Every Expression of Happiness

by SongCoyote

Rating: mature
Tags: Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Zecora, Romance, Princess Luna, Comedy, Random, Princess Celestia, Main 6, Cheerilee
Length: 6953

Sordid, playful, and touching tales of debauchery, indulgence, and romance between ponies.

In this collection of short vignettes, various ponies experiment with a wide variety of chemicals, inebriants, and other toys, and sometimes (okay, often) with each other. It's a little silly, a little random, a little touching, and hopefully, lots of fun!

Rated Mature for strongly implied sex, drug use, Princest, a few odd little fetishes, and somewhat OOC activity, though I've tried to stay more or less true to the various characters other than their *ahem* rather liberal indulgences. No actual explicit clop, though... for now.

A SongCoyote Tale, inspired by Deathtoheaven731, an excellent author with whom I have co-written other stories. Go check them out - we do some decent stuff together, and I wouldn't have been able to keep writing without their inspiration!

Published 2014-04-19 00:00:03 UTC
Last updated 2014-04-27 00:14:35 UTC

Orange plus Yellow plus Green is…?

Fluttershy hummed happily as she carried her wicker basket toward the little hill by the pond. She had been looking forward to her evening picnic with Applejack for days now, and had prepared a special salad for herself since she knew the farmer would be bringing a few samples of her family’s special varietals.

She debated having some salad even before she left but decided it would be best to wait until she was with Applejack. Something about the earth pony always made Fluttershy feel particularly comfortable, and she certainly wanted to feel safe on this particular night.

As she arrived she saw Applejack casually sprawled on a spread blanket just below the crest of the hill. The blonde waved to her, gesturing for her to get a move on, so she grinned and picked up her pace a bit. Applejack was just finishing rolling a cigarette when the pegasus arrived.

“Heh, almost thought I’d have to start without ya,” the farm pony drawled through a wide smile. “I brought us some o’ the Apples’ best,” she added with a wave of the pungent joint.

Fluttershy giggled and lay down next to Applejack before pulling her salad out of the basket. “Oh, thank you,” she said with sincerity. “I’m ever so grateful you agreed to come out here with me. I don’t do this often, but,” she lowered her gaze, her cheeks coloring lightly, “it’s always better with somepony you trust.”

Applejack chuckled as she lit the joint, took a long pull from it, and passed it to the pegasus. “Don’t you worry none,” she squeaked out, doing her best to lose as little smoke as possible. “You know I’m glad to be here.” She emptied her lungs in a long, slow breath, grinning as the resultant bluish cloud curled up and away over the hill.

Knowing she couldn’t so casually toke the way the more experienced farmer did, Fluttershy sipped delicately at the blunt, taking in plenty of air along with the smoke. The strong, ripe smell alone almost made her wings flop to her sides, and she could feel the first stirrings of its effects even as she sent her own lungful to chase after Applejack’s.

“I know,” she said with as her smile slowly eased into a far more relaxed grin than usual for her, “but I really do appreciate it.” She took another long pull, held it, then let it out, blinking as everything around her slowed down just a bit. She gave the joint back to Applejack, then opened her basket and unpacked the treats she’d made for them both.

Passing a plate of greens and hay to Applejack she dug into her special salad. After she swallowed the first bite, trying to ignore the earthy flavor of the fungus, she held up a forkful and gestured with it toward Applejack. “You sure you don’t want to try some?”

Applejack’s Stetson waggled as she shook her head. “Naw, I’d much rather just watch you for now. Another time, though, and I’ll be glad to.” Her smile was wide and calm, and the already mellow pegasus felt another notch of tension ease away from her as she looked into those lovely green eyes.

Suddenly noticing that she was still holding the laden fork out, Fluttershy giggled and started devouring her skillfully adulterated snack, taking care not to miss any of the “secret ingredient”. She was taking a slightly higher dose than the last time, so she was especially glad Applejack was there for her.

They finished the first joint, then passed a second back and forth until with a slight mental hiccup Fluttershy realized she had hit her limit. She was feeling relaxed and peaceful and a little giddy: just right for when the psilocybin started its work. Applejack finished the stub off, then rolled herself another, thinner one, which she puffed on idly as the pair lay comfortably on their backs gazing up at the night sky.

“Whadda you see when you look at the stars?” asked Applejack quietly.

Fluttershy thought that over for a few seconds. “You mean tonight, or normally?” she giggled softly, her eyes never leaving the heavens.

Applejack bumped the pegasus with her shoulder. “You silly filly!” she chuckled, then frowned slightly as she continued, “Though, huh... now that you ask I don’t rightly know which I meant.”

