At Least They Have Each Other

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4

Chapter 1

“Little cloudy isn’t it?” Grazia asked as Shocker laid down the blanket. She cupped her hoof over her eyes and looked up at the gather clouds in the sky. She looked over at him afterwards.

Shocker-C merely shrugged and said playfully, “Hey, what’s like without a little risk?” He plopped down on the red and white checkered picnic blanket and patted the empty spot in front him.

Grazia sighed at her coltfriend’s playful, uncaring demeanor, smiled at him, and then came over to join him. “You know,” she began, “last time I checked, it was too risky when it involved getting struck by lightning.” She cocked her eyebrows playfully at him and then used her magic to retrieve the sandwiches and condiments from the basket, all while listening to Shocker’s explanation.

“Well technically,” he started, “you’d be taking a risk regardless. See, because you’d be at risk for getting struck by lightning. A risk’s a risk.”

They were both quiet for a moment as Grazia tried to process the ludicrous information she had been told and then they both burst out into laughter. “You’re so weird,” she said to him as she finished making his sandwich and then passed it over to him. After that, she made her sandwich and then the two of them ate together, silent some times and talkative others. It seemed as though the clouds were going to pass over, which Grazia noted, and then asked, “Are you ready for the talent show tomorrow?” She continued to look up at the sky as she asked her question.

Shocker wrapped his foreleg around her tightly, kissed her on the head, and looked up at the cloud she was looking at. “Just as ready as you are I guess,” he said and then smiled at her when she looked up at him. Again, they were silent for a moment and then Shocker broke the silence. “I know there’s a lot riding on this. You don’t have to be so worried. I’m sure that we’ll win.”

Grazia smiled up at him and kissed him back, “You really think so?” she asked.

Once more, he pecked her on the head and said, “I know so.” He stroked her mane several times and then laid his head down atop her head. Once more, they slipped into silence as they admired the scenery all around him. Shortly after that though, his demeanor changed from inconspicuously playful to not-so-inconspicuously playful. He took a nibble of her ear, knowing that she loved it when he did that.

Grazia giggled and tried feebly to get away from him. “What are you doing?” she asked as a smile crossed her face.

Shocker kept nibbling for a few moments but then stopped. A sensuous smile on his face, he told her, “You know, I think I’d be really inspired to do my best if I had a little… pick-me-up.” He nudged her gently a few times and then finished, “If you know what I mean, of course.” He finished off by winking at her.

She giggled and blushed. “I think I might have an idea,” she fiddled around with her mane in a girlish way. “I don’t know though…” she sighed and then played hard to get, “We are pretty close to the road.”

Shocker looked over and judged the distance to the road. It was a considerable distance away from them, but if a pony was so inclined to pay really hard attention, they might be spotted. “So?” Shocker asked and looked at her with sexual adventure keen in his eyes, “Like I said, what’s life without a little risk?” Grazia merely rolled her eyes and shot a look at him that indicated he would have to do better than that. “Aww…” Shocker looked at the ground, trying to gather pity for himself. He was dramatic in his movements at first, but then he looked over at her with a playful look in his eyes and then said, “How ‘bout a quickie?” He batted his eyes playfully.

Unable to resist his cute ways anymore, Grazia caved in and decided to go ahead and give him what, really, they both wanted. “Oh alright,” she said like she wasn’t joyed at the concept, though Shocker knew better. She moved herself around and then kissed him, only to be kissed back by him. They started out innocently, but then moved on to tongue kissing each other. Shocker slid his tongue inside of Grazia’s mouth, and likewise she would roll her tongue over his and push it into his mouth when he would retract his own. As they kept kissing, Grazia could sense that he was becoming aroused. Surely enough, when she peeked her eye open, she saw that his penis was extending outwards. A blush on her face, she grabbed it with her magic and then began to stroke and send vibrating sensations through it.

Shocker closed his eyes and ecstasy and soon even began to feel so good that it was all he could do to hold back from cumming. In an attempt to preoccupy his senses, he kissed Grazia once more. She knew what he was doing though, and she knew what he must be feeling, so she stopped using her magic and then gently pushed away from him. In the process, she used her magic to apply a gentle pressure to him which indicated to him that she wanted him to sit down and get onto his back. He did so, and Grazia laid down in front of him, ready to give him oral sex.

