance outside to her thoughts.

The sky is unusually… pretty tonight. Princess Luna must’ve spent a long time organising each and every star to perfection. Why? Eventually, Cadance just dismisses it as Luna being a little more creative tonight. But as the Princess of Love, she still feels like there’s something… more to it than that.

Never mind. Cadance has more important things on the forefront of her mind right now. For example…

Splash!

“Gaaasp!”

No more than a few feet away from the musing princess does the waters of the nearby pool suddenly break from its near-flawless surface. Her jaw drops when she recognised the two sodden, writhing ponies.

“Air! Oh goddess, sweet air...” Twilight Sparkle, sister-in-law to the gob-smacked princess standing just a few feet away, cries out both in relief of finally being able to breathe, and with the unmistakable moaning of sexual build-up every time she exhales. Their hips, while still submerged in water, were obviously thrusting against themselves at a frenzied rate.

After a few moments of Twilight gasping for air (and her lover, who doesn’t seem all that desperate for breath, romantically kissing her neck and shoulder through the entire exchange), she finally mutters something along the lines of “Okay, I’m ready again” before the two simply disappear back under the pool’s surface.

Neither of them had noticed Cadance standing right next to them that whole time. Said princess still hadn’t picked her jaw up from the floor. After a few more long, awkward seconds of the alicorn just standing there, trying to process what she had just seen, the door to the villa reopens.

“Nope, Twily’s not in the house,” Shining Armor shrugs as he rejoins his wife. “You were right, they must be in town or something.”

“Er, ah, buh, um,” Cadance stutters for a moment before collecting her wits. “I suppose they are. In town, that is. Certainly not here.”

“Mm hm,” her husband nods nonchalantly. “Hey honey, while we wait for them to come back, do you want to take a midnight dip in the pool with m-?”

“OH SWEET CELESTIA NO.”

“Huh?”

“I mean, er…” Cadance catches herself before digging the hole any deeper, “perhaps, while they’re, uh, in town… you and I should take full advantage of their absence?”

For good measure, she flashes Shining with the most flirtatious smile she can muster. As predicted, he fails to resist.

“Aw shucks, I can’t say no to you, love,” the stallion melts. Without another word, he holds the front door open for Cadance to enter, before closing it behind her with a soft click, leaving the poolside area well alone.

*******

Twilight’s head once again pops up from the water’s surface. Your head, however, remains completely submerged; no need for air just yet.

“That's weird,” she muses to herself, looking around. “I could’ve sworn I heard somepony shout just a second ago. Sounded like ’Celestia no” or something.”

“Pbolbluby nblobling,” you bubble in response from beneath the surface. Hmm… with Twilight treading water above the surface, her body - or rather, a very specific part of it - is very temptingly close to your face. Maybe a… kiss… should take her mind off such worries.

“You’re right, it’s probably nothing,” she dismisses. “It’s just me being paranoi- aah! Ahh!” Her eyes roll up into her head from the sudden surge of pleasure from below. “Oh! Oh, your t-tongue..! M-more..!”

And with an ecstatic, aroused sigh, she slips back underwater, leaving nothing but a flurry of bubbles in her wake.

Part 9 [Mature]

The bedroom door swings open with gusto as two romantically entwined lovers waltz through said doorframe. It’s a cosy place; no uselessly intricate decor or expensive empirical emblems that would usually be plastered all over a royal couple’s quarters. Just a simple, two-pony bed, refreshingly comfortable without all the embroidery and complexities that the servants of the Crystal Empire insist on using.

One such lover, the rosy-pink alicorn of love, takes the lead in this amorous exchange, pulling the unicorn stallion alongside her. As soon as she’s within range of the simple, yet comfy bed, she throws herself upon it, landing softly upon it’s humble covers.

