Airships, Sandskiffs, and Locomotives

Velvet wrung out her mane with magic as she and Night Light followed Candy into the congested streets. Despite the morning bustle, that absurdly large trunk was easy to follow. The brilliant light of morning filled the streets around them, as the blazing sun swept up to blast the desert once again.

Readjusting her magical hold on her baggage, Velvet snuck a mischievous grin to her husband. He caught the motion and winked, still blushing with embarrassment. There was going to be hell to pay if what they’d done back in that hotel caught up with them, but Velvet had to admit, it felt exciting to be breaking all the rules like this again.

When they were both newly-minted twenty-somethings, Night Light had been quite the troublemaker. Velvet still vividly remembered that time he’d come to her thesis defense and, during the break for lunch, given her some words of encouragement… along with a very welcome stress-relieving quickie in the third floor bathroom. She’d barely made it back to the room in time to resume giving her presentation, hoping sheepishly that none of the professors would notice her flushed skin and frazzled mane. Nevertheless, her nerves had evaporated like morning mist.

They’d both mellowed out with age, she thought. She loved how quietly dependable Night Light had grown to be; always doting on the children, always gently loving her despite her foibles and follies. Like last night—Sisters, how embarrassing for him to find out about all the little fantasies she had of him and other stallions. But he’d just grinned and gone along with it, finding his happiness in her own. Falling asleep on his chest, she’d never felt safer.

But now she realized that she’d been craving some of that little daring streak. Maybe that was the spark they’d been missing lately. It wasn’t that their sex life had gotten boring, just... routine. And now, with their whole carefully-planned vacation falling to pieces around them, with no idea what would come next, she discovered that she couldn’t wait to find out.

Although she assumed it involved enthusiastically jumping her husband’s bones.

The sun had baked both of them dry by the time they reached the outskirts of the city. Candy guided the Sparkles toward a small shack set about a hundred meters past the final clump of buildings at the end of the main road. Beside the tin-roofed hovel was what appeared to be the hull of a small boat. Velvet’s head tilted in bafflement.

As they drew closer, it became clear that the boat was standing on a pair of long skids. It had a huge circular cage mounted on the back, with a set of gleaming fan blades inside. Candy whistled cheerfully. “Either of you ridden in a sandskiff before?”

“No,” said the unicorns in united confusion.

“Oh, then you’re in for a treat. They’re fast enough to get us across the desert in two days, tops. Once I introduce you to Shady Sal, we can pile in and get going.”

“Er…” Night Light coughed. “Why do they call him Shady Sal?”

Candy paused, tapping his chin. “Now you mention it, I’m not really sure. Don’t worry though, Sal’s a good guy. One dark sense of humor though, hah! I sold him some lead pipes a little while back, heavy enough to ‘crack a skull open,’ as he put it.” Candy chuckled, apparently not noticing the way Night Light blanched. “Anyway, he owes me a favor for some help I gave him a few years back. He’s letting us take the skiff to Trottingham free of charge.”

Swallowing apprehension, Velvet nodded. “Well, that’s good.”

They followed Candy up to the shanty. A number of camels were lounging around the shack, most shielded from the sun with loose cloth robes and turbans. One especially wiry camel emerged from the shed, chewing on a cigarette. He watched their approach with a strangely vacant expression.

“Howdy, Sal,” said Candy with a wave.

Sal blinked slowly, taking in the newcomers. “So… youse lookin’ for trans-por-tation, huh.”

That was definitely not a Saddleic accent. Wondering how on earth someone like this had ended up this far south, Velvet nodded. “We’re heading east to the Equestrian border on the other side of the continent.”

The camel chewed lethargically on his cigarette, flicking it with a soft-toed hoof. “Youse gots money?”

“Y-yes,” said Night Light hesitantly. “How much will—”

“Hey, Sal, come on,” said Candy. “We had a deal, remember? You help me get my friends to Trottingham and we’re square.”

After a long, nerve-inducing pause, Sal gave a sedate nod, still squinting. He took another puff from his cigarette. “Lemme show youse how the skiff works.” He lurched away toward the vehicle.

Night Light shared a brief, wary glance with Velvet, who returned a shrug and a what can you do? look. Shaking his head, he set off after Sal. Velvet and Candy followed.

The three of them stepped up beside the camel, peering into the boat’s hull. Mounted at the rear end with the gargantuan fan was a great deal of complicated pipework connecting to a similarly huge engine. The fan faced backward off the end of the boat, with no obvious controls aside from a lever mounted on the engine casing. A surprisingly rich rug, dull red with gold embroidery, lay on the floor of the skiff.

“’Ere,” said Sal, pointing. “Youse pulls this lever, and the fan kicks on. Pushes y’forward, and the skiff goes sliding over the sand, nice’n’smooth.” He licked his lips. “That’s right. Reaaaal smooth-like. Y’steer with that.” He pointed at a wooden bar that extended down along the bottom of the boat to operate a rudder that touched lightly down onto the sand.

“Okay,” said Night Light, a little cheer returning to his voice. “We’ll have enough fuel to get to Trottingham?”

“Yeah,” drawled Sal. “Steam engine. W’give youse enough coal for the trip.”

“Great,” said Velvet, smiling. “How fast can we go? Are we going to make it to Atlantrot in time? It’ll take at least a day to ride the tram over the mountains from Trottingham…”

“Trip’ll take two days, mebbe.” Slowly, Sal stroked the wood siding of the skiff. “So long as youse don’t get lost, or run inta sand sharks.”

Night Light looked faintly alarmed. “Sand sharks?”

Candy laughed. “Quit messing with the tourists, Sal.” He shook his head, still chuckling. “How soon can we leave?”

Sal tilted his head and hocked a gob of spit to the ground. “Gimme… fifteen minutes.” He whistled, and his fellow camels immediately stood and started toward them.

