Band of Five Attributes (Re-Written)

The two pegasi followed Spitfire down a hallway, one that was marked with multitudes upon multitudes of doors. The moonlight illuminated the hallway through its sparse windows, pristine white walls aglow in silver.

“It’s a pretty big place.” Nagare remarked, eyes wide in surprise.

Spitfire stopped before a door and turned her body to it, briefly revealing a burst of flames in three blazing colors for a cutie mark. She turned her head to the stallion. “First time walking in the academy, I assume?” She asked.

“Yeah. I heard this place was usually reserved for those training to be Wonderbolts or something.” The stallion answered, a faint smile on his face.

“Well, for you two, I can make an exception. From all those rumors I’ve heard, the supposed anomalies happen in and around the academy anyway.” Spitfire replied, a faint smile on her own muzzle. She opened the door and moved out of the way, watching as the two ponies trotted inside to find two beds on opposite sides of the room at the ready, two dresser drawers next to those beds, and a door to the left that led into a bathroom.

Nagare sat before the dresser drawer on the right, fumbling about a bit with his saddlebag using his front hooves. A few moments passed before the thing fell off his body to the floor, which he then carefully scooped up and placed on top of the dresser. He made sure his blade was still secured before he got onto the bed and covered up. Yuuki placed her yoyo onto the other drawer, ensuring the string was safely tucked away before she claimed the other bed.

“Alright, I’ll have a talk with those bozos now. Sleep tight.” Spitfire said, closing the door and trotting away. After a few seconds, the sounds of her hooves hitting the floor were but a dull echo that soon faded into the night.

The stallion let off a soft groan, eyes scrunched as he then began to toss and turn a bit violently. He could not keep still for thirty seconds, struggling to get even a hint of sleep. Yuuki had also groaned, but she kept perfectly still save for the scrunching of her own eyes. The mare began to sweat lightly, and she was muttering something as she lay still.

The minutes ticked by, and eventually, the stallion sat up in bed blinking harshly. He looked around slowly, seeing that the room had not been disturbed since he and Yuuki set hoof into it. He got out of the bed slowly, his limbs feeling heavy as stones. He blinked and glanced around again before sauntering into the bathroom, making sure to turn on the light as he did.

He moved to the bathtub, slowly raising a heavy hoof to the faucet. The knob was turned shortly after, and the showerhead released a drizzling waterfall of steaming, piping hot water. He was about to move into the tub when a most terrible shriek of agony hit his ears from the bedroom, which in turn caused his eyes to widen. His limbs no longer felt heavy, and he moved them with renewed ease to guide him back to the bedroom.

Yuuki sat up, breathing frantically and covered in sweat. Her eyes were wide, her pupils the size of pinpricks, her ears were flat on her skull, and even her wings were splayed wide open. Tears threatened to leak from her eyes, and her jaw was jittery. “Thank goodness...it was only a dream…” She muttered, her ears slowly returning upright. “Just a very bad dream…”

Nagare breathed a sigh of relief. He trotted over to the mare as she crawled out of the bed and closed her wings.

“Why do I hear water running…?” Yuuki asked, her ears twitching as she caught the sound of the showerhead that still expelled hot water.

“I was just about to take a quick shower when I heard you yodeling. You had me worried for a second or so.” Nagare answered, patting the mare on the shoulder with a hoof before turning tail and re-entering the bathroom. Then, he placed himself under the drizzling stream of water, wincing a bit as pure hot liquid hit him and caused a burning sensation all over. He sat down, letting more of the sprinkling water hit his body, causing himself to wince again. After a bit, though, it somehow felt soothing to let the water, hot as it was, hit every inch of his body.

A few more moments passed, and every inch of him--mane, tail, hooves, wing feathers--was thoroughly soaked. He shifted, rising up on his legs with one front hoof outstretched towards the faucet from which the drain plug had been dangling thanks to a small beaded loop. He grabbed it, pulled it off and turned around, putting the plug in the drain and letting the heated water pool in the tub slowly.

He heard hoofsteps hitting the floor very close by. He turned his head just in time to see Yuuki waltz in, and she seemed rather dazed. Her eyelids threatened to close, and she sauntered. Her wings drooped, the bare tips of her feathers touching the floor.

“Ugh...I don’t feel so good…” She groaned, her voice riddled with exhaustion. The steam from the water that fell from the showerhead soon hit her nostrils, and her eyes opened a bit more than they had been a moment ago. “Just...can’t sleep.”

“Neither can I. Why do you think I’m sitting here letting boiling water hit me like the rain?” Nagare asked, arching a brow. He was quick to notice Yuuki turning her entire body to him and then walking in his direction.

“Could you make some room in the tub, please?” Yuuki asked, sounding more awake than when she walked in. Her eyes were fully open, and her wings folded to her sides as she continued to approach.

“I suppose I could.” Nagare sighed, now noticing that the tub had a good bit of water in it that fully submerged all four of his hooves. He sat down and turned the showerhead off with a simple act of pushing down the diverter with his hoof, letting the faucet pour out even more hot water. Yuuki soon put her hooves in the tub, and didn’t seem very fazed by the hot water. Only when she sat down did she let off a short-lived gasp, which in turn caused the stallion to look at her with both eyebrows arched.

Yuuki quickly got her rump out of the water and sighed, a faint blush on her face. She tried to sit again, and this time the water really didn’t bother her as much as it had the first time. “Could you turn the showerhead back on, please?” She asked, tilting her head slightly. The faint blush on her face didn’t go away, though. In fact, it seemed to redden even more, contrasting her purple pelt greatly.

The stallion groaned, though he did do as asked. Soon, the mare was pelted with hot water all over, and was thoroughly soaked after. He noticed that Yuuki had removed the drain plug, letting the already-accumulated water drain out. Then, something completely unexpected happened: Yuuki grabbed the stallion and yanked him into a hug with quick front hooves, effectively dragging him under the pelting hot water in the process.

Nagare’s eyes widened. “W-what are you--?!” He started, only to stop as his mouth met with that of the mare who embraced him. He himself was blushing now as Yuuki broke the kiss as quick as it had come.

“I...I have to ask something.” Yuuki replied, her ears falling flat on her skull. “You...remember when you said you wanted me, right?”

Nagare blinked for a few moments, his eyes still wide. “...Yes. Yes I do.” He said rather hesitantly.

“Did you...want me for my body, or...something else?” Yuuki asked, her wings spreading a bit.

In that instant, the stallion’s pupils shrank to tiny dots. His face was completely reddened at this point, and a golfball was now lodged in his throat sideways. He gulped hard, his jaw opening to speak. No words could be formed, so he shut his mouth in short order.

Yuuki closed her wings again. She maintained eye contact with the stallion, almost as if waiting for an answer.

“Not...just for your body.” Nagare spoke at last, his body shaking a bit. “Your...personality. It...defines your inner beauty.”

“Come again?” Yuuki asked, her eyes widening.

“Your personality...makes you shine through. It...makes you more beautiful than you already are.” Nagare answered, his pupils returning to normal size as he spoke. The blush didn’t fade from his face either.

Yuuki’s ears perked up. “Really?” She asked.

“Yes.” The stallion said quickly, a faint smile on his muzzle.

Yuuki let a faint smile of her own adorn her face. The water that hit her and her companion had turned freezing cold, but it didn’t concern her one bit. Her wings folded at her sides again, and her smile only widened as Nagare wrapped his front legs around her and pulled her closer to him.