There, she turns to her lover and positions her sleek, flawless physique into a sultry pose like no other; from the alluring, half-lidded gaze her amethyst eyes portray, to her beautifully cascading, thrice-toned mane, to her perky posterior, subtly positioned in such a way to invoke many suggestive and wild ideas to the accompanying stallion. That stallion in question, of course, is none other than Shining Armor, who charmingly runs a hoof through his cerulean mane as he slowly approaches his wife.

“Cadance,” he whispers, trying to steady his rapidly beating heart as he pulls himself onto the bed, “have I told you how beautiful you are lately?”

As much of a wise, responsible princess she is, Mi Amore Cadenza still has the youthful, melodic giggle from her high school days. “You told me just this morning, honey. At the breakfast table, remember?”

“Well, I’m telling you again.” By now, Shining’s well-built frame, honed from years as a captain of the royal guard, exhibits a surprising amount of tenderness as he embraces the perfect alicorn. “You’re beautiful.”

Cadance, as she always does, melts in his fore-hooves. Of all the stallions she’s met in her lifetime, only one could be able to make her blush so keenly. It’s no wonder they’re meant for each other.

Their soft, grasping hooves intertwine with each other, almost ritually, caressing their very bodies with an unspoken knowledge of their most private desires. Shining’s hooves know exactly where on his beloved’s flesh to tease, to tickle, to trace. Cadance responds to each and every movement with one of her own; sometimes moaning and thrusting her hips against her husband’s perfect form, sometimes squirming in her own ecstasy when Shining’s wayward hoof decides to eagerly massage just the right spot between her twitching legs.

The area between Shining’s legs are, naturally, undergoing a certain… rampant reaction. Cadance never fails to incite such fiery arousal in him. Some days, just sharing the same proximity in private can do that to a warm-blooded stallion such as he. Must surely be a latent effect of love magic. No matter; Shining Armor can withstand - and thoroughly enjoys - the added challenge of withholding his excitement for the perfect moment.

The air turns thick with the scent of sexual stimulation. Soon enough, Cadance’s scarlet blush deepens; Shining’s busy, busy hoof grows hotter, more frenzied with each stroke, and soon it becomes far too much for the princess to take.

“I- I… I think I’m c- aah! J- just take me! Take me now!”

*******

Elsewhere, the villa’s front door handle turns. Two sodden ponies - a mare and stallion respectively - bumble into the front room, both equipped with bountiful, fluffy towels. The gorgeous mare, lavender-coated and indigo-maned, is still panting from their recent… breath-taking experience.

“That… that was intense,” Twilight Sparkle breathes, rubbing the towel through her damp hair. You silently take pleasure in watching her furry, purple chest rising and falling.

“We should invest in a swimming pool,” you cheekily jest, playfully nuzzling her cheek. “At least, that’s if you want a change from the old lake back home.”

Twilight’s lips briefly press upon your snout - a short, sweet kiss. “I’d like that too. Maybe I can spin a tale to Celestia, convince her that I need a pool built in the library for friendship studies.”

“Hah! Good luck with that.”

The lavender mare chuckles in response. “You’re right. On the plus side, we always have the bathtub back at my place whenever Spike‘s away.”

“Oh yeah,” you blissfully recall the last bathtub-bound encounter you shared with her just a week or so ago. “It’s not a huge bath, but that only makes it more… exciting…”

You trail off. Something’s… something is certainly… off. Wait…

“What is it?” the unicorn asks.

“Do you…” (wow, you think to yourself, you should pick your next words very carefully) “… hear… er, something?”

The next second or two is filled with silence; the kind that would normally leave a ringing in one’s ears. Unless, of course, something from a room or two away starts to make noise.

Creak… creak… creak… creak… creak…

“What is that?” Twilight’s ears perk up to the sound, trying to place where she’s heard that sound before. Her expression droops when she recognises the sound of bedsprings. Even worse; bedsprings that are creaking at a faster and faster pace.

“Ahh! Ahh! Oh, Shining! Ahh! I love you! Ohh! Ahh! Ooooohh~”

You and Twilight look each other in the eyes.

“We should go for a walk.”