Fluttershy snickered, then started laughing, then clapped her hooves over her mouth in an adorable and vain attempt to suppress further mirth. Finally she was able to speak, though a little giggle escaped every few words. “Well, I don’t think I can answer for normal right now,” she managed as she felt her perceptions start to wobble, “but right now? I see... I see... Ooooohhhhh....” her voice trailed off as the stars above her started to spin lazily in a chaotic pattern, leaving trails behind them that, ever so quietly, began one by one to sing.

Turning to look at Fluttershy, Applejack could see that her pupils were huge - so big that the distant scattering of lights was visible reflected in her blue eyes. As the farmer watched the pegasus’ breathing slowed, finally becoming deep and smooth. A smile crept onto Applejack’s features as she saw Fluttershy’s wings start to slide down from her sides in slow motion, finally coming to rest on the blanket beneath her.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen her so relaxed, mused Applejack in wonder, though that thought wasn’t half so startling as the next. She’s so... beautiful!

Just then Fluttershy rolled her gaze slowly over to meet Applejack’s, and a wide smile spread across her face like the sun breaking over the mountains. Her slightly spinning pupils gradually came to rest as she drank in the sight of orange coat and yellow mane. A barely audible hum - a harmony to the star-trail song she could still hear - came from her as she gently reached out to stroke Applejack’s mane.

“You’re lovely,” Fluttershy breathed adoringly.

Applejack took a deep breath, then let it out before saying, “...you’re pretty darned gorgeous yourself.”

The two mares leaned closer, their breaths mingling. It seemed to each that they could hear the other’s heartbeat as their lips came closer together, almost touching....

A few moments later, neither Applejack nor Fluttershy could remember who had cracked first, but after what seemed like hours of uproarious laughter, the ponies were laying close together, holding their aching sides as they gazed back up at the sky.

A few more chuckles escaped them as they caught their breath. “Heh,” said Applejack at last, wiping the last of the tears from the corners of her eyes, “I love ya dearly, sugarcube, and that’s the truth, but I just don’t think that would ever work.”

“You’re right, of course,” replied Fluttershy happily, “and I love you too!” She blushed and giggled as she echoed, “Silly filly!”

They sighed in unison, laughed softly at the synchronicity, and then went back to leaning on each other as they watched the stars whirl and dance above them.

The Gonzo Redecorating Committee

Rarity jumped as the sensation of displaced air and a pink flash came from behind her. In her vanity mirror she saw Twilight Sparkle standing in the middle of her bed, a rather startled expression on her face. Subtly rubbing her nose clean, she brushed the last few white crystals off the hoof mirror and slid it behind a large ornate bottle before turning to face her sudden visitor.

“What’s wrong, Twilight?” Rarity said in a rush, her pupils dilating wildly and her ears twitching out of sync with each other.

“Hee hee hee!” giggled Twilight in a high-pitched voice. Her eyes darted around the room, examining each object within it and assessing it quickly and thoroughly. Her face practically glowed around the wide smile she sported, and her quick little gasps at each thing she saw gave the impression that the world and everything in it was brand new to her.

“I made it! I’m in Rarity’s bedroom!” she snickered loudly, then finally focused on said bedroom’s owner, who was staring at her with increasing concern. “Oh, there you are!” she chortled.

Finding Twilight’s laughter infectious, Rarity added a few ladylike giggles of her own. “Why, yes! Here’s Rarity, queen of her domain. And you are now in my domain!” She leaned back regally on her cushion, one foreleg resting on the vanity counter, trying not to let on how vital it was in keeping her upright.

“Oh, of course,” cried Twilight as she started to sketch a grand bow. Once one hoof left the bedspread, though, she wobbled on her other three legs, her eyes wide as she toppled with a thump onto the floor at Rarity’s feet. She raised her head, grinning as if nothing had happened, and finished through barely suppressed mirth, “...Your Majesty!”

Rarity’s eyes widened as Twilight played at obeisance... 'which is only my due, of course!' she thought with a smirk. She sniffed a bit noisily, then leaned back a little further, knocking over a couple of makeup bottles, and extended one of her rear hooves to Twilight. Looking down at the giggling librarian, she raised one carefully shaped eyebrow.

“You may kiss the royal hoof,” she said grandly as she waved that dainty appendage in front of Twilight's nose.