Candy, Night Light, and Velvet all trotted off to wait in the paltry shade provided by the shack while the camels worked on the vehicle.

“Uh, Candy…” Velvet cast an uncertain glance over her shoulder. “Are you sure this Sal guy is on the level?”

“Oh, yeah, me and him go way back.” Candy thumped the lid of his trunk boisterously. “He used to be a traveling salescamel, like me. One of the most honest traders I know. Same way with his little travel business down here. Gets his customers to their destination every time. Well… as long as they don’t get lost. It’s a big desert, so you’d better keep an eye on that compass, eh?”

“We’ll just be following the tracks from that downed rail line,” said Night Light, nodding with a crooked smile. “No worries about getting lost.”

His confidence was positively dashing; Velvet wished she shared it. “Candy, have you ever actually taken a ride from him before?”

“Sure. Well, not here, but ten years ago when he was selling watches and some other stuff in Manehattan, I took plenty of rides in his boss’s taxi service. Dirt cheap and always reliable. Shame about the whole organization getting shut down though. Something crazy about being involved with a criminal syndicate, ain’t that nuts? I don’t think Sal was caught up in that whole thing, but he dropped off the grid for a while. Few years ago he popped back up here, running the skiff rental. Been really successful for him, too, as far as I understand.”

We’re going to die, thought Velvet, a little forlornly, before shaking her head with a reluctant smile. Oh, you’re being silly. We’ll be fine. After all, we’ve got magic. If worst came to absolute worst, she could try that teleporting spell Twilight had studied for so many years.

Velvet was a talented spellcaster, but she had never mastered the arcane arts the way their daughter had. She wasn’t entirely sure she could pull that off from vague memory alone. Besides, it only worked on one pony at a time; she’d have to get help and rescue Night Light from the desert somehow. Plan A—well, plan B, as plan A had long gone out the window—was still to find a more mundane escape from Saddle Arabia.

“Just curious,” she ventured, “but sand sharks aren’t a real thing, are they?”

“Well…” Candy wobbled a hoof. “They’re real, but they’re very rare. As long as you don’t go making a whole bunch of vibrations in the sand, they’ll never find you. And besides, there aren’t any left in the northern desert, as far as I know. The government likes to pretend there are, just to keep tourists from wandering in and dehydrating to death. That’d be bad for publicity.” He began whistling an old tune about mares, mountains, and dragons.

Velvet looked back over at the camels, who were still fiddling with the skiff. One was rubbing some sort of oil on the skids as the other two poured coals into a compartment under the steam engine. “Well, Candy… Don. Thanks for helping us out.”

Candy winked. “Sure thing. Us travelers gotta stick together, am I right?”

Eventually, the camels all stepped back from the skiff. Sal himself walked back toward the ponies, wiping his neck with a grease-blackened rag, apparently unconcerned about the mess it made on his fur. “All set.”

“Then I guess we’ll be off,” said Night Light, offering a hoof.

With the air of someone sealing a deal, Sal hocked a glob of tarry spit into his own hoof and shook it. Night Light made an admirable attempt not to cringe. Velvet winced in sympathy.

Sal chewed on his smouldering cigarette butt. “You gots it. Good, uh… luck.”

The three ponies climbed into the skiff, taking a few moments to situate their respective bags and cases. To Velvet’s pleasant surprise, the rug was positively luxurious. She settled comfortably down on it with a little coo of delight.

Night Light took up the rearmost position in the narrow hull, resting a hoof on the engine lever. “Everypony ready?” Velvet gave him a nod. Candy shot him a grin and a far-too-energetic wink. Night Light threw the lever.

The engine and fan thundered to life with a deafening roar. Instantly, the air exploded into a whirlwind of sand.

Velvet covered her face with a hoof, coughing in the sudden cloud of dust. Stinging grains slapped her body from all directions. Just as she was beginning to fear that they’d be stuck like this for the entire trip, the skiff lurched into motion. Slowly at first, but with ever-increasing alacrity, it slid forward across the sand.

In another few moments, the cloud of sand began to slip away behind them. It settled into a growing plume that trailed the movement of the skiff, leaving the way ahead clear.

Shouting over the incredible din of the combined fan and engine, Night Light waved to Candy. “Don! Where are those tracks?”

“Don’t worry!” yelled Candy, fishing for something in his trunk. “I’ve got some right here!” He pulled out a bag of pretzels.

“I said tracks!”

“Oh!” Candy let the pretzels drop. “Thataway!” He pointed east.

Night Light steered the skiff, and they went careening across the sand. Velvet held on to the side of the hull, enjoying the way the wind whipped at her mane. Their vacation had turned into a proper adventure, now.

In more ways than one. She was looking forward to getting Night Light to herself tonight. Out under the stars in the middle of the desert, all alone… that would be a romantic setting. There was a soundproofing spell she used frequently in her research that might come in handy to keep Candy unawares.

Actually, it might be useful before then. Blinking with the sudden realization, she lit her horn. A bubble of shimmering, nearly-transparent purple light expanded to cover the three ponies, and the roaring of the skiff engine instantly cut down to a muted rumble. Even the rumbling through the bottom of the skiff was dampened.

Night Light sighed with relief. “Thanks, honey.”

Candy beamed. “That’s a neat trick. And hey, now we can talk!”

Velvet sucked in a breath, instantly filled with regret. “Oh… right.”

“Let me tell you guys more about that stop I made in San Palomino…”

* * *

The distant mountains on the northern border between Saddle Arabia and Equestria loomed on the horizon. Their snowy peaks gleamed in the evening sunlight. Velvet’s chin rested on her hooves, both draped over the side of the skiff’s hull. Ever since the range had come into view, she’d been captivated. The mountains were enormous by any estimation, but they looked especially huge beyond the empty, flat desert. The sheer size of them left her breathless with awe, the age of the rock radiating out like a cold wind. A chill ran down her spine every time she looked back up at those peaks, those bones of the world older than the princess herself.