His penis towered over her, but she was ready for the challenge. She placed it into her mouth, and as she had done before, began to fellate him slowly. She wasted no time in getting him all the way down her throat, though she kept things nice and slow at first. As she continued to move her lips up and down on his cock though, she progressively got faster and faster. She did such an excellent job and just felt so amazing that Shocker found himself hard pressed to hold back from having an orgasm.

The way she moved her lips though, was too much for him. He foundered and then released! The majority of his seed went rushing down her throat, but when she pulled off of him prematurely, a good bit of it came splashing onto her face. She didn’t normally like it when he made a mess of her mane, or her face for that matter, but she decided that she would let it slide on account of they had napkins and she was sure that the “inspirational act” would help them both tomorrow. They cleaned themselves up and then began to pack up everything that they had brought along for the picnic. Afterwards, they set back off for the hotel that they were living in for the moment.

They walked along in silence, but each knew that they had the exact same thing on their minds. The Ponyville Talent Show was coming tomorrow, and grand prize was enough money to buy a house. It was the break that had been waiting for! In the meantime though, Shocker was performing backstage work for visiting acts and odd-jobs around town while Grazia served as a waitress at not only one, but two of the restaurants in Ponyville. Still, it wasn’t enough. The both of them were very hard workers, but it seemed to be doing them no good. Earlier in the day, they discovered that now they were dipping into the last of their savings. Between food, drink, the basic necessities and space at the hotel, their money dwindled quickly. It seemed like every time they amassed three-hundred bits or more, the next time they would look into their savings they would barely be clutching fifteen bits.

It was very stressful at times, of course, but all wasn’t lost when times were at their darkest. They knew that if they didn’t have anything other than the hair on their heads, they would still have each other. Shocker and Grazia shared a bond that was unbreakable by any means. Seldom did they have to remind themselves of this reality, but when they did it was always a romantic and sweet affair.

They walked on, still in silence, as the sun began to set ahead of them. Most likely they would have to sneak past the front desk to get up to their room, so they weren’t really in a hurry. Still though, it might feel nice to get “home”. Grazia had been waiting tables all day, Shocker had been doing all the heavy lifting for an upcoming concert to take place in Ponyville, and this had been the only time today that they had gotten to see each other. On the way back to the hotel, when they arrived into Ponyville, it didn’t take long for them to pass by the house.

It was a big, spacious, and roomy home that was two stories tall and seemed to have everything other than a family inside of it. Ever since they had arrived in Ponyville, bitless and hoping for a fresh start, Grazia and Shocker had longed for the home. Beating around the bush one day, they had decided to tour it and instantly fell in love with it. When they would make a run to the market or head off to work, they might notice a family going in to view it. Naturally, their hearts would sink as they feared that the home would be purchased before they even had a chance at it. However, by some miracle, when they would walk by later or the next day even, the for sale sign would still be out in front of it and the home would still have that welcoming, yet lonely and unoccupied feel and look about it.

They slowed their pace as they crossed by it, but the Grazia stopped completely. She stared at it with longing in her eyes and a sense of determination in her soul. Shocker joined her in looking at it, and wrapped his foreleg around her in the process. “We’re gonna win this thing,” he said and nodded, both to her and the house, “We’re going to win this thing and then we’re going to move into that house.”

Inexplicably, her confidence dwindled and Grazia became fearful of what might happen if they lost. Not only would they be homeless, but literally bitless because of the admission fee that was charged. “What if we don’t?” she asked quietly and glanced down at the ground.

“Well…” Shocker began slowly and then kissed her on the cheek, “at least we’ll have each other.”

Chapter 2

Later that evening, having successfully snuck past the front desk and the manager, the two sat up in their room and prepared for the talent show. Shocker practiced his singing and Grazia practiced her jokes. They tried to separate from each other so that there would be no distractions, but it was difficult because of living in such a tiny room with such thin walls. Not only that, they would have to keep quiet because of a knocking coming from either of the neighboring rooms lest they risk the manager being called up and discovering that they were there. Not only that, but they also couldn’t help but overhear the other practicing. Shocker would chuckle at Grazia’s jokes, and Grazia would inadvertently begin to sing along with him as she wrote new material.

All of this went well on into the night until they eventually tired themselves on and decided that they had practiced enough. They fixed some sandwiches and Grazia boiled some noodles for them, and then they sat down to eat. It was a quiet dinner for the most part, but they eventually did begin to talk about the show and what the future might hold for them. They talked first about the bad side of things, such as what they would do should they lose. “I suppose I can start doing triple shifts…” Grazia said and started to tap the side of her cup of water.