As her eyes followed the waggling hoof with intense fascination, each of Twilight's pupils moved at a slightly different rate. It was such a beautiful hoof: well groomed, perfectly trimmed, and the most delectable shade of white she had ever seen. She leaned closer, absorbing every detail: the texture of Rarity’s coat, the shape of her hock, the scent of her shampoo, the slightly different white of the skin beneath her fur....

“Ahem?” said Rarity, waving the hoof again and almost bumping Twilight’s face.

“Hee hee! Hoof!” Twilight smiled hugely and leaned close to plant a delicate kiss right on the tip. She smacked her lips as if savoring the taste, then looked up into Rarity’s bemused gaze. “Hoof!” she said again, her head weaving in a small circle. “Good hoof!”

Rarity wobbled forward on her perch and leaned down to look closely at Twilight’s eyes, noting their mismatched pupils and tendency to wander. Her own eyes widened, and in a stage whisper that squeaked with incredulity she asked, “Are... are you high?”

“Yyyyyyep! I’m conducting an experiment with lysergic acid diethylamide!” chirped Twilight. "I'm taking extensive notes..." she reached for her notebook only to stop stopped as she realized it was on the desk from which she had just teleported. Any consternation she might have felt as a result of this washed away as she spotted Rarity's still bobbing hoof. She bent her head toward it and gripped the hoof in her mouth. “Foof!” she said around it, giggling and not letting go even as the fashionista gently tried to tug it back.

Rarity’s eyes danced with mischief as she considered the possibilities inherent in having a cheerfully tweaking Twilight at her beck and call. A wide and slightly manic smile crept onto her face as a particularly salacious thought came to her. “I know something we could do,” she said in a voice dripping with heat and promise as she leaned down to stroke Twilight's mane invitingly.

Not at all immune to the lovely white unicorn’s charms, Twilight dropped the hoof from her mouth and rolled into a sitting position, her face taut with anticipation. “Ooooh... what? What can we do?” she asked eagerly, hoping she knew the answer.

Rarity leaned closer to Twilight, her lips just brushing one graceful lavender ear as she whispered, “Let’s turn the town plaid!”

Twilight’s answering squeal of delight was music to her ears.

“Eee hee hee the little guys are everywhere!” cackled Twilight as she fired another pink bolt from her horn. The window box she was looking at changed from brown to a square pattern of blue, green and black.

“Ooh, Black Watch!” gushed Rarity, galloping up to join her friend. “Nice one!” She fired a bolt from her own horn and added a trompe l’oeil sporran to the front of the box.

“There’s more over here!” cried Twilight as she swayed off in the other direction. She fired at will, leaving splotches of cruelly contrasting crosshatching on planters, doors, and even the backside of the occasional passing pony.

“Sorry, Cheerilee!” called Rarity as she chased after Twilight, laughing madly. “Don’t worry, it will fade, and in the meantime you look good in Royal Stuart!”

Twilight screeched to a halt in the middle of the town square, grunting as Rarity barreled into her from behind. “AHA!” she cried, raising a hoof to the sky. “Let’s get Pinkie Pie to load her Party Cannon with heavy ordnance!”

Rubbing her bruised muzzle, Rarity grumbled briefly, then caught her breath, her eyes narrowing as she looked nervously around at their surroundings. “No, no... this is our mission! We must prevail on our own! And we really shouldn’t stop here...”

“MORE OF THEM!” shouted Twilight as she fired off another salvo of eye-wrenching patterns. One blast hit the statue of Celestia, turning it a wild array of garish colors.

Rarity’s nose crinkled as she darted up to examine this latest monstrosity. “Ew,” she said disgustedly. “Did you have to mix MacQueen and Buchanan? I think this time you’ve gone too far.”

“You’re right!” Twilight replied in a rush, her ears and tail gyrating as she finally processed one of Rarity's previous comments. “We can’t stop here! This is bat country, and I can’t zap them all!”

In a brilliant flash of pink light the two ponies were gone.

The rest of that afternoon passed quietly in Ponyville, though occasional crazed laughter was heard by those few ponies who lived near the Everfree Forest. The next day, however, saw Fluttershy dressing down two exhausted-looking ponies for turning Angel’s fur a bright MacInnes , though her ire seemed more focused on the fact that she had been magically clasped into a rabbit fur sporran....

A Rather Delectable Pie

The deep thump of the bass roaring from the speakers at Vinyl’s show rolled through Pinkie Pie’s body and mind like waves on a beach sped up tenfold. Her wide pupils danced in syncopated rhythm over her even wider smile as she gyrated on the dance floor with Rainbow Dash, hooves and nose and tail all coming close, but never quite touching.