Candy’s droning tales had long faded into the background, but he suddenly re-entered her attention with a loud yawn. “But enough about my trip to Elketh. How are you two holding up?”

Night Light made a barely-awake mumble. Velvet looked aside at him sharply, wondering if she should take over the rudder and let him rest, but he smiled and waved off her concern. She nodded, her mouth twisting. I’m amazed Don hasn’t put us both to sleep yet.

“I’m just watching the mountains,” she said, turning her gaze back north with a sigh of wonder. “I’ve never seen their like. None of the ranges in the Crystal Empire are this big.”

“Yep, they’re huge all right. Reminds me of the last time I went to Antellucía. I’d just gotten my hooves on some new plastic piping, it was getting real big in Equestria at the time. The antelopes are a fun bunch, let me tell ya—not nearly as stingy about magic as unicorns. Er, no offense.”

Velvet just sighed internally and waved a hoof for him to continue.

“They use magic for all sorts of things ponies don’t. It’s everywhere. They cook with it, they run their machines on it, they’ve got impossible buildings held up with it… no magic plumbing, though, heh. Made a killing there. Enough for me and the wife to go on vacation for two weeks to the Carriagibbean.”

Night Light blinked in surprise, rousing from his stupor. “You’re married?”

“Mmhm.” Candy smiled, his gaze growing distant. “Her name's Marietta. She's the most beautiful lady I’ve ever met. I’m a lucky guy.”

Velvet smiled, despite herself. She couldn’t believe there was someone out there willing to put up with this pony long enough to marry him, but it was cute nonetheless. “How long have you been together?”

“We got married almost ten years ago.” Candy tapped a hoof on his trunk, looking suddenly nervous. “Our anniversary’s coming up soon… I haven’t seen her in months. I’ve been out of the country on sales trips since May.”

Frowning with sympathy, Velvet awkwardly pulled her mane. “She must miss you. When are you heading back?”

“Well, as soon as I sell enough piping to afford the airship ticket. I’ve been having some, uh… liquidity problems.” He grinned, blushing with clear embarrassment. “I’d been hoping to make a big sale here in Saddle Arabia, but…” He shrugged, suddenly brightening. “I’m not going to leave a couple of friends in the lurch! I’m with you till you guys get where you’re going. Atlantrot, right?”

Feeling the sudden weight of guilt settle on her shoulders, Velvet swallowed. “Don, you don’t have to stick with us after we get to Trottingham. We’ll be fine, really. I don’t want to stop you from making it home for your anniversary.”

Night Light looked equally upset at this revelation. “Candy, I… thanks for the help, but… are you sure…?”

The yellow-orange stallion waved this off with a hoof. “It’s fine, really. I’ll get by. I always do. I’m sure someone in Atlantrot owes me a favor or two.” He cracked open his trunk and fished around inside for a moment, coming back out with the bag of pretzels. “Anypony want one?”

“No thanks,” said Velvet, quietly grateful for the subject change. “My bottle’s pretty much out of water. Better not dry my mouth out, we’ve still got another whole day to go.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that.” Candy checked the rail line that was on their distant right, their guiding path through the desert. “We’ll refill all our water tomorrow morning at the oasis.”

“Oasis?” Night Light’s face grew more hopeful than it had been all day. “There’s one out here?”

“Mhm. Very small, though. It’s a few miles north of the rail. They built it to pass by the oasis specifically, made it easier to supply the construction crews while they were laying the tracks.” Candy nodded. “I figured we could stop there for the night.”

Velvet cracked her neck, smiling. “Great. Well, then, if we’re getting a drink soon, I’ll take a pretzel or two…”

The ponies snacked as the sun set, their skiff still flying smoothly across the gently sloping sand dunes. The pretzels did little to quiet the rumbling in Velvet’s belly, but they were better than nothing. She was looking forward to getting a proper meal once they reached Trottingham.

The sun had just begun to vanish over the western horizon when Candy knocked an excited hoof on the skiff’s hull. “Time to turn this puppy north, Night Light!”

With a tired nod, Night Light yanked the rudder, and the skiff lurched into a leftward turn. “How far off is it?”

“We’ll be there in a few minutes.” Candy stretched, yawning, and Velvet immediately had to stifle one of her own. “I don’t know about you two, but I’m beat. Can’t wait to get some shuteye in…”

A short time later, Velvet spotted a tiny patch of green in the desert. Night Light steered them toward it, and the colors quickly resolved into a few stands of trees.

Night had fallen by the time they reached the oasis. Night Light wrenched the lever into the off position, and the fan and engine guttered to a halt. The skiff slid forward on inertia, coming to a rest at last on the outskirts of the little grove of palms.

Under the pale light of the stars, the Sparkles took in the place they’d be spending the night. There were clusters of palm trees scattered loosely around a large, central pool. The water bubbled near the center, clearly fed by a spring somewhere below. A cool breeze rustled through the fronds of the palms.

“Gorgeous,” said Velvet, a little dreamily. “Not a bad spot for a vacation, honey.”

Nodding with a chuckle, Night Light grabbed his bag and hopped out of the skiff. “Let’s get drinks.”

Velvet started digging through her bag for her water bottle, licking her lips at the thought of the thirst-slaking pool just a few meters away. “Candy, you can borrow my sleeping bag if you want. I can share Night Light’s.”

Candy pushed his trunk forward into the nose of the skiff and lay back, resting his head on it. “I’m good, thanks.” He smacked his lips sleepily. “Think I’ll turn in right here.”

“You’re sleeping in the skiff?”