“Yes, yes we should.”

Part 10

“To be fair, we did have sex in their private pool. Twice, in fact.”

Each step you take along the beach with Twilight Sparkle brings the sensation of soft, cool sand on your hooves. Luna’s moon, almost single-handedly lighting the night sky, gently bathes the beach in its soft glow as the soothing laps of the waves carry across the deserted shoreline.

Hours ago, this place was bustling with ponies eager to sunbathe with a cool drink, or splash around in the shallows. Now, as night falls, those ponies have either retired to their homes and hotels, or have taken themselves to the local town’s nightlife scene. Nopony else here but you and Twilight.

“Yeah, I know…” your lavender lover shrugs, “I’m just not used to acknowledging my brother doing… you know, that sorta thing. I mean, I know they’re married and stuff, so I should totally expect such a thing, but…”

Eventually, the unicorn just ceases to care, losing herself to her timelessly calm surroundings. It’s their life, after all. They can do whatever they want with it. More so, since it’s technically their villa.

Twilight Sparkle closes her eyes. She can feel the faintest night breeze disturbing her mane, and taste the salty essence it carries. She can hear the lapping of every distant wave, every deep, droning moan of… of…

“W- wait a second,” her eyes flick open, tinted with an expression of bemusement. “Can you hear that..?”

You flick your ears this way and that for a moment. Nothing out of the ordinary.

“What am I listening out for?” you ask.

“Moaning,” she replies. “A sort of weird moaning noise.”

Out of sheer disbelief, you turn your head back towards the villa, which is by now a glistening speck against Horseshoe Bay’s town. “Geez Twilight, don’t tell me you can actually hear Cadance from all the way out here-!?”

“What? No, of course not! Also, ew.” She pauses for a moment, mouth agape. “There it is again! That moaning! Can you hear it!?”

You admit, there is a sort of… rumbling sound. It’s difficult to tell exactly where it’s coming from. You wouldn’t even call it moaning. In fact, you can’t really think of any creature that would make that sort of noise, except for…

The sand under your hooves vibrate. Another long, droning rumble comes from nowhere, yet everywhere. Of course, it’s night. Too dark to see to your full ability.

Twilight’s ear twitches. Her head suddenly turns to further down the shore, bee-lining towards the water. Her ears could certainly pinpoint the sound better than yours could.

You didn’t even have to ask; at the blink of her eye, your love’s horn flickers to life, a brilliant purple glow lighting the surrounding area.

“It’s this way,” she nods. “Follow me.”

Your eyes soon adjust to the light of Twilight’s magic, letting you see that little bit further into the distance. A full minute of trotting goes by, accompanied only by the shifting sound of hooves kicking up sand with each step, and occasionally the low rumble of… whatever that could possibly be.

The vibrations get stronger and stronger every time. The sand feels just a little colder too, you notice. The taste of salt accompanies the breeze. You’re getting closer to the sea’s briny water than you‘d like.

That’s when you see it; a huge splotch of black against the distant moon and stars. The shape rumbles again; this time you’re close enough to hear it as a moan.

“Oh my gosh,” Twilight Sparkle breathes, halting on the spot. After a moment or two of recollecting her wits, she breaks out into a gallop. Without a second thought, you follow right behind her. Closer and closer you get to this mysterious shape. Eventually, it starts to take form; a long creature (you guess twenty, maybe twenty-five feet), sprawled across the white-yellow sands. No limbs, save for a single flipper on each side.

You screech to a halt when you realise what it is. Your very nature screams internally to the trigger that you’ve been stuck with all these years. Every panicking fabric in your body tells you to run away. But your common sense soon reins your mind in, telling you there’s nothing to fear.

And yet… there it is. A beached whale. Huge. Harmless. Helpless.

Twilight gallops to the marooned creature. The light from her horn helps fill in every little detail as she studies it up-close and personal, with a somewhat wilful fascination.