Dash had given up long ago trying to compete with Pinkie’s bizarrely sensual moves and just let herself enjoy the music. The rush she was getting from their apparent exchange of flirtation - though it was hard to be sure with Pinkie - kept the grin on her face lit brightly in spite of the fact that she was actually starting to get tired.

She signaled to Pinkie that she was thirsty and leaped straight up into the air, dodging around the other skydancing pegasi to swoop down on a just-abandoned table at the edge of the dance floor. There she panted happily, watching Pinkie thread her way effortlessly through the crowd, somehow managing to snag two drinks on her way. Briefly she entertained a fantasy that involved getting her drunk and dragging her off for a more private dance, but she quickly discarded it with a laugh when she remembered that even she couldn’t outdrink Pinkie.

Plunking the cider bottles on the table, Pinkie shouted just loud enough to be heard over the din. “Woo hoo! You’re a great dancer!” She bolted a third of her bottle and gave Dash a frank and appraising once-over. “You wanna... up the game a little?” she said with a saucy waggle of eyebrows as she flashed a pair of small brown pills she had hidden in one hoof.

Dash’s eyebrows shot up. “Are you freaking kidding me?” she said in a rush as an intoxicating mix of fear and excitement shot through her. She leaned close to shout-whisper in Pinkie’s ear, not noticing the red spots that appeared on the party pony’s cheeks at her nearness and the warmth of her breath. “Is that Pon-E?”

Nodding, Pinkie giggled. “Not to be confused with our good DJ, of course!” she chirped back. “And it’s totally the good stuff, too - clean and pure and fun fun fun!” She hopped in place in her excitement, her mane bobbing in time with the beat of the music.

Rainbow Dash rubbed her chin in thought, looking into Pinkie’s wide blue eyes. She trusted Pinkie Pie implicitly, even - perhaps especially - when it came to inebriants. And she had always wanted to try E....

“Okay, I’m in!” she blurted before she could change her mind. She smiled as Pinkie laughed with delight as she ran over to wrap her up in a huge hug. Her pleasure at the warm gesture intensified when Pinkie’s mouth found hers, her tongue flicking insistently at her lips. She parted them and felt a sudden heat at how good Pinkie tasted, and how amazingly wicked her tongue felt... as it pressed a small capsule into her mouth.

Grinning, she deepened the kiss, swallowing the pill and taking command of Pinkie’s mouth. The cider they had been drinking added a zing to Pinkie’s inherent sweetness, and it was a long time before they broke the kiss, both gasping and blushing madly at the happy cheers their display earned from the crowd around them.

Pinkie smiled and bit her lower lip, glowing in the wake of Dash’s passion. “Let’s get out of here,” she said with a wink as she turned toward the door, dragging Dash, who was still sporting pink cheeks and a silly grin, behind her. They ran through the streets, laughing and playing chase-tag, until Pinkie came to a screeching halt near the back of Sugarcube Corner.

Looking up at the top of the building, Pinkie frowned lightly, then nodded and pointed. “See? I left the window open just for you!” she said cheerily as she gathered Dash into another hug.

“Pinkie, what are you AH!” Dash shouted in surprise as Pinkie hoisted her, took aim at the window, and flung her straight at it. She started to extend her wings, then shrugged in midair and enjoyed the rush as she went straight through the window to land in a tumbling heap on Pinkie’s bed. She was immediately tangled in pink hooves and tickled by a giggling Pinkie, who didn’t relent until Dash finally cried out for peace.

“How did you get in here before me?” asked Dash when she finally caught her breath.

“What do you mean?” asked Pinkie with a small frown that quickly dissolved into a grin. “I was waiting for you the whole time. It was fun watching you fly in the window!”

“But I..."

“Tut tut!” Pinkie said, raising a hoof to stop her. “If I’m right about your metabolism, you should start reaaaaally feeling the effects..." She paused dramatically, hoof in the air, holding absolutely still but for the excited dance of her eyes.

Dash stared at her, one eyebrow raised, until her patience ran out a few seconds later. “Pinkie, you can’t possibly..."

“Now!” cried Pinkie, her hoof coming down like a racing flag. At the same moment, Dash’s world shifted a quarter step to the right.

“Mother of wind,” Rainbow Dash breathed out as her perceptions expanded to take in the entire room at once. For the first time since she could remember her brain actually shut the heck up and just marveled at what was around her. In slow motion she turned to look at Pinkie Pie, who was watching her with a quiet, but very gleeful smile.