“Yep. I’ve learned my lesson about sleeping on the sand. Hoo-ee, the morning after that wasn’t fun. Goodnight, you two.” He rolled over onto his side and immediately let out a disgusting snore.

Rolling her eyes, Velvet hopped out of the skiff with her water bottle levitating beside her head. “Wish I could fall asleep on cue like that.”

“It’s a neat trick… though not for anyone nearby.” Night Light sighed as Candy let loose another snore. “He’s probably right about the sand, though. I’ve got an idea. Can you fill our water bottles up while I get things ready?”

“Sure.” Velvet took his with magic as well, and trotted across the warm sand toward the pool.

The fresh springwater was crisp and cool, and she gulped it down straight from the pool. After she quenched the thirst that had been bothering her for hours, she sighed contentedly, and began to fill the bottles.

Resealing the caps, she wiped her lips and stood, the bottles floating beside her. Velvet looked around to find Night Light beneath a nearby palm, his bag resting against the trunk. He had the rich, red carpet from the skiff with him, and he was carefully rolling it out onto the sand.

“Good idea,” she said, walking over to join him. “Plenty big enough for the two of us to sleep on.”

“Yes, the sleeping bags might be a little too warm…” Night Light stretched. “This wasn’t exactly the kind of camping we’d planned on, but I’ll take it.”

“I’ll say.” She offered him his bottle with a little magical waggle. He took it with a grateful nod and began gulping down the water. Velvet took a sip from her own bottle as she looked up at the star-strewn desert sky. “Wow. Look at that…”

There were no city lights this far out. The celestial dome stretched out to infinity on all sides, luminous milky tracks of stars smearing across the void-deep black. They shimmered and twinkled in the desert air, still hot despite the vanished sun. The moon was just a sliver, its light dwarfed by the enormous sweeping streams of nebulae and distant stars.

Velvet lay down on the big rug, letting her bottle rest in the sand beside it. Settling onto her back, she let her hooves curl on her chest and stared upward. “A shame Twilight’s not here. She’d show us all the constellations.”

Night Light lay down beside her, chuckling. “I’m sure she would. But I’m glad she’s not here. Means I get you all to myself.” He snuck a foreleg under her, turning sideways to let his other one drape across her chest.

With a grin, she gave him a swift peck on the cheek. “Tell me, is one of your surprises a telescope?”

“No, can’t say I thought to bring one.” He sighed, looking up. “A shame. It's beautiful…” Lifting a hoof, he traced the white channel of the galaxy.

“So,” said Velvet, snickering a little, “what’s your favorite night light, Night Light?”

He gave her a very dry look, drawing another giggle. “If I had to choose…” he turned back to the sky, tapping his chin. “There.” Pointing up, Velvet followed his hoof.

“Ooh…” she murmured. He was pointing toward the little pink spot that marked the center of the Chariot, one of the few constellations she knew offhand. The nebula was visible to the naked eye, the columns of clouds within nearly discernable if one squinted. “Good choice.”

“And yours?”

Velvet twisted over, smiling, and traced a hoof down his chest. “That’s easy.”

Rolling his eyes, but grinning despite himself, he kissed her. “Your motives are entirely transparent, my dear.”

“Hmm.” Velvet drew her hoof a few inches lower, flicking the end of his sheath with her hooftip. Night Light instinctively bit his tongue for a moment, before recovering his composure. She nuzzled him. “I’m glad we’re doing this, Night Light.”

“We’re not doing anything, yet…” he said teasingly, toying with her tail.

She nipped his ear. “I mean this trip. Mixups aside, I haven’t felt this… sexy in ages.”

“This is where I say how you’ve always been sexy to me.”

“I know.” She kissed him. “Never had a doubt. It’s just nice to know that we’re not too old to have an adventure or two. In bed or out.”

“Which does this count as?” Night Light kissed her back, and they quietly enjoyed it for a few moments.

“Still to be determined… why don’t you tell me just what you packed in that bag of yours?”

“Just some basics,” said Night Light, blushing a little in the faint light. “Nothing nearly as fancy as that insane pink monstrosity we’re planning to buy.”

“Go on, then…” She nudged him with a hoof.

He rolled away from her, dragging his bag closer to the rug. “All right, put your hooves above your head and close your eyes…”

Velvet complied, raising an eyebrow. She rested her hooves against both sides of the palm trunk, feeling her pulse quicken. There was some rustling from her left, as Night Light dug through his things. She heard the unmistakable faint sound of an active horn as he lifted something into the air.

Something cold fastened itself around both of her fetlocks. Velvet shivered, recoiling slightly at the touch. Night Light fumbled for another few seconds, before saying, “Okay, open ‘em up.”

She blinked her eyes open, craning her head up to see a pair of pink, padded cuffs encircling the trunk of the tree to pin her hooves. “Oh, dear.” She gave them an amused yank against the trunk, and was surprised to find that they didn’t budge at all. Oh—I hadn’t thought these would be so firm.

Another shiver traveled down her spine, not from the cold metal this time, but from the realization that she couldn’t pull out of the cuffs, even if she wanted to. Turning her head back down to Night Light, she smiled, her breathing a little unsteady. “There’s not a gag in there, is there?”

“If I had a gag, I’d be using it on Candy,” he said dryly. Velvet laughed. “I thought about it, but I like hearing the noises you make.”

Velvet blushed, suddenly aware of how exposed she was. Lying on her back, her forelegs stretched over her head, her hind legs naturally falling to the sides, there was nothing but air between her and Night Light. Of course she felt safe with him, but some primal herd instinct was niggling the back of her mind, pointing out what easy prey she’d be to any passing predators…

Night Light lay down on his chest to her left, grinning. He traced her cutie mark with a hoof, gently bringing his lips to kiss her fetlock. Velvet inhaled deeply, laying her head back to enjoy the caress.