“It’s… I think it’s a Balaenid whale, Eubalaena genus!” she exclaims, trotting up and down its length. You can see Twilight’s mind racing as she takes one mental note after another. “Same anatomy, same part of the sea for it to be swimming in this time of year… but no, something’s not right, something’s not right at all…”

You mentally tune out of Twilight’s spoken observations, not because you tire of it, but honestly, she does go on and on sometimes. No, you’re far more interested in the unmoving thing. Right there. In front of you.

There lies the source of your fear for all of these years. There lies the very reason you’d cower from the sea’s edge. There lies a huge, twenty-something foot whale that can’t shuffle back to the water to save its own hide.

You feel a warm glow of relief stir in your chest. Any fear that had gripped you before just seems to slip away, like chains off a prisoner. Without the slightest apprehension, you place a hoof on the monster’s blubbery skin, confirming once and for all just how harmless this thing is.

You smile. Then you chortle. Then you uncontrollably laugh.

Your overexcited mirth certainly snaps Twilight out of her contemplation. “What the-?”

“Look at it!” you cheer between fits of hilarity. “Look at how the tables have turned! After all these years I’ve been too scared to swim in the sea, too scared to embrace my own Cutie Mark’s calling! Well the ball’s in MY court now!” you haphazardly prod it again with a hoof, ignoring the whale’s low, rumbling moan of protest. “You hear me, ya lard-fish!?”

“Wait a second! It’s-!”

You don‘t even notice Twilight’s objection; too busy relishing the opportunity to scream the demons out of your metaphorical closet. “Now you’re on MY turf! In the literal sense! Turf! And you‘re stuck on it, dummy! I can‘t believe I was ever afraid of something that eats microscope-fish! Well there‘s no plankton here for YOU, pal!”

“Stop that!” the mare behind you pleads. “It’s only-”

“Didn’t want grief? Shouldn’t have been stupid enough to try swimming on sand!”

“Snap out of it!”

The purple aura around Twilight’s horn turns red out of utter frustration. You tear yourself away from your festival of whale-taunting fairly quickly because of that. She takes a deep breath, waiting for her light to turn purple again before talking.

“It’s only a calf-whale,” she says. “A young child. Eubalaena whales are usually over fifty feet long. This one’s hardly half that size. The poor thing must’ve gotten separated from its parents.”

You turn back to the beached creature. You assumed that, since you were so young at the time, your distorted memory had made the whale from years gone by larger than it was. That the whale lying before you right now, dry and helpless, was the real deal. The truth of the matter? The whale was just as foolish, as young, as scared as you were once upon a time.

The familiar rumble of protest from the creature causes the surrounding sands to vibrate once more. Twilight Sparkle whispers something under her breath. She probably didn’t intend for you to hear it;

“If Fluttershy were here to see this… she’d be crying with the whale.”

Your hoof presses up against the whale’s hide, gently this time. It’s getting more dry and cracked by the minute. If it had been beached during the hot daylight hours, its situation would’ve been far worse by now.

“This thing needs to get back to the water,” you tell Twilight. Regardless of however you were treated so long ago, this particular whale didn’t try to eat you. It shouldn’t suffer for what it didn’t do. “Wait here, I’ll head into town to see if anypony can help.”

“No need,” she replies. “I’ve got this.”

“Huh? What-!?”

A fierce flash emits from Twilight’s horn, shocking you into taking a few steps away for safety. The aura intensifies tenfold, its brilliant light arcing from her horn. From there, the magic flows toward the beached whale, weaving and whirling around its gargantuan form. Soon, the whole thing is a massive glowing spectacle.

Twilight Sparkle’s legs dig themselves into the sand; she’s pouring all of her effort into… into….

“Please, Twilight, be careful!”

You can’t tell if she heard you; the sheer force of her magic is thunderous to your ears. After a moment, two moments, three… you notice the huge creature slowly, but surely, rise from its sandy deathbed, if only by a foot or two. You hold your breath, resisting the urge to speak; the last thing you’d want is for Twilight to get distracted now, of all times.