Shocker hummed abruptly and then said, “I guess I’ll take up two full time jobs,” he swished the water in his cup around and then downed the last of it.

After that rough patch though, the conversation began to lighten up. They talked about what it would be like if they actually won the show, the money, and then went on to get the house afterwards. Shocker said that he would probably collapse from excitement, but when he awoke he would jump for joy and kiss her like he had never kissed her before. Grazia said that she too would be on the verge of fainting and, should she be able to keep herself from doing so, would probably shed tears of joy and then kiss her stallionfriend like he had never been kissed as well. She leaned across the table and kissed him. When she backed away, he leaned across and kissed her back.

Shortly after, they went over to the bed and laid down. They had a big day ahead of them tomorrow, and they knew that the more sleep they got the better they were likely to do, and thus, their confidence wouldn’t founder at all. For days, they had discussed what they key as to winning the competition and decided that confidence and skill would do it for them. Just those two little things had been hard for them, even. Confidence was zapped by a lack of rest because of their work schedules, and skill was zapped too by a lack of rest and also by a hectic work schedule.

Shocker flipped out the light and then the two of them cuddled in the darkness. They knew that they should try to get to sleep as soon as they could, but out of both nervousness and excitement, they found themselves unable to fall asleep. Suddenly though, Grazia burst out into laughter. Shocker cocked his eye and asked, “What’s so funny?”

Through her laughter, Grazia answered, “We’re horrible, aren’t we?” She stopped laughing for a few seconds, but unable to hold herself back anymore, lapsed back into it.

Thinking about how he had laughed at her jokes and had missed a few notes as a result, and how she had begun to sing along and retold the same jokes, he too started to laugh. “Yeah,” he said through his laughter, “We suck.” They laughed for a time and then when they eventually settled down, the room was silent once more. “You suck,” Shocker said and then nudged her.

Grazia looked up at him, smiled, and then replied, “You suck,” she nudged him back.

He replied in kind and then she did the same as well. They kept it up until eventually Shocker changed his tactic and then said, “You suck harder,” and then nudged her just a little harder.

“Yeah?” Grazia asked, “Well you suck the most!” Using both her physical strength and magic, she shoved him completely out of bed and couldn’t help but break out into muffled laughter when she heard him land on the ground.

“Hey,” he said playfully and then she felt his hoof come up onto the bed, “you know that wasn’t cool.” Still holding back laughter, and as comeuppance for her dastardly act, she allowed him more space in the bed and eventually settled back in close beside him when he climbed back into the bed.

“Yeah,” she replied as the last of her giggling came out, “I know. As a great pony once told me though, ‘What’s life without a little risk.’” She glanced smartly up at him.

“Real smooth hot stuff,” he told her, “But what kind of risk could there possibly have been?”

“Hey,” she shrugged, “The dust bunnies could have dragged you under the bed and, I dunno, had like some kind of sacrificial ritual with you or something.”

“Oooooooooh,” Shocker moaned like a ghost, “That’s scary. I hope you have a pony to hold you.” He smiled and then leaned over on her and began to kiss her.

She kissed him back and laid her head back down on the pillow, “I do, and I love him very much.”

“Aw Grazia,” Shocker replied, “I love you too.” He kissed her just one more time and then he too put his head down on the pillow. Once more, all became silent after that. Before long though, Shocker spoke up, this time in an eerie whisper. “Hey… Grazia…”

She looked over at him and asked, “Yes?”

He leaned over to her ear and continued to eerily whisper, “I see dust bunnies…” In a flash, he gently bit her ear.

“Ow!” she exclaimed playfully, in between her laugh of course, and then reached over and hit him right in the face with her pillow. “Ghoul!” she smiled at him and then flipped over, her back towards her.

“Aw, now, Grazia,” he said, “This is a serious problem.”

Still smiling, she turned her head towards him, sighed, and then said, “Good night Shocker,” with a playfully exasperated tone.

“Good night Grazia,” Shocker replied and then leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. He knew that they had been up for long enough and it could be at the cost of their performance tomorrow. Regardless though, he had every shred of hope inside of himself that they would win; it was all he could do to keep his confidence up. That, and well, Grazia too. She meant the world to him, and he was ready to give it all he had just to give her what she wanted and what she needed. He knew that it was for the both of them really, because he needed it just as much as she did, but he felt like she deserved it more than he ever would. She was a great mare.