Her inner thigh itched. Instinctively, Velvet moved her hoof to scratch it, pulling up tight against the chain. Another little nervous flutter filled her chest. She lit her horn to give the area a little nudge—and realized to her shock that she couldn’t touch the flow of magic at all. “What the—”

Night Light raised an eyebrow with a wicked smile. “Elyritium-laced metal cuffs. No magic while you’re touching those.”

A rush of adrenaline shot through her. Oh, Sisters, I’m completely trapped, she realized. “Planning to take advantage, are you…?” she laughed anxiously.

“Oh, I’m taking plenty…” said Night Light, before his smile faltered a bit. “I mean, if you’re comfortable with it.”

“I am, I am,” she said, reassured. “This is just a little… phew, I don’t know.”

He placed a hoof on her chest, drawing it downward so lightly that she felt the urge to rub her skin, and pulled her hooves uselessly against the bonds. “Vulnerable?”

“Mhmmm…” Velvet jostled her left hind leg a bit. “Goddesses, you could do… whatever you wanted.”

He lay sideways, grinning. “Anything at all.” Velvet couldn’t help but notice his hard shaft, bobbing slightly between his legs. She licked her lips, partly in anticipation, partly out of nerves.

She shifted her leg again. “Honey, I’ve got an itch down there. Mind helping me out?”

“Certainly,” he said, the sinful smile returning. He leaned down into the crook of her legs, resting his nose against her inner thigh and breathing in deeply. “It’ll be my pleasure…”

“Er, no, I mean an actual itch,” said Velvet, stifling a giggle. “It’s driving me crazy. Right where your nose is.”

“Oh.” Night Light gave it a sheepish scratch with a hoof. “Better?”

“Much. Now, about that other itch… ah.”

He’d stuck his muzzle right into her pussy. His tongue flicked out, quickly lashing her already-trickling slit. Velvet’s hips bucked under the touch, her forelegs pulling helplessly. “Mmm…”

Night Light’s tongue slid gently between her lips, sending little tingles radiating outward. It drew slowly upward, stretching her labia to the side, the moisture on her flushed skin quickly cooling in the dry air. His nose rubbed against the hood of her clit, a pressure that glowed with pleasure.

Just as she was ready to lie back and luxuriate, he lifted his head. “Now, I did bring more than just the hoofcuffs…”

Velvet tilted her head warily. “Hmmm?”

His horn lit, he hovered a small purple object between them. It was rounded like an egg, with a flared base. Velvet swallowed. That’s not meant to go in my pussy, is it.

“Back home, you said you might be interested in trying, well, the other hole again, but… I wasn’t sure how serious you were.” Night Light had an expression that was half-hopeful, half-worried. “So, if you’re still interested, I thought we could start with something small. Are… are you still up for it?”

Velvet glanced down at her pussy, glistening with rivulets of liquid arousal. She bit her lip. “I… I do want to try it,” she said, almost wistfully, “I just… I’m worried it’ll hurt.”

“I’ll stop the moment you feel uncomfortable,” said Night Light, friendly but serious. “Just say the word.”

“Well…” Velvet took a deep breath. It’s got to feel good, right? Otherwise there wouldn’t even be a toy. “Okay… on one condition.”

“Of course.”

“Don’t agree till you hear it…” Velvet felt a dirty smile creep onto her face. “I’ll let you use that on me… if I get to use it on you.”

Night Light blinked in shock. “Uh—er—um—”

“Only seems fair, after all.”

“Right—right now?”

“No, no,” she said, waving her bound hoof on the end of the chain. “I’ll give you a day or two to get used to the idea. But sometime this week.” She brushed her tail against her wet crotch, wafting the scent of horny mare pussy into the air. Night Light’s nostrils flared, and he bit his lip. Velvet thrust her pelvis as much as she could, pulling her tail aside to reveal both of her quivering, vulnerable entrances. “Deal?”

“I—I… well…” His eyes slowly went from glassy to focused, his jaw working as he mulled it over. “I suppose it… might be interesting.” He smiled, looking almost surprised at himself. “All right. Deal.”

“Great.” Velvet beamed. “But I hope you have some lube in that bag of yours.”

Naturally, he did. Night Light levitated the bottle out, holding the butt plug in his hooves. Scooting up beneath her, he pressed it up against her hindquarters, the tip resting between her cheeks, ever-so-slightly poking against her hole.

As her heart quickened, Night Light brought the bottle of lube down, popped the cap open, and squeezed out a long drizzle of sweet-smelling lubricant. It dripped down between them, and she gasped as she felt the cool touch of the liquid between her legs. Her hooves jerked against the cuffs as she instinctively tried to reach down to touch the stuff, drawing a little grunt of effort from her.

Night Light placed his hoof against the plug’s flared end, slowly turning it under the stream. It soon glistened with lubricant, drawing little hahs from Velvet as it rotated on her skin. The ache in her pussy was almost pushed to the back of her mind by the sensations in an entirely new area. That is, until Night Light gave her pink-flushed lips another lick.

With a yelp, her hooves yanked the cuffs. She settled back again, panting. “Is… is it ready?”

“I think so. Are you?”

“I… think so,” she echoed, with a nervous laugh. “Go slow.”

The tip pushed a bit further between her cheeks, and she felt it enter the natural gap, the bare entrance of her ass. “Fffff…” she breathed, closing her eyes and lying her head on the ground. She did her best to relax her pelvic muscles. It felt big already, and he’d barely started.

Night Light applied a little more pressure, and Velvet thrust her head into the carpet, groaning. The toy stretched her, a little more every moment, slipping deeper in. The cool kiss of the lubricant was inside her, now, standing in sharp relief against the seething heat in her pussy. It slid further, and her hooves twitched uselessly in the cuffs.

It came to a stop, still holding her stretched. Velvet winced. “Is it in?”