Slowly but surely, your lover’s aura carries the whale over the dry sands, over the calm lappings of the shoreline, over the water’s shallows, until finally, she considers the whale to be just far enough out to sea.

Her aura weakens, lowering the whale bit by bit. As soon as it touches the cool, refreshing water, its tail writhes in anticipation. When the unicorn’s magic releases its grip, the creature disappears beneath the waters surface entirely, kicking up water with an almighty clash.

Her horn snuffs itself out. The aura’s sound dies down completely, along with its light, and you’re left in the moonlit silence with Twilight Sparkle.

It’s home.

After a moment of puffing and panting, Twilight gives a weary chuckle. “Hah. I’ve lifted bigger.”

Part 11

The next morning.

The sun is blazingly hot today. Its powerful rays of sunlight dance off the surface of the waters that surround you. A few seagulls can be heard here and there, their calls accompanied by the sloshing of the sea against the side of this wooden row boat, just big enough for two.

A pair of swimming goggles dangle loosely around your neck. Your fore-hooves are dutifully working one of the oars. The other is being elegantly handled via the magic of the mare sitting alongside you. Occasionally, she looks over her shoulder, back towards Horseshoe Bay’s beach. It’s easy to tell she’s mentally calculating your nautical whereabouts.

Suddenly, Twilight stops paddling. You follow suit, taking the time to wipe the sweat from your brow. “I think this is the place.”

You look up from the rowboat’s wooden boards, taking in your surroundings. Deep seawater glistens on every side of you. The bay’s shoreline stretches all around you, except for the area dead ahead; where it opens up to the vast ocean. As far as you can tell, you’re in the centre of the bay itself.

“So this Lover’s Arch should be right beneath us?” you ask. A sudden splash from behind you causes you to whip around in alarm. It was just a wave hitting the boat. Paranoid much?

A gentle hoof reassuringly places itself on your leg. This simple action is all it takes for beautiful mare to calm your nerves, at least a little bit. “You don’t have to do this if you really don’t want to. I won’t think any less of you if you wanna turn back.”

You scratch away the apprehensive itch at the back of your head. Your eyes nervously drift towards the steady waters.

“I’ve already come this far, Twilight. I’d be a fool to turn back now. Besides, it was my idea to borrow a boat this time. It’ll be easier than wading through the shallows and swimming all the way out there from the beach.”

To punctuate your point further, your slap the goggles over your eyes and tighten the band with dexterous hooves. “It’ll be like ripping off a band-aid; a quick jump into the water and I’ll have done it.”

Twilight Sparkle looks you in the eye. Those amethyst gems of wisdom and beauty push aside your lingering fears once and for all.

“In that case,” she says, carefully fastening and adjusting her own goggles with magic, “I’m ready when you are.”

Both oars are retired to the wooden boards. The two of you stand up in the boat, trying to ignore the resulting sway. Your head cautiously leans over the side. The water’s deep, but clear; you can see right to the bottom.

And by extension, you can see that there’s nothing in the water that can eat you. That’s good.

“On the count of five, okay?” Twilight says. Your heart rate quickens at the thought.

Nonetheless, you take a deep breath, placing one fore-hoof onto the boat’s edge, readying for the jump. Your other foreleg wraps around Twilight’s shoulders for support. “Yeah. On five.”

Twilight’s forelegs mimic your own; one on the wooden boat, the other around your shoulders. You’re both in this together. You’re both going to step off the edge. You’re both going to hit the water.

“One. Two. Three. Four. Fi-!”

“No-wait-Twilight-stop-for-a-second!”

The wooden vessel wobbles above the waves as Twilight catches herself in mid-step. “What, what is it!?”

“Nothing, just… gimme a minute,” you breathe. “Need a minute to prepare.”

“Take your time.”

After a few huffs and puffs, you resolve to try again. “On three this time? Just to get it over with quickly.”

