"Twilight Sparkle! A most grave situation has made itself known to us!"

Twilight nearly jumped out of her seat as Luna exploded into the room, nearly breaking the door down in her speed as well as shouting loud enough for the larger alicorn's voice to echo in the enclosed area of Twilight's private study-room.

"W-what? What's wrong?"

"Tis Star Struck. Poor colt, he has been struck down by a sickness most foul. Ares, Celestia and myself must attend a conference elsewhere and as such can not administer to him in his time of weakness. Please, Twilight, will you care for him? I cannot stand the thought of him being left to the cruel tides of fate while we are away."

Twilight stared blankly as she tried to process the request. Taking care of...

"What? Why me? What about Nova?"

"Away on a mission, sadly," Luna lamented. "Chrysalis will be staying but she still has no knowledge of pony sickness while you have both dealt with it yourself as well as cared for another."
Taking Twilight's hooves in her own, Luna stared pleadingly into the younger mare's eyes.
"Will you do this for us, Twilight? It would mean so much to Tia and I!"

Twilight worried her lip as her conflicting emotions made themselves known. On the one hoof, she and Star had grown fairly close. She knew Celestia became giddy whenever they went to lunch or some other event, and she knew the colt...no, she knew the young stallion had been smitten with her for years. He'd grown into a handsome male who was intelligent enough to hold an extended conversation with her, something most ponies, sometimes even her mentor Celestia, fell short on. To be able to care for him, it would be like...an extended date!

On the other hoof it was taking care of a sick pony. She'd never been the best, only barely making due when she'd had to care for Spike the few times he'd gotten an illness(mostly scale-mites). She knew she could do it, but for the life of her she couldn't understand why Luna would be asking this of her.
"I could, I mean I guess I could. If nobody else is available. It's not something I have to worry about catching is it?"

Luna smiled brightly.
"Oh, fear not Twilight. We have something that should help with that. It has been treated to resist illness."

"Oh, well in that case I don't see why not. I mean, if you can't find anybody else, I'd be happy to-"

"Splendid! If you could follow me we'll get you properly prepared."

Before she could give a word of apprehension, Luna had whisked her out the door.

<-(0)->

Star wasn't sure what to expect when he'd heard someone would be taking care of him during his illness. With his parents leaving for a global leaders conference and Nova on another mission for Dad, he thought he'd get stuck with Aunt Chrysalis as his caretaker. The mare was wonderful and according to everyone he spoke to had come a long way since her first appearance in Canterlot years ago but she still didn't seem to understand the strengths and weaknesses of those who's bodies ran on food and water. Trying to get her to care for an ill individual was an act of desperation, one that usually ended up with both the changeling and the individual, last one being his father, irritated and miserable.

A knock at his door stopped him from going on a hunt for more tissues or worse yet, trying to use magic to signal someone. The last use of magic had resulted in an hour-long migraine and the alicorn was in no hurry to experience that again.

"Good morning!" Twilight said happily, walking In The door with a cart of tissues, a jug of orange juice, a few hoof-friendly glasses, and...
Star's brain tripped as the mare followed the cart in the door, dressed in something he swore came out of one of those adult shops in the lower district. Or he would, if the damned outfit didn't fit the mare like a second skin. Sure it was an outfit for a nurse but...no nurse in their right mind would wear something like that. The stockings that went just over her knees were stark white, as was most of the clothes the mare wore. There was a simple nurse hat set upon her head as well, a cheery smile on her face as she pushed the cart.

"Now, Luna asked me to take care of you while they were gone and I agreed. After all, I'd hate to leave you to Chrysalis' tender mercies. First things first. Taking your temperature."

Star's eyes widened as he saw the thermometer the mare pulled out.

"Now according to the books I read, the most accurate way to take somebody's temperature is with a thermometer inserted just inside the rectal orifice-"

"You are NOT sticking that thing in my butt," Star rasped, giving the mare a flat stare.

"Don't be such a baby, I brought swabs and a bit of lubricant to make certain it's a totally painless process!"

"I don't need to know my tempur-hachoo!"

"Hmm, luckily I brought several boxes of tissue. I also brought water, juice, and some toast. Did you know the body loses a lot of resources through expelled mucus alone? Not to mention sweating during a fever and the lack of hunger. It's possible to become malnourished and dehydrated very quickly."