Little did he know, Grazia, while on the verge of sleep, was having the same thoughts as he was. However, her version was a little different. She was determined to do her best tomorrow for him. She was determined to do as best she could so that she could give him the house and the life he wanted and that she needed. She knew that she needed, and certainly wanted it, as much as he did, but she felt like he deserved it more than she did. He was a great stallion.

Eventually, they were able to fall asleep. For what seemed like forever, they lay awake and worried about tomorrow, doted over how the other would feel at the outcome, good or bad, and wondered what their future would hold for them in general. They knew there were going to be good times and bad times in the future, possibly the very, very near future even, but they both found solace in knowing that whatever may happen, at least they would have each other.

Chapter 3

The next morning, the two slept in for just a little while and then got up. It was a bittersweet morning as they prepared for the day, hopping in the shower and freshening up first. Bitter because it would mean that they would be leaving the only real home they had known in what seemed like an eternity, and sweet because they very well knew that it could be the first day of the rest of their lives. Shortly after, they prepared for the show by once more training, this time leaving no room for error and going so far even as to plug up their ears with wadded up tissues.

As they practiced, rested up a little bit, eventually had some left over lunch, and practiced in-between of course, the hours counted down until eventually the evening was upon all of Ponyville. Finally, knowing that the time was near, they packed up what little they had and went out the door to check out. They both stopped in the hallway though and looked back inside of the hotel room rather worriedly and with a feeling of sadness about them, almost as if they were losing something that they would never feel or have again. Eventually though, Shocker closed the door behind them and then wrapped his foreleg around Grazia in silence. They both headed down the long hallway towards the elevator, their heads hung low.

The ride down to the lobby seemed longer than usual, and they weren’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. In any event, they finally reached the bottom floor and then approached the front desk. “Ah…” the manager began with his stern, deep voice, “Mister Shocker, and Miss Grazia, there you are. It is interesting, I think, that I didn’t see you come in last night…”

It was apparent that he was going to say more, for the way he looked at them showed that he knew they had been avoiding him, but Shocker cut him off before he could say more. “We’re just here to turn our keys in and check out sir,” he placed both keys up on the desk and slid them across to him, “You don’t have to worry about us anymore.”

“Oh…” the manager said and then blinked several times, surprised by what appeared to be nervousness or depression maybe, “Indeed.” He finished and took the keys, placing them under the desk. He tapped a few things on the register and then tallied up their total. “That’ll be two hundred and fifty-six bits.”

So there it went… all of their savings. The two of them were now bitless aside from what it would take to pay the participation fee for the talent show. With a shake in their bodies and sweat forming on their heads, they handed over the money.

The manager placed it all into the register and seemed satisfied, but a frown crossed his face when he noticed an inconsistency. “You’re short a few,” he said pointedly, though politely.

Shocker began to sweat even more, to the point that somepony could see it if they looked, and Grazia blushed. They both knew that they had held out. If they paid the rest, it would mean that they wouldn’t have the money to pay the fee. At this point though, it was looking as though they might have no choice, for the manager seemed to be unwavering. “Wait!” Grazia told Shocker with a whisper, “I think I have some extra bits in my bag.” She pulled her bag around to her front and began to sift around inside of it with her magic.”

“Yeah,” Shocker said, rather nervously when he glanced at the manager, still stern, “I might have some buried in my saddlebag.” He reached his muzzle back and began to dig around inside for even the tiniest bag of money or even the loosest bit.

What he saw before himself he thought was pitiful. The manager felt sorry for them. They were just two young ponies starting out, and after all, he had known when he had allowed them to live here that they had no place to go. He wondered where they would go when they left here… He shook himself out of his thoughts and concluded that since they were leaving anyway and since it was such a minor loss of bits, he could show some compassion. “Hey, hey,” he said rather loudly, rousing their attention. He sighed as he looked into each of their eyes, one after the other, and then said, “Look, it’s a… small loss on my part, and you were both good tenants, so… don’t worry about it.”

“Wait…” Grazia began as she tried to comprehend what she had just been told by this stallion who generally had no compassion, was stern all the time, and had a rock hard resolve, “You mean you’re letting us…”

The manager finished off for her, “Letting you leave without paying the full price?” He chuckled and then smiled at her, “Yes.”

“Whoa…” was all Shocker could say as he too finally comprehended what he had been told.

The manager pushed a button on the register that closed the drawer and then made the words “Paid In Full” come up on the cards behind the glass. Call it sheer luck or call it destiny, but for some reason the manager showed them compassion. They weren’t about to waste any time in getting out of there, lest he retract his statement, and so they thanked him and then went on their way.