“No problem,” Twilight nods, reassuming the stance to jump into the water. All hooves redouble their positions both on the boat and on each other.

“One. Two. Thr-!”

“Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa-wait!”

“Oh, what now!?” Twilight’s ears flop disapprovingly.

“Sorry, I thought I saw something creepy under us,” you double- and triple-check the perfectly clear and harmless water below. Then you shrug. “False alarm, just some orange fish.”

Twilight heaves a sigh, but quickly perks up after a single moment of her mind whirring; you could tell by the glint in her eye. Or perhaps that was a trick of the light via her goggles?

“Okay, this time we’re definitely gonna dive into the water,” she declares.

You nod. “Definitely.”

“We’re gonna jump on the count of three again, alright?”

“On three, gotcha.”

“Ready?”

“Yeah.”

“Three.”

“Wha-? Oh-sweet-Celestia-no-Twilight-noooo!”

Before you can comprehend what’s going on, Twilight tightens her hoovish grip and throws herself at you, full force.

In the space of a second, you both tumble to the side, your forelegs being thrown out of control. Your clumsy rear hooves quickly trip over the boat’s edge, and you’re struck with a sudden sense of vertigo as you fall backwards, face towards the cloudless sky.

You hear the lavender pony clinging onto you sucking in a deep breath, preparing for what’s next. Your instincts find it best that you do same.

Gasp…

Splash!

Your face is hit by the wet rush of coldness. Your eyes automatically scrunch shut, trying to block out all the salty water that already invades your taste buds. Your ears rapidly plug up, that familiar thumping inside your skull telling you with each passing heartbeat;

You’re underwater. You’re underwater. You’re underwater.

You’re underwater in the sea and you’re not dead. That’s a good thing.

Your mind finally starts working again; don’t forget, you’re wearing goggles! Your eyes flick open, their first sight being the swirling light of the ever-shifting water’s surface above you. Any thoughts involving malevolent sea-creatures seem to wash away. That once infallible wall of oceanic phobia crumbling away forever.

You mutter to yourself in disbelief - “Huh,” - but it manifests as a formless cluster of bubbles that lazily drift toward the surface. Meanwhile, the two love bound ponies sink ever deeper into the water’s depths.

The soft unicorn, attached to you throughout the whole drop, still clings tightly to your body, a solid reminder that you’re both in this together. Your hoof gently lifts her outward, a sign to let her know everything is alright with you. There’s no panic here.

Her own fore-hooves remain on your shoulders; not in support this time, but in the genuine affection that only Twilight Sparkle could show. Her mane and tail dance the surreal, dreamlike trail of beauty that you had missed since those days back of the old lake. Behind the clarity of her goggles, her captivating eyes of violet meet your own, a backdrop to a solitary trail of bubbles escaping her adorable snout.

This is the mare that makes it worth getting up in the morning. She’s the reason you’re drifting under the sea’s clutches right now, free from the prison you called fear. She’s everything you’ve hoped for in a mare, and more than you even knew you needed.

Your hooves gently embrace Twilight, her eyes locked with your own. Eyes that become half-lidded as her lips part. She knows the best course of action right now.

Letting your sense of passion take over in this wonderful moment, you pull her beautiful body towards you, closing the gap between her face and yours. Slowly, romantically, you savour the moment leading up the a loving, submerged kiss- whoa!

There is no such hesitation from Twilight Sparkle, however. Instead, the mare throws herself forward in a fit of enthusiasm, the warmth of her lips meeting your own without warning. You’d vocalise a mild muffle of astonishment, were it not for being underwater. Besides, you rather like this surprise.

Your mouth kisses her in return, your fore-hooves stroking up and down her silky wet body. A stray hoof even lingers around her rump; you hear the sound of her giggle despite the enveloping water, a brief rush of bubbles escaping from her busy lips.