“Not all the way. You’re pretty tight.”

“I’m trying to relax…”

Night Light blinked up at her. “Try pushing, maybe?”

Velvet squeezed her muscles like she was trying to force it out, and to her surprise it instantly slipped deeper in under Night Light’s hoof. She gasped as the cool mass entered her completely. With his free hoof, Night Light gently began to massage her pussy in slow circles. “It’s in. How’s it feel?”

“Fff-fffull,” she managed, her mind consumed with the sensation of the foreign thing inside her butt. “Ssso full.”

“Good full?”

“It’s…” She blushed. “To be honest, it feels like I’m in the bathroom, more than anything.”

“Hmm. Well, I did forget to mention one thing.” Night Light gave her an evil grin.

Out of breath, Velvet lifted her head, feeling a twitch in her pussy. “Huh?”

Her husband’s horn glowed briefly, and suddenly the plug hummed to life, vibrating inside her. “Oh!” she cried, pulling tight against the tree. “Oh, Sisters—”

It was more intense than anything she’d ever felt. The vibrations carried through her pussy, which quivered out of her control, little flecks of lubricant flying as she thrusted helplessly under Night Light’s hoof. Nerves she’d never experienced before were lighting up like a Hearth’s Warming tree inside her, making her legs quake.

“So, honey, if it’s all right with you…” Night Light removed both hooves and pressed them to the rug. “I haven’t actually gotten to come inside that juicy pussy since the night after you got your tenure letter.”

Velvet’s head twisted back and forth, overwhelmed by the sensation in her rear. Her whole spine trembled with the vibrations, her breath lost to uncontrollable panting. “Oh—okay…”

He stood over her, leaning down and planting a deep kiss right on her lips. Velvet clung to it, a little buoy of stability in the stormy sea of her writhing body.

His hooves pressed her hind legs a little farther apart. She felt his shaft rub over her burning pussy lips as he positioned himself. “G-g-go s-super slow,” she stammered, pressing her hooves to the sides of the tree trunk.

With a smile and a nod, he pushed inside her. Velvet slammed her head sideways into the carpet, gasping. Her legs squeezed his sides, her head bending toward her chest as she took one shuddering breath after another. Night Light slid deeper, releasing a low moan as he went.

“Oh, wow…” he murmured. “I can feel it…”

She’d never been so full. His cock was inside her, pressing against the plug through her, the vibrations filling her every cell. Velvet could barely think, drowning in the waves of pleasure. She felt like she was going to start squirting everywhere, and he hadn’t even started thrusting yet.

Night Light came to a halt, buried completely inside her. She felt the gentle warmth of his balls on her skin, resting against the cold weight of the plug. Her eyes kept squeezing shut and fluttering open of their own accord. “Ahhh… ahhhhh…” she mewled, weakly pulling at the cuffs.

“Enjoying it?” asked Night Light hopefully.

She couldn’t even respond, her shoulders tensing and going limp repeatedly. “Ahh…”

Then he started moving, and it got even better.

As he pulled back, a deep, guttural moan ripped from her throat, a bestial noise like some ancient cavepony in heat, desperate to be rutted by her stud. Night Light obliged, ramming forward and squeezing the walls of her pussy aside as his cock delved inside.

“Too much?”

“N… nahhhhh… not yet… But slooooow…”

He resumed his pulls and pushes, slower than that last thrust, but still faster than she could handle. Giving up the effort of speaking, Velvet surrendered to it—not that she had a choice, bound as she was. Her legs twitched against his sides with every thrust.

“Unh… gnh…” he grunted, resting on her chest, his hips jerking backward and forward. He lay his head next to hers, rubbing it against her cheek. Velvet pressed into it, wanting to clench him tight against herself.

“Night…” she whispered, her voice stolen by the hot wet thunder in her body. “Ohhhhh…”

“This feels divine,” he said, licking the nape of her neck up to her cheek. Velvet moaned at his touch. “It’s like your whole pussy’s vibrating…”

She kept clenching helplessly at his cock, as if to stop it from pulling out. Yet out it went, and in it came again, the slippery friction lighting her on fire. “I—I—oh, fuck, FUCK,” she suddenly gasped, pulling with all her might against the tree. “That’s it—get these fucking cuffs off me.”

His horn shone, and there was a metal click. The cuff around her right hoof popped open. Not even bothering to remove the other, Velvet slapped both of her forelegs around Night Light’s chest, pulling him into her with all her strength. “Oh, yes. Harder. As hard as you fucking can.”

With a look halfway between disbelief and elation, he obliged, ramming into her like a piston. Velvet clutched him with her whole body. In the blistering heat that filled her, he was the only thing she could cling to, the only thing keeping her from falling apart. She gritted her teeth. “Fuck, Nighty—”

He kissed her, still pounding into her sopping pussy as hard as he ever had. “I love you, Velvet.”

“Oh—fuck, Night Light, I love you, you giant, beautiful—ohhh…”

“Think we—” His whole body jerked, rasping for breath. “Think we can come together?”

“Y—yes, yes, please, please, Nighty—” Velvet’s eyes rolled back up into her head. She clung to him even tighter.

“Not long… now…” Sweat dripped from his chest to hers, their slippery bodies rubbing against each other with every shaky thrust. The cuffs dangling from her left hoof slapped against them in rhythm with his hips.

“I’m not—I’m not quite—” She opened her eyes, clinging to him desperately. “A little longer, Nighty.”

“Better idea,” he grunted, his horn glowing again.

Suddenly, the vibrations grew twice as strong, and Velvet nearly lost her grip on him. “Celestia’s flaming teats, it goes FASTER—”

“Th-three settings—” Night Light looked ready to fall to pieces.