Once outside, the first thing they did was kiss each other. “Listen Grazia,” Shocker began as they moved just a little further away from the hotel, “I don’t know what that was and I’m not completely sure why it happened…” Grazia nodded her head in agreement and continued to listen, “And I don’t know about you, but I’ve just got this feeling that that happened for a reason.”

Grazia nodded once more, and agreed, “I know how you feel. I… I can’t believe that happened.” It was a small occurrence, yes, and something that the average pony might just turn a blind eye to or dismiss as mere coincidence, and though it truly may have been a simple act of compassion or a random stroke of luck or coincidence, they both couldn’t help but feel as though it was some sort of sign. Granted, they had felt feelings like this before, but it had never actually been shared. The simple fact that they both felt it though, was enough to convince them that something good may be in store for them.

On the quiet walk over to the massive stage, which was not hard to find, being so gigantic in a not-so-gigantic town, they both reflected on what had happened over and over again in their minds and eventually concluded that they shouldn’t get too over-expectant of anything. There were a lot of ponies coming to this thing, and Celestia knows how many participating for the grand prize, and defeat should not be hoped for, but they knew deep down it should at least be expected. Too over-expectant, and they might inadvertently mess up and stay messed up. Too worrisome, and they may let their nervousness prevail.

Before they even knew it, they were approaching the side of the arena and were following signs which all read, “ENTER HERE!” in big bold letters. As they walked through the ropes though, which had a very short line thankfully, they realized that the art of winning the talent show was not the art itself, but it was how they presented that. For some inexplicable reason, they felt that with this little bit of knowledge they just might win.

As they waited in line to get into the waiting area where they would wait their turn to perform when the show eventually began, they chatted quietly amongst themselves and even did some on the spot practicing. “How was I?” they would take turns asking each other, to be answered of course either by a laugh or a cheer and a call for encore. Otherwise, they entertained themselves by seeing who could count the entrance line faster than the other. The line to get into the show and not participate seemed as though it was a mile long and still growing, and amongst the bustling and chatting ponies, they would lose count around the one hundred mark. Aside from that, the talking, and the quick practicing, all they could do was stand there as the line inched up and as they eventually got up to second in line.

Being this close to the admission booth struck up yet another bittersweet sensation inside of them. It was bitter because their hearts must have been racing nearly a million miles a minutes, and it was sweet because they were entering into this with each other and with the hope that they would win, sure to remind themselves of the good day they had so far. Finally, they got up to the booth, paid their toll, and went inside. Inside and behind the curtain, it was bit stuffy and there really wasn’t anywhere to sit, but at least one could see the stars starting to form in the sky up above. “I have a feeling Shocker,” Grazia said to him over the crowd as they found a cozy little spot along the wall, “That those are our stars.” She continued to look up at them with a sense of hope and wonder in her eyes. Soon, Shocker joined her and then wrapped his hoof around her neck. He kissed her on the cheek and then put his head to hers, showing his affection.

Finally, after what seemed like hours behind a loud and crowded backstage, an unknown female voice came over the microphone outside and quieted everypony down. As was formal, the voice welcomed everypony, participant and audience member alike, and then explained how events would go. It was the usual banter of a welcoming speech, and it eventually ended with the announcement of the first act. The names had been drawn out of a hat to add some variety to the show, for most of the time the acts would be sorted by intended performance, and Shocker and Grazia found themselves one after the other, with Shocker next to last. They weren’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing, and they couldn’t help but hug close to each other in concern as they listened to and peeked out from behind the curtain at what was going on outside.

Some of the acts were decent, certainly not showstoppers, but decent, and some of them were just flat out fails. However, some of them were good, really good. The applause that they heralded seemed to last forever and seemed to roar throughout the arena, and not only that, but from their spot Shocker and Grazia could see the judge’s table and would be able to see them whisper amongst each other, nod, and smile widely; it was obvious that the act pleased them as much as it did the crowd. Sometimes even, it just looked plain grim for them. When they would look back into the room they were in, they would be shocked to see that it became emptier and emptier. Really, they didn’t notice just how few ponies had participated until they began to clear out. As a matter of fact, most of the participants looked to be… couples.