There. An opening. You take full advantage by cautiously pressing your tongue forward, caressing the edge of her lips. Her tongue emerges in response, eager to dance with your own. The heat and sensuality of her hot kiss far surpasses the irritation of salt water. You feel Twilight squirm in pleasure, even going as far as wrapping her hind leg around yours, her body pressed tightly against your torso.

You wish these kind of moments would last forever. Twilight no doubt wishes it too. But you feel the faint twitching of her stomach against your body; the periodic convulsions that betray the tight, familiar nip of yearning lungs.

Against your primal desires, you feel it best to pull out from the kiss you were enjoying so very much. You make a gesture towards the surface, offering Twilight the chance to catch her breath. She responds with a faint smile, pointing her hoof towards something just over your shoulder.

A quick turn of the head reveals a naturally-formed cluster of rocks, shaped strangely like a heart. The Lover’s Arch. Of course, you were too… distracted to notice that before now. It seems like she has enough time to make a quick trip under the rock formation before heading back to the surface. No time like the present.

Your foreleg entwining with hers, you take her by the hoof like a true gentlecolt. And with the warmest feeling brewing within your heart, you both swim for the Lover’s Arch as one.

You don’t know whether the “magic” of the Lover’s Arch is real or not. It doesn’t matter. You are, and always will be, in love with Twilight Sparkle. This, you know. And she will be forever in love with you.

Author's Note

(Spoiler; you now have an appreciation for Whirring Gears, who made the beautful underwater Twilight picture you see above! Go thank and +follow him, all the cool bronies are doing it.) - Crowley

Part 6

The muted drum of your heartbeat thumps within your skull. Your equine ears are plugged with the water that surrounds your every inch. Broken light patterns, formed by the sun’s rays through the water’s surface, dance around you. Your eyelids are held shut in contemplation. They’d be shut a lot tighter if you were without goggles; you aren’t partial to the sensation of chlorine in the eyes. Nor do you much like the taste of said chemical.

Still, you needed to clear your head one way or another. Your usual go-to tactic would be to take a dip in your beloved lake back home, but that’s way too out-of-reach. Meditating at the bottom of the villa’s ceramic-tiled pool will have to do. But it’s just not the same. You’ve been underwater for, what, two or three minutes? If this were the lake, you’d be relaxed by now. Instead, you shift a little in anxiety, a small uncomfortable grunt manifesting itself as a few bubbles.

You should have told her from the beginning. All it would’ve taken is a moment or two of “Sorry Twilight, but I can’t stand the sea” and that would’ve been that. Instead, you kept biting your tongue on the matter, because you didn’t want to disappoint her, nor her family. Look where that’s gotten you.

Just as you’re about to muse upon how it probably couldn’t get any worse, you feel a wayward hoof jab at your left side. Aw, nuts. They found you.

Or rather, Cadance has. Looking up towards the source of the prodding, you notice, to your mild surprise, the pink-coated princess sitting next to you upon the pool floor. While your heart is, and will always be, Twilight Sparkle’s, you admit that Cadance’s mane flows quite beautifully in the water. She reminds you of Celestia and Luna like this, only with more water and less… you know. Breathable air surrounding you.

Nevertheless, the Crystal Empire’s pink ruler points a hoof upwards, towards the surface of the pool. She’s asking if you want to go up there, perhaps so you can talk to her about what happened back at the beach.

You weigh your options; Shining Armor and Twilight are most likely up there, waiting for you to surface. The desire to avoid facing their disappointment far outweighs the pinch of your lungs, at least for now.

No deal. You shake your head, fold your forelegs and avoid eye-contact with Cadance to get the message across. What’s she gonna do, huh? Sit at the bottom of the pool until you change your mind? You may have spent several minutes underwater before her arrival, but you know you could beat her at this silent contest easily.

Shing… fwash!

Unless she magically conjures a large, breathable bubble around herself, keeping the water at bay. Stupid versatile alicorn magic.