“Pinkie... you are just plain gorgeous!” Dash said in a voice full of wonder. Part of her wanted to reach out to touch her, but she didn’t need to - she could see Pinkie’s beauty, feel it, smell it, and even taste it on the back of her tongue. And there was time - plenty of time. For now she could just lay there and stare, her eyes slightly moist as the intensity of Pinkie’s multilayered radiance washed over her.

Pinkie squirmed and laughed in delight as Dash relaxed on her bed. “I’m glad you think so,” she chirped, blushing lightly at the slow bob of rainbow mane that highlighted her answering nod. “...’cause I’ve always thought you were sexy as all get out, but didn’t know if I should tell you!”

Rainbow Dash pondered that for a while, her pupils dancing. Her usual defense mechanisms of bravado and near narcissism seemed far away, ineffective, unnecessary. Instead she found herself free - free to think, to feel, to be honest about how she felt about Pinkie.

“I don’t know about anypony else, and I don’t really care,” she said in a much softer voice than her usual rasp. “But Pinkie? Mare or not, crazy or not, and my own need to be the best aside..." She paused at that thought, amazed at her own ability to step away from the fear that was so much a part of her usual self.

Her eyes darted back to Pinkie, and she continued as if there had been no interruption. “...I want you like flowers want sun, like the beach wants the touch of the waves.” Her cheeks flushed with sudden passion. “Like pegasi want to fly.”

Pinkie’s eyes had widened with each simile, and at the last she gasped, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. “Oh Dashie... I want you, too!” she said quietly, trembling with the power of having voiced her desire at last.

“And I finally threw the right party - the one I’ve been looking for this whole time! One for just me,” she whispered as she slowly crawled across the bed, then leaned forward to brush her lips lightly over Dash’s. “...and you.”

Brief as it was, that contact sent a jolt through Rainbow Dash unlike any she’d ever felt. She was suddenly ready - more ready than she had ever been, she thought rapidly - for anything, everything Pinkie had to offer, or would do, or wanted to do. To her, with her... anything.

“Anything?” Pinkie echoed quietly, grinning as Dash jumped and blushed, not having realized she had said it aloud.

Dash took a deep breath, and the scents in the room - most especially, the intriguing, alluring, and downright tempting scent of Pinkie Pie - filled her in a whirl of pleasure and anticipation. She slowly reached up to stroke Pinkie’s mane, marveling at its softness, and how the simple act of touching her made her feel safe, complete, and very aroused.

“Yes, Pinkie. Anything.”

Pinkie’s eyes roved over Dash’s body, and she swallowed as her mouth watered. “How about we start with... everything,” she breathed into Dash’s mouth as she moved to embrace her. As their coats slid together they melded into a single electric spark, heat and desire flooding through them as they moaned in unison. Their lips and tongues met, and they cried out, trembling with love and desire.

Hours later, Rainbow Dash slowly opened her eyes and grinned at how sticky her face felt. She turned her head to see Pinkie sleeping soundly beside her, chewing on one corner of her pillow.

“Oh, thank Celestia,” Dash said very quietly. “That wasn’t a dream.” She tucked herself around Pinkie - who made little grumbly noises as she nestled against her - then lay her head back down and drifted back to sleep, a happy smile on her face.

Author's Note

Inspired by my good friend Perlandria. Thanks, minion!

Didst Thou Just Call Us a Tart?

The Royal Bedchamber was in shambles. Relatively speaking, anyway.

Princess Celestia, Diarch of Equestria, Scion of the Sun, Duchess of Canterlot, etc. generally kept her room neat and Spartan, so even a few overturned bottles of Western Wormwood and a mussed blanket made it look rather out of sorts. Add to that the casual sprawl of herself and her sister, Princess Luna, Diarch of Equestria, Lady of the Moon, etc. across said bed, and a few drops of green liquor on the floor beside it, and the picture was indeed quite un-Princess-like.

“I think,” said Celestia slowly, blinking as she paused to recall whatever it was that had crossed her mind a moment ago.

“Dost thou?” replied Luna seriously, her eyes unfocused and a pink glow that matched her sister’s lighting her cheeks.

Celestia turned and grinned at Luna. “I do, actually,” she said brightly, but then her face fell. “Perhaps a little too much sometimes.”

Luna shuffled carefully across the bed to drape a wing over her sister, mindful of the room’s tendency to spin. “Oh, now, Celly... be not sad,” she said soulfully, nuzzling her flowing multicolored mane. “We are here, and thou needst not think overmuch. This is a time for relaxation together!”

The smile returned to Celestia’s face as she turned to stroke Luna’s cheek with her nose. “Indeed, Lulu. Thank you.” She hiccupped delicately, then giggled at herself, bringing one hoof up to cover her mouth.