Star accepted the tissues but swatted away the hoof that was trying to take his blanket.
"I said no. The difference is less then a degree in margin of error, and a single degree isn't going to tell you I have a, a flu versus a cold. It also doesn't help when I already know what I have."

"But-but I had a full list of things I was going to do to take care of you!"

Star frowned in exasperation.
"So your checklist is more important than my comfort?"

He'd had more than enough time to learn what would stop her checklist rants. While the look of embarrassment and shame wasn't pleasant to see, neither was the path those rants usually lead to. In this case, the path of Twilight shoving a thermometer up his tail-hole.
"While I'm glad you remembered to bring lubricant, I'm not into that kind of stuff. Some painkillers and decongestant will work fine."

"Into- Star!"

"Don't give me that! You're the one, cough, that came into my room wearing something like that!"

"I'll have you know that this outfit is not only representative of healers the world over but specially treated to resist whatever sickness you've contracted!"

"Resists...great, it resists it. Does it protect you, though?" Star asked with an irritated scowl.

"Of course it does. Why would...oh no. Oh no, no no no. She wouldn't, they wouldn't...they would. Celestia and Luna would absolutely do that to me."

"Don't get me wrong, Twilight. You look drop dead gorgeous in it, but you've been bamboozled. Again."

Twilight stared at the wall for a few moments as her brain ran through all the alternatives but couldn't come up with one. With a sigh she used a bit of magic to take the stallion's tissue-pile and put it in a nearby trashcan.
"Well I guess I'll just have to take good care of you so you know just what I expect from you while you're taking care of me."

"Should I also include the rectal thermometer?" He asked.

Twilight stared at him, scowling.
"Yes."

The sly grin fell from his face.
"You want me to stick something up your butt...even though you already know what it is you have and there are other ways to take your temperature."

"It's the most accurate way!"

"...I think you've been hanging around Mom-Luna too much."

"It's not a kink!" the mare defended.

Star Struck rolled his eyes.
"Whatever you say, Twilight. I'm not judging though. I hear plenty of weird stuff from my sister. A mare asking to have something shoved up there is pretty low on the list of things she's told me about."

Twilight poured a glass of juice, giving it to her charge before pouring another for herself. After a sip, she looked at him.
"You...don't think it's weird?"

Star blinked, still mid-sip of his orange juice. Finishing the glass, he sighed.
"Not weird. Not what I'm into but...no, it's not weird. As long as you don't expect me to pleasure you with a thermometer, it doesn't bother me."

"That's...good. I never really mentioned things around the girls. Especially not Dash; I'd never hear the end of it. Applejack made that mistake once and it was all she'd talk about for the next month."

"Well, I guess I should be willing to at least listen to them," Star chuckled. "Maybe some day we can even try a few."

Twilight went beet-red for a moment, realizing who she'd been speaking to. It faded though, a strange calm feeling rolling over her.
"Maybe. In the meantime, I'll just have to take good care of you."

Twilight began moving about, fluffing his pillow and adjusting his blankets, generally doing things she thought would be considered 'taking care of a sick pony'. She then walked back to her cart, ducking under it and rummaging around for something.

Star's ears burned red as he found his eyes stuck to the mare's rump. She didn't seem to realize it, but her flicking tail was leaving him with views of the perfectly formed panties that went with the outfit, as well as the impression of two very noticeable bulges under her tail.

Twilight turned around, having found her stethoscope, and turned to see Star trying to look anywhere but at her. Seeing the slight rise under the blanket, Twilight giggled.
"I suppose I can skip blood pressure. I wouldn't get a good reading at the moment anyway."

<-(0)->

"But I wanted a nurse," Twilight giggled from the comfort of her own bed. She watched Star roll in a cart while resting in her own bed on her back, a warm blanket nicely settled on her lower body.
As Star had predicted, the outfit hadn't done anything to protect her from the illness. Now it was her turn to be sick, but it wasn't all bad. Now she had the freshly recovered stallion to watch over her.

"Well I can't fit into your outfit and I wasn't going to ask mom where she got yours. I would be a doctor anyway," Star said, using a quick illusion spell to add a coat and glasses. "Besides, doctors are sexy too."

"Oh, they certainly are," Twilight tittered, her cheeks flushing. She felt a little warm, but that was probably the fever.

"Ok, so we have your maintenance list right here. Step one, tissues."
The stallion gathered all the used tissues and disposed of them, tying off the trash bag afterwards.
"Step two, fluids."