Her pussy clenched around him, her tightening muscles also squeezing the buzzing toy in her ass. It was too much. “Fucking hell, Nighty, I’m—”

Night Light’s mouth dove into hers. She slapped a hoof to the back of his head, pushing his lips against her own, their tongues mingling with desperate need. Inside her, his cock pulsed, and she felt the first flood of sticky warmth as he came. A tremor shook her, and her own orgasm hit her like a freight train.

Together, they shook and shuddered, words impossible. Night Light moaned in short bursts, a helpless “Uh—oh—ah—” synchronized with the throbs as each new splash of cum spilled into her pussy. She felt it dripping out of her as the small thrusting motion of his aftershocks squeezed dollops of his load out around the shaft.

Velvet released a breathless litany of “Fucking, fuck, ffffuck…” as she came. In the sweltering heat, it was impossible to know where her orgasm began or ended. All she knew was that the feeling of her husband’s cum inside her, the weight of him on her chest, the taste of his tongue, it was perfect. Utterly perfect.

After an eternal moment, the heat subsided enough for thought to return. The vibrations had become almost painful. “Can… can you turn it…” The buzzing switched off, and Velvet sighed with bone-deep relief. “Oh—oh, thank the Sisters…”

“Did you…” Night Light slumped on top of her, too weak to stand. “Was that too much?”

“Just… just a bit…” Velvet kissed him hard again, pulling his mane with her hoof. “After I come, that second setting’s just too…” Her horn sparked, and she rubbed his back. “Just a bit too intense.”

“N-noted,” he said, pulling out. Velvet felt a flood of his cum slough after his cock, drooling out of her pussy. “Fuck, that’s a big mess,” he said, laughing breathlessly.

Velvet let the hoof with the cuff on it drop to the carpet, suddenly giggling. Her head felt lighter than air. “Can you… can you take this thing out? I want to cuddle…”

His horn glowed, and she felt the mass of the toy squeeze back outward. She squeezed her muscles again, and it came out with a pop. Velvet groaned as her butt relaxed at last, the toy sailing vaguely in the direction of Night Light’s bag to land in the sand with a faint thump.

Night Light collapsed beside her, embracing her. She hugged him, nuzzling her snout in the crook of his neck. “You’re the best, honey.”

“I know I’m repeating myself,” he said, pushing her head back and rubbing his nose against hers, “but I love you, Velvet. Every bit of you.”

They snuggled quietly under the stars. The minutes passed in comfortable silence, the two of them nuzzling and trading kisses.

Velvet shivered. After having her skin set on fire for so many minutes, the lack of aroused energy left her skin cold. “It’s getting kind of chilly out here.”

“Chilly? We’re in a desert!” Night Light nudged her. “You’ve always been a freeze baby.”

“Hmpf.” She gave him a good-natured, gentle headbutt. “Call it the wind. I’m cold.”

“All right, I’ll get a blanket… we probably ought to clean up first, though.”

Velvet stretched luxuriantly. “You still know that old stain removal spell?”

“Hah.” Night Light’s horn glowed. “You bet I do. My offer to teach you is still open, you know.”

“I’m not the one who kept making messes on the dorm common room couch in college.”

“You sure helped make them.”

Velvet giggled. “Let he who came, clean.”

The carpet glowed yellow, and Velvet felt all the slippery reminders of their lovemaking slide off of her skin. The fluid all drained upward, into a little airborne puddle, that Night Light lazily sent drifting off into the trees to vanish into the sand. “There we go, all done.”

“We should probably wash up, still.”

“That pool’s our drinking water, mind you.”

She shrugged. “We’ve got more than one water bottle each. We’ll fill them up first.”

“All right, then,” he said, giving her a quick kiss. “Just so long as you don’t start round two in there…”

“Phew,” she said, squeezing him in another hug. She unhooked the other cuff from her hoof with a deft mouth movement and tossed it after the plug. “I don’t think I could, Nighty. I’m wrecked.”

That put a little pride on his face, she noticed with amusement. “Then let’s get cleaned up and go to bed.”

She followed him toward the water, staggering on weak-kneed legs. Three settings, she thought, shaking her head. Sisters forbid we ever use the third. If that simple toy could leave her in such a state, she couldn’t imagine what the Fornicatron 3000 was going to do to her.

Of course, she was going to get the chance soon to give Night Light a taste of his own medicine. Velvet grinned, looking forward to putting him in those infuriating cuffs.

She looked up at the stars as Night Light filled their extra bottles, sighing with delight. This is the best vacation I’ve ever been on.

* * *

The next morning, Velvet woke feeling like someone had spent the night dragging sandpaper across her unmentionables.

“Owwww,” she howled, curling into a ball on the red carpet. It didn’t help. Her back and chest felt raw, scratched beyond belief. “What the—”

“Sand burn,” said Night Light through gritted teeth. He was lying beside her on the rug, clearly attempting not to move. “Apparently my rug plan wasn’t good enough.”

“Son of a—” Velvet bit her lip, wincing. “Oh, Sisters, it's like I've been flayed.”

“I must’ve had quite a bit of it on me from lying down to handle the toy,” he grimaced. “We didn’t notice in the heat of things because of the sweat, but…”

A distant voice called out through the morning air. “Velvet! Night Light! You two ready to go?”

Tears brimmed in Velvet’s eyes. “Please tell me we have some lotion or something.”

“Sunscreen’s about it. Don’t think it’ll help.” Night Light made to lean up and hissed. “Nope. Bad idea.” He lay back down to remain immobile.

Hoofsteps came plodding toward them, shuffling in the sand. “You two awake?”

“Yeah,” Night Light grunted loudly. “You were right. We should’ve slept in the skiff.”

“Heh.” Candy stopped beside the rug, grinning. “Might’ve been hard for me to sleep if you had.”

Velvet felt her face instantly inflame with pink. “H-hard to—did you hear something last night?” Beside her, Night Light made a little hrk noise, choking.