“Thou art still drunk!” Luna laughed, bumping Celestia with her shoulder. “And thy cheeks are red as roses!”

Celestia’s head dropped to stare intently at the floor, her cheeks flushing a bit further. “Well, there is a reason for that,” she said quietly through a half-hidden smile.

One eyebrow quirking up, Luna smiled knowingly. “Oh so! Pray tell us, then! We are most intrigued!”

“Well, sister,” said Celestia quietly, “it’s something... very private. I’ve thought it for a long time, but have never spoken it aloud.”

“A new secret?” Luna said excitedly, the wing she had draped over Celestia stroking her unconsciously. “We would love to hear it!”

Lifting her gaze to look into Luna’s light blue eyes, Celestia hesitated, her courage almost faltering, bolstered though it was by how much they had been drinking. Finally she blurted out, “Your... your moon is beautiful!”

Luna looked out to the night sky where the gibbous waxing moon shone, the one stray cloud occluding part of it making it even more striking. Pleased but perplexed, she fell back on formality. “We are grateful you enjoy it, sister,” she said as she turned her head to look quizzically at Celestia.

“No no, you silly... “ Celestia leaned closer, her breath warm on Luna’s cheek as she lowered her voice to whisper in her ear. “That one!” She gestured with eyes and horn to the cloud-backed moon on Luna’s flank, then spread one wing out to slide the tips of her flights up her sister’s rear leg.

Luna reared back in surprise, her cheeks flushing brightly enough to be clearly visible even through her dark coat. “But, Celly...”

Leaning further in, Celestia silenced her by pressing her lips against Luna’s, parting them gently to dart her tongue out in invitation. When Luna did not respond in kind she opened her eyes and broke the kiss.

“...Lulu?” she said uncertainly, a touch of hurt showing in her eyes.

Luna searched Celestia’s face for signs this was a jest of some sort; it wouldn’t be the first time her sister had pulled some elaborate prank on her. Even through the haze of alcohol - and the sudden warmth that had shot through her when Celestia kissed her, which she was struggling to hide - she saw only genuine feeling.

“Celestia,” she said quietly, “would that not be considered a breaking of one of the more stringent societal taboos of this age - or nearly any in our history?”

With a derisive snort Celestia brought her head up to give Luna a look of challenge. “The incest taboo is born of concerns about inbreeding, learned through observation of livestock,” she said disdainfully.

“We are not animals,” she continued more gently, “and we most certainly cannot breed.”

All anger left Celestia’s voice and features, and she dropped her head slightly to look at Luna through lowered lashes. “Nopony will ever know, if that is your wish,” she stated with sultry confidence, “and since there is no risk to our blood, our magic, or anything that matters to us or to others, why not indulge in what we both so clearly desire?”

Ignoring the protest Luna seemed about to raise, Celestia lifted her head to look straight into her eyes. “Just tell me that you have never harbored such fantasies yourself,” she whispered heatedly, “and I shall never bring it up again.”

This time Luna dropped her gaze to stare at the suddenly fascinating pattern of the inlaid marble floor. “We... are too honest to say that,” she said so quietly that Celestia had to strain her ears forward to catch it. “But we never imagined thou wouldst see us that way, or risk thy reputation, or even position, to do aught about it.”

A tear ran down Luna’s face as she continued. “And besides, after what we did to you so long ago, we thought...”

“Oh, Lulu!” Celestia cried, shuffling quickly across the bed to wrap her forehooves and one wing around her. “Do you know how hard it was for me to punish you, even when you were the Nightmare? How much I longed for you over those thousand years?” Tears flowed down her cheeks as she started kissing Luna’s face between her words. “I missed you. I lived in regret. I looked up at you, every night, and oh how I dreamed.”

Her kisses ended on Luna’s lips, and this time her sister responded. Slowly, carefully, she let herself open to Celestia’s warmth and love, her wings rustling on her back.

“Oh my sweet sister,” Celestia breathed onto Luna’s cheek as the kiss broke, “I have wanted you so much. Please... please let us move beyond our past, and into what we could become... together.” Her unwavering gaze held Luna, her eyes full of hope and a vulnerability that few ever saw.

Her reserve crumbling, Luna held herself back by the thinnest of threads. “Celly... art thou sure this is not just the absinthe talking? Western Wormwood has a certain... reputation for making fillies... frisky,” she said with a nervous grin. “What is it we have heard said? Ah yes: absinthe makes the tart grow fonder?”