With the prospect of her leaving you alone out of the window, Cadance expands the protective dome at a flick of her horn, giving ample room for two ponies to sit side by side within it. She scoots over and pats the now-dry pool floor beside her, inviting you to join her. She probably wants you to explain your actions earlier; abandoning her younger sister-in-law like that.

Carefully pressing your hooves against the magical barrier, you let yourself pass through its defences little by little. After finally falling though to the other side, you gulp the chlorine-thick air that the arcane bubble provides (not that you were desperate for air or anything) and ponder over the pool’s water pressing against the side of it.

“So,” you finally ask the princess, “Shining Armor and Twilight. Are they..?” You nod your head upwards, gesturing towards the surface.

“We asked Shining to look after our saddlebags and stuff at the beach, but Twilight’s looking for you inside the villa right now.”

You sigh in acknowledgement. “Well, sorry for bailing on you guys like that. I should have told you long before, but-”

“You’re thalassophobic,” Cadance finishes, “you have a fear of the sea and the ocean, triggered mostly by its inhabitants.”

“Er, what?”

“Shining Armor explained everything, since you told him about it last night,” Cadance scratches her chin in thought, “and Twilight told us the actual name for it though.”

Of course she did. Sounds like the Twilight you know and love.

“I thought I’d have gotten over that by now,” you mutter. But it was so many years ago, and you’d long since pushed the worst of those memories from your mind. You had to try it to be sure.

That damned whale. Most ponies have reasonable fears when it comes to the ocean; stinging jellyfish, sharks, all manners of poisonous critters and plants just waiting to be trodden on by some unfortunate soul. Nope; your biggest fear is a fin-flapping mass of plankton-scoffing blubber. What joy.

“That one flaw,” you sigh. “That one issue of mine, and it’s ruined the vacation. Twilight… really wanted me to dive with her.”

As comforting as it seems, you weren’t expecting Cadance’s kind, regal hoof to reassuring rest upon your shoulder.

“Twilight would never hold that against you,” she says. “Love involves accepting each other’s flaws, not pretending they don’t exist. Heck, I’m the princess of love, married to the stallion of my dreams, and I’d never, ever stop loving him. But we still have flaws because that’s what makes us who we are.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I hog the bed sheets, Shining drinks milk straight from the carton. I take forever in the bathroom to get ready, and Shining always leaves the toilet seat up. I snore loud enough to wake the dead, and Shining never uses a coaster to place his drinks on. But it doesn’t stop us loving each other. And as sure as sugar, your own flaws will never stop Twilight from loving you..”

Those words simply hang around the magic bubble’s silent interior, seemingly forever. It gives you more than enough time to slowly drink them all in. Twilight loves you, and you love her. And that’s all there is to it.

“I think…” you tell Cadance, “I’m ready to see her now.”

The princess of the Crystal Empire smiles, and with a glimmer of her horn, the bubble dissipates and the water comes rushing back to its natural state. Between the water overtaking you, and your head breaking the surface, that split second submerged is more refreshing to you than your previous attempt to meditate. Maybe because your mind is clear now.

“There you are!”

You don’t need to wipe your dripping mane from your goggles to know whose voice that belonged to. Twilight Sparkle kneels poolside on her four legs, looking down to the two soaked ponies within. Without hesitance, you hoist yourself from the water and wrap your forelegs around her in a loving embrace. She doesn’t mind the damp in the slightest; she responds in kind.

“I’m so sorry for running away like that-”

“That’s okay, really, I should have asked-”

“And I should have said something earlier-”

“Don’t worry, Shining explained the whole thing-”

“Can- can I still be your cuddle-fish?”

“Oh, silly question, I wouldn’t have anypony else.”

Cadance, still in the swimming pool, just treads water for a minute or two, watching the young couple, tangled in one another’s hooves, whispering sweet reassurances into each other’s ears. Finally, content to see two halves of a heart become whole again, she pulls herself out of the pool and quietly makes her way to the beach, where her own darling husband is waiting for her.

The princess of love can tell from a mile away; those two lovebirds are gonna be alright.