“Kind of hard not to,” said Candy, with a wink. “Sounded like you guys were having a good time.”

She put her hooves over her eyes and moaned with shame. Oh, dear Celestia. I forgot to cast the silencing bubble. “Sisters, Don, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s no big deal. Really. You guys are on vacation, right? You should enjoy it. Reminds me of…” he coughed. “Er, nevermind. Anyway, we really should be going.”

“You’re right,” said Night Light, trying and audibly failing to keep the embarrassment out of his voice. He stood and hoisted his bag—the toys having been rinsed with soap in the spring and safely packed away the night before—over his back. “We do have a flight to catch. Let’s, erm, get moving. Ahem.” He trotted off toward the skiff, very red-faced. Candy followed, stifling a laugh.

Velvet managed to stand, still wincing from the rough patches the sand had left on her skin. Glumly, she rolled up the carpet and followed Night Light and Candy back to the vehicle. This is going to be the most awkward road trip of our lives.

She arrived at the skiff to see Night Light already sitting at the helm, staring stiffly out at the desert. Candy had mercifully pulled a book from somewhere, and was reclining against his trunk at the prow.

Setting the rolled-up carpet in the hold—she didn’t think any of them wanted to sit on it, now—Velvet climbed into the skiff. Her luggage waited for her, providing a pitiful but much-appreciated barrier between them and Candy. She sat down in the skiff, still blushing fiercely.

Night Light sighed. “Well, then, off we go.” He pulled the lever.

Nothing happened.

Blinking, he yanked it back and forth a few times. “Uh…”

Candy set his book down. “Something wrong?”

Night Light jerked the lever a little more frantically. “It’s not working.”

Velvet’s eyes widened as it suddenly clicked in her mind. “What did that Mareathon rep say? Something about a strand-and-ransom outfit posing as a travel company?”

Both Sparkles’ heads cranked around to stare at Candy. The yellow pony’s jaw hung open. “What, Sal? Nawwwww, there’s no way. He’s not… I mean…”

“You got us stranded in the middle of the desert!” Night Light’s voice rose precipitously. “Oh my Goddesses, I can’t believe—”

Velvet dropped her forehead to the side of the skiff with a thunk. “Great. Wonderful.”

Candy rubbed his hooves nervously together. “I’m sure this is just—just a misunderstanding, or a technical fault, or something. Sal would never… he owes me!”

“His name is Shady Sal, Don.” Velvet shook her head before bumping it against the hull again. “What did he owe you for?”

“Well, one time when I was selling pipes, I ran into him hauling some really big, heavy bags of flour that his boss had asked him to get rid of—I don’t know why, maybe they were having trouble with the bakers’ union, or something.” Candy fidgeted. “Since Sal and I were both salesponies of a sort, I helped him out. We buried ‘em outside the city. He said he owed me, big time.”

Good Goddesses, this idiot’s an accessory to… who knows what. “Flour, huh?” Velvet moaned. “We’re gonna die out here.”

“N-no, no, wait, come on,” said Candy, with a placating hoof gesture. “We can fix whatever’s wrong with the engine, I’m sure of it. Let me take a look.”

Velvet and Night Light both hopped out of the skiff to let Candy have access. He began poking around at the engine, muttering to himself.

“Unbelievable,” whispered Night Light. “He’s going to get us mugged.”

“Maybe he can fix the steam engine if it’s simple sabotage,” said Velvet. “He’s good with pipes, right…?”

“Aha!” yelled Candy. There was a loud CLANG. “Uh… whoops.” His head lifted out of the hull. “Either of you have a welding torch?”

Night Light’s eye twitched. “Why would we have a welding torch?”

“Well, they’re really useful…” Candy wilted. “Um, this could take a while to fix without one.”

Velvet gave a long-suffering sigh. “Well, it’s not like we have any other…” her voice trailed off. She squinted into the distant desert. “Do either of you see that?”

There was a small, black shape moving toward them. Night Light grunted irritably. “No doubt it’s Sal, come to collect our money…”

“Wouldn’t he be coming from the same way we did? Not the south…” Velvet’s eyes widened. “Uh… that looks like a fin.”

“A fin?”

Velvet raced back toward the skiff. “Everypony in! Right now.”

Night Light hopped in after her. Velvet, teeth clenched and eyes wide, focused on the fan blades, her horn glowing. Slowly, they spun into motion.

“Honey, that’s going to be exhausting; we can’t just manually run the fan all the way to—”

“It’s that or get eaten,” she said, gratified to see the blades whipping into frenzied motion.

“Eaten by wha—”

The ground beside their skiff erupted. A massive maw, as big as the skiff itself and filled with hundreds of serrated teeth, burst upward like a torpedo, gaping in hungry anticipation toward their vehicle.

Both stallions screamed, but Velvet’s horn surged, and the fan blazed to full speed. The skiff shot away in a massive cloud of whirling sand, the sand shark’s jaws snapping shut on empty air. It roared after them, hidden from sight by the raging cloud in their wake. Velvet’s heart thudded painfully in her chest, her concentration on the fan never wavering.

Night Light, looking extremely pale, tapped her on the shoulder. “H-honey, are you all right?”

“Have to concentrate.” She licked her lips, focusing hard. Keeping the blades spinning that fast was taxing. “You rest. Take over for me in an hour.”

“If… if you’re sure.” Night Light sat down uneasily. “Candy, I thought you said there weren’t any of those things around here!”

“There aren’t!”

Night Light and Velvet made outraged sounds in unison.

“Well, there aren’t supposed to be—it must’ve been attracted by all the, uh, noise last night. Drawn by vibrations, remember?”

Velvet felt like crying, though with stress or laughter she wasn’t sure. She wanted to smack last night’s optimism right out of her past self’s head. “Oh, this is the best vacation, all right…”