Finally, the time for them to perform was at hoof. Grazia was just one act away, and watched as her competitor left the room and went out onto the stage. As she watched him walk out, something struck inside of her though. She looked down at the list of jokes she had been studying and that she had levitating in front of her, and her vision became blurry and she could no longer focus on the jokes. She didn’t know what, but there was just some feeling inside of her that told her if she told these jokes, it would cost them the show. There was no way she could do it. In an instant, she began to crumple the paper up and toss it into the waste bin that was clear across the room. Confused and shocked at what he had just witness, Shocker moved to Grazia’s front, placed his hooves on her shoulders and asked, “Whoa, Grazia, what… what are you doing? That’s your material!”

Grazia sighed and then looked deep into his eyes, “I know…” she said calmly, “I know it’s my material, and… I don’t want to do it.”

Shocker’s jaw almost hit the ground, “What do you mean you don’t want to do it?”

Still calm, Grazia only chuckled and replied, “I mean I don’t want to do my material. I don’t want to tell jokes.” She was silent for a few moments, and she bit her bottom lip both in embarrassment and in doubt of what she had just done, and then she continued, “I want to sing. I want to sing with you.”

Shocker was still confused and now even somewhat flustered at what his marefriend was doing. Just one act away and now the whole thing was in jeopardy! “What do you mean you want to sing with me?” he asked and began to circle around nervously. He bit the top of his hoof as he heard the crowd stamp their hooves a few times, indicating that something good had just happened. “You hate the song that I want to do!” he pointed out.

Grazia, still calm as could possibly be, said, “First of all, I don’t hate it. Second of all, I don’t think we should do that song.”

“You think what?!” it was all Shocker could do to muster up the stable nerve to say that.

“I don’t think we should do that song. But listen… do you remember that song we met to… our song?” She smiled gently at him.

Shocker couldn’t help but be calmed by her smile, “Yeah,” he replied and a slight smile crossed his face, “Yeah I do. ‘Last Night On Earth’. How could I ever forget that baby?”

“I want to perform that song with you tonight. I want to perform our song with you,” came her reply, “Look… I don’t know what it is, but something is telling me that if we do it like we were going to, we won’t win. I don’t know what it is, but I swear to you that I just have the worst feeling in the pit of my stomach.” She was quiet for a moment, and she looked off to the side, but then she looked back into his eyes with the deepest sincerity, “I need you to trust me.”

Hesitant at first, Shocker was silent as he thought long and hard about what she was telling him. He loved Grazia, and he trusted her with every inch of his being, but the plan that they had formed and the acts that they had so carefully selected just all seemed foolproof. His eyes darted off as well, but in what seemed like an instant they were back and looking to Grazia’s eyes; they seemed to plead with him. He ran his hoof down his muzzle and then down to his chin and asked, “You’re sure about this baby? You’re absolutely positive, without a shadow of a doubt, positive?”

Grazia was not hesitant in her answer, “Yes,” she said quietly and firmly and then nodded her head just as firmly, “Yes I am.”

Shocker took a deep breath, glanced off to the side one more time, and then foundered. His sincere love and trust for his mare kicked in, and for some reason, he too began to accept that knowledge that what he was doing was the right thing. He didn’t have much time to gather his thoughts though, before Grazia jumped up on him and gave him one of the most passionate kisses ever. He wrapped his foreleg around the back of her head and kissed her back.

At that moment, they heard the crowd cheer and the female voice announce that that was the end of the act and now their final two acts were about to take place. Really quickly, they both ran over to the backstage manager and told them what they wanted to do. She sighed and then looked both of them in the eyes, “You’re both sure about this?” They both nodded and then, upon sighing once more, she turned and went to run across the stage so that she could consult with the announcer and the judges.

“Mares and gentlecolts,” the announcer’s voice rang out, “and now for our next to last act we have…” she stopped right there and lowered the microphone as Shocker and Grazia watched from behind the curtain as the manager whispered into her ear. She nodded a few times and then the manager ran over to the judges table. “It seems we have a slight change of plans. Our final two acts would like to merge their places and perform together. Mares and gentlecolts, this will be the final act.” They peeked over at the judges table and saw one of them scratching their head, another roll her eyes, and then another yawn and then prop his head on hoof. “Now, without further delay, here is Shocker-C and Grazia performing ‘Last Night On Earth’.”

The manager rushed back behind the curtain and then ushered them outside quickly. Thankfully, there was some applause going on that indicated they had at least chosen a good and popular song. Once onstage, hearts pounding faster than ever before and sweat starting to form on their foreheads, the two of them took their places at the microphone and then adjusted it to their height. Finally, they glanced into each other’s eyes, nodded to each other, and then gave a hooves up to the ponies at the tech desk which started up the instrumental.