Twilight watched with a smile as he refilled her water glass, then swapped out the pitcher with a fresh one. He lifted her in a field of magic, quickly changing out her sweaty sheets and blankets for clean ones, then turned back to his list.

"Drink, sheets, blankets...towel," he added the last bit as he placed a cool rag on her forehead, much to her delight. "Also have some chicken noodle soup. Dad's recipe, or as close as he could get."

"Chicken? As in the bird?"

"No, as in the leafy-yes chicken the bird," Star said, rolling his eyes. "I think it tastes fine. You can stomach it, as can most ponies even if they don't know they can. Chicken for protein to help your body repair, there's some good vitamins and minerals in there amidst all the vegetables and spices, and it's easy on the stomach."
"Before we get to lunch though, we need to take your temperature."

Twilight's eyes widened as he pulled out the thermometer. It was exactly the same type as the one she'd brought in, and the stallion began breathing on it and holding it in his hooves to warm it up.

"Don't want to stick a cold thermometer up there, do we?"

"N-no, no we don't."

She watched him apply a generous portion of lubricant and smear it over the thermometer before he looked to her.
"Well?"

Twilight squirmed a little before nodding. He moved to the bottom of her bed, lifting her blanket up and staring for a second. She could see a blush on his face even as she felt her own coming in harder.
'He's doing it, oh my stars he's looking right at me and I want him to-'

A squeak left her muzzle as he touched it against her rear entrance, the head of the device pressing into her flesh. In spite of his attempts it was still cold, leaving her muscles clenching in surprise.

"Come on, relax. I don't want to try to shove this in," he chided.

Twilight nodded, relaxing her ring and feeling the small rod push into her. She clenched around it, feeling the insertion with her muscular ring and staring at the ceiling. She just had to keep calm. It wasn't sexy, even if a handsome stallion was currently shoving something into her. Not sexy at all.

'I can't believe I'm doing this.'
Star stared at the mare's lower lips, a slight gleam to them even in the darkened room. He could see them perfectly, the tender flesh that called to some primal part of his brain. The dark ring with a thermometer sticking out of it wasn't really his thing, but at the moment he found his brain offering images of himself lodging his shaft into either orifice. Of the mare before him quivering and moaning and he mounted her.

He'd considered against it. He'd considered just bringing in a regular thermometer and making fun of her for wanting this but she seemed to be happy about this. Too happy, actually. She was currently staring at the ceiling, the slight sheen on her labia intensifying slightly. He worried his lip, nervous as he lit his horn with a bit of magic. Breathing in her deepening scent, he gripped the thermometer and shifted it deeper inside, pushing it firmly into the inner walls of her body.

Twilight gasped at the sudden movement, looking to him in embarrassment and curiosity.

"The reading seems kind of low for this fever, I want to make certain it's good."

Twilight nodded.
"Could you um, try the lower section? I heard that's the, the best spot."

Star stared at her, slowly shifting the thermometer until it was pressing up a new spot, his eyes fixated on Twilight's look of excitement.
'She's getting excited by this. She is totally getting excited by this. Why? This doesn't even make sense. It's not big, it's not even half as raunchy as the things my parents get into. Why is this a thing?'

'Why do I have an erection from this?'

He leaned closer, the scent of the mare increasing as he neared her sex. He could just barely make out her clit, still mostly hidden by the swelling outer lips. He just, he wanted to-

He heard Twilight gasp as his tongue ran over her sex. He licked again, looking up to see her staring at him in shock. At first he thought she was getting ready to yell at him, but it wasn't what she had in mind.

"D-don't stop. Do it again. Do it again, Doctor Struck."

He stared at her for a moment, her wording striking him as odd. Then he realized what she wanted. It was still weird, but if it made the mare he wanted more than anything happy, he could deal with a little weird.
Giving another slow lick of her swelling lips and shifting the thermometer again, he jumped onto the bed with her. He saw her eyes latch on to his own arousal but didn't say anything. Instead he used a bit more magic to spread her legs fully and pull open her vaginal canal. Shining a light inside, he frowned.
"Looks a little under-lubricated. Have you been drinking enough?"

"I, I have, but I'm sure you can help. You do know how to help me, right Doctor Struck?"

"Of course. I'm fairly certain I know a way that will help."

He dove in, driving his tongue deep into her sex and shivering at the taste. She was on his tongue, in his nose, the mare was all he could perceive at this point. And judging by the way her hooves were now on his muzzle while her thighs were shifting and jerking, Twilight was into it as well.