Celestia pretended shock, though she could not keep from chuckling. ”Didst thou just call us a tart?” she asked in a playful imitation of Luna’s archaic speech. As her sister sputtered, caught between protest and laughter, she sighed and shook her head firmly.

“Never mind, it was but a jest. But Luna… I am not a filly - not for centuries, now! - and while I am certain that these bottles of lovely green liquid we’ve swallowed have helped me past my fear, this is something I’ve wanted to say for a very long time.” She reached out to curl a forehoof around one of Luna’s, smiling as she felt an answering grip.

“I love you, Lulu. I always have, and after all this time I think I can confidently say I always will.” Her pale cheeks suffused with red as she spoke, and she kept her eyes steady on Luna’s with some effort as she added, “I would simply like to love you... even more.”

A thin beam of moonlight sneaked its way between the curtains to illuminate their clasped hooves. Luna glanced down at them, her wings spreading further as she met Celestia’s gaze.

“Yes,” came her exultant whisper. “Oh, yes, please!”

Celestia silenced her once more with her eager mouth, and for a long time they exchanged no more words as they fell back out of the moonbeam to twine limbs, wings, and hearts through the rest of the night.

Flowers in Winter

Cheerilee moved carefully through the snow, using her chest as a plow to cut herself a channel in which to walk. She muttered to herself the whole time, and a well-cocked ear might have caught a few words she would never have uttered in the school room, and a couple more that by all rights ought to have at least softened the snow around her.

“How did I get convinced to go out in this weather, anyway?” she grumbled as she broke a slightly more solid patch of snow in front of her with a well-placed thrust of her hoof. With no answer forthcoming she continued pushing through the drifts toward the Everfree Forest.

Behind and to one side of her, the snow parted to reveal a black and white striped mane that stood straight up from its owner’s head. The top of a similarly striped face crept into view, bright blue eyes shining with anticipation in the afternoon light. The vision dropped back under the snow, leaving no trace but for the small spot of broken snow.

Just as Cheerilee was considering returning to her home she stopped, her ears swiveling in all directions and her eyes wide. She scanned the area around her, but saw and heard nothing moving in the crisp afternoon air. Slowly she relaxed, then shook her head and started forward again.

The faint ‘foof!’ of shifting snow behind her was timed perfectly with the next hard drift she had to break up with her hoof. Her eyes went wide as she was tugged backward by one leg, and though she flailed her hooves she could find no purchase. Before more than a small, gasping scream could escape her she was dragged beneath the surface of the snow. Only her earmuffs lay on the snow to mark where she had disappeared. For a long, tense moment, the meadow was silent.

In a burst of white flurries two mares broke through the surface of the snow, striped hooves wrapped happily around dark pink shoulders. Their laughter blended as they held each other, their joy and warmth driving away the cold.

Soon Cheerilee edged away from the zebra. “You sneaky old hedge-walker!” she said in mock admonishment, her smile still wide in spite of a touch of fear in her eyes. “You could have given me a heart attack!”

“Ha! I couldn’t resist the chance to pull you into a snowbound dance!” answered Zecora, shaking the last few white flecks out of her mane. “Besides, that path you’re taking now is rather long for you to plow.” She pointed back along the way Cheerilee had come, and when the teacher looked back she blushed to see how she had veered away from the trail she usually took to get to the Everfree.

“W... well, it’s easy in the new-fallen snow to... to lose track of the path you know,” she said, her cheeks flushing from more than the chill air.

Zecora shook her head, though her small smile stayed put. “You don’t need to rhyme for me; it’s more than sufficient just to see that even in this winter snow you’ll venture out with your cheeks aglow!” She ruffled Cheerilee’ s mane, then stroked her reddened face.

Gently batting the hoof away Cheerilee blushed even more darkly. “Not here,” she said in a hushed voice. She winced when she saw a bit of the joy fall from Zecora’ s face. “I’m sorry, I… I’m just not ready to be public about us,” she said, dropping her gaze.

Raising an eyebrow, Zecora snorted lightly. “And when will it be, my delectable mare, that you will admit to our affair?” She turned her head toward the ever-waiting Forest, her voice falling to a near whisper. “Would it be easier if I were a stallion, or would I then have to prove I’m not a rapscallion?”

She turned back, and there was a tiny spark of anger in her eyes, though even that was more than Cheerilee had ever seen. “Or is it because I am not a pony that keeps one part of your heart so stony? What do you fear will be said of us that makes this so hard to discuss?”