As the guitar intro sounded on, the two of them readied themselves to sing. They looked at the ground for a moment, but then back out to the crowd to give a good impression, and then blushed at being seconds away from performing their song live to the public. Finally, they began in perfect unison and perfect harmony:

“I sent a postcard to you

Did it go through?

Sending all my love to you

You are the moonlight of my life

Giving all my love to you

My beating heart belongs to you

I walked for miles ‘til I found you

I’m here to honor you

If I lose everything in the fire

I’m sending all my love to you

Already, the crowd began to cheer and stamp their hooves at the astounding performance. They tried to stay focused and not through themselves off, but still, they would steal glances at the judge’s tables to see their reactions and would see that they would all be hunched over and writing furiously and chatting amongst themselves quickly, though in what seemed to be a very pleased way. As they neared the halfway point of the song even, lights began to pup in the crowd and be waved around, and soon even the crowd began to join them in singing along.

Then, just as quickly as it had all started, it ended. They sang their last lines, still in perfect harmony and then the instrumental cut. There was not a moment of silence at all, between the cheering and the stamping of hooves, but they knew it was over. Pleased that they had had the courage to come out here and do that, and to do decent anyway was enough for them. They kissed each other quickly, forgetting where they were, and a massive “Awww” erupted from the crowd. As if that wasn’t enough, they received a standing ovation as well. They were the one and only act that had received a standing ovation.

They exited the stage just as quickly as they had come on and then joined the other acts in waiting for a winner to be announced. Even backstage they were complimented on an excellent act. Once more, they were in a perfect spot to see everything that was going on outside. Too nervous to speak, all they could do was watch and speculate what the other was thinking. They saw the judges writing, nodding, talking, erasing, and then repeating the process all over again. It took a good half hour for the judges to submit their folded pieces up paper up to the announcer. Her voice came back over and said, “Mare and gentlecolts, it would appear that our judges have selected a winner!” there was an excited cheer from the crowd and then she continued, “This was a tough competition and there were many, many excellent acts, but as you all know, we can only select one. The choice has been made.”

Grazia grabbed Shocker’s hoof as tightly as she could, and he too gripped her hoof tight. They took a deep breath, ready to accept either defeat or victory and then they looked into each other’s eyes. “Whatever happens…” Grazia nodded, her eyes still looking deep in his.

Shocker nodded back and then finished, “At least we’ll have each other.”

Chapter 4

“How was work babe?” Shocker asked as Grazia walked in and began to take off her uniform.

She shrugged and slipped out of it, “Same old, same old.” She sighed and then hung it up on the hanger. “What’ve you been up to all day?”

“Aside from missing you?” Shocker began, “Getting things situated around here. Probably should’ve started a little earlier, but I think I’m getting it.”

They both looked around the massive room that was their new living room in their new house and then Grazia replied, “Oh you big sweetie. Here, let me help.” She joined him in moving the couch over to the other side of the room so that it would give them a little more space while still making the room complete. After that, she began to set up little decorative vases and ornaments on the arches and mantelpieces about the room. “Hey,” she asked as inched a delicate blue glass vase over, “Are you ready for practice?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Shocker said, smiled at her, and then moved a small table over to join the couch.

After it was announced that they had won the show, and after they had accepted their award and before they had gone running as fast as they possibly could to get to the house they wanted to buy, a stallion in an expensive suit stopped them at the exit. “You both had an excellent act,” he had told them and then handed them a card, “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Hayworth Neighland, most of my acquaintances call me Mister Music for you see, I’m the head of Equestria Records.” They couldn’t believe what they were being told until he told them, “I liked your act, and I want it. You kids have something special, and I want it.” With that, he invited them to a screening at private lodge there in Ponyville and promptly left them standing there with their mouths agape. As any ponies would do, they went to the lodge and after performing a short fraction of a song for him, were promptly offered record deals with the exception that they come learn more on how to perform and steer themselves towards a particular genre of music.

Indeed, things were really looking up for them. It had been dark and dreary for them when they first got to Ponyville, but now they seemed to have everything that they wanted. Call it luck, but they accredited it to the love that they shared for each other. “We don’t have to go just yet do we?” Shocker said and then plopped down onto the cozy couch.

“What, you don’t want to be late do you?” Grazia asked and cocked an eye as she finished arranging the small items with the precision of her magic.

“No…” Shocker said and twiddled his hooves around; he looked up at the high ceiling at then continued, “But there’s still some pretty important stuff to do around here.”