"Much better," he said a few moments later, coughing a bit as some of her fluids ended up going down the wrong pipe. Not very sanitary, but it wasn't what was on his mind. What was on his mind was the rock-hard stallionhood that was slapping against his belly with every beat of his heart. He looked to Twilight, who looked between her legs with flushed cheeks, staring at the cock that was dripping in need of her body.

"I, Star I will be very upset, if you don't put that thing inside of me right now."

He moved forward quickly, teleporting the thermometer out of his way and pushing himself right up against her sex. He rubbed himself against her a few times, watching their sexes react to the contact with spurts of fluid or shifting and clenching. Then he put a hoof to his dick and rocked forward slightly, his wings splaying as Twilight's folds began parting for his rod.

Twilight mewled, grabbing her pillow and flipping it onto her face even as she rocked against his shaft. It felt so good, and he'd only put the very tip inside of her. With a jerky rocking motion he pushed more into the alicorn mare, feeling her body tensing and shifting with every new attempt at entry.

"Stars, stars stars stars," he heard her chanting. He walked his forelegs up and rested on her belly, beginning to nibble at her neck even as his throbbing shaft slid further into her depths. This was what he wanted, what he'd been pursuing for years. This mare, this moment, this-

Twilight squirmed underneath him as his ring finally slid against her clit, causing her to clench around him tightly. He pushed a little more, a little more. Then he felt his hips meet hers.

He grunted, looking down at the glassy-eyed expression of, of his mare. On a whim he powered his horn, though he found it more difficult at his current level of arousal. Something that he'd expected but never really experienced. He ran his magic over her flanks, squeezing the well-cushioned pillows brought about by hours of studying and lab-time. Then his magic roved between them, causing her eyes to widen. He felt the muscular ring of her ass and pushed a small tendril of magic inside, using a bit of power to pull it open slightly. Then he poured more magic inside her, pressing around inside her body even as he gave another distracted thrust into her body.

"Oh sun and stars, deeper, push the magic deeper inside. Push, I want to feel it-"

He spread his magic along inside of her colon, allowing the tingly field to flow ever deeper even as his dick twitched and throbbed inside of her velvet passage. She clenched again, this time wrapping her hooves around his body desperately. He spread his magic even more inside her and she squealed.

He grunted as her body began to milk him, trying to hold off the orgasm but it was no use. He began shuddering, thrusting into her body even as his body emptied into the alicorn mare on the bed below him. She pulsed around him, pulling him deeper even as their horns sparked. Twilight's eyes rolled back in her head as her body was filled with the sensation of a spell sparking out in tandem with her own orgasm. The world was forgotten, and the purple mare was left staring at the inside of her skull.

For his own part, Star was grunting and panting as he painted the mare's insides, fully claiming her. It felt amazing, but after spending so long seeking this one mare and forsaking all others, he had no experience with sex. The orgasm left him exhausted and he slumped onto her.
'She can, she can have her weird fetishes,' he thought as a grin spread over his face. He nuzzled her cheek and stared at her insensate form, pulling the blanket over them both.
'If I get to see this face every day, I'll adapt.'

<-(0)->

"I don't know why you're surprised," Ares said with a chuckle as he tossed two piles of tissues into a trash bag. "I mean, what did you think would happen?"

Star opened his mouth to respond but only managed a sneeze. Twilight was still sick herself, leaving both alicorns sitting in bed. The same bed, it was to be noted.

"Just be thankful it isn't your mothers that are taking care of you, Star. You too, Twi. You'd never hear the end of it, and you can't run away and hide from them like you usually do."

Twilight just blushed, trying to hide under her blanket.
"I can't believe I did that."

"...do you regret it?" Ares asked, looking over the two younger alicorns with a knowing smile.

Twilight looked to her right, to the other sick pony in the room and a faint smile came to her face. Star was likewise looking to her with a smile. Ares' grin grew as his son managed to wheeze out a 'worth it' before descending into a coughing fit.

"Yea," Twilight agreed, shifting on the bed and wrapping her hooves around her stallion. "It was worth it."

Author's Note

Across the palace, Luna and Celestia let out a shared Huzzah that shatters most of the windows on that side of the castle.

I have a lot of these that are half-done bits and bobs, but I'm trying to finish them. I'd like to have the final main chapter of this story done this year. One that completes this story-arc, even if I don't have all the other ones done. I'll work on it later on.