Cheerilee’ s face got even darker, and she sputtered incoherently, caught utterly off guard. “It’s not that!” she blurted out. “I don’t care that you’re a zebra!” She looked around frantically but saw nopony watching them - in fact, there was nopony out in the snow near the Everfree at all.

“Can we... can we please have this conversation later? In your home, in my home... just not here?” Cheerilee pleaded, her eyes shining.

For a brief moment, Zecora considered relenting. She had been very surprised when Cheerilee had responded to her gentle flirtations a few months back, and her own reticence at making a fuss in the town had led her to agree to keep their budding relationship quiet. But Cheerilee’s continued discomfort with any affection that might be witnessed rankled, and so she shook her head, a bit of hardness sneaking into her eyes.

Still, she cared for the frightened teacher, so she did her best to weave kindness into her firm tone. “This has waited long enough, and now I’m going to call your bluff: why is it, then, that you fear to show the affection that we have come to know?”

When Cheerilee hesitated, her eyes looking everywhere but into hers, Zecora felt a rush of compassion. She reached up to stroke the other mare’s face gently. “I do not care what others think, or even if they raise a stink. This is more than some wandering affection that might melt away at the slightest inspection!”

Looking as though she might bolt, Cheerilee stared at Zecora for a long time. Tears fell from her face, making little holes in the snow around her.

“I... I’m sorry, Zecora. I didn’t mean...” She stopped herself, then shook her head, snorting in frustration at her own fear. She took a deep breath, then chuckled wryly as she sniffed and wiped her eyes. “Pardon me,” she said quietly. “Let me start that again.” She took a deep breath, then slowly lifted her gaze to meet Zecora’s.

“Not everypony thinks it’s okay for two mares to... to love each other,” she said, her cheeks burning anew. “Nor for ponies to..." she searched for a reasonable word, twirling one hoof in the air. “...consort with zebras,” she finished, glancing nervously at Zecora only to be answered with a bemused nod.

“And while I might be able to deal with that on my own,” Cheerilee continued in a rush as she got her mental hooves under her, “being a teacher makes it harder. Anything too strange makes the more conservative parents nervous at best, and some of them actually seem to like finding ways to make teachers’ lives hard!” She stomped her hoof in the snow, fuming silently, before turning a guilty grin toward Zecora.

“And you let that become a part of your thought,” Zecora said gently, “Instead of a thing to resist, and be fought.”

Cheerilee nodded sadly, fresh tears lurking at the corners of her eyes. “I’m sorry, Zecora. I never meant..."

Zecora moved forward and wrapped her forehooves around Cheerilee, holding her close and stroking her back. “Hush, hush, I do understand. It’s hard to be strange in this part of the land,” she said softly.

Taking a half-step back to look into Cheerliee’s eyes she continued quietly, “But please know this: you are part of my life, and though I might wish us to be without strife every couple, no matter their color or form has trouble, some winters, with keeping hearts warm.”

The fear left the teacher’s eyes, and her smile became more relaxed. “Thank you, Zecora,” she half-whispered, wiping the corners of her eyes. “I really want this to work.”

She stepped back to lock gazes with Cheerilee, one hoof still on her withers. “Just believe, as I do, that we’ll be strong together. We’ll survive nasty parents,” she smirked, “or inclement weather, or anything else that this world throws our way! And I’ll have your back, no matter the fray.”

Her face lit with joy and relief, Cheerilee gave a happy cry and threw her hooves around Zecora’s shoulders, laughing and crying and kissing her cheek. Subsiding, she stepped back to look into those lovely blue eyes, a conspiratorial smile on her face.

“You are so right,” she said, and with that she leaned in and kissed Zecora firmly, then warmly, then with a soft moan as her lips parted to taste the odd, but enjoyable flavor of the zebra’s mouth.

Reluctantly, Zecora broke the kiss, a beaming smile on her face. “That was lovely, my dear, but might lead to some things that are indeed best left to a more private fling.” She turned to lead Cheerilee into the Forest, smiling back at her over shoulder as she broke the snow ahead of them.

“Now listen,” she said with a touch of pink on her cheeks, “I’ve made something new! A potion inspired by an old mentor’s brew.” She blushed further as they approached the undergrowth. “It’s made with vervain and a strong, tasty stock! But the best thing about it? It gives me a..."

The last word was lost in the loud rustle of the ferns and bracken through which they plunged. Had there been any listeners, they would have heard a shocked but happy gasp, followed by delighted laughter and animated chatter from the two mares as they walked deeper into the forest.

Author's Note

Inspired by Snow Shark. Linked with permission - the artist was quite tickled by my making a story out of it.