“Oh yeah?” Grazia asked playfully and then looked over at him, “Like what?” She walked over and sat at his feet.

“Well I don’t know,” he said and continued to look around, “This couch needs breaking in…” He winked at her.

She blushed and then hit him in the face with a pillow. “You’re disgusting,” she said playfully as she left the pillow sitting atop his face.

“That may be true my lady,” he replied, “but you know you want me.” He pushed away the pillow and then leaned up where he met her lips with his. They kissed for a few seconds and then pulled away from each other.

“Hey,” Grazia replied, “I never said you were wrong.” She shrugged playfully and then went back to kissing him.

After a few moments of kissing, Shocker began to rub her body with his hoof, making sure to go for all of her ticklish spots and then eventually landing his hoof between her hind legs. Grazia was already wet, warm, and aroused and so Shocker took advantage of that in an attempt to arouse her even more. He ran his hoof slowly down the length of her pussy and then let it come to a rest at the bottom where he began to rub her off rather quickly.

The way she was kissing him and the way he was rubbing her was enough to make him become aroused. As his cock grew and grew in size, he didn’t try to cutely hide it from her as he usually did and thus, it didn’t take it long to become fully erect. Seeing and feeling this, Grazia stopped kissing him and began to kiss her way down his body. Finally, she reached his cock, and after kissing up and down on his shaft, began to suck him off.

She did this for a time, taking him in as deeply as she could, and then switching it up so that she was going fast instead of pushing him deep inside of her throat. Eventually though, they both tired of this and Shocker knew that now it was his turn to pleasure her. He jumped up so that he was upright and then, when she flipped around, went to mount her. He wasted no time in penetrating into her and then pushing deeply down inside of her. She let out a moan of pleasure and even a whimper of want.

In his usual fashion, he started out slowly so that she could adjust to him, but then he switched over to going as deeply as he could. With each and every thrust inside of her, Grazia let out a scream until she eventually foundered and came. Thankfully enough, it was just a tiny bit of cum that came out of her and did nothing more than run down the insides of her hind legs and stop and then dry out half way down. Even though she came already, Shocker wasn’t about to cut his mare any slack. When he had felt her pussy squeeze around his cock and when she came, that was an indicator for him to switch things up so that he was going as fast as he possibly could.

He hammered into her as fast as he could possibly thrust his torso and then, upon forcing her to orgasm once more, felt like he was about the cum. The way that his testicles slapped against her clit, and all of the sounds and sensations came racing through him and forced him closer and closer to the brink of orgasm. By the way he started to pant heavily and try to control his bodily movements, Grazia could tell that he was about to cum.

She didn’t want to pull out of him just yet because it felt so good, but she knew they would have a horrible, horrible accident on their hooves if she didn’t. They would have a messy couch! Sensing that she he was right on the brink of cumming, she pulled away from him and quickly whipped around before he could even get his last thrust in. She wrapped her lips around his cock and then, using her magic, continued to pleasure him for just a second or two until he came.

As was his usual fashion, it was a massive load. Grazia could take it though, and she blushed as he emptied off down her throat. It had been a big load, but thankfully, it didn’t take long for him to finish cumming. When he did so, and when she was sure that every last drop had came out into her mouth, she allowed him to fall back down onto the couch, completely exhausted. She swallowed, let out a satisfied “Ah”, and then joined him in laying on the couch.

For the longest time they just laid there with each other in silence. Shocker played with Grazia’s mane, and Grazia stroked his chest in silence, the only sound coming from the ticking clock. “So…” Grazia stopped her stroking and then propped herself up on one of the throw pillows, “You just wanna say we were sick?” She smiled at him mischievously.

Shocker shrugged playfully and then kissed her on the forehead, “It’s up to you babe. I have been feeling a little under the weather though lately.”

“Aw, you poor baby,” she squeezed his cheeks and then smiled at him, “Would it make things better if I gave you a kiss?”

“Might…” he replied and then glanced around the room, playing the part of an ill pony.

Grazia kissed him, and when he kissed her back she pulled away, smiled, and then said, “Good as new.”

After that, all was silent once more and they just laid inside of their house as the sun began to go down outside. “I love you Grazia,” Shocker said and then pulled her closer to him, “I love you.”

She smiled at him and then laid her head on his chest, “I love you too Shocker,” she said and then closed her eyes. “I’m glad I have you,” she finished after awhile.

“And I’m glad we have each other,” he said and then went back to stroking her mane, “I’m glad that no matter what happens me and you… we’ll always have each other.”